NHS boards said 42 practices were now under their control - a measure used in special circumstances and emergencies. Scottish Labour called it a "crisis" and claimed the number of patients registered at an "understaffed" GP practice was at least two million. The Scottish government said there was no crisis in healthcare. Public Health minister Maureen Watt said another Â£50m would be spent on primary care to ensure patients get the service they deserve. Most of Scotland's 987 General Practices are owned and run by GP partners. However, some surgeries have previously been run by health boards rather than GP partners, often because they were situated in rural areas such as the Highlands, where they might otherwise have struggled to attract an independent practice run by GPs. But in recent years, health boards have also had to step in in urban areas as an emergency measure to ensure patients continued to have access to a GP, after practices lost a number of doctors within a short space of time. This has happened at Bannockburn and Kersiebank medical practices in NHS Forth Valley, Brimmond medical practice in NHS Grampian, as well as Bangholm and Kirkliston surgeries within NHS Lothian. Leith Links in Edinburgh will also be taken over next month. Dr Carey Lunan, from the Royal College of General Practitioners, said: "In Edinburgh, where I work, a number of surgeries have had to close their lists. "When that happens it means the burden falls to the remaining practices in that area, to register patients. "The knock-on effect for patients is that they might find it difficult to register with the practice that is nearest to them. "They might have to wait longer to see a GP. It's not unusual for me to hear that patients have to wait two or three weeks for a routine appointment. "Patients might also not be able to see the same GP, so that's not great for continuity of care." Dr Lunan added: "There are problems encouraging GPs into the profession, problems retaining GPs in the profession, and that's having a knock-on effect on workload and the quality of care that we can provide and our ability to develop services. "The resourcing makes it very difficult for it to be an attractive career option for people coming in. "One in eight training posts, from the 2014 figures, were unfilled. That's very different from how it was a few years ago when it was very difficult to get into General Practice training. It was very competitive." Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) said it has been approached by people who had faced problems accessing GP services because of high demand. Christine Lang, national co-ordinator of CAS's Patient Advice and Support Service, said: "We had a case where there was a client who signed up with a new GP surgery and misread the time of the appointment. "She was told that because she missed the appointment she wouldn't be able to use the service at all. "We helped her to raise a complaint, and the GP practice explained they had a policy,

Summary: BBC Scotland research has shown that difficulties with GP recruitment have led to more doctors' surgeries being taken over by health boards.


Figures show about 57% of closures since September 2006 were in the nine more rural council areas. Conservative education spokesman Darren Millar said Labour was "letting down" rural communities with a "grim record". Ministers said they were developing plans to ensure rural schools were not "adversely affected by an over emphasis on surplus places". Earlier in July, Education Secretary Kirsty Williams told BBC Wales a new law to support rural education could be introduced. An agreement between the Liberal Democrat AM and the Labour First Minister Carwyn Jones included a pledge to look at the impact of current policy on rural schools. According to figures obtained by Mr Millar, using a written question to Ms Williams, 89 out of 157 school closures between the academic years 2006-07 and 2015-16 were in the nine predominantly-rural council areas. Ceredigion shut 20 schools over the period, Powys 18 and Carmarthenshire 17. Mr Millar said: "It is a scandal that your school is more likely to close if you live in a rural community than if you live in an urban one. "It's vital that rural Wales gets a better deal from the Welsh Labour-led government in the future and that alternatives to closure, such as schools working together to share staff and resources, are given the chance to work before closure is considered." Ms Williams, AM for Brecon and Radnorshire, secured a place in Mr Jones's Labour cabinet based on an agreement which included a promise to review current policy on surplus school places "with emphasis on rural schools". Responding to Mr Millar's comments she said ministers were "committed to reviewing the current policy on surplus school places, with an emphasis on rural schools". "This is an opportunity for us to look at the impact of the policy and what that means on the ground in rural areas about the future of education provision. "We are developing proposals on how we can ensure that schools in rural Wales are not adversely affected by an over emphasis on surplus places." There is no single definition of rural Wales, but statisticians have previously defined the nine more rural of the 22 local authorities as Anglesey, Gwynedd, Conwy, Denbighshire, Powys, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire and Monmouthshire. STATE SCHOOL CLOSURES 2006-07 TO 2015-16 *Isle of Anglesey: 5 *Gwynedd: 8 *Conwy: 6 *Denbighshire: 2 Flintshire: 6 Wrexham: 1 *Powys: 18 *Ceredigion: 20 *Pembrokeshire: 7 *Carmarthenshire: 17 Swansea: 6 Neath Port Talbot: 8 Bridgend: 5 Vale of Glamorgan: 0 Rhondda Cynon Taff: 15 Merthyr Tydfil: 5 Caerphilly: 2 Blaenau Gwent: 5 Torfaen: 6 *Monmouthshire: 6 Newport: 4 Cardiff: 5 TOTAL: 157 (*defined as rural)

Summary: A "disproportionate" number of Wales' rural schools have closed in the past decade, the Conservatives have claimed.


The roundabout at the bottom of Anderson Drive is a bottleneck. Transport Minister Keith Brown urged local residents and road users to have their say on the proposals. Any work on the Haudagain roundabout would not get under way until 2018 when construction of the Aberdeen bypass is complete. Mr Brown said: "The bottleneck at Haudagain has caused congestion for motorists using the A90 for many years. "This option, which is the original preferred option, will provide the best journey time savings, reducing congestion and the risk of accidents. "It will also provide safe crossing points for pedestrians and cyclists. "We will consider all comments made as we further develop our proposals for Haudagain with a view to publishing draft orders in summer 2015 so that we are ready to start work in spring 2018." The exhibition opened at the Lord Provost Henry E Rae Community Centre at noon, and continues on Friday. Meanwhile, Transport Scotland said three tenders had now been received for the contract to build the Aberdeen bypass.

Summary: Plans to improve the notorious Haudagain roundabout in Aberdeen with a new dual carriageway link have gone on show.


The buggy update - which was delivered via a wireless transmission - is causing affected vehicles' infotainments systems to stop working. This prevents drivers from getting navigation directions, climate controls and digital radio. The Toyota division has acknowledged the problem and said owners needed to bring their cars in. "Errant data broadcast by our traffic and weather data service provider was not handled as expected by the microcomputer in the vehicle navigation head unit (centre display) of 2014-16 Model Year Lexus vehicles and 2016 Model Year Toyota Land Cruiser," a spokeswoman explained. "In some situations, this issue can cause the head unit to restart repeatedly, affecting operation of the navigation system (if equipped), audio and climate control features. The data suspected to be the source of the error was corrected last night." The firm said "many" vehicles had been affected. It confirmed the problem only affected US-based drivers who subscribed to Enform, a data-transmitting service not available in Europe. Several motorists have posted videos showing the cars' screens booting up, flashing purple and then crashing. The fault repeats whether the vehicles are stationary or moving. At least one car owner believed their car had been "hacked". Some owners have reported that when they disconnected their car battery, it reset the unit and made it work again. But others have said this only provides a temporary fix as the problem returns several hours later. "The correction is a forced reset and clearing of the errant data from the system," Lexus later explained. "Toyota and Lexus owners experiencing these issues should visit their dealer for a complimentary system reset and a confirmation of the system. We regret any inconvenience." The issue threatens to tarnish Lexus's reputation. It had been ranked as the "most reliable" car brand in Consumer Reports' survey of the automobile industry last year. "Lexus has an excellent reputation for reliability, but these days that's not just about having trustworthy mechanical parts but its also electronics and software," commented Prof David Bailey from Aston Business School. "There are typically more lines of code in a car than an aircraft, and you only have to get one part wrong for it to cause these types of problems."

Summary: A faulty data broadcast is causing problems for Lexus car owners in the US.


Mohammad Javad Zarif told Tasnim news agency that he sent a tweet saying: "Happy Rosh Hashana". In a Twitter exchange that followed, he also distanced himself from the Holocaust denials of former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. It comes amid confusion over whether new President Hassan Rouhani also tweeted "Happy Rosh Hashana". A message came from a Twitter account thought to belong to Mr Rouhani earlier this week, but officials later said he did not have any such account. Iran has a Jewish community of up to about 30,000, according to some estimates, though much lower than the population which numbered about 80,000 prior to the 1979 Islamic revolution. The fact that Iranian leaders are congratulating Jews on the occasion of Rosh Hashana would not necessarily be controversial, say correspondents, but many in the international community are watching for signs that Mr Rouhani is seeking warmer ties with the West and Israel. Senior politicians are often the victims of Twitter hoaxes, whereby other web users set up fake accounts in their name. But in an interview given to Tasnim and published on Mr Zarif's Facebook page, the foreign minister confirmed he sent the "Happy Rosh Hashana" message because of Iran's Jewish community. By Rana RahimpourBBC Persian Service The timing of these messages on Twitter may signal a shift in Iran's diplomatic discourse. A few weeks ahead of President Rouhani's trip to New York and Iran's first meeting with the IAEA since his election, it seems the new leadership is trying to present a more pragmatic and approachable side to the Islamic Republic. Furthermore, this rare instance of Iran's foreign minister using Twitter to respond to the daughter of a senior politician in the US, a country with which Tehran has had no diplomatic relations for three decades, means Iran is attempting to distance itself from the radical views of the last president. In summary, Iran's new administration appears keen to create a more benign atmosphere for negotiations. He then had a response from Christine Pelosi, the daughter of Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader of the US House of Representatives, who said: "Thanks. The new year would be even sweeter if you would end Iran's Holocaust denial, sir". He replied: "Iran never denied it. The man who was perceived to be denying it is now gone. Happy New Year." He was referring to Mr Ahmadinejad who, during his presidency, frequently claimed the Holocaust was a lie. "We have condemned the killing of Jews by Nazis as we condemn [the] killing and crackdown on Palestinians by Zionists," Mr Zarif told Tasnim. Mr Ahmadinejad's anti-Israel comments and Tehran's controversial nuclear programme helped contribute to Iran's increased isolation in recent years. Iran has been the target of four rounds of UN sanctions and numerous UN Security Council resolutions calling on it to cease enrichment work amid fears it aims to develop nuclear weapons. Iran has refused to obey, saying it intends to enrich only for power station fuel or other peaceful purposes. President Rouhani on Thursday announced that the foreign ministry would take over nuclear negotiations with the West

Summary: Iran's foreign minister has confirmed he sent a message on Twitter wishing Jews a happy new year.


The show asked whether rape was ever a woman's fault. The poll followed on from comments The Pretenders' singer Chrissie Hynde had made in the Sunday Times. She said she blamed herself for a sexual assault she had experienced aged 21 and was criticised when she said women "have to take responsibility". The Loose Women poll drew criticism on Twitter, with one viewer Rebecca Gill calling it "off the scale of acceptability". Rape Crisis for England and Wales tweeted that it was "not an appropriate opinion poll; legally and morally the answer is a resounding 'no'" and questioned whether the show would "have a poll on whether it is ever someone's own fault if they are mugged or murdered?" Katie Russell the national spokesperson for Rape Crisis England & Wales added: "A programme like Loose Women could choose to use its high profile to raise awareness and understanding of rape, its impacts and prevalence, and to support and encourage survivors to seek services like those Rape Crisis offers; instead, they've reinforced myths and stereotypes with this ill-considered, insensitive and insulting poll." Peterborough Rape Crisis Care Group called the poll "harmful to women". In a statement issued to The Guardian an ITV spokesperson admitted the poll "was misjudged". "Loose Women is a daily talk show centred around topical debate and this discussion, linked to a recent news story, involved a full and frank range of views from the panellists. "We always want to know what our viewers think about topical issues, however, we accept that the wording of the online poll was misjudged and we apologise for any offence caused." Broadcasting watchdog Ofcom said it had received 53 complaints about the poll and will "assess these complaints before deciding whether to investigate or not". Last year, Judy Finnigan apologised for comments she made on Loose Women about rape. She upset viewers when she talked about convicted rapist Ched Evans and said the rape was "not violent". "I apologise unreservedly for any offence that I may have caused as a result of the wording I used," said the former This Morning presenter.

Summary: ITV has apologised after a poll on Loose Women about rape offended viewers.


The 24-year-old had looked set for a move to Burnley, with the two sides in contact about a deal. But a Forest statement said: "The 24-year-old has declared his intention to stay following a conversation with (chairman) Fawaz Al Hasawi. "The club welcome Lansbury's decision and will now move forward with him in their plans." Lansbury, who had loan spells with Scunthorpe, Watford, Norwich and West Ham when an Arsenal player, is currently the Reds captain. Al Hasawi tweeted a picture of himself and the player, saying: "Henri is staying with us."

Summary: Nottingham Forest have confirmed that midfielder Henri Lansbury will stay with the Championship club.


On Monday the Wall Street Journal reported he was being investigated by the US for possible drug-trafficking and money-laundering. Mr Cabello dismissed the accusations, saying no proof had been offered. In March the US imposed sanctions on a group of Venezuelan officials. Venezuelan opposition leaders and US officials have previously made similar accusations against the governments of President Nicolas Maduro and his predecessor Hugo Chavez. Mr Cabello is both president of the National Assembly and the second most senior official in the governing Socialist Party. Last month he filed a defamation suit against 22 people linked to various media outlets who had republished details of the US accusations. Correspondents say he sees the accusations as part of a campaign to discredit the country's socialist achievements and to destabilise it months before a parliamentary election. The US has sanctioned at least 50 Venezuelan government officials whom it accuses of drug-trafficking and human rights abuses. In December, President Barack Obama signed a decree classifying Venezuela as a "security threat". Last month the 11 members of the Alba group of Latin America countries urged him to repeal the decree and made clear they backed Venezuela. Thousands of Venezuelans marched through the streets in December in protest against the US sanctions against Venezuelan officials.

Summary: Venezuela's parliament has passed a motion defending its president, Diosdado Cabello, against what it described as "a campaign of lies by national and international media".


It's difficult to tell two-month-old twins Tanya and Lara apart. When their father, John, introduces them his mother-in-law Nadya bursts out laughing. "He's mixed them up again!" Nadya, 64, is visiting from Russia. Widowed two years ago she recently retired from her job as a doctor and has been helping to look after her tiny granddaughters in Edinburgh. "Everybody I care about is here, in the UK," she says. But in January her visitor visa will expire and she will have to return to Russia with no guarantee that she will be allowed back. John and his wife Yana, both British citizens, had hoped that Nadya would be able to live with them but under the government's new immigration rules, introduced in July, that will no longer be possible. To be granted indefinite leave to remain, dependent relatives must now prove they need long-term personal care to perform everyday tasks like dressing and feeding themselves. Even if Nadya met those criteria, Yana and John would need to demonstrate that they could not afford nursing care for her in Russia, while showing they have enough money to provide maintenance and accommodation for her in the UK. "It's a Catch 22 situation," says John. "It's particularly cruel," says Yana, "that my mother isn't allowed to be with us unless she's too ill to enjoy it." The home secretary, Theresa May, told Parliament in June that it has been "too easy for elderly dependent relatives to join their migrant children here and then potentially become a burden on the taxpayer." But John takes issue with this. "We as sponsors would sign a document guaranteeing that Nadya would not take benefits for at least five years. I know public money is short, but we are happy to pay for private healthcare and she has savings of her own. "There's no opportunity to prove this - the government has just pulled the shutters down." Yana and John are reluctant to relocate the family to Russia because of the unstable political situation there. Yana says she feels betrayed by her adopted country. "We have to choose between abandoning my mother on her own in Russia or leaving this country if we all want to be together. This system does not take account of family ties." Dr Avinash Kanodia has to make the same difficult choice. Recruited by the Department of Health from India in 2003 because of doctor shortages in the NHS, he works as a consultant radiologist in Perth. He, his wife and two children are now British citizens. An only child, he checked before committing to move to the UK that his mother would be allowed to join them if her health deteriorated. Under the new rules she would not be granted a visa because Dr Kanodia can afford to pay for nursing care in India. "The rules are morally wrong. I don't want to leave my mother in the care of a stranger thousands of miles away. I was lured here with the promise of citizenship. "But look how I am being treated as a

Summary: The government's promise to reduce net migration by 2015 includes measures that have made it more difficult for people from outside Europe to join family members in the UK, creating tough choices for some British residents.


The 15-year-old, from Bideford, Devon, was on a six-month "trip of a lifetime" in India with her family when she was killed. Left in Goa in the care of her 25-year-old tour guide boyfriend Julio Lobo while the rest of her family went travelling, Scarlett's partially-clothed body was discovered on Anjuna beach in Goa in February 2008. Mr Lobo was questioned by police but has not been charged in connection with Scarlett's death. Initially Goan police said she had accidentally drowned, but following a sustained campaign by Scarlett's mother, Fiona MacKeown, a second post-mortem examination revealed she had been drugged, raped and killed. The cause of death was drowning. India's Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took over the investigation and Samson D'Souza and Placido Carvalho were arrested the following month. After being charged on five counts - culpable homicide, grievous sexual assault, destroying evidence, assault with criminal force with intent to outrage a woman's modesty and administering drugs with intent to harm - the pair were bailed. The men, now aged 34 and 46, who have denied the charges, went on trial in Goa's Children's Court in March 2010, however less than a year later prosecutor SR Rivonkar resigned. A new prosecutor was assigned and although some 30 witnesses - including Scarlett's mother - have now given evidence, many more are still to do so. The prosecution is also waiting for permission to depose [examine under oath] via video conferencing, British man Michael Mannion, who claims to have 'witnessed' the attack on Scarlett. Mr Mannion, who was living in Goa but has since returned to the UK, said he would not return to India because of threats made against him - because of what he saw. "It's ridiculously frustrating, but no matter how long it takes, I'll keep fighting for justice because I have to," Ms MacKeown told BBC News. "Going through the witness list, witness by witness, it's been estimated it could take another six years. "In the meantime D'Souza and Carvalho can still carry on with their lives and that's not fair. "I don't know if they think I'll go quietly away if it goes on and on, but I can tell you that's not going to happen." In September, the latest hearing took place in the Children's Court to confirm Scarlett died from drowning. "The trial has moved on - but it is moving at a snails pace," Ms MacKeown's lawyer Vikram Varma told BBC News. "The perception with the Indian Criminal Justice system is that 'justice must be done', but the concept that it must be done in reasonable time is clearly an unacceptable burden to the state. Mr Varma said all he and Ms MacKeown can do is "wait and watch". The linearity of India's judicial process will ensure a verdict, the lawyer insists, although he fears the delay could be "many more years". "Every prosecutor across the world knows that a delay in the trial is always an advantage to the accused," he said. "Witnesses forget years later what they had seen or said - evidence

Summary: As Scarlett Keeling's family spend their sixth Christmas without her, their lawyer says the trial of two men accused of killing her is progressing "at a snail's pace".


US-based Human Rights Watch identified the rebel as Abu Sakkar, a well-known insurgent from the city of Homs, and said his actions were a war crime. The main Syrian opposition coalition said he would be put on trial. The video, which cannot be independently authenticated, seems to show him cutting out the heart. "I swear to God we will eat your hearts and your livers, you soldiers of Bashar the dog," the man says, referring to President Bashar al-Assad as he stands over the soldier's corpse. Human Rights Watch (HRW) says Abu Sakkar is the leader of a group called the Independent Omar al-Farouq Brigade, an offshoot of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) Al-Farouq Brigades. He insults Alawites, the minority offshoot of Shia Islam to which Mr Assad belongs. "The desecration and mutilation of a killed person is definitely a war crime," Peter Bouckaert, emergencies director of Human Rights Watch, told the BBC. "This one particularly disturbing because of the sectarian nature of the language used by Abu Sakkar." HRW said those committing war crimes on either side had to know that there was no impunity and that they would be brought to account. The human rights group said Abu Sakkar had been filmed before, firing rockets into Shia areas of Lebanon and posing with the bodies of guerrillas from the Lebanese Hezbollah movement killed fighting alongside Syrian government forces. "Abu Sakkar is a very significant commander - he's in charge of one of the most important battles happening in Syria right now," said Mr Bouckaert. "The danger is that extremists on both sides will feel the need to respond in kind." The video was posted on Sunday, though reporters from Time Magazine said they had first viewed the footage in April. Time said on Tuesday it had spoken to Abu Sakkar, who confirmed that he had bitten into one of the soldier's organs - though a surgeon told the magazine that the organ appeared to be a lung, not the heart or liver, as reported elsewhere. Syria's opposition coalition said the Al-Farouq Brigades were investigating the incident. "The Syrian Coalition strongly condemns this act - if it is revealed to be true," it said in a statement. "The culprit will eventually be tried in court in front of an honest and fair judiciary." It is one of the most gruesome videos to emerge in more than two years of carnage in Syria, says the BBC's Jim Muir in Beirut. The UN says nearly 80,000 people have been killed since the uprising against President Assad began in March 2011, and millions have fled their homes. By Jim MuirBBC News, Beirut The results of many terrible atrocities in Syria have surfaced on internet video clips over the past two years and more. But this one was particularly chilling because it was filmed as it happened, showing an exultantly brazen and barbaric act of gratuitous bloodthirstiness. Even if it was not intended as a provocation, it is likely to have that effect as the struggle between rebel and government forces for control of Quseir

Summary: A video which appears to show a Syrian rebel taking a bite from the heart of a dead soldier has been widely condemned.


Crawford Falconer will take up the post of chief trade negotiation adviser at the Department for International Trade. Leaving the single market would mean the UK would have to establish new bilateral trade agreements, but cannot formally do so until after Brexit. However, one economist suggested Mr Falconer would already be "building bridges" with the European Commission. The UK faces a huge challenge in resetting its trading relationship with the EU and other countries when Brexit takes effect. Trade pacts that have been negotiated by the EU with the rest of the world will no longer apply to the UK, while Britain will also need to define new trading relationships with the EU itself. Membership of the EU has meant the UK does not have a large bank of trade negotiators with recent experience. A New Zealander, Mr Falconer has more than 25 years trade experience. He has represented New Zealand at the World Trade Organization (WTO) and held various posts in foreign and trade affairs in his home country. Prof Alan Winters, from the University of Sussex's UK Trade Policy Observatory, said Mr Falconer's experience and contacts at the WTO would mean the groundwork for separating UK trade policy from Brussels would be made easier. "He knows quite a lot of the main players at the WTO and can build bridges at the European Council, which is good as there is work to be done right now," he said. "There is work he can do, such as discussions on whether the UK uses replicas or changes trade agreements that we have with nations by way of membership with the EU." One suggestion has been that initially trade agreements could be adopted by the UK in their current form - replicating them - at the point of Brexit, to be altered subsequently as new deals are agreed. International Trade Secretary Liam Fox said of the new appointee: "Crawford Falconer brings a wealth of international trade expertise to our international economic department, ensuring that as we leave the EU, the UK will be at the forefront of global free trade and driving the case for international openness." Mr Falconer will lead trade policy and negotiation teams at the DIT. His appointment was first announced in June.

Summary: The man in charge of negotiating the UK's trade deals once Brexit is finalised, starts his job this week.


Hammers manager Slaven Bilic said earlier this month that Payet did not want to play for the club, but added the 29-year-old would not be sold. But, after rejecting two bids from Marseille and signing Robert Snodgrass, West Ham have decided to sell the France international. Payet joined West Ham from Marseille for £10.7m in June 2015. He excelled in his first season with the London club, scoring 12 goals and earning a nomination for the PFA Players' Player of the Year award. In February 2016 he signed a new contract to tie him to the Hammers to the summer of 2021. He then helped France reach the final of Euro 2016, where the hosts were beaten by Portugal. However, Payet has scored just three goals for the Hammers this season.

Summary: West Ham forward Dimitri Payet is set to rejoin former club Marseille after the clubs agreed a £25m fee.


The Irish government suggested the formation of the group last week. But on Monday, DUP leader Arlene Foster said she had not been consulted over it and it appeared it would not go ahead. But Mr McGuinness has said he does not think "anybody should have a veto on a good idea". The Irish government government said it proposed the forum to enable groups to work on areas of mutual interest, such as trade, investment and health. The UK's decision to leave the EU dominated a meeting of the North South Ministerial Council on Monday attended by Arlene Foster and Martin McGuinness. Mrs Foster said the forum was not on the agenda. Instead, she said existing cross-border bodies would be used to work out the implications on the island of Ireland of a UK withdrawal from the EU. On Tuesday, Mr McGuinness said indications from "very senior civil servants within the [Irish] government" were that Taoiseach (Irish prime minister) Enda Kenny would go ahead with the plan. "I spoke to the taoiseach before the meeting of the North South Ministerial Council - he wasn't putting it as an item on the agenda but he stated very clearly to me that he still believed that it would be a very useful thing to do," he said. "I wouldn't be too exercised about the fact that there will be political elements who wouldn't be interested in attending. "The DUP will undoubtedly through different methodologies have their say in relation to all of it." He said he believed the idea of a forum would "get widespread support from most within the political process". Government ministers from Northern Ireland and the Republic drew up a list on Monday of priority areas they intend to work on to limit any potential damage of Brexit. Among the points was an agreement to conduct a "full audit" to "identify the possible impacts, risks, opportunities and contingencies" that the island could face. And the two finance ministers will "consider the issue of securing" further funding for regional development from the EU.

Summary: A proposed cross-border forum on all-Ireland issues in the wake of the UK's decision to leave the EU could go ahead despite not having DUP support, Martin McGuinness says.


Doctors said Oshin Kiszko should undergo chemotherapy and radiotherapy to treat his malignant brain tumour. But his parents, Angela Kiszko and Adrian Strachan, refused treatment because of the severe side effects. After a court decided in March that Oshin had to receive chemotherapy, a judge in September ruled he could be given palliative care. The Perth boy died early on Wednesday morning, his mother confirmed to local media. "My love Oshin took his last breaths peacefully as I lay cuddling him at 2am," Ms Kiszko told Seven News. "Oshin's journey has been extraordinarily traumatising for him and I am grateful he no longer needs to suffer through this nightmare." The legal fight began after Oshin underwent brain surgery at Perth's Princess Margaret Hospital in December 2015. Doctors recommended follow-up chemotherapy and radiotherapy, but Oshin's parents believed the side effects would ruin his quality of life. "I thought I could not put myself through it. Why could I put my son through it?" Ms Kiszko told Nine's 60 Minutes programme in April. Doctors took the matter to the West Australian Family Court, which ruled in March that Oshin must undergo chemotherapy. At a hearing in May, the court heard evidence that the boy would have at least a 30% chance of survival if he received both chemotherapy and radiotherapy. The matter was adjourned when Ms Kiszko and Mr Strachan committed to continuing chemotherapy only. In September, a judge ruled Oshin's cancer was so advanced he could be given palliative care. A court statement at the time said "specialist medical opinion confirmed that the delay in therapy had substantially reduced Oshin's chances of a cure, which are now remote".

Summary: A six-year-old boy whose cancer diagnosis sparked a high-profile legal battle in Australia has died.


Jodie Wilkinson, 27, was attacked by a group of up to 11 men in Stanhope Street, Newcastle, on 11 October. Sharif Kalimba, 19, of no fixed address, has been charged with violent disorder and remanded in custody. Four men from Newcastle, aged 25, 25, 22 and 20, have been charged with violent disorder. David Waterston, 43, from the city, was charged with murder. Mr Kalimba is due to appear at South East Northumberland Magistrates' Court on Monday.

Summary: A further man has been charged in connection with the fatal stabbing of a woman, bringing the total to six.


The 31-year-old comes in as a replacement for Danny Ward, who was recalled from his spell at Pittodrie by parent club Liverpool this week. Collin, who joined Rotherham from Carlisle United in 2013, has played twice this season. But he has not featured since August and recently found himself relegated to third choice. Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes hopes to have Ward available to face Ross County in their Scottish Premiership game in Dingwall. "We're still waiting for international clearance for Adam and I'll announce the team on Sunday morning," he said. "We'd assurances from Liverpool that Danny could stay, but their circumstances changed, so we're delighted to get Adam on board." Ward impressed during his spell with the Dons and, on his return to Anfield, was immediately handed a place on the bench for the game against Arsenal. There had been suggestions that Aberdeen would consider recalling Danny Rogers from his loan with Falkirk and the Pittodrie outfit had also been linked with out-of-favour Rangers goalkeeper Cammy Bell. "There was no approach for Cammy Bell, although I'm not saying his name wasn't mentioned," said McInnes. New signing Collin began his career with Newcastle United and had loan spells with Oldham Athletic and Doncaster Rovers. However, it was not until he joined Northern Premier League club Workington in 2004 that he made his senior debut. McInnes would not comment on speculation linking Stuart Bannigan of Partick Thistle with a move to Aberdeen. However, asked about the possibility of more signings during the January transfer window, McInnes admitted that injuries to Willo Flood and Ryan Jack had left his squad short in central midfield. "We may be looking to bring one in and for nobody to go out," the manager added. Meanwhile, McInnes also said any decision on the future of defender Paul Quinn will be made after Sunday's game with Ross County. Quinn has been linked with a move back to the Dingwall club having joined the Dons from County in the summer.

Summary: Rotherham United goalkeeper Adam Collin has completed his switch to Aberdeen on loan until the end of the season.


Northern Ireland international Little has scored two goals in 16 games for Preston since signing from Scottish side Rangers in June 2014. The 26-year-old made five appearances on loan at Blackpool earlier this term. Fosu, 20, has played once for Reading, but featured in six games for Fleetwood after joining on loan in November. "Andy's suffered with injuries this year so this is a chance for him to get some football and get himself back on track," Stanley manager John Coleman told the club website. "When you've not played for while you just want to play and I think the exposure to the first team he'll get will do him good." Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.

Summary: Promotion-chasing Accrington Stanley have signed Preston striker Andy Little and Reading winger Tarique Fosu on loan until the end of the season.


Swansea University analysed data from nearly 360,000 children aged between six and 18 between 2003 and 2013. It followed a health warning in 2003 that children should not be given most antidepressants. The unpublished research triggered a Welsh government circular saying other methods should be tried first. The 30% rise came despite a significant fall in 2003-4 following health warnings about the risk of suicide in young people. The report, which has not been published, also showed the drug citalopram was routinely prescribed despite not being licensed for use in children. The Welsh government wrote to health professionals that only fluoxetine (Prozac) has been shown to be effective in young people. A Welsh government spokesman said it expected GPs to use their clinical judgment in deciding treatment, and to use NICE guidelines which recommend psychosocial interventions should be considered as an alternative to antidepressants. The report said the figures could reflect better access to treatment, and a positive shift towards helping people address mental health issues at a younger age. But it added: "On the other hand this may represent an increasing tendency to prescribe medication where other treatment options such as psychological therapies are limited or not available at a primary care level. "This may be a particular issue in more deprived areas where incidence is nearly double that in more affluent areas." It comes as research has shown a 54% increase in the number of children and young people prescribed antidepressants in the UK between 2005 and 2012. George Watkins, 20, from Cardiff, experienced side-effects after being prescribed antidepressants as a teenager. "I would open my eyes in the morning, I still get nightmares about this, about waking up every morning staring at the ceiling and wondering if this was the day when I would feel clear-headed. "It was a very rushed appointment, it was five minutes, 'describe what you're feeling'. "I was still on the medication that I was prescribed when I was 14 or 15 last November, when I had just turned 20," he said. Children's Commissioner for Wales Sally Holland told BBC Wales the long-term effects of anti-depressant drugs in children were not really known. "NICE guidelines are very clear: children and young people must have medication as a last resort," she said. "There should be a month of careful watchfulness and then they should be offered psychological therapies and they should only be offered medication along side psychological therapies if the therapy doesn't work. "It seems sad to me that George hasn't had that."

Summary: There has been a 30% increase in the number of children in Wales prescribed antidepressants over 10 years, figures obtained by the BBC have shown.


Sinn Féin's northern leader Michelle O'Neill said he had still not agreed to release funds for legacy inquests. Thursday's election ended the unionist majority at Stormont, with Sinn Féin now just one seat behind the DUP. Talks are being held to restore the power-sharing executive, but parties have just three weeks to reach a deal. The five main party leaders have held a series of bilateral talks on Tuesday, as well as separate discussions with Mr Brokenshire. Sinn Féin said it had further discussions with the secretary of state regarding money for inquests into the most controversial killings of the Troubles but that he had come to "no good conclusion". "Some families have been waiting 45 years and this affects all victims, regardless of the perpetrators," said party leader Gerry Adams. "They need to get those inquests under way and they have been delayed because the British refuse to give the funds." The party also met with the DUP and further meetings were planned, said Mr Adams. He added this was an indication that issues were being tackled. Meanwhile, the head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service, Sir Malcolm McKibbin, said one of the most difficult issues facing the administration was the absence of a budget to cover the financial year from next month. Sir Malcolm said there was a "small window of opportunity" to allow a new executive to agree a budget and put it to the Assembly. On Tuesday morning, DUP leader Arlene Foster met her party's freshly elected MLAs (members of the legislative assembly) and said she was "delighted" with their support. "We have had an excellent group meeting where we had a full and open discussion around the election campaign, the result and, of course, the negotiations that are going on at the moment," she said. She had previously denied reports that some of her party's MLAs wanted her to step down. Mrs Foster said her party had won the election, increasing its vote in every constituency, which was a "pretty good basis to continue as leader". Meanwhile, DUP MP Ian Paisley said the party, and unionism, must try to "make the union as attractive as we can" for voters in the future. "We have a very attractive case at present and I have been guilty, as a unionist, of presenting it in a rough and combative way over the years when I thought it was required to do that," he told BBC Talkback. He added that Mrs Foster had his full support. Earlier, Lord Hain said Prime Minister Theresa May must call a summit to restore the Executive - or direct rule would be inevitable. The former secretary of state, now a Labour member of the House of Lords, said the London and Dublin governments had "taken their eyes off the ball" and that a summit was now required "to bring all the parties together to thrash out an agreement". But a senior government source involved in the talks told the BBC Mrs May was being regularly briefed and will have discussions with Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister)

Summary: Sinn Féin says it broke off its meeting with Secretary of State James Brokenshire because all he did was "waffle, waffle, and more waffle".


He joined ITV's breakfast show when it launched as a sports reporter and presenter and went on to present Good Morning Britain on Saturdays. He became anchorman of Good Morning Britain in 1987 and presented Yorkshire TV's news magazine programme Calendar until 2002 ITV's Daybreak presenter and former colleague Lorraine Kelly said he will be "very, very, very sadly missed". "Mike was a delightful man, he was such a generous presenter - he really was brilliant," she said. "The good thing about him was he didn't make a big fuss or a song and dance, he made it look easy. And I think in some ways he was under-rated because of that." She added that her many memories of him were of "mostly just laughing". Morris was born in Harrow, north-west London, in June 1947 and started his journalistic career with the Surrey Comet in 1969. He worked for the Reuters news agency, United Newspapers and Thames TV, editing and reporting on both news and sport stories. After joining TV-am in 1983 as a sports presenter, he quickly moved up the ranks - first hosting the Saturday edition of Good Morning Britain before graduating to the main daily show in 1987. He interviewed Nelson Mandela eight days after his release from jail in South Africa and presented the programme the morning after the Lockerbie bombing. His TV-am co-host Anne Diamond said: "I presented many, many memorable breakfast television programmes with Mike and I'd just like to say, as a way of tribute, what a lovely, lovely man he was. "He was incredibly popular, I think, because he was just like the guy next door. "It was completely sincere image he had of just being the ordinary bloke next door, who asked the ordinary bloke-type questions. "That endeared him to a great many people. It certainly did to me. "He was always a gentleman, he was always generous. He was very, very funny. A real family man and I must say I'm terribly sad to hear he has died." As the presenter with last words on the final TV-am show in December 1992, Morris joked that he was "off to be a passport photographer after turning off the studio lights". Writing on behalf of TV-am, journalist Ian White said Morris was "no ordinary journalist" who was "popular with viewers". "He had the common touch and the ability to pull off every type of interview, often under incredible pressure. "TV-am's success was partly down to its presenters and in the last five years Mike helped lead that team on and off the air. He will be greatly missed by family, friends and colleagues," he said. Morris is survived by his daughters Sarah and Helen.

Summary: Former TV-am presenter Mike Morris has died aged 65.


It comes after an audit committee requested a probe into two of DSME's former chief executive officers over possible mismanagement. The world's second-largest shipbuilder has been trying to raise money to reduce its debts. The firm posted its biggest net loss of 3.19tr won ($2.8bn; Â£1.9bn) last year. DSME and South Korea's two other biggest shipbuilders, Hyundai Heavy Industries and Samsung Heavy Industries, have all been hard hit by the slump in oil prices and global economic slowdown. They have struggled with reduced demand for tankers and container ships and have had to delay projects in offshore drilling and production. They are also facing rising competition from Chinese shipbuilders. According to reports, 150 officials went to DSME headquarters in Seoul and one of its shipyards on the island of Geoje. Computer hard drives, accounting books and documents were seized by officials, who are looking into whether it manipulated its 2013 and 2014 financial statements.

Summary: South Korean prosecutors have raided Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering as part of an investigation into alleged accounting irregularities.


Online security specialists Cloudflare said it recorded the "biggest" attack of its kind on Monday. Hackers used weaknesses in the Network Time Protocol (NTP), a system used to synchronise computer clocks, to flood servers with huge amounts of data. The technique could potentially be used to force popular services offline. Several experts had predicted that the NTP would be used for malicious purposes. The target of this latest onslaught is unknown, but it was directed at servers in Europe, Cloudflare said. Attackers used a well-known method to bring down a system known as Denial of Service (DoS) - in which huge amounts of data are forced on a target, causing it to fall over. Cloudflare chief executive Matthew Prince said his firm had measured the "very big" attack at about 400 gigabits per second (Gbps), 100Gbps larger than an attack on anti-spam service Spamhaus last year. In a report published three months ago, Cloudflare warned that attacks on the NTP were on the horizon and gave details of how web hosts could best try to protect their customers. NTP servers, of which there are thousands around the world, are designed to keep computers synchronised to the same time. The fundamentals of the NTP began operating in 1985. While there have been changes to the system since then, it still operates in much the same way. A computer needing to synchronise time with the NTP will send a small amount of data to make the request. The NTP will then reply by sending data back. The vulnerability lies with two weaknesses. Firstly, the amount of data the NTP sends back is bigger than the amount it receives, meaning an attack is instantly amplified. Secondly, the original computer's location can be "spoofed", tricking the NTP into sending the information back to somewhere else. In this attack, it is likely that many machines were used to make requests to the NTP. Hackers spoofed their location so that the massive amounts of data from the NTP were diverted to a single target. "Amplification attacks like that result in an attacker turning a small amount of bandwidth coming from a small number of machines into a massive traffic load hitting a victim from around the internet," Cloudflare explained in a blog outlining the vulnerability, posted last month. The NTP is one of several protocols used within the infrastructure of the internet to keep things running smoothly. Unfortunately, despite being vital components, most of these protocols were designed and implemented at a time when the prospect of malicious activity was not considered. "A lot of these protocols are essential, but they're not secure," explained Prof Alan Woodward, an independent cyber-security consultant, who had also raised concerns over NTP last year. "All you can really do is try and mitigate the denial of service attacks. There are technologies around to do it." Most effective, Prof Woodward suggested, was technology that was able to spot when a large amount of data was heading for one destination - and shutting off the connection. Cloudflare's Mr Prince said that while his firm

Summary: A massive attack that exploited a key vulnerability in the infrastructure of the internet is the "start of ugly things to come", it has been warned.


All five of West Yorkshire's powerful district local authorities go to the polls on the same day as the general election, each with a third of their council seats up for grabs. Local polls on the same day as a general election sometimes produce surprising results and 2010 was no exception. As the headlines were grabbed by a Conservative surge and "Cleggmania", voters in West Yorkshire took part in what political academics call a "reverse bounce". As seats held by Labour MPs were toppling in the Leeds area, the city council saw a power-sharing Conservative and Liberal Democrat administration pushed aside. In Bradford, a previously safe Labour parliamentary seat was snapped up by the Liberal Democrats, but in City Hall a minority Labour administration gained enough extra council seats to come close to gaining a majority. Calderdale, the authority centred on Halifax, saw Labour take control and just down the road in Wakefield Labour strengthened its grip. In the three rounds of council elections since then it has been largely a story of Labour gains, but with the odd blip. George Galloway's "Bradford Spring" in 2012 resulted in five Respect councillors being elected but storm clouds soon moved in and the party has not won a single seat since then. In fact, after internal ructions, one of them switched to Labour this year. The UK Independence Party (UKIP) also huffed and puffed in 2014 but it has hardly blown any of the council houses down. It now has two councillors in Wakefield and another two in Bradford. So where does that leave the prospects for 2015? Leeds City Council: It would take an earthquake to shift Labour from its position of power in West Yorkshire's biggest council, the city of Leeds. It has grown from being the biggest party, but needing the city's three Greens to take power in 2010, to now holding almost two thirds of the 99 seats in the council chambers. Keith Wakefield has announced he is stepping down as leader and the party will elect a replacement after the election. Bradford City Council: Labour is by far the largest party, but with by-elections and defections this year its 45 seats leave it now one short of an overall majority in the 90-seat chamber. Respect, with its four members, claims it will squeeze Labour even further but is fielding candidates in just seven of the 30 seats up for election. As with all of the West Yorkshire councils UKIP is putting up more candidates than ever before. Calderdale Metropolitan District Council: Despite Labour ending up as the largest party with 25 of the 51 seats in Halifax Town Hall after last year's elections it was just short of a majority, taking power with the help of the six Liberal Democrats. When those parties fell out last summer, the Conservatives added their 19 seats to the Liberal Democrats and Stephen Baines became West Yorkshire's only Conservative council leader. With Labour so close to a majority he will do well to stay in power. Kirklees Metropolitan District Council: Labour, with 32

Summary: As the battle buses criss-cross West Yorkshire's closely fought parliamentary constituencies it has almost been overlooked that 128 other election battles are being fought in the same area.


A time when Madonna introduced legions of teenage girls to scrunchies and Jane Fonda made lycra and leg warmers cool. And if you were listening to cassette tapes - there's a good chance it was on the revolutionary Walkman - made by Japanese electronics firm Sony. But not everyone was a fan of this Asian influence. Books like "Japan as Number One" made the bestseller list, underscoring the antagonism many Americans felt about the then rising Asian superpower. And US President Ronald Reagan was slamming Japan for not opening its markets enough to US products. "We sell a car into Japan, and they do things to us that make it impossible to sell cars in Japan, and yet they sell cars into us," is the kind of rhetoric you might hear. Except that's not Reagan in 1982. It's Donald Trump in 2017. So are we rewinding back to the 1980s? It's a pertinent question to ask, especially as Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visits the US to meet newly elected President for some leisurely golf and tough talking. Currency will be a talking point on the tee. Like in the 1980s, the US dollar is stronger than the Japanese yen - making Japanese goods cheaper for American consumers. Then, like now, the industries that were the main sticking points were the auto sector and agriculture. Cars, cows and citrus fruit led to a soaring US trade deficit with Japan, worth almost a fifth of the US's GDP at the time. Today the deficit between the two nations has halved, but when the two leaders meet over the next few days, it is these same three subjects that will likely be the focus of their talks. In the 1980s, Japanese car-makers built factories in the US to ward off criticism that they were unfairly dumping products in American markets. As a result, these days more than six million Japanese cars are sold in the US, with only around one million of them made in Japan. But apparently, that isn't enough. Toyota became a target of Mr Trump's trade rage recently for building a car plant in Mexico. In response, Toyota said it would invest $10bn in the US over the next five years. But analysts say the tough talk on cars won't end until Tokyo offers up some major concessions elsewhere, in particular on agriculture. To protect its farmers, Japan places an average 14% tariff on all agricultural goods imported into the country. By comparison, the US has a much lower tariff of 5%. If the Trans-Pacific Partnership had gone through, many of Japan's tariffs would have been eliminated. Tariffs on beef for example - the US's top agricultural export to Japan - would have been slashed by 74% within 16 years. Mr Trump effectively killed the TPP by removing the US from it. He will argue that if Tokyo wants to trade with the US and sell its cars to American consumers, it's going to have to cut tariffs even more aggressively. Mr Trump says that Japan is using monetary policy and

Summary: It was the decade of The Empire Strikes Back and Michael Jackson's song Beat It.


Up to 170,000 football fans are expected to travel to the capital to watch the showdown between Juventus and Real Madrid on 3 June. It will be the first Champions League final to be played under a closed roof. The Football Association of Wales (FAW) said safety was a "primary objective". The roof closure had been suggested because of fears of a drone attack on what is described as the biggest club football game in the world. After discussions with stakeholders, the FAW, said it had made the decision to close the roof after taking into consideration "recommendations made by the authorities". The roof will also be closed for the two official training sessions to be held at the stadium on Friday 2 June. Juventus and Real Madrid have been informed of the decision. In a statement, the FAW said: "The 2017 UEFA Champions League final will be the first final to have been played under a closed roof and will further amplify the stadium's atmosphere when Juventus FC take on Real Madrid CF on Saturday 3 June."

Summary: The roof of the National Stadium of Wales will be closed for the 2017 Champions League final in Cardiff for safety reasons.


Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the identical twin brother of the late president and leader of the country's main opposition party, Law and Justice, is boycotting the official memorial events. His supporters are also planning to gather outside the presidential palace to remember the victims and vent their anger against the Russians and the government for their handling of the crash investigation. For a brief time the tragedy united the country in shock, at first, and then mourning for the victims. Thousands came from all over the country to place flowers and candles in front of the presidential palace. They did so even if they opposed Lech Kaczynski's policies. It was the nation's worst disaster since World War Two. Apart from the president and his wife, Maria, the crash claimed the lives of the commanders of the armed forces, the heads of the National Bank and Olympic Committee, and politicians from all parties. The location of the disaster was hugely symbolic too. The delegation was on its way to attend a 70th anniversary ceremony of the Katyn massacre, one of Poland's most painful wartime events in which more than 20,000 Polish officers, the country's elite, were murdered on Stalin's orders. It is perhaps not surprising that the unity did not last long. Lech Kaczynski was a divisive figure and many Poles disliked his nationalism and combative relations with Germany and Russia. Divisions arose within days when it was announced that Lech Kaczynski and his wife would be buried among Poland's kings at Krakow's Wawel Cathedral. Many Poles felt the location was inappropriate. Over the course of the year the tragedy has been used instrumentally by politicians here. Clearly devastated by the death of his twin, sister-in-law, and many close friends and colleagues, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, a more aggressive and nationalist politician than his brother, has made the crash, and the investigation into it, the central issue for his party. The investigation was carried out by the Russians because the crash happened at Smolensk military airfield near Katyn. In January, the Russian investigation released its final report and found that the immediate cause of the crash was the pilots' decision to attempt to land despite extremely poor visibility caused by dense fog at the airfield. The report also concluded that the pilots were put under pressure to attempt the landing because they expected a negative reaction from Lech Kaczynski if they decided to fly to a reserve airport with better weather conditions. That would have considerably delayed the delegation on its way to the Katyn memorial service. The Polish government accepted the report's main findings but criticised the Russians for failing to investigate its own role in the tragedy, namely the actions of the air traffic controllers at Smolensk. It was notable however that both countries' foreign ministers stressed that it would not derail the hitherto successful attempts to normalise relations. But the fact that the investigation was seen by many here as being neither comprehensive nor fair raised old suspicions about the Russians. It has also added fuel to conspiracy theories - such as that the

Summary: Poland is marking the first anniversary of the plane crash which killed President Lech Kaczynski and 95 others with rival commemorations highlighting the bitter divisions which still surround the tragedy.


GB started nervously and struggled with their offence in the opening half, falling 29-20 behind at the interval. But they drew level midway through the third quarter to give themselves hope. However, the USA pulled away again towards the end of the quarter and their defence also restricted GB's shooting opportunities. Steve Serio did much of the damage with 20 points for the USA, who avenged their defeat to GB at the same stage four years ago. Great Britain, beaten in the semi-final 69-52 by Canada, were unable to make the most of their early opportunities and Serio, celebrating his 25th birthday, capitalised to help build up a 17-10 lead after the first quarter. The introduction of forward Joe Chambers, who hit eight points in a row at the start of the second quarter, enabled the USA to stay in control. The game is evolving and getting quicker and it is very hard to get quicker when you get to your mid-30s GB started the second half with far more purpose and Terry Bywater and Ian Sagar inspired the comeback to level the game at 29-29 with four minutes and 55 seconds to go in the third quarter. But once USA coach Jim Glatch brought Joshua Turek, Matt Scott and Serio back into the game, they settled back down and dominated, forcing GB into difficult shooting positions, and it gave them a first medal in the sport since Sydney in 2000. Afterwards, coach Murray Treseder was realistic about his British team's performance. "We've finished fourth and that's probably where we are at the moment," he said. "We started nervously and they got on top early on, but we made too many mistakes. I admired our fight in the third quarter but when we got back to 33-all, we made five errors and that just killed us. "We were chasing our tail in the last quarter as we tried to get back in the game, but give the USA credit, they are a great team." The Australian has also hinted at changes as the team look to Rio in 2016, starting with next year's European Championship in Frankfurt. "We have an outstanding junior development programme with lots of hopeful players," he added. "The game is evolving and getting quicker and it is very hard to get quicker when you get to your mid-30s.GB miss out on basketball bronze "I think the standard we have seen here is quite considerable and we have got to respond to that. I think finding some new low-point players is critical for us and we will go from there." Patrick Anderson confirmed his status as the player of the tournament as he led Canada to gold. The 33-year-old, who came out of retirement last year, contributed 34 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in their 64-58 win over Australia. Although Australia led early on, Anderson sparked the run that put Canada on top at the start the second quarter, and then helped them pull clear in the third. "It feels like I have never won anything in my

Summary: Great Britain missed out on a third consecutive men's wheelchair basketball Paralympic bronze medal after losing 61-46 to the United States.


I knew I wanted to get involved in Red Nose Day this year. But then I decided to take it one step further. I'd wanted to go on a Comic Relief trip for years and here was the perfect opportunity, so I agreed to take my first ever trip to Liberia in West Africa. During the trip, we visited a school in West Point, the largest and most dangerous slum in Liberia's capital, Monrovia. It was really shocking seeing the appalling conditions that people live in and it was far worse than I could have ever imagined. Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw, but despite all of this, everyone's positivity was overwhelming. The welcome from the kids was amazing, especially when they saw my tattoos; they went nuts and couldn't understand what they were. Some of the younger kids tried to wipe them off. Everyone wanted to know what we were doing and where we were from. They absolutely loved singing and clapping along to my songs and for a few hours it was easy to forget that these kids live in such awful conditions. I was completely blown away by their eagerness to learn. They really wanted to be in school and all had big dreams for the future. Despite living in one of the poorest places on Earth, they weren't prepared to let their circumstances hold them back. I asked a lot of them what they wanted to be when they grow up and "doctor", "teacher" and "politician" were common responses. I got a sense that they really meant it. They've seen what life is like for people with no qualifications or jobs and it's the motivation they need to keep studying. There are hundreds of thousands of people crammed in to West Point, most of them living in squalor, so getting an education is a privilege and not something all of the kids get to do. As we were taking a break from filming, a little girl came over to talk to me. Her name was Peaches and unlike the other children I'd met, she wasn't in a uniform. She explained that since her father's death during the Ebola crisis, her mother couldn't afford to send her to school any more. At just 12 years old, she had already been working for over a year helping to support her family. Unfortunately, Peaches' story is not uncommon. We had an impromptu jamming session and the girl could really sing. Peaches sang a song that reminded her of her father and as she did, tears started to roll down her face. The enthusiasm that was initially shining out of her disappeared. It was at this point that the reality of Peaches' situation, and many, many kids just like her, hit me really hard. Peaches told me she wanted to be a musician when she grows up, and who knows, maybe she can make that happen, but for now, she has been forced to drop out of school and spends her days working in a filthy, dangerous slum, earning

Summary: Ed Sheeran writes exclusively for BBC News about his trip to Liberia with Comic Relief and why he'll never forget the children he met there - and one young girl in particular.


Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma said the government had not found any evidence to support the claim. The lawyers filed a petition in a court last year saying that the monument should be handed over to Hindus. The Taj Mahal, a 17th Century mausoleum built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, a Muslim, after his wife's death, attracts about 12,000 visitors a day. Six lawyers belonging to the city of Agra, where the monument is located, had told a court there was "substantial evidence" to prove that the famous monument was originally a temple dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. They had urged the court to declare the monument a Hindu temple. The Taj Mahal was completed by Shah Jahan in 1653 as a mausoleum for his third and favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to their 14th child. The monument's complex structure of white marble domes and minarets inlaid with semi-precious stones and carvings is considered the finest example of Mughal art in India. In 1983, the Taj Mahal became a Unesco World Heritage site and attracts millions of visitors each year.

Summary: India's government has rejected claims by a group of lawyers that the Taj Mahal monument was a Hindu temple.


The National Audit Office (NAO) said water companies in England and Wales had benefited from tax cuts and cheaper finance costs over the past five years. However, customers' bills had not fallen because Ofwat had not properly "balanced the risks" between water companies and consumers, the NAO said. Ofwat rejected criticism of its price control regime. The NAO estimated that between 2010 and 2015, water companies gained £410m from lower corporation tax rates and a further £840m from lower than expected interest payments. Over the same period the companies absorbed costs and provided water bill discounts worth up to £435m, leaving them with a net gain of £800m. The watchdog said Ofwat's price cap was weighted too heavily in favour of the companies and had not achieved proper value for money. Ofwat chief executive Cathryn Ross said its approach had given customers "certainty about the cost of their water bills". She told Radio 4's Today programme it would not have been right to pass on to customers the risk of changes in financing costs. "What that would have meant was that had interest rates gone up between 2009 and 2014, that amount of money would have gone straight on customers' bills. I don't think that was the right thing to do," Ms Ross said. The regulator had also rejected requests from water companies to raise bills when faced with higher than expected costs. "There are swings and roundabouts here," she said. Water prices will fall by 5% in real terms over the next five years, Ofwat said earlier this year. Bills have risen by 40% in real terms since privatisation in 1989, with the biggest rises coming between 1990 and 1995. Water bills accounted for about 2.3% of average household spending in 2013 and more than 5% for the poorest households.

Summary: Water companies have pocketed an £800m windfall because of poor regulation, the spending watchdog has said.


Brenda Mitchell, of Cycle Law Scotland, said safety issues had been highlighted since the tracks were installed. The issue was highlighted following the death of a 24-year-old cyclist who fell in front of a minibus after appearing to get her wheel stuck in a tram track. The council said it made "every effort" to raise awareness of the tracks. The female cyclist died in hospital on Wednesday after the accident on Princes Street. Police have appealed for any witnesses to the incident to come forward. Ms Mitchell, who is also a member of the Scottish Parliament's cross party cycling group, told the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme that in her opinion City of Edinburgh Council had "ignored warnings over many years". She said: "The issue with tram tracks and their safety has been highlighted since the installation of the trams." She highlighted figures from Prof Chris Oliver, the head of the trauma unit at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. In March, he produced statistics which suggested 191 cyclists were injured in incidents linked to the tram tracks. Ms Mitchell said the casualties included 64 fractures, of which 29 required surgery. Prof Oliver said: "It's a whole new range of fractures since the trams started running three years ago. "We've had a lot of people who have been out riding or commuting to work that have collided with tram tracks. "They have often been forced into the tram tracks by another vehicle that has pushed them into the direction of the tracks, so they haven't been able to cross them at 90 degrees. "They have sustained a variety of injuries and some of those have ended up on the operating table. We have now done 29 operations." Patrick McGuire, a partner at Thompsons Solicitors, represents 141 cyclists hurt after falling on tram tracks. He said: "Almost two years ago to the day I spoke out about the need for urgent action to be taken by the council to make the tram lines safer for cyclists because if it wasn't we would be facing a fatality. "No action was taken to make these safety improvements." He said other UK cities with tram systems did not have the same level of accidents as Edinburgh. However, a spokeswoman for City of Edinburgh Council said cycle safety was of "utmost importance". "We have gone to every effort to raise awareness of the impact of the tram on all road users," she said. "Since before the launch over three years ago we have carried out extensive awareness-raising activity both online and on-street, in partnership with other organisations, much of which has focused specifically on cyclists. "As part of this, markings were added to the road at Haymarket to direct cyclists along the safest possible routes. "Like many other European cities Edinburgh now incorporates both cyclists and trams and, as in these cities, cyclists are advised to take care when travelling near the tram tracks." Wednesday's fatal accident took place on a cycle route. However, the council added that the official national cycle route in the city centre takes cyclists along

Summary: Warnings about the safety risks which tram tracks in Edinburgh pose to cyclists have been ignored, according to lawyers.


The businessman and star of BBC One's The Apprentice said that after his two-year tenure his work was "complete". The service offers 70 live Freeview channels and is a joint venture between the BBC, ITV, BT, Channel 4, Channel 5, TalkTalk and Arqiva. YouView said Lord Sugar would go "in the next few weeks" and a new chairman would be announced in due course. Formerly known as Project Canvas, YouView is a free web-connected TV service combining Freeview digital channels with on-demand content such as iPlayer. It is accessed via a set-top box. Lord Sugar said: "When I joined YouView in 2011, my brief from the shareholders was to use my experience in the electronics industry to get the product to market and into the homes of consumers. "Having done that successfully, my job is complete and I will now focus my time and attention into my other businesses." YouView faces competition from rivals such as Sky, which has an on-demand service, and Virgin Media with its Tivo service.

Summary: Lord Sugar is to step down from his role as non-executive chairman of internet TV service YouView.


Sarah Guyard-Guillot, 31, was performing at the MGM Grand hotel. Investigators said the mother of two fell 28m (94ft) to the floor when a safety wire became detached due to her rapid ascent. They said Guyard-Guillot's death was partly caused by a failure to give her adequate training. Cirque du Soleil said her death was the first fatality during a live performance in its 29-year history. The Nevada Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Cirque du Soleil Nevada on six counts. These included inadequate equipment training for Guillot-Guyard, and a circus-fall protection programme that did not match state safety standards. The Nevada OSHA proposed more than $25,000 (Â£15,600) in penalties for the company. It also proposed a fine of $7,000 against the MGM Grand hotel for exposing its employees to workplace hazards, including onstage open-sided floors and pyrotechnic dust used for Cirque du Soleil performances. The accident happened during the final scene of the Canadian company's show, Ka, a mixture of acrobatics, martial arts and puppetry. Teri Williams, a spokeswoman for the Nevada Department of Business and Industry, said the report found that Guyard-Guillot had ascended too quickly, which caused the rope to detach from the sheave/pulley. "The rope was severed when it encountered a shear point," she said. "The investigation concluded that she ascended too quickly, in part, because she did not receive proper training.'' Both Cirque du Soleil and the MGM Grand say they will appeal against the OSHA ruling. "Cirque du Soleil completed an exhaustive review of its safety policies and procedures in the wake of the tragic accident involving Sarah,'' said Cirque du Soleil spokeswoman Renee-Claude Menard. "We have redoubled our efforts to ensure the overall diligence and safety of our performers and crew."

Summary: Cirque du Soleil will be fined after an acrobat died during one of its live shows in Las Vegas in June, Nevada state officials say.


Most of the teenagers caught drunk and disorderly said they were sent to Cornwall with alcohol, rather than attempting to buy it in local shops. Supt Julie Whitmarsh from Devon and Cornwall Police described the statistics as "scary". The force has called for a "national debate" about parental responsibility. It said although some parents were shocked about their children's behaviour, others verbally abused officers who confiscated the alcohol. Many of the 15 and 16-year-olds stopped had been allowed to travel to Cornwall alone with friends to celebrate the end of exams. More than 4,000 under-18s visited Newquay over the summer, according to figures from a Newquay Safe Partnership campaign to prevent underage drinking. During Operation Brunel, officers confiscated 1,044 unopened bottles and cans of alcoholic drink and poured away more than 5,000 that were open. The force said it was talking to the Home Office about ways of prosecuting parents who stock their children up with drink before they leave home. Supt Whitmarsh said drinking on holiday with peers, without parental control, was a "different situation" than having alcohol at home. "At what point is it a good idea to leave children with alcohol," she said. In the most serious cases, parents were telephoned and told to collect their children while a further 71 families were sent warning letters. Supt Whitmarsh said one officer was verbally abused by a parent who accused him of stopping her son "having fun". The teenager was one of four 16-year-olds caught with 64 cans of Special Brew. Another mother dismissed an officer's concerns, claiming her child was "not the usual riff-raff". Police said these were examples of parents not taking their role seriously. Newquay Safe Partnership was formed in 2009 after the deaths of two teenagers. Andrew Curwell, 18, from Saddleworth in Greater Manchester, was found at the foot of cliffs at Great Western Beach on 28 June and the following week, 16-year-old Paddy Higgins, from Wokingham in Berkshire, died after falling from cliffs above Tolcarne Beach.

Summary: Seven out of 10 under-age drinkers caught in the Cornish holiday resort of Newquay were given alcohol by their parents, according to police.


Allegri, 48, took charge in July 2014 and signed a new deal until 2017 after leading the Old Lady to the league title and the Coppa Italia. Having successfully defended their league crown, Juventus have announced the former AC Milan boss will now remain until 30 June 2018. Juventus face AC Milan in the Coppa Italia final on 21 May. They are 12 points clear of nearest rivals Napoli with two games remaining in Serie A. Juventus defeated Manchester City twice in the group stage of this season's Champions League before being knocked out by Bayern Munich in the round of 16.

Summary: Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri has extended his contract with the Serie A champions until the summer of 2018.


John Russell Brown and his company Hyperion Investments face 16 charges relating to the condition of the property and the danger and risk to health of the occupants in it. The migrants were found during a raid on Deeside Lane, Sealand - one of the largest of its kind in the country. Magistrates in Wrexham adjourned the case until 10 December.

Summary: A man has appeared in court after 107 migrants were found crowded into a building in Flintshire.


Claire Jenkins, 36, of Gowerton, was given the fine after leaving bread crumbs on a bench in Oxford Street, during a Christmas shopping trip. She said: "I found it degrading. I didn't know it was classed as an offence." Swansea council said a new campaign was responding to complaints people were being "plagued by seagulls". "Posters have been put up on bins in the city centre advising shoppers of the penalties for littering and our message is that if you don't drop litter you won't face the fine," a spokesman said.

Summary: A woman has been fined £50 for feeding pigeons in Swansea city centre after a council crackdown.


The secretary of state, James Brokenshire, had set early May as the deadline for the current talks process. It is thought the new deadline will be the end of June. The provisions to form an executive by that date will be included in emergency legislation that will be fast tracked through Westminster. The BBC understands the deadline extension is to allow for more talks after the Westminster election on 8 June. Mr Brokenshire has been briefing party leaders about the details that will be published on Friday. The secretary of state is under pressure from nationalist parties angry at the prime minister's decision to call a general election in the middle of the Stormont stalemate: Sinn FÃ©in and the SDLP have been scathing about the snap election. They say it exposes the government's lack of interest in the ongoing negotiations at Stormont, where round-table discussions aimed at restoring power-sharing are due to resume next week. Earlier, Sinn FÃ©in's Michelle O'Neill said she believed the "British government would prefer no assembly to one which opposes Brexit". "It's clear that the people of the north who voted to remain in the EU are regarded as saboteurs by Theresa May and her clique of Tory Brexiteers. "We are no more than collateral damage," she added. Alliance leader Naomi Long said that people were "never in a compromising mood coming up to an election". However, she said it would be better for Northern Ireland if an agreement could be reached soon. Meanwhile, it has emerged the SDLP is pushing ahead with its plan to form an anti-Brexit alliance with other parties in the run up to the general election - and its leader, Colum Eastwood, has held exploratory talks with the Green Party in Northern Ireland on the issue. "We are interested in a conversation with any party who is interested in protecting the interests of people in Northern Ireland in the face of a hard Brexit," he told the BBC's Evening Extra programme. "I went out of my way to speak to Steven Agnew (Green Party NI leader). I asked him to consider how we best take this forward." On Wednesday, MPs voted overwhelmingly to back the prime minister's call for a snap general election on 8 June - three years ahead of schedule. Shadow secretary of state Dave Anderson accused the prime minister of treating the people of Northern Ireland with contempt by calling the snap poll. He said: "They're being ignored by this government in exactly the same way as they were ignored pre-Brexit when people were saying to them: 'Are you really aware what you're doing?'" In a separate development, emergency legislation clearing the way for the collection of rates in Northern Ireland is to be published on Friday. Mr Brokenshire had promised to bring forward a bill at Westminster to allow rates bills to be issued. It is one of a number of planned contingency moves to deal with pressures caused by the ongoing political crisis.

Summary: Northern Ireland politicians will be given more time to reach a deal to restore a power-sharing executive at Stormont, the BBC understands.


Durant, 28, limped out of Tuesday's game after team-mate Zaza Pachulia fell on his left leg and caused a sprained medial ligament and leg bruising. It is hoped he could return before the end of the regular season on 12 April. The 2014 NBA Most Valuable Player joined the Warriors this season in a deal worth a reported $54.3m (£43.9m). Durant had spent the previous eight seasons at Oklahoma City Thunder, where he was a four-time NBA scoring champion. Western Conference leaders Warriors went into the game with a league-best 50-9 record and have already booked their place in the play-offs.

Summary: Golden State Warriors' top scorer Kevin Durant will be out "indefinitely" after injuring his knee in his side's 112-108 loss at Washington Wizards.


Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson says the London 2012 games did change views of disabled athletes - but that has not been reflected in the wider community. She told BBC Radio Wales' Sunday Supplement that some disabled people are still seen as benefit scrounges. "We're still kind of lost behind other minority groups," she said. The comments from the former athlete and House of Lords crossbencher come on National Paralympic Day. She said the success of the games three years ago meant that Paralympians are now accepted as elite athletes, something she regarded as a hugely important step. But she told Sunday Supplement's Vaughan Roderick: "The reality is that disability hate crime figures are the worse they've been in 10 years of reporting. "Disabled people are portrayed in three different ways: you're either a Paralympian, you're a benefit scrounger, or you're a victim and you can't really crossover. "The vast majority of disabled people aren't benefit scroungers. There's a huge number that don't claim anything at all. "I think we're in a very difficult place, but that's partly because now you see disabled people integrated into society which you didn't see 20 years ago." The peer said she had hoped the Equality Act that came into force three years ago would help signal a major shift in the way people approached disability issues. "We're still a long way from equality and the disability rights movement has struggled so when the Equality Act came in, I was really hopeful that actually for disabled people, it would mean a really big step forward. "But it hasn't been and we're still kind of lost behind other minority groups." She said there have been improvements, but added: "I'd like to see more equality for disabled people and that then filters into sport and physical activity. "You know disabled people need to be fit, healthy, have the same opportunities as everyone else and have the same opportunities to go into elite support. "The Paralympics can help drive that change. It can't do it all, but it can help change attitudes."

Summary: More still needs to be done to shift perceptions towards people with disabilities, says Wales' most successful Paralympian.


However, the director-general of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (Asio), Duncan Lewis, said there could be no guarantee of safety from extremist violence in the future. Mr Lewis was speaking after the Paris attacks in which 129 people died. The Islamic State (IS) militant group has said it was behind the attacks and warned of further violence. Mr Lewis told Australian broadcaster ABC that while there was no evidence of a specific threat against Australia similar to the attacks in Paris, the number of potential threats had increased in recent years. "We have had three attacks involving fatalities and six thwarted attacks in the past 12 months," he said. "To put that in some sort of historic perspective, that represents just over a third of the attacks or planned attacks that we've had in this country over the last 15 years." Asio - Australia's domestic security agency - increased the National Terrorism Public Alert Level from medium to high in September last year. This signifies that an attack is "likely". Mr Lewis said this had been reviewed following the Paris attacks but that there were no plans to move it to the highest level of "extreme" which indicates an attack is imminent. "If you consider there have been three successful attacks in Australia since that time, then I think that the threat level of 'likely' is most appropriate. "We have no specific information leading us to believe there is any imminent threat of an attack presently, it is not appropriate for us to move the threat level to the next elevated position. "This is very important for Australians to realise, we have no specific information about any particular attack planning in this country that would be reflective of what happened in France," he said. In October. 15-year-old Muslim boy Farhad Jabar shot dead New South Wales police worker Curtis Cheng as the accountant left a police building in the Sydney suburb of Parramatta. This came after the Sydney siege incident in December last year in which two hostages were killed, and the shooting of an 18-year-old man in Victoria who wounded counter-terrorism officers outside a police station. Australia is part of a US-led coalition bombing IS positions in Iraq and Syria and has sent soldiers to help train members of the Iraqi national army.

Summary: Australia's top spy has said there is no evidence of large-scale militant attacks planned against the country.


The monthly deficit was £4.14bn, up from £1.07bn in September. Between August and October there was a deficit of £8.4bn, a £2.4bn increase from the previous quarter, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. The growing deficits were due to a big increase in imports of goods, combined with a small decrease in exports. "October's dismal UK trade figures provided further signs that the economic recovery has remained worryingly-unbalanced in the fourth quarter," said Paul Hollingsworth, UK economist at Capital Economics. "The economic recovery looks unlikely to garner support from the external sector in Q4, and instead will remain reliant on the domestic services sector." The monthly trade deficit figures are notoriously volatile, and the ONS lost the national statistic designation from the series following a series of errors last year. The deficit in goods in the three months to the end of October was £31.6bn, £2.5bn wider than in the previous quarter. That was largely due to a £1.6bn fall in fuel exports and £1.3bn rise in imports of machinery and transport equipment.

Summary: The UK's trade deficit - the difference between the amount it imports and exports - widened considerably in October, according to official figures.


The Duke of Rothesay, as he is known when in Scotland, attended the event in his role as chieftain. He watched traditional Highland games competitions such as the three-legged and egg and spoon races. He then presented a trophy to the winning tug o'war team. About 400 people attended the games on Saturday. It is usually staged in a field nearby to Castle Mey, the late Queen Mother's Scottish home in Caithness, but was instead held at a field in John O'Groats due to the usual setting being water-logged. Prince Charles drove to the event himself and was wearing traditional Scottish dress. He appeared to be in high spirits whilst watching a mock horse dressage with participants prancing around on a wooden hobby-horses.

Summary: Prince Charles has umpired a tug o'war competition during a visit to the Mey Highland Games.


But more are in work than at any time since 2007, suggests Department for Business, Innovation and Skills data. And graduates still earn almost £10,000 a year more than people without degrees - though the highest earners are those with postgraduate qualifications. The figures showed a degree was "an excellent option", said the government. The figures suggest that in the first three months of this year, graduates typically earned £31,200, while non-graduates were paid £22,100, a gap of £9,100. But in the same period of 2010, graduates typically earned £32,396, some £1,196 more than they do now. There was better news for those with postgraduate qualifications, whose median salaries rose from £37,180 to £39,000 during the past five years, as well as for non-graduates, whose median salaries went up from £20,800 to £22,100, according to the figures. Some 87.5% of working-age graduates were employed during the three months to March - the highest proportion since the end of 2007, when the rate was 88.3%. This compares with an employment rate of 69.3% for non-graduates. The figures also suggest an improving employment market for graduates aged between 21 and 30, with only 3.9% unemployed, again the lowest for this time of year since 2007, when it was 3.5%. "Making the leap from university to the 'real world' of work is becoming easier, and graduate employment has now recovered to 2007 levels," said Andrew Hunter, of recruitment company Adzuna. "In the last year alone, the unemployment rate among young grads has ticked down 1% year-on-year, with fewer university leavers stuck in limbo between education and work. "After years of stalemate, with fewer employees moving up or moving out of their positions, the labour market is now much more liquid, which has opened up opportunities for those new to the workforce." However, TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said the overall prospects of young graduates were worsening. "While university leavers are still better paid and more likely to have a job than non-graduates of the same age, today's figures show their prospects are worsening, just as their debts are soaring," she said. "Many graduates are now finding themselves doing lower-skilled, lower-paid jobs. "This is in turn pushing young people who don't have a degree out of work altogether." A spokeswoman for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills described the figures as "great news for the UK economy". "These results demonstrate how higher education is an excellent option for people of all ages seeking to gain employment and a rewarding career," she said. "Working-age graduates still benefit from a significant earnings premium of, on average, £9,000 per year over non-graduates." The spokeswoman said higher education was not for everyone, but there were thousands of apprenticeships and courses in further education also leading to "many exciting careers prospects". Maddalaine Ansell, chief executive of the University Alliance group of business-oriented universities, said the figures showed "degrees continue to be vital for supplying graduates to meet the hi-tech skills needs of the UK's knowledge economy".

Summary: Graduates in England have seen a fall in their median salary of more than £1,000 in the past five years, according to official statistics.


Umakant Mishra was suspended from his job after being charged with fraud when 57 rupees and 60 paise (92 cents; 56 pence) went missing in his post office. Mr Mishra told BBC Hindi that the battle to clear his name reduced him to penury and his family would have starved if not for his relatives. He is now seeking compensation. Correspondents say cases in Indian courts can drag on for years, even decades, and official figures show that more than 30 million cases are pending in Indian courts, some dating from 1950. Mr Mishra's troubles began on 23 July 1984 when he worked in a post-office in the Harjinder Nagar area of Kanpur city in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. "I was given 697 rupees and 60 paise ($11.19; Â£6.83) which the post-office had received as money orders and I had to distribute it. I distributed 300 rupees and in the evening deposited the rest with a senior official," Mr Mishra says. When the refund was checked, it was found to be short by 57 rupees and 60 paise (92 cents; 56 pence). "I was charged with fraud. I was suspended from my services and a complaint was lodged with the police." Mr Mishra was jailed briefly and although he was freed on bail shortly afterwards, his long legal battle had started. "I was summoned 348 times by the court. Initially I had to sell my house in Kanpur, then I had to sell my agricultural land in Hardoi district. I went bankrupt." He did various odd jobs to support his family and fight the legal battle and says he was helped by his relatives who "helped me and provided me with shelter". He was absolved of all charges last week after the prosecution could not produce any witnesses in the case. "I was suspended when I was in my 30s. Now that I have been absolved, I should be compensated. I should get all the money that is due to me," he says.

Summary: An Indian postal worker who was accused of stealing less than $1 in 1984, has been cleared by a court after nearly 350 court hearings over 29 years.


The images were selected from more than 400 slides made by photographer Joan Wilcock, who died in 1994. The project called Travelling The Archive is a collaborative effort. It involves Skye-based Atlas Arts, artist Nicky Bird, Kyleakin Local History Society and the Portree-based Highland Archive which is operated by High Life Highland. A selection of the images will be installed and projected indoors and out of doors in Kyleakin on 19 March. To promote the new arts projects, photographer Colin Hattersley set up shots of some of today's islanders with prints of Ms Wilcock's portraits.

Summary: Photographs showing life in Kyleakin in Skye between the late 1950s and early 1970s feature in a new arts project.


The 46-year-old, who met the Scottish Championship club's board on Friday morning, succeeds Ian Murray, who resigned on Saturday. Rae left Genk in the summer, having been assistant manager to Alex McLeish at the Belgian top-flight club. It will be his second stint as a manager in his own right, having had a two-year spell at Dundee from 2006. The Press Association has reported that Buddies chairman Stewart Gilmour originally wanted to hand Rae a short-term contract until the end of the season. But a statement on the club's official website said: "The new manager has signed a deal that will see him take charge until at least the summer of 2017." Rae's spell at Dundee was also in Scotland's second tier and he takes over in Paisley with the Buddies sitting third bottom ahead of Saturday's visit to bottom side Alloa Athletic. Murray's six-month reign ended after a defeat by Dumbarton, the club he left in the summer to replace Gary Teale, who was sacked following St Mirren's relegation from the top flight. Rae was appointed player-manager at Dens Park in May 2006 and they finished third then second in the old First Division in his first two seasons in charge. However, having already retired from playing, he was sacked as manager in October 2008 with his side sitting eighth in the table. He joined Milton Keynes Dons as first-team coach under Paul Ince and then moved to Notts County and Blackpool as assistant manager to the former England midfielder. After Ince was sacked in January 2014, Rae teamed up with McLeish at Genk until the former Scotland manager left the Belgian club in the summer. Rae's playing career began with Falkirk and he subsequently was on the books of Millwall, Sunderland, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Rangers before he joined Dundee. He briefly revived his playing career as cover for injuries while with MK Dons.

Summary: Former Rangers and Wolves midfielder Alex Rae has become St Mirren manager after signing an 18-month contract.