Sex offence suspects' DNA 'deleted'

30 July 2013 Last updated at 19:00 ET

Thousands of DNA profiles of suspected sex offenders are being deleted from the national database because of Home Office incompetence, Labour claims.

A ban on police in England and Wales indefinitely holding the DNA of people not charged takes effect in October.

The Home Office has ordered forces to delete such records ahead of the change, even though an appeals system is not in place, Labour says.

However, the government said it is "restoring common sense to the system".

A Home Office spokesperson said: "In the past, DNA was kept from innocent people, but not taken from prisoners. We are taking samples from the guilty and getting rid of them when people have done nothing wrong."

The records include DNA of 18,000 people held but not charged with rape.

Biometrics commissioner

Although police will be required to delete most profiles of people who are innocent and released without charge under the new law, chiefs will be able to ask the biometrics commissioner for permission to hold a sample for three years where the individual is suspected of a serious offence, such as rape, and officers have grounds to do so.

The changes to the National DNA Database came in 2012's Protection of Freedoms Bill, following a major defeat for the police at the European Court of Human Rights.

That 2008 judgement said England and Wales should mirror the Scottish system under which DNA profiles taken from people who are never charged with an offence should be destroyed.

Previous to this judgement, Police in England and Wales could previously hold profiles indefinitely.

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• Adult offender: Indefinite
• Under-18 serious offender: Indefinite
• Under-18 minor offence: Five years
• Arrested and charged with serious offence: Three to five years
• Arrested on serious charge but released: Three years on appeal to commissioner; indefinite if previously convicted

The process is designed to allow detectives to hold on to the records of individuals they strongly suspect of serious offences which can be difficult to bring to court, such as rape.

But that appeal process is not yet in place - and Labour says forces are following a Home Office order to delete records in preparation for the legal changeover.

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the Home Office was guilty of "shocking incompetence" .

Ms Cooper said: "It is appalling that DNA evidence from thousands of rape suspects is now being destroyed contrary to the promises made by the prime minister and home secretary.

"The prime minister assured Parliament that if someone was arrested but not charged with rape, the police would be able to ask to retain the DNA of the suspect. Yet because of Theresa May's incompetence the police are powerless to retain it."

As of May, 1.1 million DNA profiles had been destroyed under the programme to remove innocent people from the database.

The biometrics commissioner, Alastair MacGregor QC, recently said police could hypothetically ask him for permission to retain 60,000 DNA records a year relating to serious crimes, each of which could involve a legal battle.

It is not clear whether all forces are completely following the order or whether some are trying to hold on to profiles ahead of a later appeal.

A Home Office spokesperson added: "Forces will be able to retain DNA from someone arrested and not charged for up to three years, but only with permission from the Biometrics Commissioner. And all DNA samples taken by police are checked against the national database before deletion."

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Third SAS training soldier dies

31 July 2013 Last updated at 02:17 ET

A third Army reservist has died after taking part in an SAS selection training exercise in the Brecon Beacons earlier this month.

Edward Maher, 31, and Craig Roberts, 24, died after collapsing during a 40-mile (64km) hike on 13 July when temperatures reached 29.5C (85F).

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said on Tuesday a third reservist had died.

Defence Secretary Philip Hammond has announced a full inquiry into what happened.

In a statement on Tuesday, the MoD said: "It is with great sadness that we can confirm that a third Army reserve soldier injured during a training exercise in the Brecon Beacons has died of his injuries.

"The family have asked for a period of grace before he is named and request that this is respected by the media."

Right to life

The soldiers had taken part in a four-week trial for the Territorial Army's SAS reservists ending in the hike over the Brecon Beacons in Powys.

An inquest in Brecon, which opened and adjourned last week, heard the cause of Mr Roberts' and Mr Maher's deaths remains "unascertained".

Powys coroner Louise Hunt warned that the MoD could face investigation under the Human Rights Act.

She said "right to life" will play an important part in the inquest.

"The state has a duty to protect an individual's life," she said.

"The importance of looking into the wider circumstances of these deaths is that Article Two of the Human Rights Act will come into play."

Before adjourning proceedings, she said a full inquest would examine all the circumstances leading up to the deaths, and any failings.

The BBC's defence correspondent Jonathan Beale said "lots of serious questions" would be asked about the day and it was an issue that would concern MoD lawyers.

Aptitude test

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The soldiers were among six men rescued during the hike.

A witness on the day described coming across two soldiers "clearly in distress" who pleaded with them for drinking water.

The soldiers were understood to be taking part in the aptitude training element of the course to become SAS reservists.

L/Cpl Roberts, 24, of Penrhyn Bay, Conwy, had served with the Territorial Army for about five years and is understood to have served in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The Brecon Beacons is home to the Infantry Battle School and makes up one of Britain's largest military training areas.

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Profits rise at British Gas owner

31 July 2013 Last updated at 03:30 ET

British Gas owner Centrica has reported a rise in half-year profits, after the unusually cold winter boosted gas consumption.

Centrica's adjusted operating profit rose 9% to £1.58bn for the six months to 30 June, up from £1.45bn for the same period in 2012.

British Gas' residential arm saw profits rise 3% to £356m, up from £345m a year earlier.

It attracted criticism after raising energy prices by 6% in November 2012.

Centrica said "significantly higher environmental and commodity costs" had affected British Gas Residential's operating profits, despite gas consumption rising 13% compared with the same period last year.

Centrica chief executive Sam Laidlaw said: "With our customers using more gas to stay warm during the unusually cold winter, we're doing everything we can to help them keep their energy costs under control and make bills simpler and clearer."

British Gas has introduce a Tariff Checker to help its customers work out if they are on the cheapest tariff, but rising profits are still likely to attract criticism from consumer groups.

Centrica said it expected British Gas Residential's full-year operating profits to be "broadly in line" with 2012's figure of £606m.

The company said the cost of complying with the government-imposed Energy Company Obligation (ECO), aimed at helping low-income households with their heating bills and reducing carbon emissions through insulation, would be £1.4bn by the time the scheme ends in 2015.

Acquisitions

On Tuesday, Centrica announced that it had bought the energy marketing business of Hess Corporation in a $1bn (£657m) deal that makes its Direct Energy subsidiary the largest business-to-business gas supplier in the eastern United States.

In June, Centrica also spent £44m on a 25% stake in a shale gas exploration licence in Bowland, Lancashire, owned by Cuadrilla Resources and AJ Lucas.

The company has agreed to contribute a further £56m towards future exploration and appraisal costs associated with the project.

Centrica's results come a day after French energy company EDF reported UK pre-tax profits of £903m and said it was pulling out of the US nuclear power market because of the widespread availability of shale gas.

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Law firms linked to convicted PIs

31 July 2013 Last updated at 03:32 ET

Twenty-two law firms used private investigators convicted of illegally obtaining information, MPs have said.

Celebrities, eight financial services firms and 10 insurance companies were also identified as clients of the private investigators by the Home Affairs Select Committee.

The four investigators concerned were given jail sentences last year.

The Serious and Organised Crime Agency (Soca) has refused to name the rogue operators' clients.

Private data

The private investigators specialised in illegally obtaining private information from organisations like banks, utility companies and HM Revenue and Customs.

Because Soca says the list of clients is confidential, the committee has not named them but instead breaks it down by business sector.

The list suggested that private investigators often subcontract work to each other - 16 clients were other private investigation agencies.

Committee chairman Keith Vaz said: "The committee remains concerned that it holds a list that Soca has classified as secret, even though it is evidence given as part of our inquiry."

But the Labour MP added: "This is an important step forward in establishing the facts."

Computers seized

The list summarises clients identified by Operation Millipede, which led to the convictions of Philip Campbell-Smith and Graham Freeman who ran an agency called Brookmans International, and retired Metropolitan Police detective Adam Spears who worked alone.

A fourth defendant, Daniel Summers, was subcontracted by the others to carry out the so-called blagging of private information.

Soca seized computers during raids on the private investigators in 2009.

Continue reading the main story

The committee remains concerned that it holds a list that Soca has classified as secret, even though it is evidence given as part of our inquiry"

End Quote Keith Vaz Home Affairs Select Committee chairman

Evidence from these machines is now being used in another police investigation, Operation Tuleta, which is examining the illegal accessing of private information by journalists and companies.

Soca has refused to name the clients in the Millipede case because it said that could disrupt the ongoing Tuleta inquiry.

The Metropolitan Police said it would not support the naming of suspects in such circumstances.

Soca also maintained there was no proof the clients acted illegally.

BBC home affairs correspondent Tom Symonds said proving that the clients commissioned work knowing it would breach the data protection act - the most likely charge they might face - could be difficult.

One of the clients, a solicitor, told the BBC she hired Brookmans International to track down a fraudster but insisted she did not break the law.

She said she put in writing her request to the private detectives that they do not do anything illegal.

Vital work

Much of the work of private investigators involves finding out where fraudsters have hidden stolen money or tracking down people who owe money so that civil litigation can begin.

Another law firm which uses private investigators said such work was vital because often police will not go after fraudsters.

The client categories published by the committee does not appear to contain media companies.

Our correspondent said critics of Soca argued it had failed to act on the corporate use of private investigators, while journalists who allegedly obtained private information by the breaking the law were subjected to several major police investigations.

The Millipede case is not one of the five detailed in a widely leaked report compiled by Soca in 2008 which warned of the risk of rogue private investigators.

The report was an analysis of cases that all reached their conclusion before it was written.

Meanwhile, Home Secretary Theresa May is shortly expected to announce proposals that will require private detectives to have a licence to operate, barring anyone found guilty of hacking or blagging - obtaining information by using a false identity.

The Met Police said it supported the "strong regulation of the private investigation industry and a system that allows for a client to perform due diligence checks on the individual or company they wish to hire".

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Ofsted admits rape row school errors

31 July 2013 Last updated at 05:42 ET

Schools watchdog Ofsted has admitted failings in its inspections at a Hampshire school criticised for its handling of a pupil's rape claim.

An education tribunal raised "grave concerns" about safeguarding at Stanbridge Earls in January.

Three Ofsted inspections failed to get "underneath concerns", an internal review has concluded.

The chief inspector of schools, Sir Michael Wilshaw, has apologised and stressed changes are being implemented.

The tribunal found the school, which caters for pupils aged 10 to 19 with special educational needs and was rated as "outstanding" last year, had failed to protect the "vulnerable" pupil.

It also found the school discriminated against the girl, who claimed she had been raped twice by other students, by excluding her following the allegation.

'Acknowledge mistakes'

Three subsequent Ofsted inspections this year revealed serious concerns about safeguarding, with the government demanding improvements.

Last month it was announced the school would close, with a Surrey-based charity taking it over and running a new school on the Romsey site.

Speaking in response to the review into Ofsted's actions, Sir Michael said: "Inspection is part of the safety net designed to protect children from harm and it is clear from our review... that our inspections should have got underneath what was happening sooner.

"We offer our sincerest apologies to the parents and children who have been affected by historic events at Stanbridge Earls.

"We cannot turn back the clock on what has happened... but our actions show that when we get it wrong, we acknowledge our mistakes, take decisive action, and ensure that we use the learning to improve."

The inquiry did not find "widespread failings" but did reveal "weaknesses" in Ofsted's monitoring of residential special schools.

The watchdog said from 1 January all inspection work would be managed in eight regions overseen by regional directors.

It has also improved existing technology to ensure inspectors have better access to the full history of concerns at a school.

Ofsted said disciplinary action had been taken against a small number of staff, including dismissal.

The head teacher at Stanbridge Earls at the time of the allegation, Peter Trythall, stepped down in April after initially resisting calls to quit.

The tribunal said his conduct "borders on contempt for statutory duties".

Hampshire Constabulary said it thoroughly investigated the rape allegations before passing a file to Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which decided not to prosecute.

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Zimbabweans vote for president

31 July 2013 Last updated at 05:45 ET

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People have been forming long queues at one polling station in Harare, as Nomsa Maseko reports.

Zimbabweans are voting in fiercely contested presidential and parliamentary elections which have already been hit by fraud allegations.

President Robert Mugabe, 89, has said he will step down after 33 years in power if he and his Zanu-PF party lose.

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) have accused Zanu-PF of doctoring the electoral roll, a charge it has denied.

Campaigning was mostly peaceful, with few reports of intimidation.

Zanu-PF and the MDC have shared an uneasy coalition government since 2009 under a deal brokered to end the deadly violence that erupted after a disputed presidential poll the previous year.

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The BBC's Nomsa Maseko asks Robert Mugabe if he would step down if he lost

Mr Tsvangirai won the most votes in the first round, but pulled out of the run-off with Mr Mugabe because of attacks on his supporters.

'Determined to vote'

The government has barred Western observers from monitoring Wednesday's elections, but the African Union (AU) and the Southern African Development Community (Sadc), as well as local organisations, have been accredited.

Polls opened at 07:00 local time (05:00 GMT) and are due to close at 17:00 GMT.

The turnout is expected to be high among the 6.4 million people registered to vote, with tens of thousands of people attending rallies in recent weeks. Results are expected within five days.

Continue reading the main story

• About 6.4 million registered voters
• Polls open at 05:00 GMT and close at 17:00 GMT
• Vote for president and parliament
• Zanu-PF's Robert Mugabe and MDC's Morgan Tsvangirai are the main presidential contenders
• Mr Mugabe, 89, is seeking to extend his 33-year rule
• Mr Tsvangirai, 61, hopes to become president after three failed attempts
• The poll ends the fractious coalition between Zanu-PF and MDC, which was brokered by regional mediators after disputed elections in 2008 that were marred by violence

Wednesday has been declared a national holiday to ensure people can vote. Despite this, voters queued for several hours outside polling stations across the country before they opened, reports the BBC's Nomsa Maseko in Harare.

"I got up at four but still couldn't get the first position in the line," Clifford Chasakara, a voter in the western province of Manicaland, told the Reuters news agency.

"My fingers are numb, but I'm sure I can mark the ballot all the same. I'm determined to vote and have my vote counted."

At a news conference at State House on Tuesday, Mr Mugabe was asked if he and Zanu-PF would accept defeat.

"If you go into a process and join a competition where there are only two outcomes, win or lose, you can't be both. You either win or lose. If you lose, you must surrender," he said.

But Mr Tsvangirai dismissed the president's remarks.

"He does not believe in the right of the people to choose. He does not believe he can be voted out of office," he told the BBC.

The 61 year old has vowed to push Mr Mugabe into retirement; it is his third attempt to unseat him.

An MDC spokesman said separately that the party was only prepared to accept the results of the elections if they were "free and fair".

'Anomalies'

On Tuesday, the MDC accused Zanu-PF of doctoring the roll of registered voters, which was released by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) only on the eve of the polls after weeks of delay.

Continue reading the main story

The MDC claimed the roll dated back to 1985 and was full of anomalies.

A BBC correspondent has seen the document and says it features the names of thousands of dead people. He says many names with the same address appear two or three times.

A Zanu-PF spokesman denied the allegations and pointed out that appointees from both parties were on the ZEC. He also accused Finance Minister Tendai Biti, a member of the MDC, of not funding the commission properly. The ZEC has not commented.

In addition to Mr Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai, there are three other candidates standing for the presidency - Welshman Ncube, leader of the breakaway MDC-Mutambara; Dumiso Dabengwa of the Zimbabwe African People's Union (Zapu), and Kisinoti Munodei Mukwazhe, who represents the small Zimbabwe Development Party (ZDP).

To be declared a winner, a presidential candidate must win more than 50% of the vote. If no candidate reaches this mark, a run-off will be held on 11 September.

The elections will be the first to be held under the new constitution approved in a referendum in March this year.

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

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Right-to-die campaigners lose battle

31 July 2013 Last updated at 05:46 ET

The family of late locked-in syndrome sufferer Tony Nicklinson and paralysed road accident victim Paul Lamb have lost their right-to-die challenges.

The Court of Appeal upheld a High Court judgement in the case of the late Mr Nicklinson, ruling he did not have the right to ask a doctor to end his life.

His widow, Jane, said she planned to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Mr Lamb has said he wanted the law changed so he could kill himself with a doctor's help.

However, a third paralysed man, known only as Martin, won his challenge for clearer guidance from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for carers or health professionals assisting those wishing to end their life.

He wants it to be lawful for a doctor or nurse to help him travel abroad to die with the help of a suicide organisation in Switzerland.

His wife and other family did not want to be involved in his suicide, his lawyer Richard Stein said.

'Step forward'

Jane Nicklinson told the BBC she was "very, very disappointed" by the ruling, but "not totally surprised".

"They are not going to get rid of us that easily," she said, as she explained she would be seeking permission to appeal to the Supreme Court.

She added that it was a very complicated legal matter.

"Although we lost, the legal team are quite pleased with the outcome - the appeal judges actually upheld a couple of points which the High Court rejected, which is a step forward."

Mr Nicklinson died naturally at his home in Wiltshire last year.

The decision centred on whether the High Court was right in originally ruling that Parliament, not judges should decide whether the law on assisted dying should change.

Dr Andrew Fergusson, of the Care not Killing campaign group, welcomed the ruling, saying: "All three judges were very clear on legal, and I think ethical, grounds as well, that the law, if it's to be changed, must be changed by parliament alone. The courts cannot do it."

Geoffrey Robertson QC said: "The judges feel very sympathetic to people who are dying and want to speed their end - as everyone would.

"Judges, much as they would like to, can't make the law conform with humanity if the law is clear and parliament hasn't acted."

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Mid-East peace talks resume in US

29 July 2013 Last updated at 22:20 ET

Middle East peace talks have resumed after Israeli and Palestinian negotiators dined in Washington DC with US Secretary of State John Kerry.

Mr Kerry said it was a "very, very special" moment, as they broke the traditional Muslim fast for Ramadan.

Earlier, US President Barack Obama welcomed the discussions but cautioned that "hard choices" lay ahead.

The talks resumed after three years as Israel approved the release of more than 100 Palestinian prisoners.

Continue reading the main story

Core issues

Jerusalem: Palestinians want East Jerusalem as capital of future state; Israel unwilling to divide it

Borders and settlements: Israel wants to keep major Jewish settlements; Palestinians want borders along 1967 lines but accept some settlements will have to stay in return for land swaps

Palestinian refugees: Israel rejects idea of a Palestinian "right of return"

Security: Palestinians want full attributes of normal state; Israel wants to curtail this.

The releases, which split the Israeli cabinet, are to take place in stages over several months.

In the last five months, Mr Kerry has made six official visits to the Middle East in an effort to restart the negotiations.

'Daunting'

At the table on Monday evening at the US state department in Washington DC, Mr Kerry said it was "wonderful" the delegations had gathered in the US capital.

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Martin Indyk: ''It is a daunting and humbling challenge, but one that I cannot desist from''

He said it was "very, very special", and quipped that they had "not very much to talk about at all".

Seated opposite Mr Kerry was Israel's chief negotiator, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, and next to her was her Palestinian counterpart Saeb Erekat.

Former US Ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk, appointed US special envoy to the talks, also attended the "iftar", the traditional meal at the end of each day of fasting during the Muslim month of Ramadan.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

Over dinner at the state department, Israeli and Palestinian negotiators sat with John Kerry and Martin Indyk to start thrashing out some of the procedural details of forthcoming talks: format, schedule and location.

Because the two parties haven't had direct talks in three years, these are basic but essential starting points. There will be more talks on Tuesday and then negotiators will head home at end of the day. If all has gone well, the next round of talks is expected to take place in the Middle East, with Mr Indyk at the helm. It's still unclear at what point the two sides will delve into the real issues at the heart of the matter.

The sceptics say this is all just process and the reality on the ground means that Mr Kerry is on a fool's errand. But Mr Kerry has had his heart set on the goal of a peace deal for some time, and he is hoping his determination will keep the talks going long enough that they will actually get somewhere.

Mr Indyk, 62, said earlier he looked forward to working with both sides to "do our best to achieve President Obama's vision of two states, living side by side in peace and security".

The seasoned diplomat played a key role in the failed Camp David talks of 2000 under former President Bill Clinton.

The initial talks between Israeli and Palestinian representatives were scheduled to begin on Monday evening and continue on Tuesday, said the state department.

At a press conference in Washington DC on Monday, Mr Kerry urged both sides to make "reasonable compromises" for peace.

"I know the negotiations are going to be tough, but I also know the consequences of not trying will be worse," he said.

State department spokeswoman Jen Psaki suggested the goal of initial talks would be to chart a way forward rather than try to tackle the thorny issues between the two sides.

Hanan Ashrawi, a senior Palestinian official, told AFP news agency on Monday: "There must be a timeline and commitment from both sides on what they'll agree about. We hope for something good."

At the UN in New York on Monday, Ms Livni, the Israeli negotiator, said the talks would be "very tough and problematic".

Continue reading the main story

Martin Indyk

• Two stints as US ambassador to Israel from 1995 and 2000
• Worked with Israeli PMs Rabin and Barak on Oslo peace process
• Served on National Security Council and responsible for Middle East at US state department in 1990s
• Director of Foreign Policy Program at Brookings Institution
• July 2013 succeeds David Hale as Middle East envoy

But she added that efforts towards peace were "a mutual interest for Israel, for the Palestinians, the Arab world, the international community".

Major sticking points include the future of Israeli settlements on the West Bank, the status of Jerusalem and the fate of Palestinian refugees.

The issue of settlement-building halted the last direct talks in September 2010.

Settlements are considered illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this.

Also on Sunday, the Israeli cabinet approved the release of 104 long-term Palestinian prisoners by 13 votes to seven.

The inmates are to be released in four stages over a number of months, linked to progress in the peace process.

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Why has there been a recent drive to restart Mid-East peace talks?

Their identities have not been published, but according to reports they include those who have killed Israelis or Palestinian informers.

Sunday's cabinet meeting was delayed by an hour as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sought support for his proposal.

The cabinet also approved a draft bill requiring a referendum for any peace agreement with the Palestinians that involves territorial concessions.

Mr Netanyahu's office said it was important that every citizen voted directly on such decisions.

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Ashton meets ousted Egypt president

30 July 2013 Last updated at 04:21 ET

The European Union's foreign policy chief has met Egypt's ousted President, Mohammed Morsi, her spokeswoman says.

Catherine Ashton visited Mr Morsi on Monday evening and held two hours of "in-depth" discussions with him.

The location of the meeting was not given, but Mr Morsi has been detained since he was overthrown by the military on 3 July after days of mass protests.

Baroness Ashton's visit comes after more than 70 Morsi supporters were killed in clashes with security forces.

The ousted leader's allies have said they are planning a major protest in Cairo on Tuesday, and the interim government has warned that any violation of the law will be dealt with "firmly".

Security officials have also threatened to dismantle the main protest sit-in at a square near the Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque in the capital's north-east, where the deadly clashes erupted on Saturday.

Helicopter

Baroness Ashton's spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic revealed on Twitter early on Tuesday that the EU's high representative for foreign affairs had become the first outside official to meet Mr Morsi since he was deposed.

Baroness Ashton had asked to see him earlier this month during her first visit to Cairo in the present crisis, but it did not happen.

Some reports said that she was taken to the meeting on Monday night by military helicopter, suggesting that Mr Morsi may be being held somewhere outside the capital.

The content of the discussions is not yet known.

The BBC's Jim Muir in Cairo says people will want to know if it revealed any flexibility that might create some common ground to explore, in search of a way out of this explosive crisis.

On the face of it, there is little room for manoeuvre, our correspondent adds.

The Brotherhood and its allies in the Anti-Coup National Alliance insist that Mr Morsi must be restored to the presidency, and that they will continue their protests until that happens.

The interim presidency has said clearly that the hands of the clock cannot be turned back.

Baroness Ashton also met the head of Egypt's armed forces, Gen Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, and government ministers on Monday.

She did not speak to reporters afterwards, but before arriving in the country on Sunday said she would be calling for a "fully inclusive transition process, taking in all political groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood", the Islamist movement to which Mr Morsi belongs.

Egypt's interim Vice-President, Mohamed ElBaradei, told Baroness Ashton that the government was doing all it could "to reach a peaceful exit to the current crisis", according to Ahram Online.

He also reportedly stressed that any solution would have to be in accordance with the law and not pose a threat to national security.

A US state department spokeswoman said Secretary of State John Kerry had told Baroness Ashton by telephone that he fully supported and appreciated "her efforts to calm tensions, prevent further violence, bridge political divides, and help lay the basis for a peaceful, inclusive process".

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Mandela improvement 'continues'

30 July 2013 Last updated at 04:51 ET

South Africa's former President Nelson Mandela, who has been in hospital since 8 June with a recurring lung infection, "continues to show improvement", a government statement says.

But the 95-year-old remains in a critical if stable condition, it said.

President Jacob Zuma urged people to continue to pray for him and thanked those who did good works in his name.

The country's first democratically elected leader, Mr Mandela is considered the father of the nation.

He spent 27 years in prison after taking up arms to fight for the apartheid regime.

Known by his clan name Madidba, he became South Africa's president in 1994 after white minority rule ended and stepped down five years later.

In his statement, Mr Zuma called on those in the business community to support a project by one of Mr Mandela's funds to build a children's hospital.

"Madiba loves children and wants the best for them. He wants us to ensure that they have a better future," he said.

According to the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, it would like to build a 238-bed academic and paediatric referral facility to serve children across southern Africa.

"The hospital will be one of the most inspiring legacies of this remarkable statesman and leader of our people, and we humbly invite all sectors to actively support this project," Mr Zuma said.

Since his admission into the private Medi Clinic Heart Hospital in the capital, Pretoria, thousands of tributes and get-well messages have left outside for Mr Mandela.

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UK 'slightly happier than last year'

30 July 2013 Last updated at 05:34 ET

A UK-wide well-being survey has found "small improvements" in people's happiness over the year.

The proportion of people rating their life satisfaction as seven or more out of 10 rose from 75.9% to 77.0%, the Office for National Statistics said.

It said the Olympics and Diamond Jubilee may have "influenced people's assessment of their... well-being".

The survey is taken to help the government develop policies to improve people's well-being.

Most content

It also showed a small reduction in anxiety levels, with the proportion of people rating their anxiety at a higher level of six or more out of 10 falling from 21.8% to 20.9%.

Women rated their anxiety levels higher than men. The average anxiety rating for women is 3.1 compared with 2.9 for men.

Yet on balance, women were found to have higher life satisfaction, consider their activities to be more worthwhile and rate their happiness slightly higher than men.

People aged 45 to 54 were the most dissatisfied, while younger people rated their happiness above average and retired people were the most content age group.

Married couples or those in civil partnerships rated their life satisfaction highest, with the average score at 7.8 out of 10. The ONS pointed out that this was higher than for cohabiting couples who reported an average of 7.6 out of 10.

Single people rated their life satisfaction lower than those in couples, or widowed, at an average of 7.2 out of 10.

However divorcees or separated people rated their life satisfaction lowest, at an average of 6.8 out of 10.

The first well-being survey was released by the ONS in 2012. Prime Minister David Cameron described it as crucial to finding out what the government can do to "really improve lives" - but Labour ridiculed the survey as a "statement of the bleeding obvious".

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Barclays to issue £5.8bn new shares

30 July 2013 Last updated at 05:37 ET

Barclays will issue £5.8bn in new shares as part of a move to plug a £12.8bn capital shortfall created by new regulatory demands.

The bank will also issue £2bn of bonds that are turned into shares or wiped out if the bank gets into trouble.

The size of the rights issue is much larger than analysts had expected.

Barclays chief executive Antony Jenkins said the plan would not reduce the supply of vital loans to small businesses and households.

Last month, Mr Jenkins had argued against the fresh capital requirements, warning that if Barclays had to meet this tough measure it could be forced to scale back its lending to small businesses and households.

A bold plan

"I am certain the decisive and prompt action we are taking will leave Barclays stronger," Mr Jenkins said.

Continue reading the main story

Barclays was widely regarded as one of the UK's strongest banks. It is remarkable that its regulator, the Bank of England's Prudential Regulation Authority, has ruled that it needs to fill a hole in its capital resources. "

End Quote

The share sale will be done as a rights issue, giving existing investors the opportunity to buy new shares so their stakes will not be diluted.

The bank will also reduce the level of risky assets on its balance sheet by between £60 to £80bn.

"I think they've done the right thing. Anything else would have been a fudge, they needed to get on and raise equity," said Mike Trippitt, analyst at Numis Securities.

Tough new rules

Barclays' move comes after the banking regulator - the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) - issued tough new capital requirements aimed at ensuring banks are protected from the risk of investment losses, even in the event of a fresh financial crisis.

The PRA requires all banks to have a minimum leverage ratio - a measure of financial health indicating the amount of capital held by the bank relative to its gross lending - of 3%.

Under the new requirements, Barclays was found to have a capital shortfall of £12.8bn.

Performance

Meanwhile, Barclays said adjusted second quarter pre-tax profit fell 17% in the second quarter to £3.6bn.

Mr Jenkins said performance indicated "good momentum". The £3.6bn adjusted pre-tax profit figure excludes a higher-than-expected additional £1.35bn charge for PPI Payment Protection Insurance misselling costs and £650m for interest rate hedging compensation. In total, these two issues have cost Barclays £5.5bn.

Payment protection insurance (PPI) was designed to cover loan repayments for policyholders who became ill, had an accident or lost their jobs.

Continue reading the main story

"The eye-watering PPI compensation bill continues to escalate, showing how much banks have been in denial about the scale of their mis-selling," said Which? executive director Richard Lloyd.

"We need to see a big change in the culture of our banks to stop mis-selling scandals at source," Mr Lloyd added.

Mr Jenkins said that the bank's plans would help it in its bid to transform itself into what it calls a "Go-To" bank.

Mr Jenkins is trying to revamp the image of Britain's third-largest bank, after the aggressive culture of former Barclays boss, Bob Diamond, culminated in a £290m fine for rigging Libor rates.

Shares in Barclays fell 6% in early trading.

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UK 'losing fight' against e-crime

30 July 2013 Last updated at 05:40 ET

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David Edmundson-Bird successfully proved he was the victim of e-crime

The UK must do more to stop online fraud and deter state-sponsored cyber-espionage or risk losing the fight against e-crime, MPs have warned.

The Home Affairs Select Committee said much low-level internet-based financial crime was falling into a "black hole" and was not reported to the police.

The MPs said more officers should be trained in digital crime detection and e-crime experts protected from cuts.

The Home Office said the authorities must "keep pace" with criminals.

Publishing its first report on the subject, the cross-party committee said e-crime took various forms, did not recognise national borders and could be committed "at almost any time or in any place".

It called for a dedicated cyber-espionage team to respond to attacks, many of which are believed to be backed by foreign governments because they are so sophisticated.

Offences range from attacks on computer networks and the use of viruses to steal data to the use of cyberspace to facilitate traditional crimes such as forgery, sabotage, drug smuggling and people trafficking.

'Off the hook'

The committee said it was worried by the evidence it had heard during its inquiry about the UK's e-crime fighting capability.

It said it had been told by Adrian Leppard, deputy assistant commissioner at the City of London Police, that up to a quarter of the UK's 800 specialist internet crime officers could be lost due to budget cuts.

Continue reading the main story

You can steal more on the internet than you can by robbing a bank"

End Quote Keith Vaz Labour MP

This was despite evidence the UK was a prime target for many of the 1,300 criminal gangs specialising in fraud.

A quarter of the gangs, many of which are based in eastern Europe and Russia, use the internet as their principal means of deception.

The MPs said police cutbacks came on top of proposed 10% cuts to the budget of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (Ceop).

"At a time when fraud and e-crime is going up, the capability of the country to address it is going down," the report concluded.

"Ministers have acknowledged the increasing threat of e-crime but it is clear that sufficient funding and resources have not been allocated to the law enforcement responsible for tackling it."

As well as calling for a cyber-espionage team, the report's recommendations include:

• Requiring banks to report all e-fraud, however small, to the police
• Obliging web firms to explain data security tools to new users
• Prosecutors to review sentencing guidance for e-crimes
• Increased funding for European e-crime co-operation
• Mandatory code of conduct for removal of indecent material
• New body to report on and remove online terrorist content

Keith Vaz, the Labour MP who chairs the committee, said the UK's response to e-crime was too "fractured".

He told BBC 5 live: "Our country is the number one target for gangs in 25 countries."

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Keith Vaz, MP: "This is a more serious threat than a nuclear attack"

He added: "It's much easier and more lucrative to steal on the internet than it is to go out and rob a bank.

"These are real e-wars. At the moment we are not winning the e-wars."

Mr Vaz said the gangs committing e-crimes were "predominantly" from eastern Europe, including European Union countries such as Romania.

The UK's eavesdropping centre GCHQ suggested earlier this year that 80% of cyber-attacks could be prevented by better management of information online.

The Police Federation of England and Wales said the MPs' report was further evidence that recent figures showing a 10% fall in recorded crime last year were "misleading".

Javed Khan, chief executive of the charity Victim Support, called the findings "worrying", adding: "E-criminals cannot be allowed to get ahead of our police and their partners."

The government announced increased funding for cyber-security in 2010, while a single National Cybercrime Unit will be formed later this year as part of the new National Crime Agency.

Deputy Chief Constable Peter Goodman, who speaks for the Association of Chief Police officers on e-crime, said the new unit would bring a "real step change in our response to e-crime".

A Home Office spokesman said: "Crime is at record low levels and this government is taking action to tackle the cyber-threat, investing more than £850m through the national cyber-security programme to develop and maintain cutting-edge capabilities."

He said the new cybercrime unit would "target the most serious offenders and provide enhanced intelligence for Ceop so they can protect even more children from harm".

"But we know we need to keep pace with criminals as they target the web and so we continue to consider ways to ensure the police and security services have access to communications data," the spokesman added.

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Housing benefit challenge fails

30 July 2013 Last updated at 05:44 ET

Disabled families have lost a court challenge to social housing benefit cuts for residents with spare bedrooms in England, Wales and Scotland.

Lawyers for 10 families brought a judicial review over the lower payments for people in homes deemed too large.

They argued that the change, which was introduced in April, breached their clients' human rights.

But the High Court ruled that the move did not unlawfully discriminate against disabled people.

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Spain crash driver was 'careless'

29 July 2013 Last updated at 03:15 ET

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The train crash driver, seen arriving here arriving at court, "said he wanted to die" after the crash, a witness tells the BBC

The driver of the Spanish train that derailed last week killing 79 people says he was "careless" when he drove at speed around a bend, reports say.

Francisco Jose Garzon Amo was released from custody on Sunday. He faces multiple counts of reckless homicide.

A large funeral Mass is due to take place in city of Santiago de Compostela, where the train crashed.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who comes from the city, and members of the royal family are expected to attend.

Correspondents say the tragedy has shocked residents of Santiago de Compostela, a Catholic pilgrimage site in the north-western province of Galicia.

Santiago officials had been preparing for the religious feast of St James of Compostela - Spain's patron saint - but cancelled it after the crash on Wednesday.

The city's sports arena was temporarily turned into a morgue.

At the cathedral gates, pilgrims have left flowers and candles to commemorate victims of the crash.

Officials say 70 people remain in hospital, 22 of them in a critical condition.

Passport surrendered

Mr Garzon, 52, arrived at court in handcuffs on Sunday, his head scarred by an injury he suffered in the crash.

He was questioned behind closed doors for almost two hours by Judge Luis Alaez.

Later, a court statement said he had been released pending further investigations but must appear before a court once a week and is not allowed to leave Spain without permission.

His passport has been surrendered to the judge and his licence to drive a train has been suspended.

Under Spanish law, his legal status is that he is suspected of being involved in 79 counts of reckless homicide but has not been formally charged.

But officials said he had admitted negligence by being careless when rounding a bend too fast.

Reports have suggested the train was going at 190km/h (118mph) as he took the bend, where the speed limit is just 80km/h.

All eight carriages of the train careered off the tracks into a concrete wall as they sped around the curve on the express route between Madrid and the port city of Ferrol on the Galician coast.

The crash was one of the worst rail disasters in Spanish history.

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Energy watchdog 'failing consumers'

29 July 2013 Last updated at 04:16 ET

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John Robertson, MP: "When we ask for figures they don't give it"

Energy regulator Ofgem is not doing enough to ensure that energy company profits are transparent, MPs say.

The Energy and Climate Change Committee (ECCC) report said the watchdog was "failing consumers by not taking all possible steps to improve openness".

The committee said that "working out exactly how their profits are made requires forensic accountants".

Ofgem said it had made energy companies produce yearly financial statements and they had been reviewed by accountants.

Sir Robert Smith, on behalf of the committee, said: "At a time when many people are struggling with the rising costs of energy, consumers need reassurance that the profits being made by the 'big six' are not excessive."

The big six are E.On, SSE, British Gas, Npower, EDF and Scottish Power.

They have different divisions to deal with the different functions of their businesses: generation, trading and supply.

The committee said that the divisions sometimes bought and sold services and energy from each other, making it difficult to work out how much money was being made overall.

"Greater transparency is urgently needed to reassure consumers that high energy prices are not fuelling excessive profits," the committee said.

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Angela Knight, Energy UK: "The profit an energy company makes is not big but households are concerned"

Poor communication

The MPs criticised Ofgem for having a "relatively light touch approach and for not fully implementing the recommendations of the accountants it commissioned to improve how energy companies report their profits".

"Ofgem needs to use its teeth a bit more and force the energy companies to do everything they can to prove that they are squeaky clean when it comes to making and reporting their profits," said committee member John Robertson.

Ofgem agreed that the energy suppliers had been "poor at communicating with their customers".

"Ofgem has made energy companies produce yearly financial statements, which have been reviewed twice by independent accountants and found to be fit for purpose," said Ofgem's senior partner for markets, Rachel Fletcher.

Continue reading the main story

The committee believes that Ofgem should force energy companies to:

• Standardise their bills to make it easier for consumers to compare the value for money of different energy providers
• Break down the total cost of the bill into its components, ie wholesale energy prices, supply costs, the cost of implementing government energy policies, operating costs, and profit
• Give consumers details of price changes in pounds and pence, and not just in percentages

Which? executive director Richard Lloyd said that the public would not feel that they were paying a fair price for energy until prices were simplified and the costs that went into generating them were as transparent as possible.

"We want the government to introduce simple energy pricing and a clear ring-fence between generation and supply businesses, so consumers can see exactly what they're paying for and be more confident that there is effective competition in the energy market," he said.

Angela Knight, the chief executive of Energy UK, the body that represents the energy companies, said the industry had come a long way on transparency.

"There are fewer tariffs and the new deals are clearer so it is easier to compare, bills have been simplified so they are easier for customers to follow and it is simple to switch from one supplier to another," she said.

Ms Knight told the BBC that "profit was a good thing and a very important thing", because of the investment the energy companies need to make in generation and infrastructure.

She added that the energy companies provided Ofgem with all the necessary information.

"Energy companies all publish annual accounts and, in addition, both the generation and supply parts of the business provide Ofgem with all the information about revenues, costs and profits for which the regulator asks," she said.

Fuel poverty

The Energy and Climate Change Committee also reprimanded the government for not doing enough to help low-income families struggling with fuel poverty.

The committee argued that the use of levies on fuel bills to raise funds for social and environmental programmes could end up hitting those on low incomes.

Instead, they recommended such funding be raised through direct taxation.

Sir Robert said: "Tax-funded public spending is a less regressive mechanism than levies on energy bills, which can hit some of the poorest hardest. Shifting the emphasis from levies to taxation would help protect vulnerable households."

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Wave of deadly car bombs hits Iraq

29 July 2013 Last updated at 05:15 ET

A wave of car bombs has killed at least 48 people in mostly Shia areas of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, and in other cities around the country.

More than 100 people were wounded in the attacks, police and medics said.

More than 2,500 Iraqis have died in attacks since April, the UN says - with violence at its highest since 2008.

The spike comes amid heightened Shia-Sunni tensions. Sunnis say they are being marginalised by Prime Minister Nouri Maliki's Shia-led government.

The Baghdad bombs, hidden in parked cars, hit markets and car parks in several areas of the city, police say.

The deadliest was said to have hit the eastern Shia district of Sadr City, report say.

A man says he saw vehicles arriving to park shortly before a blast happened in the disctrict of Habibiya, in southern Baghdad.

Continue reading the main story

• April 2013: 712 deaths (including 595 civilians); 1,633 wounded
• May 2013: 1,045 deaths (including 963 civilians); 2,397 wounded
• June 2013: 761 deaths (including 685 civilians); 1,771 wounded

Source: UN Assistance Mission for Iraq

"We were standing here when a a pick-up truck drove in here and parked there. There were two others cars parking there. Minutes later the car went off," he told the Associated Press news agency.

One bomb also exploded in Mahmudiya to the south of the capital, killing at least two people.

In the city of Kut, south-east of the capital, at least seven people were killed when two car bombs blew up.

There are also reports of a car bomb going off in Basra, the country's second city.

This could be the bloodiest month in Iraq for years, says BBC Arabic's Haddad Salih in Baghdad, with the number of attacks escalating since the beginning of the month of Ramadan earlier this month.

Although the violence is less deadly than that seen during the heights of the insurgency in 2006 and 2007, it is the most widespread since the US military withdrawal in 2011.

More than 700 people have been killed in July alone.

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'Lads' mags' given cover-up deadline

29 July 2013 Last updated at 05:24 ET

The Co-operative has given so-called lads' mags six weeks to cover up their front pages with sealed "modesty bags" or be taken off sale in its stores.

The 4,000-outlet retailer said it was responding to concerns by its members, customers and colleagues about images of scantily-clad women on covers.

Titles such as Front, Loaded, Nuts and Zoo have been given a deadline of 9 September to act by the Co-op.

One campaign group called for Co-op to stop selling such titles altogether.

But a former editor of Front magazine, Piers Hernu, said the Co-op's decision was "very dangerous" and amounted to "censorship".

The firm had "caved in" to a "vociferous campaign from some fanatical feminists", showing itself to be "weak-willed and spineless", he argued on BBC Radio 5 live.

'Like wallpaper'

The Co-op, which is owned and run by its more than seven million members, introduced opaque screens for lads' magazines on some shelves earlier this month.

Steve Murrells, retail chief executive for the Co-operative Group, said: "As a community-based retailer, we have listened to the concerns of our customers and members, many of whom say they object to their children being able to see overt sexual images in our stores.

Continue reading the main story

The so-called 'modesty bags' they are demanding are designed to allow the Co-operative to continue profiting from sexist, harmful lads' mags - but just a bit more discreetly"

End Quote Sophie Bennett Lose the Lads' Mags

"Whilst we have tried to mitigate the likelihood of young children seeing the images with a number of measures in store, the most effective way of doing this is for these magazines to be put in individual, sealed modesty bags."

Cathryn Higgs, a policy manager at the Co-op, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the group was currently "in dialogue" with the magazine publishers.

"I've got every hope they will take what we believe is the responsible approach and put them in a bag," she said.

She added that the Co-op believed it was the first retailer in the UK to take this step but other supermarkets were probably having "similar conversations with their customers".

The Daily Sport newspaper has already agreed to comply with the Co-operative's new policy.

Women and Equalities Minister Jo Swinson said the Co-op's move was "very welcome".

"Many parents aren't comfortable with the way sexualised imagery has become like wallpaper - everywhere from the bus stop to the corner shop," she said.

"Adults should be left to make their own decisions about what legal sexual images they look at, but the place for these is not next to the sweets at children's eye-level. I hope other retailers will follow the Co-operative's lead."

'Dehumanised sex objects'

But campaign group Lose the Lads' Mags said the Co-op was not going far enough.

Spokeswoman Sophie Bennett said: "The so-called 'modesty bags' they are demanding from publishers are designed to allow the Co-operative to continue profiting from sexist, harmful lads' mags - but just a bit more discreetly."

Fellow campaigner Kat Banyard added: "Lads' mags are deeply harmful.

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Glamour model Natalie Rochford, and Kat Banyard, who represents the Lose the Lads' Mags Campaign

"By portraying women as dehumanised sex objects, they send out the message that it's normal and acceptable to treat women this way, and we know from extensive evidence that lads' mags like Nuts and Zoo fuel sexist attitudes; attitudes that underpin violence against women."

The campaign group said it had also been targeting Tesco, with one female shareholder raising the subject during the retailer's recent annual general meeting.

Gender equality groups UK Feminista and Object joined forces with lawyers to launch the Lose the Lads' Mags campaign earlier this year.

They warned that retailers could face legal action if they continued to display the magazines or require staff to handle them.

This, they said, could amount to sexual harassment or discrimination in breach of the Equality Act 2010.

The British Retail Consortium has said its members do not sell anything illegal and have long followed industry rules.

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Italy coach plunge leaves 39 dead

29 July 2013 Last updated at 05:31 ET

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The BBC's Alan Johnston says the coach "ripped through the guard rail" when it plunged off the flyover

A coach has plunged off a flyover in southern Italy leaving at least 39 people dead in the country's worst road accident for decades.

The coach hit several vehicles before smashing through a parapet and toppling down a steep slope near the town of Avellino, in the Campania region.

At least 10 people have been injured, some of them seriously.

The coach was taking about 50 people, including children, back to Naples following a pilgrimage, reports say.

The cause of the accident is not clear.

TV footage showed smashed vehicles on the flyover and shrouded bodies lined up by the side of a road.

The driver of the coach is said to be among the dead.

"The situation is critical," leading fireman Pellegrino Iandolo told Italian television.

"Our men are working to save as many lives as possible."

A police spokesman told the French news agency AFP that the number of victims could not yet be confirmed.

"We are still pulling people from the vehicle," he said.

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Photojournalist Sandro di Domenico: "The scene was horrific"

He added that the Naples-Bari motorway had been closed to traffic because of the accident.

Reports say the bus smashed through a guardrail on the flyover and dropped 30m (98ft), coming to rest in heavy undergrowth.

The injured have been taken to hospitals in Avellino, Salerno and Nola, Ansa said.

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Syria troops 'retake' key Homs area

29 July 2013 Last updated at 05:39 ET

Syrian government forces have fully captured a district that was a key rebel stronghold in the central city of Homs, state media report.

The Sana news agency said the military had "completely restored security and stability to Khalidiya neighbourhood ".

Activists reported clashes in Khalidiya on Monday morning, but said that most of the area was under army control.

The announcement comes a month after troops launched an offensive to oust rebels from Syria's third largest city.

Only the Old City and a few other districts are still held by the opposition.

On Sunday, the pan-Arab TV station al-Mayadeen broadcast footage of Khalidiya, showing heavily damaged buildings and piles of rubble.

Homs has been a focus of the two-year uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, in which the UN says more than 100,000 people have died.

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NHS Direct seeks 111 withdrawal

29 July 2013 Last updated at 05:42 ET By James Gallagher Health and science reporter, BBC News

A major provider of the NHS non-emergency telephone service in England is seeking to pull out of its contracts due to severe problems.

NHS Direct initially won 11 of the 46 regional contracts for the service, covering 34% of the population.

It has already pulled out of two services, but the remaining nine are now "financially unsustainable".

The whole NHS 111 service itself has been plagued with problems, including reports of patients facing long waits.

The regional services are run by a range of organisations including private companies, ambulance trusts and NHS Direct - which ran the old telephone advice line.

Continue reading the main story

• Buckinghamshire
• East London and the City
• South East London
• Sutton and Merton
• West Midlands
• Lancashire and Cumbria
• Greater Manchester
• Merseyside and Cheshire
• Somerset

NHS Direct has already pulled out of contracts for 111 services in Cornwall and North Essex

NHS Direct pulled of two areas - Cornwall and North Essex - even before the services were launched.

In July the organisation warned that the volume of calls was 30-40% lower than contracted levels, leading to lower income and leaving the remaining nine services "financially unsustainable".

Projections reported earlier this month showed NHS Direct had lost £2.8m since April and was "heading for a deficit of £26m if we continue to run the same volume of 111 services until the end of this financial year".

The organisation is now seeking a "managed transfer" of its 111 commitments to another provider.

Nick Chapman, the chief executive of NHS Direct, said: "We will continue to provide a safe and reliable NHS 111 service to our patients until alternative arrangements can be made by commissioners.

"Whatever the outcome of the discussions on the future, patients will remain the central focus of our efforts, together with protecting our staff who work on NHS 111 to ensure that the service will continue to benefit from their skills and experience."

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UK soldiers assist Afghan operation

28 July 2013 Last updated at 00:09 ET

British soldiers have returned to an area of Afghanistan for a week-long operation to clear Taliban insurgents.

Afghan military commanders requested assistance in Sangin district, an area British forces defended from the Taliban until 2010, earlier this month.

About 80 members of 4th Battalion The Rifles, based at Camp Bastion in Helmand province, were involved.

The Ministry of Defence said some insurgents were killed or captured but there were no British casualties.

Weapons seized

According to the Sunday Times, Defence Secretary Philip Hammond had personally authorised the return to the area for British forces.

It said 106 British personnel were killed in fighting there between 2006 and 2010.

The paper said the threat to the troops was considered so great that, at the MoD's request, it delayed reporting the operation until it had finished.

The British involvement was part of a major operation by 215 Corps of the Afghan National Army (ANA) to clear insurgents in the Sangin district of Helmand Province, in the south.

The operation saw troops from the UK-mentored 3/215 Brigade move north into Sangin, clearing compounds and seizing insurgent weapon stashes alongside soldiers from 2/215 Brigade.

The Brigade Advisory Group, made up of 4th Battalion The Rifles, provided support to 3/215 Brigade.

During the operation, more than 30 improvised explosive devices were found and destroyed by the ANA, and two insurgent vehicles were seized along with ammunition and weapons.

'Challenging area'

The Ministry of Defence said UK personnel occasionally operated outside of the usual British area of operations in central Helmand in an advisory capacity.

"These out-of-area operations have been a long-standing element of the UK mission in Afghanistan and are completely in line with our current role of providing training, advice and assistance to the Afghan National Security Forces," a spokesman said.

"Between 2006 and 2010, UK forces provided vital security for the population of Sangin, disrupting the insurgency in an area the Taliban had considered its heartland, preventing the spread of violence elsewhere, upholding the authority of the Afghan government in the area and enabling economic development to take place.

"Much was achieved then and has been since. It remains a challenging area and it is now for the Afghan forces to deal with the residual insurgency."

Brig Rupert Jones, Commander Task Force Helmand, said the operation had demonstrated further how effective 3/215 Brigade of the ANA had become.

"Operating in Sangin over the past week, they have moved to another level of performance and independence," he said.

"It has been a very impressive demonstration of what the Afghan National Army can be capable of."

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Theresa May diagnosed with diabetes

27 July 2013 Last updated at 18:44 ET

Home Secretary Theresa May has revealed she has been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes but insists it will not affect her political career.

The condition means her body does not produce insulin and she must now inject herself with the hormone at least twice a day for the rest of her life.

She told the Mail on Sunday that the diagnosis "was a real shock" and had taken a while to come to terms with.

But it was a case of "head down and getting on with it", Mrs May added.

'Blood test'

She said: "The diabetes doesn't affect how I do the job or what I do. It's just part of life.

"'It started last November. I'd had a bad cold and cough for quite a few weeks. I went to my GP and she did a blood test which showed I'd got a very high sugar level - that's what revealed the diabetes.

"The symptoms are tiredness, drinking a lot of water, losing weight, but it's difficult to isolate things. I was drinking a lot of water. But I do anyway.

Continue reading the main story

• People with Type 1 diabetes cannot produce insulin. No-one knows exactly what causes it, but it is not to do with being overweight and it is not currently preventable. It usually affects children or young adults, starting suddenly and getting worse quickly. Type 1 diabetes is treated by daily insulin doses, a healthy diet and regular physical activity.
• People with Type 2 diabetes do not produce enough insulin or the insulin they produce does not work properly (known as insulin resistance). They might get diabetes because of their family history, age and ethnic background. They are also more likely to get Type 2 diabetes if they are overweight. Type 2 diabetes is treated with a healthy diet and increased physical activity.

"There was weight loss but then I was already making an effort to be careful about diet and to get my gym sessions in.

"Tiredness - speak to any politician and they will tell you the hours they work. Tiredness can be part of the job. It is full on."

Initially doctors thought Mrs May had Type 2 diabetes but two months ago it was revealed to be Type 1 diabetes.

There had been media speculation that Mrs May losing two stones in weight over 18 months was linked to a potential Conservative Party leadership bid, but she said this had been partly down to the illness.

Asked if her diagnosis would prevent her from one day replacing David Cameron, she told the newspaper: "There is no leadership bid. We have a first-class prime minister and long may he continue."

She added: "It doesn't and will not affect my ability to do my work. I'm a little more careful about what I eat and there's obviously the injections, but this is something millions of people have. I'm OK with needles, fortunately.

"There's a great quote from Steve Redgrave who was diagnosed with diabetes before he won his last Olympic gold medal. He said diabetes must learn to live with me rather than me live with diabetes. That's the attitude."

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UK migration figures 'a best guess'

27 July 2013 Last updated at 19:24 ET

Official UK migration figures are "little better than a best guess", a group of influential MPs has said.

The Public Administration Committee said the statistics were "not fit for purpose" and did not accurately assess how many non-UK residents were entering and leaving the country.

The MPs recommended finding new ways to gather migration information.

The government rejected the committee's conclusions, saying net migration was at its lowest level for decades.

In the year to June 2012, immigration was estimated at 515,000 while emigration was estimated at 352,000, putting net migration - the difference between the number of people entering and leaving the country - at 163,000.

'Blunt instruments'

The coalition government has set itself a target to reduce the net migration figure from non-EU countries to under 100,000 a year by 2015.

But the MPs warned that current net migration statistics produced by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and the Home Office were "blunt instruments" and were "not adequate for understanding the scale and complexity of modern migration flows".

In particular, the MPs criticised the main source for producing migration figures - the International Passenger Survey (IPS).

It was designed in the early 1960s to examine tourism trends - something it is still used for today - and is based on "random interviews" with travellers at ports and airports, they said.

Continue reading the main story

Most people would be utterly astonished to learn that there is no attempt to count people as they enter or leave the UK"

End Quote Bernard Jenkin Committee chairman

The Public Administration Committee said just 5,000 migrants a year were identified through the survey and it had a "large margin of error".

It said the migration estimates based on the IPS were "too uncertain" to accurately measure progress against the government's net migration target.

And the IPS fails to gather the type of information needed to work out the social and economic consequences of migration, such as demand for the NHS or schools, the MPs said.

Committee chairman Bernard Jenkin said: "Most people would be utterly astonished to learn that there is no attempt to count people as they enter or leave the UK.

"As an island nation, with professional statisticians and effective border controls, we could gain decent estimates of who exactly is coming into this country, where they come from, and why they are coming here.

"As it is, the top line numbers for the government's 100,000 net migration target are little better than a best guess - and could be out by tens of thousands. Clearly these statistics are not fit for purpose in the longer term."

'Dodgy statistics'

The committee said migration figures could be considerably improved if the Home Office and ONS properly recorded and linked the data they already gathered.

They also called for the e-borders system - which once operational is expected to collect details from passenger lists of all people entering and leaving the UK - to be implemented as quickly as possible.

A Home Office spokesman said: "We disagree with the report's conclusions. Government reforms on immigration are working and the statistics do show that net migration is at its lowest level for a decade.

"The government is determined to build a fairer system and to address the public's concern about immigration.

"We are committed to getting net migration down from the hundreds of thousands to the tens of thousands, and we want to be judged against the very best available evidence."

Shadow immigration minister Chris Bryant said the report cast doubt on the government's claims to have cut net migration.

"People want a bit of honesty on immigration, so the home secretary should look at how to measure immigration more accurately as a matter of urgency," he said.

"Grand speeches, gimmicks and dodgy statistics don't cut much ice, especially when the government still don't even have a plan to count people in and out of the country."

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Spain train driver to be questioned

27 July 2013 Last updated at 23:10 ET

The driver of a train that crashed near the Spanish city of Santiago de Compostela on Wednesday killing 78 people is due to appear before a judge.

Francisco Jose Garzon Amo has been detained on suspicion of reckless homicide and the judge will decide whether to press formal charges.

Mr Garzon is suspected of driving too fast on a bend.

Reports say the train was travelling at more than double the speed limit at the time of the crash.

Mr Garzon, 52, was pictured being escorted away from the wreckage by police, blood pouring from a head injury. He left hospital on Saturday and was immediately taken to the central police station in Santiago.

He has so far refused to make a statement or answer questions.

Sunday's court hearing will be closed but the judge will decide whether to remand the driver as an official suspect, release him on bail, or free him without charge.

If the judge finds enough evidence for a criminal trial, Mr Garzon will be charged and a date set.

At least 130 people were taken to hospital after the accident and 30 remained in a critical condition on Saturday.

All eight carriages of the train - packed with more than 200 passengers - careered off the tracks into a concrete wall as they sped around the curve on the express route between Madrid and the port city of Ferrol on the Galician coast.

Leaking diesel burst into flames in some of the carriages.

The train's data recording "black box" is with the judge in charge of the investigation. Officials have so far not said how fast the train was going when it derailed.

Continue reading the main story

• August 2006: Inter-city train derails in Villada, in the province of Palencia, killing six people and injuring dozens more
• July 2006: At least 43 people killed in a metro train crash in the Valencia area
• 1972: Andalusia crash leaves between 76 and 86 people dead.
• 1944: Hundreds believed dead after a crash in Torre del Bierzo, in Leon province - official account gave the figure as 78 killed.

Gonzalo Ferre, president of Spanish rail network administrator Adif, said the driver should have started slowing the train 4km (2.5 miles) before the spot where the accident happened.

The president of Spanish train operator Renfe, Julio Gomez Pomar, has said that the train had no technical problems.

He said the driver had 30 years' experience with the company and had been operating trains on the line for more than a year.

People from several nationalities were among the injured, including five US citizens and one Briton. One American was among the dead.

Some victims have had to be identified using DNA matches due to the extent of their injuries.

PM Mariano Rajoy, who hails from the city of the crash, declared three days of official mourning on Thursday.

The crash was one of the worst rail disasters in Spanish history.

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Egypt protesters defy removal threat

28 July 2013 Last updated at 02:21 ET

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Jim Muir: "It's hard to see how this area can be cleared without further bloodshed"

Supporters of ousted Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi have defied threats of removal from their sit-in protest in Cairo, despite the deaths of dozens in clashes with security forces.

Speakers from the pro-Morsi Muslim Brotherhood addressed protesters overnight, saying they would not back down from their demands.

They want Mr Morsi - removed from power by the army on 3 July - reinstated.

But the interior minister has warned them they will "soon" be dispersed.

Meanwhile, the US has expressed deep concern at the bloodshed - the worst since Mr Morsi's ousting.

US Secretary of State John Kerry condemned the violence and called on the Egyptian authorities to respect the right of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression

Passionate speeches

Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Gehad el-Haddad told the BBC that "hundreds and thousands of men, women and children" were engaged in the peaceful protest around the Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque.

He said: "Regardless of what happens to the president, we will continue our protest. Our numbers are increasing every day. Citizens are recognising the tyranny and the long-term danger of the military coup".

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Dr Hesham Ibrahim says Saturday's scenes at the field hospital were like "hell"

The BBC's Yasmine Abu Khadra, at the scene in Cairo, says it is now quiet at the camp, although the camp has set up its own tight security, with barricades built.

She says that overnight, prominent leaders from the Muslim Brotherhood delivered passionate speeches to raise the morale of the crowd.

Our correspondent says the message was that the police and security forces felt threatened by the sit-in and that was why they had carried out the killings on Saturday.

The speakers said the crowd should not be afraid of the security forces as the protest was for a just cause.

The health ministry puts the death toll from the clashes on Saturday at 78, although doctors estimated that more than 100 people were killed.

Mr Haddad said three types of groups were to blame - "badly dressed thugs, police in three types of uniform and plain-clothed police".

He said the protesters would continue to demand Mr Morsi's reinstatement, adding: "It may take weeks, months, more than a year - we will still hold our ground."

Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim told the supporters to "come to their senses" and go home.

He said lawsuits filed by residents near a mosque provided legal cover for the clearance.

The government has denied that security forces fired live rounds on Saturday, only tear gas.

But the BBC's Quentin Sommerville in Cairo says this appears to be untrue given the severity and number of injuries.

Two leading figures who backed the army's removal of Mr Morsi have condemned the killings.

The Grand Imam of Al-Azhar mosque - the highest Sunni Muslim authority in Egypt - has called for an investigation, while the vice-president of the interim government, Mohamed ElBaradei, said that excessive force had been used.

US Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement that he was deeply concerned about the bloodshed.

"In this extremely volatile environment, Egyptian authorities have a moral and legal obligation to respect the right of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression," he said.

Saturday's clashes appear to have begun after some of the Morsi supporters tried to extend the barricades around their protest site, and the security forces responded.

Medics at a nearby field hospital told the BBC they believed about 70% of the casualties were caused by live fire - with many of the victims hit in the chest or head by snipers firing from rooftops.

'Premeditated murder'

The army removed Mr Morsi, Egypt's first democratically elected president, after mass protests against his rule and called on supporters to take to the streets to give its action a mandate.

Tens of thousands responded by flooding to Cairo's Tahrir Square on Friday night.

Mr Morsi has been formally remanded in custody at an undisclosed location for an initial 15-day period, according to a judicial order.

He has been accused of the "premeditated murder of some prisoners, officers and soldiers" when he and several Muslim Brotherhood leaders were freed during a breakout at a Cairo prison in January 2011.

He is alleged to have plotted attacks on jails in the uprising that overthrew President Hosni Mubarak.

Mr Morsi is also accused of conspiring with the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip and has strong links with the Muslim Brotherhood.

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Brazil beach packed for Pope Francis

28 July 2013 Last updated at 03:02 ET

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The BBC's Julia Carneiro says it was an "historic night" on Copacabana

Up to three million people have packed Brazil's Copacabana Beach to hear Pope Francis address their all-night vigil.

The pilgrims are remaining in place for a Mass to be celebrated there by Francis later on Sunday.

In his address, he urged the pilgrims not to be part-time Christians but to lead full, meaningful lives.

The Pope, who has been attending the biggest ever Catholic World Youth Day, leaves Brazil on Sunday after five days - his first overseas trip as pontiff.

'Overcome apathy'

Speaking on a huge stage at the beach where a mock church structure was built, Pope Francis referred to the street protests which have been taking place in Brazil for more than a month.

"The young people in the street are the ones who want to be actors of change. Please don't let others be actors of change," he told the crowd at the vigil.

"Keep overcoming apathy and offering a Christian response to the social and political concerns taking place in different parts of the world."

By the time the Pope's car had reached the stage, the back seat was filled with soccer jerseys, flags and flowers thrown to him by adoring pilgrims lining the route.

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The BBC's Wyre Davies in Rio says almost every inch of the two-and-a-half mile long beach was occupied as most of the young people stayed on, pitching tents or sleeping in the open.

As the crowd grew, female activists held a demonstration nearby in support of abortion and women's rights.

But our correspondent says the Pope and the Church hierarchy will be delighted at the huge turnout and the way Francis has been received by pilgrims from across the globe.

The Mass will be celebrated at the beach in the early afternoon.

Earlier on Saturday, the Pope addressed civil leaders and government officials at Rio's Municipal Theatre.

"Between selfish indifference and violent protest, there is always another possible option: that of dialogue," he said, in a reference to demonstrations that have been rocking the country since June.

"A country grows when constructive dialogue occurs between its many rich cultural components: popular culture, university culture, youth culture, artistic and technological culture, economic culture, family culture and media culture."

In the past three decades, the Catholic church has lost millions of followers to smaller Christian denominations.

'Go to the favelas'

Also on Saturday, the Pope repeated his challenge to fellow Roman Catholic clerics to take to the streets.

In a speech to 1,000 bishops and clerics in Rio's cathedral, he said they should go to the favelas - Brazil's shanty towns.

"We cannot keep ourselves shut up in parishes, in our communities, when so many people are waiting for the Gospel," he told the audience.

Protests, sometimes violent, broke out in cities across Brazil last month against corruption, poor public services and the high cost of events like the 2014 World Cup.

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Mali votes in presidential election

28 July 2013 Last updated at 04:26 ET

Voters across Mali are heading to the polls in a presidential election aimed at reuniting the country after months of political turmoil.

Security is tight, with many areas still recovering after a northern rebellion and coup that resulted in foreign military intervention.

There are 27 candidates and if no outright winner emerges, the voting goes to a second round on 11 August.

However, some analysts have questioned whether Mali is ready for the election.

Continue reading the main story

• 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 towns of Timbuktu, Kidal and Gao from Tuaregs, start to destroy Muslim shrines that offend their puritan views
• January 2013: Islamist fighters advance south, raising fears they could march on capital. Interim President Dioncounda Traore asks France for help. France intervenes, along with neighbouring countries. Northern towns recaptured
• April 2013: France and Chad begin to withdraw
• July 2013: State of emergency lifted. Mali troops re-enter Kidal. Deployment of a UN peace force to incorporate the West African force on the ground. Nationwide elections.

Some 6.8 million people are eligible to vote at 21,000 polling stations across the country.

But hundreds of thousands of Malians in the north were displaced by fighting. The majority of them will not be able to vote.

Islamist militants in the north have also warned Muslims not to take part and have threatened to attack polling stations.

There are also concerns about the fairness of the electoral process in the northern town of Kidal, which is still occupied by Tuareg rebels.

Tuareg gunmen were suspected of abducting electoral officials in the northern Tessalit area last week as they handed out voter identification cards. The officials were later released.

French troops are still deployed in the area with Chadian forces as part of the UN stabilisation force, Minusma.

Despite the problems, Louis Michel, head of the EU's election observer mission, said he was "positively surprised" by preparations for the vote and that the conditions were acceptable.

The US ambassador to Bamako, Mary Beth Leonard, said the fragility of Mali's interim government had to end.

"A month ago, there were a lot of doubts (over the election). But it has come together," she said.

Candidates include three former prime ministers, a former finance minister and one woman.

The frontrunners include Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, prime minister from 1994 to 2000, who founded his own party, the Rally for Mali (RPM), in 2001.

At his final rally in the capital Bamako on Friday, Mr Keita - known as IBK - appealed for a calm election day and vowed to ensure that "no-one will make fun of Mali again".

His biggest rival is seen as Soumaila Cisse, who founded his own party, the Union for the Republic and Democracy (URD), in 2003.

Mr Cisse has called for the junta that seized power in 2012 to be cleared from the political scene.

Observers say Soumana Sacko, another former prime minister, can expect a good showing if there is no clear winner.

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