2,000 students reprimanded for bad behaviour

By Graeme Paton Last Updated: 2:56am GMT 29/12/2007

Almost 2,000 university students were reprimanded for bad behaviour including drug abuse, drink-driving, harassment and vandalism in just one year, new figures show.
Others were disciplined for posting defamatory statements on public websites, using university computers to access "inappropriate" material and plagiarism.
The institution with the highest exclusion rate was London's South Bank University
The figures - unearthed in a Freedom of Information Act survey - show 1,836 students were given formal warnings for unacceptable behaviour at 70 universities across the country while 56 were expelled.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=CEBYTDDNOH2GDQFIQMFSFGGAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/news/2007/12/29/nuni129.xml

Chaos predicted as luggage rule is lifted

By David Millward, Transport Editor Last Updated: 12:01am GMT 29/12/2007

Airline passengers face more confusion after the Government revealed that the limit of one item of hand luggage per passenger will be lifted at a handful of airports next month.
The Government had been under intense pressure to relax the rules on hand luggage
The changes are due to begin on Jan 7, which is earmarked for a strike by thousands of staff working for BAA, which operates seven major airports in Britain.
Heathrow and Stansted are among the 19 airports that have satisfied the Department for Transport that they can cope if the restrictions are relaxed - but Gatwick has been excluded.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/main.jhtml;jsessionid=CEBYTDDNOH2GDQFIQMFSFGGAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/travel/2007/12/29/nbags129.xml

Menace of addicts freed from prison

By Richard Edwards Last Updated: 2:55am GMT 29/12/2007

The public is being put at risk because addicts are being released from prisons "swamped" by drugs without receiving treatment, doctors' leaders have warned.
The British Medical Association says an escalating drugs problem within jails has led to hundreds of criminals who were clean when they were convicted becoming addicts while behind bars.
It claims that there has been a series of "terrible failures" in a prison system that is "releasing large numbers of individuals who are not fit to return to the community".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=CEBYTDDNOH2GDQFIQMFSFGGAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/news/2007/12/29/ndrugs129.xml

Festive packaging will create 3m tonnes of waste

By Ben Russell, Political Correspondent Published: 24 December 2007

Three million tonnes of rubbish will be thrown away by families during Christmas, with as much as three-quarters of children's presents amounting to nothing more than plastic and cardboard packaging.
Trading standards officers and MPs called on manufacturers to cut the piles of plastic, card and wire used to wrap millions of toys after a survey found three-quarters of toys came wrapped in at least their own weight in packaging.

http://environment.independent.co.uk/green_living/article3280448.ece

Jacqui Smith admits asylum error

Last Updated: 2:13am GMT 24/12/2007

The Home Secretary has admitted that the number of failed asylum seekers whose deportation flights are postponed because of their disruptive behaviour is almost double the figure previously released.
Jacqui Smith has apologised after stating that there had been 1,173 such cases over two years when the real figure is nearly twice as high.
In a letter to David Davis, the shadow home secretary, Ms Smith wrote: "It has now come to light that some of this information was incorrect and the figure is in fact 2,079.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=0IAYDZG0HYZV1QFIQMFCFGGAVCBQYIV0?xml=/news/2007/12/24/nasylum124.xml

Passengers spend Christmas at airport

By Richard Holt, Aislinn Simpson and Gary Cleland Last Updated: 10:16am GMT 25/12/2007

Hundreds of people are spending Christmas in hotels after dozens of flights were cancelled yesterday as a result of adverse weather.
While most managed to continue their journeys by this morning, some transit passengers were stranded in hotels near Heathrow airport waiting after 28 flights were cancelled yesterday. Six flights were axed at Gatwick yesterday and six at London City airport.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=R4YGGPDW5CW2XQFIQMGCFGGAVCBQUIV0?xml=/news/2007/12/25/ntravel125.xml

Anger over plan to broadcast Muslim call to prayer on loudspeaker in Oxford

Last updated at 12:46pm on 24th December 2007

Outrage: Proposals for loudspeaker Muslim calls to prayer in central Oxford have been attacked by local residents
Muslim plans to broadcast a loudspeaker call to prayer from a city centre mosque have been attacked by local residents who say it would turn the area into a "Muslim ghetto".
Dozens of people packed out a council meeting to express their concerns over the plans for a two-minute long call to prayer to be issued three times a day, saying that it could drown out the traditional sound of church bells.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=504373&in_page_id=1770

Elderly face theft risk as bank data is lost

By Rosa Prince Last Updated: 3:11am GMT 24/12/2007

Thousands of pensioners have received an apology from the Post Office after bank details were sent to the wrong addresses, it was disclosed yesterday as the Government faced new embarrassment over the mishandling of confidential information.
In a blunder that has exposed the elderly to the risk of theft, 5,500 letters were sent following fears that monthly Post Office card account statements were dispatched to the wrong customers.
The revelation will raise fears about the loss of confidential information in Government departments.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=IX0UU2LZKSI3XQFIQMFCFGGAVCBQYIV0?xml=/news/2007/12/24/ndata124.xml

Air chaos leaves passengers stranded

By Richard Holt, Aislinn Simpson and Gary Cleland Last Updated: 6:12pm GMT 24/12/2007

Hundreds of people are faced with spending Christmas in hotels after dozens of flights were cancelled as a result of adverse weather.
Although the fog which caused major disruption at Britain's airports on Sunday had lifted by early Christmas Eve, the knock-on effect left planes in the wrong place and many passengers unable to get to their Christmas destinations.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=UHXTKVCGQ3CZJQFIQMGSFFOAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/12/24/nfog524.xml

Asylum returners take cash and stay

By Ben Leapman, Home Affairs Correspondent Last Updated: 2:15am GMT 23/12/2007

Failed asylum seekers are drawing benefits to which they are not entitled by claiming that they are about to return home - only to continue to live in Britain for years.
The scam, which may have cost taxpayers millions of pounds, has come to light with the cases of four migrants who signed up for the Home Office's voluntary repatriation programme and who then went on to live off state handouts worth tens of thousands of pounds.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=YQHFIN4MWOIBNQFIQMGSFF4AVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/12/23/nasylum123.xml

Data loss crisis spreads to the NHS

By Tom Chivers Last Updated: 9:05am GMT 23/12/2007

The data crisis has taken a new twist, as nine NHS trusts admitted losing personal information of patients.
Hundreds of thousands of patients could be affected, according to a newspaper report.
The news comes in the wake of the loss of 25 million child benefit claimants' details on two discs belonging to HM Revenue and Customs, as well as three million motorists' details in Iowa.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=M4RI4AZJ1BDDFQFIQMGCFFOAVCBQUIV0?xml=/news/2007/12/23/ndata223.xml

Britain has become a 'Catholic country'

By Jonathan Wynne-Jones Last Updated: 2:30am GMT 23/12/2007

Roman Catholics have overtaken Anglicans as the country's dominant religious group. More people attend Mass every Sunday than worship with the Church of England, figures seen by The Sunday Telegraph show.
This means that the established Church has lost its place as the nation's most popular Christian denomination after more than four centuries of unrivalled influence following the Reformation.
Last night, leading figures gave warning that the Church of England could become a minority faith and that the findings should act as a wake-up call.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=M4RI4AZJ1BDDFQFIQMGCFFOAVCBQUIV0?xml=/news/2007/12/23/nchurch123.xml

Betrayal of stay-at-home mothers: 8m women lose state pensions after Government u-turn

By BENEDICT BROGAN Last updated at 12:34pm on 20th December 2007

More than eight million women who took time out of work to care for their children have lost their chance of a full state pension
More than eight million women who took time out of work to care for their children have lost their chance of a full state pension after a Christmas u-turn by the Government.
Ministers have dropped plans to give women with a partial pension entitlement the chance to make up the shortfall before they retire, it emerged last night.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=503606&in_page_id=1770

Mohammed to overtake Jack as favourite name

By Sarah Womack, Social Affairs Correspondent Last Updated: 1:39am GMT 20/12/2007

Mohammed is on track to become the most popular boys' name in England and Wales by next year.
The name was second only to Jack in 2007, which has been top for the last 13 years.
But there were just 385 more children called Jack and because of the high birth rate among Muslim families, the name is set to become the most popular boy's name by next year.
While Mohammed is in 17th place, its position would be number two if all 14 variant spellings of the name were taken into account.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/20/njack120.xml

Channel 4 fined by Ofcom over phone-in fixes

By Duncan Hooper and agencies Last Updated: 11:56am GMT 20/12/2007

Channel 4 has been fined £1.5 million following phone-in scandals on Richard and Judy's You Say We Pay competition and Deal Or No Deal, presented by Noel Edmonds.
Finalists for the Richard and Judy quiz were picked before lines closed.
In Deal Or No Deal viewers entering the competition were not given an equal chance of winning because earlier calls were favoured.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=GFWXGI1IGV3FNQFIQMGSFFOAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/12/20/nbbc320.xml

Three million L-drivers hit in lost data fiasco

By Robert Winnett, Deputy Political Editor Last Updated: 2:19am GMT 18/12/2007

The personal details of three million learner drivers have been lost by the Government, ministers have admitted. Data went missing 'in a routine operation'
Further fiascos could see civil servants jailed. Private information held on teenagers and other people taking the driving theory test - including their names, addresses and phone numbers - have gone missing from a company in America.
Details of the people that sat the driving theory test between September 2004 and April 2007 were lost
In the latest such blunder by the Government, Ruth Kelly, the Transport Secretary, disclosed that the files held on a hard disc drive were lost at a facility in Iowa City last May.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/18/ndata118.xml

Report slams elderly care home treatment

By Sarah Womack, Social Affairs Correspondent Last Updated: 2:22am GMT 18/12/2007

The appalling treatment of elderly people in care homes has been laid bare in a report which found some are dragged around by their hair, strapped into wheelchairs, locked in their rooms and sedated.
The Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI), describes how frail and vulnerable people are mistreated and often threatened or intimidated. Its 65-page report, Rights, Risks and Restraints, is based on a survey of 253 older people and their carers and an analysis of complaints and official inspection reports.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/18/nold118.xml

Is Britain in the grip of a knife crime epidemic?

Analysis by Philip Johnston, Home Affairs Editor Last Updated: 2:05am GMT 18/12/2007

The weekend murders of two more teenagers stabbed to death continue a gruesome trend that has been apparent throughout the year.
In London alone, more than a dozen young men have died in knife attacks.
Every week brings another story of a teenage life cut short by a blade-wielding killer.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/18/ncrime118.xml

Britons 'forced out of work by immigration'

Foreign workers push 100,000 young Britons into unemployment, report claims.

By Robert Winnett, Deputy Political Editor Last Updated: 2:44am GMT 18/12/2007

More than 100,000 young Britons may have been pushed into unemployment by the new wave of Eastern European immigrants, an economic analysis on the impact of migration has revealed.
The study, by the influential Ernst & Young ITEM Club, found that although the recent influx has boosted Britain's economy and kept inflation low, it may have increased unemployment for younger Britons and reduced pay increases for all.
Recent immigrant employment may have come at a cost to the domestic workforce
Since 1997, 1.5 million foreign workers have entered the British workplace, with many of these arriving from Eastern Europe in the past three years since the European Union expansion. This new group typically earns 40 per cent less than British workers.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/18/nmigrants118.xml

Row over payments to failed asylum seekers

By Ben Leapman, Home Affairs Correspondent Last Updated: 2:31am GMT 16/12/2007

Thousands of failed asylum seekers have been flown out of Britain and set up in business back home in a £36 million taxpayer-funded scheme, it can be revealed.
The unwanted foreigners, who had no legal right to remain, were given free flights, handed £1,000 in cash at the airport, then paid a further £3,000 to start enterprises in their homelands.
More than 23,000 migrants have taken advantage of the scheme. Their UK-funded businesses range from market stalls to hotels and clothes factories, in countries as far-flung as South Africa, China and Colombia.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/16/nasylum116.xml

'Desperate' stores slash prices for Christmas

By Harry Wallop Last Updated: 3:20am GMT 15/12/2007

Retailers are offering their biggest pre-Christmas discounts as the credit crisis takes its toll on High Street spending.
Prices are being slashed at big-name stores, including Argos, BHS, Debenhams, Halfords, Toys R Us and Boots, with 80 per cent off the cost of some gifts in a "desperate attempt" to woo reluctant shoppers.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/15/nchristmas115.xml

Passengers to pay more for a worse service

By David Millward, Transport Editor Last Updated: 8:56am GMT 15/12/2007

Leading rail operators have been accused of cashing in on Christmas by charging passengers high fares despite long delays because of engineering work.
Thousands of people face diversions, being rerouted and even having to complete their journey by bus.
Travel chaos is predicted over the festive season
Cheap tickets have been snapped up, so passengers booking late will have to pay far dearer fares - some five times as much - even though their trip will take far longer.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/15/ntransport115.xml

Newsnight told a small story over a big one

By Charles Moore Last Updated: 9:01am GMT 15/12/2007

It is a weakness, no doubt, in a journalist, but I normally do not watch Newsnight, the BBC's "flagship" current affairs programme.
The programme's strange menu of preachy reports followed by all-in wrestling with Jeremy Paxman, does not, for me, round off the day pleasantly. I'd rather be in bed.
On Wednesday, however, I had to watch it. I am the chairman of the centre-Right think-tank Policy Exchange, and Policy Exchange was coming under Newsnight's attack.
On a day when the world's central banks were combining to rescue the global banking system, and when Gordon Brown was trying to think of a way of signing away Britain's independence in Lisbon without cameras, there were big things for the programme to lead on.
Instead, it presented a huge, 17-minute package about Policy Exchange.
Although Newsnight's portentousness was unjustified, the allegations did look serious. It should be said at once that they need proper investigation. But when you know the background, you come to see how very different this story is from the way Newsnight told it.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2007/12/15/do1501.xml&DCMP=EMC-new_15122007

Gordon Brown dithers over EU treaty

By Bruno Waterfield in Lisbon and James Kirkup Last Updated: 3:13am GMT 14/12/2007

Gordon Brown has finally signed Britain up to the European Union Reform Treaty after an embarrassing period of dithering over whether to attend the formal signing ceremony in Lisbon.
Mr Brown signed the controversial document in a coach museum, having arrived late and missed a ceremony in the city's 500-year old Jeronimos monastery, which was attended by all of the other 26 EU leaders. As Mr Brown put pen to paper, most of the other leaders were still eating lunch.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/14/nbrown114.xml

Soldiers charged with embezzling jungle funds

By Gary Cleland Last Updated: 3:20am GMT 14/12/2007

Six soldiers, reportedly members of the SAS, were arrested yesterday and charged with embezzling thousands of pounds earmarked for jungle training.
The soldiers are the first in the history of the elite regiment to be publicly court martialled for such a serious criminal offence.
It is alleged that more than £250,000 was taken from a budget for exercises in Brunei and Borneo between 2003 and 2006.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/14/nsas114.xml

Millions risking their health with excess booze

By Nick Britten, Rebecca Smith and Lucy Cockcroft Last Updated: 3:15am GMT 14/12/2007

Almost 13 million adults are risking their health by drinking too much because of a failure to appreciate both the increasing strength of alcoholic drinks and the trend for larger measures, Government statisticians have revealed.
Wine drinkers, and women in particular, may be at risk as the strength of the average bottle has increased from nine per cent in 1978 to 12.5 per cent today. Wine glasses have also increased in size.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/14/ndrink114.xml

Deprived UK children 'still trapped by poverty'

By Graeme Paton, Education Editor Last Updated: 2:23am GMT 13/12/2007

The gap between rich and poor has failed to narrow under Labour as class barriers remain as rigid as they were in the 1970s, according to research published today.
Despite billions being invested in education, children born in deprived homes are no more likely to escape the poverty trap than they were 30 years ago, it is claimed.
By the age of seven, bright children from poor backgrounds will be overtaken at school by less gifted pupils raised in the wealthiest families.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/13/npoor113.xml

Army recruitment stepped up in Afghanistan

By Thomas Harding and James Kirkup Last Updated: 2:37am GMT 13/12/2007

Britain will have to recruit more soldiers to sustain a prolonged military mission in Afghanistan, the Prime Minister has indicated. Gordon Brown made the admission as he outlined a new long-term strategy to "isolate and eradicate" the Taliban.
Senior military figures believe that British troops could be in Afghanistan in large numbers for up to a decade, raising worries about the pressure on the over-stretched Army. It is also believed that the force in Iraq is being rapidly reduced in order to maintain a steady supply of troops for Afghanistan, where almost 8,000 are deployed.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/13/wafghan113.xml

Police 'at war' with Government over pay

By Andrew Porter, John Steele and Megan Levy Last Updated: 11:22am GMT 13/12/2007

The largest police federation in the UK has declared that its officers are now "at war" with the Government over a pay dispute.
The Metropolitan Police Federation today accused ministers of attempting to "trample on the well-being" of rank-and-file police officers, and attacked the Metropolitan Police Authority for its "shameful silence" over the dispute.
The Police Federation have passed a vote of no confidence in the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/13/npolice313.xml

Up to 11,000 migrants work illegally in security

By Philip Johnston, Home Affairs Editor Last Updated: 1:35pm GMT 13/12/2007

Up to 11,000 foreign nationals could be working illegally in the security industry, the Home Secretary told MPs.
This is more than double the number previously admitted by the Government - and one in four of all the non-EEA (European Economic Area) nationals licensed to work as guards.
Jacqui Smith said checks had found that nearly 40,000 non-EEA citizens had been given licences by the Security Industry Authority (SIA), the government agency that checks whether they have a criminal record.
Of these, 6,653 do not have a right to work in the UK and a further 4,447 have not be able to show they are entitled to work.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/13/nimmigration113.xml

Anti-drink adverts 'are backfiring'

By Sarah Womack, Social Affairs Correspondent
Last Updated: 2:14am GMT 10/12/2007

Health campaigns highlighting the consequences of drinking too much could be failing because young people take pride in their drunken exploits, according to state-funded research.
Advertisements that show someone being thrown out of a nightclub, being carried home or passing out in a doorway are often seen by young people as a typical story of a fun night out, rather than as a cautionary tale, it is claimed.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/10/nalcohol110.xml

MoD blunders leave Forces short of pay

By Gary Cleland Last Updated: 2:14am GMT 10/12/2007

Thousands of British Service personnel will be left desperately short of money this Christmas because problems with a new computer system have held up their salaries.
Some have gone five months without receiving their full pay and are having to request regiment hardship funds to cover household bills, while some reservist TA officers have not been paid at all.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/10/narmy310.xml

Homeopathic remedies 'put lives at risk'

By Lucy Cockcroft Last Updated: 6:41am GMT 07/12/2007

The Government's chief scientific adviser gave warning yesterday that people who use homeopathic medicines could be putting their lives at risk.
Sir David King said homeopathy was of no medical use whatsoever and that those who trusted it to cure serious health problems could be causing themselves more harm than good.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/07/nhpathy107.xml

Warning of slump as Bank cuts rates to 5.5pc

By Harry Wallop, Edmund Conway and Andrew Porter Last Updated: 2:25am GMT 07/12/2007

The Bank of England admitted for the first time yesterday that the economy is facing a serious slow-down because of the global credit crisis.
After announcing the first interest rate cut for two years, the bank issued a statement saying that growth had begun to slow, with serious potential knock-on effects for the economy's overall output.
The warning, the starkest yet from the bank, came as the western world's leading economic authority issued a warning on Britain's faltering property market.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2007/12/07/nrates107.xml

Supermarkets fined for dairy price fixing

By Richard Blackden Last Updated: 9:07am GMT 07/12/2007

Supermarket giant J Sainsbury has agreed to pay £26m to the Office of Fair Trading to settle a long-running investigation into the price fixing of milk, cheese and butter.
The OFT concluded in September that supermarkets including Sainsbury's, Tesco and Asda has colluded to fix the prices of milk and cheese, costing shoppers an estimated £270m.
In a short statement today, the OFT said it had concluded settlements with Asda, Dairy Crest, Safeway, Sainsbury’s, The Cheese Company and Wiseman.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml;jsessionid=TT25UTDZMC55HQFIQMFCFGGAVCBQYIV0?xml=/money/2007/12/07/bcnmilk107.xml

COUNCIL TAX RISE WARNING

Thursday December 6,2007

Town hall chiefs have warned of inflation-busting council tax rises as they accused ministers of starving them of enough cash to fund essential services.
Local government minister John Healey is due to tell MPs there is "no excuse" for big rises as he sets out a "fair and affordable" three-year funding settlement.

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/27441/Council-tax-rise-warning

Cheating primaries have test results cancelled

By Graeme Paton, Education Editor Last Updated: 3:00am GMT 06/12/2007

Teachers condemned the excessive pressure of national tests yesterday as it emerged that a string of primary schools had been stripped of their results for cheating.
Full league tables: Primary schools from best to worst | Primary schools A-Z
Official inquiries at five schools in England uncovered irregularities in tests taken by 11-year-olds this summer.
In some cases, schools were found to have doctored papers after the examinations.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/06/nedu206.xml

Government proposes 42-day terror detention

By Robert Winnett, Deputy Political Editor, and Richard Holt
Last Updated: 11:18am GMT 06/12/2007

The Government wants to increase the period terrorist suspects can be held without charge to 42 days, Jacqui Smith has confirmed.
The Home Secretary said: "We are proposing that where there is a compelling operational need, the Home Secretary can extend the operational limit that a terrorist can be held for up to a maximum of 42 days.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=30X3PW5CTET4DQFIQMGCFFOAVCBQUIV0?xml=/news/2007/12/06/ndetain206.xml

Prisoners 'to be released early' despite jail plan

By Christopher Hope, Home Affairs Correspondent
Last Updated: 4:58pm GMT 05/12/2007

The prisons crisis is set to get worse next summer with overcrowding likely to force ministers to free thousands of convicted criminals early, a major Government review has warned.
Lord Carter of Coles' review of the prisons service (pdf) In full: Jack Straw's statement on the Carter report
Judges could also face pressure to take into account prisons overcrowding into account when sentencing. At the end of last month the prison population stood at 81,454
The news came despite Jack Straw, the Justice Secretary, announcing an extra 10,500 prison places and plans for three new super-prisons to house Britain's most dangerous prisoners.
A Government-sponsored review by Lord Carter of Coles forecast that by next summer there will be a shortage of 3,000 prison places in England and Wales.

Video released of five Britons held hostage in Iraq

Allegra Stratton and agencies Tuesday December 4, 2007
Guardian Unlimited

A video of five British citizens kidnapped in Iraq and held since May has been aired on Al Arabiya television today.
The video calls for British forces to withdraw from the country or the kidnappers would kill one of their five hostages.
The video showed a statement in which the group threatened that "this hostage will be killed as a first warning, which would be followed with details that you would not wish to know".

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,2221759,00.html

Peter Hain caught up in Labour funding row

By Robert Winnett and Andrew Porter Last Updated: 6:43am GMT 04/12/2007Page 1 of 3

The Labour funding scandal has taken a fresh twist as another Cabinet minister was forced to admit he had banked "hidden" donations.
Peter Hain, the Work and Pensions Secretary, admitted that he had not registered all the donations to his unsuccessful deputy leadership campaign with electoral watchdogs as is legally required.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/04/nfunding104.xml

UK 'among Europe's worst' for cancer funding

By Rebecca Smith, Medical Editor Last Updated: 12:25am GMT 04/12/2007

The UK is lagging behind "nearly every other" European country when it comes to investment in cancer services and has some of the poorest survival rates for the disease.
The Government came under fire yesterday after its wide-ranging report into cancer services revealed its woeful under-investment in tackling the problem compared to other Western countries.
In England, just £80 per head of population is spent on cancer compared to £121 per head in France and £143 per head in Germany. Just 5.6 per cent of the total health budget is spent on cancer compared to 7.7 per cent in France, 9.2 per cent in the United States and 9.6 per cent in Germany.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/04/ncancer204.xml

Cancer cases 'to hit 300,000 annually'

By Rebecca Smith, Medical Editor, and Gary Cleland Last Updated: 6:14am GMT 04/12/2007

England is facing a cancer timebomb, with cases of the disease predicted to rise by a third within 15 years.
Figures show that one in five patients wait over a month to be seen by a specialist
An ageing population, a rise in "lifestyle" cancers and the obesity epidemic will see the number of people diagnosed with the disease rise from 230,000 a year to almost 300,000 by 2020.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/04/ncancer104.xml

Anger as fines from speed cameras soar

By James Kirkup and David Millward Last Updated: 7:00am GMT 04/12/2007

Almost two million speeding tickets are being issued to motorists each year following Labour's vast expansion of the speed camera network, official figures disclosed last night.
Since the party came to power, the number of fixed penalty notices for speeding has almost trebled from 700,000 a year to more than 1.9 million, the Government statistics showed.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/04/nspeed104.xml

Top terror officer Andy Hayman to retire

By Natalie Paris and agencies Last Updated: 3:29pm GMT 04/12/2007

Britain's most senior anti-terror police officer today announced he is to step down, after reports that he was facing an investigation into his expenses claims and following criticism of his role in the aftermath of the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes.
Assistant Commissioner Andy Hayman has denied any wrongdoing and described the criticism as "hurtful".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/04/nhayman104.xml

MoD braced for row over Nimrod crash report

By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent, and Stephen Adams Last Updated: 3:46am GMT 03/12/2007

Fresh questions over Britain's defence budget are set to be raised this week when an official report is published into why an RAF surveillance plane exploded over Afghanistan last year, killing 14.
The Ministry of Defence is braced for criticism when a board of inquiry announces its findings into the loss of the 37-year-old Nimrod MR2 aircraft.
Bereaved families believe the crash, which resulted in the biggest loss of British servicemen's lives in a single incident since the Falklands conflict, was the result of "incompetence and lack of funding".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/03/nforces103.xml

Wendy Alexander accused in donations row

By Robert Winnett, Deputy Political Editor Last Updated: 3:46am GMT 03/12/2007

Gordon Brown has suffered another blow in the illegal donations row as one of his staunchest allies came under intense pressure to resign with Labour facing a second criminal inquiry into the scandal.
Wendy Alexander, the leader of Scottish Labour, is fighting accusations that she was aware that an offshore benefactor made a donation to her leadership campaign.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/03/ndonations103.xml

Children living in poverty 'up by 200,000'

By Sarah Womack, Social Affairs Correspondent Last Updated: 3:46am GMT 03/12/2007

The number of children living in poverty rose by 200,000 in 12 months, according to a damning report which highlights the Government's failure to tackle the problem.
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation said Gordon Brown's approach to poverty needed a "radical rethink" and was "now largely exhausted".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/03/npoverty103.xml

Navy would struggle to fight a war - report

By Sean Rayment, Defence Correspondent Last Updated: 3:44am GMT 03/12/2007

The Royal Navy can no longer fight a major war because of years of under­funding and cutbacks, a leaked Whitehall report has revealed.
With an "under-resourced" fleet composed of "ageing and operationally defective ships", the Navy would struggle even to repeat its role in the Iraq war and is now "far more vulnerable to unexpected shocks", the top-level Ministry of Defence document says.
The report was ordered by Des Browne, the Defence Secretary, who had intended to use it to "counter criticism" on the state of the Navy in the media and from opposition parties.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=XTJRDREULNQOLQFIQMFSFFWAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/news/2007/12/02/navy102.xml

Is the roof falling in on the housing market?

By Sean O'Grady, Economics Editor Published: 30 November 2007

Has the bubble burst? The signs are ominous. For some months the property market has been cooling, the bubble showing distinct signs of strain.
Five increases in interest rates from the Bank of England in just over a year had begun to do their work, even before the recent credit crunch. House price rises began to moderate in the summer, and values in the past couple of months have been falling, albeit modestly and from a very inflated level. The Nationwide and the Halifax have reported drops of one to two per cent since the autumn, the worst performances since the housing recession of the early 1990s.

http://money.independent.co.uk/property/mortgages/article3209860.ece

Britain's educational ranking falls

By Graeme Paton, Education Editor Last Updated: 2:50am GMT 30/11/2007

School standards have come under renewed attack as pupils in Britain slipped in another international education league table.
The country fell to 14th in new rankings based on children's ability in science - beaten by nations including Slovenia, Estonia and Liechtenstein.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/30/nlessons130.xml

Labour at war over party donations

By Robert Winnett, Deputy Political Editor Last Updated: 9:54am GMT 30/11/2007

The Labour fund-raising scandal has escalated into open warfare between Gordon Brown and his party deputy Harriet Harman after she blamed the Prime Minister's inner circle for her decision to accept an illegal donation.
As the police prepared to launch a full-scale criminal inquiry into the affair, Miss Harman's aides named Chris Leslie - the co-ordinator of Mr Brown's leadership campaign - as the man who recommended she seek a donation from one of the secret intermediaries used by David Abrahams.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=RCGL5J005MOKTQFIQMGSFFOAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/30/nbrown130.xml

Food company 'sold tainted meat to schools'

By Gary Cleland and Harry Wallop Last Updated: 2:11am GMT 28/11/2007

A food company supplied contaminated meat to Government departments, prestigious schools and top hotels, according to a former employee.
McLaren Foods, based in Ashford, Kent, supplied meat to the Treasury, Westminster School and The Dorchester and Claridges hotels.
The company, which has since gone into administration, also supplied hospitals including London Chest Hospital, Ipswich and Royal Marsden and care homes.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/27/nmeat127.xml

Rammell warns of extremism at universities

By Graeme Paton, Education Editor Last Updated: 2:10am GMT 28/11/2007

Universities are in danger of becoming "breeding grounds for violent extremism" unless academics challenge hard-line views among students, the Government warned last night.
Students should be encouraged to debate controversial topics, such as the motives behind suicide bombers, to stop those with radical beliefs disappearing underground, said Bill Rammell, the higher education minister.
He also suggested that in the interests of free speech radical lecturers should be allowed to argue that suicide bombers are "justified".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/28/nuni128.xml

Gordon Brown urged to sack chief fundraiser

By Bonnie Malkin and agencies Last Updated: 11:14am GMT 28/11/2007

Shadow chancellor George Osborne has called for Jon Mendelsohn - who was brought in by Mr Brown to fund the general election - to be dumped if allegations that he was aware of secret donations to the Labour Party from property developer David Abrahams are true.
Mr Abrahams disclosed last night that he received a handwritten note from Mr Mendelsohn only yesterday calling him one of the party's "strongest supporters".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=ETEZPO1RV0CDJQFIQMFCFF4AVCBQYIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/28/nbrown1528.xml

MP quits Oxford Union in BNP row

By Aislinn Simpson Last Updated: 2:00am GMT 26/11/2007

A senior Conservative MP has resigned his membership of the Oxford Union as the pressure mounted on the organisers of tonight's debate on free speech to withdraw an invitation to Nick Griffin, of the British National Party, and Holocaust denier David Irving.
Julian Lewis, the shadow defence minister, turned in the membership he has held for 37 years following the Union's controversial invitation. He said he was "ashamed" of the students' decision. Others attacked the invitation as "juvenile provocation" and a "festival of anti-Semitism".
The Defence Secretary Des Browne, June Sarpong, the television presenter, Austin Mitchell, the Labour MP, and other speakers have pulled out of engagements at the union as a result of the invitation.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/26/noxford126.xml

Schools struggle with foreign children influx

By Victoria Thake Last Updated: 2:45am GMT 26/11/2007

An influx of migrant children is changing the culture of schools and pushing some to 'breaking point', the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) will claim this week.
Some schools do not have the resources to cope with scores of school-age children arriving in the UK from eastern Europe with a poor grasp of the English language and customs, a Government inquiry will be told.
The warning follows the publication of figures from the Government Actuary's Department which suggest that increased levels of immigration and an increasing birthrate could result in the population of the UK rising to about 90 million by the middle of the century.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/26/nkids126.xml

Average Briton is now £33,000 in debt

By Nick Allen Last Updated: 2:35am GMT 26/11/2007

Families are stretched to the limit of their borrowing capacity, with personal debt having almost doubled since the turn of the century, an independent report warns today.
The average adult now owes £33,000 through mortgages, credit cards and personal loans compared with £17,000 in 2000, the international accountancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers claims.
Many households are likely to have to use their credit cards to meet rising mortages
As borrowers default on their debts in growing numbers and banks and building societies try to recoup their losses, annual fees on credit cards will become standard, the report says. These would equate to up to £30 a year.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/26/ndebt126.xml

Donations: Labour general secretary resigns

By Robert Winnet Last Updated: 6:03pm GMT 26/11/2007

The Labour Party’s general secretary has dramatically resigned after admitting he knew that one of the party’s major benefactors had sought to hide his financial support by funnelling donations through other people.
Peter Watt stood down amid the growing furore over a series of donations totalling almost £400,000 made by property developer David Abrahams. Mr Abrahams gave the money to two members of staff who then donated the money to Labour.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=EQ2YGKOXZ3TRTQFIQMGSFFWAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/26/nlabour326.xml

Foot and mouth: New leak at Pirbright site

By Nick Allen and Graham Tibbetts Last Updated: 12:03pm GMT 22/11/2007

A new leak of foot and mouth disease has been discovered at the same site where an outbreak started three months ago.
The virus was released through a leaking valve at the private pharmaceutical firm Merial in Pirbright, Surrey, Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said.
The Pirbright laboratory is shared by the private firm Merial and the Government's Institute for Animal Health
The Pirbright site, which also contains the Government's Institute for Animal Health, was the source of the August outbreak which cost the farming industry an estimated £100 million.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=US1GYVU5LQEYFQFIQMGSFF4AVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/22/nfoot122.xml

England search begins as Steve McClaren axed

By David Bond and Giles Mole Last Updated: 1:27pm GMT 22/11/2007

Steve McClaren's reign as England manager has come to an end after failure to qualify for the Euro 2008 Championships next summer.
Members of the Football Association executive board decided this morning that McClaren's brief but disastrous reign as England manager needed to be brought swiftly to a close.
Directors on the 12-man board discussed their next move in the aftermath of England's 3-2 defeat by Croatia at Wembley last night. But they agreed to wait until this morning before making a final decision.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml;jsessionid=US1GYVU5LQEYFQFIQMGSFF4AVCBQWIV0?xml=/sport/2007/11/22/ufnfro222.xml

Widow of man killed by gang blames police

By Nigel Bunyan Last Updated: 2:33am GMT 21/11/2007

The widow of a man punched and kicked to death by drunken youths in front of his family has told how police had failed to do anything to stop the gangs who had terrorised their estate for months.
Giving evidence at the trial of five teenagers for her husband’s murder, Helen Newlove said meeting after meeting had been held by worried residents, who complained that the police had no way of stopping these gangs plaguing their neighbourhood.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/21/nnewlove121.xml

The Chancellor will go: the question is when

Last Updated: 12:01am GMT 21/11/2007

Six weeks ago, as he called off an autumn election, Gordon Brown explained that while his administration had shown "competence", he wanted time to set out its "vision".
Yesterday, as he sat alongside his hapless Chancellor in the Commons, the Prime Minister must have cursed his timidity.
For Alistair Darling's wretched account of how Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs contrived to lose the computerised details of 25 million people will taint Labour indelibly with a reputation for incompetence on an epic scale.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2007/11/21/dl2101.xml

Data on 25m benefits claimants lost in post

By Gordon Rayner and Andrew Porter Last Updated: 2:49am GMT 21/11/2007

Every parent in the country has been put at risk of fraud and identity theft after the Government lost 25 million personal records in Britain’s worst ever data protection breach.
Two compact discs containing bank details and addresses of 9.5 million parents and the names, dates of birth and National Insurance numbers of all 15.5 million children in the country went missing after a junior employee of HM Revenue and Customs put them in the post, unrecorded and unregistered.
Alistair Darling, already under pressure over the Northern Rock crisis, revealed the “inexcusable” blunder to incredulous MPs, admitting that there was still no trace of the CDs more than a month after they went missing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=0WTUCSPTSRH23QFIQMFSFGGAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/news/2007/11/20/ncustoms620.xml

Artists too frightened to tackle radical Islam

Ben Hoyle, Arts Reporter

Britain’s contemporary artists are fêted around the world for their willingness to shock but fear is preventing them from tackling Islamic fundamentalism. Grayson Perry, the cross-dressing potter, Turner Prize winner and former Times columnist, said that he had consciously avoided commenting on radical Islam in his otherwise highly provocative body of work because of the threat of reprisals.
Perry also believes that many of his fellow visual artists have also ducked the issue, and one leading British gallery director told The Times that few major venues would be prepared to show potentially inflammatory works.
“I’ve censored myself,” Perry said at a discussion on art and politics organised by the Art Fund. “The reason I haven’t gone all out attacking Islamism in my art is because I feel real fear that someone will slit my throat.”

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/visual_arts/article2896431.ece

PARENTS BLAMED FOR TEENAGE DRINKING

Review shows 'things are good' for most children - Ed Balls Monday November 19, 2007

Parents who supply their children with alcohol are behind soaring rates of binge drinking among Britain's teenagers, the Government has warned.
Schools Secretary Ed Balls said it was wrong for family members to buy under-age children "four-packs" and send them out to get drunk with their friends.He published a study warning that teenagers in the UK consume "extremely high" quantities of alcohol compared to children in other countries.

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/25655/Parents-blamed-for-teenage-drinking

New 'superbug' may be killing hundreds

By Victoria Thake Last Updated: 1:47am GMT 19/11/2007

Hundreds of patients are dying each year from a new "untreatable" hospital infection, a leading expert has warned.
Pseudomonas is usually found in specialist wards and can cause a number of illnesses
Pseudomonas is dangerous because it is especially virulent in intensive care units and has become increasingly resistant to treatment, says Professor Mark Enright, an authority on healthcare-acquired infections.
"Pseudomonas is a nightmare for hospitals - a real struggle," said Prof Enright, of Imperial College, London.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/19/nbug119.xml

Deadly H5N1 bird flu hits second turkey farm

By Megan Levy and agencies Last Updated: 5:08pm GMT 19/11/2007

A second case of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu has been found in turkeys at a farm near last week's initial outbreak, the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs confirmed today.
About 6,000 birds were slaughtered after last week's initial outbreak in Redgrave
All 9,000 turkeys have already been slaughtered at the new infected premises, Hill Meadow Farm, on the Norfolk-Suffolk border. The new farm is operated by the same company that runs Redgrave Park Farm, where the first bird flu case was discovered last week.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=FOAREATAHMRZPQFIQMGSFGGAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/19/nbird119.xml

Pupils take flight from bad schools

By Julie Henry Last Updated: 1:25am GMT 18/11/2007

Nearly a quarter of a million children have to travel to neighbouring council areas to get a good education, according to new figures.
In many cases, children commute longer distances than their parents as they cross council boundaries to be taught at a good school rather than put up with underperforming ones on their doorsteps. In the worst local authorities, half of all pupils leave home every morning to be taught in another council area, according to statistics to be published by the Policy Exchange think-tank this week.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/18/nschools218.xml

England's prayers answered as Israel triumph

By Roy Collins Last Updated: 1:21am GMT 18/11/2007

England's prayers for a miracle in the Holy Land that would resurrect their Euro 2008 qualifying hopes were answered in spectacular style last night. Indignant and hurt by all the conspiracy theories, of which there were more swirling around in the Tel Aviv night than in the Paris courtroom where the inquest into Princess Diana's death drags on, Israel raised themselves to post a historic win against Russia in the Ramat Gan Stadium that handed England a reprieve.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml;jsessionid=3EUXGTQD11GR1QFIQMFCFGGAVCBQYIV0?xml=/sport/2007/11/18/sfnfro118.xml

Our forces can't carry on like this, says General Sir Richard Dannatt

By Sean Rayment, Defence Correspondent Last Updated: 1:30am GMT 18/11/2007
The head of the Army has warned that years of Government under-funding and overstretch have left troops feeling "devalued, angry and suffering from Iraq fatigue", The Sunday Telegraph can reveal.
General Sir Richard Dannatt, the Chief of the General Staff, reveals in a top-level report that the present level of operations is "unsustainable", the Army is "under-manned" and increasing numbers of troops are "disillusioned" with service life.
General Dannatt describes his report as an accurate and vivid picture of Army life
Gen Dannatt states that the "military covenant is clearly out of kilter", and the chain of command needs to improve standards of pay, accommodation and medical care.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=3EUXGTQD11GR1QFIQMFCFGGAVCBQYIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/18/nforces118.xml

Elderly sell homes to cover care bills

By Sarah Womack, Social Affairs Correspondent Last Updated: 1:52am GMT 17/11/2007

Nearly one in five people has to sell all their assets, including the family home, to fund their place in a care home, according to new research.
Amid the ongoing scandal of people who have worked and saved all their lives giving up everything when they go into a home, it found a chronic lack of awareness of the cost of care.
Six in 10 adults over the age of 50 have no idea how much care homes charge until they are faced with the reality - which is around £25,000 to £30,000 a year.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/17/ncare117.xml

Helmand hero quits over troops' treatment

By Stephen Adams Last Updated: 1:59am GMT 17/11/2007

An Afghanistan war hero who led some of the toughest fighting against the Taliban is to leave the Army in disgust at the Government's treatment of troops.
Lt Col Stuart Tootal, 42, who some believe had the ability to lead the Army in the future, wrote a damning letter to military personnel chiefs slamming the "shoddy" treatment of soldiers before announcing his resignation.
It is a fresh blow for Gordon Brown and his Defence Secretary, Des Browne, who have been trying to show renewed commitment to the armed forces.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/17/ntroops117.xml

Fresh turmoil on fear of new bank seeking emergency aid

From The Times November 16, 2007
Siobhan Kennedy, Christine Seib and Tom Bawden

Britain’s banking sector was yesterday thrown into fresh turmoil as lending rates rose sharply amid fears that another bank had sought emergency funding from the Bank of England.
Shares in Britain’s banks plunged despite a statement from Barclays that its exposure to the sub-prime crisis was far lower than had been feared.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/banking_and_finance/article2879603.ece

Salmond 'lied to Scots over tax freeze'

By Kate Devlin, Scottish Political Correspondent Last Updated: 2:37am GMT 16/11/2007

Wendy Alexander counters Mr Salmond’s claims in Holyrood yesterday
Alex Salmond, the First Minister of Scotland, was accused of lying to the Scottish Parliament last night as his announcement of a freeze in council tax until 2011 appeared to unravel.
Labour took the unprecedented step of reporting Mr Salmond to Sir John Elvidge, the Scottish Executive's Permanent Secretary, after the leader of the Scottish National Party [SNP] insisted his government was delivering policies that his own ministers have said they will scrap.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/16/nscot116.xml

Tony Blair's top aide attacks honours inquiry

By Robert Winnett, Deputy Political Editor Last Updated: 2:37am GMT 16/11/2007

Downing Street's most senior official yesterday attacked the police decision to launch a criminal investigation into the alleged sale of honours.
Sir Gus O'Donnell, the Cabinet Secretary, said that the Metropolitan Police inquiry had been "incredibly distracting" for the then Prime Minister, Tony Blair. Sir Gus added that he was "puzzled" by suggestions from Scotland Yard detectives that Downing Street officials tried to hinder the investigation.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/16/nyard116.xml.xml

New intelligence chief reveals all on website

By Robert Winnett, Deputy Political Editor Last Updated: 2:37am GMT 16/11/2007

The most senior British intelligence official, appointed yesterday to oversee MI5, MI6 and GCHQ, has a website revealing his home address, phone numbers and private photographs of himself, family and friends.
The website features a photograph of Alex Allan windsurfing on the Thames and one of him as a young rock fan in 1969
Alex Allan, 56, is the new head of the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC) with access to sensitive documents and information regarding anti-terrorist operations.
But the details on his website, described by a security official as "a serious breach", reveal him as a devoted fan of the American rock band Grateful Dead and a keen cyclist who once windsurfed to work in Westminster during a train strike.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/16/nbreach116.xml

BA may face multi-million compensation battle

By Laura Clout Last Updated: 7:01am GMT 16/11/2007

British Airways could face a multi-million pound bill after it agreed to compensate two passengers for cancelled flights.
The airline reportedly agreed to pay £430 compensation and legal costs for two passengers who were stranded in Cape Town because of an industrial dispute.
Its settlement raises the possibility of similar claims from thousands of other customers affected by the strike earlier this year.
EUclaim, which represented the pair, is to apply for the case to be heard in a Dutch court and claims it has been contacted by 400 other BA passengers and travel agents acting on behalf of multinational companies who are all seeking compensation.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/main.jhtml?xml=/travel/2007/11/16/et-ba-116.xml

Primary school children's 'monthly binges'

By Graeme Paton, Education Editor Last Updated: 6:12am GMT 16/11/2007

The true scale of drug and alcohol abuse among children has been disclosed as the first large-scale Government survey showed that thousands of primary school pupils get drunk every month.
As many as one in 20 children aged 10 and 11 admitted taking part in a heavy drinking session in the past four weeks. Among 14- and 15-year-olds the numbers rose above a third - raising fresh fears over the extent of Britain's binge drinking culture.
Alarmingly, one in 10 secondary school pupils had tried cannabis and three per cent took hard drugs, including cocaine, heroin and ecstasy.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/16/nprimary116.xml

Emigration soars as Britons desert the UK

By Philip Johnston, Home Affairs Editor Last Updated: 6:56pm GMT 15/11/2007

Britain is experiencing the greatest exodus of its own nationals in recent history while immigration is at unprecedented levels, new figures show.
Last year, 207,000 British citizens - one every three minutes - left the country while 510,000 foreigners arrived to stay for a year or more.
The majority of people leaving the UK go to New Zealand, France, Spain or Australia
The British made up more than half of the 400,000 moving abroad - yet only 14 per cent of immigrants were UK nationals coming home.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=XAP4NUELWGBENQFIQMGSFF4AVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/15/nemi115.xml

Deportation of Darfuris 'not unduly harsh'

By Ben Russell, Political Correspondent Published: 15 November 2007

Campaigners have lost a test case that could have prevented the deportation of Darfuri asylum-seekers to Sudan.
The law lords overturned a Court of Appeal ruling that it was "unduly harsh" to send people back to the Sudanese capital, Khartoum. The Home Office said it was now free to start sending people back to the city, despite warnings that people faced torture or harassment when they arrived back in their homeland.
There was widespread anger at the ruling as campaigners warned they would launch a fresh legal challenge if the Home Office attempted to deport any Darfuri asylum-seekers.

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/legal/article3160643.ece

Growing suicide toll among troops

By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent, and James Kirkup Last Updated: 3:25am GMT 15/11/2007

The number of troops who have committed suicide after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan is equivalent to 10 per cent of deaths suffered on operations.
There are now no dedicated mental health wards for Service personnel
The Ministry of Defence has disclosed that 17 serving personnel have killed themselves after witnessing the horrors of conflict.
There are also fears that the number of suicides among troops who have recently left the Armed Forces could be significantly higher than 17. However, no records are kept once they leave the Services.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/15/ntroops115.xml

Bird flu 'may have hit second farm'

By Nick Allen Last Updated: 12:10pm GMT 15/11/2007

The bird flu crisis escalated today as vets said the virus may have spread to a second farm a few kilometres from the initial outbreak.
Turkeys at Grove Farm near Botesdale in Suffolk were being slaughtered on suspicion of having the disease.
The site is within a 3km protection zone established around Redgrave Park Farm where the deadly H5N1 virus was first discovered on Sunday.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/15/nflu415.xml

Terror crackdown: Passengers forced to answer 53 questions BEFORE they travel

By JAMES SLACK Last updated at 14:01pm on 15th November 2007

Travellers face price hikes and confusion after the Government unveiled plans to take up to 53 pieces of information from anyone entering or leaving Britain. For every journey, security officials will want credit card details, holiday contact numbers, travel plans, email addresses, car numbers and even any previous missed flights.
The e-borders system will monitor every passenger travelling into or out of the country. The information, taken when a ticket is bought, will be shared among police, customs, immigration and the security services for at least 24 hours before a journey is due to take place.
Anybody about whom the authorities are dubious can be turned away when they arrive at the airport or station with their baggage.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=493912&in_page_id=1770&ct=5

Fewer tourists visit Britain

By Harry Wallop, Consumer Affairs Correspondent Last Updated: 3:01pm GMT 14/11/2007

One million fewer tourists visited Britain during the three months to September, compared with the same period last year, as sky-high prices, poor airports and bad weather deterred people, official figures showed.
Britain is seen as an unexciting, troublesome destination
Overseas visitor numbers fell by 10 per cent to 9.25 million – the largest quarterly fall since the fall out of September 11, 2001, when American tourists numbers ground to a halt. This time, the weak dollar, rather than terrorism, is behind the fall in numbers.
Added to this, is Britain’s increasing reputation as an unexciting, troublesome destination, compared to more exotic places in Asia.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/main.jhtml?xml=/travel/2007/11/14/et-tourism-114.xml

Doctors call for end to cheap alcohol

By James Kirkup and Nic Fleming Last Updated: 6:59am GMT 14/11/2007
Increasing numbers of people are suffering serious liver disease as a result of Britain's heavy drinking culture, doctors warned yesterday.

The new figures were released as pressure mounted on the Government to act against supermarkets selling alcohol at knock-down prices, in some cases for as little as 22p for a can of lager.
Leading doctors and charities highlighted the steep rises in alcoholic liver cirrhosis and drink-related deaths as they launched the Alcohol Health Alliance, which brings together 24 health groups to lobby for changes in drinking laws.
The figures show a 95 per cent rise in alcohol liver cirrhosis rates since 2000. In the two years to 2006, cirrhosis rose by 36 per cent.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/14/nalcohol114.xml

TV nannies exploit toddlers, says NSPCC

By Nicole Martin, Digital and Media Correspondent Last Updated: 2:09am GMT 14/11/2007

Television nannies are teaching "outdated and potentially harmful" techniques, and should be banned from featuring children under five on their shows, the NSPCC has said.
Programmes such as Bringing Up Baby exploit babies and toddlers and damage the confidence of new parents who slavishly follow the techniques espoused by unqualified and often childless nannies, the charity claimed.
The warning comes as Channel 4 investigates Claire Verity, the controversial "baby guru" on Bringing Up Baby, over claims that she lied on her CV about her childcare qualifications.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/13/nminder213.xml

Police complaints hits 17-year high

By John Steele, Crime Correspondent Last Updated: 7:16pm GMT 14/11/2007

Allegations of neglect of duty and rudeness by police have driven the total of complaints against police to a 17-year high, according to the latest report from the service's watchdog body.
The number of complaints against officers, many made by law-abiding middle class people disappointed by officers' behaviour, has almost doubled since the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) came into force three years ago.
There were just under 29,000 complaints received by the IPCC in England and Wales last year, compared with 15,900 in the 12 months before it was set up.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/14/npolice114.xml

Security minister slapped down by Gordon Brown

By James Kirkup, political correspondent, and Gary Cleland Last Updated: 12:18pm GMT 14/11/2007
Admiral Lord West, the security minister, was today forced into an abrupt and humiliating U-turn after publicly opposing Gordon Brown's bid to raise the time limit on holding terror suspects without charging.
Lord West was forced into a U-turn by Gordon Brown
The former navy chief was drafted into the Government in the summer and asked to review Britain's defences against al-Qa'eda terrorists, and parts of that review will be presented to parliament later today.
The Prime Minister's most contentious anti-terror proposal is to look at raising the pre-charge detention time limit from 28 to 56 days.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/14/nterror314.xml

'10,000 illegal immigrants' work in security

By Philip Johnston, Home Affairs Editor Last Updated: 6:59am GMT 14/11/2007

Up to 10,000 foreign nationals could be working illegally in the security industry, the Home Secretary indicated yesterday. The figure is double the previous estimate.
Jacqui Smith told MPs that officials were still trying to find out the scale of the fiasco but, despite accusations from the Conservatives of "blunder, panic and cover-up", she denied trying to conceal the problem.
The latest controversy to hit the Home Office centres on the disclosure that sensitive security installations were being guarded by illegal immigrants. They were licensed to work by the Security Industry Authority (SIA), a government agency that checks whether they have a criminal record.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/14/nsmith114.xml

Troops get rough deal, says Chief of Defence

By Con Coughlin Last Updated: 10:24am GMT 14/11/2007

The covenant between the Armed Forces and the British people is under growing threat from the poor conditions and lack of understanding shown to troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, the Chief of the Defence Staff warns today.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup says the agreement that guarantees forces generous treatment in return for their sacrifices is "under stress".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/14/ndefence114.xml

Gordon Brown reveals 'Fortress Britain' plan

By Philip Johnston, Home Affairs Editor Last Updated: 6:27pm GMT 14/11/2007

Train passengers face routine airline-style bag checks and body searches as part of a new counter-terror crackdown announced by Gordon Brown.
He conjured up visions of ''Fortress Britain" as he unveiled a succession of security measures at airports, railway stations, sports venues and other public places.
In 2003 tanks were deployed to Heathrow Airport because of a suspected plot to shoot down an airliner
There is also to be a huge ''hearts and minds" drive aimed at diverting young Muslims away from the influence of fanatics. The Prime Minister said a review of vulnerable buildings and crowded spaces like shopping centres had led to a rethink of the way they are protected.
More than 250 busy railway stations, airports and seaports as well as 100 ''sensitive" installations like power stations and electricity substations will be given extra security.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=LTFMTLEMAG3AFQFIQMFCFGGAVCBQYIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/15/nfortress115.xml

London 'is second most expensive city'

Last Updated: 1:21am GMT 13/11/2007

London is the second most expensive city in the world, according to the latest study to show that British consumers pay more for weekly shopping, transport, and entertainment.
A morning journey to work, a cup of coffee and a pint of milk cost more in London than in 27 other cities. Only Oslo manages to pip Britain's capital when it comes to prices.
The research, from the shopping comparison website PriceRunner, examined 27 goods, including a can of Coca-Cola, an Apple iPod, a litre of petrol and a cinema ticket.
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Londoners suffer particularly from high transport costs, with petrol touching £1 a litre and a one-way bus ticket costing £2, compared with 9p in Beijing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/13/nxmas213.xml

Police 'too busy' to solve major crime

By Sophie Borland Last Updated: 1:21am GMT 13/11/2007

Police are letting dangerous criminals slip through the net because they are too busy concentrating on minor offences in order to meet government targets, a former chief constable has warned.
Peter Neyroud, the chief executive of the National Policing Improvement Agency, claims that catching a murderer now carries no more importance than arresting someone for stealing a pint of milk.
The former chief constable, who heads the organisation set up six months ago to improve policing in England and Wales, said that over the past five years police had focused on increasing the number of so-called "offences brought to justice" in a bid to meet targets.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/13/ncrime113.xml

Sir Ian Blair 'broke law' in delaying inquiry

By Nick Allen Last Updated: 1:20am GMT 13/11/2007

The embattled Metropolitan Police Commissioner personally broke the law when he delayed an independent inquiry into the fatal shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes, the Tories have claimed.
Dominic Grieve, the shadow attorney general, has written to Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, demanding that Sir Ian Blair be sacked because his conduct had "discredited" the police.
The commissioner is said to have prevented the Independent Police Complaints Commission from beginning an investigation immediately into the death of Mr de Menezes, the innocent Brazilian mistaken for a suicide bomber.
The delay led to "much of the avoidable difficulty" in unravelling the circumstances surrounding the shooting in 2005, according to the IPCC.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/13/nmet113.xml

Fastest rise in food prices for 14 years

By Harry Wallop, Consumer Affairs Correspondent Last Updated: 1:46am GMT 13/11/2007

Food prices are increasing at their highest rate for more than a decade, official figures showed yesterday.
Increased wheat, dairy, meat and vegetable prices mean food factories are having to pay six per cent more for their raw ingredients than a year ago - the highest annual rate since 1993, said the Office of National Statistics (ONS).
After a decade of low prices in supermarkets, vegetables, milk, bread and meat are all expected to show substantial rises
The surging costs will be passed on to consumers, who are experiencing the highest food bills for years and could end up paying almost £1,000 extra on their annual food bill than a year ago.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/13/ncosts113.xml

Jacqui Smith accused of immigrant 'cover-up'

By James Kirkup, Political Correspondent, and Gary Cleland Last Updated: 11:31am GMT 13/11/2007

Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, is to appear before MPs over claims she tried to conceal the fact that thousands of illegal immigrants had been authorised to work in sensitive Government security posts.
Following pressure from David Cameron, the Home Office announced that Ms Smith would address the House of Commons this afternoon.
The Tory leader demanded that the Home Secretary explain why she did not make public the fact that thousands of illegal workers were given the jobs. Leaked emails showed that Ms Smith was told about the latest immigration fiasco as long ago as July, but only admitted to it on Sunday in response to questions from journalists.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=VVMY2RC5YN40LQFIQMGCFGGAVCBQUIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/13/nmigrants413.xml

How can Britain's 'lost generation' be saved?

Britain is in danger of creating a "lost generation" of wayward teenagers responsible for rising levels of violence, the former Conservative leader Iain Duncan-Smith warns today.
He will set out plans for a comprehensive inquiry into youth crime which is likely to form the basis of radical new Conservative policies for the next general election.
Among the proposals likely to be on the agenda are a "zero tolerance" approach to law enforcement, as well as measures to encourage companies to invest in youth centres to keep children off the streets.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=CXH24MCLGC515QFIQMGCFFWAVCBQUIV0?view=BLOGDETAIL&grid=F11&blog=yourview&xml=/news/2007/11/12/view12.xml

Disgraced Aitken in key new Tory role

· Ex-minister heads jail commission· 'My prison term was vital experience'
Nicholas Watt, political editor Sunday November 11, 2007 The Observer

Jonathan Aitken, the disgraced former Tory cabinet minister who was jailed for perjury, will be rehabilitated into the political frontline tomorrow when he takes charge of a task force on prison reform that will help formulate Conservative policy.

http://politics.guardian.co.uk/conservatives/story/0,,2209213,00.html

British 'spy' arrested in Russian secrets plot

By Sean Rayment and Jasper Copping Last Updated: 4:11am GMT 11/11/2007

A former British soldier has been arrested on suspicion of spying for the Russian intelligence services, it can be disclosed today.
Peter Hill, a former Territorial Army trooper in the Royal Armoured Corps, was detained under the Official Secrets Act, for allegedly attempting to sell classified military documents to the Russians.
Peter Hill is reportedly being questioned for attempting to pass secrets to the Russians
He was arrested following a Metropolitan Police "sting" in which an undercover officer was understood to have posed as a Kremlin agent. Hill, 23, described as an "opportunist", is understood to have been under surveillance for some time and was arrested in Leeds last Wednesday evening, within minutes of the alleged exchange taking place.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=VP2KAZSIF0EZTQFIQMGSFF4AVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/11/nspy111.xml

Health-care failings make Britain the poor relation within Europe

By Patrick Sawer Last Updated: 2:44am GMT 11/11/2007

Britain's health-care system is a bad deal for patients here, compared with those in the rest of Europe, according to a new report. Although this country has the highest-paid doctors and the second-highest number of nurses per head of population, Britain was described by the study as "the poor relation" of European health-care.British hospitals have the lowest number of doctors and consultants but the highest levels of the MRSA superbug.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/11/nhealth111.xml

Illegal immigrants working as security guards

By Robert Winnett, Deputy Political Editor Last Updated: 12:43pm GMT 11/11/2007

Thousands of illegal immigrants have been given official licences to work as security guards, the Home Office has admitted.Ministers have now ordered urgent checks to be carried out on hundreds of thousands of people vetted by the government's Security Industry Authority (SIA) over the past three years.A loophole in the vetting rules meant that the entitlement of people to work in Britain was not checked for those applying for jobs in the security industry. According to newspaper reports, investigators have discovered illegal immigrants working at the Metropolitan Police, government departments and at ports and airports since the situation first came to light in July. One illegal immigrant was even employed as a security guard charged with protecting the Prime Minister's Jaguar.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/11/nguards111.xml

The cruellest sacrifice: Revealed: 88 casualties of MoD's failures

Andrew Johnson reports Published: 11 November 2007

While the nation remembers its war dead, service families react with fury as our investigation reveals the extent of the mistakes that have consigned so many of Britain's forces to unnecessary deaths.
More than one in three servicemen killed in Iraq and Afghanistan might still be alive if not for avoidable blunders and equipment problems, an investigation by The Independent on Sunday has revealed. An audit of the 254 deaths in the two conflicts revealed that at least 88 have died in avoidable accidents, friendly fire incidents or equipment shortages, prompting claims that the Ministry of Defence has been negligent of its duty of care to servicemen and women.

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article3150020.ece

Dr Bari: Government stoking Muslim tension

By Rachel Sylvester and Alice Thomson Last Updated: 2:27am GMT 10/11/2007

The head of the Muslim Council of Britain does not mince his words on integration, report Rachel Sylvester and Alice Thomson
There is fear and loathing in Britain. This week, the head of MI5 claimed there were 2,000 people involved in terrorist activity and children as young as 15 were being "groomed" to be suicide bombers.
Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari: Britain must beware of becoming like Nazi Germany
Gordon Brown announced plans to require immigrants to learn English and Downing Street said the Prime Minister wanted to double the number of days that terrorist suspects can be detained without trial. Then, just as the Metropolitan Police was being censured for shooting the Stockwell One, the Lyrical Terrorist became the first woman to be convicted of terrorist crimes.
Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari, the leader of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), thinks the Government is stoking the tension.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=V4ERJVD1YLHHVQFIQMGSFF4AVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/11/10/nbari110.xml

Middle classes abandon state schools

By Graeme Paton and Toby Helm
Last Updated: 2:27am GMT 10/11/2007

A growing proportion of middle-class parents are giving up on state education after 10 years of Labour rule by paying to educate their children in the independent sector, official figures have disclosed.
Many families outside the traditional fee-paying heartland of the South East are shunning comprehensives
The scale of the exodus is shown for the first time in statistics indicating that many families outside the traditional fee-paying heartland of the South East are shunning comprehensives in favour of private schools.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/10/nschool110.xml&CMP=ILC

Terrorists jailed in UK prisons 'to rise tenfold'

By Philip Johnston, Home Affairs EditorLast Updated: 2:26am GMT 08/11/2007

The number of terrorists in prison in Britain is expected to rise by more than tenfold over the next 10 years. Internal projections by the Prison Service suggest that the number of inmates held on terrorist offences will rise from 131 today to 1,600 by 2017. About 1,300 of them will be Category A inmates, who require the highest level of security.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/08/nterror108.xml

Sir Ian Blair defiant despite no confidence vote

By Gordon Rayner, Chief Reporter Last Updated: 5:06pm GMT 07/11/2007

The London Assembly today passed a surprise motion of no confidence against Sir Ian Blair, further escalating pressure on the under-fire Metropolitan Police commissioner. The vote calling for Sir Ian's sacking - arranged by Lib Dem Assembly members - came after he endured another angry grilling at City Hall over the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes,

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/07/nmet207.xml

British forces 'underfunded and over-stretched'

By Aislinn Simpson Last Updated: 1:38pm GMT 08/11/2007

A group of influential ex-defence chiefs have called on Gordon Brown to give an urgent cash injection to Britain’s overstretched Armed Forces. General Lord Guthrie, Admiral Lord Boyce and Marshal of the RAF Lord Craig, together with former foreign secretary Lord Owen, today launch the UK National Defence Association to press for a major increase in defence spending. With British troops committed on two fronts in Iraq and Afghanistan, the patrons argue that the Armed Forces are spread too thin.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/08/narmy108.xml

British Airways flight seconds away from mid-air disaster

By RAY MASSEY - Last updated at 00:20am on 7th November 2007

Hundreds of passengers watched in horror as their British Airways jumbo narrowly avoided a collision with another airliner over France. The Johannesburg-bound flight from Heathrow was suddenly forced to climb to avoid an Argentinian passenger jet.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=492128&in_page_id=1770

Sharp decline in confidence knocks sales of new houses

Gabriel Rozenberg and James Rossiter

The fallout from the global credit squeeze claimed another victim on this side of the Atlantic as one of Britain’s biggest housebuilders yesterday blamed an abrupt turnaround in consumer confidence for a drop in house sales.
In one of the firmest indications yet that the housing market is slowing, Bovis said that its sales had fallen sharply over the past six weeks and it would now miss its full-year forecasts. Profits will come in at least 7 per cent below expectations.
The warning was seen as a sign that the problems in the US housing and finance markets were beginning to affect consumer confidence in the UK. The City is betting that conditions in Britain’s housing market are set to deteriorate — the value of Britain’s top seven housebuilders has fallen by £8.7 billion, a drop of 42 per cent, since April 6, calculations by The Times show.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/money/property_and_mortgages/article2821168.ece

MI5: Al-Qa'eda recruiting UK children for terror

By Philip Johnston, Home Affairs Editor
Last Updated: 2:08am GMT 06/11/2007

Muslim children as young as 15 are being recruited by al-Qa’eda to wage "a deliberate campaign of terror" in Britain, the head of MI5 has said.
Jonathan Evans used his first speech since taking over the security service to warn that Islamists were "radicalising, indoctrinating and grooming young, vulnerable people to carry out acts of terrorism."
Mr Evans said the threat has yet to reach its peak He said MI5 had identified 2,000 individuals who pose a direct threat to national security and public safety but warned the number of potential terrorists living in this country could run to 4,000. The stark assessment came as the Government prepared to announce plans for a new counter-terror crackdown.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/05/nevans305.xml

‘Bribe’ is doubled for foreign prisoners who agree to leave Britain

Richard Ford, Home Correspondent

The Government has almost doubled to £1,500 the “bribe” offered to foreign national prisoners to persuade them to return home and ease prison overcrowding, The Times has learnt.
The improved package of help is being offered for the next 5½ weeks as the Government attempts to meet a target of removing 4,000 foreign prisoners by the end of the year. Opposition politicans and penal reform groups suggested last night that the enhanced package was a clear sign that the Government was not on target.
The revised package was introduced quietly without any publicity or formal announcement by the Home Office a week ago as Parliament rose for a week’s break.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article2814072.ece

BA joins Europe's 'poorest performing airlines'

By David Millward, Transport Editor Last Updated: 12:01am GMT 06/11/2007

British Airways performed worse than any other major European airline, with more than two in five flights running late, according to figures released yesterday. AEA consumer report [pdf]
Not only did BA's punctuality figures leave it languishing alongside the Portuguese and Greek carriers, it was also among the worst airlines for losing baggage over the summer.
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The latest performance league table, covering July to September, was released by the Association of European Airlines.
It was published within days of BA announcing that it had notched up a 25 per cent increase in profits for the first six months of the year.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/main.jhtml?xml=/travel/2007/11/06/nairline106.xml

Bishop attacks 'appalling' military housing

By Jonathan Petre, Religion Correspondent and Thomas Harding
Last Updated: 2:07am GMT 06/11/2007

The Roman Catholic bishop to the military has attacked the Government for failing to upgrade the "appalling" living conditions of troops and their families. The Bishop of the Forces, the Rt Rev Tom Burns, is demanding that money is provided immediately to raise the quality of military housing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/06/nbishop106.xml

Christmas should be 'downgraded' to help race relations says Labour think tank

By JAMES CHAPMAN - Last updated at 12:56pm on 1st November 2007

Christmas should be downgraded in favour of festivals from other religions to improve race relations, says an explosive report.
Labour's favourite think-tank says that because it would be hard to "expunge" Christmas from the national calendar, 'even-handedness' means public organisations must start giving other religions equal footing.
The leaked findings of its investigation into identity, citizenship and community cohesion also propose:
• "Birth ceremonies", at which state and parents agree to "work in partnership" to bring up children
• Action to "ensure access" for ethnic minorities to "largely white" countryside
• An overhaul of Britain's "imperial" honours system
• Bishops being thrown out of the House of Lords
• An end to "sectarian" religious education
• Flying flags other than the Union Jack.
The report by the Institute for Public Policy Research was commissioned when Nick Pearce, now head of public policy at Downing Street, was its director.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=490925&in_page_id=1770&ct=5

Cameron in race row as Tory claims that Enoch was right

Nicholas Watt, political editor Sunday November 4, 2007 The Observer

David Cameron was drawn into a row over race last night after a candidate in a high-profile Parliamentary seat praised Enoch Powell for his notorious 'rivers of blood' speech, which warned that Britain was 'literally mad' to allow widespread immigration.
Days after Cameron was praised by the head of the Equality Commission for tackling the issue of immigration in a non-racial way, Labour called on the Tory leader to remove Nigel Hastilow as a prospective Conservative candidate for declaring that Powell was 'right'.

Full story: http://observer.guardian.co.uk/politics/story/0,,2205014,00.html

The royals & a toxic court

The young Windsors and their hangers-on who keep the royal soap opera rolling.
Susie Mesure and Andrew Johnson report on another week of toe-curling headlines
Published: 04 November 2007

In the soap opera that is Britain's Royal Family, one part of the cast seems destined to provide less than elevating storylines for years to come: its younger generation and their coterie of friends, hangers-on and trainee courtiers. They are fast becoming the royals' toxic twentysomethings, and in the past seven days they have been on vintage form.
It has been, even by the rococo standards of the Windsors, a fine week for toe-curling headlines. Last Sunday, there was "Royal victim of coke and sex blackmail bid". This was followed by "Police question Prince Harry over hen harrier shooting". And yesterday, the Daily Mail ran a spread headlined "Why does Harry drink so much?" replete with details of Knightsbridge nights running up £1,567 bar bills and 23-hour drinking sessions.

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article3127414.ece

Guardian's One-Sided Analysis

Source: http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/45884734/critiques/new/Guardians_One-Sided_Analysis.asp

HonestReporting has previously debunked the misleading charge that Gaza is 'under siege'. Yet, The Guardian's Seumus Milne headlines his op-ed "The siege of Gaza is going to lead to a violent escalation". Milne does not take long to reveal where his sympathies lie, referring to "rockets fired by Palestinian resistance groups". Since when is the firing of Qassams from Gaza schoolyards (see video here) against civilian targets in Sderot and the surrounding region an act of resistance and not terrorism?
The piece continues in the same vein, littered with bias. Here are some examples:
Milne refuses to hold Hamas responsible for the situtation in Gaza. Instead, in a perverse inversion, an increase in Qassam attacks is blamed on Israel. Additionally, Milne notes an increase in the ratio of Palestinian to Israeli casualties without acknowledging that the majority of those Palestinians were directly involved in terrorist activities that Israel has every right to defend itself against.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=4BP4YLRHKRJW1QFIQMGSFF4AVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/10/30/nmosques130.xml

'Hate literature easily found at UK mosques'

By Toby Helm, Chief Political Correspondent
Last Updated: 3:35am GMT 30/10/2007

Extremist literature that encourages hatred of gays, Christians and Jews can be easily found at many of Britain's mosques, according to a new survey.
Researchers for the centre-Right think tank Policy Exchange claims it found the literature in a quarter of the 100 mosques and Islamic institutions they visited.Many of the publications allegedly called on British Muslims to segregate themselves from non-Muslims and for unbelievers to be treated as second-class citizens wherever possible.The literature also allegedly contained repeated calls for gays to be thrown from mountains and tall buildings and for women to be subjugated.
Policy Exchange said that among the documents were the anti-Semitic forgery, The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion, and other publications peddling bizarre conspiracy theories.
Anthony Browne, the director of Policy Exchange, said: "It is clearly intolerable that hate literature is peddled at some British mosques.

https://mail1.ekmd.huji.ac.il/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=4BP4YLRHKRJW1QFIQMGSFF4AVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/10/30/nmosques130.xml

Too much testing "harms primary school pupils"

By Graeme Paton, Education Editor Last Updated: 2:18am GMT 02/11/2007 The repeated testing of young children is seriously undermining their education, a major study reports. Hours spent drilling pupils increases "anxiety and stress", narrows the curriculum and has limited impact on standards, it is claimed. Children aged 11 spend almost three weeks practising and sitting tests in their final year of primary school in England — while teachers waste five weeks preparing exams. Despite claims that children are brighter than ever, researchers said the system of high-stakes tests had "exaggerated" pupils' progress, with up to a third given the wrong grades. In a damning conclusion, the report says £500 million spent on Labour's National Literacy Strategy had been wasted as children's ability to read was no better than the 1950s. The findings are part of a two-year inquiry — led by Cambridge University — into the state of English primary schools. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=HMO4SOEEERATRQFIQMFSFFWAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/news/2007/11/02/nschools102.xml

Migrants getting preferential treatement for housing

By Nigel Morris, Home Affairs Correspondent Published: 02 November 2007

An urgent inquiry has been ordered into claims that immigrants are jumping ahead of white Britons on council house waiting lists. MPs have repeatedly warned that hostility to newcomers in some white working-class areas is fuelled by suspicions that newcomers get preferable treatment. The fears have been successfully exploited by the British National Party in east London, West Yorkshire and Lancashire. The inquiry was ordered by town hall chiefs and the new equality watchdog. Trevor Phillips, head of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, which has replaced the Commission for Racial Equality, acknowledged that some communities felt unfairly treated. He said people were realistic and accepted they had to share public services with new immigrants. But he added: "What, however, does drive tension and hostility is a widespread public perception that new migrants too often get unfair advantages to which they aren't entitled. "One area where this idea of unfairness is most frequently alleged is in housing allocation, specifically that white families are cheated out of their right to social housing by newly arrived migrants."
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article3121177.ece