Terror arrest release 'risked lives'

5 March 2015 Last updated at 07:55 By Clare Fallon BBC North West Tonight

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UK police who caught Naseer say the decision not to prosecute potentially endangered the public, but the CPS says there was not enough admissible evidence, as Clare Fallon reports

A former detective who investigated a plot to blow up a Manchester shopping centre said lives were put at risk by a failure to prosecute in the UK.

Retired Det Ch Insp Allan Donoghue said the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) was wrong not to charge Abid Naseer with planning a terrorist attack.

Naseer, 28, was found guilty by a US court on Wednesday of being part of a trans-Atlantic al-Qaeda conspiracy.

The CPS said that evidence was admissible but was "very limited".

Naseer had been arrested in Manchester in 2009 during a series of raids by counter terrorism police as part of Operation Pathway.

But the CPS decided not to charge the Pakistani national and, after an attempt to deport him failed, he was allowed back on to the streets.

Later he was issued with a control order and was taken back into custody while the US authorities began extradition proceedings.

Mr Donoghue, the deputy commander of Operation Pathway, said: "The whole command team believed that there was sufficient evidence."

He said the decision not to prosecute had potentially endangered the public, adding: "He [Naseer] was a threat. He was a risk. He had the potential to kill people."

Sir Peter Fahy, chief constable of Greater Manchester Police, said he agreed that Naseer should have been prosecuted in the UK.

"We put evidence in front of the Crown Prosecution Service and that was their decision," he said.

"Because we were a bit unsure about what was going to happen, we had to intervene early to disrupt the plot, but that obviously meant we didn't have all the evidence we might have had later in the investigation.

"It was a really difficult situation. I had to be driven at the time by the need to protect the people of Greater Manchester."

Other serving and former police officers who worked on the investigation, but who have asked not to be named, have also claimed the CPS decision was flawed.

A CPS spokesman defended the decision not to charge Naseer, whose trial at the District Federal Court in Brooklyn heard evidence linking him with declassified documents recovered by the US military during the 2011 raid on Osama bin Laden's compound.

The spokesman said: "The evidence in our possession in relation to Abid Naseer which would have been admissible in a criminal court was very limited.

"Crucially, there was no evidence of training, research or the purchasing of explosives. We had no evidence of an agreement between Abid Naseer and others which would have supported a charge of conspiracy in this country.

"Any decision by the CPS does not imply any finding concerning guilt or criminal conduct; the CPS makes decisions only according to the test set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors and it is applied in all decisions on whether or not to prosecute.

"The evidence used by the US authorities to extradite a suspect does not need to meet the same tests as set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors," the spokesman said.

Naseer was tried in New York accused of leading an al-Qaeda cell in Manchester.

US prosecutors argued he was also part of a wider conspiracy to carry out bombings in Denmark and America in an attempt to repeat the devastation of the 9/11 attacks.

During the trial undercover MI5 agents gave evidence wearing wigs and make-up to conceal their identities.

One of the spies told the jury he followed Naseer onto a coach from Manchester to Liverpool and observed him watching a video of the Word Trade Centre attacks on his mobile phone.

Defending himself, Naseer insisted he had not been radicalized and that coded emails to al-Qaeda were innocent messages discussing his attempts to find a wife.

He now faces life in a US prison.

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Becky murder suspect due in court

5 March 2015 Last updated at 05:57

The stepbrother of the missing Bristol teenager Becky Watts is to appear in court later charged with her murder.

Nathan Matthews, 28, of Cotton Mill Lane, Bristol will appear at the city's magistrates' court.

His girlfriend Shauna Hoare, 21, also known as Shauna Phillips, is charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice and is also due in court.

Four other men and a woman, all in their 20s, are still being questioned on suspicion of assisting an offender.

On Wednesday morning, magistrates granted police a further 24 hours to question two men aged 29, two aged 23 and a woman aged 23, who had been arrested earlier in the week.

The charged couple, who share the same Cotton Mill Lane address, were arrested at the weekend.

Becky was last seen on 19 February and was reported missing the following day.

On Tuesday, police found body parts at a house in Barton Hill, Bristol.

Floral tributes have been left near that property and outside Becky's home in the St George area of the city.

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Three-child benefit limit considered

5 March 2015 Last updated at 02:44

The Conservatives are considering limiting child benefit to three children, BBC Newsnight has learned.

The Treasury is "softening" to the idea and is examining the details, Newsnight political editor Allegra Stratton said.

It would save an estimated £300m a year - but Tory MP Dominic Raab said it was not purely about cost but could "send a message about personal responsibility".

Labour MP Dame Anne Begg said people did not have children for child benefit and asked "why pick on" large families.

Child benefit can be claimed by anyone responsible for a child under 16, or under 20 if the young person is in education or training - though since 2013 there have been restrictions for families where one parent earns more than £50,000 a year.

It currently pays £20.50 a week for a first or only child, then £13.55 for other children.

Not 'that far'

James Browne, of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said the move would save about £300m a year.

But - with only children born after the rule change expected to be affected - he said it would "obviously take you about 18 years before you get that level of saving".

He said this meant the policy would not get the government "that far" towards its planned welfare spending cut of £12bn in the next parliament.

Mr Raab said the plan was "only under consideration" but the government would be "remiss" if it did not consider reforming child benefit, which he said accounted for about 10% of welfare spending.

"There is a much broader point than just the financial bean counting," he said.

"It's the kind of welfare system we want - do we want a social safety net or are we saying that welfare is somehow a lifestyle choice?

"And I think we do want the welfare system to send a message about personal responsibility, and yes that includes parents saving and taking some responsibility for the size of their family, making sure it's according to their means."

Dame Anne said: "I don't think you have a child because you're going to get an extra... £13.55 a week."

She added: "Only one in seven families have three or more children - it's a small number - so why pick on them?"

Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith previously proposed a two-child limit, but Chancellor George Osborne is understood to have rejected the idea for being too punitive.

Office for National Statistics figures suggest there were 7.5 million families in the UK in 2013, with an average of 1.7 children, and more than 320,000 families had four or more children.

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Cameron: I'll only do one TV debate

5 March 2015 Last updated at 07:52

David Cameron has said he will take part in only one televised debate ahead of the general election, featuring seven party leaders.

The announcement rules out a head-to-head clash with Labour leader Ed Miliband ahead of the 7 May poll.

Downing Street said it was a "final offer" and criticised the "chaos" of the negotiating process.

Other parties criticised the PM, accusing him of "acting like a chicken" and trying to "bully" broadcasters.

BBC assistant political editor Norman Smith said: "Downing Street believes it is the fault of broadcasters, who they accuse of coming forward with proposals without consultation, to a timetable that was never going to be acceptable, and of failing to get the parties to get together for meaningful negotiations."

The broadcasters said they would respond to the Conservatives' proposal in due course.

'Held to ransom'

Under Mr Cameron's proposal, one 90-minute contest would take place before 30 March, when the official general election campaign is likely to start.

Downing Street said the Democratic Unionist Party should also be considered for inclusion.

It follows fierce debate over how the debates should be organised.

On Twitter, Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg told Mr Cameron people wanted the debates to go ahead and added: "Stop holding them to ransom by trying to dictate the terms."

Broadcasters have proposed a total of three debates.

The BBC and ITV were to hold two, both involving the Conservatives, Labour, Liberal Democrats, UKIP, Plaid Cymru, the SNP and the Greens.

A third debate - hosted by Sky and Channel 4 - would feature a head-to-head between Mr Cameron and Mr Miliband.

'Running away'

Labour's Douglas Alexander said his party still supported the broadcasters' plan and said Mr Cameron was "scared" of a debate with Mr Miliband.

"This is an outrageous attempt from the prime minister to bully the broadcasters into dropping their proposals for a head-to-head debate between David Cameron and Ed Miliband," he said.

A Liberal Democrat spokesman said it was "not right for one party to dictate their terms" over the debates.

"The Tories clearly do not want to discuss and debate the merits of their manifesto with the British public," he said.

"David Cameron and the Conservatives should stop thinking they can hold these debates to ransom."

A UKIP spokesman said: "After praising what a good thing debates were for democracy as recently as 2014, why is David Cameron now acting chicken and running as far away from them as possible?"

Broadcasters 'committed'

Sky and Channel 4 then offered to move the event to a different date if the leaders could agree.

In a joint statement, broadcasters said: "The BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Sky have received an email from the prime minister's office with a proposal.

"The broadcasters are committed to providing our audiences with election debates.

"Twenty two million people watched the debates in 2010 and we believe the debates helped people to engage with the election.

"The broadcasters have set out their proposals and continue to talk to all the relevant parties on an equitable basis.

"We will respond to the Conservatives' proposal in due course."

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Police search ex-Tory MP's home

5 March 2015 Last updated at 08:03

The home of former Conservative MP Harvey Proctor has been searched by police investigating historical allegations of child abuse.

The BBC understands police arrived at the 68-year-old's house on the estate of Belvoir Castle, in Leicestershire, on Wednesday.

The Metropolitan Police said officers from Operation Midland were searching an address in Grantham.

Mr Proctor has not made any statement.

Operation Midland is examining claims boys were abused by a group of powerful men from politics, the military and law enforcement agencies at locations across southern England and in London in the 1970s and 1980s.

It is also examining claims that three boys were murdered.

Mr Proctor became an MP in 1979, representing Basildon in Essex for four years. He subsequently represented Billericay until 1987.

Belvoir Castle is a 16,000 acre site of farmland and woodland.

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Becky murder suspects still quizzed

4 March 2015 Last updated at 06:54

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Becky's parents have said they are "devastated" at the discovery, as Fiona Lamdin reports

Police have until this afternoon to question two people suspected of murdering missing teenager Becky Watts.

A man, 28, and a woman, 21, are being held on suspicion of murdering the 16-year-old. Four other men and a woman, all in their 20s, were arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.

On Tuesday, police found body parts at a house in the Barton Hill area of Bristol.

Becky was last seen at her home in St George, Bristol, on 19 February.

Det Supt Mike Courtiour, of Avon and Somerset Police, said officers went to a house at Barton Court in the Barton Hill area of the city after receiving new information on Monday night.

He said the latest five arrests - two men aged 29, two aged 23 and a woman aged 23 - were made as a result of the find. All seven arrested people remain in police custody.

Becky's mother Tania, grandmother Pat and brother Daniel Watts released a joint statement following the discovery.

"We are devastated to be told of this latest development," it read.

"We are at an utter loss to understand why anyone would want to hurt our beautiful Becky in such a brutal way."

Father Darren Galsworthy and step-mother Anjie added in a separate statement that the news about their "dear daughter" was "too much to bear".

St Ambrose Church near the family home is to be opened from 10:30 to 21:00 on Wednesday and Thursday for people to light candles in her memory.

A book of condolence has also been placed there.

Timeline of Becky's disappearance

• Friday 20 February - Becky is reported missing at 16:00 after her family says she was last seen at her home the previous morning
• Tuesday 24 February - Her father Darren Galsworthy and grandmother Pat Watts appeal for Becky to get in touch. Meanwhile, the nearby nature reserve at Troopers Hill is searched
• Wednesday 25 February - Becky's home in Crown Hill, St George, is searched
• Friday 27 February - Search continues as police divers scour a lake in St George
• Saturday 28 February - Two people are arrested in connection with Becky's disappearance
• Monday 2 March - A 28-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman held since Saturday are further arrested on suspicion of the kidnap and murder of Becky
• Tuesday 3 March - Police announce they have discovered body parts at a home in Barton Court and arrest a further five people on suspicion of assisting an offender

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UK government sells Eurostar stake

4 March 2015 Last updated at 00:07

The UK government has announced that it is selling its 40% stake in the cross-Channel train operator Eurostar to an Anglo-Canadian consortium for £757.1m.

Under the deal, Patina Rail LLP will acquire the UK Treasury's entire share of the high-speed rail service.

The French and Belgian national railways continue to own the rest.

The intention to sell was first set out in 2013, in the government's Autumn Statement and National Infrastructure Plan.

Chancellor George Osborne said the stake had fetched "far more than people expected we'd be able to sell it for".

He added: "This is a very good deal - it means we can cut the national debt, it means we can invest in our national infrastructure and it's fantastic value for British taxpayers. It's all part of our long-term plan to secure Britain's future."

The consortium is made up of two companies: Canadian-based Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec (CDPQ) and the UK's Hermes Infrastructure. When the deal goes through, they will own 30% and 10% of Eurostar respectively.

Eurostar began service in 1994 as a partnership between three railway companies: France's SNCF, Belgium's SNCB and British Rail (subsequently LCR).

Since then, Eurostar has carried more than 150 million passengers, and more than 10 million in 2013 alone. Numbers have risen every year for the past 10.

In September 2010, it became a single, unified corporate entity owned by three shareholders: SNCF, SNCB and LCR.

In June 2014, the UK government's holding was transferred from LCR to the Treasury.

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Royal hoax station committed crime

4 March 2015 Last updated at 02:11

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Mel Greig tells Newsnight's Evan Davis: ''The trolling and the death threats were disgusting''

Australia's High Court has upheld a ruling that a radio station broke the law by airing a hoax call to a hospital which was treating the Duchess of Cambridge for morning sickness.

DJs Mel Greig and Michael Christian made international headlines in 2012 when a nurse who fell for their prank later killed herself.

The High Court overturned a previous decision which cleared 2Day FM.

The station could now be fined or see its licence suspended or revoked.

2Day FM said Wednesday's decision "means that there is a serious defect in Australian broadcasting law".

Suspension possible

The High Court ruling upheld an earlier finding by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) that the station broke the law by not obtaining consent to air the call from either of the hospital staff featured.

Ms Greig and Mr Christian called King Edward VII's Hospital in London on December 2012 pretending to be the Queen and Prince Phillip.

Nurse Jacintha Saldana, 46, answered the call and transferred it to a colleague, who gave details of the duchess's condition. Following widespread media coverage Mrs Saldanha was found hanged three days later.

ACMA had ruled in November 2013, nearly a year after the prank took place, that the radio station had broken the law by broadcasting the call.

But the station successfully sued the ACMA in the Federal Court, arguing that the media watchdog did not have the authority to decide whether a criminal offence had been committed and overturned its decision.

Wednesday's High Court ruling reverses that Federal Court decision, finding that the ACMA does have that power. The authority can now decide whether to issue a penalty to the station of a fine or suspension of licence.

In February 2013, the UK's Crown Prosecution Service said there was no evidence to support a charge of manslaughter against the two DJs.

At an inquest into Mrs Saldana's death, Coroner Fiona Wilcox concluded that the hoax call had been "clearly pressing on her mind" but that she had had "appropriate" support from the hospital.

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Man held over teen cyclist murder

4 March 2015 Last updated at 07:40

A man has been arrested on suspicion of the murder of a 15-year-old who was fatally stabbed while riding a bicycle with his friends.

The 18-year-old is being held in connection with the killing Alan Cartwright, on Friday.

CCTV footage of the moment Alan was stabbed in Islington, north London, was released by police on Tuesday.

His family had appealed for witnesses to come forward after he died in what was described as a "senseless" attack.

The suspect was arrested in the early hours after he went to a north London police station.

'I feel angry'

The video footage shows Alan and his two friends being attacked and pushed off their bikes by three youths.

He managed to cycle away but collapsed on nearby Caledonian Road and was pronounced dead at the scene.

His mother Michelle Watson said the footage looks like he got punched, yet two minutes later he collapsed and died.

The 39-year-old added: "I feel angry, I want somebody found for this. I just feel numb."

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A youth stepped out in front of Alan and stabbed him while he was on his bike

Det Ch Insp Chris Jones said: "The footage of the suspects attacking Alan and his friends is truly shocking.

"Alan stood no chance of defending himself against his attacker who casually stepped out in front of him and stabbed him in the chest.

"Identifying and arresting the suspects is our absolute priority."

After Alan's two friends were pushed off, the suspects - initially described as men in the hours after the killing - rode off on their bicycles.

A post-mortem examination confirmed the cause of Alan's death as a single stab wound to the chest.

Det Ch Insp Jones added: "I would like to re-appeal to anyone who may know something about Alan's murder and the robbery of the bikes.

"Where are the two bicycles that were taken? Someone may have noticed a new bike brought home or perhaps you have been offered a similar bike for sale?

"If so, I would urge you to contact the police."

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Incomes 'back to pre-crisis level'

4 March 2015 Last updated at 08:04

Average household incomes are back to pre-crisis levels, but still more than 2% below their 2009-10 peak, according to research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).

The think tank also found that incomes for working age people were still below their 2007-08 level, after adjusting for the impact of inflation.

Only over-60s will have higher incomes this year than 2007-08, it said.

Living standards have risen more slowly than in previous recessions, it found.

The IFS said this was mainly a result of weak growth in earnings for those in work, but it said tax increases and benefit cuts, as part of the government's actions to reduce the deficit, had also had a negative impact on average incomes.

"The young have done much worse than the old, those on higher incomes somewhat worse than those on lower incomes, and those with children better than those without," said IFS research economist and report author Andrew Hood.

Analysis by Robert Peston, BBC Economics editor:

The IFS is careful not to pin most of the blame for stagnating living standards on either the coalition government or on the preceding Labour one.

It says that the prime culprit is the UK's hard-to-explain woeful productivity performance - lacklustre rises in the output of workers - which has meant that significant wage rises have been unaffordable.

What will be galling to both Labour and Tories is that the IFS also faces two ways on the contentious question of whether inequality of income has worsened since the Crash.

It says that if you assume that inflation is the same for all households, then income inequality is lower in 2014-15 then in 2007-08 - largely because of those steep rises in benefit payments in 2008 and 2009 that I mentioned earlier.

But in practice, it says, inflation between 2007 and 2010 was more pernicious for the poor than the rich, because of steep rises in food and energy prices which gobble up a disproportionately large portion of the incomes of the poorest.

So adjusting for this differential impact of inflation, income inequality barely changed in this period, the IFS argues.

Read Robert Peston in full here

The IFS analysis is based on figures from both the Labour Force Survey, the huge continuous survey that the Office for National Statistics uses to measure unemployment, and from the government's independent forecaster, the Office for Budget Responsibility.

It has then projected the data forward to be able to make more up-to-date forecasts.

Other findings of the analysis are that:

• Median household income in 2014-15 is now back to the same level as it was in 2007-08, but is still more than 2% below its 2009-10 peak
• Median household income grew by just 1.8% between 2011-12 and 2014-15
• Median income for those aged between 22 to 30 is 7.6% lower in 2014-15 than in 2007-08, while for those aged 31 to 59 it is 2.5% lower, but for those over 60 it is 1.8% higher.

The IFS said changes to spending patterns also suggested that people think their income prospects have been permanently affected by the recession, with consumption of non-durable goods, such as food and fuel, still significantly lower than at the same point in previous recessions.

"The key reason living standards have recovered so slowly has been weak earnings growth. In the long run, policies that boost productivity, and so increase real earnings, are likely to have a bigger impact on living standards than changes in tax and benefit rates," Robert Joyce, an IFS senior research economist, added.

A Treasury spokeswoman said the IFS analysis showed that average household incomes "are now restored to around their pre-crisis levels and are expected to grow well above inflation this year".

She added: "At this rate of progress, real terms median household incomes would be higher in 2015-16 than they were in 2010-11."

Has your average pay increased since the beginning of the economic crisis? You can email your story to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.

Have your say

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