'Major failures' over rail deal

30 January 2013 Last updated at 19:05 ET

The fiasco over the collapse of the West Coast Main Line franchise deal was the result of "irresponsible decisions", an MPs' committee has said.

The transport committee blamed "major failures" at the Department for Transport (DfT) and the civil service.

But its report was not unanimous, with several committee members choosing not to blame ministers.

In October, the government scrapped its decision to award the £5bn franchise to FirstGroup.

The reversal will cost taxpayers almost £50m, it has been estimated.

"This episode revealed substantial problems of governance, assurance, policy and resources inside the Department for Transport," said Louise Ellman, chairwoman of the committee.

"Embarking on an ambitious - perhaps unachievable - reform of franchising, in haste, on the UK's most complex piece of railway, was an irresponsible decision for which ministers were ultimately responsible.

"This was compounded by major failures by civil servants, some of whom misled ministers."

Continue reading the main story

Ministers asked the right, penetrating questions during the process but were given inaccurate responses by officials"

End Quote Karen Lumley, Karl McCartney, and Iain Stewart Committee members

The mistakes came to light after rival bidder Virgin Trains, which has run the West Coast Main Line since 1997, launched a legal challenge against the decision. Virgin will continue running the service until November 2014 when a new long-term franchise will begin.

In December, the National Audit Office calculated a "significant cost to the taxpayer".

It said costs for staff, advisers, lawyers and the two reviews into the fiasco added up to £8.9m, on top of the estimated £40m it will take to reimburse firms for the cost of their bids.

'Inaccurate responses'

But three members of the transport select committee - Karen Lumley, Karl McCartney, and Iain Stewart - said that they disagreed with the report, which was majority voted through.

An independent report last year by Sam Laidlaw - chief executive of Centrica, the owner of British Gas - found there was a "damning failure" by the DfT that led to ministers - who had not been told about flaws in the bidding process - awarding the contract after being given inaccurate reports.

"We believe the evidence in the Laidlaw Report shows that ministers asked the right, penetrating questions during the process but were given inaccurate responses by officials," they said.

"We do not believe that it is was 'irresponsible' to run the new franchise process first on the WCML as the department has shown itself perfectly capable of managing other complex projects in this period," they added.

Three DFT civil servants, who were suspended after the scrapping of the bid, have returned to work, and one official has launched legal action against the department on the basis that her role in the process has been "inaccurately" portrayed.

In the report, Ms Ellman said that: "Many of the problems with the franchise competition, detailed in the Laidlaw report, reflect very badly on civil servants at the DFT.

"However, ministers approved a complex - perhaps unworkable - franchising policy at the same time as overseeing major cuts to the department's resources. This was a recipe for failure which the DfT must learn from urgently."

She called on the DfT to explain why ministers and senior officials were "misled" about how subordinated loan facilities were calculated, if necessary after disciplinary proceedings against staff have concluded.

Ms Ellman's constituency on Merseyside is served by the rail line.

About 31 million passengers travel on the West Coast Main Line between London and Scotland every year.

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MPs condemn plan to scrap GCSEs

30 January 2013 Last updated at 20:52 ET By Sean Coughlan BBC News education correspondent

The government's plan to scrap GCSEs in key subjects in England has been strongly criticised by MPs.

The Education Select Committee voiced concerns about the timetable for change, saying changing "too much, too fast" could threaten exam quality.

The cross-party committee has been examining plans to replace GCSEs with English Baccalaureate certificates.

The government said it was "making major changes to ensure we have world class exams that raise standards".

'Damaged brand'

The committee's report raises doubts about the pace and direction of the shake-up planned for GCSEs.

It said there were so many worries, it should act as a "red light" to the government.

The government says it wants to abolish GCSEs for core subjects and introduce English Baccalaureate certificates from 2015. There will also be only one exam board for each subject.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

No sensible reform of assessment can take place without clarity as to what is to be taught"

End Quote Graham Stuart Education Select Committee chairman

But the committee said the government had failed to prove such a change was necessary.

It also raised concerns about introducing English Baccalaureate certificates in English, maths and science while still running "discredited" GCSEs for other subjects.

The committee's report said it agreed with many of the reforms of GCSEs - such as moving exams to the end of a course and limiting the culture of excessive resits.

But it rejected the idea that GCSEs were such a "damaged brand" that they needed to be abolished.

The committee also questioned the "coherence" of introducing changes to GCSEs before deciding the accompanying national curriculum.

It called on the government to publish its plans for the secondary curriculum "as soon as possible".

"No sensible reform of assessment can take place without clarity as to what is to be taught. Coherence is not achieved by accident but by design," said Graham Stuart, the committee chairman and Conservative MP.

There are also strong concerns about the speed of so many proposed changes - and the pressures that it will place on the exam system.

The report pointed to the controversy of last summer's English GCSE results as an example of the "turbulence" that could be caused by changes to the exam system.

The timetable was "not merely challenging but so tight that it may risk endangering the quality", it said.

'Untenable'

The report said the government should consider Ofqual's recommendation that moving to a single exam board for each subject should be "decoupled" from the overhaul of qualifications.

The MPs urged caution when considering upheavals in exams.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

We have been clear that the secondary education system is in desperate need of a thorough overhaul"

End Quote Department for Education

"We recommend that the government takes time for careful consideration and slows down the pace of change," the committee's report concluded.

The report also highlighted the opposition of "stakeholders" in education to the reforms - and the responses from teachers' union reflected this hostility.

The National Union of Teachers' leader, Christine Blower, said the government's position on exam reform was "now surely untenable".

"The education secretary is totally isolated in his view that the English Baccalaureate certificates are a suitable measure to replace GCSEs," she said.

Chris Keates, of the NASUWT teachers union, accused the government of displaying "arrogant disregard for the impact on the lives of young people".

Shadow education secretary Stephen Twigg said: "[Education Secretary] Michael Gove has become the enemy of ambition. This damning report supports Labour's warning that the Tory-led government's changes will do nothing to improve standards, especially for low attaining pupils.

"The government's exams are out of date and will bring back a two-tier system. Their narrow plans will damage Britain's economic future - by taking us backwards."

But the Department for Education said the report accepted the need for major improvements.

"We have been clear that the secondary education system is in desperate need of a thorough overhaul - an objective with which the committee agrees," said an education department spokeswoman.

"That why we are making major changes to ensure we have world class exams that raise standards."

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Many A&Es 'not sharing crime data'

30 January 2013 Last updated at 23:59 ET By Branwen Jeffreys Health correspondent, BBC News

A coalition pledge to make hospitals share violent crime data with police is being carried out in only a third of areas in England, an audit shows.

The government has written to hospitals and chief constables for an explanation after the Department of Health audit.

Accident and emergency departments are meant to share information about where knife or gun attacks are happening with the police and local council.

This was part of the government's programme for government in 2010.

'Disappointed'

In 2010 the coalition promised in its programme for government to make hospitals share non-confidential information with the police so crime hotspots could be identified.

Continue reading the main story

I would want to say to hospitals and local authorities this is straightforward, ethical information-sharing that makes for safer communities - just get on with it"

End Quote Prof Jonathan Shepherd Cardiff University

An audit carried out for the Department of Health has revealed that is happening effectively in only a third of community safety partnership areas, and not at all in one-fifth.

The charity Victim Support said it was very disappointing that the plan was not being implemented.

Susannah Hancock, its assistant chief executive, said: "The NHS is the second most likely public service after the police to come into contact with victims of violent crime, many of whom will not have reported such incidents to the police at all. "

It is thought that police are aware of fewer than a third of assaults that lead to the victim being treated in hospital.

Pioneering research carried out in Cardiff tested the idea of regularly sharing collated information about the type and location of attacks, with all confidential patient information removed.

As a result, the city saw a 35% fall in the numbers of assault victims turning up at A&E for treatment between 2000 and 2005.

Professor Jonathan Shepherd, from Cardiff University, said the research showed sharing information costs little, and saves money in the longer term for the NHS and the criminal justice system. He said the findings of the audit were surprising, giving the strong evidence, and the commitment from government.

"I feel disappointed that it hasn't been taken up faster than this, and I would want to say to hospitals and local authorities this is straightforward, ethical information-sharing that makes for safer communities - just get on with it."

'Win-win'

Arrowe Park hospital, in the Wirral, has seen some impressive results from setting up systems to share information every month with the police and local council. Anyone arriving at A&E with an injury caused by a violent assault is taken through a standard set of questions about the location and circumstances of the attack.

The information has all patient data removed from it before it is shared. Between 2004 and 2010, the number of alcohol-related assault victims arriving for treatment fell by 30%.

Chris Oliver, from the Wirral University Hospital Trust, said the results had convinced busy staff in A&E to get involved: "It's owned by everyone within the department. The reception staff are very proactive when going through the questions. It's very rewarding for our staff to see the reduction in people coming into the department. It's a win-win."

The Department of Health said Health Minister Anna Soubry had written this week to all hospital chief executives and chief constables in England to remind them of the government's commitment on sharing information.

The letter says there are no legal reasons for not sharing anonymous information, and asks for any "good reasons why it cannot be done" in areas which have failed to put systems in place.

Despite this slow progress in implementing the approach in England, the idea has attracted international interest and there are pilot schemes under way in other countries.

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'Millions' face council tax rise

31 January 2013 Last updated at 03:00 ET

Millions of the poorest households face council tax rises because most councils in England will pass on a 10% benefit funding cut, research suggests.

A typical bill will rise from April by between £100 and £250 a year, but some could rise as much as £600, the Resolution Foundation think tank says.

Its report coincides with the deadline for local authorities to submit their plans for changing council tax benefit.

Councils say they have not been given enough freedom to manage the changes.

Responsibility for the benefit is being moved from the government to councils.

At the same time, the total spent on the benefit, which is to become known as council tax support, is being cut by 10%.

In Wales, the cut is being absorbed by the government, and not passed on to local authorities.

'Poll tax'

In Scotland, the cost is being shared between councils and the Scottish government, maintaining support for low-income residents.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

Mike Sergeant Local government correspondent, BBC News

---

There is a wider, highly charged, political context to this issue.

Ministers present themselves as being on the side of those who want to "work hard and get on". They say they are ending the "something-for-nothing culture".

They emphasise that more money is currently spent on benefits than on defence, education and health combined.

While delivering their tough - and they believe popular - rhetoric, ministers do not accept any blame if the poorest are hit the hardest.

The view from government is that there is no need for councils to ask the lowest income households for money. Instead they should find more efficient ways of operating, protect the vulnerable and deliver better value for money for all council tax payers.

Many councils accuse ministers of devolving responsibility for a hugely controversial cut.

The political heat on this has been rising in recent days in council chambers across England.

What seems at first to be an obscure, rather technical, debate about how a benefit is distributed, could soon emerge as a critical issue in the battle over welfare.

But the 326 councils in England could be left with a shortfall if they intend to maintain the level of existing payments.

Some are finding savings from elsewhere in their budgets, in order to protect the incomes of the poorest households.

At least 40 local authorities have decided to maintain current levels of support. Durham County Council and Tower Hamlets are amongst those which will absorb the costs of CTS into their budgets.

The government has also put forward £100m of support for those councils that limit the council tax increase for those on benefits or low pay to 8.5%.

Ministers say the total paid out in council tax benefit doubled under the last government and welfare "reform" is vital to tackle the budget deficit.

They say the changes will give councils the incentive to help people off benefits and into work.

Council tax benefit is currently claimed by about five million households in England - about half get 100% support, meaning they currently pay no council tax at all.

But the Resolution Foundation, a not-for-profit research and policy organisation, says that three-quarters of authorities in England are planning to demand a new or higher payment from the lowest income households.

This comes at a time when other benefits may also rise more slowly than the cost of living, and the government introduces an overall cap on benefits.

Continue reading the main story

Council tax support changes

Council tax support (CTS) will replace council tax benefit (CTB) in April

Councils will decide who qualifies for CTS, rather than the government, as under CTB

Councils will have 10% less money to fund CTS, changes that will save £500m a year

Pensioners will be protected and households in Wales and Scotland are unaffected

Because pensioners are fully protected, those of working age are, in many areas, being asked to shoulder a much greater burden.

"Millions of England's poorest households, both in and out of work, are already very close to the edge," said Gavin Kelly of the Resolution Foundation. "They are going to find it very hard to cope."

Some campaigners have likened the change to the "poll tax", in that people are asked for a contribution regardless of their ability to pay.

'Low priority'

The Labour Party says the policy is deeply unfair, and will cause havoc with hundreds of thousands of people unable to pay the bills.

Many in local government fear that councils will be left with a financial black hole, as the cost of pursuing those who do not pay through the courts could be higher than the revenue the authorities will raise from them in tax.

Peter Fleming from the Local Government Association, which represents local authorities, told BBC Radio 5 Live the government had not given councils enough control over the scope of cuts they could pass on.

"The problem is we've been handed the cut, but not given the flexibility to design schemes... that would have actually protected the people who are most vulnerable.

"Give us the freedoms and flexibilities to actually devise the schemes that work best for the communities that we serve," he added.

He also predicted there would now "be people who are literally unable to pay" their taxes, and the "difficulty for us as local authorities is do we take people to court for very small amounts of money?"

Local Government Minister Brandon Lewis said: "Under the last administration, more taxpayers' money was being spent on benefits than on defence, education and health combined.

"We are cutting council tax in real terms for hard-working families and pensioners, and we are on the side of people who work hard and want to get on."

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Russia concern at Israeli 'strike'

31 January 2013 Last updated at 03:21 ET

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Israel has not commented on reports of an attack on Wednesday

Russia has expressed concern at an alleged Israeli attack on Syria, saying such a strike would be an unacceptable violation of the UN Charter.

Syria's army said Israeli jets had targeted a military research centre north-west of Damascus on Wednesday.

It denied reports that lorries carrying weapons bound for Lebanon were hit.

Russia has steadfastly refused to denounce Syrian President Bashar al-Assad during the 22-month conflict that has killed more than 60,000 people.

The Syrian army statement, carried on state media, said Israeli fighter jets had carried out a direct strike on a scientific research centre in Jamraya, killing two people and injuring five.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said: "If this information is confirmed, then we are dealing with unprovoked attacks on targets on the territory of a sovereign country, which blatantly violates the UN Charter and is unacceptable, no matter the motives to justify it."

Continue reading the main story

• Jamraya Centre: Reported scientific research centre responsible for developing chemical weapons
• Weapons convoy: Lorries carrying Russian-made SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles to Hezbollah bases in Lebanon

Relations between Russia and Israel have been improving in recent years as trade and economic ties have grown stronger, says the BBC's Steve Rosenberg in Moscow.

But Moscow is a close ally of President Assad, which would explains its concern at the reports, our correspondent adds.

Missiles heading for border?

The attack came as Israel voiced fears that Syrian missiles and chemical weapons could fall into the hands of militants such as the Lebanese Shia militant group Hezbollah.

Israel and the US have declined to comment on the reported incident.

Lebanese security sources, Western diplomats and Syrian rebels say the target was an arms convoy near Lebanon's border. The Associated Press quoted a US official as saying the lorries were carrying Russian-made SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles.

The Lebanese military and internal security forces have not confirmed the reports, but say there has been increased activity by Israeli warplanes over Lebanon in the past week, and particularly in recent hours.

Correspondents say Israel fears Hezbollah could obtain anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles, thus strengthening its ability to respond to Israeli air strikes.

Israel believes Syria received a battery of SA-17s from Russia after an alleged Israeli air strike in 2007 that destroyed a Syrian nuclear reactor near Deir ez-Zor in eastern Syria, analysts say.

The US government said in 2008 that the reactor was "not intended for peaceful purposes".

Hezbollah said Wednesday's target was the Jamraya centre, condemning it as "an attempt to thwart Arab military capabilities" and pledging to stand by its ally Mr Assad.

Iron Dome move

BBC Middle East correspondent Wyre Davies says that while none of the reports can be verified, some well-placed diplomats and military sources say they would not be surprised if Israel had acted, given the recent instability in Syria.

The Syrian army statement said the Jamraya centre - which was focused on "raising our level of resistance and self-defence" - was damaged in the attack, and specifically denied reports that an arms convoy had been hit.

It said "armed terrorist gangs", a term the government uses to describe rebel groups, had tried and failed repeatedly to capture the same facility in recent months.

Some reports suggest the facility could be Syria's Scientific Studies and Research Centre, believed to be the state organisation responsible for developing biological and chemical weapons.

Any Israeli attack on Syria side could cause a major diplomatic incident, analysts say, as Iran has said it will treat any Israeli attack on Syria as an attack on itself.

The reported attack came days after Israel moved its Iron Dome defence system to the north of the country.

Israel has also joined the US in expressing concern that Syria's presumed chemical weapons stockpile could be taken over by militant groups.

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French forces take key Mali town

31 January 2013 Last updated at 03:57 ET

French forces have secured the northern Malian town of Kidal, the last main stronghold of Islamist rebels in the region, military officials say.

Militant Islamist fighters had already left the town, near the Algerian border, and are believed to be hiding in the surrounding mountains.

The capture of Kidal came days after French and Malian forces retook the provincial capitals Gao and Timbuktu.

Kidal official Haminy Maiga said the French troops had met no resistance.

"The French arrived aboard four planes," said, Mr Maiga, who heads the regional assembly.

"They took the airport and then entered the town, and there was no combat. The French are patrolling the town and two helicopters are patrolling overhead."

Earlier, French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said a sandstorm had delayed the troops from leaving the airport and entering the town.

Islamist militants extended their control of the vast north of Mali in April 2012, taking advantage of a military coup.

France - the former colonial power in Mali - launched a military operation this month after the militants appeared to be threatening the south.

The BBC's Thomas Fessy in Timbuktu says the capture of Kidal marks the end of the first phase of the military operation to oust militants from northern Mali.

Continue reading the main story

Mali crisis timeline

• October 2011: Ethnic Tuaregs launch new rebellion after returning with weapons from Libya, where they had fought for Gaddafi
• March 2012: Military officers depose President Amadou Toumani Toure over handling of rebellion
• April 2012: Tuareg and Islamist fighters seize control of northern Mali, declare independence
• June 2012: Islamist groups capture Timbuktu, Kidal and Gao from Tuaregs, start to destroy Muslim shrines that offend their puritan views
• September 2012: Islamist rebels seize town of Douentza, crossing into central Mali and threatening government-held south
• January 2013: Islamist fighters capture central town of Konna, raising fears they could march on capital. President Dioncounda Traore asks France for help. French intervention begins.

France is now expecting the deployment of thousands of African forces to support the second phase - driving the al-Qaeda-linked fighters from their desert hideouts.

Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Wednesday that France intended to leave Mali "quickly", and it was up to African countries to take over.

Several hundred soldiers from West African countries - including Niger and Chad - are already in Mali.

Our correspondent says French forces who entered Kidal found members of the secular National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) there.

The Tuareg rebels launched the insurgency last year before breaking away from the militants.

Their presence in Kidal explains why government troops have not yet been sent to the town, our correspondent adds.

The MNLA says it will support the French but will not allow the return of the Malian army, which it accused of "crimes against the civilian population".

Human rights groups have accused the Malian army of targeting ethnic Tuareg and Arab civilians.

An MNLA spokesman told the BBC its fighters had entered Kidal on Saturday and found no Islamist militants there.

Kidal was until recently under the control of the Ansar Dine Islamist group, which has strong ties to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).

The Islamic Movement of Azawad (IMA), which recently split from Ansar Dine, recently said that it was in control of Kidal.

The IMA has also said it rejects "extremism and terrorism" and wants a peaceful solution.

Continue reading the main story

Enigmatic leader

The radical Islamist group Ansar Dine was founded by Tuareg rebel Iyad Ag Ghaly

Some reports say Ansar Dine leader Iyad Ag Ghaly and Abou Zeid of AQIM have now moved to the mountainous region north of Kidal.

Meanwhile, EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels on Thursday are expected to reaffirm support for the French intervention in Mali and discuss practical details of an EU military training mission which is due to begin there next month.

On Tuesday, international donors meeting in Ethiopia pledged $455.53m (£289m) for the African Union-backed force (Afisma) and for other projects.

African leaders say the overall budget could be around $950m.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius has also said credible elections in Mali would be vital to achieving peace in the country.

Mali's interim President Dioncounda Traore said on Tuesday he wanted to hold "transparent and credible" elections by 31 July.

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PM 'will keep defence funds pledge'

31 January 2013 Last updated at 04:25 ET

David Cameron is to stick to a pledge to increase defence spending in real terms after 2015, it has emerged.

The prime minister made the pledge in 2010, at a time when the coalition thought the structural deficit would be cut in this Parliament.

Government sources said he would not drop the pledge - despite plans for further spending cuts beyond 2015.

Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said that he believed the commitment applied to spending on defence "equipment".

Mr Hammond indicated that the rest of the budget - about half - would be up for discussion in the forthcoming government spending review.

The restatement of the PM's commitment to future rises inn defence spending above the rate of inflation, came as Mr Hammond prepared to publicise the Ministry of Defence's £160bn equipment plan for the next 10 years.

Equipment list

The list includes nearly £36bn for a new generation of nuclear-powered submarines, almost £19bn for combat aircraft, and around £17bn for Royal Navy warships.

Mr Hammond will say he has finally eliminated a "black hole" in the defence budget that the coalition government says it inherited from the former Labour government.

Continue reading the main story

I am told that the Treasury knows that it cannot make the prime minister eat his words. However, what they can do is some creative accounting."

End Quote

Last week, Chancellor George Osborne said government spending cuts must continue until 2017 - the latest GDP figures showed the UK economy shrank by 0.3% in the last three months of 2012, fuelling fears the economy could re-enter recession.

Many Conservative backbenchers have been pushing for the MoD to be exempt from the next round of reductions - and Mr Hammond himself is said to be resisting any further cuts - especially after the recent hostage crisis in Algeria and the Western intervention in Mali.

BBC political correspondent Iain Watson said: "There are particular tensions over departmental budgets for the financial year 2015/16 which haven't yet been finalised, but which will come into effect just before the next general election."

He said other government departments were now likely to be concerned that the "spending axe" will cut more deeply into their budgets.

But, our correspondent added: "Defence spending will still be 8% lower by 2015 than it was when the government came to power."

Security partnership

On a visit to Algeria on Wednesday, David Cameron said that the international community should use "everything at its disposal" to fight terrorism.

He also announced that the two countries had agreed a security partnership, including co-operation on border and aviation security, as well as joint action on trade, investment and education.

The UK has also invited Algeria to participate in a joint contingency planning exercise to share experience in responding to crisis situations, in the wake of the gas plant hostage crisis in which up to six Britons died.

The UK announced on Tuesday it is to send 330 military personnel to Algeria's neighbour Mali and west Africa to support French forces battling Islamist militants.

The deployment will include as many as 40 military advisers in Mali and 200 British soldiers in neighbouring African countries, to help train the Malian army.

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Syria being destroyed, says envoy

29 January 2013 Last updated at 20:37 ET

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Opposition activists have blamed government forces for the killings

The conflict in Syria has reached "unprecedented levels of horror", peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi has told the UN Security Council.

The UN-Arab League envoy said Syria was being destroyed "bit by bit" with grave consequences for the wider region.

He was speaking hours after evidence emerged of a fresh massacre in the northern city of Aleppo.

At least 71 bodies were found by a river in the western Bustan al-Qasr district, opposition activists said.

Most had their hands tied behind their backs and gunshot wounds to the head.

Continue reading the main story

The Security Council simply cannot continue to say: 'We are in disagreement, therefore let's wait for better times.' I think they have to grapple with this problem now"

End Quote UN-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi

Mr Brahimi has been trying to find a solution to the crisis based on a peace plan approved at an international conference in June 2012.

The UN says the conflict has left more than 60,000 people dead.

The BBC's Barbara Plett at the UN says Mr Brahimi delivered a blunt assessment of the situation in Syria that reflected his frustration with the deadlock in the Security Council.

"Unprecedented levels of horror have been reached. The tragedy does not have an end," Mr Brahimi told a closed meeting of the 15-member council, according to diplomats.

"The country is breaking up before everyone's eyes. Only the international community can help, and first and foremost the Security Council."

Speaking later to reporters, Mr Brahimi said the Syrian government and the opposition were, between them, destroying Syria "bit by bit".

"The region is being pushed into a situation that is extremely bad," he said.

"That is why I believe the Security Council simply cannot continue to say: 'We are in disagreement, therefore let's wait for better times.' I think they have to grapple with this problem now."

Gruesome discovery

The UN Security Council has been divided over Syria for months.

The US, UK, France and other Western powers have pushed for resolutions that threaten sanctions against President Bashar al-Assad's government.

However, Russia and China have vetoed such resolutions three times. Moscow - a close ally of Syria - also refuses to back calls for Mr Assad to step down.

Earlier, video footage of the gruesome discovery in Aleppo was posted by activists on YouTube.

It showed a large number of bodies strewn in and around the banks of the Quwaiq river, which skirts the western side of Aleppo.

The bodies were caked in mud and showed signs of rigor mortis. There were also signs of blood having poured from many of the heads.

The government and opposition have blamed each other for the killings.

The district of Bustan al-Qasr has been hotly contested since fighting broke out in Aleppo last July, correspondents say.

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Cameron visiting Algeria for talks

29 January 2013 Last updated at 21:10 ET

David Cameron is to visit Algeria later in the wake of the hostage crisis that left up to six Britons dead.

The UK prime minister will hold talks with his counterpart and the president.

Mr Cameron will stress the strategic importance of Algeria in what he has called "the generational struggle" against al-Qaeda in North Africa.

The UK is to send 330 military personnel to Algeria's neighbour Mali and West Africa to support French forces battling Islamist militants.

The deployment will include as many as 40 military advisers in Mali and 200 British soldiers in neighbouring African countries, to help train the Malian army.

French-led forces are continuing their offensive against militants who seized northern Mali last year.

Mr Cameron will be the first UK prime minister to visit Algeria since its independence in 1962. He will also be attending an international development conference in the Liberian capital, Monrovia.

'Temporary operation'

He is expected to hold talks with Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal and President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, with discussions likely to focus on the hostage crisis and the military campaign in Mali.

Continue reading the main story

David Cameron insists he is not contemplating another conflict like that in Libya, let alone another Afghanistan"

End Quote

BBC political editor Nick Robinson says Mr Cameron's aides are stressing that the troops being sent to the region are to be used for training, logistics and intelligence, and not combat. They talk of a temporary operation.

But this trip is bound to heighten the demands on the prime minister to say not simply what he is not planning in North Africa, but to explain more about what exactly he is, our correspondent adds.

Some 37 foreigners and at least 10 Algerians died after militants seized workers at Algeria's In Amenas gas plant earlier this month.

The Foreign Office has confirmed that four Britons and one UK resident died, while a further two British nationals are feared dead.

The Algerian government took the controversial decision to storm the site in the Sahara desert, which is jointly operated by BP.

Algerian officials said the hostage-takers had been from six different nationalities and belonged to a new Islamist group that recently broke away from al-Qaeda.

During the siege, one statement purporting to be from the captors called for an end to the French military intervention in Mali.

'Mending damage'

The BBC's Richard Galpin, in Algiers, said radical groups, some with links to al-Qaeda, had grown in strength in the region in recent years.

He said Mr Cameron's visit may be partly an attempt to mend any damage to relations after the prime minister expressed disappointment that he had had no advance warning about the Algerian hostage rescue operation.

Mr Cameron has said the hostage crisis highlights the need for a "strong security response" matched by an "intelligent political response".

At the World Economic Forum in Davos last week, Mr Cameron said: "I believe we are in the midst of a long struggle against murderous terrorists and a poisonous ideology that supports them.

"Just as we've successfully put pressure on al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan, so al-Qaeda franchises have been growing for years in Yemen, in Somalia and across parts of North Africa, places that have suffered hideously through hostage taking, terrorism and crime."

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Brazil fire 'caused by flares'

29 January 2013 Last updated at 21:47 ET

The chief investigator in the southern Brazilian city of Santa Maria has said that cheap fireworks meant for outdoor use caused a deadly nightclub fire.

The death toll in Sunday's blaze reached 235 people after a 21-year-old man died of his injuries in hospital.

Police chief Marcelo Arigony said the band had chosen not to buy more expensive indoor flares.

Earlier, a court froze the assets of the owners of the Kiss nightclub.

Four people have been arrested in connection with the blaze, Brazil's deadliest in five decades.

One of those detained is the co-owner of the nightclub.

A member of the band Gurizada Fandangueira, blamed by Mr Arigony for the start of the flames, has also been arrested.

"The pyrotechnics were part of their show. The guys even wore gloves on stage so they wouldn't burn their hands," the policeman – who lost a cousin in the fire – told reporters.

He added that the band chose a $1.25 (£0.80) outdoor flare at a local shop over the $35 (£22) indoor variety.

National mourning

Authorities say that more than 120 people are being treated in hospitals, and around 70 are said to be in critical condition.

Brazil is marking three days of national mourning, while politicians discuss what measures can be taken to prevent such a tragedy happening again.

President Dilma Rousseff, who had an emotional meeting with bereaved relatives, called for a stricter stance on safety rules across the country.

The fire has also prompted widespread domestic concern about Brazil's ability to host major sporting tournaments in the next four years.

The 2014 World Cup is set to be hosted in 12 Brazilian cities, while the 2016 Olympics are to take place in Rio de Janeiro.

The disaster led Congress to set up a working group on Tuesday.

It aims to write up a new federal bill in an attempt to strengthen safety regulations ahead of the World Cup.

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Stiff upper lip 'harms cancer fight'

29 January 2013 Last updated at 21:52 ET By Michelle Roberts Health editor, BBC News online

The UK's "stiff upper lip" culture may explain why it lags behind other countries when it comes to beating cancer, say experts.

Researchers, who surveyed nearly 20,000 adults in six high-income countries, said they found embarrassment often stopped Britons visiting the doctor.

Respondents in the UK were as aware of cancer symptoms as those in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, but more reluctant to seek help, they said.

A third feared wasting a doctor's time.

One in six of the men and women aged 50-and-over surveyed in the UK was embarrassed about sharing their symptoms with a doctor, the researchers from King's College London and University College London, with help from Cancer Research UK and Ipsos Mori, found.

They said, in the British Journal of Cancer, that this may partly explain why the UK has a far lower cancer survival rate than other developed nations, despite good access to skilled medical staff and cutting-edge treatments.

The researchers surveyed people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but not Scotland.

'UK phenomenon'

Data shows that for cancer survival, the UK ranks behind many countries, including the five other nations looked at in the study.

Continue reading the main story

We don't know why British people feel like that. It may be that we are more stoic and have a war-time mentality"

End Quote Dr Lindsay Forbes Lead researcher

According to estimates, the lives of more than 5,000 cancer patients could be saved each year in England alone if the country matched the best European survival rates.

Former Health Secretary Andrew Lansley pledged to achieve this target by the next general election in 2015, with the government's cancer strategy.

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Report co-author Dr Lindsay Forbes: ''We need to try and understand why people worry about wasting their doctor's time''

Lead researcher Dr Lindsay Forbes said: "This is a real UK phenomenon. UK people really stood out in our study.

"As a nation we are much more likely to say we are embarrassed about going to the doctor or we are worried that we will take up a doctor's time.

"We don't know why British people feel like that. It may be that we are more stoic and have a war-time mentality.

"We know that older people in particular can get a symptom and then wait for weeks or months before going to see their doctor."

Sara Hiom, of Cancer Research UK, said the charity "and others are working hard to understand and address these potential barriers to early presentation and encourage people to tell their doctor if they have noticed something different about their body".

"More work also needs to be done to tackle the poor awareness that cancer risk increases with age," she added.

The researchers note that Denmark also ranks relatively low for cancer survival. They suspect this could be due to delays in patients accessing timely hospital care - something which may also apply to the UK to some extent.

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French 'enter Mali rebel town'

30 January 2013 Last updated at 04:21 ET

French forces say they have entered Kidal in the north of Mali, the last major town they have yet to secure in their drive against Islamist militants.

French forces now control Kidal airport after a number of aircraft, including helicopters, landed there overnight.

Islamist militants were reported to have already left the town and it was unclear who was in charge.

French and Malian forces have been sweeping north, earlier taking Gao and Timbuktu with almost no resistance.

France - the former colonial power in Mali - launched a military operation this month after Islamist militants appeared to be threatening the south.

'Eradicate terrorism'

French army spokesman Col Thierry Burkhard confirmed that "French elements were deployed overnight in Kidal".

Haminy Maiga, the interim president of the Kidal regional assembly, told the Associated Press news agency: "The French arrived at 9:30pm [Tuesday] aboard four planes. Afterwards they took the airport and then entered the town and there was no combat.

"The French are patrolling the town and two helicopters are patrolling overhead," he said.

Kidal, 1,500km (930 miles) north-east of the capital Bamako, was until recently under the control of the Ansar Dine Islamist group.

Continue reading the main story

The Islamist militants fled Timbuktu in haste, but they took the time to commit one last act of vengeance"

End Quote

However, the Islamic Movement of Azawad (IMA), which recently split from Ansar Dine, said it was now in charge in Kidal, although the Tuareg group - the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) - also claims control.

An MNLA spokesman told the BBC its fighters had entered the city on Saturday and there were no Islamist militants there.

Some reports say Ansar Dine leader Iyad Ag Ghaly and Abou Zeid, of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, have moved to the mountainous region north of Kidal.

A spokesman for the IMA confirmed the French arrival in the town and said that its leader was now in talks with them.

The IMA recently said it rejected "extremism and terrorism" and wanted a peaceful solution.

The MNLA has also said it is prepared to work with the French "to eradicate terrorist groups" in the north but that it would not allow the return of the Malian army, which it accused of "crimes against the civilian population".

The BBC's Thomas Fessy, in Timbuktu, says that taking Kidal will mark the end of the first phase of the French military intervention, but that there will remain the difficult task of chasing the fighters down across the vast desert.

Islamist extremists took advantage of a military coup in March last year to control a number of cities in the north and impose Sharia law.

The French arrival at Kidal came only 24 hours after securing Timbuktu with Malian forces.

The troops had to secure the streets after hundreds of people looted shops they said had belonged to militant sympathisers.

France has been pushing for the swift deployment of an African Union-backed force, the International Support Mission to Mali (Afisma), to take control of Malian towns.

On Tuesday, international donors meeting in Ethiopia pledged $455.53m (£289m) for Afisma and for other projects.

African leaders say the overall budget could be around $950m.

France's Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius told the meeting impressive progress had been made but that this did not mean the danger was over.

Mr Fabius also said credible elections in Mali would be vital to achieving sustainable peace in the country.

Mali's interim President Dioncounda Traore said on Tuesday that he wanted to hold "transparent and credible" elections by 31 July.

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Police face recruitment shake-up

30 January 2013 Last updated at 04:30 ET

Plans to allow police forces in England and Wales to recruit senior officers from outside the service are to be detailed by the government shortly.

The plans would mean Army officers and business leaders, for example, could move quickly into senior posts.

Also expected to be included in a consultation document, is a proposal to allow senior police officers from overseas to join as chief constables.

Many in the police service have already voiced opposition to direct entry.

'Talent deterred'

The current system sees all police recruits begin work as a constable, regardless of age, skills or experience.

The Home Office proposals being put before MPs herald a fundamental change to the current system of police recruitment, BBC home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw says.

Continue reading the main story

A debate about the benefits of direct entry has been going on for a decade but Tom Winsor's report has finally prompted action.

Winsor found that although the police culture had "many extremely valuable strengths" it was also "somewhat closed, defensive and inward-looking".

He said an "infusion of experience and expertise" from other disciplines and occupations would improve things.

The revelation of links between Scotland Yard and News International, and the sense in the early stages of the London riots that there was a lack of police leadership, has bolstered the argument for change.

But the idea of an outsider being recruited as a superintendent, taking charge of a firearms operation or the policing of a protest march, is likely to prove hugely controversial.

The Home Office is determined there will be change - but it may have to proceed cautiously.

It currently takes about 25 years for a newly recruited constable to work their way to the most senior level, a process that is thought to deter talented people from other professions from joining the police, our correspondent adds.

The direct-entry plans expected to be put forward follow recommendations in a report last year by the Chief Inspector of Constabulary Tom Winsor.

The changes include:

• Fast-tracking recruits to inspector level within three years
• Allowing outsiders to join as superintendents with 15 months' training
• Opening up chief constable roles to senior officers from countries such as Canada, the US, Australia and New Zealand

Mr Winsor has previously said he believes people from other professions could "enrich" the police service.

The former rail regulator said direct entry into the police service had the potential to "change the face of modern British policing for the better".

Several police forces, including Britain's largest, the Metropolitan Police, already have graduate recruitment schemes. They all insist that recruits spend time on the beat.

But Mr Winsor wants to dispense with that stage for graduates from top universities to make a police career a more attractive alternative to the City or the professions.

Police Minister Damian Green told BBC Radio 4's Today programme there was direct entry in other services, including the Army and the prison service.

"Policing is largely successful in this country, crime is down 10% in the past two years," he said.

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Ch Supt Derek Barnett said the plans were risky

"But there is no organisation in the world that cannot get better and it must be the case that if you widen the pool of talent, then you will get even better policing in this country."

The changes will happen and the consultation was about the best way to do it, he added.

Ann Barnes, the first police and crime commissioner for Kent and former chair of the county's police authority, has experience of recruiting chief officers.

"The pool I was fishing in was frankly too small. The talent we have is good but there's not enough of them," she told the BBC.

"It's virtually impossible to attract experienced older talent into the service because they don't have time to climb the police ladder to the top jobs. We are saying goodbye to fresh talent and new ideas."

'Work experience'

Ch Supt Derek Barnett, president of the Police Superintendents' Association of England and Wales, said allowing people to become superintendents after 15 months' training would present "risks to the public and police officers".

He said it was a misconception that superintendents were desk-bound and in reality, they were the senior operational leaders of the police service.

"One of the benefits of having an operational grounding is that you have been able to deal with critical incidents, you have felt the collar of criminals, you have dealt with the very sad incidence of dead bodies," he told BBC Breakfast.

Sir Hugh Orde, president of the Association of Chief Police Officers, has urged caution against giving too much responsibility to those from outside the police service.

He argued he would not want people on "work experience" in charge of policing disorder in Northern Ireland, where he used to be the chief constable.

Steve White, vice-chairman of the Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, said it did not support proposals that would allow external candidates to join the police service at any rank above that of constable.

"We believe the rank structure allows officers to perfectly equip themselves for their next role within the service," he said.

He said there were also reservations about overseas recruitment of senior officers, adding: "We have the best police service in the world so it seems strange that the government - which often echoes this view - may wish for forces to recruit chief constables from overseas."

But Britain's highest-ranking officer, Metropolitan Police Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe, has said he would like to recruit 10% of senior officers from external candidates.

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Tesco blames supplier over horsemeat

30 January 2013 Last updated at 04:37 ET

Meat in Tesco burgers which was found to contain horse DNA did not come from a list of "approved suppliers", the supermarket has claimed.

Following an internal investigation, the supermarket chain said meat used by its supplier Silvercrest originated from outside the UK and Ireland.

Tesco issued an "unreserved" apology in full-page spreads of several UK newspapers on 16 January and have now dropped Silvercrest as a supplier.

Silvercrest have yet to comment.

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Greek minister eyes 2014 recovery

28 January 2013 Last updated at 19:59 ET By Mark Lowen BBC News, Athens

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Greece's Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras says 2013 will be the last year of recession

Greece's finance minister believes that the worst is over for his country.

"There is definitely a glimmer of hope; light at the end of the tunnel," Yannis Stournaras said.

As reforms were rushed through and a massive austerity package passed late last year, Greece secured a huge slice of bailout money from its international creditors.

"The probability of Greece leaving the euro - Grexit - is now very small", he told the BBC.

"We have managed to turn the economy around. From the markets, there's much more optimism. Deposits are coming back to banks, the government is paying its arrears to the private sector and there is a change in how Europe sees us. So all the leading indicators are positive. We are two-thirds of the way towards our target. So people can have hope."

But few here do. Unemployment is now Europe's highest at 26.8%. Homelessness and poverty have soared. And the recession, the worst of any country in modern history, is in its sixth straight year.

However, the finance minister said that he thinks the bad times are coming to an end.

"Towards the last quarter of 2013, we are going to have recovery," he said.

He is adamant that growth will come next year, even if the economy contracts in 2013 by an estimated 4.5%.

"I feel sure, 100% certain that this will be the last year of Greece's recession."

Debt write-off

Greece has the unenviable task of reducing its debt down to a sustainable level.

It currently stands at around 180% of GDP this year, the target is 124% of GDP by 2020, but the IMF has recently said Athens won't achieve it without another helping hand. So is Mr Stournaras, I asked, pushing for debt forgiveness from EU countries?

"I would welcome a reduction of the level of debt - but there are many ways to achieve that", he said, diplomatically, "but it should happen in a way that minimises the loss to other parties."

But while Greece is tired of austerity, northern Europe is tired of bailing out Greece.

German taxpayers feel they have shouldered the burden and so any further debt restructuring may be delayed by domestic European politics, at least until the Bundestag elections in September. But Mr Stournaras was confident that it will come.

And what of more crippling spending cuts?

"If we implement this year's reform programme, there will be no more austerity packages", the Finance Minister told me, "No more cuts to wages, benefits and pensions."

It's a promise Greeks have heard before, and many here don't believe it'll be kept.

As a stark reminder of how angry the Greek people have felt about austerity measures they have had forced upon them, there is a bullet hole in one of the minister's windows.

The gun was shot from the ground during one of the most violent anti-austerity protests in recent months. A clear target up to the hated Ministry of Finance.

Yannis Stournaras has decided to keep the glass in its half-shattered state, as a monument to what he hopes was the lowest point in Greece's financial crisis.

But the minister had critical words about the austerity-driven approach forced on his country.

"Greece was forced to cut too far, too fast", he explained. "In hindsight, we should have placed more emphasis on structural reform and privatisations at the start. But we can't go back. There's no point crying over spilt milk. The eurozone was not prepared for the crisis."

A criticism often levelled at the much-despised political class here is that it is utterly divorced from the pain caused by austerity but the minister said that he understands very well.

"From my friends, my mother, my family, people I talk to. But I'm convinced there was no other way. Without this bailout money, Greece would be outside the eurozone. And that would spell disaster."

Grexit to Brexit

Many began 2012 predicting "Grexit" and yet we are starting 2013 with talk of "Brexit" - Britain's potential departure from the European Union, following Prime Minister David Cameron's speech last week.

"It would be a grave mistake for Britain to leave the EU", said the minister.

"Britain belongs to Europe politically, financially and from a cultural point of view."

So would Greece accept Britain renegotiating the terms of its EU membership?

"No", he said, "that would open a Pandora's Box. Everybody would like to do the same. So that would spell the end of the European Union."

Six months after taking the job, Yannis Stournaras seemed relaxed and positive. Vast challenges remain, social unrest is flaring once again and there will be enormous resistance once the spending cuts start to bite.

But he's convinced this exhausted country will make it.

"Now that Greece has turned a corner, I'm actually enjoying the job" he smiled, looking out towards parliament through a bullet-scarred window.

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New Iraq abuse cases go to court

28 January 2013 Last updated at 23:10 ET

New allegations of abuse by British troops in Iraq will be heard by the High Court later.

Lawyers for 192 Iraqis will push for a public inquiry into British detention practices between 2003 and 2008.

The court will decide whether mistreatment was systemic and whether an inquiry set up by the Ministry of Defence is sufficiently independent to investigate the allegations.

The hearing before two judges is expected to last three days.

Lawyers said they were still collecting allegations of abuse almost a decade since the invasion of Iraq, and had hundreds of further claims in the pipeline.

As well as beatings, there are claims of hooding, sleep deprivation and sexual humiliation including being made to watch pornography.

Human rights

The Ministry of Defence has now paid out more than £15m to settle over 200 claims of mistreatment and unlawful detention, with many more being negotiated.

But it argues that a wide-ranging public inquiry would be disproportionate and premature.

Lawyers for the Iraqis say the Iraq Historic Allegations Team, created by the UK government, is investigating only individual cases, that the abuse was systemic and only a fully independent inquiry will satisfy the UK's international human rights obligations.

Two judges sitting in London, Sir John Thomas (President of the Queen's Bench Division) and Mr Justice Silber, will hear the accusations.

Ministry of Defence lawyers will oppose the application.

It is the second legal challenge by law firm Public Interest Lawyers, which is representing the Iraqis.

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UK troops set for EU Mali mission

29 January 2013 Last updated at 02:42 ET

The UK is expected to agree to send troops to train forces in Mali, as part of a joint EU mission, at a meeting in Brussels on Tuesday.

Number 10 said David Cameron spoke to French President Francois Hollande on Sunday evening about further possible British help for French forces in Mali.

The UK said it was "ready to provide further assistance where we can and depending what French requests may be".

French-led troops have taken Timbuktu in their operation against Islamists.

BBC defence correspondent Caroline Wyatt said there was still no question of British forces taking on a combat role in Mali.

But the UK has made clear to France that it is ready to offer more help towards its operations there.

Any further assistance is likely to be in the areas of logistics, surveillance, intelligence and transport, on top of the training already being discussed.

The UK's National Security Adviser, Sir Kim Darroch, has been in Paris to discuss what further help the UK could provide to France's operation to drive Islamist militants from its former colony.

Downing Street said Prime Minister David Cameron told Mr Hollande that Britain was "keen" to provide further military assistance.

The UK is likely to form part of a European Union military training mission in Mali.

Numbers for this will be discussed in Brussels, with the British contribution likely to be in the tens.

Continue reading the main story

I suspect the strategy will be to guarantee the cities are safe so that Islamists are kicked out and then let time do its work"

End Quote Prof Michael Clarke RUSI

The UK may also help to provide more military trainers for forces such as Nigeria's, for operations under the banner of the African-led international support mission to Mali.

RAF C17 transport planes are already flying French equipment to Mali, and the UK has also contributed a Sentinel reconnaissance aircraft for intelligence gathering.

The French and Malian military said troops encountered little resistance when they entered the historic city of Timbuktu.

Mr Hollande said joint forces, which have been pushing north in their offensive against Islamist rebels, were "winning this battle".

They seized Gao, northern Mali's biggest city, on Saturday.

Islamists took the north of the country last year, but have been losing ground since French forces launched an operation earlier this month.

'Humanitarian reasons'

Prof Michael Clarke, a director of the Royal United Services Institute think-tank, said the British involvement was a "politically important" gesture to illustrate Anglo-French military co-operation.

But he said the British troops could also fulfil an important "technical" role, providing communications and other support for the African Ecowas troops who will be going in after the French.

Prof Clarke said he could not discern a clear strategy at the moment in Mali but he added: "That is understandable. In Libya we went in for humanitarian reasons and then a strategy evolved. That is what the French did, they went in initially for humanitarian reasons.

"I suspect the strategy (in Mali) will be to guarantee the cities are safe so that Islamists are kicked out and then let time do its work."

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Nursery ratios raised to cut fees

29 January 2013 Last updated at 03:16 ET By Hannah Richardson BBC News education reporter

Nurseries and childminders in England are to be allowed to look after more children per adult in an attempt to cut childcare costs and boost standards.

Children's Minister Liz Truss will say the ratio of children to child carers can be raised but only if the carers' qualifications meet new standards.

Statutory ratios for carers per child vary on age and setting, but the plans increase them by 50% in some cases.

Critics warn the change in ratios could compromise quality and safety.

They also predict the changes will be unpopular with parents and unlikely to reduce the overall costs of childcare.

Britain has some of the highest childcare costs in the world, with many mothers with two or more children saying it does not make financial sense to work.

Continue reading the main story

• CURRENT
• Under one and one-year-olds - 1:3
• Two-year-olds - 1:4
• Three-year-olds and above - 1:8 or 1:13 (teacher-led)
• PROPOSED
• Under one and one-year-olds 1:4
• Two-year-olds - 1:6
• Three-year-olds and above - 1:8 or 1:13 (teacher-led)

An earlier report by Ms Truss suggested the average family spends 27% of their income on childcare.

Ms Truss says the answer is to "relax" the childcare ratios, which she argues are higher than in comparable European countries. England's higher ratios lead to higher costs for parents and lower pay for staff, she says.

Ms Truss told the BBC the proposals were about raising standards and only those nurseries that hired staff with higher qualifications would be able to take on more children.

"It will make it higher quality, more available and more affordable. It will take time to recruit new people and expand nurseries. In the long term it will be more affordable."

She will say in a speech in London on Tuesday: "Other European countries have taken a different approach on ratios. They think that the quality of staff is the most important thing.

"Whereas in England nursery staff may look after no more than three one-year-olds, in France they can be responsible for five - and there are no limits in Denmark, Germany or Sweden."

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Liz Truss: "We're raising the standards so that parents will be able to get more available nursery places."

She added: "That is why we are encouraging nurseries to use their professional judgement and enjoy greater flexibility.

"Where there is an early-years educator working with children, we plan to allow ratios for two-year-olds to rise from four children per adult to six children per adult. And for ones-and-under to rise from three children per adult to four children per adult.

"Ratios for three-year-olds and over would remain at eight or 13 children per adult, depending on whether a qualified graduate was present.

GCSE English and maths

Ms Truss said: "When parents hand their child over to the care of a childminder or nursery, they are not just entrusting them with their child's physical safety, they are also entrusting their child's brain.

"With this in mind, it is no longer acceptable that childcare professionals are not required to have a GCSE grade C or above in English and maths."

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Stephen Twigg: "Saying that more children will be in each setting risks undermining quality and even risks undermining safety."

This will apply to new nursery staff only, however.

But the Teaching Agency is to publish criteria childcare qualifications must meet for a new "gold standard" early-years educator A-level standard qualification.

Shadow education secretary Stephen Twigg said the plans to increase the ratios would undermine the quality of childcare in the UK.

"I think this is one area where we've actually got something to teach other countries.

"If you look at France, there's actually quite a big public debate about whether they've got this right. I don't think you can compare the situation with Sweden where they have very, very generous parental leave so very few young babies are in these sorts of settings."

Quality concerns

National Day Nurseries Association chief executive Purnima Tanuku welcomed the commitment made by the government to improve childcare but said the "quality of childcare and early education must not be sacrificed".

She said: "Changes to the number of children individual nursery workers can look after should only be considered if backed by strong evidence from the UK.

"Many parents do not want an increase in the number of children nursery staff are allowed look after. They are worried it will have a negative impact on the individual attention and care their child receives."

Anne Longfield, chief executive of children's charity and nursery provider 4Children, said: "Government's plans to improve the quality and qualifications of staff are very welcome and offer an opportunity to look again at how childcare is organised and staffed.

"The welfare of the child must be our first concern throughout, but with highly qualified early-years teachers and a better inspection regime, there is an opportunity to review current arrangements and provide simpler information for parents and better incentives for providers to concentrate on what matters - children."

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Six years for Bali drugs Briton

29 January 2013 Last updated at 04:14 ET

A British man has been jailed for six years in Bali for drug offences.

Julian Ponder, 43, from Brighton, was cleared of smuggling but was convicted of possessing 23g of cocaine which carried a maximum sentence of life.

Ponder was one of three Britons detained after Lindsay Sandiford, 56, from Cheltenham, was arrested for smuggling cocaine into Bali last year.

Sandiford was sentenced to death and is suing the UK Foreign Office for not supporting her appeal.

The two other Britons were also cleared of trafficking and received sentences of four years and one year each.

Prosecutors in Bali had sought a seven-year prison term for Mr Ponder.

Judge Gunawan Tri Budiono also ordered him to pay a fine of one billion rupiah (£65,000).

Ponder's lawyer Arie Budiman Soenardi said he would not advise his client to appeal: "(The sentence) is quite light, not far from what the prosecutors had asked, so we will soon advise our client to accept it."

Sandiford, 56, from Cheltenham, was arrested on drugs charges in May 2012 and sentenced to death by firing squad last week by a panel of judges at the district court in Denpasar, Bali.

She claimed she had been coerced into carrying a suitcase into the country by criminals who threatened her family.

Legal charity Reprieve said the UK government was in breach of its obligations to Sandiford as a British citizen.

Reprieve said Sandiford, originally from Redcar, Teesside, had no money for an appeal after exhausting her family's finances to pay for a lawyer for her trial.

Charitable donations

The charity said the appeal involved filing a complicated legal document in Indonesian, which she does not speak, by 12 February.

Reprieve, and solicitors Leigh Day & Co, have filed a judicial review in the UK on Ms Sandiford's behalf against the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

This argues that: "In failing to make arrangements for an adequate lawyer to represent the claimant's interests the defendant is acting unlawfully, in breach of its obligations as a matter of EU law, to take all reasonable steps to ensure that she does not face the death penalty, is not subjected to inhumane and degrading treatment, is not tortured and receives a fair trial."

Reprieve said Sandiford was relying on charitable donations for basic provisions such as food and water.

Sandiford was sentenced to death despite the prosecution seeking a 15-year sentence.

Harriet McCulloch, from Reprieve, said: "Everyone knows that capital punishment means that those without the capital get the punishment. Lindsay's poverty means that she has ended up sentenced to death after a manifestly unfair trial."

Sandiford's MP, Martin Horwood, called on the Foreign Office to review its policy on Britons facing the death penalty abroad.

The Foreign Office said the UK government did not fund legal representation abroad but Sandiford's case was being dealt with through diplomatic channels.

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Boundaries vote to split coalition

29 January 2013 Last updated at 04:26 ET

The Conservatives are facing possible defeat as Labour and Lib Dem MPs team up to vote down proposals redraw constituency boundaries before 2015.

The two coalition parties have been in dispute since proposed elections to the House of Lords were dropped last year.

The PM wants to overturn a defeat by peers earlier this month, which would see the planned constituency shake-up postponed until 2018 at the earliest.

But with no Tory Commons majority, No 10 said "the arithmetic" was difficult.

The issue has been one of the biggest flashpoints between Prime Minister David Cameron and his deputy Nick Clegg since the two entered government together.

Parliament agreed in principle in 2011 to reduce the number of MPs by 50 to 600 and to redraw the electoral map to make all constituencies roughly the same size in terms of number of voters.

Coalition row

Some believe the proposals, which were backed at the time by both coalition parties, would help the Conservatives win up to 20 extra seats at a future election.

But a row over plans to reform the Lords - abandoned in the face of Conservative opposition - have since led the Lib Dems to say they will block implementation of the boundary review until after the next election, scheduled for 2015.

Continue reading the main story

• The number of seats will fall from 650 to 600
• Almost all constituencies will have between 72,810 and 80,473 registered voters
• Three constituencies - Western Isles, Shetland and Orkney and Isle of Wight - will be excluded from this quota due to their distinctive geography
• Final proposals to be submitted to Parliament for approval by October 2013
• Lib Dems say proposed changes cannot come into force until after next election in return for Lords reform plans being dropped

Mr Clegg has argued the proposals on the make-up of the Commons and the Lords were part of the same package of constitutional reforms put forward by the coalition in 2010 and accused Conservative backbenchers of not honouring the initial agreement.

He has said that reducing the number of MPs without reforming the Lords gives too much strength to the executive.

But Conservatives insist that progress on the two issues was not linked and believe that Lib Dem government ministers should now vote in favour of the boundary proposals or resign.

The Tories argue that the changes would reduce the cost of Parliament and make elections fairer. They claim the current electoral map is weighted in favour of Labour, with more votes tending to be needed to elect a Conservative MP than to elect a Labour MP.

Labour has accused the Conservatives of "gerrymandering" - manipulating constituencies in order to achieve electoral advantage - and they argue the electoral quotas used to decide the size of a constituency do not take account of people who are missing from the electoral register.

When MPs consider the matter on Tuesday, Tories will look to overturn amendments to the Electoral Registration and Administration Bill which effectively put the whole process on hold.

'Smaller, cheaper, fairer'

But Labour, which argues the boundary shake-up is flawed, is expected to join forces with the Lib Dems to oppose this.

This would be the first time Lib Dem ministers have voted against their Conservative coalition colleagues.

Asked if Mr Cameron was confident of overturning Lords amendments, his spokesman said: "From the prime minister's perspective, the arithmetic looks pretty difficult."

He added: "The prime minister's view is that it is very important that this issue comes before the House of Commons.

"The prime minister's view is that he is strongly in favour of smaller, cheaper and fairer politics but it is important that MPs can consider the issue."

The spokesman indicated that no talks were under way with smaller parties in the hope of securing enough votes to force the bill through.

Mr Clegg has said he hopes the vote will "draw a line" under the issue.

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Murdoch apology over Scarfe cartoon

29 January 2013 Last updated at 04:45 ET

Rupert Murdoch has apologised for a "grotesque, offensive cartoon" printed in the Sunday Times that has led to complaints of anti-Semitism.

The cartoon, by Gerald Scarfe, appears to depict Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu building a brick wall containing the blood and limbs of Palestinians.

It has the text: "Israeli elections. Will cementing peace continue?"

The Board of Deputies of British Jews said it had complained to the Press Complaints Commission.

It said the cartoon was "shockingly reminiscent of the blood libel imagery more usually found in parts of the virulently anti-Semitic Arab press."

It added: "Its use is all the more disgusting on Holocaust Memorial Day, given the similar tropes levelled against Jews by the Nazis."

The term "blood libel" refers to myths dating back to the Middle Ages that Jews murder children to use their blood during religious rituals.

Scarfe told the Jewish Chronicle that he "very much regrets" the timing of the cartoon, and that he had not been aware it was Holocaust Memorial Day.

'Totally unacceptable'

Israel's UK ambassador Daniel Taub said: "The image of Israel's security barrier, which is saving the lives of both Jews and Arabs from suicide bombers, being built from Palestinian blood and bodies is baseless and outrageous.

"The use of vicious motifs echoing those used to demonize Jews in the past is particularly shocking and hurtful on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, but the crude and shallow hatred of this cartoon should render it totally unacceptable on any day of the year."

Mr Murdoch wrote in a tweet: "Gerald Scarfe has never reflected the opinions of the Sunday Times. Nevertheless, we owe major apology for grotesque, offensive cartoon."

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The paper's acting editor, Martin Ivens, said in a statement that insulting the memory of Holocaust victims was "the last thing I or anyone connected with the Sunday Times would countenance".

"The paper has long written strongly in defence of Israel and its security concerns, as have I as a columnist," he said.

"We are, however, reminded of the sensitivities in this area by the reaction to the cartoon, and I will, of course, bear them very carefully in mind in future."

Mr Ivens is set to meet representatives of the Jewish community this week to discuss the controversy.

In a statement, the Sunday Times said the cartoon was aimed at Mr Netanyahu and his policies, not at Israel or Jewish people.

Veteran satirist Scarfe has been the Sunday Times' political cartoonist since 1967.

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'Shock' at cyclists' crash deaths

27 January 2013 Last updated at 23:08 ET

Residents have spoken of their shock at the deaths of two cyclists in an apparent hit-and-run crash in Hanham near Bristol.

A man and a woman, believed to be on a tandem, were killed on Lower Hanham Road just before 16:00 GMT.

The driver of a Citroen car involved in the crash fled the scene. A 38-year-old man later handed himself in to police.

Andrea Swerley, 28, who lives nearby, said: "It's just a shock, nothing like this has happened here before."

She added: "We got home and saw a helicopter in the air overhead and looking up the road, which they were just closing, we could see lots of police."

'Rapid response'

The landlord of The Queens Head pub, Patrick Murphy, said: "It's just not nice that this has happened around here."

Officers set up a cordon round the scene of the crash and closed the road.

Numerous investigators scoured the area and two white tents were set up in the street.

A spokesperson for Great Western Ambulance Service said: "We sent an ambulance, paramedics, a rapid response vehicle and had an officer at the scene to liaise with the other services. But unfortunately both the patients were beyond help at the scene."

Detectives said the 38-year-old man who handed himself in at a police station has been arrested and will be questioned later.

Officers have appealed for information about the crash.

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Green Deal loans scheme to launch

27 January 2013 Last updated at 23:44 ET

Householders are to be offered long-term loans to help make their homes more energy efficient and cut bills under a new government scheme.

Ministers say the Green Deal, which launches on Monday, will help thousands "stay warm for less".

Under the scheme, households can use cheap loans to spend on energy-saving improvements, such as insulation and new boilers, with no upfront cost.

Campaigners said the project would "not stop fuel poverty rocketing".

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), which launched the flagship scheme, said it believed hundreds more households than expected had already signed up for assessments to join the project. It said official figures were being collated.

Earlier reports had indicated just five assessments had been carried out ahead of the launch.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said: "The Green Deal will help thousands of homes stay warm for less. Those people will benefit from energy saving improvements - and their energy bills will fall.

"The UK green sector is a success story. It is the sixth largest in the world and has a crucial part to play in building a strong economy."

'Cosier' homes

He added: "The Green Deal will support thousands of jobs, not just over the next few years, but in the long-term."

Continue reading the main story

We call on the prime minister to use money from the carbon tax to super-insulate this country's homes"

End Quote Ed Matthews Energy Bill Revolution

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Edward Davey also praised the "great deal", saying: "Improve the look and feel of your home, make it cosier and at the same time save energy - what's not to like?"

The move to insulate the UK's aged housing stock is designed to save carbon emissions, keep people warm, and make energy affordable, the government said.

Anyone joining the scheme would first have their home reviewed by an independent assessor, advising on possible upgrades, costs and energy saving timescales.

Green Deal providers would then calculate quotes for the proposed work - with households free to get multiple quotes - before carrying out the changes.

Under the deal, improvements are installed at no initial cost. Instead, charges are covered with cheap loans via the not-for-profit Green Deal Finance Company, and recouped gradually over up to 25 years through customers' electricity bills.

But campaigners have warned the scheme does not go far enough.

Ed Matthews, head of fuel poverty campaign group Energy Bill Revolution, said: "The Green Deal and Energy Company Obligation will not stop fuel poverty rocketing in the face of high gas prices."

"We call on the prime minister to use money from the carbon tax to super-insulate this country's homes.

"This will provide households with five times more subsidy to insulate their homes and not add a penny more to energy bills."

"It is enough to eliminate fuel poverty and in time cut bills for everyone. It is the just and fair solution."

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Brazil mourns nightclub fire dead

28 January 2013 Last updated at 02:21 ET

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The BBC's Garry Duffy says there is a sense of national shock in Brazil

Brazil has declared three days of national mourning for 231 people killed in a nightclub fire in the southern city of Santa Maria.

The fire reportedly started after a member of a band playing at the Kiss nightclub lit a flare on stage.

Authorities say most of the victims were students who died of smoke inhalation. The first funerals are expected on Monday morning.

It is the deadliest fire in Brazil in five decades.

The BBC's Gary Duffy reports from Sao Paulo that the national sense of loss is profound.

Continue reading the main story

Eyewitness - Fernanda Bona

"I am the official photographer at the club and I was taking photos of people. I was watching a band on stage and the fireworks.

I was in the VIP area and I could see the whole club. The area was close to the exit. I saw the fire going through the club.

People were screaming 'fire, fire' and to run. People were scared and were running everywhere.

I ran as quickly as I could to the door of the street. But it was hard to get out because there were so many people.

It took a few minutes for me to get out of the club. I know people who are in hospital or who are missing. A lot of people died from not so much the fire but the toxic smoke."

Brazil postponed a ceremony due on Monday in the capital, Brasilia, to mark 500 days to the 2014 football World Cup. In Santa Maria, 30 days of mourning were declared.

President Dilma Rousseff, who cut short a visit to Chile, has been visiting survivors at the city's Caridade hospital along with government ministers.

"It is a tragedy for all of us," she said.

Authorities have released the names of the victims, after revising down the death toll from 245.

More than 100 people were being treated in hospital, mostly for smoke inhalation.

Officials will now investigate reports that a flare was lit on stage, igniting foam insulation material on the ceiling and releasing toxic smoke.

They will also look at claims that many of those who died were unable to escape as only one emergency exit was available.

'Dark, heavy smoke'

The fire broke out as students from the city's federal university (UFSM) were holding a freshers' ball, the Diario de Santa Maria, a local newspaper, reported.

A local journalist, Marcelo Gonzatto, told the BBC that the flare had "started a huge and fast fire that grew quickly and made a very dark and heavy smoke."

Continue reading the main story

Other nightclub fires

• 2009: Santika Club, Bangkok, Thailand - sparked by fireworks; 66 killed
• 2009: Lame Horse Club, Perm, Russia - sparked by fireworks; 150 killed
• 2004: Cromagnon Republic Club, Buenos Aires, Argentina - flare starts fire which kills 194
• 2003: The Station, Rhode Island, US - sparked by fireworks; 100 killed
• 2000: Luoyang dance hall fire, China - fire blamed on welders kills 309
• 1996: Ozone Disco Club, Quezon City, Philippines - 160 killed
• 1990: Happy Land, New York, US - arson kills 89 at unlicensed club
• 1977: Beverly Hills Supper Club, Southgate, Kentucky - 165 killed
• 1970: Club 5-7, Saint-Laurent-du-Pont, France - 146 killed;
• 1942: Cocoanut Grove, Boston, US - 492 killed.

"Lots of people couldn't get out and died mainly because of the smoke not the fire," he said.

Witnesses spoke of scenes of panic after the fire started, and a stampede as people tried to escape.

One, Mattheus Bortolotto, told local television: "It was sheer horror. The emergency exits did not work, and then I lost my friend in the confusion. Then a girl died in my arms. I felt her heart stop beating."

A large number of victims were trapped in the club's toilets, they said, possibly after mistaking them for an exit.

Survivors and police inspector Marcelo Arigony said security guards briefly tried to block people from leaving the club, the Associated Press news agency reported. Bars in Brazil commonly make customers pay their whole tab at the end of an evening before they are allowed to leave.

One of the owners of the club is reported to have confirmed that they were in the process of renewing its license to operate, and that its fire safety certificate had expired last year.

He is said to have received threats on the internet - in addition to surviving members of the band that was performing on stage when the blaze started.

Its guitarist, Rodrigo Martins, told local radio: "It might have happened because of the Sputnik, the machine we use to create a luminous effect with sparks.

"It's harmless; we never had any trouble with it. When the fire started, a guard passed us a fire extinguisher. The singer tried to use it but it wasn't working."

He said the band's accordion player had died in the fire.

Brazilian broadcaster Globo said most of the victims were aged between 16 and 20.

A temporary morgue was set up in a local gym as the city's main morgue was unable to cope.

Family members came to identify the dead, led in one by one to see the bodies, Diario de Santa Maria reported.

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HS2 northern route stations revealed

28 January 2013 Last updated at 03:33 ET

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George Osborne: "I think it is the engine for growth in the north and the midlands"

Details of the next phase of the £32bn HS2 high-speed rail network have been unveiled by the government.

The preferred route of phase two running northwards from Birmingham will have five stops at: Manchester; Manchester Airport; Toton in the East Midlands; Sheffield; and Leeds.

Chancellor George Osborne said it was "the engine for growth in the north and the midlands of this country".

Phase one's London-Birmingham link has faced considerable opposition.

Critics dispute the economic case, arguing that it ignores passengers' ability to work on trains, and suggest swathes of picturesque countryside will be blighted by the railway.

Mr Osborne's Tatton constituency in Cheshire is among the places that phase two of the route will pass through.

The chancellor said: "As a country you have got to make those long-term choices.

"If our predecessors hadn't decided to build the railways in the Victorian times, or the motorways in the middle part of the 20th Century, then we wouldn't have those things today.

"You have got to commit to these projects even though they take many years."

The Department for Transport said that HS2 phase two would virtually halve journey times between Birmingham and Manchester - to 41 minutes - and between London and Manchester from two hours and eight minutes to one hour and eight minutes.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

Seven months is ever such a long time in politics.

Last summer there were rumours that HS2 was about to be quietly ditched. A Tory minister told a magazine that the project was "effectively dead" because George Osborne was going cold on the whole idea.

Today, George Osborne will be all over your telly telling you HS2 is going to transform the economy, heal the north-south divide and help set us on the fast-track back to growth and prosperity.

This "dead" project is now back at the heart of the government's growth agenda; in a bid to convince voters that there is an ambitious plan to help rebalance and boost our sickly economy.

But there are still plenty of critics who claim the government's economic case for building a super-fast train line simply doesn't stack up. And that there are far better ways of spending £33bn to stimulate growth.

Speeds of up to 250mph on HS2 will also reduce a Birmingham to Leeds journey from two hours to 57 minutes, while phase one will cut London-Birmingham travel to 49 minutes, from the current one hour and 24 minutes.

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: "It's not just about journey times, it is also about capacity.

"We are finding the railways are overcrowded. We've seen massive growth in rail passenger numbers, so this is taking HS2 so it serves the north."

He added: "This is the first railway to be built north of London for 120 years."

Leeds City Council leader Keith Wakefield said: "We have lobbied long and hard for a high-speed rail link to Leeds and this is excellent news.

"It will strengthen Leeds' position as the northern transport hub and unlock major investment, jobs opportunities and connectivity to the rest of the country."

A final route for phase two is expected to be chosen by the end of 2014.

A proposed spur to Heathrow Airport has been put on hold pending a review of UK aviation policy, due to report in 2015.

'Fundamentally flawed'

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

We can't keep relying on Victorian infrastructure for 21st Century Britain"

End Quote Nick Clegg Deputy prime minister

More than 70 groups oppose HS2. StopHS2 has argued that England's north and Midlands will lose out to London, rather than benefit, and that projections do not take into account competition from conventional rail.

Penny Gaines, chairwoman of Stop HS2, said: "We are firmly of the opinion that the whole HS2 project is fundamentally flawed.

"It should be cancelled as soon as possible so that we can concentrate on developing the transport infrastructure that will bring more benefits to more people than a fast train for fat cats."

Other opponents object on the grounds that HS2 will cut through picturesque countryside, and 18 councils along the route have said taxpayers cannot afford the line, and that it will increase greenhouse gas emissions.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said: "We have to move with the times as a country. We can't keep relying on Victorian infrastructure for 21st Century Britain.

"We can't keep turning a blind eye to the north-south divide in our economy. That is what this high-speed project is all about.

"Of course there'll be people who don't like one or other aspect of it but if we really want to build for the future, so that our children and grandchildren have a future fit for the 21st Century, we've got to get moving."

Construction on the Y-shaped extension could start in the middle of the next decade, with the line open by 2032-33.

Construction of the London-West Midlands route is expected to begin around 2017, once Parliament has approved the necessary powers, probably in 2015.

'Timetable slipping'

Shadow transport secretary Maria Eagle told Sky News that Labour put forward such a high-speed route from London via Birmingham to Manchester and Leeds when it was in office - but the new proposals left some issues unresolved.

"I do have some concerns. One is that we appear to be missing our major cities, and connectivity is actually important. And secondly, the government appear to be retreating from connecting it to our major hub airport, Heathrow."

She earlier said that Labour "strongly" supported upgrading the rail network, to provide greater capacity and reduced journey times.

"However, there are worrying signs that the Department for Transport's timetable to deliver this vital infrastructure is slipping and we believe ministers should be working more vigorously to ensure the proposals are delivered on time."

Details of the consultation on HS2 Ltd's proposed exceptional hardship scheme for phase two are also being published.

The consultation on HS2 Ltd's property and compensation for phase one is due to close on 31 January.

It includes a hardship scheme for residents who need to move during the development of HS2, but are unable to sell their home, and measures designed to "provide confidence in properties above tunnels".

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