UK border staff 'not ready' for Ebola

31 July 2014 Last updated at 04:20

Border, immigration and customs staff feel unprepared to deal with people coming to the UK with possible cases of the Ebola virus, a union leader says.

Immigration Service Union general secretary Lucy Moreton said her members needed more information on the threat.

Almost 700 people have died since the first case was detected in west Africa in February.

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has said the UK government is taking the current outbreak "very seriously".

'No guidance'

Mrs Moreton said: "Members are very concerned. They serve on the front line; they are the first point of contact usually for people coming off an aircraft and the concern is what do they do if they're confronted with someone that doesn't appear well who appears at the border.

"There is no health facility at the border, there is no containment facility, and until extremely recently there has been no guidance issued to staff at all as to what they should do," she said on BBC Radio 4's The World Tonight.

"They are phoning us up and asking 'what are we supposed to do, how do we spot this, how do we protect ourselves?', and we can't answer that for them just now."

Mr Hammond said earlier the UK's health services had the experience to deal with the threat posed by the Ebola virus.

He said ministers had discussed what precautionary measures could be taken if any UK nationals in west Africa became infected.

The threat to Britain came from someone contracting the disease abroad and becoming unwell back in the UK, he added.

"It is not about the disease spreading in the UK because we have frankly different standards of infection control procedures that would make that most unlikely," he said.

Negative test

After chairing a meeting of emergency committee Cobra, Mr Hammond said ministers had discussed what additional measures the UK could take to help control the outbreak.

But the foreign secretary said the disease had not yet "directly" affected the UK.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who was also at the meeting, said the experience of NHS staff meant "the risk of this disease spreading fast in the UK is much lower, because of that expertise".

Several west African airlines have now stopped flying to Liberia and Sierra Leone amid concerns about the spread of the disease to those countries from Guinea.

The move comes after an infected American man of Liberian descent was found to have flown from Liberia to Nigeria last week. He developed symptoms during the flight.

All schools in Liberia have been shut down to try to stop the spread of the disease and some communities have been placed into quarantine.

Earlier this month Public Health England issued an alert to UK doctors to be aware of Ebola symptoms.

Neither the World Health Organization nor the UK Foreign Office are recommending any travel restrictions to Guinea, Liberia or Sierra Leone.

The Department of Health said a man had been tested for Ebola in Birmingham but these proved negative.

Ebola kills up to 90% of those infected but patients have a better chance of survival if they receive early treatment.

The outbreak - the world's deadliest to date - was first reported in Guinea in February. It then spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Ebola virus disease (EVD)

• Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
• Fatality rate can reach 90%
• Incubation period is two to 21 days
• There is no vaccine or cure
• Supportive care such as rehydrating patients who have diarrhoea and vomiting can help recovery
• Fruit bats are considered to be virus' natural host

Do you work in immigration and customs? How prepared is the UK? Do you have family in West Africa who are affected by the outbreak? You can send your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using 'Ebola UK' in the subject line.

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Cadbury manor blaze was arson attack

31 July 2014 Last updated at 07:30

The former home of the Cadbury family in Birmingham has been destroyed in an arson attack, the fire service said.

At its height up to 100 firefighters were tackling the blaze at Northfield Manor House from about 20:00 BST on Wednesday.

Flames and smoke could be seen from the Lickey Hills, about three miles (5km) away. Nobody was injured.

The Grade II listed building, which is owned by the University of Birmingham, has been empty for seven years.

Twenty fire engines, specialist hydraulic platforms and a high-volume water pump were sent to the four-storey brick building.

Chief fire officer Phil Loach said it had taken about an hour to bring under control.

"There are signs of forced entry, the main part of the building has been severely damaged and the flames have spread through the roof," he said.

"The building is in an unsafe condition, there are a number of large chimney stacks which are also unstable."

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New Ofsted chair to be announced

31 July 2014 Last updated at 07:57

The government is set to announce its choice for the new chairman of schools regulator Ofsted, the BBC understands.

Whitehall sources suggest the frontrunner is businessman David Hoare - the current chairman of the mail company DX Group and a trustee of AET, the largest academy group in the UK.

The post became vacant in February when ministers failed to renew then chairman Baroness Sally Morgan's contract.

She said there was a "determined effort" to appoint Tories to the job.

Then Education Secretary Michael Gove's unexpected decision not to extend her three-year contract prompted a coalition row, amid speculation that multimillionaire Tory donor and Carphone Warehouse co-founder, David Ross, would be appointed.

Liberal Democrat schools minister David Laws was also said to be furious about the decision to replace Baroness Morgan.

The Lib Dems suggested Mr Gove had been trying to politicise the post, which his allies denied.

They insisted the selection process was overseen by an independent panel, and Downing Street said appointments were made on merit.

Mr Gove said he wanted a fresh face at the schools watchdog.

Better relations

Baroness Morgan was previously a senior aide to Tony Blair when he was prime minister.

BBC political correspondent Vicki Young says Mr Hoare's appointment would be "far less controversial" than that of former frontrunner Mr Ross.

Mr Hoare has been chairman of a number of companies including Virgin Express, Paragon Group and Laura Ashley.

He is also a trustee of the Teenage Cancer Trust.

His appointment would be an indication that relations between the Conservatives and Lib Dems in the Department for Education have been patched up since Mr Gove was moved in the recent reshuffle, our correspondent adds.

Mr Gove was replaced as education secretary by Nicky Morgan in mid-July.

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'Huge amount' of pier saved in fire

31 July 2014 Last updated at 08:24

Fire crews have saved a "huge amount" of Eastbourne Pier after fire ripped through the Victorian structure leaving only a metal skeleton.

The blaze broke out on Wednesday night behind some wood panelling in the arcade building.

Chief fire officer Des Pritchard said the outgoing tide and low water pressure hampered the crews but their hard work had "paid off".

Fire minister Penny Mordaunt is to visit the scene later.

No-one was injured and the fire is not being treated as suspicious.

Mr Pritchard, of East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service, said "there's a great deal that's still there".

"Pier fires are notoriously difficult to fight because there is one way on and one way off - and the tide can caused additional problems," he said.

"The hard work of our firefighters has paid off in that we have been able to save a section of this iconic landmark but I know for the people of Eastbourne, this will still be devastating."

He thanked everyone who was involved in the operation.

RNLI lifeboat crews helped reach the remaining hot spots during the night. About 20 firefighters are still damping down.

The arcade has been left a shell and a number of small buildings have been badly damaged, a fire service spokesman said.

An investigation into the cause of the blaze is under way.

Eastbourne MP Stephen Lloyd said: "The good news is that we don't have a Brighton or Hastings scenario where the whole pier is destroyed."

Mr Lloyd is due to meet the pier's owners and local councillors later to discuss the blaze and its aftermath.

Ms Mordaunt said she would be visiting Eastbourne "as a priority" to speak to local people and thank firefighters for their efforts.

"It is heart-breaking to see such a wonderful Victorian pier so damaged. Thankfully no-one appears to have been hurt," she said.

Eastbourne Borough Council leader David Tutt said he was hopeful the pier could be repaired, and he understood the fire had been started by an electrical fault.

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Aerial footage of Eastbourne Pier on fire

Pier fires

• The Grand Pier in Weston-super-Mare was damaged by fires in 1930 and 2008
• Hastings Pier was almost destroyed by a fire on 5 October 2010
• West Pier in Brighton burned down in 2003
• The Indian Pavilion on Blackpool's North Pier was destroyed by fire in 1921
• South Parade Pier in Southsea was destroyed by a blaze in 1904
• Another fire in 1974 meant the pier needed rebuilding for a second time

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Nato 'unprepared for Russia threat'

31 July 2014 Last updated at 08:53

Nato is poorly prepared for an attack on a member state from Russia, an influential group of MPs has warned.

The Commons Defence Committee said the recent Ukraine conflict showed "serious deficiencies" in Nato's preparedness to counter threats - and "radical reform" was needed.

The MPs said the risk of a conventional assault remained low - but warned over methods such as cyber-attacks and the use of irregular militias.

Nato said it would study the findings.

The committee called for changes including:

• Establishing a continuous presence of Nato troops and military equipment in "vulnerable" Baltic states, including Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania
• Adding unconventional threats such as irregular militia and cyber-attacks to Nato's Article 5 commitment for all members to come to the aid of a member which is attacked
• "Dramatic" improvements to existing rapid reaction forces.
• Large-scale exercises involving military and political leaders from all Nato states

The MPs also warned Nato "may not have the collective political will to take concerted action to deter attack".

And they said public opinion may not support the use of military force to honour Article 5 commitments in a confrontation with Russia.

"Nato is currently not well-prepared for a Russian threat against a Nato member state," the report said.

"A Russian unconventional attack, using asymmetric tactics - the latest term for this is 'ambiguous warfare' - designed to slip below Nato's response threshold, would be particularly difficult to counter."

'Too complacent'

Tory MP Rory Stewart, who was elected chairman of the committee in May, said: "The risk of attack by Russia on a Nato member state, whilst still small, is significant. We are not convinced that Nato is ready for this threat.

"Nato has been too complacent about the threat from Russia, and it is not well-prepared.

"Even worse, the nature of Russian tactics is changing fast - including cyber-attacks, information warfare, and the backing of irregular 'separatist groups', combining armed civilians with Russian Special Forces operating without insignia," said Mr Stewart, a former soldier and diplomat who has worked in the Balkans, Afghanistan and Iraq.

"We have already seen how these tactics have been deployed by Russia and its proxies in Ukraine to destabilise a Nato partner state, annex part of its territory and paralyse its ability to respond."

The report said that while Nato had not seen Russia as a territorial threat for 20 years, recent events meant it was "forced to do so".

"Events in Ukraine this year, following on from the cyber attack on Estonia in 2007 and the invasion of Georgia by Russia in 2008, are a 'wake-up call' for Nato", it read.

"They have revealed alarming deficiencies in the state of Nato preparedness, which will be tough to fix."

The committee also called on the government to show leadership when it hosts a Nato summit in Wales in September.

The report added: "The UK government should take the lead in ensuring that the Nato summit addresses these threats in the most concrete and systematic fashion."

'Adapt to change'

Mr Stewart said the government should ring-fence defence spending to at least 2% of GDP (the overall size of the UK economy).

Defence Secretary Michael Fallon told BBC Radio 4's Today that the government had committed to spending 2% of GDP on defence "at the moment" and he hoped that would continue when the next government-wide spending review takes place.

He said that the UK was committed to taking part in large scale exercises in Europe.

Nato spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said: "As early as March, the Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen called Russia's military actions in and around Ukraine a wake-up call for the alliance and for the wider international community.

"He has also made clear that Nato must adapt to a changed security environment and that the Wales Summit in September will be an important milestone in that process.

"Nato has already taken measures to reinforce collective defence, especially for our eastern allies, with more planes in the air, more ships at sea, and more exercises on the ground.

"All 28 allies are contributing, and the United Kingdom is playing an important role in policing Baltic airspace and planned exercises in Poland."

The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, which was formed in 1949, is predicated upon a series of collective security guarantees between its members.

The alliance has expanded widely in the past 15 years, admitting states that border Russia and three - Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia - which were once part of the Soviet Union.

'Future threats'

Earlier this week, it emerged that the UK is to send a "full battle group" of 1,350 military personnel to take part in Nato manoeuvres in Poland to support allies in eastern Europe.

It is the UK's largest such commitment to the region since 2008.

Labour said the report underlined Nato's position as the "cornerstone" of UK defence policy and the "sole organisation for collective defence".

"The government must demonstrate UK leadership on the international stage at the upcoming Wales summit," said shadow defence secretary Vernon Coaker.

"Recalibrating Nato as a military and political alliance to deter future threats must be a priority for this government which has failed under David Cameron to think strategically about future UK defence capabilities."

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More than five-a-day 'no effect'

30 July 2014 Last updated at 00:05 By Helen Briggs Health editor, BBC News website

New research backs the five-a-day target for fruit and vegetables, but suggests eating more may have no added benefits.

An analysis of 16 worldwide studies suggested that for every portion of fruit and vegetables consumed, there was a lower risk of premature death.

But after five portions a day, there was no further impact, researchers report in The BMJ.

There have been calls to up the quota to seven-a-day, to prolong lives.

Current NHS guidance is to eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Most people manage about four.

Continue reading the main story

Most people do not eat five portions of fruit and veg a day, so the message for the public is still to eat more fruit and veg"

End Quote Dr Oyinlola Oyebode University College London

The new analysis looked at 16 studies in the US, Asia and Europe involving more than 833,000 people, of whom about 56,000 died during the follow-up period.

Researchers in the US and China found eating more fruit and vegetables was linked with a lower risk of dying from any cause, particularly from cardiovascular disease.

The average risk of death fell by about 5% for every extra serving of fruit and vegetables, up to five servings a day, but not beyond.

"This analysis provides further evidence that a higher consumption of fruit and vegetables is associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality, particularly cardiovascular mortality," said the team, led by Prof Frank Hu, of Harvard School of Public Health, in Boston, US.

"There was a threshold around five servings of fruit and vegetables a day, after which the risk of all cause mortality did not reduce further."

Seven-a-day?

There have been calls to increase the quota of fruit and vegetables beyond five.

A previous study in England found eating seven or more portions of fruit and vegetables a day was healthier than the minimum five currently recommended and could prolong lives.

But lead researcher Dr Oyinlola Oyebode, of University College London, said both studies showed eating more fruit and veg was associated with lower risk of early death.

"This study suggests not much additional effect over five portions, although there was possibly a greater effect in the groups eating five to seven, and seven plus portions in our study," she told the BBC.

"Most people do not eat five portions of fruit and veg a day, so the message for the public is still to eat more fruit and veg."

Five a day facts

• The five-a-day message is based on advice from the World Health Organization

• It highlights the health benefits of eating five 80g (3oz) portions of fruit and vegetables every day

• The five portions should include a variety of fruit and vegetables

• Most fruits and veg count towards five a day

• The government says it can include fresh, frozen, canned, dried or pure juices

• Potatoes and cassava don't count because they mainly contribute starch to the diet

Commenting on the study, Victoria Taylor, senior dietician at the British Heart Foundation, said: "Although our five-a-day message is well established, worryingly 70% of adults are still not meeting this target.

"Just remember that every extra portion you eat towards your five-a-day could help you keep your heart healthy."

Dr Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at Public Health England, said: "The majority of people in England are not eating enough fruit and vegetables with the latest National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS) data from 2008 to 2012 showing that only 30% of adults and 41% of older adults met the five-a-day recommendation.

"Eating a healthy, balanced diet that is high in fruit, vegetables and fibre and low in saturated fat, sugar and salt, alongside being more active, will help you to maintain a healthy weight and lower your risk of developing heart disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers."

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HSBC closes some Muslims' accounts

30 July 2014 Last updated at 05:00 By Dominic Laurie Reporter, Radio 5 live

HSBC bank has written to Finsbury Park Mosque and other Muslim organisations in the UK to tell them that their accounts will be closed.

The reason given in some cases was that to continue providing services would be outside the bank's "risk appetite".

The wife and teenage children of a man who runs a London based Islamic think tank have also been contacted.

HSBC said decisions to close accounts were "absolutely not based on race or religion".

"We do not discuss relationships we may or may not have with a customer, nor confirm whether an individual or business is, or has been a customer.

"Discrimination against customers on grounds of race or religion is immoral, unacceptable and illegal, and HSBC has comprehensive rules and policies in place to ensure race or religion are never factors in banking decisions."

No chance

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

They have put us now in a very, very difficult situation - this is the only account we have"

End Quote Mohammed Kozbar

Finsbury Park Mosque in north London was written to by HSBC on 22 July.

The only reason given for the intention to close its account was that "the provision of banking services… now falls outside of our risk appetite".

In the letter, the bank notifies the treasurer of the mosque that it will close the account on 22 September.

Khalid Oumar, one of the trustees of the mosque, questioned the motives behind the letters.

"The letters that have been sent and the letters that we received do not give any reason why the accounts were closed in the first place," he said.

"That has led us to believe that the only reason this has happened is because of an Islamophobic campaign targeting Muslim charities in the UK."

'Astonishing'

The mosque's chairman Mohammed Kozbar told the BBC: "The bank didn't even contact us beforehand. Didn't give us a chance even to address [their] concerns.

"For us it is astonishing - we are a charity operating in the UK, all our operations are here in the UK and we don't transfer any money out of the UK. All our operations are funded from funds within the UK."

Until 2005, the mosque was run by Abu Hamza, who in May this year was convicted of terrorism offences in the United States.

"The positive work we have done since taking over over from Abu Hamza to change the image of the mosque, there is nothing really that can explain [HSBC's decision]," says Mr Kozbar.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

It is unsettling. I am not used to being addressed in those terms. It's like I have done something wrong"

End Quote Anas Al Tikriti

"They have put us now in a very, very difficult situation - this is the only account we have."

Mr Kozbar says HSBC's decision could have negative repercussions for the bank.

"We are sure that our community will be frustrated, and might consider closing their accounts themselves with HSBC if the bank doesn't reopen our account, or at least give us an explanation."

Jeremy Corbyn, the local MP for Finsbury Park, says he has worked with the mosque ever since it was built.

"Over the past 10 years, it has developed into a superb example of a community mosque supporting local people and providing facilities for all faiths if they need it.

"I am shocked and appalled at the decision of HSBC."

'Unsettling'

Anas Al Tikriti was born in Baghdad but has lived in the UK for several decades. His family has also received letters. He runs the Cordoba Foundation, a think tank on Islamic issues set up in 2005 in order to address, he says, the relationship between Europe and the Middle East.

He, his wife and his sons aged 16 and 12 all received separate letters this week from HSBC informing them that their accounts would be closed in September. This time, no reason was given.

Mr Al Tikriti says he has banked with HSBC since the 1980s and has rarely been overdrawn.

"It is unsettling. I am not used to being addressed in those terms. It's like I have done something wrong. The involvement of my family disturbs me. Why the entire family?"

"I can only speculate - and I wish someone from the bank could explain [why the accounts were closed]. The organisations are mainly charities and the link is that many of them if not all of them are vocal on the issue of Palestine."

"It would be a great shame if that was true. As I'm left to speculate, that's the only reason I can come to."

His think tank, the Cordoba Foundation, which also banks with HSBC, was also told that its account will close, with an almost identical letter to that sent to the Finsbury Park Mosque, and dated the same day.

'Alternative arrangements'

Ummah Welfare trust, based in Bolton, has distributed £70m to projects in 20 countries. It has had a presence in Gaza for 10 years.

In a letter, also dated 22 July, HSBC gave Ummah the same reason for closing its account that it had given to the Finsbury Park Mosque - that "provision of banking services now falls outside our risk appetite".

It then gave the charity two months' notice of its decision to close the trust's accounts.

"You will need to make alternative banking arrangements, as we are not prepared to open another account for you," the letter continues.

Mohammed Ahmad, who runs Ummah, says it is a dream customer for a bank and always in credit.

He asked HSBC in a meeting why the accounts were closing, but says the bank's representative gave them no answer.

Mr Ahmad says that they "have always tried to work within a legal framework and accommodate banks, if, for example, there was an issue with sanctions".

Mr Ahmad says he thinks HSBC has made its decision because of its work in Gaza, where he says Ummah provides "ambulances, food aid, medical aid, and grants."

"We make sure we go out of the way to work with organisations that are non-partisan. What we do now is we do a check on Thomson Reuters and make sure that there is no link whatsoever with blacklisted organisations. We don't want to damage our relief efforts. We have tried our best to be non-partisan as much as possible."

A government official the BBC spoke to said they did not believe this was the result of government action but reflected a decision the bank had taken itself based on its own risk analysis.

In December 2012, HSBC had to pay US authorities $1.9bn (£1.2bn) in a settlement over money laundering, the largest paid in such a case. It was alleged to have helped launder money belonging to drug cartels and states under US sanctions.

In August last year, it was reported that HSBC asked more than 40 embassies, consulates and High Commissions in the UK to close their accounts. At the time, the bank said "HSBC has been applying a rolling programme of "five filter" assessments to all its businesses since May 2011, and our services for embassies are no exception."

The Charities Commission has confirmed that it is not investigating any of the organisations involved and says that if the charities don't have a relationship with a bank it could harm public trust in their work.

Have you received a letter from HSBC to say your account has been closed? Send your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using 'HSBC' as the subject.

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UK to allow driverless cars on roads

30 July 2014 Last updated at 06:35

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The BBC's Rory Cellan-Jones takes a ride in a driverless car

The UK government is to outline measures to permit driverless cars to use public roads by next year.

Currently, autonomous vehicles are only allowed on private roads.

The Department for Transport had previously pledged to allow self-driving cars to be trialled on public roads by the end of 2013.

In December, the Treasury said it would create a £10m prize to fund a town or city to become a testing ground for the cars.

The government wants to signal that Britain can be a leader in such technology, and Business Secretary Vince Cable will announce measures to boost research later.

In his National Infrastructure Plan of 2013, Chancellor George Osborne outlined his goal to ensure "that the legislative and regulatory framework demonstrates to the world's car companies that the UK is the right place to develop and test driverless cars".

UK engineers, including a group at the University of Oxford, have been experimenting with driverless cars. But, concerns about legal and insurance issues have so far restricted the cars to private roads.

Automotive engineering firm MIRA has tested its vehicles at an 850-acre site in the Midlands.

However, other countries have been swifter to allow autonomous cars on their public roads.

The US States of California, Nevada and Florida have all paved the way for the vehicles. In California alone, Google's driverless car has done more than 300,000 miles on the open road.

In 2013, Nissan carried out Japan's first public road test of an autonomous vehicle on a highway.

And the Swedish city of Gothenburg is to allow 1,000 Volvo driverless cars to take to the road by 2017.

In May, Google unveiled plans to manufacture 100 self-driving vehicles.

The search-giant exhibited a prototype which has no steering wheel or pedals - just a stop-go button.

Google has also put its autonomous driving technology in cars built by other companies, including Toyota, Audi and Lexus.

Other major manufacturers, including BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan and General Motors, are developing their own models.

And automated parking is among the innovations being introduced.

But concerns about the safety of driverless cars have been raised by politicians in the US and elsewhere.

Earlier this month, the FBI warned that driverless cars could be used as lethal weapons, predicting that the vehicles "will have a high impact on transforming what both law enforcement and its adversaries can operationally do with a car".

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Bank to unveil bonus clawback plan

30 July 2014 Last updated at 08:21

The Bank of England is due to unveil a plan which may see rule-breaking bankers return bonuses up to seven years after being awarded them, the BBC understands.

Losses, poor risk management or other bad behaviour could trigger clawbacks.

Even if bonuses paid in shares have been cashed and spent, the move could mean money paid to bankers breaking the rules can still be demanded back.

BBC correspondent Simon Jack said the rules were among the world's toughest.

The move comes days after Lloyds Banking Group was fined £218m.

The company was condemned for "serious misconduct" over some key interest rates set in London.

'Reprehensible'

Lloyds manipulated the London interbank offered rate (Libor) for yen and sterling and tried to rig the rate for yen, sterling and the US dollar, said the US legal order.

It also manipulated submissions for another short-term rate linked to the value of UK government debt.

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney called such misconduct "reprehensible".

Many bankers receive a substantial chunk of their pay in the form of an annual bonus which can be up to double their basic salary.

Under current rules that bonus is usually deferred for a period of three to five years during which time it can be clawed back if appropriate.

But misconduct such as rigging interest rates or reckless risk taking can take longer to emerge so under the new policy bonuses may be clawed back up to seven years later.

There will also be new proposals that could see negligent bankers sent to jail.

BBC business correspondent Simon Jack says that although not as punitive as first proposed, the measures amount to some of the toughest rules in the banking world.

The British Bankers' Association maintains the rules will put UK banks at a disadvantage to their foreign competitors and could see top bankers and the tax they contribute go elsewhere, he adds.

'Conduct issues'

Commenting on the plans, Antony Jenkins, chief executive of Barclays, said: "I believe that banks have to regulate themselves and that's why culture is so important, so that banks do the right business in the right way.

"I would say that in principle I support the idea that where there is wrong doing, there should be appropriate punishment.

"If that's criminal wrongdoing it should be criminal, if it's recklessness that should be punished also, so I'm not against the concept of claw back, " he continued.

The Bank of England warned in March that bankers may have to return their bonuses up to six years after receiving them.

Speaking earlier in the year, Mark Carney, the governor of the Bank of England, told the BBC's Andrew Marr bank bonuses should be deferred for a "very long time" to ensure bad practice is not rewarded.

He said the structure of compensation should change to allow banks to take back bonuses if senior staff are found to have taken "risks that were not fully understood" and if there are "conduct issues".

He said new rules already in place would prevent banks from paying increased bonuses if their capital levels fall below a certain level.

In February, the Bank of England set out tougher proposals for non-EU banks to try to prevent a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis.

Non-EU banks wanting to take deposits would have to set up subsidiaries in the UK and face stricter rules, it said.

These would then be directly regulated by the UK's Prudential Regulatory Authority (PRA).

Do you work in finance? If so, what are your thoughts on the move? You can send us your views and experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject line "bank bonuses".

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Ebola virus 'threatens' UK - Hammond

30 July 2014 Last updated at 09:14

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UK Foreign Secretary: "Ebola is something we need to respond to."

The Ebola virus, which has killed more than 670 people in West Africa, is a "threat" to the UK, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has told the BBC.

He said he would chair an emergency Cobra meeting on the issue later.

Mr Hammond said no Britons had been affected so far and there were no cases in the UK, but the government was viewing the outbreak very seriously.

Public Health England has issued a national alert to UK doctors amid fears the virus could spread.

Last week an infected Liberian man was found to have travelled through a major Nigerian airport.

Several West African airlines have now stopped flying to Liberia and Sierra Leone over concerns about the outbreak.

At the scene

Tulip Mazumdar, Gueckadou, Guinea

This is the final resting place of the latest victim of Ebola: a four-month-old baby boy called Faya.

He caught the virus from his mother, who died a few weeks earlier. His is the 20th anonymous grave in this dark and lonely clearing.

"I was there with him just before he died," says Adele Millimouno, a Medicines Sans Frontieres (MSF) nurse recruited from a nearby village.

"I had been feeding him milk. I stepped away, just for a short break, but then I was called back and he was dead. I was totally devastated."

'Managing risk'

Mr Hammond told BBC News the government was "absolutely focused" on tackling the threat posed by the Ebola virus, including looking at "whether there are precautions we need to take - either in the UK or to protect our nationals in the area abroad".

He went on: "At the moment we don't think any British nationals [abroad] are affected and we are fairly confident there are no cases in the UK.

"But it is a threat, it is something we need to respond to and we will be doing so through the Cobra mechanism."

Earlier, the government's chief scientific adviser Sir Mark Walport told the Daily Telegraph Ebola was a threat because of how "interconnected" the world was now.

Sir Mark said: "The most dangerous infections of humans have always been those which have emerged from other species. They are a potential major threat to us.

"Emerging infectious disease is a global grand challenge. We were lucky with Sars. But we have to do the best horizon scanning.

"We have to think about risk and managing risk appropriately."

Spreading virus

Elsewhere, Dr Brian McCloskey, director of global health at Public Health England, said the outbreak was "clearly not yet under control" in West Africa.

"The risk to UK travellers and people working in [affected countries] of contracting Ebola is very low but we have alerted UK medical practitioners about the situation in West Africa and requested they remain vigilant for unexplained illness in those who have visited the affected area.

"It is important to stress that no cases of imported Ebola have ever been reported in the UK and the risk of a traveller going to West Africa and contracting Ebola remains very low since Ebola is transmitted by direct contact with the blood or bodily fluids of an infected person."

BBC global health correspondent Tulip Mazumdar said the West African outbreak had been ongoing for four months.

In that time local people have been looking after the sick and carrying out burials which can actually help to spread the virus, she added.

Ebola kills up to 90% of those infected, but patients have a better chance of survival if they receive early treatment.

The outbreak - the world's deadliest to date - was first reported in Guinea in February. It then spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Ebola virus disease (EVD)

• Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
• Fatality rate can reach 90%
• Incubation period is two to 21 days
• There is no vaccine or cure
• Supportive care such as rehydrating patients who have diarrhoea and vomiting can help recovery
• Fruit bats are considered to be virus' natural host

Are you affected by the issues raised in this story? Are you in West Africa or do you have family there? You can send your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using 'ebola' in the subject.

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Police placing ads on piracy sites

29 July 2014 Last updated at 00:04 By Dave Lee Technology reporter, BBC News

The City of London police has started placing banner advertisements on websites believed to be offering pirated content illegally.

The messages, which will appear instead of paid-for ads, will ask users to close their web browsers.

The move comes as part of a continuing effort to stop piracy sites from earning money through advertising.

Police said the ads would make it harder for piracy site owners to make their pages look authentic.

"When adverts from well known brands appear on illegal websites, they lend them a look of legitimacy and inadvertently fool consumers into thinking the site is authentic," said Detective Chief Inspector Andy Fyfe from the City of London Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (Pipcu).

"This new initiative is another step forward for the unit in tackling IP crime and disrupting criminal profits.

"Copyright infringing websites are making huge sums of money though advert placement, therefore disrupting advertising on these sites is crucial and this is why it is an integral part of Operation Creative."

Sunblock

The initiative will make use of technology provided by Project Sunblock - a firm used by major brands to stop adverts appearing alongside questionable content such as pirated material or pornography.

Continue reading the main story

Without proper oversight perfectly legal sites may end up losing good advertising opportunities if they are wrongfully included"

End Quote Ernesto Van Der Sar Torrentfreak

Many websites - including those offering pirated content - will use syndication networks to place advertisements on their pages.

Brands use the syndication networks like a wholesaler, and so may not be clear what sites their advert will eventually appear on.

Project Sunblock detects the content of websites to prevent brands' ads appearing where they do not want them.

When a website on Pipcu's Infringing Websites List (IWL) tries to display an advert, Project Sunblock will instead serve the police warning.

Neither the police or Project Sunblock are paying the website in question to display the police message.

Piracy battle

In the past, some have raised concerns about Pipcu's process in adding a website to the IWL.

Ernesto Van Der Sar is the editor of Torrentfreak, a news site that covers issues around online piracy. When Pipcu announced its intentions in March this year, Mr Van Der Sar said he worried about the implications.

"As with all blocklists there is a serious risk of overblocking," he said.

"Without proper oversight, perfectly legal sites may end up losing good advertising opportunities if they are wrongfully included."

The battle against online piracy has seen content creators attempt many different strategies in order to stem the flow of illegal downloading.

In the UK, the courts have ordered internet service providers to block almost 50 different websites offering pirated content, either by direct download or through peer-to-peer sharing.

While effective in lowering the traffic of these sites, filtering is a flawed prevention method - many internet users are adept in using different technologies to circumvent the court-imposed restrictions.

This latest attempt looks to hit the owners of these websites in a more painful way - by stopping advertising revenues from coming in.

Follow Dave Lee on Twitter @DaveLeeBBC

Have you received one of these messages? Do you think such adverts will stop piracy of material? You can email your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk, using the subject line 'Piracy adverts'.

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Band 'didn't believe' Watkins abuse

By Sinead Garvan Newsbeat music reporter

29 July 2014 Last updated at 05:22

New band No Devotion

The former members of Lostprophets have talked about their shock and disgust after finding out that singer Ian Watkins was a paedophile.

The 36-year-old was jailed in December for 29 years for a string of child sex offences.

Bassist Stuart Richardson said: "Even though I was completely done with him, I hoped it was all a mistake, he was innocent, he had to be.

"The first time, we knew the band was done. You can't go back from that."

In an exclusive interview with Newsbeat, the five remaining members - Lee Gaze, Mike Lewis, Stuart Richardson, Jamie Oliver and Luke Johnson - say they are trying to move forward with their new band, No Devotion.

How could you know? How would you know?

Lee Gaze on accusations the rest of the band members knew about Ian Watkins behaviour

The band are sat in a north London pub, the afternoon before they play the third show on a run of four gigs.

Gaze, Richardson and Lewis say they are aware that before this band can truly begin, they have to confront the past.

They say the shock of hearing the news last year about their former frontman is still difficult to put into words.

"When 15 years of your life is washed down the toilet in that one moment, it's harsh to take in," says Lewis, the band's rhythm guitarist.

Fellow guitarist Gaze adds: "There was two sets of it [shock] because there were the accusations - which was one thing.

"And then there was the actual, 'Yeah I did do it' which was a year later. He dragged that out for a year, so we got hit by it twice."

Lostprophets are pictured with Ian Watkins crouching at the front

Once Ian Watkins was arrested, some people asked how the other band members couldn't have known something was going on.

"How could you know? How would you know?" Gaze says in disbelief.

"Who would disclose such a thing to five people, who between them have eight children? You just wouldn't because they would be killed on the spot."

He was doing his own thing. That just grew worse over the years, the more he was using drugs. He could be in the same city as me and I wouldn't hang out with him, even if we weren't playing shows

Lee Gaze

Richardson adds: "I kind of expected it.

"People are angry, they needed somewhere to look and there's the target, there we are."

Gaze says he is angry that people could think that about them though.

"We weren't hiding under rocks, we were still out there," he says.

"It wasn't like, 'That's happened, let's run away.' It was like, 'We are sticking together,' which I think is such a bold statement."

The remaining band members reveal how before Ian Watkins committed his crimes, he was becoming increasingly distant from the band.

"He was doing his own thing," says Gaze. "That just grew worse over the years, the more he was using drugs.

"He could be in the same city as me and I wouldn't hang out with him, even if we weren't playing shows."

All three say it wasn't a rock 'n' roll atmosphere backstage at their gigs and they certainly didn't live in each other's pockets.

"I think a lot of people think you are in a band together, back of a van, you're doing everything together, there are all these wild after show parties," Lewis tells Newsbeat.

"That's such a cliche."

Ian Watkins is serving 35 years in jail after pleading guilty to 13 sexual offences in 2013

Gaze breaks in: "That is such a naive way to look at things.

"Some of the best bands in rock 'n' roll history have the most fractured structure and they keep on going and they are so broken as a band."

Half way through the interview it is becoming clear, they haven't used Ian Watkins name, referring to him as the "old singer."

They also can't seem to bring themselves to say Lostprophets, instead saying "the old band" or "the last band."

The final time they saw Watkins was at the band's last gig at Newport Centre on 14 November 2012, except for Lee Gaze.

He recalls: "We shot a video for what was to be our last single for the record, which was probably nine days before he got arrested."

He says Watkins was "strangely positive and enthusiastic about everything".

"[He was] talking about the next record and how it's going to do really well and get back on our feet."

The rest of the band argue they would never have recorded another Lostprophets album, even if none of this had happened.

Gaze adds: "It goes to show how deluded he was.

"He is just completely on a different level to everybody, happy and positive and convinced we are going to be successful again."

No Devotion's singer, Geoff Rickly, performs at Soundwave 2012 in Sydney

Once they decided to form their new band, No Devotion, they say they knew it was a bold decision and might not be met positively.

To start with they needed a new frontman and knew some singers might feel they were tainted.

"Our attitude was that we were so dead set on doing a band that if no-one will do it, we will do it ourselves," says Gaze.

I believe now that's the past, let's forget about that, that band happened, that band is in the past. It's time to move on and we just want to focus on that from here on in

Mike Lewis

They recruited Geoff Rickly, former frontman of Thursday, who they say has vocally taken their tracks to "another level".

They are in the middle of recording their debut album and are already getting support from the music industry and fans.

No Devotion played their first gig in Cardiff last week and admit they were a bit apprehensive.

"We just wanted people to love the songs as much as we did and to know that it was accepted and it wasn't just a pity party," says Richardson.

"We wanted people to know we were a band and not just these guys who went through something bad."

The three say there were plenty of moments when they thought they could never play again.

Lewis explains: "It was vindication almost that we were there and we are doing this and we do have an incredible support from people."

For him, getting back on the road and returning to the music industry has been "incredibly cathartic".

"I believe now that's the past, let's forget about that, that band happened, that band is in the past.

"It's time to move on and we just want to focus on that from here on in."

Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter and Radio1Newsbeat on YouTube

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Migrant benefits to be tightened

29 July 2014 Last updated at 08:40

The UK is to cut the amount of time EU migrants without realistic job prospects can claim benefits for from six to three months.

David Cameron said the "magnetic pull" of UK benefits needed addressing to attract people for the right reasons.

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, he said immigration should "put Britain first".

But Labour has called for more action on the issue, and criticised government efforts to tackle immigration as a "failure" so far.

Mr Cameron will set out his plans on a visit to see immigration officers at work later on Tuesday.

In his Telegraph article he said controlling immigration was vital to the government's plans.

He said the last Labour government presided over a "no-questions-asked" welfare system that "drew migrants to the country for the wrong reasons".

'Something for nothing'

He cited other measures recently coming into force to tackle abuses - such as new powers revoking the driving licences of those not entitled to be in the country - as evidence that the government was building "an immigration system that puts Britain first".

"We are making sure that people come for the right reasons - which has meant addressing the magnetic pull of Britain's benefits system," he said.

"We change the rules so that no-one can come to this country and expect to get out-of-work benefits immediately - they must wait at least three months.

"And we are announcing today that we are cutting the time people can claim these benefits for. It used to be that European jobseekers could claim JSA or child benefit for a maximum of six months before their benefits would be cut off, unless they had very clear job prospects.

"We will be reducing that cut-off point to three months, saying very clearly you cannot expect to come to Britain and get something for nothing."

The government has been steadily tightening the criteria for which EU migrants are eligible to claim benefits after coming under political pressure.

In January, it announced that EU migrants would not be able to claim out-of-work benefits until three months after arriving in the UK and would only be eligible for jobseeker's allowance for six months unless they have genuine prospects of finding work.

Mr Cameron will announce that this time limit - which also applies to child tax credit and child benefit - will be halved to three months from November.

He has said his party's target of reducing net migration to below 100,000 by the time of the next election, from its current level of more than 200,000, is still achievable.

Analysis, By Robin Brant

With his scars still healing after UKIP's big win in May's European elections David Cameron is trying, again, to tackle those two most contentious issues - immigration and welfare.

It's the latest in a series of measures aimed at making the UK less attractive to foreigners who don't want to work. It's not clear though how many will be affected. A report last year claimed 600,000 out-of-work migrants were here.

The EU said the number claiming Jobseekers Allowance was far lower, at around 60,000. The measure could save money but this is about trying to show voters that the government, and the Tories in particular, are addressing that most vexatious of issues that has helped swell Nigel Farage's support.

Labour says the reality is the government is nowhere near achieving its target of getting net migration down from the hundreds of thousands to the tens of thousands.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said the government had failed to take "firm action" to address the issue.

"Behind the rhetoric the true picture of this government on immigration is one of failure, with net migration going up, despite David Cameron's promise to get it down to the tens of thousands," she said.

"The government should get a grip and finally implement Labour's proposals to stop the undercutting of wages and jobs for local workers by the exploitation of low-skilled migrant labour, including banning recruitment agencies that only hire foreign workers and pressing for stronger controls in Europe."

Latest analysis by the Migration Advisory Committee, which advises ministers, suggested the impact of low-skilled immigration on GDP, productivity and prices since 1997 has been "very modest" and there had been virtually no effect on the overall employment rate of UK-born workers.

But it concluded that low-skilled migration had had a "small" negative impact on the wages of low-paid British workers while there had been knock-on effects on the availability of housing and school places in areas of the country with disproportionately high level of incomers.

What is your reaction to this policy? Are you an EU migrant? If so, what do you think about this change? You can send us your views and experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject line "migrant benefits".

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PM to meet families of MH17 victims

29 July 2014 Last updated at 09:01

David Cameron is set to meet the families of British victims of the downed Malaysia Airlines MH17 plane in London later.

He will express his condolences to the families and discuss the international response to the crash on 17 July.

Pro-Russian rebels in Ukraine have been blamed for the crash, which killed all 298 passengers - including 10 Britons.

EU ambassadors are due to discuss new economic sanctions against Russia in Brussels later.

Western nations have said there was growing evidence the plane had been hit by a Russian-supplied missile fired by rebels in eastern Ukraine.

Russia has denied supplying heavy weapons to the rebels, with both the Kremlin and the rebels blaming Ukrainian government forces for the crash.

'Get them back'

A Ukrainian official this week said the "black box" flight recorders from the plane had showed it had crashed because of a massive, explosive loss of pressure when it was hit by a rocket.

The data and voice recorders were last week sent to the UK for analysis by aviation experts.

Ahead of his visit to Downing Street, Barry Sweeney - whose son, Liam, died on flight MH17 - told BBC Radio 5 live he would ask Mr Cameron to help repatriate the bodies of the victims.

"I'll say to Mr Cameron...just help, just get them all back," he said.

EU ambassadors are expected to agree far-reaching economic sanctions against Moscow, targeting Russia's defence, energy and financial sectors.

Any new sanctions against Russia could come into force within 24 hours of a deal being reached between the EU's 28 member states.

Mr Cameron said he and his French, German and Italian counterparts had agreed on the need for further action against Moscow in a conference call with US President Barack Obama on Monday.

A No 10 spokesman said Moscow had failed to take the necessary steps to de-escalate the conflict in Ukraine.

"Indeed the latest information from the region suggests that even since MH17 was shot down, Russia continues to transfer weapons across the border and to provide practical support to the separatists," a Downing Street spokeswoman said.

'Serious measures'

No 10 said the five leaders had agreed that the international community "should therefore impose further costs on Russia and specifically that ambassadors from across the EU should agree a strong package of sectoral sanctions as swiftly as possible".

Former Conservative foreign secretary, Sir Malcolm Rifkind, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the West had adopted a "symbolic response" to perceived Russian aggression until now.

He said he had been waiting "for some months" for the international community to impose "serious measures" against President Putin.

"When you get to the situation of preventing them having access to financial markets, preventing high quality technology technology exports to their energy industry, that goes to the very heart of the Russian economy," he said.

The BBC News Channel's chief political correspondent Norman Smith said discussions were focusing on restricting the access of Russian banks to finance from the City of London and also a ban on future defence and high-tech energy exports from the EU to Russia.

It comes after it was announced the UK will send 1,350 military personnel to Poland for exercises to support Nato allies in Eastern Europe and the Baltic states.

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Diesels 'face £10 pollution charge'

29 July 2014 Last updated at 09:30

Plans to charge drivers of diesel cars £10 to drive into central London are being considered, it has been reported.

The levy would be on top of the current £10 congestion charge for driving into the centre of the capital.

The Times also says London Mayor Boris Johnson wants the new Ultra Low Emission Zone to be introduced by 2020.

The paper says the mayor will lobby the government to increase road tax on diesel cars to encourage motorists to move to cleaner vehicles.

Only diesel vehicles meeting the Euro 6 emissions standard will be exempt, while petrol cars registered before 2006 will also have to pay.

The mayor's environment adviser, Matthew Pencharz, told the newspaper: "We want to see an unwinding of incentives that have driven people to diesel.

"Euro engine standards on emissions have not delivered the savings expected, meaning we now have a legacy of a generation of dirty diesels."

'Significant' health issue

RAC Foundation director Professor Stephen Glaister said: "This isn't quite a mis-selling scandal, but for years ministers took their eye off the ball and encouraged drivers to buy diesels to help fight climate change.

That has come at a cost: local air pollution. Today 10 million cars in Britain are powered by diesel engines - a third of the total.

"Part of the problem is regulation. In laboratory conditions diesel cars have met strict test criteria.

"Unfortunately that performance hasn't been matched on the road and now we have a significant health issue because of the dash for diesel."

The initiatives are being considered to help meet European regulations on clean air and avoid the threat of heavy fines for breaching them.

28,000 deaths

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said that unless action was taken, London, Birmingham and Leeds would face dangerous levels of pollution from vehicle exhausts by 2030.

Government figures showed long-term exposure to air pollution contributed to more than 28,000 deaths across the UK in 2010.

And in February, it was reported that pollution near Buckingham Palace is the worst in the UK and almost four times the EU legal limit.

Jenny Jones, from the Green Party on the London Assembly, told BBC London 94.9: "I back Boris on this but he is making a lot of promises that a future mayor will have to implement.

"He should show some political bravery and bring the Ultra Low Emission Zone forward - what is he waiting for?"

The mayor is expected to outline his plans later.

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Passport workers go on strike

28 July 2014 Last updated at 09:05

Thousands of passport workers have gone on strike in a dispute over staff numbers and pay.

The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) said the action was a "bid to end staffing shortages that have caused the ongoing backlog crisis".

Home Office figures suggest about 360,000 passport applications are currently being processed - but it is not clear how many are overdue.

The Home Office warned the PCS action could jeopardise people's holidays.

The 24-hour strike will continue until midnight.

BBC News correspondent Richard Lister said the Passport Office had "struggled to cope with an unprecedented number of applications" this year.

"With the summer holiday season now well under way the agency is still under enormous pressure to keep up with demand," he said.

In June the Home Office redeployed hundreds of staff to deal with a growing backlog of applications, amid reports of people waiting up to two months for passports that are meant to be processed within three weeks.

'Sticking plasters'

The government has said the number of full-time equivalent staff at the Passport Office fell from 3,700 at the end of 2010 to 3,164 two years later, but then rose to 3,333 by the end of 2013.

The Home Office estimates that around 170,000 passports are processed per week.

PCS said the office had "cut hundreds of staff since 2010" and only agreed to "seriously discuss jobs after recent media and political scrutiny".

It said there had been talks in recent weeks but senior Passport Office staff were "still failing to commit to work with the union to agree a long-term solution to understaffing, instead of the sticking plasters they are currently applying".

PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: "We are still a long way off getting a commitment from the agency that it will work with us to put the proper resources in place to ensure these backlogs do not reoccur year after year."

The union is also in dispute with the government over pay, claiming Passport Office workers can be paid up to £3,000 less than people doing "similar work" in other parts of the Home Office.

"The agency appears to have accepted the argument over pay but would still have to put a business case to the Treasury for funds," PCS said.

The "threat of more privatisation" is also part of the dispute, the union added.

The spokeswoman said service counters will remain open today.

Meanwhile, the Home Office said holding a strike at this stage was "irresponsible" and would inconvenience passport applicants and "jeopardise their holidays".

"We strongly urge PCS to reconsider this action which is not in the interests of staff or the general public they are dedicated to serving," a spokeswoman said.

Backlog 'falling'

"HM Passport Office staff know how important it is to hard-working people and their families to receive their passports in time for their summer holidays. They have shown this through their hard work and commitment during this exceptional period of high demand."

Appearing before a committee of MPs earlier this month, Passport Office chief executive Paul Pugh said 170,000 passports were being issued each week, and he expected that to rise to about 180,000 a week "over the summer".

Speaking on 8 July, he said the number of passports classed as "work in progress" had totalled 508,000 the previous week, but that the number was falling.

On Sunday the Home Office said the latest figure was 360,000, but it did not say how many had taken longer than the standard three weeks.

It said the backlog was falling, but the PCS strike could put holidays at risk for people who were waiting for passports.

It added that customer service counters would remain open at passport offices.

Are you waiting for a passport to be issued? Are you concerned about your passport application? Send us your comments. You can email us at haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject line 'passport strike'.

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RAC urges parking funds transparency

28 July 2014 Last updated at 00:05

Councils should show where they are spending revenues from parking charges, according to the RAC motoring group.

Four people in five surveyed by the motoring group said parking charges had increased in towns and cities.

But two thirds of 1,525 people surveyed thought there had been a reduction in available parking near the centre of their town or city, the research found.

The Local Government Association said the report did not reflect "the reality of parking in our communities".

But RAC technical director David Bizley said: "We need transparency. Councils should be compelled to report where the money raised from parking goes - giving drivers assurance that it is being ploughed back into road and transport improvements, rather than just plugging budget holes elsewhere."

Too small

Of the drivers surveyed, 41% "were suspicious about what parking fees are used for", he said.

The poll also found that 65% of motorists reported that even when they finally found a parking space, it was too small for today's breed of cars - many of which are wider than previous generations of vehicle because of the addition of side-impact protection features.

A spokesman for the Local Government Association, said: "This report is not a true reflection of the reality of parking in our communities."

"Councils remain on the side of hard-pressed motorists by keeping a lid on parking charges which are only set to rise with inflation this year.

"On-street parking revenue is spent on paying for parking services. Any surplus is spent on essential transport projects, such as tackling the £12bn roads repair backlog and creating new parking spaces."

Many councils already published annual parking reports, he added.

Communities minister Penny Mordaunt said: "Excessive parking charges and unfair parking fines push up the cost of living and undermine local high streets and shopping parades."

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Government 'turns back' on victims

28 July 2014 Last updated at 05:47

Ministers are "turning their backs" on victims of domestic violence, Labour's Yvette Cooper will say later.

The shadow home secretary will point to "deeply worrying" data suggesting more frequent use of "community resolutions" to handle domestic violence cases.

Ms Cooper will repeat Labour's promise to ban the use of the resolutions - which can include apologies or compensation - for domestic violence.

The Home Office said using these for serious crimes was "not acceptable".

Data compiled by Labour from 15 police forces showed there were 3,305 uses of community resolutions for domestic violence in 2013 - up from 1,337 in 2009.

Community resolutions are used by police to resolve low-level or minor offences through "informal agreement between the parties involved", instead of through the court system.

They are aimed at first-time offenders and can be used where there has been an admission of guilt and after the victim's views have been taken into account.

Advice from the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) suggests the method is suitable for crimes such as criminal damage, minor theft and anti-social behaviour.

'Harder to escape'

In a speech in Birmingham to mark Labour's summer campaign, Ms Cooper will say community resolutions can be "very effective", but will say they should not "be used for violent offences, and especially not for domestic violence".

She will accuse the government, saying it "just doesn't take violence against women seriously".

"Domestic violence is an incredibly serious crime. Two women a week are killed by their partner or an ex and 750,000 children will grow up witnessing domestic violence.

"For the police to simply take a violent abuser home to apologise risks making domestic violence worse and makes it even harder for victims to escape a cycle of abuse," she will say.

"That is why Labour is committed to banning their use for domestic and sexual violence."

'Full weight of the law'

A Home Office spokeswoman said a review had already been conducted into the inappropriate use of community resolutions.

She also said every police force in England and Wales had been written to by Home Secretary Theresa May instructing them to produce a domestic violence action plan.

"It is not acceptable for the police to use out-of-court settlements for serious criminality and that is why the government is already reviewing how they are used," the spokeswoman said.

The Home Office is yet to respond to a consultation on the use of out-of-court disposals, which ended in January.

Sandra Horley, chief executive of national domestic violence charity Refuge, said the figures on community resolutions were "deeply disturbing".

"These types of remedies may be effective for some crimes - but domestic violence is not one of them," she said.

"When women make the extraordinarily brave step of reporting their partners to the police, they must feel confident that they have the full weight of the law behind them."

Hilary Fisher, of the charity Women's Aid, said: "Women tend not to call and ask for help until they've experienced violence for over five times, sometimes up to 30 times."

She said weak punishments would not deter these serial perpetrators who would think "if the police don't take it seriously why should I?"

Have you been a victim of domestic violence? Send us your comments. You can email us at haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject line 'Domestic violence.'

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Bidding starts for fracking licences

28 July 2014 Last updated at 08:36

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

The BBC's David Shukman explains how fracking works

The bidding process for licences to extract shale gas - using the controversial process fracking - will begin later on Monday.

About half the UK is open to exploration, but tightened rules cover areas of outstanding beauty.

Companies granted a licence to begin test drilling will also need planning permission and environmental permits.

The coalition sees shale gas as a major potential energy source. Critics of fracking warn of environmental dangers.

In announcing the so-called 14th onshore licensing round, Business and Energy Minister Matthew Hancock said: "Unlocking shale gas in Britain has the potential to provide us with greater energy security, jobs and growth."

"We must act carefully, minimising risks, to explore how much of our large resource can be recovered to give the UK a new home-grown source of energy."

It is the first time in six years firms have had the opportunity to secure new licences.

Drill down

Robert Gatliff, Science Editor at the British Geological Survey told the BBC it would still be some time before full scale drilling would start.

"The first stage, you'd review all the data you've got. Then you'd want to drill one or two exploration holes and then take samples of the shale and see exactly what the content is and see which have got the most in and which bits are likely to fracture best to get the most oil out."

He said that although surveys suggest there is between 820 and 2000 trillion cubic feet of gas embedded under the UK, "there's no way we'd get all that out".

"If you look at what happens in the US, and that's where you've got to look because that's where they've drilled thousands of holes, they're not getting more than 5%."

"In Britain we're so crowded and we've got these beautiful areas, that reduces the amount we can get out as well."

Demonstrations

About half the UK is open for licensing, including parts of National Parks. But applications there will only be accepted in "exceptional circumstances and in the public interest", said the government. The same rules apply for the Broads, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and World Heritage Sites.

"Proposals for such development must recognise the importance of these sites," Communities Minister Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon said.

The licences are likely to prove controversial, as there is a great deal of public opposition to fracking, which involves blasting water, chemicals and sand at high pressure into shale rock formations to release the gas held inside.

Angry demonstrations took place in the West Sussex town of Balcombe last summer as more than 1,000 people protested at a test site operated by energy company Cuadrilla.

Test drilling has also taken place in Lancashire.

Critics of fracking argue that it can lead to earth tremors, water contamination and disruption to rural communities. There are also concerns about methane leakage and diverting resources away from renewable energy.

The industry itself rejects these criticisms, arguing that, if regulated properly, fracking is a safe way to unlock huge resources of gas, which is a cleaner source of energy than coal.

Access rights

The government is keen to promote fracking in the UK, and has already announced a number of incentives to help kick-start the industry, including tax breaks, payments of £100,000 per site plus a 1% share of revenue to local communities.

It argues that shale gas could be an important bridge to help secure energy supplies until renewable energy capacity is increased.

Others argue that while it may be cleaner than coal, it is still a hydrocarbon that emits CO2 linked to global warming.

In the US, shale gas has seen energy costs tumble, but questions remain about whether the American shale revolution can be replicated in the UK and elsewhere.

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Rain, hail and lightning cause chaos

28 July 2014 Last updated at 09:28

Lightning strikes, hail, torrential rain and flash flooding have caused major travel problems across Sussex.

Flooding has caused problems on both the A270 Old Shoreham Road at Portslade and also on Church Road in Hove which is reported to be closed.

Buses have been suspended in Portslade, Southwick and Mile Oak.

Electrical supply problems caused by a lightning strike have also led to disruption on Southern railways, with services subject to delays.

Services between Brighton, Hove and Shoreham-by-Sea are affected, but replacement buses are currently unable to operate in the area due to the high volume of water on the roads.

The lightning hit an electricity sub-station, causing power to the coastal rail route to be cut, although the main line to London was running normally, according to a Network Rail spokeswoman.

Local residents said the storm started at 05.30 BST, leading to torrential rain.

Writing on Twitter Laurence Hill wrote: "Used to be roads. Now rivers of hail. Never seen anything like it."

Brighton and Hove Police posted: "Localised flooding in Hove and Portslade, some roads not passable. Please do not enter flood water on foot or in cars."

PC Andy Huggett, of Sussex Police, said: "Heavy rain after a long warm spell invariably leads to slippery roads and drivers need to immediately adjust to the new conditions.

"Along with the surface conditions, there are the added hazards of very heavy rain, flash flooding and poor visibility and it is essential that drivers make allowances."

He added that drivers who encounter flooding should "slow down and don't go into the water unless you are absolutely sure that it is not too deep for your vehicle and that includes 4x4s".

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Substance find prompts evacuation

26 July 2014 Last updated at 22:46

More than 200 residents have been evacuated from homes in south Derbyshire after the discovery of what police called a "potentially volatile substance" in a flat.

Derbyshire Constabulary said people living within 100m of Belvoir Crescent in Newhall had been moved to temporary accommodation.

Supt Paul Markham said the substance was discovered at a flat during a search of the premises.

A 55-year-old man has been arrested.

Mr Markham said: "We are not looking for anyone else in connection with this matter and we are hoping that people will not be inconvenienced for too long.

"The evacuation is purely a precaution to ensure everybody's safety and residents will be allowed back home as soon as possible."

Do you live in the area? Have you been evacuated? Send us your comments. You can email us at haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject line Newhall'.

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'Biggest weekend in Glasgow history'

27 July 2014 Last updated at 01:11

Glasgow is preparing for the second part of what is being described as the biggest spectator weekend in its history as it prepares to welcome the Commonwealth Games marathon.

Organisers say 350,000 tickets tickets for this weekend - not including free events like the marathon - were sold.

Glasgow 2014 chief executive David Grevemberg said: "It will be one of the busiest weekends in its history.

"Just tomorrow, we have well over 180,000 tickets out there."

About 280,000 people were expected in the city on Saturday as events took place at eight different venues, as well as the Barry Buddon Shooting Centre in Carnoustie.

Mr Grevemberg predicted that Sunday could be even busier on marathon day.

"It is going to be absolutely huge," he said. "In the streets and with all the Festival 2014 activity at Glasgow Green and Kelvingrove Park and marathon, it is going to be absolutely buzzing."

There were reports of delays on Saturday at the park and ride facility at Eurocentral, one of the sites being used by thousands of spectators, with people venting their anger on social media as they were waiting for special buses.

Mr Grevemberg, though, said that the overwhelming response from the public was positive but warned the public to be especially aware of travel disruption resulting from the marathon being run in the south side of the city.

"What we've said all along is plan, plan, plan," he said. "Listen to all the public broadcasting and all the messages about transportation and arrive at venues early to get through the security checks."

Mr Grevemberg stressed that the public should check the various information lines and websites for details of how routes will be changed to cater for the marathon.

"Between early morning and mid-afternoon, people really need to pay attention to the marathon route and where that may impact their travel," he said.

Day four highlights at the Games

• Marathon: Glasgow's marathon route involves two laps through Merchant City, George Square and Buchanan Street as well as Bellahouston and Pollok Park, crossing the River Clyde four times.
• Athletics, Hampden Park: It is day one of the athletics, with gold medals in the men's 5,000m, without injury absentee Mo Farah, and women's para-sport long jump to be won, while the 100m heats begin.
• Rugby Sevens, Ibrox Stadium: England, Scotland and Wales are in the quarter-finals, with the semi-finals and final to follow.
• Swimming: Finals will be held in men's 100m free, 50m back and 4x200m free relay, women's 200m back, 50m fly, 200m medley and para-sport 100m SB9 breaststroke.
• Cycling: Medals will be given after the finals of the men's keirin and scratch race, women's sprint, points race and para-sport 1,000m time trial B tandem.
• Lawn bowls, Kelvingrove: Gold will be decided in women's singles and fours.
• Table tennis: The women's team event will be concluded.
• Weightlifting: Women's 63kg and men's 77kg medals will be decided.
• Shooting, Carnoustie: Medals will be decided in men's and women's double trap events.

Are you taking part in the celebrations this weekend? Email us at haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk adding 'Commonwealth Games celebrations' in the subject heading and including your contact details.

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Strip Russia of World Cup - Clegg

27 July 2014 Last updated at 02:08

Russia should lose the right to host the 2018 World Cup as part of tougher sanctions following the plane crash in eastern Ukraine, Nick Clegg has said.

The UK deputy prime minister told the Sunday Times it was "unthinkable" that Russia should host the football event.

Pro-Russian separatist rebels have been accused of shooting down the Malaysia Airlines jet. Russia has suggested it could have been the Ukraine military.

World football governing body Fifa has rejected calls to change the 2018 host.

Responding this week after some German politicians called for Russia to be boycotted, Fifa said the 2018 tournament could be a "force for good".

Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was on its way from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it crashed in eastern Ukraine on 17 July, killing all 298 people on board.

Western nations have accused Russia of arming rebels who allegedly shot down the plane, which Moscow denies.

On Friday the EU extended its sanctions list targeting Russians linked to the separatist uprising, taking the number of individuals and entities subject to asset freezes and travel bans past 100.

World status

Mr Clegg said a package of measures was needed to put pressure on Russia, but the threat of withdrawing the World Cup would be "a very potent political and symbolic sanction".

"If there's one thing that Vladimir Putin cares about, as far as I can see, it's his sense of status," he said.

"Maybe reminding him that you can't retain the same status in the world if you ignore the rest of the world, maybe that will have some effect on his thinking."

Mr Clegg said world leaders would look "so weak and so insincere" if the World Cup was allowed to go ahead in Russia without a change of course from President Putin.

"Vladimir Putin himself has to understand that he can't have his cake and eat it," the Liberal Democrat leader said.

'Ugly aggression'

"He can't constantly... push the patience of the international community beyond breaking point, destabilise a neighbouring country, protect these armed separatists in the east of Ukraine and still have the privilege and honour of receiving all the accolades in 2018 for being the host nation of the World Cup."

He added: "You can't have this - the beautiful game marred by the ugly aggression of Russia on the Russian-Ukrainian border."

Mr Clegg also said Russia should not host a Grand Prix in October, but Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone has said it will go ahead as planned.

Mr Clegg did not rule out the UK as a potential alternative host for 2018 - saying the country had the required stadiums, infrastructure and "enthusiasm".

But he said his call was not a "British land grab to snatch the World Cup from under Vladimir Putin's nose".

BBC political correspondent Ross Hawkins said there was "no indication yet that the prime minister will echo Mr Clegg's call".

But the comments were "another example of increasingly strident diplomatic language, as Britain demands the Russian government use its influence to secure unfettered access for investigators to the wreckage of flight MH17", our correspondent said.

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