US campaign restarts after Sandy

1 November 2012 Last updated at 00:25 ET

President Barack Obama is to resume an election campaign suspended in the aftermath of storm Sandy, which wreaked havoc in the north-eastern US.

Mr Obama visited areas of New Jersey struck by the storm on Wednesday.

His Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, has been holding rallies after halting his campaign earlier in the week.

Storm Sandy left at least 64 people dead in the US, cut power from millions of homes and paralysed transport on much of the eastern US seaboard.

It made landfall on Monday night in New Jersey, where some 20,000 people remain trapped in their homes by sewage-contaminated floodwater.

In New York City, the storm brought a record tidal surge that swamped the subway system and caused widespread blackouts.

Earlier, it killed nearly 70 people in the Caribbean and caused extensive crop destruction in impoverished Haiti.

'Long haul'

Continue reading the main story

The president might have spent another day above the fray, but he is heading out west, where it seems his team think supporters may need a little personal encouragement to vote"

End Quote

Mr Obama has planned campaign stops on Thursday in Nevada, Colorado and Wisconsin.

On Wednesday, he toured parts of New Jersey struck by the storm with Republican Governor Chris Christie.

"You guys are in my thoughts and prayers," the president said during a visit to an emergency shelter in Atlantic City. "We are going to be here for the long haul."

Of more than six million homes and businesses across the north-east that still have no electricity, a third of them are in New Jersey.

In the New Jersey city of Hoboken, across the Hudson River from New York City, the National Guard has arrived to evacuate about 20,000 people and distribute meals.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, usually one of Mr Obama's fiercest critics, spoke of his "great working relationship" with the Democratic president.

"I cannot thank the president enough for his personal concern and compassion for the people of our state," said Mr Christie.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

President Obama pledged help for those affected by Sandy as he visited Brigantine, New Jersey

Mr Romney held two rallies in Florida on Wednesday, where his campaign said he tried to strike a "positive tone".

Election day is on 6 November, and polls suggest the candidates are running neck and neck.

Eight out of ten voters in a Washington Post/ABC poll gave Mr Obama an "excellent" or "good" rating for his handling of the emergency.

New York began a slow recovery from the storm on Wednesday.

The New York Stock Exchange reopened on generator power after two days of closure, along with the Nasdaq.

But New York City's Bellevue Hospital had to order the evacuation of some 500 patients after back-up electricity failed.

A partial subway service is due to begin on Thursday. Many bus services are already back on the roads, and most of the city's bridges have reopened.

The Holland Tunnel, connecting New Jersey and New York City, remains flooded.

Flights have now resumed at JFK and Newark Liberty airports, though the city's LaGuardia airport remains closed. Nearly 20,000 flights were grounded by Sandy.

16.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Met Police got £23m from sponsors

1 November 2012 Last updated at 01:05 ET

The Metropolitan Police has received donations and sponsorship worth £22.7m from dozens of organisations over the past five years, the BBC has learned.

The figures were disclosed following a Freedom of Information Act request.

Donations ranged from football shirts provided by Queens Park Rangers and Chelsea to motorcycles and cars supplied by Land Rover, BMW and Nestle.

Scotland Yard said it had a "long history" of working with different partners to tackle crime.

BBC home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said the figures provided an insight into some of the less well-known sources of income at Britain's biggest police force.

Between April 2007 and March this year the force received at least 833 payments, with a number of police stations and units across London the beneficiaries.

Some of the donations were given to teams working within local communities on crime reduction projects.

An oil security organisation helped pay for a police constable to reduce crime at petrol stations while record company EMI donated 11 concert tickets.

The biggest donor was the Association of Payment Clearing Services, which represents credit card firms. It spent £11.9m in 21 instalments on a fraud investigation unit called the Dedicated Cheque and Plastic Crime Unit.

Officers in this unit work alongside banking industry fraud investigators and is fully sponsored by the banking industry which invests nearly £5m per year in its operation.

'Declining budgets'

The figures also show many local businesses across the force's boroughs donating patrol mountain bikes to help police their areas, while BMW and Land Rover UK donated support vehicles for royal protection and special branch.

Continue reading the main story

We have to ask, is the Met doing what they are paid to do by outside agencies, or what the public expects them to do?"

End Quote Jenny Jones London Assembly Green member

In a statement the Met said funding from organisations was used in several areas of police activity such as the Dedicated Cheque and Plastic Crime Unit.

"Donations and sponsorship over £50,000 must be referred to the Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime for approval.

"Such arrangements are subject to rigorous parameters. They do not make any of the statutory functions of the MPS dependent on this funding nor does it allow for any companies to interfere with the duties of the police."

The Association of Chief Police Officers says in its guidance that such income generation can "help forces counter the effects of declining budgets and increasing pressure on resources".

It says sponsorship is subject to a 1% limit of force's total annual income and the acceptance of sponsorship for non-core police activities is intended to extend and enhance the force's service to the community.

London Assembly Green member Jenny Jones questioned whether it was right for police to accept such donations.

She said: "We have to ask, is the Met doing what they are paid to do by outside agencies, or what the public expects them to do?"

Keith Vaz, the Commons Home Affairs Committee chairman, said the Metropolitan police should "consider very carefully" whether any gifts "could be perceived as compromising the force's position".

He added: "The Home Affairs Committee is currently holding an inquiry into leadership and standards in the police, and we will be hearing from the commissioner on these matters."

16.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Jimmy Savile's £4m estate frozen

1 November 2012 Last updated at 03:06 ET

The estate of television presenter Jimmy Savile has been frozen in response to the sex abuse claims made against him, NatWest bank says.

The bank, which is acting as the late DJ's executor, said: "Given the claims raised, distribution of the estate has been put on hold."

Savile's estate is thought to be worth about £4m.

Lawyers representing those who claim they were attacked by Savile are planning to sue the estate for damages.

Police believe the former BBC presenter and DJ, who died last year aged 84, could have abused as many as 300 people over a 40-year-period.

They have described Savile as a "predatory sex offender".

Scotland Yard has said it is following about 400 lines of inquiry as part of the investigation into claims Savile abused hundreds of young girls and some boys, sometimes on BBC premises.

Continue reading the main story

• Operation Yewtree: Scotland Yard criminal investigation into sexual abuse claims against Savile and others linked to the presenter
• BBC investigation led by former Sky News head Nick Pollard into management failures over the dropping of Newsnight report about Savile
• BBC investigation led by former Appeal Court judge Dame Janet Smith into corporation's culture and practices during Savile's career and current child protection and whistle-blowing policies
• BBC investigation led by Dinah Rose QC into handling of past sexual harassment claims
• Department of Health investigation into its own conduct in appointing Savile to lead a "taskforce" overseeing management of high security psychiatric hospital Broadmoor in 1998 and probes into Savile's activities at Broadmoor, Stoke Mandeville Hospital and Leeds General Infirmary
• Director of Public Prosecutions review into decisions by the Crown Prosecution Service not to prosecute Savile in 2009

He is also alleged to have carried out abuse at a number of other institutions, such as the high security psychiatric hospital Broadmoor, Stoke Mandeville Hospital and Leeds General Infirmary.

The former BBC TV presenter and DJ, who was knighted in 1996, had been a household name since he presented the first edition of Top Of The Pops in 1964.

The BBC has already announced inquiries into the Savile abuse claims. The first, led by former Sky News head Nick Pollard, is examining whether there were any failings in the BBC's management of the Newsnight investigation into Savile abuse claims.

It emerged recently a Newsnight report into abuse allegations against Savile was dropped in December 2011, shortly before the BBC ran Christmas tributes to the late presenter.

A huge number of claims later came to light following an ITV documentary - Exposure: The Other Side of Sir Jimmy Savile - about the alleged abuse that was broadcast early last month.

Former Court of Appeal judge Dame Janet Smith has begun a review into the culture and practices of the corporation during Savile's time at the BBC. A further review will examine sexual harassment policies at the BBC.

16.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Osborne: Real EU vote test ahead

1 November 2012 Last updated at 05:25 ET

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

The moment the outcome of the vote was announced

Chancellor George Osborne says that the "real test" of the government's authority will come when any proposed EU budget deal is put before MPs.

He spoke to the BBC after Labour backed Tory rebels to defeat the government and call for a real-terms cut in EU spending between 2014 and 2020.

Mr Osborne said the government would only put to MPs any proposed deal which it thought was good for UK taxpayers.

Labour described Wednesday's defeat as a humiliation for David Cameron.

But Mr Osborne accused the opposition of taking a step away from government by being opportunistic - saying they were making the same mistakes the Conservatives had in opposition after losing the 1997 election.

Although Wednesday's vote was not binding, it was embarrassing for the Tory leader and has led to some comparing the splits on Europe with those suffered by John Major's government in the 1990s.

The prime minister has said he would "at best" like to see the budget cut, and "at worst" seek to have it frozen.

Continue reading the main story

• The UK is one of 12 EU members which makes a net contribution to the EU budget - meaning it pays in more than it gets back in EU funding.
• But there are different figures for what the UK's net contribution is depending on how it is calculated.
• The EU financial year runs from January to December. The Treasury says that in 2011 the UK net contribution to the EU budget was £8.1bn. But for the UK financial year, running from April 2010 to March 2011, the Treasury says the contribution was £8.91bn.
• The European Commission has a different figure. In 2011 it says the UK's net contribution was 7.25bn euros (£5.85bn; $9.4bn).

The budget amendment, passed by 307 votes to 294, comes ahead of key talks next month.

The defeat, the most significant since the coalition came to power in May 2010, came despite efforts by ministers to woo rebels and Mr Cameron earlier saying he would veto any budget deal that was not good for Britain.

The rebel amendment was passed after a stormy debate in Commons on the 27-member union's next seven-year budget and UK contributions.

The European Commission's proposed budget for 2014-2020 would see a 5% increase in spending on the current seven-year period.

Government supporters said it would be "nigh on impossible" to negotiate a budget reduction given the lack of support among other EU nations and urged MPs to back Mr Cameron's call for an inflation-linked rise as the minimum acceptable outcome.

'National interest'

Mr Osborne told BBC Radio 4's Today programme "I want a cut in the EU budget, David Cameron wants a cut in the EU budget" and both were determined to "end the outrageous increases in European spending".

He refused to rule out a possible a cut in the EU's budget, saying it was the "beginning of a negotiation".

"We've got to listen to what the House of Commons said last night. We've got to listen to all Conservative MPs and coalition MPs," he added.

He emphasised too that the real decision for MPs would come - in around a year's time - when it came to ratifying any deal the government reaches in Brussels.

"If it comes to a vote, the House of Commons will face a choice - a deal or no deal," he said - adding that the alternative to ratifying a multi-year deal would be a series of annual negotiations.

Former Conservative minister Sir Tony Baldry told the same programme: "If colleagues want the Conservative Party to be in government after the next general election then we're going to have to start supporting the prime minister when he goes to negotiate on behalf of Britain."

Asked if it was a re-run of the Major government, he said electors "do not vote for parties that they see as being divided", adding the only people who were "chuckling" as a result of the rebellion were Labour leader Ed Miliband and his party.

But Conservative rebels said that by backing the rebel amendment Parliament would be sending a clear message and strengthening Mr Cameron's negotiating hand.

Sarah Wollaston MP, who was among the Conservative rebels, told BBC Radio 4's Today her party was "absolutely united on Europe" and Mr Cameron had been given a mandate to push for a "real cut".

"I don't know a single Conservative MP who wanted to see an increase in our contributions by £300m a year, because that's what we mean by a real terms freeze. It's still, in fact, an increase from us."

She said the vote was "about saying to the prime minister 'when you go into those negotiations, the country wants to see Europe get real'". She said she has "full confidence that our prime minister will deliver the very best deal he can".

As the fall-out of the defeat continued, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg - Lib Dem leader - said in a speech on Europe that Labour had been "dishonest" and "hypocritical" in changing its policy on the issue.

Labour criticism

In the speech to the Chatham House international affairs think-tank, Mr Clegg said Labour was well aware there was "absolutely no prospect" of achieving a real-terms cut.

"Their change of heart is dishonest, it's hypocritical. And worst of all, Labour's plan would cost the taxpayer more, not less," he said.

"Because in pushing a completely unrealistic position on the EU budget - one that is miles away from any other country's position - Labour would have absolutely no hope of getting a budget deal agreed."

In his speech Clegg went on to say: "We've been waiting for years for the Labour Party to finally announce how they would cut spending.

"Now they have finally come out in favour of cuts but in a way they know is undeliverable, and in a way that would hurt British taxpayers. And it turns out even their cuts cost money."

He also said that the Tory rebels have "absolutely no hope" of achieving their goal of forcing the EU to cut spending.

Shadow chancellor Ed Balls said there had been cross-party support for the idea of reducing EU expenditure at a time of austerity at home.

"It is not about party politics, it is about the national interest. Parliament has spoken and David Cameron has got to listen and deliver."

16.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Lloyds PPI bill up another £1bn

1 November 2012 Last updated at 05:28 ET

Lloyds Banking Group has set aside a further £1bn to cover compensation for customers who were mis-sold payment protection insurance (PPI).

It brings the bank's PPI bill to £5.275bn so far.

The further provision means Lloyds has been pushed into a loss of £144m for the third quarter of the year.

After Barclays' recent decision to set aside a further £700m for PPI compensation, the banking industry's bill now stands at just over £11bn.

Lloyds described the further PPI provision as a disappointing "legacy issue".

"The volume of complaints received in relation to legacy PPI business during the third quarter declined when compared to the previous quarter," said Lloyds Banking Group's chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio.

"However, it remained above the level which we anticipated at the time of our half-year results and as a result the group believes it is appropriate to increase its provision for expected PPI costs by £1bn.

"This increases the expected cost of contact and redress, including administration expenses, to £5.3bn," he explained.

Continue reading the main story

Ian Pollock Business reporter, BBC News

---

When, in April 2011, the banks lost their High Court challenge to the FSA's rules on PPI mis-selling, the compensation cost was put at £4.5bn.

It has been rising ever since.

Initial estimates by the FSA itself were based on the assumption that just 20% of PPI victims would claim.

It seems that many more people - millions in fact - are now doing so.

In some cases they have been encouraged by claims management firms.

In others cases, the individual payments have been huge.

What the saga shows is just how much profit banks were able to squeeze out of their customers simply by getting them to buy an insurance policy.

The bank warned that the eventual final bill for PPI was still uncertain, suggesting it may rise further.

More complaints

The cost to the banking industry of compensating customers is rising fast, as complaints from aggrieved customers continue to pour in.

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), which handles grievances that banks reject, has now received half a million complaints from disgruntled people who claim they have been unfairly denied any compensation.

PPI was widely sold by banks in the last decade, and the insurance was supposed to make sure that mortgage and credit card borrowers would be able to repay their loans if they fell ill or lost their jobs.

However, it became apparent that many customers had been mis-sold the insurance because they either did not need it in the first place, or would have been automatically excluded from making a valid claim, typically because they were self-employed.

Under instruction from the financial authorities, the industry is now going back through past sales and alerting customers to the possibility that they can now make a claim for compensation - a process which is generating a huge bill for the UK's banks.

MoneyBoomerang, an online claims management company, said banks like Lloyds were still stalling on many legitimate claims.

"Lloyds has made a huge additional provision and yet it is not showing any interest in dealing with the very valid claims it is receiving," said the company's managing director, Craig Lowther.

"We are just about to send roughly 8,000 Lloyds cases to the FOS. We firmly believe these are valid claims and if so they will cost the bank millions."

Improvement

Despite the loss in the third quarter, Lloyds said its underlying financial position was improving.

Although the bank's income has fallen by 14% in the first nine months of the year, this was outstripped by further benefits from cost cutting - which saw 4,796 jobs cut - and a reduction in the amount of money it has had to set aside for losses on past loans that have turned bad.

These provisions in its accounts are down to £4.4bn, from £7.4bn in the first nine months of the previous financial year.

With restrictions on sales commission on financial policies being imposed by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) early in 2013, Lloyds has decided to stop offering independent financial advice to anyone who has less than £100,000 to invest.

"Customers with over £100,000 of investible assets who would benefit from holistic financial planning will be referred to our private banking service," the bank said.

"For customers who hold less than £100,000 in savings and investments we will not offer an investment advice service but will continue to give these customers information and help with savings products on a non-advised basis."

Lloyds is still partly owned by the UK taxpayer following its bail-out at the height of the financial crisis in 2008.

As such, it is still not paying any dividends to its investors.

The bank is still in the process of negotiating the sale of 632 of its branches to the Co-operative Bank.

16.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Shooting at US Halloween party

1 November 2012 Last updated at 05:37 ET

At least four people have been wounded in a shooting incident at a Halloween party at the University of Southern California (USC), in Los Angeles.

Campus news outlet Neon Tommy said the incident took place at 23:30 local time (06:30 GMT). Police confirmed that there were casualties.

At least one suspect has been detained.

A suspect was briefly at large, but the university says the incident is now over and the campus has reopened. No students or staff were involved.

It had shut down the campus and urged students to stay away from the area immediately after the shooting.

Witnesses reported a "mob of people" fleeing from the main campus building.

'Screaming and running'

Neon Tommy contributor Matt Hamilton told the website he was among crowds of people trying to get into the party when he heard at least four shots in quick succession.

He said police came quickly, as there were already patrols on the campus.

"Everyone started running. I saw a guy who was shot in the leg. He was limping and screaming for his friends to help him," an unnamed witness said, quoted by the Los Angeles Times newspaper.

"People were screaming and running away."

USC's Department of Public Safety issued alerts asking students to stay away from the area, stay indoors and avoid opening the door to strangers.

Three people were slightly injured and a fourth received critical wounds to the buttocks and stomach, Neon Tommy said.

In 2008, USC sprinter Bryshon Nellum was shot in the leg three times at a Halloween party just off the campus.

He recovered and won a silver medal in the 4 x 400m relay at the London 2012 Olympics.

The latest shooting comes just months after 12 people were killed and 58 injured in a July shooting at a Batman film screening in Aurora, Colorado.

16.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Spain Halloween party kills three

1 November 2012 Last updated at 05:40 ET

Three women have died in a stampede at a Halloween party in Madrid, Spanish officials say.

They say that two more people were seriously injured at the gathering at the Madrid Arena.

It was not immediately known what caused the crush, but reports suggest the panic began after a flare was thrown in the crowd.

The building, which can house up to 10,000 people, was evacuated after the incident.

Two of the victims were 18 years old, while the third was 25, Spanish police say.

"There was a human crush at the only exit they had because the others were sealed off," a partygoer - who gave her name as Sandra - told Spain's Cadena Ser radio station.

The stampede recalled a mass panic at the Love Parade music festival in Germany that killed 21 people in 2010.

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.

Read the terms and conditions

16.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Disney buys firm behind Star Wars

30 October 2012 Last updated at 20:01 ET

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

George Lucas signs away his Star Wars empire to Disney's Robert Iger

Disney is buying Lucasfilm, the company behind the Star Wars films, from its chairman and founder George Lucas for $4.05bn (£2.5bn).

Mr Lucas said: "It's now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of film-makers."

In a statement announcing the purchase, Disney said it planned to release a new Star Wars film, episode seven, in 2015.

That will be followed by episodes eight and nine and then one new movie every two or three years, the company said.

The last Star Wars film was 2005's Revenge of the Sith, and Disney said it believed there was "substantial pent-up demand".

Disney will pay about half in cash and half in stock, issuing 40 million Disney shares in the transaction.

The deal follows Disney's acquisitions of Pixar studios for $7.4bn in 2006 and Marvel comics for $4.2bn in 2009.

"Our valuation of Lucasfilm is roughly comparable to the value we placed on Marvel when we announced that acquisition in 2009," Disney said, adding that the valuation was almost entirely driven by the Star Wars franchise.

Transition

George Lucas launched Lucasfilm in 1971 and the first Star Wars film was released in 1977.

Continue reading the main story

The news that Disney is going to reboot Star Wars was a lot more exciting to fans than just 'there's gonna be another Star Wars'"

End Quote Josh Dickey Variety magazine

"For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to see Star Wars passed from one generation to the next," Mr Lucas said.

"I've always believed that Star Wars could live beyond me, and I thought it was important to set up the transition during my lifetime."

Mr Lucas will continue as a creative consultant.

Kathleen Kennedy, currently co-chairman of Lucasfilm, will become president of the firm and will be the executive producer on the new Star Wars films.

When the later Star Wars films were released in the 1990s and 2000s, although they did well at the box office, they were generally not well-received by fans.

But Josh Dickey, film editor at Variety magazine in LA, said that Disney was a "great fit" to update Star Wars.

"They're so good at branding and brands. They're so good at working with existing intellectual property and making it resonate with fans and marketing it very well," he told BBC World Service radio.

"They're not as good at creating original content, except for their Pixar division.

"I think if you bring together the minds from Pixar [and] the minds from Disney, the news that Disney is going to reboot Star Wars was a lot more exciting to fans than just 'there's gonna be another Star Wars'."

Surprise

Lucasfilm is also the production company behind the Indiana Jones franchise, and fantasy films Willow and Labyrinth.

Michael Corty, analyst at Morning Star, said Disney's deal was clearly part of a pattern in buying new franchises.

"Pixar was the first big one, then Marvel, and now this one here," he said.

"Because Lucas is private, I would assume most investors would be surprised."

16.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Bananas could be future staple

30 October 2012 Last updated at 20:35 ET By Matt McGrath Science reporter, BBC World Service

Climate change could lead to bananas becoming a critical food source for millions of people, a new report says.

Researchers from the CGIAR agricultural partnership say the fruit might replace potatoes in some developing countries.

Cassava and the little known cowpea plant could play increasingly important roles in agriculture as temperatures rise.

People will have to adapt to new and varied menus as traditional crops struggle say the authors.

Continue reading the main story

When the farmers see the problems they are having with production, they really are willing to shift"

End Quote Bruce Campbell CCAFS

Responding to a request from the United Nations' committee on world food security, a group of experts in the field looked at the projected effects of climate change on 22 of the world's most important agricultural commodities.

Blooming bananas

They predict that the world's three biggest crops in terms of calories provided - maize, rice and wheat - will decrease in many developing countries.

They suggest that the potato, which grows best in cooler climates, could also suffer as temperatures increase and weather becomes more volatile.

The authors argue that these changes "could provide an opening for cultivating certain varieties of bananas" at higher altitudes, even in those places that currently grow potatoes.

Dr Philip Thornton is one of those behind the report. He told BBC News that while bananas also have limiting factors, they may be a good substitute for potatoes in certain locations

"It's not necessarily a silver bullet but there may be places where as temperatures increase, bananas might be one option that small holders could start to look at."

The report describes wheat as the world's most important plant derived protein and calories source.

But according to this research, wheat will face a difficult future in the developing world where higher prices for cotton, maize and soybeans have pushed wheat to marginal land, making it more vulnerable to stresses induced by climate change.

One substitute, especially in South Asia, could be cassava which can tolerate a range of climate stresses.

But how easy will it be to get people to adjust to new crops and new diets?

Bruce Campbell is program director of the climate change, agriculture and food security research group (CCAFS) which co-ordinates work among leading institutions around the world. He told BBC News that the types of changes that will happen in the future have already happened in the past.

"Two decades ago there was almost no rice consumption in certain areas of Africa, now there is. People have changed because of the pricing, it's easier to get, it's easier to cook. I think those sort of shifts do occur and I think they will in future."

Protein under pressure

One of the big concerns among researchers is how to tackle the need for protein in the diet. Soybeans are one of the most common sources but are very susceptible to temperature changes.

The scientists say that the cowpea, which is known in sub-Saharan Africa as the "poor man's meat" is drought tolerant and prefers warmer weather and could be a reasonable alternative to soya. The vines of the cowpea can also be used as a feed for livestock.

In some countries, including Nigeria and Niger, farmers have already moved away from cotton production to growing cowpeas.

There are also likely to be developments animal protein sources says the report including a shift from to smaller livestock.

This is an example of something that's happening already," says Bruce Campbell. "There's been quite a shift from cattle keeping to goat keeping in southern Africa in face of droughts - when the farmers see the problems they are having with production, they really are willing to shift.

"Change is really possible. It's not just a crazy notion."

16.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Cameron faces Tory EU rebellion

31 October 2012 Last updated at 01:28 ET

David Cameron is facing a rebellion in the House of Commons over his policy on the European Union's long-term budget.

The prime minister has told his European counterparts the budget should be frozen in real terms.

But dozens of Tory MPs have signed an amendment backing a cut, and Labour also say it should be reduced.

MPs are due to debate the EU's 2014-2020 budget proposals in what is being seen as a test of Mr Cameron's authority on Europe.

Downing Street said the final budget deal had to be "acceptable" to the UK.

Negotiations over the EU's next long-term budget, called the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), are taking shape amid calls from the UK and other nations for restraint at a time when many countries are pushing through unpopular domestic austerity measures.

'Inappropriate'

The European Commission has proposed a £826bn (1.025 trillion euros) budget ceiling for the period up to 2020, equivalent to 1.03% of EU gross national income (GNI). That is a 5% rise compared with the 2007-2013 budget.

Agreement must be reached by all member states and the European Parliament on a new deal.

Mr Cameron has said any above-inflation increase in the budget would be inappropriate at a time when member nations are having to make tough spending decisions at home.

He has said he would be prepared to veto any unacceptable proposal - budget decisions require the agreement of all 27 member states.

But some Conservative MPs want the UK to go further and demand a reduction in real-terms spending in future negotiations, starting at next month's EU council meeting.

The Tory rebels said they believed 40 to 60 of their colleagues would back the amendment.

MPs who have already signed the rebel amendment include Zac Goldsmith, Bill Cash, John Redwood and Bernard Jenkin.

But, writing for the Conservativehome website, fellow Conservative MP Andrea Leadsom said the amendment was "wrong for Britain" as it did not focus on where money would actually be spent on a year-by-year basis.

"It won't produce the reform that British voters are looking for, and it could ironically result in higher cost to Britain's taxpayers, while damaging our scope for negotiations on the direction of expenditure," she said.

Budget 'increases'

Labour have indicated they could back Conservative rebels on Wednesday and vote for a budget cut, increasing the pressure on the government's Commons majority.

In 2011, the UK's net contribution to the EU budget was 7.25bn euros (£5.85bn; $9.4bn), after the UK's rebate of 3.56bn euros from the EU, according to data from the European Commission.

Spending on agriculture and support for Europe's poorer regions - known as cohesion funds - account for about 80% of total proposed EU spending between 2014 and 2020.

MEPs want spending levels for those major budget items to be at least maintained at the 2007-2013 level but also want "significant increases" in budgets for competitiveness, small business, sustainable infrastructure and research and innovation.

EU leaders will hold a budget summit on 22 and 23 November. If no agreement is reached by the end of next year, the 2013 budget will be rolled into 2014 with a 2% rise to account for inflation.

16.50 | 0 komentar | Read More