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Britsh prime minister Gordon Brown
(c) Nancy Ohanian

Why Sometimes Pays to Be Like Gordon Brown
by William Pfaff

Flamboyance of the Latin kind gets you into the newspapers, but for bad reasons as well as good.

Nicolas Sarkozy of France is not a man noted for charm but for his unchecked energies and the restless activity. Italy's Silvio Berlusconi is another matter entirely. He is a success in politics apparently because the majority of Italians like him.

Indeed, sometimes pays to be a nondescript politician like Gordon Brown of Britain.

The Arrogant and the Ignorant
Cal Thomas

On my last visit to the UK three months ago, Members of Parliament were embroiled in a scandal involving outrageous expense claims for such things as moat cleaning, a baby crib and second homes that were sometimes occupied by friends and relatives, or not at all

 

Northern England Hit by Floods After Heavy Rain
The military deployed intense rescue efforts to conduct house-to-house searches for people trapped in their homes.

Brown Vows to Continue War Effort in Afghanistan
The British government has made an unflinching commitment to continue its role as the second-largest troop provider in the coalition fighting the war in Afghanistan.

Wanted: People Willing to Lead the European Union
The position will undoubtedly bring diplomatic prestige. Yet none of Europe’s big three powers in foreign policy Britain, France and Germany appear to want it.

Top Jobs in E.U. Are Proving Hard to Fill
Amid fierce horse-trading, the EU's biggest foreign policy nations, Britain, France and Germany, have kept their eyes fixed on other jobs.

In Canada, a Royal Yawn for Prince Charles
As the Prince of Wales finished an 11-day visit, few Canadians seemed to be looking forward to the day his face would appear on their coins.

Britain Sets New Policy on Keeping DNA Profiles
The proposal to set a six-year limit on retaining police DNA profiles of most innocent people was made in response to a European court ruling.

Financial Regulations Chief Chides British Banks
Executives failed to accept responsibility for the financial crisis and need to change their behavior, the head of the Financial Services Authority said.

Who Is a Jew? Court Ruling in Britain Raises Question
A case involving the admissions policy of a Jewish high school in London has potential repercussions for thousands of other parochial schools across Britain.

Britain and U.S. Clash at G-20 on Tax to Insure Against Crises
Gordon Brown of Britain told G-20 finance ministers that the world needed a system to force banks, not taxpayers, to cover future bailouts.

Brown Warns Afghan Leader on Corruption
The prime minister said that President Hamid Karzai would lose British support if he failed to stem corruption.

European Bankers Defend Their Pay and Bonuses
Regulators, central bankers and citizens are criticizing bankers for continuing large compensation packages while receiving government funds.

Briton Is Front-Runner for E.U. Foreign Policy Job
With his main rival for the job facing opposition because of his political past, David Miliband, the British Foreign Secretary, has emerged as the man to beat for the European Union's new top foreign policy post.

Troop Deaths in Afghanistan Stir Outcry in Britain
The deaths of five British soldiers at the hands of an Afghan policeman have highlighted troops’ vulnerability as they pursue counterinsurgency.

Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland Given More Aid
The two lenders are told to streamline their businesses after receiving a second lifeline.

A Tweet Unleashes Vitriol on a User in Britain
Attacks and counterattacks after a criticism of Stephen Fry on Twitter were examples of how Twitter reinforces the tendency of adults to behave like high school students.

NYT > Great Britain
World news about Great Britain, including breaking news and archival articles published in The New York Times.

 

Britain's 'lost generation' as three million unemployed by next year
UNEMPLOYMENT is expected to hit three million in just over a year, according to stark figures which showed the UK was in line for a slow and painful recovery.

Body found in search for police officer swept away in floods
A BODY was found today in the search for a hero police constable swept away when a bridge collapsed during the floods.

In pictures: Boy gets a bump as he squeezes past Camilla
Three-year-old Jerrod comes off worst when his impatience gets the better of him as the Duchess of Cornwall receives a kiss from a young girl during a visit to the Freeman Fam

Energy-saving light bulbs: Maybe they're not such a bright idea after all
ENERGY-SAVING light bulbs lose a fifth of their brightness over their lifetime, according to new research.

Man who strangled wife during nightmare walks free
A MAN who strangled his wife during a nightmare in the belief he was attacking an intruder walked free from court today after the case against him was withdrawn.

Human skin grown from stem cells offers burns victims hope
SCIENTISTS have transformed stem cells into human skin in a breakthrough that may revolutionise the treatment of burns victims.

Instructor tells inquiry of fear over pool leap
AN INSTRUCTOR who helped supervise a waterfall jump where a teenager died yesterday revealed her concerns about the activity.

Calls grow for updates as Megrahi outlives key date
PRESSURE for public updates on the Lockerbie bomber's medical condition intensified last night.

Children 'simulating TV sex acts'
CHILDREN as young as five are simulating sex acts at school as a result of the pornography they are seeing on satellite television and the internet, a senior Labour MP claimed

Lebanon body may be that of Briton
A FORENSICS team searching for the body of a British journalist kidnapped by Palestinian militants more than 20 years ago have recovered human remains in Lebanon, the Foreign

Expenses watchdog chief quits
THE MP in charge of the Commons sleaze watchdog stood down last night, pending an inquiry into his second-home allowance claims.

Casserole server scoops up contest victory
A DEVICE to scoop up and serve casseroles has been crowned winner in the battle to create a brand-new kitchen invention.

Forces defuse Armagh bomb 'aimed at police'
SECURITY forces have foiled an attempt to kill police officers in Northern Ireland.

Second-hand smoke may harm health outdoors
THE smoking ban is causing outdoor second-hand smoke exposure in some areas to more than double, according to a new study.

Tune in to over 400 radio stations
PLANS were outlined yesterday for a revolutionary radio player that will allow listeners access to more than 400 BBC and commercial stations online.

Rail office staff strike called off
A PLANNED strike by Virgin Trains booking office staff at five busy railway stations today was called off after a legal challenge by the company.

Nasal sprays recalled over fears of dangerous bacteria
THOUSANDS of Vicks nasal sprays in Britain are being recalled amid fears they could contain a dangerous bacteria.

MP David Curry quits expenses role as home allowance probed
THE head of the Commons committee that deals with MPs who abuse expenses stood down pending an inquiry into his own second home allowance claims.

Woman charged with child sex offences
A WOMAN appeared in court yesterday charged with a series of child sex offences following the investigation into paedophiles Vanessa George and Colin Blanchard.

New court date for sex attack accused
A MAN accused of a series of sex attacks on elderly women was remanded in custody yesterday.

Stars in the picture for Unicef campaign
DAVID Beckham and Ewan McGregor are among the celebrities giving their support to mark the 20th anniversary of a major agreement on children's rights.

Inquiry into Nickell murder complaints
THE Independent Police Complaints Commission will look into a series of complaints made by the partner of Rachel Nickell, 23, who was killed in a frenzied knife attack in f

CBI plea on car scrap plan
THE leader of Britain's biggest business group today urged the Government to extend the car scrappage scheme until the general election to help the recovery from recession

Phil Archer's final words to be aired
FANS of BBC Radio 4's The Archers will hear the final scenes recorded by the late Norman Painting on Sunday.

Plans to crack down on shellfish harvest
LEGISLATION is being prepared to protect cockle populations in the Western Isles. The islands' MSP Alasdair Allan has raised concerns that juvenile cockles were being pi

Harman faces road charge
LABOUR deputy leader Harriet Harman faces prosecution over a car prang in which she was allegedly using her mobile phone.

TV chef Delia cooks up CBE
QUEEN of cookery Delia Smith collects her CBE today from Buckingham Palace.

Hero pilot's medals sell for £348,000
A VICTORIA Cross awarded to a Second World War bomber pilot was among a group of his medals that sold for £348,000 at a London auction yesterday.

Brown's mentor John McWilliam dies at 68
TRIBUTES have been paid to former MP John McWilliam who has died aged 68.

'Unlucky' 13 bills with time running out
GORDON Brown may have set out Labour's battle lines for the general election, but his legislative programme outlined in the Queen's Speech has been denounced as light

Scotsman.com News - UK
Get the latest breaking UK news headlines and video from Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Irealnd including updates on swine flu and the UK economy

 

Evacuation alert after torrential rain brings flood chaos
COMMUNITIES in the Borders were on evacuation alert last night after more than 24 hours of unrelenting torrential rain led to rivers bursting their banks, flooding farmland an

World's largest wave energy device switched on near Orkney
THE world's largest hydro-electric wave energy device was switched on to the national grid today.

Jail for man who gouged out ex-girlfriend's eye and threw it away
A MAN who gouged out his ex-girlfriend's eye and threw it away was jailed for 12 years today.

Edinburgh tram project set to force up water bills across Scotland
WATER bills are set to rise for customers across Scotland – because of Edinburgh's tram project, it emerged today.

Swine flu death toll in Scotland reaches 40
ANOTHER swine flu death was announced today, bringing the death toll in Scotland to 40 since the outbreak began.

Once upon a time, a book festival grew too big to fit inside its home
IT HAS been an oasis of calm amid the cultural frenzy of Edinburgh in August for 26 years.

Escape-hungry snake slithers into neighbour's shower
THEY'RE not the type of scales you would normally expect to find in a bathroom.

Lothians on flood alert after heavy rain causes disruption
EMERGENCY services were today bracing themselves for another day of fierce weather as Edinburgh and Lothians rivers remain on flood alert after heavy rainfall.

Man held over river search call
A 20-year-old man was in custody today after a call to police sparked a major river search.

In pictures: Flooding hits Scottish Borders
Torrential rain and rising river levels brought severe flooding to the south of Scotland yesterday, and Scotsman photographer Ian Rutherford was in Hawick to capture the condi

Children under five to get swine flu jab as death toll rises to 39
HEALTHY children under the age of five are to be given the swine flu jab.

Coalition vote defeat leaves Edinburgh Council care service plans in chaos
PLANS to re-tender the care services provided to some of the Capital's most vulnerable residents have been dramatically put on hold following a marathon council meeting.

'Jessica was covered in flames, her face was melting,' murder trial told
A MURDER trial yesterday heard how a teenager tried to save his friend when he found her engulfed in flames and screaming out his name for help.

Councils 'could make killing on school trusts'
A SENIOR Scottish education figure says councils could "make a killing" by adopting East Lothian's controversial trust schools scheme.

Police officer in trouble over racist e-mail
A POLICE officer has been hauled in front of a misconduct hearing by force chiefs after being caught sending a racist e-mail joke to colleagues.

Danny MacAskill saddles up for Children in Need event
IT HAS been with him up trees, bombed along spiky railings and soared over cars.

MSP Margaret Smith defends expenses claim for one-mile journey between schools
A CITY MSP put in a mileage claim for 40p for travelling just one mile between neighbouring schools.

TV crew films life at Edinburgh's Royal Dick Vet School
As a camera crew films a new fly-on-the-wall series there, we pay a visit to a treasured city institutionseries there, we pay a visit to a treasured city institution

Businessman paid undercover policeman posing as hitman to 'kneecap' his cousin
AN EDINBURGH businessman paid a "hitman" to cripple his cousin by kneecapping him during a family feud.

Teens raid drinks cabinets for kicks
POLICE have warned parents to keep an eye on their drinks cabinet after picking up schoolchildren drunk on malt whisky and expensive bottles of wine.

Keep Scotland Beautiful inspectors award Edinburgh its best-ever rating for the cleanliness of its streets
LITTER levels are at a record low in areas of the city covered by private contractors while standards are slipping elsewhere in the Capital, new figures have shown.

Funding pledge to launch hovercraft service on Forth
MILLIONS of pounds of funding has been pledged to launch a hovercraft service across the Forth.

Student 'joke' blossoms into Chelsea Flower Show invite
A GROUP of students are to put on a display at the prestigious Chelsea Flower Show, after entering the competition as a joke.

The full list of 129 MSPs and what they paid
BRIAN Adam (SNP) Aberdeen N £22,439.79

Grandfather killed teen with snapped golf club
A GRANDFATHER is facing a life sentence after stabbing a teenage neighbour to death with a broken golf club during a drunken brawl.

Animal Magic legend's suit for sale
THE zookeeper's outfit of one of Britain's best-loved television personalities, the Animal Magic presenter Johnny Morris, goes on the auction block in Edinburgh tomorr

Cutting-edge operating theatre to transform healthcare in Scotland
IT IS a room with an intimate view and the most advanced operating theatre in Europe.

So that's what the Romans gave us – more historic camps than anywhere
SCOTLAND already has more identified Roman camps than any other European country – reflecting Rome's repeated attempts to stamp its rule on the troublesome north.

Trees and benches banned for 'cluttering up' Usher Hall
IT IS a multi-million-pound project to help promote some of Edinburgh's major cultural venues.

MSP: Family heartbroken over C diff death
AN EMOTIONAL MSP has told of the "heartbreaking" experience of the family of a patient who died in the latest hospital outbreak of Clostridium difficile.

Scotsman.com News - Scotland
breaking-scotland:Scotland

 

Nationwide lashes out at rescued banks
The head of Nationwide, Britain's biggest building society, accuses government-backed companies of seriously distorting the savings market as its profits fall more than 60%

Gartmore to cut debt with £250m IPO
The asset management group says the offering will cut net debt to £150m. Managers are expected to sell up to 20% of their shares

Mortgages before current accounts at Tesco
The supermarket chain, which has pledged to become the 'people's bank', has indicated that it could look to introduce mortgages by the end of next year, but may not begin offering current accounts until 2011

Private banks seek home loan cash deposits
Private banks are demanding upfront cash deposits from wealthy homebuyers seeking property loans, as extra security against uncertain bonus income

Ashton takes EU foreign policy role
Herman Van Rompuy and Baroness Ashton were welcomed by world leaders as Europe's first full-time president and foreign policy chief, even as a chorus of critics questioned their relatively low profiles

CBI backs Tory deficit strategy
The UK employers' group has supported Conservative plans to cut the budget deficit swiftly and sharply, rejecting Gordon Brown's eight-year timetable to reduce the national debt

Push starts to make 'Digital Britain' law
The government has put forward legislation to tackle illegal file-sharing and abuse of internet domain names, protect local news provision and add age ratings to video games

Matalan draws buy-out groups
Five heavyweight private equity groups are among the first-round bidders for the privately owned discount clothing retailer

Royal Mint cashes in as gold market coins it
Production of gold coins has been dramatically ramped up as demand for the precious metal continues to surge

Business seeks freeze on labour laws
The British Chambers of Commerce is asking the government for a three-year moratorium on labour legislation amid fears that small companies in particular will struggle to absorb a concentrated wave of regulation

L&G set to appoint John Stewart as chairman
The UK's third largest life and pensions company is on the verge of appointing John Stewart, the former head of National Australia Bank, as its new chairman, pending FSA approval

UK regulator faces pensions dilemma
Transactions by British Airways and Cable and Wireless have left questions over which assets are available to repair the huge deficits that schemes of both employers now carry

Ministers defend new FSA powers
The economy will not suffer if legislation allowing bankers' bonus deals to be ripped up drives 'reckless' individuals from the City to other countries, says the government

JPMorgan unveils £1bn Cazenove deal
JPMorgan is to pay about 535p a share for the UK broker in a deal that will see David Mayhew, a well-connected corporate adviser, remain chairman of the Cazenove brand

Santander offers fee-free account
The owner of Abbey has launched a bank account that does not impose any fees – even if the holder exceeds their overdraft limit – in advance of a court decision into the fairness of penalty charges

FT.com - UK News
FT.com - UK News

 

Financing Scottish start-ups: Better up north

New firms are finding funds in Scotland, despite the downturn. Why?

THESE are tough times for venture capitalists. According to their trade association, the British Venture Capital Association (BVCA), investment in new and fledgling firms fell by 17% in 2008. The National Endowment for Science, Technology, and the Arts, a government-funded body that aims to stimulate innovation and invests in new firms, reckons private funds available for start-ups plunged 72% last year. But Scotland is bucking this trend. More money was put into young businesses last year than in 2007 (see chart) and the queue of investors is lengthening.

This doesn’t sound right. Statistics show Scotland to be one of the least enterprising parts of Britain, with a business birth rate about a third lower than the average. A survey by Aston and Strathclyde Universities in 2008 found that Scotland’s total early-stage entrepreneurial activity rate, which measures both new businesses and attitudes towards starting them, was the second lowest of Britain’s regions (only Yorkshire and Humberside was worse). Research and development spending by existing firms is abysmally low. ...

The Conservatives' media policy: Nice guys may finish first

A shadow culture secretary begins to makes his mark

THE Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has rarely been the frivolous sideshow suggested by its Whitehall nickname, “the ministry of fun”. It was a training ground for some of Labour’s brightest prospects, including James Purnell and Andy Burnham. It has a big role in staging the London Olympics in 2012, perhaps the biggest grand projet undertaken by this government. And media policy cannot be politically dull in a country with a national broadcaster funded to the tune of GBP3.5 billion by a licence fee levied on any home with a television.

The importance of the portfolio is shown too by the man who carries it for the Conservatives. The shadow cabinet has some unvaunted stalwarts in big jobs (such as Chris Grayling and Andrew Lansley, who speak on home affairs and health respectively) and promising talents lower down (Nick Herbert on rural affairs, for one, and Greg Clark on energy). But of those junior aspirants, only Jeremy Hunt, the 43-year-old culture spokesman, is mooted as a future Tory leader. Telegenic and successful in business, he is liked by the party’s high command. ...

Lending to small companies: Now, worry about the upturn

Small firms risk financial starvation just as the economy recovers

JUST when you thought an upswing was around the corner it seems that smaller firms have yet to face the worst. Nick Hood, executive chairman of Begbies Global Network, an insolvency firm, predicts an increase in insolvencies in the second quarter of next year and continuing into 2011. Insolvencies, like unemployment, are a lagging economic indicator. Both rose markedly after downturns in 1974, 1980 and 1990.

But other factors are exacerbating matters now. One is the lack of competition among lenders. Foreign institutions, which used to account for about 40% of company lending, have mostly gone home; domestic players have merged; and the market is dominated by four big banks. When they do find a willing lender, small firms are paying through the nose. The difference between the average interest rate on their loans and the central bank’s base rate shrank from April to July, but increased again in August to 3.5 percentage points, according to the Bank of England. ...

University students abroad: And is there honey still for tea?

Luring foreign students is getting harder

IN MEDIEVAL times, the choice was simple. A Christian man of means could enroll at one of a handful of universities, two of which were in England. Since then, continents have been discovered, everyone has got smarter and richer, and students have grown more demanding. How competitive are British universities today?

Although America leads the world in attracting foreign students to its campuses, Britain and Australia are not far behind. Almost 672,000 foreigners were enrolled in American universities in the autumn of 2008, compared with 183,000 in Australian universities and 342,000 in British ones in 2007 (the most recent year for which data are available). ...

Municipal Wi-Fi : Metro-net

Public wireless internet has had a tough time in America. Can Britain do better?

ON A cold and drizzly autumn day, no one would mistake Swindon, a prosperous mid-sized town near Bristol, for northern California. But it does lie on the M4 corridor, a cluster of high-tech firms that includes several names familiar from Silicon Valley. Local employers include Intel, a chipmaker, and Motorola and Alcatel-Lucent, two telecoms firms.

No surprise, then, that the borough wants to be the first in Britain to offer free wireless internet access to all its residents. Other cities have experimented—Bristol, for instance, offers wireless access in the city centre, and Norwich ran a trial between 2006 and 2008—but Swindon reckons it is the first to offer free access throughout the borough. The first phase, covering Highworth, a market town just north of Swindon itself, will be completed in December. The rest is due by April 2010, whereupon Swindonians will be able to stay online as they ride around on buses, lounge in parks or drink in pubs. ...

Reforming financial regulation: A one-trick bill

An exercise in bank-bashing which may just please consumers

CRACKING down on financial services was always likely to be a highlight of the Queen’s Speech, which sets out the government’s legislative priorities until the general election next year. With the cost of bailing out banks approaching GBP90 billion so far, lending to businesses still anaemic and bonuses once more rising, bank-bashing is now a national pastime. But the proposed new measures say more about the government’s determination to show it has bankers under control than they do about any bold new approach to financial reform. More detail was expected as The Economist went to press.

The bill sets out to strengthen regulation, in four main ways. The most eye-catching concerns bankers’ pay. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is to be allowed to tear up contracts if it thinks a bank’s bonus structure encourages risky behaviour. Its enforcement powers are likely to be strengthened in other respects too—for example, by allowing it to curb business activities as a punishment for past transgressions. Banks will be required to prepare “living wills”—blueprints for winding down the business in the event of looming bankruptcy. And a new Council on Financial Stability is to monitor risk in the system. Headed by the chancellor of the exchequer, it will include the Treasury, the Bank of England and the FSA. ...

Bagehot: I know my rights

Public-service satisfaction guaranteed, or—what, exactly?

ALTHOUGH it was introduced long before he left Downing Street, John Major’s “cones hot-line” came to epitomise, in the public imagination, the intellectual exhaustion and shrunken ambition of the Conservatives’ last term in office. Under Gordon Brown, Labour has sometimes seemed similarly petty and bereft. But now it has come up with a big idea, a theme intended to demonstrate the government’s vitality and undimmed zeal for improving Britain’s schools and hospitals. The big idea is public-service “guarantees”. It is not altogether convincing.

The story Labour now tells about the public services goes like this. In the beginning there was cash: lots of it. Then there were performance targets: lots of them too, but they were often resented and sometimes had perverse side-effects. Henceforth, since standards have risen and (whisper this part) the money has run out, improvement will be driven by new legal guarantees or entitlements. These have been increasingly touted in recent months and featured in the Queen’s Speech on November 18th. So, for example, existing targets for NHS patients—to have hospital treatment within 18 weeks of referral by their family doctor, and to see a cancer specialist within two—will become legal entitlements. Among the assorted education guarantees is that some pupils who fall behind will be able to get one-to-one catch-up tuition. Existing pledges on police-response times and regular beat meetings are also set to be converted into guarantees. ...

Gordon Brown's next six months: The great calculating machine

A nakedly political Queen’s Speech marks the start of the election campaign

“THERE are times, perhaps once every 30 years, when there is a sea-change in politics,” said the last Labour prime minister to lose a general election. “It then does not matter what you say or what you do.” Three decades and another sea-change—in 1997, when the Tories began their own long exile from power—have passed since James Callaghan’s unflinching prognosis before Margaret Thatcher defeated him.

Gordon Brown is not as bleak about next year’s general election. True, the Tories enjoy double-digit leads in the polls, as they have for much of his two-and-a-half years as prime minister. Mr Brown is even less popular than his party. But his morale was lifted when Labour retained a safe Glasgow seat at a by-election on November 12th. The vagaries of the electoral system mean that the Tories need the second-biggest swing ever to win just a one-seat majority in Parliament. And Britain is not palpably undergoing the kind of ideological conversion to the right that Mr Callaghan was describing in 1979, when the post-war Keynesian consensus lay dead. ...

Public opinion on Afghanistan: Hearts and minds

Voters are losing faith but their politicians are not, yet

OF ALL the feats performed by the Sun, such as supposedly deciding the 1992 general election, evoking sympathy for Gordon Brown is the most unlikely. The newspaper had another aim on November 10th when it published the transcript of a telephone call made by the prime minister to the mother of a soldier who had died in Afghanistan. Mr Brown had earlier misspelt her surname in a letter of condolence. Even some Conservatives, aware that his messy scrawl is the product of poor eyesight rather than indifference, thought the Sun’s behaviour crass.

Voters are getting angrier, however, about the Afghan mission itself. A ComRes/BBC opinion poll conducted on November 4th and 5th showed that 64% of Britons think the war unwinnable. Almost as many favour the withdrawal of British forces as quickly as possible. Only 54% of them say they understand the reason for their country’s presence in Afghanistan, a remarkable figure given the support for the war when it was launched in response to al-Qaeda’s attacks on New York in 2001. ...

Gordon Brown and the Tobin tax: Desperate measures

The prime minister’s flirtation with an idea whose time never seems to come

IT WAS, veterans of economic summitry noted, the kind of idea a French minister would once have floated simply to annoy Gordon Brown. On November 7th the prime minister used the meeting of G20 finance ministers in his native Scotland to set out four options for building a sturdier financial system. The most eye-catching was the hoary idea of a global tax on financial transactions. The revenue would serve as an insurance fund in case the banks required costly government bail-outs in future. Mr Brown did not invoke the name of James Tobin, the economist who proposed a levy on currency dealings in the 1970s. A disbelieving media did that for him.

Unless a Tobin tax were implemented worldwide, trading would move out of any country that enforced it. Some in Europe are keen on the levy but Mr Brown must have known that the Americans and others would kill the idea. It was also an extraordinary reverse from a politician who not only described the idea as having “big problems” and “very substantial drawbacks” when he was chancellor of the exchequer, but also showed no enthusiasm when Lord Turner, the chairman of the Financial Services Authority (FSA), raised it in August. ...

The DNA database: Slightly less big brother

The vast police directory is trimmed, but only a little

AT THE start of the 20th century, Scotland Yard’s fingerprint bureau began a quiet revolution in policing. A hundred years on, detectives have a new tool at their disposal in the form of DNA matching. In 1995 the government set up a national database recording the DNA of everyone who was convicted of a crime, hoping that it would make future cases easier to crack. Since then the England and Wales database has swollen to 5.5m entries, covering 4.8m citizens (some profiles are duplicates), or some 9% of the population. It is thought to be the biggest DNA database in the world. Despite plans announced this week to limit its growth, it looks likely to stay that way.

The reason for the database’s size is that since 2004 it has included not just those convicted of crimes but those who have been merely arrested. As far as police are concerned, the bigger the pool, the more chance of a match with their next crime scene. But the inclusion of people who have never committed a crime has been controversial. Up to a million of those in the database do not have a conviction. Chief constables have the discretion to remove profiles if they choose, but that seldom happens. One MP, Diane Abbott, is running surgeries to show her constituents how to appeal. Still, only a few hundred profiles are deleted each year. ...

Britain's economic outlook: Still overcast, but brightening

There are promising signs that the economy is improving

THE revelation in late October that Britain stayed in recession in the third quarter dampened spirits, the more so since France and Germany had already returned to growth in the spring. The sense of national chagrin over the longest and deepest recession since the second world war increased when America reported a bounceback in the three months to September. But now things may be looking up—and not a moment too soon, following a drop in GDP of almost 6% since early 2008.

Official figures released on November 11th showed that the labour market is continuing to perform a lot better than had been expected earlier this year. The number of people claiming unemployment benefit rose by just 13,000 in October—a tenth of the scary increase of over 130,000 in February. The more broadly defined jobless rate, which has risen over the past year from 5.9% of the labour force to 7.8% in the third quarter, now looks less likely to reach 10%, as once feared. ...

British banks in transition : The great escape

Is Barclays preparing for world domination or its own break-up?

BARCLAYS is the escapologist of British banking. Its quarterly results on November 10th widened the gap still more on its British rivals, RBS and Lloyds Banking Group (LBG). In recent months the bank’s share price has also outperformed that of HSBC, which is the soundest of the four (see chart). Whereas RBS and LBG are still in the clutches of government ownership—70% and 43% respectively—Barclays has kept state intervention at bay with a series of smart moves over the past year.

The bank now appears to be heading for respectable year-end pre-tax profits of around GBP6 billion. More importantly, the damage to its balance sheet from troubled assets may have peaked by the end of the year. But that does not necessarily mean it is well-equipped for a future in which dealing margins are likely to narrow and investment banking will become more volatile—and in which it will have to pay more for, or give up, the implicit government backing that it enjoys as an institution “too big to fail”. ...

Bagehot: The conjuror's bluff

Why Scotland's other politicians should go ahead and make Alex Salmond's day

TO JUDGE from the awe with which he is regarded by his rivals, Alex Salmond, Scotland’s first minister and leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) is a politician of wizard-like cunning. Look, they say, at the scandal over the release of the Lockerbie bomber. Saltires were waved in Tripoli and brickbats hurled from Washington; yet, even as he insisted the decision was Scotland’s alone, Mr Salmond contrived to deflect much of the blame onto Gordon Brown. Their deep fear is that Mr Salmond will conjure Scotland into independence.

The Westminster by-election in Glasgow North East on November 12th is one of two big political events in Scotland this month. Probably the more important is on November 30th, St Andrew’s Day, when Mr Salmond’s devolved executive will publish a draft bill to authorise a referendum on independence; he hopes to hold the vote itself in late 2010. Lacking a majority in the Scottish Parliament, the SNP needs the backing of at least one other party for the bill to pass. At the moment, that seems unlikely. But Mr Salmond’s opponents should reconsider. ...

The planning takeover: The nuclear option

A shake-up in planning could centralise power and weaken the say of local people

BRITAIN, and especially England, is occasionally compared to North Korea (only half-jokingly) as one of the most heavily centralised states in the world. Whitehall bureaucrats micromanage schools and hospitals; local government is dependent on the Treasury for most of its funding. But one bastion of local power has for years stood apart from the trend towards central control: planning, the process by which building projects are granted or denied permission to proceed. Objections from stubborn locals can derail or delay everything from small wind farms and shopping centres to huge projects of national importance. The most notorious example is probably Heathrow airport’s fifth terminal, which languished in the planning system for year upon year before eventually being approved in 2001.

On November 9th all that seemed set to change, as Ed Miliband, the energy and climate-change secretary, delivered the first of the government’s “National Policy Statements” on infrastructure. These will inform the work of the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC), an independent body set up last month. Led by Sir Michael Pitt, a veteran planner and local-authority boss, it will take over responsibility for planning nationally important projects from March 2010. Decisions that used to take years will, in theory, take just months or even weeks, with public involvement drastically curtailed. ...

The economics of nuclear power: Splitting the cost

Nuclear energy is unlikely to work without a carbon tax

PLANNING is not the only obstacle to a rebirth of nuclear power in Britain. The technology’s torturous economics are, if anything, even trickier. The trouble is that, whereas the fuel is cheap, nuclear-power plants themselves are very expensive to build and the pay-off from that investment is slow.

It is hard to know the true cost of a modern nuclear plant. Most Western reactors that are still running were built years ago (Britain’s newest, Sizewell B, is 14 years old). Two new reactors of the type Britain may choose are being constructed in Finland and France. Discouragingly, the Finnish reactor, originally priced at €3 billion (GBP2.1 billion at the time), is three years late and around €2 billion more expensive than expected. The French plant is also thought to be over budget, by around 20%. ...

Dating in the downturn: Well met by clublight

What online-dating sites are learning from pick-up artists

IN A dark underground room in central London, a group of men scribble intently in notebooks. They are in a class on “how to be funny” and they want to get it right. It has been a long day; they have already attended classes on teeth-whitening, self-esteem and personal finance as part of an intensive course on how to attract women. This evening they will put their work into practice as tutors assess their attempts to score dates in some of the city’s leading clubs.

The programme is run by Love Systems, an American firm that charges up to GBP3,000 ($5,000) for three-day boot camps. Other outfits offer similar “pick-up” courses, though they remain relatively small and almost clandestine. The real money in the “dating industry” is online. ...

Drugs policy: Blinded by science

An outspoken scientist is dumped, leaving the government in a mess

“THE Nutty Professor”, as David Nutt is known in the Sun and other newspapers, has never been far from controversy. As chairman of the government’s Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), Dr Nutt, who heads Bristol University’s psychopharmacology unit, issued reports on narcotics and recommended where each should be placed on Britain’s three-point scale of harmfulness. Such is the seething state of the drugs debate that more or less anything he said was guaranteed to enrage somebody.

Most recently he managed to upset Alan Johnson, the home secretary, who promptly sacked him on October 30th. His offence was to have repeated his view that cannabis and ecstasy are both less harmful than the government implies in its classification of them. Cannabis, currently class B, and ecstasy, class A, should both be demoted to class C, he said, adding for good measure that both were less harmful than alcohol and tobacco. ...

Reforming parliamentary expenses: The never-ending story

Those charged with fixing a discredited system are taking their time

IF THE next general election takes place in May, as is expected, a year will have elapsed since MPs were shamed by revelations of their systematically fiddled expenses and allowances. It looks increasingly possible, however, that the broken system will have been fixed only partially by the time voters go to the polls.

Gordon Brown asked the independent Committee on Standards in Public Life to propose reforms to the expenses regime soon after the scandal broke, thanks to the Daily Telegraph. Despite the prime minister’s pleas for a speedy inquiry, Sir Christopher Kelly, the committee’s chairman, reported only on November 4th. His main recommendation concerns the so-called second-homes allowance, which MPs can claim to maintain separate homes in their constituencies and in London. He wants it confined to the cost of renting a place or staying in a hotel. Those who currently claim for mortgage payments can do so for the duration of the next parliament, but any capital gains made over that time must be returned to the taxpayer. ...

The Economist: Britain
Britain

 

Cadbury slams unsolicited offer Kraft deal rejected
In a move which sees Kraft running after Cadburys tail repeatedly and falling flat the US company has made another offer on the UK Confectionary group only to be told to sod off once again; many are now speculating hostile action could be next. Cadbury plc released a statement acknowledging the...

Government poised to sell-off nationalized banks
The British government is poised to sell off some of the countrys struggling banks bailed out and nationalized in the wake of the global financial meltdown it was reported early last week. Northern Rock Royal Bank of Scotland RBS and Lloyds Bank are all set to be sold to the...

Prince Charles Camilla visit Canada for tour
Britains Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall embarked on an 11-day tour of Canada early last week taking in 12 cities in a coast-to-coast trip the princes office said. While Charles 60 has visited Canada 15 times the trip is a first for his wife Camilla who has Canadian...

Patient locked inside ambulance by forgetful driver
A 65-year-old patient in the English city of Manchester was locked inside an ambulance for 5 hours when his driver forgot about him after finishing his workday it was reported early last week. The elderly man was trapped inside the vehicle - a non-emergency ambulance used for ferrying patients to...

Anti dirty coal campaign takes to the streets
The Bristol Greenpeace Group is one of many taking part in the Big If Coal Campaign and launched their activities on 17-18 October. Ive got to do something said Fi Radford from Bristol who became involved for the first time with this campaign. People want to get involved but they dont...

BA union to ballot cabin crew members over strike action
British Airways BA early last week faced the prospect of fresh industrial action after a key trade union announced it would ballot cabin crew staff over new employment contracts. The Unite union said 14 000 of its members at the airline will vote on whether to launch a campaign of...

Many more suspects in Lockerbie case?
British investigators were initially looking for 8 further potential suspects in connection with the 1988 Lockerbie bombing for which only one man - Libyan Abdel Basset al-Megrahi has been convicted according to press reports early last week. The revelation was made on 26 October by Stuart Henderson a former detective...

Ukraine thinks about gas debts
The Ukrainian government confirmed on 22 October the concept of development and modernization of the gas transport system for 2009-2015. Ukraines Fuel and Energy Minister Yuriy Prodan mentioned a focus on the technical re-equipment of the pipelines compressor and gas distribution centres. The estimated cost of the project is $2.57...

Ukraine starts election campaign
Ukraine`s presidential election campaign is being formally launched amid hopes it could drag the country out of its political paralysis local media said. Opinion polls suggest the pro-Western President Viktor Yushchenko is unlikely even to make a run-off in the election set for 17 January. Since coming to power after...

Tesco halfyearly profits edge 1.5% higher
ON 6 OCTOBER Tesco announced half-year pre-tax profits of GBP 1.42 billion an increase of 1.5 percent on a year earlier after total sales of GBP 30.4 billion RTE Ireland reported. Group sales including VAT for the six months to the end of August rose by 8.3% to £30.4 billion....

EDF to sell its British electricity distributor
FRENCH energy provider EDF said on 2 October that it was initiating a process that could lead to the sale of its British electricity distributor EDF Energy Deutsche Presse Agentur dpa reported. The move is in line with EDFs announced intention to reduce its debt by at least €5 billion...

HSBC to delay expansion on second slump fears
HSBC HEAD Michael Geoghegan is planning to delay any expansion of the bank following concerns that there will be a second economic downturn in the coming months RTE Ireland reported. Is this a V recovery or a W? the HSBC chief executive officer said in an interview with the Financial...

Jaguar Land Rover secures Bank of India loan
BRITISH carmaker Jaguar Land Rover JLR announced on 7 October that it had secured a loan of £175 million $278 million from the State Bank of India taking to £500 million the level of new funding agreed so far this year DPA reported. JLR which is owned by Tata Motors...

World War II prisoner camp in Britain offered for sale on eBay
A former World War II prisoner-of-war camp in Britain has been advertised for sale on eBay as a unique leisure attraction at 900 000 pounds 1.4 million dollars Deutsche Presse Agentur reported on 30 September. The Harperley Prisoner of War Camp near Crook in County Durham in north-east Britain housed...

Deadline in place for Kraft in Cadbury bid
Cadburys American suitor was on September 30 issued with a put up or shut up deadline by the City takeover authority in the UK Ireland Online reported. A Takeover Panel ruling instructed US giant Kraft Foods to announce its intentions to either make a firm offer or not to bid...

New BA business service to use Shannon
Loss-making airline British Airways has launched an all-business class service from London to New York on September 29 as it seeks to get back on track amid the downturn RTE Ireland reported. The twice-daily service will operate between London City Airport and New York offering 32 seats onboard an Airbus...

Magna to axe 1 200 Vauxhall jobs
Magna is preparing to cut between 1 100 and 1 200 jobs at Vauxhall in a move that would wipe out almost a quarter of the carmakers British workforce The Daily Telegraph reported on 23 September. Magnas plans to keep the lights on at Vauxhall will be scrutinized by the...

Builders seek cash injection
British house builders Barratt Developments and Redrow have both turned to investors for fresh funds to repair their balance sheets and take advantage of weak property prices to snap up land RTE Ireland reported on 23 September. Barratt said that that it would raise £545.5 million via a 1.3 for...

Lloyds joining toxic scheme
Britains part-nationalized bank Lloyds said early last week that it was considering alternative options to the governments insurance scheme for toxic assets citing improving economic conditions RTE Ireland has reported. Lloyds Banking Group LBG which is 43 per cent-owned by taxpayers after a huge bail-out added that it might place...

Cadbury knocks back 2nd offer
In a back and forth rally that has confectionery critics standing firm to their Cadbury tastes economists and market watchers speculative and the trading floors fluctuating a letter dated September 7 from Kraft Foods Inc Kraft Foods to Cadbury plc Cadbury in relation to a proposed combination Cadbury has sent...

Barclays fined for transaction failures
British bank Barclays has been fined GBP 2.45 million for failing to provide accurate transaction reports and flaws in its reporting procedures RTE Ireland reported on September 8. Companies in the UK need to submit data for reportable transactions. The Financial Services Authority said the failures by investment bank arm Barclays...

Bausch Lomb cut jobs in Scotland
The multinational eye care company Bausch and Lomb has announced that 500 jobs are to be lost at its facility in Scotland a move which may help safeguard jobs in Waterford RTE Ireland reported on September 4. The company said that as part of a restructuring process approximately 30 new positions...

Laura Ashley blooms again
Home furnishings and fashion retailer Laura Ashley on September 9 said half-year sales rose 6.3 percent after strong trading in three of its four product areas Ireland Online reported. Like-for-like retail sales in the UK gained 6.7 percent in the six months to August 1 with sales of furniture and clothing...

BP discovers giant oil field in Gulf of Mexico
Oil company British Petroleum BP on September 2 announced the discovery of a giant new oil field in the Gulf of Mexico in what it described as one of the deepest wells ever drilled in the oil and gas industry Deutsche Presse Agentur dpa reported. The find was made at BPs...

DSG Q1 sales fall less than expected
DSG International Europes second-biggest electrical goods retailer posted a smaller than expected quarterly sales drop on September 2 and said it had agreed to sell its Polish operations RTE Ireland reported. The group which runs Currys and PC World in Ireland and the UK Elkjop in the Nordic region and...

UK branch of Lehman Brothers claims USD 100 bln
Administrators of the UK arm of Lehman Brothers on August 31 said they were preparing up to USD 100 billion 70 billion Euro in claims against the US parent as the year anniversary of the banks collapse nears Ireland Online reported. Pricewater­houseCoopers PwC is working on the mammoth claims on...

Uzbekistan to offer power for transiting electricity to Tajikistan
Uzbekistan recently agre­ed to offer its power systems for transiting Turkmen electricity to Tajikistan in autumn-winter 2009-2010. An agreement to this effect was inked in Tashkent Uzbekistan the Ministry of Energy and Industries MEI told Turkmenistan.ru. It should be recalled that in 2007 Tajikistan and Turkmenistan inked a five-year agreement...

Turkmenistan Russia discuss bilateral ties
Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov recently initiated a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev. Berdimuhamedov expressed his sincere condolences and feelings of fraternal solidarity to the President of Russia and all Russian people in connection with the recent tragic events and resulting casualties. In return the Russian Head expressed...

Talking Turkey and tourism
Ahead of a planned official visit to Turkey Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov has stressed common points between his country and Turkey while declaring the other a strategic partner for his country. Turkmen Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov speaking at a cabinet meeting held on Saturday informed cabinet members of Berdymukhamedovs upcoming...

Vacation at home - whatever the weather
Pinched by the recession disadvantaged by a strong Euro as also plagued by swine flu Britons have wholeheartedly embraced staycation this summer giving overseas holidays in hot climates a miss in favour of a bucket-and-spade break on native shores. According to one survey up to a fifth of Britons who...

Chancellor praises Tescos challenge to banks
The supermarket chain Tesco recently announced it would be opening offices in central Glasgow next year to provide customer service for its Tesco Personal Finance arm which would involve a good number of new recruitments a move that has been highly appreciated by the national finance boss. Chancellor Alistair Darling...

Record numbers of students secure a university place
For a record number of students A Level results day has also brought confirmation that they have secured a place at university or college for this autumn. A total of 371 016 applicants have had their places confirmed so far more than 60 percent of all those who have applied...

BA workers reject cost-cutting plans
Plans by British Airways to axe thousands of jobs freeze pay and make other savings were rejected by workers on July 6 company officials said. A mass meeting of more than 2 000 employees including cabin crew sent a strong message that they were not prepared to accept an assault...

Grafton expects to return to modest levels of profitable
Building materials group Grafton said it continues to experience the most challenging trading conditions in decades company officials said last week. In a trading update the group said its profitability has been impacted severely by the ongoing lack of credit and depressed markets. It said that its Irish operations which...

Summer brightening outlook
Drinks group CC has said trading in the first four months of its financial year is ahead of expectations and a successful launch for its pear cider products in Ireland and the UK company officials said. As a result it said operating profits for the full year will be at...

Lufthansa buys Bishop BMI stake
Lufthansa has wrapped its acquisitions of Brussels Airlines and BMI British Midland after it addressed competition concerns voiced by the European Commission company officials said on June 22. The German carrier obtained permission from EU competition authorities to buy Brussels Airlines in a deal worth up to 250 million Euro...

Hard times for British Airways
Airline British Airways is considering selling its OpenSkies subsidiary only a year after it acquired it company officials said. The airline which previous week asked its staff to consider working for free some weeks is believed to be considering winding up or selling the business which runs flights from Paris...

Telecoms workers told to work somewhere else part time
British telecoms provider BT is encouraging its staff in Britain to work temporarily for other companies to avoid further redundancies in the latest example of firms seeking creative alternatives to firing staff company officials said. A BT spokesman said that staff were being asked to volunteer for secondments of at...

New Financial year for Tesco
Supermarket giant Tescos first quarter sales rose 4.3 percent during a solid start to its trading year company officials said on June 16. The group said the same-store sales increase in the UK excluding VAT and fuel was achieved with a return to growth in non-food sales. Concerning its international...

Work and fly for free
Last month British Airways BA posted a record annual loss of 468.138 Euro for 2008 due partly to higher fuel bills. In order to BA for help its airlines finances BA asked tens of thousands of staff to work without pay for up to a month this summer company officials...

MS listens to the consumer voice
Marks and Spencer has announced a permanent price cut of up to 12 percent across its clothing furniture and homeware products in its Irish stores. The lower prices were to come into effect from last Thursday company officials said on June 17. Weve listened. Weve lowered campaign follows pressure from...

Farage: Im Back and Im Proud – and cautiously Eurosceptical
On his first day back in Brussels Nigel Farage as Member of the European Parliament from the United Kingdom and the Independence Party which advocates the countryrsquo;s withdrawal from the European Union took some time out from organising the new IND/DEM Group to talk to New Europersquo;s Andy Carling about...

Mining giant puts in the margin China deal
Rio Tinto global mining company has dumped plans for a 19.5 billion USD tie-up with Chinas Chinalco a world-leading company which provides engineering and technical services to the mining industry and agreed to set up an iron ore joint venture with rival BHP Billiton a global resources company and sell...

Jobs at risk as LDV looking for money
Stricken British vanmaker LDV finally applied for administration on June 8 following the collapse of a rescue deal putting thousands of jobs at risk of being axed in the coming days company officials said. A lack of money had forced the directors of the commercial company to reapply for administration...

Lloyds Banking Group cutting more jobs
Britains Lloyds Banking Group on June 9 announced the closure of nearly 200 branches of a subsidiary with the loss of 1 600 jobs company officials said. Lloyds which has been struggling to digest its mega-merger with ailing Halifax Bank of Scotland HBOS earlier this year said it would close...

Burberrys profits out the door
Luxury goods firm Burberry on May 19 reported a 13 percent fall in underlying profits despite annual revenues topping more than GBP one billion 12.5 billion Euro for the first time Ireland Online reported.The profits decline to GBP 174.6 million 199.14 million Euro for the year to March 31 came...

MS profits fall overseas expansion continues
Leading British retail chain Marks Spencer MS suffered a sharp drop in pre-tax profits to GBP 706 million USD 1.1 billion in 2008 despite a strong rise in turnover in outlets in Asia and Eastern Europe the company reported on May 19 Deutsche Presse Agentur dpa reported. Although overall sales...

Lloyds Banking Group to cut 625 UK jobs
Britains state-controlled Lloyds Banking Group is to axe 625 jobs the UKs biggest union Unite said on May 20. LBG has yet to confirm the job cuts RTE Ireland reported on May 19. The Lloyds Banking Group was created in January when Lloyds TSB bought rival lender HBOS which faced...

Vodafone profits halved on write-downs results
British mobile phone operator Vodafones full-year net profit halved on the back of write-downs according to company figures released on May 19 Deutsche Presse Agentur dpa reported. Profits fell by by 54.4 percent to GBP 3.08 billion USD 4.7 billion by revenue in the fiscal year ending in March the...

UK van maker LDV is looking for money
...

UK News - New Europe News
UK News - New Europe News: The European News Source.

 

Policeman dies amid flooding chaos

It was the wettest day ever - and a family were left mourning a "heroic" policeman while thousands of others were left counting the cost.

Widow pays tribute to 'best friend'

The widow of a hero police constable swept away when a bridge collapsed in floods has paid a moving tribute to her husband.

1,900 jobs go as off-licences close

Administrators of Threshers owner First Quench have announced another swathe of store closures and more than 1,900 job losses.

Kidnap couple's captors 'impatient'

The British couple kidnapped by Somali pirates said their captors were "losing patience" and they could be killed within a week.

Brown 'an optimist' over UK economy

Gordon Brown has brushed aside gloomy economic news, insisting he remained an "optimist" over the future of the country's finances.

Expenses-row MP denies 'house ban'

The head of the Commons committee that deals with MPs' expenses abuse has dismissed an allegation that his wife banned him from the constituency home he claimed for as "akin to Harry Potter".

Town holds 100th repatriation event

The widow of a soldier killed in Afghanistan bravely clutched a teddy bear as she watched his coffin pass through a town hosting its 100th repatriation ceremony.

Bank loses wheelchair access appeal

A disabled teenager denied access to his bank because there was no wheelchair access has won a landmark victory for disabled customers.

TV's O'Grady mourns pet dog Buster

TV host Paul O'Grady is mourning the death of his faithful sidekick, Buster.

'Dream' man free after killing wife

A man has walked free from court after strangling his wife during a nightmare.

Cut-off plan over illegal downloads

The Government has unveiled legislation designed to make Britain a "global digital capital", including plans to cut off people who repeatedly download music and films illegally.

Carjacker convicted of GBH on woman

A carjacker has been convicted of causing grievous bodily harm with intent to a mother of four by running her over in her own vehicle.

'Gangbos' extended to 14-year-olds

Powers aimed at tackling violent gangs are to be extended to children as young as 14.

Prison warning for cowboy clampers

Cowboy wheelclampers could be jailed for up to five years under tough new Government regulations.

Critics rap EU's unknown double act

Europe's new political double act are facing a baptism of fire over their credentials for two of the most important EU posts ever created.

Man who gouged out eyeball jailed

A man who gouged out his ex-girlfriend's eye and threw it away has been jailed for 12 years.

EastEnders Christmas scripts stolen

Scripts for EastEnders Christmas specials were stolen during a burglary at a writer's home, the BBC said.

Car production dip lowest this year

Car production fell last month, but the decline was the smallest this year, it has been announced.

New law to curb illegal downloads

People who illegally download music and films could have their internet connection slowed down or cut off altogether under new legislation.

Wogan hosts Children in Need night

Doctor Who, Strictly Come Dancing and Casualty are due to be part of the spectacular party for BBC Children in Need, hosted by Sir Terry Wogan, Tess Daly and Alesha Dixon.

Jordan 'ready to quit the jungle'

Fed-up Katie Price is bracing herself for more stomach-churning punishment on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! - warning she could be ready to quit.

GCSE exam grades 'are too generous'

Two of England's biggest exams boards are still being too generous when awarding grades for GCSE science, Ofqual has said.

Vicks nasal spray in health alert

Thousands of Vicks nasal sprays are being recalled amid fears they could contain a dangerous bacteria.

£10m blitz on anti-social behaviour

The Government is to spend £10 million ensuring measures to tackle anti-social behaviour are properly used.

Rap stars give rape probe statement

Members of hip hop group N-Dubz have made police statements in relation to an alleged rape, their spokesman said.

Dead due home in 100th repatriation

Two soldiers killed in Afghanistan are due to be returned to Britain in the 100th repatriation ceremony to pass through the market town of Wootton Bassett in Wiltshire.

Poll lays bare myths of 'safe sex'

More than one in 10 people (11%) do not realise a woman can get pregnant if she has sex standing up, according to a new poll.

Extend scrappage scheme, urges CBI

The leader of Britain's biggest business group has urged the Government to extend the car scrappage scheme until the general election to help the recovery from recession and boost employment.

Afghan death soldier 'was our hero'

The family of the latest British soldier killed in Afghanistan has paid tribute to a "true hero".

Call for greater NHS freedom

A former head of the NHS under Labour has shown support for a Tory policy to free the health service from tight Government control.

Harman faces charges over car smash

Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman faces prosecution for her involvement in a car smash in which she was allegedly using her mobile phone, the Crown Prosecution Service has said.

Under-fives will have swine flu jab

Healthy children aged under five are to be given the swine flu jab.

Danyl band's ex-backer denies scam

A former backer of X Factor star Danyl Johnson's old band Upfrunt pocketed more than £700,000 from unwary friends and others with a "crooked" investment scam, a court has been told.

Irish FA 'should sue over handball'

A leading lawyer has advised Irish football chiefs to issue a writ against Fifa for negligence after a blatant handball helped put France into the World Cup finals.

Jedward are talented, insists Brown

Gordon Brown has offered an olive branch to X Factor's Jedward, insisting the pair are "very good" at some things despite previously criticising their singing.

I saw ghost in my house, says Sting

Sting has claimed he once confronted a ghost which wandered into his room at the dead of night.

Goa death mother on benefits charge

The mother of Scarlett Keeling, the British teenager whose body was found on a beach in Goa, has been charged with falsely claiming more than £50,000 in income support.

Cameron attack on expenses 'U-turn'

Tory leader David Cameron has claimed the Government's legislative programme is "unravelling" after ministers were forced to concede they could introduce laws to complete the clean-up of MPs' expenses.

Liver cancer patients denied drug

People with advanced liver cancer will be denied a new drug on the NHS under latest draft guidance.

Six arrested over mutilation murder

Six men have been arrested in connection with the murder of a woman left dying and mutilated in the street.

Teens copy TV show ethanol drinking

Five teenagers have been taken to hospital after drinking ethanol in an apparent copy of a storyline from BBC drama Waterloo Road.

UK jobless 'could hit 9.5% by 2011'

The UK's jobless rate could soar to 9.5% in two years' time, even after the economy begins to recover, a leading economic body has warned.

Woman in court on child sex charges

A woman has appeared in court charged with child sex offences following the investigation into paedophiles Vanessa George and Colin Blanchard.

Crash-land passengers to sue Boeing

Passengers on a plane that crash-landed at Heathrow airport last year are suing aircraft manufacturer Boeing in a multimillion-pound action.

Swine flu: NHS bed shortage fears

The UK could suffer a shortage of intensive care beds for children with swine flu, researchers have said.

Alcohol may cut heart disease risk

Alcohol may cut the risk of heart disease by almost a third in men, research has suggested.

Thumbs up for store brand Champagne

Christmas revellers are being told they do not need to splash the cash on expensive Champagne this year after supermarket own brands performed well in a taste test for a leading consumer guide.

Speedy baby girl is named after car

A couple have revealed the unusual birthplace that inspired their baby girl's name - not Brooklyn or Paris ... but a people carrier.

 

Edinburgh Hogmanay Tickets Already Selling Fast
The full line-up for Edinburgh's rockin' Hogmanay Street Party has just been announced. If you're thinking of heading for Edinburgh for Hogmanay, the city's four day New Year's bash, you'll need a ticket for the New Year's Eve street party and all its concert stages - and they are already selling fast.

Loads of local, UK national and international acts are planned for each of the party's stages. Each stage will have a different musical theme but one Street Party Pass is good for admission to all three:

• The Waverley Stage - The Enemy headlines, along with Frightened Rabbit, We Were Promised Jetpacks and Stanley Odd.
• The Party Stage - Guest DJ The Great Calverto hosts The Cuban Brothers and Glitterbanditz.
• The West End DJ Stage promises the world's biggest dance floor, with DJ MYLO, Gary & Tom (Snow Patrol) and guest Richard Colburn (Belle & Sebastian).

All this and one of the biggest street parties in the world.

• Buy a Street Party Pass online to guarantee your place in the action
• Find out more about Edinburgh Hogmanay before you decide

Edinburgh Hogmanay Tickets Already Selling Fast originally appeared on About.com United Kingdom Travel on Friday, November 20th, 2009 at 01:49:14.

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Watch The Winter Solstice As The Ancients Did

One of the very coolest UK webcams springs into life at the end of this month to capture the winter solstice.

The Sun and its transit through the seasons seems to have been essential to ancient worship. On Orkney, several Neolithic monuments are aligned with sun and moon to suggest some ritual purpose. At Maeshowe, the island's awesome Neolithic chambered burial mound, the setting mid-winter sun lights an inner chamber for about three weeks before and after the winter solstice. You can watch it happen via the live Maeshowe webcams. They're scheduled to come to life on November 30 and will continue transmitting until February 6, 2010.

The interior webcams will operate from 2 to 4p.m. GMT and an interior camera will be aimed at Maeshowe from 9a.m. to 4p.m. GMT. Remember to make note of the time difference because when it's dark outside, there's no light inside Maeshowe. And dates are always approximate, so keep checking in to make sure.

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Watch The Winter Solstice As The Ancients Did originally appeared on About.com United Kingdom Travel on Wednesday, November 18th, 2009 at 01:33:20.

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Christmas? Don't Want to Rush You But....

Traditional British cooks have already started collecting the ingredients for their Christmas puddings and British Christmas cakes. These things take time. Unless you are teetotal, you want to have several weeks to "feed" your favorite alcoholic tipple to the masterpiece. And, even if alcohol is off the menu, a traditional pudding needs a few weeks to mature.

Find out more about Christmas Customs and Traditional British Christmas Foods, along with recipes from About.com's own experts.

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Christmas? Don't Want to Rush You But.... originally appeared on About.com United Kingdom Travel on Monday, November 16th, 2009 at 10:48:33.

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Annual Open Studio Set for Yorkshire Artspace

More than 60 artists and makers based at Yorkshire Artspace in Sheffield will open their studios to the public, next Friday and Saturday, November 20 and 21

Sculpture, painting, photography and print, furniture, jewelry, silverware, metalwork, ceramics, textiles, stained glass and mosaic will all be on show and much will be available to buy

The is a chance to explore the award winning Persistence Works, the UK's largest purpose built studio complex for artists and makers. The occasion will also be the first time visitors can look around Porter Brook Studios, a new creative complex for 18 artists, next door.

A full programme of activities is scheduled for the Open Studios event, including:

• live music with acapella harmony from The Purple Cats
• Saturday Cafe selling homemade cakes and refreshments
• original art and craft on The Marketstall
• Kid Acne talks about his new mural at Yorkshire Artspace
• a sweet making performance by Sweet Theatre, with a limited edition candy created for the event.

During the free Open Studio days, visitors can win an original painting by Paul Evans and work with artists to: Read more...

Annual Open Studio Set for Yorkshire Artspace originally appeared on About.com United Kingdom Travel on Thursday, November 12th, 2009 at 11:31:51.

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Top Ten UK Fish & Chip Shops Named

The humble fish and chip shop, affectionately known hereabouts as "the chippy", is more than just another cheap, fast food option. In Britain, it is a national institution.

Seafish, a public body sponsored by four government fisheries departments, is looking for the National Fish and Chip Shop of the Year 2009. They've named the 10 finalists. The winner, chosen on the basis of quality, value and choice, will be announced in January.

Check out the list of finalists and, if one of them is your local or if you've tried it during your travels, do please add your comments to let us know:

• Atlantic Fish Bar, Coatbridge, Lanarkshire, Scotland
• Broughton Fish & Chips, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire
• Daniel's Fish & Chips, Weymouth, Dorset
• Finnegan's, Porthcawl in Mid Glamorgan, Wales
• Fish & Chicken, Ballymena, Northern Ireland
• Great British Eatery, Birmingham, West Midlands
• Linford's Traditional Fish & Chips, Peterborough, Lincolnshire
• Metro Fish Bar, Bury, Lancashire
• Royal Fisheries, Whitby, North Yorkshire
• Scooby Snax, Colchester, Essex

National institution or not, the local chippy is still one of the most economical choices for a healthy meal in Britain. Here are some more options for inexpensive dining in the UK:

• Cheap Eats in the UK
• How to Order a Balti Meal
• Cheap Eats in London
• Brown's Café - Cheap Eats in Oxford

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Top Ten UK Fish & Chip Shops Named originally appeared on About.com United Kingdom Travel on Wednesday, November 11th, 2009 at 11:11:43.

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"Let Them Eat Cake," Boris Taunts The French

London Mayor and recent have-a-go hero Boris Johnson took a few jovial swipes at Britain's traditional rival, France, yesterday, before going on to describe developments that are making his city a better place for both visitors and Londoners.

Citing an Outer London commercial bakery that annually exports £5million worth of chocolate cake to France as an example of "the intellect, resilience and genius of Londoners", he challenged French President Nicolas Sarkozy to stop pushing Paris as a financial capital of Europe to rival London and instead, "Look to your cake."

Opening the 30th World Travel Market at London's ExCel exhibition centre, the Mayor joked, "I say, let them eat cake...made in Walthamstowe."

Before that, he had used the occasion, that attracts 5,000 exhibitors and 50,000 senior travel professionals, government ministers and international press, to make several significant Read more...

"Let Them Eat Cake," Boris Taunts The French originally appeared on About.com United Kingdom Travel on Tuesday, November 10th, 2009 at 04:57:22.

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Registration Opens for Brighton Festival Fringe

Have you got an act the public Must see? A dance company, stand-up routine, musical ensemble, play or performance art event that's time has come?

The Brighton Festival Fringe, England's biggest fringe festival, may be just the place for your debut. Registration for 2010, for performers and companies opened this week. You can register between now and February 8, 2010 to participate in the festival, scheduled for May 1 to 23, 2010.

There's an online registration form for participants who have it all sussed. But if you're not sure what's involved in putting on an event at the Brighton Festival Fringe, check out the Participants page and the very helpful Get Involved section.

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Registration Opens for Brighton Festival Fringe originally appeared on About.com United Kingdom Travel on Friday, November 6th, 2009 at 12:01:34.

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Thanksgiving in the UK-Where to Have a Trad Turkey Feast

Just because you're away from home, that's no reason not to carb load at a traditional Thanksgiving Dinner - and eat some turkey too, of course. Americans abroad, for vacation, school or work, can tuck into turkey with all the trimmings at a remarkable number of restaurants and informal gatherings around Britain. Dinners range from haughty gourmet feasts in expensive hotels to friendly homestyle feasts. Several even throw in live broadcasts of the Macy's Parade and Thanksgiving football games. In Plymouth, they make a whole weekend out of the holiday.

Find out more about Thanksgiving in Plymouth, England, and about other places to enjoy this most American festival in the UK in our round up of Thanksgiving Celebrations in the UK.

And while you're at it, Are you hosting a UK Thanksgiving Dinner open to the public? Click here to tell us more about it.

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Thanksgiving in the UK-Where to Have a Trad Turkey Feast originally appeared on About.com United Kingdom Travel on Thursday, November 5th, 2009 at 01:40:01.

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Southern Railways Half Price Deal
Day trips from London and around the south of England just got much cheaper. Southern Railways has launched half price day return tickets (that's round trip, same day) for customers who book online between now and December 15.

The fares are for off-peak, weekday journeys and some are pretty remarkable. London Victoria to Brighton, round trip, is just £10.40. Travel to Arundel with its wonderful castle and access to the South Downs Way for just £11 round trip.

Tickets must be purchased online before the closing date but you can use them after December 15. Sounds like some school vacation outings might be in the cards.

To book, visit The Southern Railways website.

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Southern Railways Half Price Deal originally appeared on About.com United Kingdom Travel on Wednesday, November 4th, 2009 at 01:20:51.

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More News About Ancient UK Gold Finds

Metal detectorists seem to be having a field day in the UK at the moment. As a small selection from the Anglo Saxon gold hoard, unearthed in September, went on show at the British Museum in London today, a new find, in Stirling, Scotland was announced.

The Stirling find, a 2,000-year-old hoard consisting of four twisted gold neckbands, or torques, is estimated to be worth £1 million. The pieces are believed to date from the 1st and 3rd centuries B.C.

The find has been declared treasure trove and is now being valued by the The Scottish Archaeological Finds Allocation Panel. The finder has no right to the find, which becomes the property of the Crown, but is customarily offered a reward equal to the appraised value.

Meanwhile, a small group of items from the West Midlands Anglo Saxon hoard went on display at the British Museum while the entire find - approximately 1,600 items - is being valued.

At the same time, a group of West Midlands institutions, including the Birmingham Museums and Art Galleries and Staffordshire County Council, announced that the gold will, ultimately, be returned to Staffordshire, in the West Midlands, where it was found.

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More News About Ancient UK Gold Finds originally appeared on About.com United Kingdom Travel on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009 at 15:19:06.

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