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Onlookers said the men were prisoners but this has yet to be confirmed. Fire engines are at the scene but Mid and West Wales Fire Service would not give any details of an incident. South Wales Police said it is not involved. Bob Griffiths, from Bridgend, who saw the men on the roof, said: "They are shouting at each other and the other prisoners are shouting from the cells." He said there were initially three men on the roof but one had come down.

Two men have been spotted on the roof of Swansea Prison.

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It is the first time that a non-premium brand has come first in the annual study by consultancy J.D. Power. The survey of more than 80,000 car buyers found that Kia had the fewest problems in the first 90 days, followed by Porsche, Hyundai, Toyota and BMW. Worst performers were Daimler's Smart, Fiat, Volvo, Land Rover and Mini. In the ranking of 33 cars brands, 21 saw an improvement over the past year. The study also showed that for only the second time in the past 30 years, US brands received better marks collectively than foreign cars. J.D. Power said that in past years, electronic features such as Bluetooth, voice recognition and touch screens had often been prone to glitches dragging down the results and that this year carmakers had managed to improve their reliability. Together with its affiliate Hyundai Motor, Kia is the world's fifth largest automaker by sales.

South Korean car maker Kia has come top in a closely watched US car quality ranking, edging out the luxury brands that usually claim the crown.

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Dozens of others remain in critical condition after the fire, apparently caused by fireworks set off by a heavy metal band. Officials say it is possible the number of fatalities could double. The news came as thousands marched silently through the Romanian capital in memory of the victims. People carried flowers and lit candles at a memorial outside the nightclub. Romanian President Klaus Iohannis has said safety regulations seem to have been ignored at the club. The fire broke out at about 23:00 local time (21:00 GMT) on Friday at the Colectiv club, which was hosting a free rock concert by the band Goodbye to Gravity. Up to 400 people are thought to have been inside. Survivors say the fireworks caused the ceiling and a pillar to catch fire and produce heavy smoke. A stampede for the exit followed. More than 140 people are being treated in hospital, some with severe burns. On Sunday officials said all of the dead had been identified. Romania has declared three days of national mourning.

Two more people have died of injuries sustained in Friday's Bucharest nightclub fire, doctors say, raising the death toll in the disaster to 29.

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Operation Stack is the name given to a queuing system where lorries waiting to cross the Channel park on closed sections of the M20. Last week, it reached unprecedented levels when Stack was extended to phase four for the first time in its history - residents nearby reported "absolute bedlam". Queues of 4,600 lorries stretched back 30 miles, the daily cost to the UK economy was estimated at £250m, and emergency teams handed out more than 18,000 bottles of water to truckers stranded during a heatwave. It followed strike action in France by MyFerryLink workers who closed the Port of Calais. And Stack was again brought in days later after about 150 migrants tried to storm the Channel Tunnel in a bid to board UK-bound freight trains. But problems are not only caused by strikes and migrants - Stack is also a regular occurrence during winter months when storms and high winds hit the Channel and disrupt sailings. For years, there have been calls to find an alternative solution, amid complaints about the impact of traffic disruption on Kent's businesses and residents - from commuters and traders to parents on the school run. So how do you solve a problem like Operation Stack? Firstly, not everyone believes Stack is a problem. Pat Fleming, from Galway City, west Ireland, a driver who waited for 26 hours to cross the Channel, said it was part of his job and just "one of those things". He said Operation Stack worked as long as it was properly policed and added: "It's not a big issue. It doesn't happen that often. The last time was during bad weather in February." Alan Overton, from Grimsby, who waited on the M20 for 33 hours to cross to France said he believed there was no way of preventing Stack, unless operations were completely moved from Dover to a "super ferry port" that could hold 6,000 vehicles and was built away from towns. Both drivers agreed facilities provided during Stack could be better. Out of the two, only Mr Overton ran out of supplies and needed the fruit and water handed out by emergency teams - but both drivers said the toilet facilities - portaloos put up at intervals along the closed motorway - were "absolutely disgusting". Matt Clarke, manager at Castledene Transport which has a fleet of lorries in Aylesford, said his fleet was left unable to access the M20, and the firm needed to use the motorway 24 hours a day. He said the media focus on the Calais strikes meant no-one noticed Kent was "shut for days". Stack hit the headlines last week because of the French strikes and migrant activity, but Kent dealt with the problem more often than anyone thought, he added. Calling for a lorry park to "take the sting out of Stack", he asked asked how hard it was to "build a field and put some concrete on it". Suggestions on how to cope with cross-Channel disruption have come from hauliers, ferry operators, politicians and residents. Ferry operator P&O called on the British and French authorities to keep Calais open. And in the case of the migrants, the UK and France agreed to increase funds to improve security at the port and tunnel. The UK's Road Haulage Association called for the military to be deployed to break up the French strike. Chief executive Richard Burnett said the "time for talking" had passed. And Dan Cook, operations director of Europa Worldwide Group, a transport, distribution and logistics firm, said the fundamental problem was there was no sign of active policing in Calais. Dover MP Charlie Elphicke said the problems underlined the need to consider expanding the port at Dunkirk, 45 miles from Calais. Meanwhile, Kent residents in Hollingbourne village, close by the M20, said people should have the right to sue French strikers in European courts for delays, inconveniences and wasted goods. Resident Chris Childs reported seeing 40 lorries drive through the village in 15 minutes to avoid the queues. He also said the journey time from Tonbridge to Hollingbourne - normally a 35-minute drive of 22 miles - increased to nearly two hours. Helen Whately, MP for Faversham and mid-Kent, described the impact on her constituents as "incredibly inconvenient". She said: "People taking their children to school have long delays, and people getting to work - commuters - it's a nightmare. And it really seriously affects businesses." Calling for alternatives to Stack, she added: "We know there are going to be more strikes likely during the summer and ongoing." She said short-term solutions needed to include better communications about delays to haulage companies so drivers could potentially postpone their journeys, and she said pressure must be placed on the French government to ensure as many routes as possible were kept running. But she also backed plans for lorry parks to be provided. Plans have already been put forward for a 3,300-space lorry park - although the size of the scheme has been criticised with calls for a smaller facility that would take up to a thousand vehicles. A report by Kent County Council in conjunction with Kent Police and Highways England is to be published soon, she said. The Port of Dover has said last week's events will have shattered any illusion their operation is a quaint little port doing ferry trips for holidaymakers and booze cruisers. But the port has also warned a very busy summer is rapidly approaching - and ferry companies have highlighted their concerns that routes stay open as the holiday season gets under way.

With cross-Channel disruption set to continue through the summer as French ferry workers strike, calls are mounting for solutions to be found to the traffic gridlock that hits Kent as a result - but how do you solve a problem like Operation Stack?

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It hopes to attract both foreign tourists and domestic visitors as part of efforts to diversify the Saudi economy, as oil prices have fallen. Visa restrictions on foreigners are to be eased in the tourist zone. However, it is not clear whether dress codes and other restrictions in the conservative kingdom will be relaxed. Alcohol, cinemas and theatres are prohibited in Saudi Arabia. Women must wear loose-fitting, full-length robes known as "abayas" in public, as well as a headscarf if they are Muslim. They are not allowed to drive and often require a male guardian's permission to study or travel abroad. Construction of the new resorts is due to start in 2019. The first phase will include developing a new airport as well as luxury hotels and housing, and is expected to be complete in 2022. Sebastian Usher, BBC News Arab affairs editor Saudi Arabia already plays host to millions of foreigners - for work and for the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca. But its austere religious and social codes, reflected in the ruggedness of the landscape, have hardly proved enticing to tourists - and until recently, that's how the Saudis liked it. Now, with oil revenues falling, fresh ways of earning income and providing jobs for Saudis have been urgently sought. Tourism has been earmarked as a key element of a new economic and social vision. The tourism project is part of a plan, known as Vision 2030, spearheaded by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who was elevated to become the first in line to the Saudi throne in June. The Red Sea development will be built along 125 miles (200km) of Saudi's western coastline, according to the Vision 2030 fund. Among the attractions will be protected coral reefs, dormant volcanoes, and a nature reserve inhabited by rare wildlife like Arabian leopards and falcons. Visitors will also be able to take trips to the ancient ruins of Madain Saleh, classified as a Unesco World Heritage site, and take part in activities such as parachuting, trekking and rock climbing.

Saudi Arabia has launched a massive tourism development project that will turn 50 islands and other sites on the Red Sea into luxury resorts.

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The numbers are stark - for the first time in India's recent history, not only was there a decline in the female labour participation rate, but also a shrinking of the total number of women in the workforce. Using data gleaned from successive rounds of National Sample Survey Organisation and census data, a team of researchers from World Bank have attempted to find out why this is happening. "These are significant matters of concern. As India poises itself to increase economic growth and foster development, it is necessary to ensure that its labour force becomes fully inclusive of women," says the study, authored by Luis A Andres, Basab Dasgupta, George Joseph, Vinoj Abraham and Maria Correia. So what accounts for the unprecedented and puzzling drop in women's participation in the workforce - at a time when India's economy has grown at a steady pace? Predictable social norms are attributed to women quitting work in India: marriage, motherhood, vexed gender relations and biases, and patriarchy. But they may not be the only reasons. Marriage, for example, does affect the rate of participation of women in the workforce. But in villages, the workforce participation rate of married women has been found to be higher than that of unmarried women - whereas in the cities, the situation is reversed. Significantly, rising aspirations and relative prosperity may be actually responsible for putting a large cohort of women out of work in India. Remember, the largest drop has been in the villages. After calculating the labour force participation rates and educational participation rates (young women in schools) the researchers believe that one plausible explanation for the drop in the participation rate among rural girls and women aged 15-24 is the recent expansion of secondary education and rapidly changing social norms leading to "more working age young females opting to continue their education rather than join the labour force early". The study says there has been a "larger response to income changes among the poor, rather than the wealthy, by sending children to school". Also, casual workers - mainly women - drop out of the workforce when wages increased for regular earners - mainly men - leading to the stabilisation of family incomes. "Improved stability in family income can be understood as a disincentive for female household members to join the labour force," says the study. "This largely resonates with the existing literature, which suggests that with rising household income levels, women in rural India withdraw from paid labour and engage in status production at home." But dropping or opting out of the workforce to go to school and get an education may not ensure that these women will eventually go to work. After studying the relationship with the female labour participation rate and levels of educational achievements, the researchers found that having a high school-level education was "not found to be an incentive for women" to work. The lowest rate of participation is among those who had secured school and high school education in the cities and villages. And the rate is actually highest among illiterates and college graduates. But there has been a general drop in the rate in recent years, indicating that irrespective of educational attainments, "the incentive for women to participate in the workforce has declined over this period". To be sure, India has a poor record of female participation in the workforce: the International Labour Organisation ranked it 121 out of 131 countries in 2013, one of the lowest in the world. Also, India is not an outlier when it comes to women dropping out of the workforce. Between 2004 and 2012, the female labour force participation rate in China dropped from 68% to 64%, but the participation rate remains very high compared with India. In neighbouring Sri Lanka, for example, the participation rate has dropped, but only by 2%. "India stands out because of a such a sharp decline within such a short period. In levels, it is very low in international rankings now," the researchers told me. Clearly women need better and more suitable job opportunities, outside agriculture. Rural labour markets need to offer jobs that are acceptable and attractive to women and their families. The World Bank study suggests that gains will not be realised unless social norms around women's - and men's - work also change: "Strategies to communicate the importance of women's work should take into account the roles of women, husbands and in-laws." Also, as another study says, the "ongoing decrease in the availability of farm-based work, has led to women focusing on economic activities within their households". Should home-based workers then be counted as members of the labour force?

Why are millions of women dropping out of work in India?

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Matthew Cherrington, 32, from West Bromwich, murdered 26-year-old sex worker Lidia Pascale, who was last seen on 19 November 2014. Her body was discovered more than two weeks later in Hope Street, West Bromwich. Cherrington must serve a minimum of 19 years, Birmingham Crown Court was told. The electrician arranged for Ms Pascale, who had been working as an escort, to visit his flat where he attacked and killed her, West Midlands Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said. Ms Pascale, who had been staying in Smethwick, West Midlands, and Coventry, had suffered at least 11 blows to the head. Judge Melbourne Inman told Cherrington he was "a very dangerous man capable of extreme unprovoked violence" who had "never shown any remorse or regret." The CPS said Cherrington, of High Street, tried to "evade detection" and had blamed an associate for Ms Pascale's disappearance. Mobile phone analysis showed he had contacted several escorts including Ms Pascale on the day of the murder, the CPS said. Emily Lenham, from the CPS, said: "A very dangerous man has been convicted of a brutal and senseless crime." A West Midlands Police spokesperson said the force was supporting Ms Pascale's family, who are from Tulcea in Romania.

A man convicted of bludgeoning to death a Romanian woman whose body was found in a wheelie bin has been jailed for life.

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The draft legislation was approved by 494 votes to 122, and now moves to the House of Lords. Shadow business secretary Clive Lewis was one of 52 Labour MPs to defy party orders to back the bill and he resigned from the front bench. PM Theresa May wants to trigger formal Brexit talks by the end of March. She will do this by invoking Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, but requires Parliament's permission before doing so. Mr Lewis, who earlier said he was undecided on whether to support the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill, announced his resignation as MPs began voting for the final time. He said he "cannot, in all good conscience, vote for something I believe will ultimately harm the city I have the honour to represent, love and call home". Leader Jeremy Corbyn said he understood the difficulties the vote presented some of his MPs but said they had been ordered to back the Article 50 because the party would not "block Brexit". Shadow home secretary Diane Abbott, who missed last week's initial vote on the bill, backed it this time. She told the BBC she had "a lot of misgivings about the idea of a Tory Brexit" and predicted the UK would "come to regret it", but added: "I'm a loyal member of the shadow cabinet and I'm loyal to Jeremy Corbyn." The Labour rebellion was five MPs up on last week's vote, while former Chancellor Ken Clarke was again the only Conservative to vote against the two-clause bill. During the voting, SNP MPs were reprimanded by deputy speaker Lindsay Hoyle after they started singing Ode to Joy, the European Union anthem. Afterwards, Brexit Secretary David Davis hailed the "historic vote", adding: "It is now time for everyone, whichever way they voted in the referendum, to unite to make a success of the important task at hand for our country." Peers will now consider the draft legislation, and a government source told BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg: "If the Lords don't want to face an overwhelming public call to be abolished they must get on and protect democracy and pass this bill." Earlier the bill survived several attempts to change its wording and add extra conditions. These included Labour MP Harriet Harman's bid to protect the residence rights of EU citizens in the UK, which was outvoted by 332 votes to 290, with three Conservative MPs rebelling. A Liberal Democrat bid for a referendum on the terms of the UK leaving the EU was defeated by 340 votes to 33. Afterwards, Mr Corbyn tweeted: "Real fight starts now. Over next two years Labour will use every opportunity to ensure Brexit protects jobs, living standards and the economy." But Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon accused him of giving the Conservatives a "blank cheque". She tweeted: "You didn't win a single concession but still voted for the bill. Pathetic." The bill will be debated in the House of Lords after it returns from recess on 20 February. Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron vowed the party's peers would seek to amend the bill in the Lords, including another attempt to ensure a referendum on the final Brexit deal.

MPs have overwhelmingly agreed to let the government begin the UK's departure from the EU as they voted for the Brexit bill.

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Mark Dornan, 22, was arrested after officers from the UK Border Force intercepted a parcel sent from Belgium. The parcel was opened at a Royal Mail depot in Coventry and found to contain over half a kilo of the Class B drug. Police obtained a search warrant and raided Dornan's home in Raploch, Stirling on 8 April. Stirling Sheriff Court was told officers found a shoebox in his bedroom containing digital scales, almost £570 in cash, and a card containing notations. They also found a message on a phone about an agreement to supply someone with a half-ounce of the drug for £125. Dornan, a plasterer from Raploch, pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of herbal cannabis. Defence agent Frazer McCready said his client, a father-of-one, had no criminal record. Mr McCready said: "He was having financial difficulties, and was clearly beyond his means. "Unfortunately rather than go to some sort of debt counselling, as he is now doing, he foolishly decided to embark on this exercise with regard to his debts by involving himself in the supply of cannabis. "Clearly that type of drug was going to be intercepted, and it was. "There were consequences immediately." Sheriff Wyllie Robertson told Dornan that despite the fact he had no offending history, he had "no alternative" but to impose the jail sentence, because of the value of the drug involved.

A man who ordered cannabis on the "dark web" and planned to deal the drug to clear his debts has been jailed for six months.

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The supermarket's stock fell by more than 4% to close at 197.8p. Over the weekend, press reports suggested the deal faced a lengthy investigation from competition regulators. Shares in Booker also fell, with the FTSE 250 company down 3.6%. Overall, the FTSE 100 ended down by 66 points at 7,118.48. Most major stock markets around the world fell after President Donald Trump's decision to impose a travel ban on seven Muslim-majority countries. Among the gainers in the UK, Vodafone rose after the mobile phone company said that its Indian unit was in merger talks. A combination of the two companies would create India's biggest telecoms firm. Shares rose 1.3%. On the FTSE 250, shares in WS Atkins jumped 6% following a report in the Times that the engineering company had been approached by US company CH2M over a possible merger. Flybe shares dipped 1.1% after the airline said it had seen a "slow start" to trading since the start of the new year, blaming "uncertain consumer confidence and poor weather". That was despite the carrier reporting "solid" trading for the final three months of 2016, with revenues boosted by extra capacity. Flybe said passenger revenues rose 13.5% in the quarter, compared with 5.7% in the previous six months. On the currency markets, the pound fell 0.5% against the dollar to $1.2484, but rose 0.4% against the euro to 1.1682 euros.

Shares in Tesco led the declines on the FTSE 100, giving up some of Friday's gains when the stock surged in the wake of news of its planned tie-up with food wholesaler Booker.

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Shortly after midday, the FTSE 100 was 37.55 points higher at 6,256.81. M&S shares sank 8% after the retailer warned of a hit to short-term profits as it attempts to revive its clothing business. New chief executive Steve Rowe says he intends to lower clothing prices and reduce the number of sales promotions. But bank shares helped to bolster the wider market, with RBS up 3.6% and HSBC 3.4% higher. Royal Mail shares rose 1% to 526.5p after regulator Ofcom said it would not impose any new price controls on the company. Ofcom said it had decided against new controls because of the declining market for letters and increasing competition for parcel deliveries. Electrical goods and mobile phone retailer Dixons Carphone rose 0.5% as it pushed up its full-year profit forecast after enjoying strong sales. It now expects profits of between £445m and £450m. On the currency markets, the pound rose 0.3% against the dollar to $1.4685, and was also 0.3% higher against the euro at €1.3174.

(Noon): Banking shares helped to lift the market, but shares in M&S slid after the retailer said its turnaround plan was set to hit profits.

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Sam Simmonds was forced over as the clock wound down to deny Sarries, who beat Clermont to win the Champions Cup last Saturday, in a tense semi-final. Jack Nowell's try put Chiefs ahead after it was 6-6 at half-time, but Chris Wyles' try brought Saracens back. Mike Ellery put Sarries in front on 76 minutes, before Simmonds' heroics. The last-gasp victory gained revenge for Exeter, who had lost out to Saracens in their first Premiership final 12 months ago, while extending the Chiefs' unbeaten league run to 16 matches. Two early Owen Farrell penalties were cancelled out by Gareth Steenson's two three-pointers as both sides had great chances to score in the opening half. First Wyles was denied by a last-ditch Nowell interception, and then Thomas Waldrom was held up by the Saracens defence as he went over the line. But straight after the break Exeter hit their straps, Nowell finishing off after Phil Dollman had broken through before setting Ollie Devoto away. The home side's dogged defence kept Saracens, who lost former England winger Chris Ashton to an early injury, at bay. But Mark McCall's side always looked dangerous with ball in hand, and so it proved as Wyles went over in the left corner after a delayed pass from Maro Itoje with 23 minutes left. Ellery, who had replaced Ashton, had the Saracens coaching staff leaping for joy when he cart-wheeled over the line despite the desperate efforts of Nowell and Michele Campagnaro to stop him. But England's Henry Slade, on as a replacement, blasted a perfect penalty deep into the Saracens 22 and Exeter secured the resulting line-out, allowing the Chiefs to drive academy graduate Simmonds over for the decisive score. Could Exeter become the ninth team to be crowned champions of England? If so, it would cap a seismic rise up rugby union's league system. Promoted to the top flight in 2010 under the guidance of Rob Baxter and assistant Ali Hepher, the Chiefs have gradually built a side greater than the sum of its parts. Only seven of their starters have played any international rugby, while in contrast just two of the Saracens side - Michael Rhodes and Jackson Wray - had never featured for their country. But a combination of home-grown stars, such as England's Nowell, Slade and Luke Cowan-Dickie, a sprinkling of international imports such as Waldrom and the experience of players like Ben Moon, Dollman and Steenson - who were all part of that promotion-winning side - has proved to be incredibly successful at home. Whatever the result in next week's final, Exeter have established themselves as a force in the domestic game. Exeter Chiefs forwards coach Rob Hunter: "The biggest challenge we've got now, certainly from a coaching point of view, is that you almost instantly go 'we've not just won the Premiership, what we've just won is the semi-final'. "So you do very quickly get through that and our biggest job now is not pretending we're champions. "We've beaten the European champions, we've beaten a very good side, but we've got to beat one of these two (Wasps and Leicester) to win it, so it means nothing if we go there next week and we don't perform." Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall: "That was one of the great kicks of all time from Henry Slade - if he puts that somewhere else I'm probably stood here taking about one of the great wins and one of the great fights from a team who are a little bit tired. "We're sad, of course we are, and it's going to be painful, but we can be unbelievably proud of the qualities that showed during that second half. "I'm pleased that we showed the fight, we didn't do much wrong to lose the match, to be honest." Exeter: Dollman; Nowell, Whitten, Devoto, Short; Steenson (capt), Townsend; Moon, Cowan-Dickie, Williams, Dennis, Parling, Horstmann, Armand, Waldrom. Replacements: Yeandle, Rimmer, Francis, Lees, S Simmonds, Chudley, Slade, Campagnaro. Saracens: Goode; Ashton, Bosch, Taylor, Wyles; Farrell (capt.), Wigglesworth; M Vunipola, George, Koch, Itoje, Kruis, Rhodes, Wray, B. Vunipola. Replacements: Brits, Lamositele, Du Plessis, Brown, Burger, Spencer, Lozowski, Ellery.

Saracens' hopes of consecutive domestic and European titles were dashed as Exeter scored a late try to reach their second Premiership final in a row.

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Morton are well placed to secure a Championship play-off spot after Tuesday's 1-0 win at Raith Rovers. They were one of only two sides to earn a point at Ibrox in the league last season, and Duffy insists they will make it "as uncomfortable as possible". "[A Morton win] would be a monumental upset," he told BBC Scotland. "Rangers are a different proposition at Ibrox. Even though they drew last weekend [1-1 v Ross County], their home form has been very good over the last couple of years under Mark Warburton. "The pitch, the expanse at Ibrox certainly suits the style they play. But we will certainly go there with a bit more heart after last night [the win at Raith]. "The heavy pitch took its toll so we have to make sure we recover right and prepare tactically as well. "We will go there and try to make it as uncomfortable a day as we possibly can for Rangers. If we play well, manage to stifle Rangers a little bit and keep the ball, we can frustrate them." With last season's Championship winners Rangers 27 points behind Celtic in the Premiership, Duffy believes Warburton's side will place extra emphasis on Sunday's fifth-round tie. "The nature of being a big club like Rangers is the expectations are huge," noted the former Dundee centre-back and manager. "They know it is their only chance of silverware this season. Celtic have already got the League Cup, and have all but wrapped up the league, so the only trophy available to Rangers and their supporters is the Scottish Cup. "That will be the main objective and target now which will make it doubly difficult for us because all their focus will be on that. "But we have got a job to do - to stay in the game and be difficult to beat. If Rangers get a little bit nervous, and their fans get frustrated, then you never know. But we have to be good enough to take advantage of those situations." Media playback is not supported on this device Morton's victory at Stark's Park lifted them to within two points of second-placed Dundee United and nine off Championship leaders Hibernian, but crucially, nine points clear of fifth-placed Queen of the South in the battle for a play-off place. Duffy believes a prospect of a tilt at the title is unrealistic, insisting a play-off spot will be a significant achievement for the Greenock outfit. "If we get into the play-offs, we will be singing and dancing, there is no doubt about that," he added. "But it is still a long way away. A lot of clubs will be challenging for that. There will be clubs that can find a run of form and you can have a dip. "But the players showed terrific character to bounce back from a disappointing weekend [losing to Queen of the South] and it sets us up nicely for the Scottish Cup tie against Rangers."

Greenock Morton boss Jim Duffy says it would be a huge shock if his side were to knock Rangers out of the Scottish Cup at Ibrox on Sunday.

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Thousands of animals, many of them endangered, are part of the count which is required by law as part of the zoo's licence. Important details about each and every individual are noted down so that the zoo can help worldwide breeding programmes. Newsround's Martin headed to the zoo, which houses over 400 different species, to find out how it's done.

Keepers at Chester Zoo are making sure every creature, from the biggest elephant to the smallest beetle, is present and correct as part of their annual animal count.

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Southampton Solent University made the former X Factor judge a doctor of media for her "outstanding contribution to the entertainment industry". The singer said she had never been to the city but hoped to get an opportunity to visit the university soon. The honorary doctorate was presented at a special ceremony in London. The presentation was made by the university's chancellor in front of an invited audience of staff and students. Ms Minogue said: "I'm honoured and I'm shocked to receive this degree. "You start working in the entertainment industry and you don't really stop and look back at what you've done. "It's nice to be honoured for that and to connect with the students who are studying at the moment because a big part of their studies is having the practical side of working in the industry. You can't learn that from a book." A spokesman for the university added: "We can quite understand the cynical kind of impression [of the award] but it is not the case. "We would never give a degree to someone without some connection to the university or the work of the university." He added that the university specialised in media teaching and had previously awarded honours to people in the industry. Dan Prendergast, president of the students' union at Southampton Solent University, said: "She is a musical inspiration to many students. "She has had a long-spanning career and made a big contribution to the music business. "This is a great opportunity for students to meet someone like this." Last month, Minogue's sister Kylie received an honorary degree from Anglia Ruskin University in Chelmsford. She collected an honorary doctorate of health sciences in recognition of her work promoting breast cancer awareness after contracting the disease.

Singer Dannii Minogue has been presented with an honorary degree by a Hampshire university.

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Sheffield City Council said the cladding at Hanover House was not made of the solid aluminium panels ordered. The issue was spotted during fire safety tests carried out in the wake of the Grenfell Tower blaze. Councillor Jayne Dunn said: "We will not stop until we get to the bottom of what happened." More stories from across Yorkshire The council announced on Monday that a single element of the cladding system, added to the 16-storey tower block during a recent refurbishment, had failed new fire tests. Hanover House resident and tenants association member John Cawthorne said: "I personally feel betrayed." Ms Dunn, cabinet member for neighbourhoods and community safety, said the issue had been discovered following independent testing of the cladding at the council's 24 tower blocks. She said testing had been carried out despite paperwork stating "there was absolutely no cladding apart from aluminium on our buildings". "It's only when you cut in to it that you can see the layers," she continued. "I can guarantee you that we will not stop until we get to the bottom of it because they took a piece of cladding to the tenants at a consultation and they didn't put that up. "That was the cladding that we asked for. That was the cladding that we were told was on the building." Mr Cawthorne said: "The Tenants Association were given samples, which I kept for eight years, and those samples are 3mm aluminium sheet. "That's what the council asked to be put on this building, but that's not what was discovered on this building when the tests were carried out. "People are angry and I personally feel betrayed." Tests are being carried out on high rises across England in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire in London on 14 June, in which at least 79 people died. So far 75 UK blocks have failed fire safety tests in 26 areas.

An inquiry has begun after cladding removed from a tower block in Sheffield was found to be different to what council bosses had asked to be fitted.

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Ross-shire Engineering has secured the potential investment across the next five years supplying equipment to Scottish Water. The firm in Muir of Ord has already created 100 new jobs to allow it meet the needs of the utility company. The investment has also provided additional job security to the existing 273 staff members. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon visited the company's premises near Inverness on Monday, following a tour of Nigg Energy Park on the Cromarty Firth. She said: "Ensuring a strong rural economy is crucial to Scotland's success. "This funding Ross-Shire Engineering has secured provides a hugely welcome boost in providing skilled jobs and investment across the Highlands, as well as providing vital utility services to Scotland's homes and businesses. "In particular, I am delighted they will be investing in their already strong apprenticeship job programme, providing vital training and employment to young people living in the Highlands in a competitive jobs market." The first minister added: "Last week when I set out my Programme for Government I promised to protect Scotland's interests, particularly our economic interests, in the wake of the EU referendum. "Driving sustainable economic growth is at the heart of that, and I am committed to ensuring this government does all it can to ensure Scotland's rural economy remains prosperous for future generations."

Funding of up to £200m has helped create new jobs at a Highlands engineering company.

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Mr Bell made the allegation while speaking under parliamentary privilege. The advisers named by Mr Bell, Timothy Johnston and John Robinson, have denied the claims. The DUP said the claims were "outrageous". MLAs were debating the RHI scheme at Stormont. A motion to delay the debate by a week, in the wake of the Secretary of State James Brokenshire's announcement of an election, was interrupted when Mr Bell made dramatic claims about the DUP. Mr Bell said when he was enterprise minister his special advisor, Timothy Cairns, told him "he will not be allowed to reduce the tariff on (the RHI) scheme" because of Mr Johnston and Mr Robinson's "extensive interests in the poultry industry". He added that he has "kept the records in many, many formats" and that he had been suspended from the party for "telling the truth". He also claimed that Mr Robinson and Dr Andrew Crawford, a DUP party adviser, had issued instructions to "try not to get Arlene called to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC)" and "under no circumstance allow Jonathan Bell to be called" over their roles in the RHI scheme. The DUP said the claims were "outrageous, untrue and unfounded" and "nothing short of mud-slinging". They said that neither Mr Johnston nor Mr Robinson have interests in the poultry industry, and added that Mr Robinson's "family home farm have chicken houses but are not part of the RHI scheme and never have been recipients or applicants". Mr Johnston, the special adviser to Arlene Foster when she was first minister, said: "I have no family connections to the poultry industry and I have no connection to the RHI scheme. "These are unsubstantiated allegations. I have two brothers-in-law in the poultry industry. They have no connection to RHI." Mr Robinson, special adviser to Economy Minister Simon Hamilton, said: "I have no personal interest in the poultry industry. Two of my brothers are poultry farmers but they have no connections to RHI." Dr Crawford, a former special adviser to the Department of Finance, told the BBC last month that his brother is the director of a company which successfully applied to the RHI scheme. He said: "I never sought to keep the RHI scheme open at the original higher tariff against the wishes of the minister." Mr Bell broke ranks with his party and made serious allegations against the DUP over the scheme's operation in a BBC interview in December. He claimed that DUP advisers had attempted to remove Mrs Foster's name from documents linked to RHI. Mr Bell was later suspended from the DUP. The RHI scheme was set up by former first minister Arlene Foster in 2012 when she was enterprise minister. Its aim was to increase consumption of heat from renewable sources. However, businesses received more in subsidies than they paid for fuel, and the scheme became heavily oversubscribed. It could lead to an overspend of £490m over the next 20 years.

MLA Jonathan Bell has claimed he was told he would not be able to challenge the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme because two DUP special advisers "have extensive interests in the poultry industry".

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The former London Irish man, 29, who can play in the second or back row, was injured in Friday's loss at Newcastle. "He really hurt his neck and he has got pins and needles in his arms and through his hands," director of rugby Todd Blackadder told BBC Points West. "So he could be out for a little while yet but it's hopefully not too serious. But to lose a big boy like that is an opportunity for someone else."

Bath forward Matt Garvey is to have surgery after sustaining a neck injury.

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The sanctions focus upon suppliers to Iran's missile programme and groups that help to arm what Washington sees as terror organisations in the region. It is hard to see what practical impact these sanctions will have, since few of these organisations or individuals probably do business in the United States. But the sanctions sends a clear warning to Tehran the guard has changed in Washington. The Obama administration saw its relationship with Iran largely through the prism of the need to negotiate a deal to constrain Tehran's nuclear programme. Iran's regional activities - support for Hamas and Hezbollah, military support for the Assad regime, backing of the Houthis in Yemen, and its growing influence in Iraq - were all played down to ensure that the nuclear deal might go ahead. For the Obama team, restraining Iran's nuclear activities was the overarching goal. This was seen as an end in itself, one that might stave off military action, but also a step that might, over time, also lead Iran away from its relative economic isolation towards an improved relationship with the West. Opinion was deeply divided on the nuclear deal. The US and its major western allies, along with Russia, saw merit in the nuclear agreement that effectively "kicked the can down the road", postponing any confrontation with Tehran over its nuclear programme. Washington's regional allies though - countries like Israel, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states, who have watched Tehran's rise with alarm - were much less impressed. And many of them may well have been hoping that the Trump team - which includes several vocal opponents of Tehran - might seek to undo the agreement. Things are a little more complex than that. On a recent trip to Israel's major annual security conference last week, many experts and officials there took the view that a bad deal, if properly implemented, might be better than no deal at all. What worries Israelis is the fact that Iran is now becoming a major player in the region. Its support for the Assad regime in Syria and the deployment of its allies - Hezbollah and various Shia militias, supported by officers from its Revolutionary Guard Corps - has provided Tehran with at least the opportunity to establish its allies on a long border with Israel from the Mediterranean Sea through Lebanon and Syria - all the way to the Jordanian frontier. Jordan too is concerned, as are several of the Gulf states, which explains their quiet strategic rapprochement with Israel. The irony in all of this is that it was largely US military power that established the conditions for Iran's rise to regional prominence. By deposing its archenemy Saddam Hussein and reducing Iraq to a minor military player with many other security problems on its plate - Washington opened the door to the expansion of Iranian influence in the region. A further irony is that in supporting the Iraqi government's efforts against so-called Islamic State, the US is objectively allied with Tehran, with several Iranian-influenced Shia militias fighting in the same campaign. The Obama administration's failure to countenance the forced removal of Syria's President Assad and its inept and half-hearted efforts to arm and train Sunni forces there, again favoured the emerging Shia axis. So the Trump administration comes to office with a desire fundamentally to change Washington's stance towards Tehran. These sanctions are but the first step. A declaration that Iran is now "on notice", in the words of National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, may sound good, but it doesn't amount to a policy. What real steps does the Trump team envisage? Is it ready to back - albeit reluctantly - the nuclear accord while monitoring stringently Iran's behaviour? What wider international support can the US gather for tougher action against Tehran's missile programme - which it insists it is entitled to pursue? On the face of it here the US may have a point. UN Security council resolution 2231 calls on Iran not to undertake any activity related to ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering a nuclear weapon. A US National Security Council briefing earlier this week noted that ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering a payload of at least 500kg to a range of 300km are inherently able to deliver nuclear weapons. "There should be no doubt," the briefing went on , "that the United States is committed to holding Iran accountable for adhering to missile restrictions and accountable for behaviour in the region that we consider to be destabilising." But what exactly does the Trump Administration mean by phrases like "holding Iran to account"? These are two countries whose warships potentially come into close proximity in Gulf waters every day. Tensions could spark a major confrontation. Is Washington on a collision course with Tehran? Its rhetoric might suggest so. But it is President Trump's actions - and of course Iran's own responses - that will determine where things go from here.

Within days of an Iranian missile test and a subsequent warning from the Trump administration, the US has now followed up by imposing a new round of economic sanctions.

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A man, aged 28, and a woman, aged 35, have been arrested on suspicion of the possession of firearms over the incident at Chapel Street. The army's Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit was called to the scene and a cordon was put in place for a time. North Wales Police said it was "not a terrorist related incident".

A Wrexham street has reopened after police carrying out a search warrant found suspected firearms and "unstable" firework.

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5 February 2016 Last updated at 15:27 GMT This year the festival features over 200 sculptures including iconic Asian buildings carved out of snow and ice. A ten metre tall model of a high speed train is also one of the big attractions. Organisers hope over two million people will visit from all over the country, and abroad, to see the sculptures.

A snow and ice festival in Northern Japan saw some pretty impressive sculptures made out of the cold stuff.

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Shwe Mann was sacked from the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) last week in a power struggle. He has been rumoured to be discussing an alliance with Aung San Suu Kyi whose party is expected to win wide popular support in the 8 November elections. They will be the first elections since democratic reforms began in 2011. Rivalry between President Thein Sein and Shwe Mann came to a head last Wednesday night when trucks with security sealed off the headquarters of the party. Shwe Mann, who had been seen as a likely successor to Thein Sein, remains speaker of parliament and a USDP member. Ms Suu Kyi and Shwe Mann met for an hour on Monday in the country's capital, Naypyidaw. They have often said that they have a mutual understanding for future co-operation, reports Moe Myint of the BBC Burmese service. One likely area of collaboration might be amendment of the constitution, which prevents Ms Suu Kyi from running for the presidency. Most expect Ms Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy to win the election, but the constitution bars her from becoming president because her children hold British passports.

The former chairman of Myanmar's ruling party has met opposition head Aung San Suu Kyi, prompting speculation of an alliance.

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Oberon was one of three animals mauled by a dog in their field in the eastern part of the New Forest on 22 December. Owner Susan Sears said she was "devastated" Oberon's wounds had not healed, and, despite further surgery, he was found to be "beyond recovery". The two other injured animals have received further treatment for their wounds. Mrs Sears said: "After nearly two weeks of round the clock monitoring and nursing, poor Oberon's wounds were not healing as well as hoped and, despite further surgery, were found to be beyond recovery. "As alpha male, it is likely that Oberon would have put himself between his herd mates and the attacking dog," Another alpaca had also been the victim of a dog attack in the same field earlier last year. Oberon was part of a herd of about 80 animals which Mrs Sears and her husband have bred for their wool for the past six years. A crowdfunding appeal to help pay for the animals' treatment raised more than £1,900.

An alpaca which was seriously injured in a dog attack has been put down, its owner has said.

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Collier, who had Parkinson's disease and was living in a nursing home near his hometown of Hull, died on Thursday. A contemporary of Little and Large, with whom he often worked, he rose to fame on the club circuit, getting his big break on the Royal Variety Show. "It's kept me in good health, making people laugh. And it's kept them in good health too," he said in 2009. Danny Baker and Jon Culshaw were among those paying tribute on Twitter, with Culshaw writing: "Rest in peace Norman Collier.. Funny, funny, wonderfully funny man. People would be permanently laughing whenever they were around him." The eldest of eight children, Collier was born in Hull on Christmas day in 1925, and once joked there were "five of us sleeping in one bed". After serving as a gunner in World War II, he worked as a labourer but turned to comedy in 1950 after a one-off stint at his local Perth Street Social Club. Variety performance He quickly drew a popular following on the northern club circuit, but it was his debut at the 1971 Royal Variety Performance that brought him to wider attention. "Unknown comedian Norman Collier won a standing ovation for his act in the Royal Variety Show," wrote the Daily Express, of his critically acclaimed turn. "Norman turned out to be one of the big successes of this year's Royal Knees-up," added the Daily Mirror. Collier went on to make regular appearances on television and at theatres across the UK in the 1970s and 80s, and is arguably best remembered for his act featuring an intermittently working microphone - and his chicken impression. He was also a frequent pantomime performer, notably playing Widow Twanky opposite Little and Large at Hull's New Theatre in Aladdin. He never moved to London - despite the lure of fame - preferring to stay in the local area surrounded by his family. He told the BBC in 2009 he had "no regrets". He leaves a wife, Lucy, to whom he was married for more than 60 years, three children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His friend and biographer Mike Ulyatt recalled a meeting between Collier and Eric Sykes, in which Sykes commented "we are the last of the Vaudevillians in this country". "How I wished I had recorded their conversation over lunch that day. It took me over two years to complete Norman's life story, he would go off at such tangents at our numerous meetings," added Mr Ulyatt. "He was a local lad who never wanted to move from East Yorkshire and a real family man. He often said to me ' All I ever wanted to do was make people laugh'. "His good friend Bernie Clifton got him a copy of the 1971 Royal Command performance and Norman could never remember what the Queen said to him afterwards but on the recording they talked like long lost friends! "In Blackpool, he met up with Ringo Star and George Harrison just before their fame began and said to them what a funny name for a group the Beatles was!"

Comedian Norman Collier, best known for his faulty microphone act, has died at the age of 87, his daughter confirmed.

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But once the votes are counted, what can residents expect to pay in council tax? Below are the figures for a Band D property for every council area in Wales for the current financial year of 2017/18, how much that has gone up by for the current year, and what the average property in the area actually pays. They are grouped here by police force region - council tax includes the police precept which is added to the overall bill paid by homes. Local government is not fully funded by council tax. Much of the funding for councils comes in the form of grants from the Welsh Government, which in turn gets its funding from the UK government in London. In 2017/18 a total of £4.1bn is being divided among Wales' 22 councils. The lions share of council cash goes on schools - with social services following behind, as shown in the graph above. Residents pay council tax based on which band their property is in, based on its worth. Band D has historically been used as the standard for comparing council tax levels between and across local authorities. It is used to charge tax to a property that, in Wales, was worth between £91,001 to £123,000 on April 2003 values. Council tax gets lower the cheaper a property is, and higher the more expensive a property is. Council tax figures source: Welsh Government

Voters will go to the polls on Thursday to determine who will represent them on local councils.

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The 35-year-old former West Ham and Derby man was approaching the end of his contract at the club. Bywater, whose previous clubs include Millwall and Sheffield Wednesday, has not played for the Brewers since signing on a free transfer from Doncaster in January. But he will continue to act as cover for first-choice keeper Jon McLaughlin. "It's great news that Stephen is staying," Burton manager Nigel Clough told the club website. "He works very well with Jon McLaughlin, providing us with experienced cover, and has been a very positive presence around the club since joining."

Veteran goalkeeper Stephen Bywater has signed a new one-year deal at Championship side Burton Albion.

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The Seasiders struck with the first real chance after 12 minutes as Nathan Delfouneso jinked past his man and delivered a pinpoint chip into the area, where Jamille Matt turned the ball home from three yards. Blackpool goalkeeper Sam Slocombe denied Matthew Briggs with a sensational save to push the ball behind after 17 minutes, but the visitors did equalise from the resulting corner as Kurtis Guthrie prodded in from close range after a goalmouth scramble. Somehow, Colchester failed to re-take the lead on the stroke of half-time as Slocombe produced a brilliant save from George Elokobi's close-range effort, before Guthrie headed against the bar from two yards. Blackpool should have clinched the win 15 minutes from time, as Tom Aldred was found unmarked from a corner, but he headed wide from eight yards. Colchester finished the game with 10 men, after substitute Sean Murray was shown a straight red for a bad tackle on Jim McAlister in injury time. Report supplied by the Press Association Match ends, Blackpool 1, Colchester United 1. Second Half ends, Blackpool 1, Colchester United 1. Foul by Jamille Matt (Blackpool). Chris Porter (Colchester United) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Attempt missed. Jamille Matt (Blackpool) header from the centre of the box is high and wide to the left. Substitution, Blackpool. Eddie Nolan replaces Jim McAlister because of an injury. Colin Daniel (Blackpool) is shown the yellow card. Sean Murray (Colchester United) is shown the red card for violent conduct. Jim McAlister (Blackpool) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Sean Murray (Colchester United). Delay in match Tom Eastman (Colchester United) because of an injury. Attempt blocked. Colin Daniel (Blackpool) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Attempt saved. Jim McAlister (Blackpool) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Attempt saved. Colin Daniel (Blackpool) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Corner, Colchester United. Conceded by Clark Robertson. Foul by Jamille Matt (Blackpool). Tom Eastman (Colchester United) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Attempt missed. Colin Daniel (Blackpool) right footed shot from the left side of the box is close, but misses to the left. Substitution, Colchester United. Denny Johnstone replaces Kurtis Guthrie. Attempt blocked. Jordan Flores (Blackpool) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Substitution, Colchester United. Kane Vincent-Young replaces Richard Brindley. Will Aimson (Blackpool) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Foul by Kurtis Guthrie (Colchester United). Attempt saved. Tom Aldred (Blackpool) header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Matthew Briggs (Colchester United) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Jim McAlister (Blackpool) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Matthew Briggs (Colchester United). Corner, Colchester United. Conceded by Jim McAlister. Attempt blocked. Owen Garvan (Colchester United) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Attempt blocked. Sean Murray (Colchester United) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Attempt missed. Tom Aldred (Blackpool) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right. Corner, Blackpool. Conceded by Frankie Kent. Attempt missed. Jim McAlister (Blackpool) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Corner, Colchester United. Conceded by Andy Taylor. Attempt blocked. Kurtis Guthrie (Colchester United) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Tom Eastman (Colchester United) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Jordan Flores (Blackpool) wins a free kick on the right wing. Foul by Tom Eastman (Colchester United). Andy Taylor (Blackpool) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Foul by Andy Taylor (Blackpool).

Blackpool's winless run was extended to five games as they were held at home by fellow League Two play-off chasers Colchester.

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Nick Bennett, group chief executive of Community Housing Cymru, which represents housing associations, was chosen from four candidates. Mr Bennett said he wanted to ensure the office provided excellent advice for service users in Wales and help drive improvement in public services. He will take over from Peter Tyndall who held the office since April 2008. Mr Bennett will have legal powers to investigate complaints about public services in Wales such as councils and health boards.

A new public service ombudsman for Wales has been approved by the National Assembly.

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A 20-year-old man was with a male friend in Old Rutherglen Road when another man attacked him with a weapon at about 13:05 on 22 September. The victim was treated in hospital for a leg injury. Detectives believe the man in the images may be able to help with their inquiry. He is described as white, aged about 20, with short brown hair. At the time of the incident, he was wearing a tracksuit top that was white at the front and light blue at the back, dark tracksuit trousers and dark trainers. He was last seen walking on Caledonia Road towards Cathcart Road. Det Con Nicol McPherson said: "This was a violent attack that took place in broad daylight which left this man with a serious leg injury. "I would urge anyone who recognises the man in the images, or who has information that may assist the investigation to contact Cathcart Police Office."

Police have released CCTV images of a man they want to trace over a "violent attack" in the Gorbals area of Glasgow.

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It was introduced for the final race of 2014 to keep the championship alive for as long as possible but was criticised by drivers, teams and fans. The agreement needs ratifying at a meeting of the FIA World Motor Sport Council, but F1's legislative body is expected to rubber stamp it. The idea of F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone, the double points rule was criticised for being unfair and artificial. As it turned out, the outcome of the 2014 championship would have rested on the final race even if double points had not been in force. Lewis Hamilton was 17 points ahead of Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg going into the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix but made sure of the title by winning at Yas Marina. That gave the Briton a further 50 points, leaving him 67 in front of Rosberg, who came home 14th after suffering car trouble. Ecclestone and FIA president Jean Todt met with representatives of the teams, circuits and sponsors to discuss a number of proposals at this week's meeting, not just the double points rule. The BBC has learned that they abandoned plans to introduce standing re-starts following the deployment of the safety car but failed to come up with any formal proposals aimed at keeping costs under control. The issue of costs remains a hot topic following the financial collapse of the Marussia and Caterham teams. Force India, Lotus and Sauber have also complained that they are struggling financially because the split of prize money is not equitable. There was also no agreement on allowing limited in-season engine development. Currently, the rules allow a specified amount of development between seasons but none during the championship. Red Bull and Ferrari have been pushing to allow an extra stage of development in the summer. Mercedes are against the idea but have offered to accept a limited amount of development. However, their compromise proposal has been rejected by their rivals on the basis that it does not go far enough. Unanimous agreement is required to change the rules for next season. The World Motor Sport Council, which meets in Qatar on 3 December, will also hear from the investigation into the accident at the Japanese Grand Prix that left Marussia driver Jules Bianchi with severe head injuries. The investigation was charged with establishing what happened and coming up with new measures to reinforce safety at circuits.

Formula 1 bosses have agreed to ditch the controversial double points rule.

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Remarkably, this year's finale features the two franchises who have waited longer than any other to win a championship. Cleveland's last title came way back in 1948. In ordinary circumstances a win for "the Tribe" would be a baseball fairytale: this year it would mostly be remembered for crushing Chicago's dreams. The Cubs, despite being one of the most popular and historic franchises in baseball, have not won a World Series title since 1908. They have not even played in the Fall Classic since 1945, when legend has it that a curse was placed on the team when a local tavern owner was asked to leave a game because the smell of his pet goat was upsetting other fans. Baseball is fond of hexes. The "Curse of the Bambino" - placed on the Boston Red Sox when they sold Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees - was blamed for the Red Sox's 86-year World Series drought, while the 1920 Black Sox betting scandal was fingered as the reason for the failure of the Cubs' cross-city rivals, the Chicago White Sox, to win a championship for 88 years. Media playback is not supported on this device But the Sox, red and white, finally came good in successive years a decade ago. The Cubs' winless streak stands at 108 years and counting. Various, possibly more likely, reasons have been advanced for the Cubs' epic failure, including playing more daytime games than most (which some believe denies the players the opportunity to settle into a rhythm), a failure to tap into Latin American talent and a poor system for developing young in-house stars. Some also believe the innate pessimism of the fans creates a counter-productive atmosphere of tension at their beautiful but capricious Wrigley Field home - where the wind can swirl unpredictably - when things get tense at the business end of the season. In 2003, the fan effect was more tangible when Steve Bartman covered himself in infamy by impeding a fielder's attempt to catch a key fly ball in a post-season game against the Florida (now Miami) Marlins. Needless to say the Cubs went on to lose the game, and the series and Bartman issued a public letter of apology. As he puts it on his Twitter feed: "Some people are remembered for a lifetime of great work, I'm remembered for five seconds." In 2008, a priest even sprinkled holy water in the Cubs' dug-out before their National League Division Series against Los Angeles. They did not win a single game, losing the best-of-five series 3-0. So why does 2016 finally promise something better? It seems the key was to make Theo Epstein president of baseball operations in 2011. He is now the highest paid manager in US sport, reportedly on a five-year contract paying more than $50m (£40.87m). Epstein had already tasted success at the Red Sox, relying on a scientific, analytical method to identify talent. He has repeated the process in Chicago, transforming a team that finished in last place in the National League Central Division for the first three years of his presidency. The batting line-up was the third most productive in the majors during the regular season. Dynamic infielders Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo both achieved the notable double of driving in more than 100 runs and hitting more than 30 home runs. But the Cubs' domination of their division, which they won for the first time since 2008 with three weeks of the season still to go, was primarily down to a group of pitchers as daunting as any seen in the major leagues in recent decades. The key measure of a pitcher's effectiveness is the earned run average (ERA) - the average number of runs they give up during a full nine-inning game. The Cubs' Kyle Hendricks posted the lowest ERA in the major leagues, and team-mate Jon Lester was second. The Cubs' bullpen - the group of relief pitchers who come into the game in the later stages when the starter has run out of steam - was also among the strongest in baseball. Sceptics thought the Cubs might again struggle to maintain their form into the postseason, but they eased past the San Francisco Giants 3-1 in the National League Division Series, and then came roaring back from 2-1 down to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Championship Series. Just reaching the World Series prompted scenes of wild celebration. As David Haugh from the Chicago Tribune put it: "The reaction was visceral, the elation indescribable and the relief undeniable as a crowd of 42,386 fans unleashed 71 years' worth of frustration and disappointment." The Indians comfortably won the American League Central Division, despite losing their best hitter Michael Brantley to injury for most of the season. But with injuries to two of their key pitchers, few expected them to beat the Red Sox in the AL Division Series. In fact they swept the Sox, and went on to beat the Toronto Blue Jays in a low-scoring AL Championship Series. Deftly managed by Terry Francona, who won championships at Boston in 2004 and 2007, the Indians have proved themselves to be consummate battlers this year. Reaching a World Series is an impressive achievement for a franchise with one of the smallest payrolls in baseball. But many expect the Cubs to end their years of pain - if they can overcome their internal demons, and a smelly goat.

The Chicago Cubs will be hoping to end the most infamous run of failure in US sport when they face the Cleveland Indians in the World Series, which starts on Tuesday.

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The 23-year-old joined QPR from Swindon in May but he has only made three appearances for the Championship club. Mark Cooper's League One side have been hit by several injuries this season. "An injury has meant he's subsequently struggled for game time," said QPR's director of football Les Ferdinand. "He's only away for a month. He's still got a massive future at QPR." Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.

Swindon Town have re-signed midfielder Ben Gladwin on a 28-day emergency loan deal from Queens Park Rangers.

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He made the comments after he was told he would not get a new parish when he leaves his existing one in London. The Reverend Andrew Foreshew-Cain is leaving his congregation in West Hampstead as he is moving to the Peak District with his husband. He said he felt under constant pressure being a gay man working in the Church. Speaking to BBC Radio 5 live's Stephen Nolan, he said: "The people of the Church of England, the worshipping congregations up and down the country are amazing people who worship and serve their local communities and do tremendous amounts of good in lots of places and for the most part they are welcoming and accepting of the LGBTI community. "The problem is with the leadership of the Church which maintains and promotes policies and practices which are discriminatory against LGBTI people." He added: "There's this constant pressure of being a gay man working for the Church of England, in an institution which is institutionally homophobic and has policies and attitudes towards the LGBT community which are harmful." Father Foreshew-Cain has been a vicar for 27 years and is the vicar of St Mary with All Souls, Kilburn, and St James in West Hampstead. He has told his congregation he plans to leave in July as his husband is now working 200 miles away. He said after he married in 2014, he received a letter from his bishop saying he would not be allowed to work in another job within the Church. "That's discrimination and in any other part of the world that would be illegal," he said. A spokesperson for the diocese of London said: "Andrew Foreshew-Cain is currently a member of the clergy in the Diocese of London. "We understand that he has plans to move to Manchester for personal reasons but the diocese has not received his resignation at this time."

The first Church of England vicar to marry a same-sex partner has accused the church of being "institutionally homophobic".

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But there is a mismatch between those soothing words and the aggressive trade policies laid out during the campaign - which included harsh tariffs on China and tearing up existing agreements. It is hard to know if Mr Trump will follow up on his threats, but they have a combustive potential. And trade is one area where the president has freedom to act without the approval of lawmakers in Congress. Five questions on economy for Trump UK businesses react to Trump's win Trump's economic promises President Trump: All hat, now where are the cattle? So what did we learn during the campaign about Mr Trump's views on trade? Well, you can find a summary of his policies on his campaign website, but here's a quick tour. Perhaps his most radical idea is to impose hefty tariffs on Chinese-made goods, if China does not reform its trade relations with the US. Mr Trump has floated the idea of a swingeing 45% tariff on Chinese imports. In a big economic policy speech in June he told workers at a metal processing plant that China had "cheated on its currency, added another trillion dollars to our trade deficit and stole hundreds of billions of dollars in our intellectual property". During that speech he reminded workers that President Reagan had imposed tariffs of 45% on Japanese motorcycles and 100% on computer chips. If Mr Trump's threat crystallised it would supply a shock to the US economy as China is an important supplier of many goods. Take mobile devices for example. China supplies three-quarters of the phones imported into the US and it supplies almost all laptop and tablet computers. Mr Trump has also been scathing about the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta). Introduced in 1994 it greatly reduced, and in some cases eliminated altogether, tariffs for trade between the US and its two immediate neighbours, Mexico and Canada. "Nafta was the worst trade deal in the history of this country," Mr Trump said in June. He blames the deal for the loss of thousands of US manufacturing jobs and wants to reverse that by renegotiating the terms of the deal. If Mexico and Canada do not agree to the new terms, Mr Trump has threatened to withdraw from the agreement altogether. In February, after five years of work, the US and 11 other nations signed up to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), one of the biggest multinational trade deals ever. That agreement now looks dead as Mr Trump has called it a "horrible deal" and said that he would block it. The deal involves 12 nations from around the Pacific Rim, and was partly designed to counter the growing economic power of China. However, Mr Trump claims that trade with those nations had already cost the US two million jobs - with the manufacturing of cars and car parts particularly suffering. A lot of work has also gone into a new trade deal between the US and the European Union. Since 2013 the two sides have been negotiating the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership or TTIP, aimed at removing or reducing trade barriers. That deal has faced opposition in Europe and now, with a US administration that is sceptical over trade deals, looks even less likely to reach fruition. An existing deal under threat is the 2011 free trade agreement with South Korea. According to figures quoted on Mr Trump's campaign website, the deal has cost 100,000 jobs and has not resulted in any increase in US exports to South Korea. While many nations might have their trade deals torn up, the UK might well be looked on favourably by the Trump administration. The president-elect was a supporter of the UK leaving the European Union and last month his trade adviser Dan DiMicco told the BBC that negotiating a new trade deal with the UK would be "one of the first things" that his trade officials would do. Mr DiMicco also said that Mr Trump was serious about his threats over trade: "Things have gotten so bad that we will leave Nafta, WTO [the World Trade Organization] and the Korean Free Trade Agreement if we can't get a fair deal. "These are not idle threats." But the WTO has congratulated Mr Trump on his victory and appeared to acknowledge his concerns over jobs. The WTO is "ready to support the administration to ensure trade is a positive element in a new strategy for development & job creation," tweeted director-general Roberto Azevedo. "It's clear many feel trade isn't working for them. We must address this and ensure trade delivers the widest benefit to the most people," he added.

At his victory rally in New York US president-elect Donald Trump promised "great, great relationships" with other nations.

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Figures show the number of women taking their holy vows has trebled in the past five years, from 15 in 2009 to 45 last year - the highest number since 1990. Fourteen of the women who entered convents in 2014 were aged 30 or under, the latest figures show. The Church says women are being drawn to religious life because of a "gap in the market for meaning in our culture". Sister Cathy Jones, from the National Office for Vocation, said: "We are never going to be at the place we were at 50 years ago, Catholic culture was at a very different place. "But the fact that more women are becoming nuns than there has been in the past 25 years shows that as a generation we have turned a corner." The figures show that in the 1980s around 80 women were becoming nuns each year but the numbers gradually declined until 2004 when only seven women joined a convent. The small number of entrants has gradually increased again in the last 10 years, reaching 45 in 2014. Sister Cathy said nuns were now less visible in communities but they were now doing more hidden work with trafficked women or working as counsellors. And she added that some women may have been driven to the work after having seen more poverty in the UK during the economic downturn. "It doesn't tend to be those who are coming from quite vulnerable places who become nuns, but there are people who want to be reaching out to those on the margins, who join," she said. Theodora Hawksley, 29, was until recently a postdoctoral researcher in theology at the University of Edinburgh, but at the beginning of the year she decided to end her career as an academic, and begin her training to become a nun. She joined the Congregation of Jesus in January and is now living in their house in Willesden, north London, while taking the first steps towards making vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. Ms Hawksley said: "In one sense it is a bit like trying to explain to somebody why you are marrying the person you are. You can list their qualities, but in the end it is a relationship of love. "I don't have to worry now about practical things like making a career for myself. I'm free to go where I'm needed and meet people at the margins. "You are not on your own. It is an unusual life choice, but you are not the only one making it. There are plenty of people asking themselves the same questions." She admitted some of her friends were a "bit bewildered" when she revealed her plans, but most have been very supportive. Last year the majority of new nuns - 27 out of 45 - chose to be active religious sisters, who have a ministry outside of the convent, working in a community in areas such as nursing or teaching. Religious sisters are often sent to live in different communities every few years, both in the UK or abroad. Last year, BBC Northern Ireland political reporter Martina Purdy quit her 25-year career in journalism to become a nun. She entered the Adoration Sisters last October.

The number of women becoming nuns has reached a 25-year high, the Catholic Church in England and Wales says.

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Three girls, aged 10, eight and five, and two five-year-old boys were taken to hospital following the collision on Wentedge Road, near Kirk Smeaton. The crash, involving a red Mercedes A180 and a blue Vauxhall Corsa, happened at about 18:20 on Thursday. North Yorkshire Police said a number of the casualties had suffered serious but not life threatening injuries. Women aged 36, 19 and 18 were also taken to hospital. The force has appealed for witnesses to the collision to come forward. The road was closed for about four hours to allow investigators to examine the scene.

Five children and three adults have been injured in a crash involving two cars.

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12 August 2016 Last updated at 11:51 BST The report was commissioned by former PM David Cameron in the wake of the Tower Hamlets election fraud scandal in 2015. He said the review had heard evidence that in a London borough at the general election someone arrived at the polling station with 500 postal votes. "I'm very worried - I don't believe political parties should touch or handle in any way a completed ballot paper," he said.

Former communities secretary Sir Eric Pickles has told the BBC about his concerns over the findings of his report on tackling electoral fraud.

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Details of the amount paid by the consortium and the total stake acquired have not been disclosed. The takeover ends Italian businessman Francesco Becchetti's troubled three-year stay as O's owner. The club recently staved off a winding-up petition at the High Court, having paid off debts to four creditors. Following the dismissal of the winding-up petition, representatives of the Leyton Orient Fans' Trust (LOFT) had urged Becchetti to sell the club "urgently to any new responsible owner". In a statement on the Orient website, Becchetti said the club had been sold without any "debts to the bank" and "without arrears for taxes". "Over the last two years, I have, unfortunately, not been able to dedicate myself to following the club as closely as I would have wanted," he continued. "This is clearly the moment to leave the club to others and I know that in doing so I am leaving it in good hands with Nigel Travis." Travis, who describes himself as a "lifelong" O's fan, has been appointed as chairman of the club. A second investor, Kent Teague, has been named as a director, while a fan representative will also be appointed to the board. Local businessman Marshall Taylor has been appointed interim chief executive, while former Orient owner Barry Hearn will retain ownership of the club's stadium at Brisbane Road. "Barry and I actually went to school together," Travis told BBC Radio London. "Barry did a great job previously [as owner]. We're going to take some lessons from what he did and bring in some new stuff, but he remains the owner of the stadium and that's the way it's going to stay." Travis has taken over the club in a personal capacity, with Dunkin' Brands, the parent company of Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin Robbins, not involved in the deal. Leyton Orient had been beaten in the League One play-off final less than two months before Becchetti purchased the club in July 2015, but last season their 112-year stay in the English Football League came to an end with relegation from League Two. The club had 11 managers or head coaches under Becchetti's ownership, including five different bosses last season alone. They have been reported to have only 15 senior players under contract for next season, with the oldest of those players being 20-year-old Charlie Grainger. Manager Omer Riza is only under contract until 30 June, with the club's first pre-season game scheduled for 12 July. "We're going to make an announcement on the football side tomorrow [Friday]," said Travis. "They will be the two key appointments. The idea is the board doesn't get involved in the day-to-day things."

A consortium led by Baskin Robbins and Dunkin' Donuts chief executive Nigel Travis has completed its takeover of Leyton Orient.

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The 32-year-old ex-Celtic and Brighton winger joined the Hatters on a two-year deal last summer and played 26 times. "Paddy has had to face up to some personal problems in recent weeks," said boss Nathan Jones. "At the end of the season he came to me and it was soon clear that he wanted to return to Northern Ireland to be closer to his family and to play there again." Jones added: "It wasn't a straightforward decision for me - Paddy has done well for us, but in the end we reached an agreement and he goes with my blessing."

Paddy McCourt has left League Two side Luton Town by mutual consent to return to his native Northern Ireland.

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Thomas Bebbington, 22, from Shrewsbury, was last seen entering the river near the Dana Steps at about 19:20 GMT on 10 November. A body was found by a member of the public on private land near Leighton, about 10 miles (16.09km) away from the centre of Shrewsbury, on Monday. Mr Bebbington's family has been informed, West Mercia Police confirmed.

Police searching for a man who went missing last month have found a body on the banks of the River Severn.

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Shortly after the show was aired on Sunday, technology entrepreneur Peter Jones tweeted that his investment did not go through. The Glasgow-based firm had hoped to use the money to help fund the expansion of its Bluetooth tracker, Xupo. The coin-sized tracking sensor helps people find misplaced personal items. The tracker was launched by Strathclyde University graduates Raj Sark and Vincenz Klemt in 2014 after they raised nearly £27,500 in a crowdfunding campaign with Kickstarter. The idea was born when one of the founders lost his travel bag, including a new laptop computer and passport, at Heathrow Airport. During the show, Peter Jones had offered the investment for 30% equity of the business. Xupo had forecasted £1m in revenues in the next year. However, just after the show Peter Jones tweeted: "My investment with My Lupo (sic) didn't go through as some issues arose during due diligence. I still wish Raj all the best in the future." A PR firm had already issued a press release on behalf of Xupo welcoming the investment. Mr Sark had said he was "thrilled by the investment and Peter Jones' confidence in the product". Mr Klemt had said the investment would help them strengthen their position in the UK and expand into Germany and France, followed by Italy and Spain.

A tech start-up firm which thought it had secured a £100,000 investment on the BBC's Dragons' Den TV show has had the funding pulled.

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870s - First Norse settlements on Iceland. Previous inhabitants were a small number of Irish monks. Tradition says 'Bay of Smoke' was founded in 874 930 - An annual parliament - the Althing - established, to make laws and solve disputes. 986 - Erik the Red takes settlers from Iceland to colonise Greenland. 1000 - Iceland adopts Christianity. A golden age of Icelandic culture begins, producing great works of medieval literature. 1262-4 - Icelanders recognise the King of Norway as their monarch. 1380 - Norway and Iceland enter a union with the Danish crown. 1402-04 - Plague hits Iceland, killing half the population. The plague returns in 1494-5 with similar fatalities. 1550 - Catholic bishop, Jon Arason, captured and beheaded in his northern diocese. This marks the final victory of the Lutheran Reformation in Iceland. 1602 - Denmark assumes a monopoly on all Icelandic trade. This continues for around 200 years. 1700s - A period of decline in Iceland, with disease, famine and a volcanic eruption in 1783 reducing the impoverished population from 50,000 to 35,000. 1814 - Norway enters union with Sweden; Iceland remains under Danish rule. 1845 - The Althing meets again in Reykjavik. 1848 - Denmark's monarch renounces his absolute power; Denmark prepares to become a representative democracy. This raises questions about Iceland's status. 1874 - Iceland given limited autonomy; the Althing has power over internal affairs. 1904 - Iceland attains home rule; rule by parliamentary majority introduced. The country experiences rapid technological and economic progress. University of Iceland established in 1911. 1918 - Iceland achieves full self-government under the Danish crown. Denmark retains control over foreign affairs only. The treaty is valid until 1943. 1940 - German forces occupy Denmark. British forces occupy Iceland. 1941 - The United States takes over the defence of Iceland and stations tens of thousands of troops there. 1943 - The Treaty of Union with Denmark runs out, with Denmark still occupied by Nazi Germany. 1944 - Icelanders vote in a referendum overwhelmingly to cut all ties with Denmark and become a republic. The Republic of Iceland is proclaimed on June 17th. Iceland becomes a member of Nato. 1958 - First "Cod War" as Iceland extends its fishing limit to 19 kilometres. 1970 - Iceland joins European Free Trade Association (EFTA). 1972 - Iceland extends the fishing limit to 80 kilometres. Renewed confrontation with Britain. 1975-6 - Third "Cod War" as Iceland extends its fishing limit to 320 kilometres. 1980 - Vigdis Finnbogadottir becomes first woman president of Iceland. 1980s - Iceland suffers from high inflation, averaging 38% annually. 1985 - Iceland declares itself a nuclear-free zone. 1991 - David Oddsson elected prime minister. 1992 - Iceland leaves International Whaling Commission (IWC) in protest at what it sees as the IWC's anti-whaling stance. 1996 - Olafur Ragnar Grimsson elected president. 2001 - Iceland applies to rejoin IWC but is granted only observer status because, after a gap of 12 years, it says it has plans to resume commercial whale hunting despite an IWC moratorium. Singer Bjork had a top selling album at the age of 11 2002 October - IWC votes by narrow margin to readmit Iceland as a full member, despite the country's plans to resume hunting for what it terms research in the near future and limited commercial hunting after 2006. 2003 May - David Oddsson continues as prime minister in coalition government following elections. 2003 August - Iceland embarks on its first whale hunt for 15 years, with a "scientific catch" to study the mammals' impact on fish stocks. 2004 June - Olafur Ragnar Grimsson re-elected president. 2004 September - David Oddsson hands over premiership to former foreign minister Halldor Asgrimsson. 2004 November - Grimsvotn volcano erupts, scattering ash as far away as Finland and causing aircraft to divert. The volcano is in a remote part of the island and there are no casualties. 2006 June - Prime Minister Halldor Asgrimsson resigns after his party's poor performance in local elections and amid concerns about the economy. He is succeeded by Geir Haarde. 2006 - The last US military personnel leave the Keflavik base, ending a military presence dating back to 1951. The US says it will defend Iceland as a Nato ally. Bobby Fischer's 1972 Reykjavik clash with Boris Spassky made him a hero in Iceland 2006 October - Iceland breaks its 21-year moratorium on commercial whaling; the fisheries ministry authorises a catch of 30 minke and nine fin whales. 2006 December - Population grows 2.6% in past year. Officials attribute this to immigration, encouraged by the rapidly growing economy. 2007 April - Iceland and Norway agree to expand defence cooperation to help secure future shipments of oil and gas. 2007 May - The governing coalition holds on to its majority in parliament by a single seat in general elections. The Progressive Party leaves the coalition with Geir Haarde's Independence Party. It is replaced by the Social Democratic Alliance, which gives Mr Haarde a much larger majority. 2008 January - Controversial US-born former world chess champion Bobby Fischer dies aged 64 in Iceland. A popular figure in Iceland, he had been granted citizenship to prevent Japan from extraditing him to the US. 2008 April - The government warns that it may intervene in the country's currency and stock markets to fight hedge funds that it says are attacking Iceland's financial system. 2008 October - The government takes over control of all three of Iceland's major banks in an effort to stabilise the financial system, which has been hit hard by the global financial crisis. The 2008 crash of Iceland's banking system sparked angry protests Waking up to reality in Iceland Crisis claims Icelandic cabinet Weeks later, Iceland applies to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for emergency financial aid - the first western country to do so since 1976. 2008 November - IMF approves $2.1bn (£1.4bn) loan to help Iceland through its financial crisis. 2009 January - Prime Minister Geir Haarde calls a general election for 25 April, two years early. The move comes after demonstrations calling on the governing coalition to resign over the country's economic meltdown. Days after calling the election, Prime Minister Haarde announces the immediate resignation of the government, following the breakdown of talks with his coalition partner, the Social Democrats. Social Democrat Johanna Sigurdardottir takes over as prime minister, at the head of a centre-left coalition with the Green-Left party. 2009 April - PM Johanna Sigurdardottir's centre-left coalition wins majority of 34 out of 63 seats at parliamentary elections. 2009 July - Iceland formally applies for EU membership after parliament votes in favour of accession. EU foreign ministers ask European Commission to begin assessing Iceland's readiness for membership, opening accession proceedings. 2010 February - Unemployment soars to over 15,000 (over 9% of work force) - up from just over 1,500 (1% of work force) at the beginning of 2008, before the financial crisis took hold. 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajokull volcano generated huge excitement - and travel disruption across Europe 2010 March - Voters overwhelmingly reject a referendum proposal to pay the UK and the Netherlands 4bn euros (£3.4bn) worth of compensation for the collapse of the Icesave bank. The Eyjafjallajokull glacier in southern Iceland starts a massive eruption, creating an ash cloud that disrupts flights throughout Europe for several months. 2010 April - The IMF clears a further $160m (£104m) tranche of the aid package granted in 2008 but delayed by wrangling over compensation for the Icesave collapse. 2010 July - Formal talks on Iceland's EU accession begin. 2010 December - Government agrees new deal to repay the UK and the Netherlands the 4bn euros (£3.4bn) they lost when the Icesave bank collapsed in 2008. Under the new settlement, repayments will be completed by 2046. Iceland says it will unilaterally increase its mackerel fishing quota by nearly 17,000 tonnes in 2011. 2011 - Economy registers first signs of growth in response to austerity programme and unemployment begins to fall fast. 2011 February - Parliament approves new deal to settle UK banking dispute with UK and Netherlands, which voters reject in April. 2012 February - The credit rating agency Fitch raises Iceland's sovereign rating to BBB-, which makes the country once again fit for investment. 2012 April - Former Prime Minister Geir Haarde is found not guilty of negligence in his trial over his handling of the 2008 financial crisis. 2012 July - President Grimsson wins a record fifth term in office. 2012 September - IMF praises Iceland's economic recovery. 2013 January - A European court clears the government of failing to guarantee minimum compensation for British and Dutch savers. Iceland awards two licences for oil and gas exploration and production to Faroe Petroleum and Valiant Petroleum, with Norway taking a 25% stake in both. 2013 April - The opposition Eurosceptic and centre-right Progressive and Independence parties win parliamentary election in backlash against Social Democrats' austerity measures. 2013 May - Progressive and Independence parties form a coalition government. They promise to hold a referendum on whether or not to proceed with Iceland's EU membership negotiations. 2013 December - Four former bosses of the Kaupthing bank are given prison sentences for market abuses just before it collapsed in the 2008 financial crisis. 2014 February - Britain and the Netherlands file a claim of nearly $5bn (£3bn) over money their savers lost in the 2008 collapse of the Icesave bank. 2015 March - Official figures show Iceland's GDP has returned to the level it was at before the 2008 financial crisis. The centre-right governing coalition withdraws Iceland's application for EU membership. About 7,000 people protest against the decision in Reykjavik. 2015 October - Government says it has reached an agreement in principle with the three failed banks on steps to be taken to make possible the lifting of capital controls. 2016 April - Prime Minister Sigmundur Gunnlaugsson steps down after leaked documents from Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca reveal that he failed to declare ownership of an offshore company when he entered parliament in 2009. 2016 October - Prime Minister Sigurdur Ingi Johannsson resigns after a snap vote sees his Progressive Party lose more than half of its parliamentary seats. The conservative Independence Party, which emerged as the biggest party after no party won a majority, will now seek to form a coalition government.

A chronology of key events:

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The one-year-old was handed in to the Dogs Trust near Darlington in December after being found wandering the streets as a stray. Following an appeal on social media, the canine with "a heart of gold" has found a new forever family. The trust said Fester would be leaving the charity's kennels early next week. Fester was born with a narrow jaw which causes his lower teeth to stick out - creating some "unique features", a trust spokeswoman said. "We were concerned that fun-loving Fester may have ended up being over-looked by potential new owners due to his unusual eye-catching appearance," she added. "He is a gorgeous boy with an amazing character, so we couldn't imagine why anyone wouldn't want to have him as part of their family. "He's had a rough time and it is fantastic news he will have a new home where he can settle and hopefully his character will shine through."

Abandoned because of his bizarre looks, Fester the boxer dog, who is blind in one eye and has a protruding lower jaw, has finally been found a new home.

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A witness described seeing a "flash right across the sky" as the aircraft came down in a field off Burrows Lane, in the Middle Stoke area. The condition of the pilot is not known. The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) said it had deployed to an accident involving a light aircraft near Stoke Medway Airfield. Representatives from UK Power Networks and fire crews also attended the scene. Louise Holloway, who lives nearby, said: "I was outside in the garden and heard this huge bang. "There was a massive orange flash right across the sky. "One man ran across the field but there was no way the pilot could have got out. It's really sad."

A microlight has hit an electricity pylon and burst into flames near Rochester in Kent.

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Storms smashed a hole in the sea wall alongside the line above the seafront in Dawlish, south Devon in 2014. The railway line took two months to repair at an estimated cost of £1bn to the local economy. Network Rail is consulting with Devon and Cornwall residents about the plans. They include strengthening defences and cliffs, as well and building breakwaters to protect the line. More on the coastal rail protection work, and other Devon and Cornwall news Cliffs next to the line would be stabilised and reshaped so they are not as steep under the plans. A total of £270m is allocated for spending on priority areas including around Dawlish between 2019 and 2024. The line connects Devon and Cornwall with the rest of the UK.

Protecting a key coastal railway track from rising sea levels and falling cliffs is going to cost about £650m, Network Rail has said.

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Dinesh and Tarakeshwari Rathod said last year that they had successfully reached the 8,850m (29,035ft) summit. But police in Maharashtra state on Monday confirmed the couple had "morphed photographs" to show a successful ascent on 23 May. The inquiry was launched after the pair's claims were queried by climbers. Additional Commissioner Sahebrao Patil told the PTI news agency that the couple "shared misleading information" and "brought disrepute to the Maharashtra Police department". It's not clear if the couple will also face charges. Nepalese authorities also imposed a 10-year mountaineering ban last year on the couple after concluding that their claim was fake. The country's tourism department had initially certified their ascent but rescinded that decision after conducting an investigation. Mr and Mrs Rathod initially told reporters that their pictures were real. But a climber based in the southern Indian city of Bangalore, Satyarup Sidhantha, later told the media that the photographs presented by the Rathods as "proof" of their climb actually belonged to him. Suspicions were further aroused because of the time lag between the day the Rathods claimed to have reached the summit and their news conference announcing their achievement. It was alleged that the couple could not possibly have reached the summit so soon after they were seen to have arrived at the base camp, and that the photos appeared to show them in two different sets of clothes and boots while on the climb. Many of those who have succeeded in scaling the 8,848m (29,029ft) mountain have subsequently gone on to have lucrative careers as motivational speakers and authors. Mountaineering is a major source of income for impoverished Nepal. More than 450 people, including more than 250 foreigners, climbed Everest during the spring season last year. It followed two consecutive years of poor weather - made worse by the Nepal earthquake of 2015 - which resulted in almost all Everest attempts being abandoned. Get news from the BBC in your inbox, each weekday morning

Two police officers have been sacked after an inquiry found their claim to be the first Indian couple to climb Everest was fake.

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Rajab, who heads the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR), was convicted in 2012 of taking part in illegal gatherings and disturbing public order. An appeals court later reduced his original three-year term by a year. He was one of several leading activists arrested by the authorities after pro-democracy protests erupted in 2011. Soon after his release on Saturday, Rajab told the Associated Press news agency that he was happy to be out after spending more than 600 days in prison. He also appealed for the release of all political prisoners, the agency added. Rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights First, have campaigned on behalf of Rajab throughout his prison sentence, calling on the authorities to release him. In December 2013, a Bahraini court rejected a request by Rajab's lawyers for early release. They argued that he was eligible because he had already served three-quarters of a two-year sentence. In addition to his role with the BCHR, Mr Rajab is deputy secretary general of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH). Before his imprisonment in July 2012, Mr Rajab was repeatedly detained in connection with the pro-democracy protests that erupted in the Gulf kingdom the previous year. Amnesty said that he was punched in the face several times by riot police as he led a demonstration in February 2012, and in May 2012 was charged with "insulting a national institution" in comments about the interior ministry he posted on Twitter. In June 2012, Rajab was sentenced to three months in jail over different tweets he wrote about the prime minister. The conviction was eventually overturned on appeal, but only after he had begun his two-year sentence for taking part in unauthorised protests. At his trial, Mr Rajab told the court that he had been held in dire conditions and subjected to ill treatment, including being placed in solitary confinement with a dead animal and kept almost naked. BCHR's founder, Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, is serving a life sentence for allegedly plotting to overthrow the government. He was convicted on evidence that was widely accepted as having been secured under torture.

Prominent Bahraini human rights activist Nabeel Rajab has been freed after serving two years in prison for his involvement in illegal protests.

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Kathleen and Jimmy Cuddihy, who were in their 70s, were found dead just outside Carndonagh on 22 October 2014. Their son, Julian Cuddihy, appeared at Dublin's Central Criminal Court on Tuesday. The court heard he admitted killing his parents but the jury must decide his mental state at the time. Counsel for the prosecution told the jury that forensic psychiatrists for both the prosecution and the defence are in agreement and will give evidence that Mr Cuddihy was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia at the time. The psychiatrists will also say that Mr Cuddihy, who was 42-years-old at the time, believed he was carrying out his parents' wishes and was helping them to secure a place in heaven. The jury heard evidence from a post-mortem examination that the couple had severe head injuries. The court was told that an axe and scissors were found at the scene. Julian Cuddihy was arrested a short time later after it became known he had taken his father's car to a lake area near Clonmany. The court heard that after his arrest, Mr Cuddihy asked gardai (Irish police) if they were telling him his parents were dead. Mr Cuddihy has been receiving treatment at the Central Mental Hospital in Dundrum since his arrest. The trial continues.

A man has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to the murder of his parents at their home in County Donegal almost two years ago.

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He can clinch the decisive third point against David Goffin that would end a 79-year wait for a British victory. Should Goffin prevail, the best-of-five tie will come down to a deciding match. Media playback is not supported on this device Kyle Edmund is scheduled to meet Ruben Bemelmans, but James Ward and Steve Darcis remain options for captains Leon Smith and Johan van Herck in Ghent. Britain took a grip on the final when Andy and Jamie Murray beat Goffin and Darcis in Saturday's doubles. "I still think we have a very good chance in both of the matches tomorrow," said Andy Murray. "I'm not getting ahead of myself. I know how good a player Goffin is. You don't get to be ranked 15 in the world in today's game, with the depth that there is, if you're not pretty good." The weight of evidence makes Murray a strong favourite to complete the job on Sunday, and add the Davis Cup to the game's great prizes he has already won at Wimbledon, the US Open and Olympic Games. Murray, 28, has won both previous matches against Goffin in straight sets, at Wimbledon in 2014 and the Paris Masters earlier this month - that one a 6-1 6-0 drubbing. This third encounter will take place on the indoor clay of Flanders Expo, and with 90% of the crowd willing the Scot to lose. "I'm sure there will be nerves there, but I like being nervous," said Murray. "I think it helps me. It helps me concentrate. It helps me give a little bit more effort. It might only be a couple of percent, but it all makes a difference." Goffin, 24, has risen from outside the top 100 just 16 months ago to 16 in the world. He unexpectedly needed five sets to see off Edmund on Friday and then played four sets of doubles on Saturday, but insisted "physically, I'm feeling good". Goffin added: "I've never played against Andy on a clay court, so I'm going to try to play my best tennis. "Of course, I have nothing to lose. They lead 2-1 in the tie. I just have to give everything I have for the match. I think on a clay court I have some weapons to play a good match." Smith is within sight of guiding Britain to an historic Davis Cup victory, but remains focused on the task at hand. Ward and Edmund were out practising on court soon after the doubles ended on Saturday, and their captain said: "There's so much to be played - potentially two big matches. "But I would rather be having two shots rather than one." There is a very real possibility that Ward, who won a five-set thriller over American John Isner in the first round, would be called up for a deciding rubber. Van Herck has a similar dilemma, but Darcis declared himself available and the captain roused his players to make one last effort. "There's a huge task ahead of us," he said. "I think for every tennis player, it's a position he wants to be in. "We're going to show that we're a strong group, we're a strong team, and we're going to try to solve this together. We're all going to be ready to fight again. Anything can happen in Davis Cup."

Andy Murray says the Davis Cup final is "far from over" as he tries to win the competition for Great Britain against Belgium on Sunday.

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The FA says the club, one of a few from outside the English mainland to enter, must play any replays in England - even if they are the home side. The club would also have to pay the travel expenses of visiting sides. Those expenses, which come after the club has shared any gate receipts, mean Guernsey are considering whether they can afford to enter the competition. The club, founded in 2011, also want to play in the FA Trophy, and director Nigel Braybrook told BBC South West Sport: "They're very prestigious competitions and the players have earned the right to take part. "We feel they deserve the chance to show themselves on the national stage, but that could be taken away from us for non-football reasons." Guernsey are used to paying for clubs to come over to the island to play them, having spent the past two seasons in the Combined Counties League, They also made the semi-finals of the FA Vase, As well as any home replays being played at a venue in England at Guernsey's expense, the club would also have to play any postponed home ties in England as well. A Channel Island team has competed in an FA Cup before. Jersey's St Peter's ladies side played in the 2004 FA Women's Cup, losing 3-1 to Aldershot Town in the first qualifying round. The FA has given Guernsey until Monday, 24 June to decide if they want to enter on those terms, and told BBC South West Sport that they would not comment until that time. "They haven't given a reason, they've just set out these conditions," Braybrook said. "I can only imagine their concern is that opposing clubs would have to travel over midweek, and at a lower level some of the players will have to work and they may have concerns about that. "We would love to be in the competition but it's purely finance. "Playing in the Ryman League this year will increase our costs considerably, with more matches, more overnight stays and longer journeys. "If we play a game on the mainland, drew and then pay for the replay, it could potentially cost us £10,000 to play one round." The club has launched a campaign to try to raise money in Guernsey to help fund their cup matches.

Guernsey FC could be forced to pull out of the FA Cup over restrictions imposed on them by the Football Association.

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Data shows that the total tuition fee and maintenance loan balance is up 12% on the previous year's figures. Graduates start repaying their debt once their income reaches £21,000 but after 30 years outstanding debt is written off. For those repaying loans in 2017 the average sum owed at the start of repayment was £19,280. That compares with £32,220 for English students, £20,990 for Northern Irish students and £11,740 for Scottish students who do not pay fees if they study in Scotland. The figures come from the Student Loans Company and cover 2016/17. Welsh domiciled students have been able to claim a grant towards their tuition fees since 2012-13 - a sum of £4,954 in 2017-18. But the grants are due to be scrapped from 2018-19 with help for maintenance costs introduced instead, under plans unveiled last year. At the end of 2016-17 there were 304,900 borrowers of higher education student loans in Wales, with 191,100 liable for repayment. As of the end of April 2017 there are 41,430 borrowers who had fully repaid, amounting to 16.4% of the overall total. The data covers Welsh domiciled students studying in higher education in the UK and EU students studying in Wales.

The overall student loan debt for Welsh students has reached £3.7bn, new figures show.

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Charlene Walker, 36, suffered a single stab wound at the Darlington home of Julie Gowling in December. The 44-year-old tried to cover up the killing and dispose of the weapon, a kitchen knife, by burying it in a garden, Teesside Crown Court heard. Judge Mrs Justice Jefford told the mother-of-four she must serve a minimum of 14 years in prison. The court heard Gowling, who had denied murder, got into a heated argument with Ms Walker - a known drug user - over the missing cash on 6 December. It ended when Gowling lost her temper and stabbed Ms Walker in the chest. She then fled the house and tried to dispose of the knife. The court was told Ms Walker died as a result of massive blood loss. After the hearing, Det Supt Dave Ashton, of Durham Police, said: "Our condolences go to the family of Charlie Walker who, since her death have shown nothing but dignity and courage. "Ms Walker had a difficult life in many ways but the extreme act of violence which ended her life was not justified during an argument over a relatively trivial matter."

A woman who stabbed her lodger during a row over a missing £21 has been jailed for her murder.

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Dorothy Cooper was seriously injured when a man allegedly jumped into her vehicle and drove over her in a car park in Royton, Oldham, on Wednesday. Paul Anthony Moore, 45, of no fixed address has been charged with wounding with intent, dangerous driving and motoring offences, police said. He was remanded in custody to appear before magistrates in Manchester later. Mrs Cooper got out of her white Hyundai i10 when she was told there was a problem with it, witnesses told Greater Manchester Police. As she was checking the vehicle, a man allegedly jumped in and drove over her. The car was found about three miles away in Buersil Avenue, Rochdale.

A man has been charged with wounding a 76-year-old woman who was run over by her own car in a suspected carjacking.

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Wisley Property Investments is hoping to build homes, shops, a school, health centre and sports pitch on the former Wisley Airfield site. A decision was expected by 24 December but Guildford councillor Tony Rooth said more information was needed. However, Guildford greenbelt councillor Susan Parker fears the delay will play into the developer's hands. Ms Parker, leader of the Guildford Greenbelt Group, said the decision could be taken away from the borough if it doesn't come to a decision by the agreed date. She explained: "The applicant could seek to go to the inspector on the grounds of non-determination which means the council hasn't decided therefore you have to decide Mr Inspector. "And the inspector normally has more of the presumption in favour of approving something if there has been non-determination." But Guildford's lead councillor on housing Tony Rooth said it was a very big project with "all sorts of issues" which would take a long time to evaluate. He added: "What we need are brownfield sites where much-needed housing in Guildford can be built. "Whether Wisley qualifies as a brownfield, or even a white concrete site as opposed to a Greenbelt site, we will evaluate when the applications are fully ready to consider." Guildford Borough Council confirmed the 24 December date was "now unlikely" and said it would be seeking to agree a further extension of time.

A decision on plans to build more than 2,000 homes on a former airfield in Surrey has been delayed.

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This time the poll was held under a new constitution, designed to prevent a repeat of that violence when more than 1,000 people died when supporters of rival candidates clashed. They have been choosing a president, members of parliament and senators, the new posts of county governors and members of county assemblies. The presidential contest is seen as a two-horse race between Prime Minister Raila Odinga against Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta. BBC correspondents around the country sum up how the voting went. The queues in some places stretched for more than a kilometre, as voters in Kibera stood patiently in line. The neighbourhood is one of Nairobi's largest slums. It is the constituency of Raila Odinga, one of the favourites for the presidential contest and the scene of some of the worst violence following the last election in 2007. Today, many had arrived before dawn, waiting patiently in line, sometimes for hours. Voters cast their ballots into colour-coded boxes - six each - for a variety of different representatives, local and national. The memories of five years ago are still fresh and, as the campaign drew to a close, a sense of apprehension was palpable. Police talked of conspiracies to cause chaos and warned that violence would be met in kind. But, in Kibera at least, as the sun grew hotter and the umbrellas came out, the mood was up-beat. "Peace, peace," one crowd shouted as a truck of paramilitary police trundled past. We came across a man with dreadlocks and a pot of white paint. His message, "Peace wanted alive", can be seen daubed on walls and roads around the neighbourhood. The real test of peace, though, is likely to come once all the ballots have been cast, and the results start coming in. As the sun begins to set, the heat is easing and some polling stations are still open after the official closing time of 17:00, with queues of people determined to cast their vote. Tensions have been running high in this insecure and arid region near the Somali border and there has been a heavy security presence at the polling stations - with between five and 10 armed police officers on guard. On Sunday night one people died in an explosion and another person was shot dead in what is believed to be election-related violence. Some people began queuing at 05:00 - an hour before the polls opened. But there has been frustration in the long queues, with some buying water to pour over their heads to cool themselves down and others sitting under umbrellas. The biometric voter ID systems have not worked at the polling stations in this north-eastern town so electoral officials have had to resort to the manual voters registers. The computerised fingerprint and facial identification was introduced after the last election to prevent fraud. This slowed the whole process down, as has the fact that about 60% of voters have needed assistance to cast their ballot as they are illiterate. One woman with a baby on her back told me that after waiting until she got to the front of the queue, she found her name was not on the roll, even though she had a voter registration card. Hundreds of people ended up giving up. One man who could not find his name after lining up in three queues over 12 hours told me he was going home without voting. In the centre of Mombasa many people lined up from 05:00 to ensure their place in the queue and avoid the sweltering temperatures that characterise the coast. A cluster of white gazebos went some way to protect the early voters from the sun and the six colour-coded ballot boxes that sheltered beneath. Nearly half a million voters are registered in Kenya's second city, with another half a million making up the surrounding counties. This is historically "opposition" territory but under the complex arithmetic of the presidential vote, the candidates cannot afford to ignore this part of the country. Many voters queuing patiently described it as an "historic day" - the first time Kenyans are voting under a new constitution. But further along the coast, election day was marred by technical hitches and sporadic violence in a handful of flashpoints. Faulty biometric voting kits caused delays in Mombasa West. In Changamwe, half an hour's drive from the city, four police officers were hacked to death with machetes by a gang, who the authorities claim were members of the separatist Mombasa Revolutionary Council (MRC). The group had urged voters to boycott the polls in protest at what they see as the marginalisation of Mombasa, but few seemed to heed that call. The crowds outside Changamwe's main polling station had swollen to several hundred by midafternoon: Women with their babies strapped to their backs and men with beads of sweat running down their brow, seemingly undeterred by the attack that took place shortly before polls opened. Many people in the crowd outside Changamwe Social Hall which was turned into the local polling station seemed unconvinced that the group was to blame. Kenya has had a long history of violent elections and areas deemed to be opposition strongholds like this, are used to what people describe as "powerful forces" seeking to scare people away from the polls. But this time there is a palpable determination to prove to the world that Kenya is on a new democratic path. A whistle stop tour by the new Inspector General of police to the "scene of the crime" helped to provide reassurance in what has otherwise been a peaceful poll. Too busy tweeting to vote? Q&A: Kenya’s 2013 elections In pictures: Kenyan elections There were also disturbances in the town of Kilifi, where two civilians were among six shot dead. Although the violence that flared up was in isolated areas, it got Khalef Kalifa from Muslims for Human Rights anxious.As an election observer he said police seemed "ill prepared" for any clashes and that in some polling stations computers were not working and "in one polling station a voter had to come and show the presiding offer how to use the computer". But election officials promised voters they would keep the polling stations open to compensate for earlier delays. By the time the evening call to prayer could bear heard echoing out from the mosques of Mombasa, Festus Mwanzia was number 27 in the queue. He had waited patiently in line for nearly 12 hours. "I'll be home by 10," he chirped confidently. "Just in time to catch the results on TV." Many people here know the biggest test is yet to come once the tallying gets under way. In the western town of Eldoret, the provincial capital of the Rift Valley where much of the post-election violence occurred following the December 2007 election, voting started early in the morning with enthusiastic voters arriving as early as 05:00. There were long queues, some stretching for a kilometre. At the MV Patel polling station which has the highest number of registered voters in the region, people complained that the process was too slow. In Shinyalu, in the rural Kakamega district - between Eldoret and Kisumu - the area's former member of parliament, Justus Kizito, was ambushed in the early hours of the morning and his Range Rover was burnt to ashes. He says the attack was political and forced to flee for fear of his life before the mob set the vehicle on fire. At Kosachei Primary School near Eldoret, William Ruto, a suspect at the International Criminal Court from the Kalenjin community and running mate to presidential candidate and fellow indictee Uhuru Kenyatta, a Kikuyu, cast his vote at 07:30. Afterwards he told me that should their Jubilee coalition win, they would co-operate with the ICC in the hope of clearing their names. The two, who were rivals during the last poll, both deny charges of orchestrating the violence following the 2007 vote. At the Kiambaa polling station - just a stone's throw from the ill-fated church where more than 40 Kikuyu people who had sought shelter there were burnt alive on 1 January 2008, when it was set ablaze by a mob of armed Kalenjin youth - most voters were happy to have cast their ballots in peace. Paty Chelegat, a Kalenjin mother of two, told the BBC: "There is peace in Kiambaa area and indeed the entire Uasin Gishu county and my joy is that I have voted peacefully and [I am] hoping that all will be well even after the results are announced." Peter Kariuki, a father of four, said despite losing his relatives in the Kiambaa church fire, he is encouraged with the prevailing peace existing among the various communities that used not to see eye to eye. "I am very happy because this vote is a new beginning to residents of Kiambaa and Eldoret," he said. I was awoken in this lakeside city, a stronghold of presidential candidate Raila Odinga, at 02:15 by people blowing vuvuzelas - their alarm call to get people down to the polling stations early. By 04:00 - two hours before the polls opened - thousands of people were already queuing. There was a little tension at one polling station when it did not open on time and voters forced the gate open, but officials restored order and voting began. Women with babies or who were pregnant were able to get to the front on the winding line. At one polling station a woman stuffed a baby blanket under her dress so that she could pass for pregnant and be given priority to vote, but her belly ruse did not work. After that women in the slum of Kondele were asked to breastfeed their children to prove the offspring are theirs in order to jump the queues. Kondele, where there are high rates of unemployment, has a history of electoral violence with rival local politicians often using youths to cause trouble. A 56-year-old man in Kondele told me it was the first time he had ever witnessed a peaceful election in the slum. Mr Odinga's Cord alliance has been urging people not to drink alcohol and on the eve of the vote most bars in Kisumu were closed. The majority of businesses have also been shut today and after voting people followed advice to go home instead of hanging around in groups to watch the proceedings. It is hard to believe given the huge crowds earlier on but electoral officials in Kondele were already tallying the votes just an hour after the polls were due to close at 17:00. After being counted, the ballots will be taken to a central place in the city before being transferred to Nairobi. People came out in huge numbers to vote, some queuing in the chilly morning from 03:00. There were complaints about the slow process of casting the six ballots, but voters remained jovial. "I've waited five hours - I can wait 50 more," one man told me. "I will not leave before voting, come rain, sun, hunger or sleep." Nakuru is a cosmopolitan area, though it turned into an ethnic battle field between two rival communities, the Kalenjins and Kikuyus, after the last election. "We will redeem the image of Nakuru, what happened in 2007 will not happen again. We have learnt our lesson," a 29-year-old woman told me. Some people travelled long distances to vote, one man at the Afraha stadium - where the line was twice the length of a football pitch - had returned home from Uganda where he works. The biometric ID systems malfunctioned at most polling stations, which caused delays. One person, who joined a queue at 03:00 eventually voted at 11:00 because he was searching for his name on the paper voters' register - it was only at the front of the third queue that he was eventually successful. Despite the delays, everyone got a chance to vote and polling stations closed as planned at 17:00 local time (14:00 GMT). Most people have returned home, to follow the counting process on TV or radio. The usually busy city centre is deserted, with no cars or pedestrians. Even the curio stalls popular with tourists coming to see the flamingos at nearby Lake Nakuru are closed. I came across only one restaurant that is open. Trucks full of police can be seen patrolling everywhere in this town - an agricultural centre in the Rift Valley. But people I spoke to say they do not expect any violence once results come out, as efforts to achieve reconciliation between communities that were pitted against each other after the 2007 election have been successful.

Kenyans have been voting in a key election - the first since the disputed contest of December 2007 that triggered weeks of bloodshed.

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He argued that only another "stable and strong" coalition involving his party could save the country from a re-run. He said "everybody knows that no-one will win this election", even if the two major parties fail to admit it. "Politicians will have to work together to put the country first," he said. Mr Clegg spoke out during a "two-day dash" from Land's End to John O'Groats in the final hours of the election campaign. He said the hardening position of Labour and the Conservatives on coalition deals meant a minority government after 7 May would be more unstable - and "controversial" policies would cause it to fail. "Everybody knows that no-one will win this election - even if David Cameron and Ed Miliband won't admit it publicly," Mr Clegg said during a campaign visit to Cardiff Central where the Lib Dems are fighting off a Labour challenge for the seat. "The Liberal Democrats have shown that coalitions can be strong and stable. But instead of creating stability, Labour and the Conservatives will create a shambles. "If they try to stagger through with a messy and unstable minority government instead of putting the country first, then they will risk all the hard work and sacrifices people have made over the last five years. "The last thing Britain needs is a second election before Christmas. But that is exactly what will happen if Ed Miliband and David Cameron put their own political interest ahead of the national interest." Earlier Mr Clegg told BBC Radio 4's Today programme he was not in principle opposed to a referendum on EU membership - claiming other issues like the NHS and "balancing the books" were bigger priorities than the EU poll. He also predicted his party would do "better than people think" on 7 May. 'I don't run a sect' Insisting his MPs could be "the guarantors of stability at a time of great uncertainty", he insisted: "We'll do no deals, no pacts, no arrangements with either UKIP on the right or the SNP on the left. "The great risk of not having the Liberal Democrats in Parliament, in government, is we lurch off into this blue-KIP alliance between David Cameron, UKIP, the DUP and the rest of them cutting, cutting, cutting way beyond what's necessary, or reckless borrowing as Ed Miliband and Alex Salmond are in some kind of deathly embrace on the left." Main pledges But Mr Clegg refused to be drawn on claims by Lib Dem peer Lord Scriven that David Cameron had privately told him before the election campaign that he did not believe the Conservatives would win a majority. "In the same way I don't control the tweets of Liberal Democrats - I run a political party, I don't run a sect - I'm not going to provide a running commentary on private conversations," he said. Describing the Conservatives as "panicky" about the outcome of the election, he added: "The claim they can win a majority by 23 seats is false - it's wrong - it's a big fat fib. They need to win 323 seats and I haven't met a senior Conservative who privately has ever admitted to me that they can do that." The best of BBC News' Election 2015 specials

The UK could be poised for a second general election by Christmas if either Labour or the Conservatives try to form a minority government after 7 May, Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg has warned.

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Labour's Jeremy Corbyn said there was a "disconnect" between the government's rhetoric and its actions and that HMRC's budget had been cut. The SNP's Angus Robertson said 10 times more officials were investigating welfare fraud than tax evasion. The PM said the figure sounded "bogus" and HMRC staff numbers were going up. The PMQs clash was the first since a huge leak of documents from Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca revealed how some wealthy people use offshore firms to dodge tax and avoid sanctions. BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg said the tax debate's prominence in the Commons showed how much of a big issue it had been, with opposition parties determined to "hang it around the prime minister". Mr Corbyn focused all his questions on tax, saying Conservative MEPs have voted against new EU-wide country-by-country reporting measures, while the government had cut tax official jobs and shut down tax offices. The PM said the new reporting measures were "based on the work we've been doing" and had been proposed by the UK's commissioner, Lord Hill.. The leaders also traded blows over how transparent overseas territories would have to be under the new regime. Mr Corbyn said the Cayman Islands premier was "celebrating victory" because beneficial ownership information would not be available publicly or directly to UK agencies. The PM said overseas and crown dependencies would provide beneficial ownership information, but would not make the information public because otherwise some might have "walked away from this co-operation altogether". Mr Cameron, who has faced questions about his own tax arrangements and his father's offshore investment firm, aimed a joke at Mr Corbyn's recently-released tax return, saying the "late, chaotic, inaccurate and uncosted" document was a metaphor for Labour Party policy. Mr Corbyn hit back, saying he paid more tax than companies owned by people Mr Cameron "might know quite well". Green Party MP Caroline Lucas also asked the PM about tax, questioning how effective the investigation into Mossack Fonseca in the UK would be.

The Panama Papers tax revelations dominated Prime Minister's Questions, with David Cameron defending the action taken from opposition attacks.

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The sergeant opened fire in June 2014 at his post near the North Korean border and fled, sparking a manhunt. He was captured two days later after he shot himself during a tense stand-off with troops. It reignited debate on military culture in South Korea, where all males must do about two years military service. The conscript's attack had previously been attributed by a defence ministry spokesman to his "difficulties in adapting to military life". He had been placed on a list of conscripts requiring special attention. In July last year, the military completed its investigation into the incident and said the attack, at a post near the border town of Goseong, was in revenge for bullying in the army and at school. The 23-year-old recruit, surnamed Im in previous reports but named as Lim by Yonhap news agency, was found guilty of killing and injuring his comrades by detonating a grenade and firing at them. He was also found guilty of running away with a rifle and ammunition, said the news agency. Under South Korea's military law, a soldier must face the death penalty for killing a superior. One of those killed was a staff sergeant. The soldier expressed remorse in a statement last month before his sentence was announced, AFP news agency reported. "I feel deeply sorry for the victims and their relatives... I am overcome with remorse... How happy would I be, had it been merely a dream and had it been possible to return to the past?" he said. Past incidents in South Korea's military have been linked to bullying and mental health problems. Last year, several suicides by young conscripts were reported. In April, a private died after he was beaten by his superiors - an incident which was only uncovered months later by a civic group. A sergeant was later sentenced to 45 years in military prison for the crime. Four other soldiers were jailed for between 15 and 30 years while a sixth was given a suspended prison sentence. In September last year, two special forces soldiers died after collapsing during captivity training, apparently from suffocation. The incidents sparked a public outcry and prompted the army to take a tougher stance on bullying and abuse. Its chief of staff resigned and his replacement ordered the establishment of a military human rights commission and investigations into hundreds of bullying cases. Prior to last year, South Korea also saw major incidents in 2005 and 2011 where conscripts killed several of their comrades. South Korea has said it needs a conscription system to ensure national security. It technically remains at war with North Korea, as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.

A South Korean soldier who shot dead five of his colleagues and injured seven others has been sentenced to death by a military court.

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The High Court in Glasgow heard that Andrew Patrick pointed a gun at Alistair Rankine before giving him a bag said to have a bomb inside. The 40-year-old then ordered the driver to steal cash from a Bank of Scotland branch in Kirkcaldy, Fife. Patrick will be sentenced next month after admitting assault and robbery at the High Court in Glasgow. The court heard Patrick was working as a gym instructor, earning up to £300 a week at the time, but prosecutor Allan Nicol said he was facing financial difficulties. On 11 November last year he called a taxi firm, putting on a fake Polish accent, and asked to be picked up at an industrial estate in Lochgelly. Wearing sunglasses and with a scarf covering his chin, he got into the cab while clutching two holdalls. Still pretending to be foreign, he then directed the driver to a dead end in Kirkcaldy where he pulled out a black handgun and said: "You'll be safe if you do what I say." The court heard he handed a typed note to Mr Rankine and insisted he hand it over to staff at the nearby Bank of Scotland in the town's Carberry Road. It stated: "There is a transmitter in your bank and the lines are wired. "We can hear you and know if you try to call police. There is a bomb strapped to this man... also in the bag. They can go off if transmitter detect signal or call." The taxi driver tried to raise the alarm while walking to the bank by telling a passerby: "I am a taxi driver - there is a boy in my taxi with a gun. It's not a wind up." Despite the warnings, police were alerted and the note was read over to them. A security alarm was also pressed. One worker looked in the holdall and saw what she assumed was a bomb. Mr Rankine eventually left the bank with almost £10,000, but by this time Patrick had gone. Bomb disposal experts were called but the explosives were found to be fake, each consisting of little more than tubes, cotton wool and a mobile phone circuit board. Patrick was identified as a suspect after his description was circulated and mobile phone records showed he was in the area at the time. A cap like one used by the robbery was found at his home and draft emails referring to a bomb were discovered on a computer by a work colleague. The court heard the taxi driver continues to suffer flashbacks, insomnia, anxiety and fear. Bank staff were also left "extremely shaken". The gun used in the robbery was found to be an imitation. The judge Lord Bannatyne remanded Patrick, of Lochgelly, in custody and deferred sentencing for reports.

A man has admitted forcing a taxi driver to carry out a bank robbery by threatening staff with a fake bomb.

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Thousands of people were at the ceremony at BAE Systems' Devonshire Dock Hall in Barrow to mark the end of the build process for Artful. Another four of the nuclear-powered submarines are being built at the yard. The ceremony was carried out by Amanda Lady Zambellas, wife of the Royal Navy's First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir George Zambellas. BAE Systems Maritime - Submarines managing director John Hudson said: "The design and build of a nuclear-powered submarine is as challenging as it is complex, so today represents a significant milestone in Artful's programme. "It requires real skill and innovation to deliver submarines as sophisticated as Artful and this would not have been possible without the valued contribution of our employees and the collaborative efforts of the whole submarine enterprise." Artful will remain at the Barrow yard while commissioning activities are carried out and is due to be launched early next year for further tests. HMS Astute and HMS Ambush have already been launched. The other vessels are at various stages in the design and build process and will be called Audacious, Anson, Agamemnon and Ajax. The Barrow yard has been working on the Astute programme since 2001. The Ministry of Defence said the Astute class of submarines have greater firepower, state-of-the-art communications equipment and advanced stealth technology, making them quiet and harder to detect.

The third Astute Class submarine to be built at a Cumbrian shipyard has been named.

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Motorcyclist Leighton Santos, 22, admitted causing David Hitchen's death through careless driving and was jailed at Preston Crown Court on Monday. The maximum sentence is five years, but this can be reduced by a guilty plea. Road safety charity Brake said there was a "need to see much tougher sentences when a driver has killed". Santos admitted causing the 42-year-old former Great Britain international's death near Belmont, Lancashire, in September 2014, on the first day of his trial. Lancashire Police said Santos had been riding a Yamaha motorbike on Rivington Road when he "drifted into the opposite carriageway" and collided with Mr Hitchen. The cyclist suffered serious injuries and died later in hospital. In addition to the six months for causing death by careless driving, Santos was also given 12 months for another motoring offence. In March 2016 he was convicted at Manchester Crown Court of dangerous driving after taking police on an eight-mile pursuit that saw him reach speeds of up to 90mph (145km/h) in a 30mph zone. Martin Key, British Cycling's campaigns manager, said six months for "causing the death of a human being is a punishment that many would agree certainly does not fit the crime". "While these incidents are extremely rare, we need to ensure that sentencing guidelines adequately reflect the potential consequences of an offence," he said. A spokeswoman for Brake said the sentence was "insulting". "Leighton Santos, who killed another human being, was sentenced to a paltry 18 months in prison, and will likely be out in nine. "It's no wonder that grieving relatives are often left feeling let down and insulted by our justice system. "We need to see much tougher sentences when a driver has killed, particularly when, as in this case, they have exhibited previous examples of dangerous behaviour."

A six-month prison term handed to a motorist who killed an ex-international cyclist in a crash "does not fit the crime," British Cycling has said.

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Lagavulin is launching a single cask edition of 522 bottles of its single malt to raise funds for local projects. Sales of the £1,494 bottles are set to see £310,000 donated to Islay Heritage to help build a story of the island's past based on its archaeological sites. The Finlaggan Trust, which maintains the historical home of the Lord of the Isles, should also receive £60,000. The Lagavulin 200 Legacy is set to make further contributions to the local swimming pool, cyber cafe and arts and festival organisations, as well as a new partnership with the RSPB to restore and conserve peatlands on the island. Nick Morgan, of Lagavulin's owners Diageo, said: "We have had a fantastic year celebrating the 200th anniversary of Lagavulin, both on Islay and with the hundreds of thousands of people around the world who adore the whisky. "Islay and its remarkable local community are at the heart of Lagavulin. "That's why we were determined there should be a legacy from the anniversary which would directly benefit the island and its people. "We believe that our contribution to Islay Heritage is not only of great significance to the island itself but is an important contribution to conserving and promoting the history and heritage of Scotland." Bottles of the Lagavulin 1991 Single Malt Scotch Whisky cask can only be purchased through an online ballot on The Whisky Exchange. The first bottle will be auctioned separately to raise more charitable funds, and one bottle will be donated to the Diageo Archive and the Whisky Exchange. Steven Mithen, trustee of Islay Heritage and professor of archaeology, said: "Islay Heritage is hugely grateful to the Lagavulin 200 Legacy for the support it is providing to further our knowledge about the archaeological sites and monuments on Islay. "This investment in our heritage will greatly benefit both the local community and visitors to the island. "While some of Islay's sites and monuments are very well known and accessible, others are virtually unknown, difficult to find and rarely visited. "There are no doubt many more waiting to be discovered which will help tell us more about not only Islay's story but that of Scotland, Europe and the path of human culture as a whole. "We are delighted that Lagavulin shares our vision to reveal Islay's past so that it can be explored and enjoyed by everyone."

A whisky distillery plans to invest £580,000 in community projects to mark its 200 years on the island of Islay.

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Both the Islamic State group (IS) and Kurdish militants have claimed a number of attacks in Turkey in recent months. Turkey is part of the US-led coalition against IS, and coalition planes use its air base at Incirlik for raids in Iraq and Syria. Turkey is also conducting a campaign against Kurdish militants. How dangerous is Turkey's unrest? Tears and destruction amid PKK crackdown Turkey in midst of hideous vortex A ceasefire between the government and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) broke down last year. On Saturday an emergency travel warning was published on the website of the US embassy in Turkey. "There are credible threats to tourist areas, in particular to public squares and docks in Istanbul and Antalya. Please exercise extreme caution if you are in the vicinity of such areas," it read. Antalya, on Turkey's Mediterranean coast, is a major tourist centre visited by millions of people every year. The warning comes a day after Israel's counterterrorism bureau urged all Israelis to avoid Turkey, saying: "There are immediate risks of attacks being carried out in the country, and we stress the threat applies to all tourism sites in Turkey."

The US has warned its citizens of "credible threats" to tourist areas in Turkey, particularly in Istanbul and the southern resort city of Antalya.

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Total catches of cod, haddock and plaice have been increased, the Scottish government said. Catches of saithe, whiting and herring will be decreased in line with long-term management plans. Talks between the EU and Norway agreed the total allowable catch for cod would be 29,189 tonnes, 5% up on 2014. The increase will give UK fishermen an additional 542 tonnes and Scottish fishermen around 343 tonnes. A 6% increase in the haddock catch to 40,711 tonnes gives the UK an additional 3,468 tonnes and Scottish fishermen more than 2,500 extra tonnes. Scottish Fisheries Secretary Richard Lochhead said: "I am pleased there has been an increase in the quota of these key stocks for next year which is in line with the recent scientific advice that the stocks are in good shape. "It is welcome the agreement has been reached quickly this year compared to the protracted talks last year and will provide certainty for the industry about opportunities in 2015 and avoids any delays to the commencement of fishing in the new year. "There is much to be done to prepare for the discard ban which starts to come into force for white fish from 2016. This outcome will help these stocks continue to rebuild next year while also helping to minimise discards, and should provide a sound launchpad for establishing the following year's quota under the ban. "We now look ahead to the crucial December EU fisheries council when we will be highlighting again that our vessels need to retain the number of days they can go to sea as any cut would simply be counterproductive." UK Fisheries Minister George Eustice said the agreements were an "excellent result for the UK". He said: "It sees UK fishermen getting a 5% increase in their quota for cod - the second successive rise in annual cod quota in two years. The increase is an encouraging sign that we are achieving our goals; a thriving fishing industry with sustainable fish stocks. "The deal also saw a 7% rise in North Sea haddock and 15% rise in plaice quotas. This is great news for our fisheries ahead of vital quota negotiations next month where I will be representing UK fishermen."

Early agreement has been reached on North Sea fishing quotas for next year, with an increase in key stocks for Scottish fishermen.

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Carlisle's Hallam Hope was sent off for a dangerous challenge on Darnell Furlong before the U's James Dunne was denied by Mark Ellis block. Ben Williamson's tap-in for Cambridge was ruled offside and Derek Asamoah lifted over the bar from two yards. Ellis then picked up a second yellow for time-wasting and was sent off. Carlisle move down to 11th while Cambridge sit 12th, four and five points off the play-off places respectively.

Cambridge United were held to a goalless draw against nine-man Carlisle United, a result which damages both clubs' League Two play-off hopes.

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Its latest survey shows household spending dipped for the first time in four years last month with families "starting to feel the squeeze" as higher living costs eat into pay. "Let's face it, we are skint," says commentator Justin Urquart-Stewart. "Our card's maxed out, nothing in the savings account, pockets emptied out and nothing down the back of the sofa." Visa said physical stores saw sales drop at their fastest pace for over five years in May, with sales down 5.3% year-on-year. In contrast, spending at hotels and restaurants rose at an annual rate of 3.3%. But even though so-called "experiences" spending rose, the figures suggest people are still being careful. Josh Beer, from the Illustrious Pub Company, in Cambridgeshire, said: "More of our customers gravitated towards deals and offers in the past month, it feels as though they were biding their time, and cutting back until they became more confident in the economy." The Visa figures show overall spending was 08% lower than in 2016, the first fall since September 2013. The findings chime with official data from the Office for National Statistics, which shows that wage growth is falling back while inflation is rising, causing a squeeze on household incomes as they fail to keep pace with shop prices. The latest official figures showed wage growth behind inflation for the first time since mid-2014, and the Bank of England has said it expects this to get worse. Average weekly earnings excluding bonuses increased by 2.1% in the three months to March, while inflation rose by 2.3% in the year to March 2017. "Now is starts to hurt, with inflation above lower pay levels we will all start to feel poorer. As the consumer we have been the driver of the UK economic engine - and now you can hear it start to splutter," adds Mr Urquart-Stewart, co-founder of fund manager Seven Investment Management. One of the chief reasons for inflation's rise is the steep fall in sterling since the UK voted to leave the European Union. It is now worth between 11-15% less against the euro and the dollar, making anything we buy with our weaker currency more expensive. That leaves shops with a dilemma, shred their often already paper-thin profit margins or raise prices.

We're buying fewer clothes and pairs of shoes, although we're eating out more, according to credit card firm Visa.

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Liverpool City Council's chief executive Ged Fitzgerald and leader of the Conservatives at Lancashire County Council Geoff Driver were among four men held on Monday. The probe is looking into financial irregularities at Lancashire council. Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson said Mr Fitzgerald had not been suspended or faced any disciplinary process. He added Mr Fitzgerald would also be relinquishing his role as interim head of paid service for the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority during the investigation. "This decision has been accepted as the right decision for the city and to enable the council to deliver services without distraction," said Mr Anderson. "There is no intention to appoint an interim chief executive and the requirements of the role will be covered by myself as executive mayor supported by the senior management team in this period." Mr Anderson said Mr Fitzgerald had been bailed by police. Lancashire Constabulary said the arrests at addresses in Preston and Merseyside were made on suspicion of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice and witness intimidation, but not on suspicion of fraud. The investigation, which was launched in 2013, relates to allegations of financial irregularities over the tendering of a £5m contract with One Connect Ltd, a joint venture between the council and BT to run some services. The deal included running the council's fleet of vehicles which was agreed by Lancashire's Conservative administration, then led by Mr Driver. The contract was revoked later that year by the new Labour administration. Mr Fitzgerald was the chief executive at Lancashire before he left to take up the same post at Liverpool City Council.

A council chief executive has stepped aside from his role after being arrested as part of a fraud probe.

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Anthony Storrie died on 30 June 2013 at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley after taking "N-bombs". The 26-year-old had been arrested the night before for an alleged police assault while under the influence of the drug, which is now illegal. A fatal accident inquiry heard he had suffered damage to his liver while "crashing about" in his flat. Sheriff Principal Duncan Murray ruled there was no evidence Storrie, of Paisley, had been assaulted by police officers or his friends. He said: "The N-bomb caused Mr Storrie to be in the agitated state. "The effects of the N-bomb then prevented him from being able to give any explanation of the injury which he had sustained. "Nonetheless, Mr Storrie's death would in all probability not have occurred had he not taken N-bomb. "Mr Storrie's death is a stark reminder of the risks posed by drug-taking. "It is clear from the evidence presented to this inquiry that N-bomb is a potent compound producing significant hallucinogenic effects. "It is also apparent from the evidence given by experienced consultants in emergency medicine of the significant risks posed to those taking cocktails of drugs in uncertain dosages and of uncertain chemical composition or purity." Drugs expert Dr Richard Stevenson had told the inquiry that the effects of the drug would have made it impossible for Storrie to properly describe his injuries. He said Storrie was in a state of "excited delirium" when he was admitted to hospital and was suffering from a range of physical phenomena which contributed to his death. The inquiry heard the cause of death was recorded as "blunt force trauma" stemming from a cut to the liver which was caused by an abdominal haemorrhage. The trauma and injuries including broken ribs were caused by a blow "the equivalent to being kicked by a horse or driving at speed in a car without a seatbelt, crashing and hitting the steering wheel". Dr Stevenson, an A&E doctor at Glasgow's Royal Infirmary, said Storrie's symptoms meant he was "about to die" when he was taken to hospital for treatment. He said that by taking the hallucinogenic drug, which is similar to LSD, he had "life-threateningly low" blood pressure, a racing heart, and an increased body temperature.

A man who died in police custody would still be alive if he hadn't taken a so-called legal high, a sheriff has ruled.

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About £11m will be spent on the upgrade at the Hearts ground. The current main stand was built in 1919. The club hopes work will begin next month. Hearts owner Ann Budge said last month that she hoped the work would be completed in September 2017. The new stand will increase the capacity to more than 7,200 from 4,720. Ms Budge said the current stand was still useable but not up to the standards that fans expect. The plans involve demolishing large sections of the existing main stand, and the ticket offices and shops.

Plans to rebuild the main stand at Tynecastle football stadium have been approved by Edinburgh city council.

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Archibald, 22, dominated the event, with Dutch rider Kirsten Wild second and Belgium's Lotte Kopecky third. That came 24 hours after she won her third consecutive women's individual pursuit title, having gained silver in Thursday's elimination race. The Scottish cyclist won gold in the pursuit quartet at the Olympics in Rio.

British Olympic champion Katie Archibald won omnium gold at the European Track Championships, her second title in two nights in Paris.

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The problem is that so many of the initiatives and ideas sold to the country as ground-breaking prove to be business as usual. So the Communities Secretary Sajid Javid went out of his way to sound no-nonsense and tough today. He accused some English councils of "fudging" the numbers on housing need in their area and warned them that he was not going to allow that to happen anymore. But the response to the government's proposals has been decidedly mixed. Labour's shadow housing minister John Healey described them as "feeble beyond belief". "Re-treading old ground" was how the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers described the White Paper. "Kicking the can down the road," one big investment fund said. The chief executive of the housebuilder Inland Homes, Stephen Wicks, bemoaned the failure to relax rules on green belt development. "Brownfield in itself can't possibly sustain the long-term housing requirements of the UK," he said. "It can go an awful long way but there needs to be a relaxation of some green belt to enable us to deliver the numbers that we are required to do." The White Paper does include measures to encourage developers, housing associations and councils to build more affordable homes more quickly, both to rent and to buy. But this government seems to speak with two voices on housing: the communities department wants to shift the balance of power firmly towards new development in places people want to live, but Number 10 and some influential Tory backbenchers are sympathetic to the passionate concerns of those who wish to protect the countryside and particularly the green belt. The real question that lies behind all the rhetoric and policy bullet-points is whether the balance of power between development and local opposition has fundamentally changed. Ministers now accept England needs 250,000 new homes every year, they have described the housing market as "broken" and they agree that radical change is the only way to mend it. But many have yet to be convinced that this White Paper amounts to a "realistic plan" to achieve that.

Over the last three decades, governments of various stripes have promised radical change to solve England's housing crisis and today's White Paper is no exception.

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The state department's John Kirby said Pakistan must target militant groups. The United Jihad Council - a coalition of militant groups fighting Indian rule in Kashmir - has claimed responsibility. The attack on the Pathankot base near the Pakistani border is seen as an attempt to derail recent peace moves by Pakistan and India. "The government of Pakistan has spoken very powerfully on this and it's our expectation that they'll treat this exactly the way they've said they would. We have been clear with the highest levels of the government of Pakistan that it must continue to target all militant groups," Mr Kirby said. Five militants and seven Indian soldiers have so far been killed during four days of fighting. The army is still conducting clearing operations inside the 2,000 acre base. The United Jihad Council was formed in 1994 to co-ordinate resources and plans to hit military targets in Indian Kashmir among more than a dozen groups based in Pakistani-administered Kashmir. Those groups were widely seen as being brought together by Pakistan's ISI intelligence agency. The UJC is led by Mohammad Salahuddin, the leader of the pro-Pakistan Hezbul Mujahideen group, the largest in the alliance. The leadership of most of these groups is based in Pakistan, and they have been largely dormant since the 2003 ceasefire on the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto boundary dividing Kashmir. So the claim by the UJC to have carried out this latest attack is likely to strengthen the view that it was authorised by the Pakistani army to undermine Mr Modi's recent peace overtures to Pakistan's civilian government. The Pakistani military has been accused of sabotaging the civilian-led normalisation process with India on several occasions in the past. The UJC could also be trying to remain relevant even after India strengthened the LoC to stop infiltration of militants from the Pakistani side. On Monday evening, a senior security official told a press conference that all families living on the base were safe and "all strategic assets [helicopters, aircraft and other military hardware] were secured". Maj-Gen Dushyant Singh, from India's elite National Security Guard, said it would take a "long time" to declare the base completely secure, because of its size and geography. Meanwhile, police in Punjab's Mohali district said they had arrested three men with illegal arms and recovered a Pakistani "SIM card" from them. It is not yet clear whether the men had any connection with the attack, police said. The Pathankot assault started before dawn on Saturday when a group of gunmen - wearing Indian army uniforms - entered the residential quarters on the base. Hours of heavy gunfire followed and a helicopter was seen firing at the facility on Sunday. The attack is being seen as a blow to an apparent Indo-Pakistani peace initiative launched just days ago. Hopes for a thaw in relations were raised after Mr Modi paid an unexpected visit to his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif. Pakistan's foreign ministry and the US state department have condemned the attack. Pathankot air force base is about 430km (270 miles) north of the Indian capital, Delhi, and is on the road linking Indian-administered Kashmir with the rest of the country. Indian-administered Kashmir has seen a long-running insurgency against rule from Delhi, and Kashmir has been a flashpoint in relations between Pakistan and India for nearly 70 years since independence.

The US said it "expects" Pakistan to act against perpetrators of a deadly attack on an Indian air force base.

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It was gobsmacking, unbelievable, enthralling and explosive throughout, featuring huge momentum swings and with outstanding individual performances in all three Tests. I thought beforehand that if they lost the first Test the Lions would lose the series 3-0, so I have to give credit to what is the strongest Lions side since 2001, or maybe even 1997, for the way they fought back. The quality shone through both in the players and the coaching. After the first week or so the debate about lack of preparation time died down - that is one for the administrators to sort out behind closed doors. But just think what they could have done with 10 days' more time to get ready - they might even have gone in as favourites against the world champions. This will be a tour remembered for Sean O'Brien's try in the first Test. The Lions may have lost that match but it was a wonder try, and now the lads have managed to draw the series that score will be the one that sticks in the memory. Although that might be the standout moment, to be honest pretty much every moment of every Test was a defining moment - it really was that good. The most significant moment was Sonny Bill Williams' red card in the second Test. You don't know for certain what the outcome would have been had he not been sent off, but it's more than likely New Zealand would have won. That was effectively two defining moments - the impact of his shoulder with Anthony Watson's head, and the moment referee Jerome Garces - correctly - decided it was a red-card offence. It was a huge momentum swing in both the match and the series, although it didn't seem so immediately because the Lions proceeded to give away loads of penalties and slip nine points behind, before finally starting to believe in themselves and scoring two great tries as they fought back to win. Another pivotal moment would have been conversations after the first Test because the Lions had been dominated physically in many cases. The conversations must have been along the lines of looking players in the eye and saying: "Are you genuinely up for this?" Warren Gatland's decision to field the back three of Liam Williams, Watson and Elliot Daly in the second Test was a bit of a surprise but, as before with the coach's decisions, it worked out. And then there's the penalty that then wasn't in the final Test. Sam Warburton dug deep into the Lions' legacy and his own mental reserves to prevent New Zealand doing what they wanted to do with the ball. But arguably his biggest contribution was being respected enough by Romain Poite for the referee to change his decision and decide to award a scrum to New Zealand, rather than a very kickable penalty, right at the end of Saturday's decider. It was huge because, unless I've got the rules wrong, it was a penalty as the ball was avoidable for Ken Owens, while a scrum says contact was accidental. He caught it and although it was maybe a reflex action, catching and then releasing the ball suggests he could have avoided it. I have to say 'God bless the Kiwis', because on the pitch they accepted it. They will talk to the referee after the game, but during matches they just get on with it. They set the standards. Jonathan Davies was very good and was the Lions players' man of the series but for me the best player in a red shirt was Taulupe Faletau. The Wales number eight was so consistent, and I believe there's even more to come. He's a phenomenal athlete with a fantastic engine, which allows him to always play for 80 minutes in both defence and attack. I'd still like to see more of him carrying in the wider channels, but he was my man of series. Rugby is such a squad game it's a shame you have to pick individuals but Taulupe is a bit of an unsung hero and his work-rate and ability mean he made a massive contribution. His Wales team-mate Davies had a fine series. He made some great breaks, he was solid in defence without being headline-making, he assumed the role of carrying to the gainline in the second and third Tests, came up with a couple of good relieving kicks and played well all round. Maro Itoje showed his growing maturity by the way he pushed the boundaries - he was knowingly offside and doing it for a reason, which is great when you get away with it. He was magnificent in the third Test and at one point made four tackles in about 45 seconds. His willingness to be involved is staggering and a benchmark for anyone who wants to be the best. Owen Farrell's mental ability to step back and kick crucial penalties, especially after he missed a couple of kicks early in the tour, shows his ability to totally zone in when he has to - something New Zealand's Beauden Barrett, for all his other abilities, doesn't seem able to do. O'Brien was also impactful on the flank and made sure the Lions were on the front foot both in attack and defence, and his Ireland team-mate Conor Murray was very good at the base, helping run the game. I hope this series is a springboard for the home unions to believe there can be a shift in power in terms of the world rankings and beating the southern hemisphere teams on a more regular basis. Let's get fitter and really test ourselves. I don't think many of the home unions can compete on skills in the forwards with New Zealand but the back three the Lions fielded was probably more skilful and adventurous than that of the hosts, which shows the possibilities are there. There was some talk going into the series that the future of the Lions was once again under threat and what's interesting is that the posturing is coming from the clubs. I would like to think they're clever enough to go and do the negotiations behind the scenes now because they must realise how secure the Lions' future is. Ask a player, coach or supporter if they think the Lions is here to stay and there will be a resounding yes. That says everything that needs to be said. Jerry was talking to BBC Sport's James Standley.

We have just witnessed a phenomenal Lions series.

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The service was held at the 22-year-old's school in Ohio, before his burial at a nearby cemetery. His death has heightened tensions between the US and North Korea. Pyongyang has called President Donald Trump a "psychopath", while he describes N Korea as a brutal regime. Pyongyang's official Rodong Sinmun newspaper claimed Mr Trump might launch a pre-emptive strike on North Korea to divert attention from his domestic difficulties, and warned South Korea "that following psychopath Trump... will only lead to disaster". Earlier in the week, after announcing Mr Warmbier's death, President Trump said he was determined to "prevent such tragedies from befalling innocent people at the hands of regimes that do not respect the rule of law or basic human decency". The thousands of funeral goers formed two lines as Mr Warmbier's coffin was carried into Wyoming High School for the 45-minute service, and then along the three-mile route to the cemetery. There was only space for 800 people inside the school's auditorium so most attendees watched the service on monitors in overflow rooms, CNN reports. Mr Warmbier's brother and sister, along with some friends, spoke during the service. Bagpipes played as mourners, wearing blue and white ribbons - the school's colours - to honour the former student, left the school. Thousands of people from his small hometown of Wyoming, Ohio, packed into Otto Warmbier's old high school for his funeral. For most, his casket was the first they had seen of Otto since he went to North Korea - awful confirmation of the shocking, surreal set of circumstances that had played out since early last year. Among several politicians in attendance, including officials from the state and defence departments was the Ohio Senator Rob Portman, who had been involved in the quest to bring him home. Mr Portman reflected a sense that while today was a time to talk about Mr Warmbier's life, as a young man with huge potential, the issue of responsibility had to be addressed. After the funeral, mourners stood to watch the cortege pass and disappear through the streets with blue and white ribbons tied to all the trees in his honour. As they reflect, there are many not just here but across the country, asking how North Korea will now pay for what many see as the murder of an American citizen. Otto Warmbier was returned by North Korea to the US last week, more than a year after he had been sentenced to 15 years' hard labour. He was in a coma and died a few days later. His parents say that though he never spoke or opened his eyes, "the countenance of his face changed - he was at peace. He was home and we believe he could sense that". US doctors say he suffered a "severe neurological injury", the most likely cause of which was a cardiopulmonary arrest that had cut the blood supply to the brain. A post-mortem examination was not carried out at the request of the family. Otto Warmbier, a student at the University of Virginia, was travelling with a tour group when he was arrested at Pyongyang airport in January 2016. He was accused of stealing a propaganda sign from a hotel and, two months later, was sentenced during a short trial. His family had no news of him until 13 June, when Pyongyang said he had been in a coma since his trial after contracting botulism and receiving a sleeping pill. US doctors say there is no evidence he suffered from botulism, and the Warmbier family believe he died as a result of "awful torturous mistreatment".

More than 2,500 family, friends and well-wishers gathered for the funeral of Otto Warmbier, the US student who died after falling into a coma while in prison in North Korea.

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Inflation, as measured by Consumer Prices Index (CPI), rose to 0.1% in May, up from -0.1% in April. The biggest contribution to the rise came from transport, notably air fares, the Office for National Statistics said. In April, CPI inflation turned negative for the first time since 1960, mainly due to a drop in air and sea fares. ONS statistician Philip Gooding said: "Last month CPI turned negative, mainly because of falling transport fares due to the timing of Easter. This month, that fall has been reversed." He added that the falls in food and fuel costs over the past year "have eased this month, helping to push inflation up". While the prices of food and fuel rose in May from the previous month, the prices were still lower than a year earlier. However, while the overall effect of food and fuel on CPI inflation pulled the rate down by about 0.5 percentage points in May, this was less pronounced than the month before when the prices had a negative effect of 0.7 percentage points. Ben Brettell, senior economist at Hargreaves Lansdown, said that "seasonal factors surrounding the timing of the Easter holiday were at work in last month's figures - CPI inflation was pushed down by cheaper air fares relative to last year. Now those factors have dropped out of the calculation we are back where we started." Negative inflation "proved both marginal and fleeting", said Howard Archer, chief UK and European economist at IHS Global Insight. "We doubt that deflation will recur in the UK, although it cannot be completely ruled out if oil prices take a renewed appreciable downward lurch," he said. Nevertheless, inflationary pressures "remained limited in May and core inflation was still only 0.9% after hitting a 14-year low of 0.8% in April," Mr Archer added. Martin Beck, senior economic advisor to the EY ITEM Club, said that CPI inflation measure could briefly turn negative again during the summer. "Petrol prices, having rallied earlier in the year, have stabilised lately, while today's producer prices data indicates that there are no inflationary pressures coming along the supply chain," Mr Beck said. In May Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation, a separate measure which includes housing costs, was 1%, up from 0.9% in April. Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said he expects inflation to remain low in the short term. The Bank expects near-zero inflation to help the UK economy by boosting the spending power of households. Chancellor George Osborne said "a powerful mix of low prices and rising wages" was "good news for working people and family budgets". Nevertheless, he said: "Of course the job is not done and we will continue to remain vigilant to all risks, particularly when the global economic situation is so uncertain." Labour's shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, Shabana Mahmood, said that despite the low level of inflation, "many households are still struggling to pay the bills". "We need stronger action now to raise productivity to deliver sustainable growth and rising living standards," she said.

Transport costs helped the UK's inflation rate turn positive in May after one month of negative inflation.

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Tomasz Galwaz, 29, died after falling from the roof of Al Amin Wholesale in Aston, Birmingham on 5 January 2015. Mafizur Rahman, 32, of Trinity Road, Aston, pleaded guilty to manslaughter at Birmingham Crown Court in December. Police said his main priority had been to get roof repairs done as cheaply as possible with disregard to the safety of workers. Al Amin Wholesale Limited, the company who own the buildings, also pleaded guilty to two breaches under the Health and Safety at Work Act. The firm was also fined £144,000 and ordered to pay costs of £44,600. See more stories from across Birmingham and the Black Country here Mr Galwaz and a friend were employed by Rahman in December 2014 to carry out repairs to the roof of the warehouse in Grosvenor Road, owned by his brothers and father, police said. The deal was carried out through an interpreter as the two Polish men spoke little English. Police were later told by the interpreter that there were no discussions around safety procedures, personal protective equipment or risk assessments. There was also no mention of insurance. The men were working on the roof on 5 January when it cracked and they both fell through on to a concrete floor. Mr Galwaz was taken to hospital with a serious head wound and died from his injuries the following day. The second man suffered minor injuries. Det Insp Jim Munro, from West Midlands Police, said: "Rahman's main priority was to get the job done as cheaply as possible with complete disregard for the safety of these workers − with tragic consequences." A second man also arrested in January 2015 on suspicion of manslaughter was released without charge.

A businessman has been jailed for 30 months after a man plunged to his death from a warehouse roof.

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Simon Hamilton said if they want the highest standard of health and social care, then the current configuration of services is not going to work. Mr Hamilton pulled no punches in his first keynote address in his new role. He said the real challenge was the absence of political agreement on the future of health and social care. Mr Hamilton acknowledged the worries that reform will lead to the closure of facilities. But he added that its growing and ageing population means Northern Ireland has to do things differently. In a hard-hitting speech with lots of plain talking, the minister said attachments to the bricks and mortar of the National Health Service [NHS] must not act as a barrier that inhibits people from getting the best healthcare. Instead, he called on people to embrace change and allow the NHS to move with the times.

Northern Ireland's new health minister has challenged politicians to accept change as he outlined his vision for the future of local health services.

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The two Manchester sides will meet at the Bird's Nest Stadium in Beijing on Monday, 25 July as part of the pre-season International Champions Cup. Guardiola is replacing City boss Manuel Pellegrini in the summer. Surprise Premier League leaders Leicester will play Barcelona and Paris St-Germain as they make their debut in the invitational tournament. The Foxes will play Celtic in Glasgow on 23 July, PSG in Los Angeles on 30 July and Barcelona in Stockholm on 3 August. United's pre-season tour will be much shorter than in recent years. At manager Louis van Gaal's insistence, the club will only be spending eight days in China, and play just two games. The first of these will be against German side Borussia Dortmund, who face Liverpool in the Europa League quarter-finals next month, in Shanghai on Friday, 22 July. Guardiola could meet old foe Jose Mourinho, who has had talks with United about taking over from Van Gaal. The Premier League season will start later this year - on Saturday, 13 August.

Pep Guardiola will face rivals Manchester United in one of his first games as Manchester City manager.

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Belmont, a Grade II* listed building in Lyme Regis, has been restored following eight years of research and two years of restoration work by the Landmark Trust charity. It was owned in the 18th Century by Eleanor Coade, who built up a successful artificial stone business. The building will open to the public on Saturday and Sunday. Dr Anna Keay, director of the Landmark Trust, said the rejuvenated building was "a fitting monument to the genius of Eleanor Coade". She added: "Visitors will now be able to stay in her Georgian architectural gem and in so doing experience the beauty and peace that inspired one of our greatest modern writers, John Fowles." Belmont was Fowles's home for almost four decades from 1968, and it was where he completed his classic novel The French Lieutenant's Woman. The Landmark Trust's craftspeople have recreated any damaged or missing items at their studio in the Cotswolds, such as fireplaces, architraves, shutters and skirting boards. Coade stone was a ceramic, synthetic stone that was first produced during the 18th Century. Like the trust's other 195 buildings, Belmont will be let out for short breaks.

A Georgian seaside villa in Dorset, where author John Fowles lived, will open its doors after a £1.8m revamp.

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Anthony McIntyre has been granted leave to seek a judicial review of the decision by police to issue a letter requesting the confidential recordings. The PSNI wants the Boston College material as part of their investigation into alleged terrorist offences. A full hearing is expected to take place in November. The PSNI and Public Prosecution Service have issued an International Letter of Request (ILOR) in relation to the recordings. It sets out the alleged offences being investigated including a bomb explosion at Rugby Avenue in Belfast in 1976 and membership of a terrorist organisation. Senior judges at Belfast's High Court on Monday ruled they were not yet satisfied information in the request had been "scrupulously" examined. Mr McIntyre's lawyers said he was the victim in the bombing and he was acquitted of the membership charge. Ronan Lavery QC said: "The letter itself is replete with errors, which we say are misleading and require an explanation." Mr McIntyre, who is from Belfast but now lives in the Republic of Ireland, was jailed for murder in 1977. Now an academic, he was one of the main researchers on Boston College's oral history project on the Troubles. Dozens of loyalist and republican paramilitaries gave candid interviews on the understanding their account would only be made public after they died. The interviews have become known as the "Boston Tapes". Detectives have previously won legal battles to secure the transcripts and tapes of interviews given by former IRA woman Dolours Price and ex-loyalist prisoner Winston "Winkie" Rea. A subpoena seeking copies of Mr McIntyre's interviews has been served on Boston College by the British government, and the ILOR is part of this. Mr McIntyre's lawyers say the tapes only contain details of offences for which he had already served a prison sentence. Lord Justices Weatherup and Weir heard that Boston College had released the tapes to the US authorities. They stressed that if PSNI officers travelled to Massachusetts to retrieve the recordings, they must remain under seal and be stored with the court until the challenge was decided.

An ex-IRA man has won the first step in a legal battle to stop police accessing interviews he gave to a US university about his paramilitary activities.

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Governor Rick Scott issued the executive order in four counties after samples taken from the St Lucie River tested positive for toxins. The green slime appeared when polluted water was discharged from Lake Okeechobee to prevent flooding. The toxic algae can be harmful to plants, animals and humans. The US Army Corps of Engineers began discharging freshwater from the lake more than two weeks ago. Lake Okeechobee, the largest freshwater body in the state, is contaminated with runoff that includes human waste, animal feed and fertiliser. The process sent millions of gallons of the nutrient-heavy water into the river and triggered the growth of blue-green algae on some of Florida's southern rivers and beaches. Samples taken in the river near Palm City and Stuart tested positive for hazardous levels of toxins. If ingested, the toxic algae could cause nausea and vomiting and rash or hay fever if touched or inhaled. Beaches along Florida's Treasure Coast were closed last week in response to the expansion of the green sludge. Though many of the beaches have reopened, officials recommend that people stay away from the hazardous waterways. Governor Scott blamed the polluted waters on water storage limitations and the federal government. "Florida's waterways, wildlife and families have been severely impacted by the inaction and negligence of the federal government not making the needed repairs to the Herbert Hoover Dike and Florida can no longer afford to wait," Scott said. Florida Senator Marco Rubio on Friday called on President Barack Obama to declare a federal state of emergency and to release funds to help businesses affected by the algae. Mr Rubio and Senator Bill Nelson have also urged the US Army Corps of Engineers to stop the flow of water between the river and Lake Okeechobee. The Army Corps began reducing the flow on Friday, focusing on the Caloosahatchee Estuary and the St Lucie Estuary.

Swathes of thick, algae blooms have plagued miles of Florida coastline, prompting the governor to declare a state of emergency.

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Spending on the NHS should also be paid for by a dedicated tax marked on every payslip, the former health minister suggested. Under Mr Lamb's plan, taxes would not be increased as the new levy would be offset by deductions to income tax or national insurance. He has warned the NHS faces collapse without an urgent cash injection. The plans are not yet party policy and will not be put to this year's conference in Bournemouth. But Mr Lamb, the party's health spokesman, told party members he was "very interested in the idea of a dedicated NHS and care contribution - separating it out from the rest of taxation, clearly identified on your payslip. "And I am really interested in the idea of the right for local areas to raise additional funds for the NHS and care if they choose." The Lib Dems say he would like to implement the ideas across the UK, although, as health and social care are devolved, it is unclear how this would be enforced. Mr Lamb - who lost out to Tim Farron in a leadership election in July - proposes a cross-party commission to explore the ideas. He intends to consult health bodies and professionals, patients, trade unions and academics. Ministers have pledged £2bn in this financial year for the NHS, and an extra £8bn by 2020. But Mr Lamb told the BBC that this was insufficient and, having "seen the books" as a minister in the last government, he feared the NHS could face a funding shortfall of £30bn by 2020. "The bottom line is with rising demand because of an ageing population we need more investment," he said. Mr Lamb also warned that the social care system was "on its knees" and could collapse without a cash injection of £5bn. "I've been in the department. I have seen the books and I am deeply concerned. If we carry on regardless, the system will crash." Taxpayers are already shown how much they have contributed to the health service in annual personal tax statements. An attempt to establish a cross-party commission on social care before the 2010 election - led in part by Mr Lamb - collapsed in acrimony.

English councils should be allowed to put up taxes to fund the NHS, Norman Lamb has told the Lib Dem conference.

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Scientists have found that two types of chemicals called neonicotinoids and coumaphos are interfering with the insect's ability to learn and remember. Experiments revealed that exposure was also lowering brain activity, especially when the two pesticides were used in combination. The research is detailed in two papers in Nature Communications and the Journal of Experimental Biology. But a company that makes the substances said laboratory-based studies did not always apply to bees in the wild. And another report, published by the Defra's Food and Environment Research Agency (Fera), concluded that there was no link between bee health and exposure to neonicotinoids. The government agency carried out a study looking at bumblebees living on the edges of fields treated with the chemicals. Falling numbers Honey bees around the world are facing an uncertain future. They have been hit with a host of diseases, losses of habitat, and in the US the mysterious Colony Collapse Disorder has caused numbers to plummet. Now researchers are asking whether pesticides are also playing a role in their decline. To investigate, scientists looked at two common pesticides: neonicotinoids, which are used to control pests on oil seed rape and other crops, and a group of organophosphate chemicals called coumaphos, which are used to kill the Varroa mite, a parasite that attacks the honey bee. Neonicotinoids are used more commonly in Europe, while coumaphos are more often employed in the United States. Work carried out by the University of Dundee, in Scotland, revealed that if the pesticides were applied directly to the brains of the pollinators, they caused a loss of brain activity. Dr Christopher Connolly said: "We found neonicotinoids cause an immediate hyper-activation - so an epileptic type activity - this was proceeded by neuronal inactivation, where the brain goes quiet and cannot communicate any more. The same effects occur when we used organophosphates. "And if we used them together, the effect was additive, so they added to the toxicity: the effect was greater when both were present." Another series of laboratory-based experiments, carried out at Newcastle University, examined the behaviour of the bees. The researchers there found that bees exposed to both pesticides were unable to learn and then remember floral smells associated with a sweet nectar reward - a skill that is essential for bees in search of food. Dr Sally Williamson said: "It would imply that the bees are able to forage less effectively, they are less able to find and learn and remember and then communicate to their hive mates what the good sources of pollen and nectar are." 'No threat' She said that companies that are manufacturing the pesticides should take these findings into account when considering the safety of the chemicals. She explained: "At the moment, the initial tests for bee toxicity are giving the bees an acute dose and then watching them to see if they die. "But because bees do these complex learning tasks, they are very social animals and they have a complex behavioural repertoire, they don't need to be killed outright in order not to be affected." The European Commission recently called for a temporary moratorium on the use of neonicotinoids after a report by the European Food Safety Authority concluded that they posed a high acute risk to pollinators. But 14 out of the 27 EU nations - including the UK and Germany - opposed the ban, and the proposal has now been delayed. Ian Boyd, chief scientist at Defra, said: "Decisions on the use of neonicotinoids must be based on sound scientific evidence." He said that the results of the Fera bumblebee study suggested that the extent of the impact might not be as high as some studies had suggested - and called for "further data based on more realistic field trials is required". Dr Julian Little, communications and government affairs manager at Bayer Crop Science Limited, which makes some of the pesticides, said the findings of laboratory-based studies should not be automatically extrapolated to the field. "If you take an insecticide and you give it directly to an insect, I can guarantee that you will have an effect - I am not at all surprised that this is what you will see," he explained. "What is really important is seeing what happens in real situations - in real fields, in real bee colonies, in real bee hives, with real bee keepers."

Commonly used pesticides are damaging honey bee brains, studies suggest.

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The 24-hour strike, on 1 February, comes as part of a row over conditions. Members of the RMT and Aslef unions walked out on 4 January this year, the day many returned to work after the Christmas break. The pay side of the dispute has been accepted, but Aslef previously claimed Arriva was trying to "railroad through" changes to terms and conditions. A union statement read: "Aslef today announced that, in the light of Arriva Trains Wales' failure to offer a satisfactory resolution to the long and ongoing dispute with its drivers, our members will withdraw their labour for 24 hours." Arriva said it "regretted" the disruption January's strike caused to more than 1,000 services it runs each day, when people complained of queues for tickets, long delays and overcrowding.

Arriva Trains Wales drivers are set to go on strike for the second time this year, the Aslef union has said.

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The Swiss eighth seed played magnificently in a 4-6 6-4 6-3 6-4 victory at Roland Garros. Wawrinka, 30, brought an end to Djokovic's 28-match winning streak as he claimed his second Grand Slam title. Media playback is not supported on this device Djokovic had been hoping to become the eighth man to complete the set of all four major titles. But the Serb will have to wait at least another 12 months before attempting to match the full set of major titles collected by Andre Agassi, Don Budge, Roy Emerson, Roger Federer, Rod Laver, Rafael Nadal and Fred Perry. The 28-year-old had been a strong favourite to finally get his hands on the Coupe des Mousquetaires after beating nine-time champion Rafael Nadal and third seed Andy Murray, but he was outplayed by Wawrinka. "It was an incredible atmosphere on court and I felt emotion like I never have before," said Wawrinka. "I would like to thank my coach Magnus Norman. You played in the final without winning but this victory is yours as well as mine." Djokovic was effusive in his praise for the new champion: "There are things that are more important in life than victories and that is character and respect - Stan you are a great champion with big heart." Their last four matches in Grand Slams had gone to five sets and this was every bit as good in terms of quality, with Wawrinka hitting 60 winners as his aggression broke down the seemingly invincible Djokovic defence. The victory makes him only the second Swiss to win at Roland Garros after Roger Federer, the man he beat in the quarter-finals. Having lost the first set of the final following a poor service game at 3-3, Wawrinka came storming back with a barrage of winners that left Djokovic looking lost for a response. Four break points came and went in the second set before the fifth arrived in the shape of a set point, and Wawrinka finally converted to level the match. It was merely a sign of things to come as the eighth seed tore into the Djokovic serve in the third, and despite seeing off three break points for 1-1, there was little the top seed could do four games later. A brilliant forehand winner was followed by an equally breathtaking backhand to earn three break points, and the first was converted as Wawrinka moved forward and hammered a short ball. The crowd on Court Philippe Chatrier roared as the Swiss hit an outrageous winner around the net post on his way to securing the set. Djokovic was now facing a third French Open final defeat and he dug in, taking advantage of a lull at the opposite end of the court to fashion a 3-0 lead in the fourth. The match was now on Wawrinka's racquet, however, and he came storming back to level at 3-3 after some brilliant defence earned him the break. Djokovic called on everything he had to stay in touch, finding two volleys - the second a lunging effort reminiscent of his coach Boris Becker - to save break points with the score level in the set. Moments later it looked as though Djokovic would force the fifth set that had seemed inevitable as he moved 0-40 up, but there was another burst of brilliance to come from Wawrinka. A volley, a backhand and a serve got him out of trouble, and he rode the wave of five successive points into the next game as two screaming backhand passes at 4-4 gave him the chance to serve out for the title. It was never likely to be easy and, after a possible ace was overruled by the umpire on his first match point, the Swiss had to face a break point as Djokovic clung on to his career Slam hopes. The Serb could only send a forehand wide under pressure, and given a second opportunity to take the championship, Wawrinka steered another of those trademark backhands down the line and raised his arms in triumph.

Stan Wawrinka stunned Novak Djokovic to win his first French Open title and thwart the world number one's career Grand Slam hopes.

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The poster with the phrase #prayforjosh appeared in Holywood by the A2 within the last week. It is part of a social media campaign supporting 13-year-old Joshua Martin, from Donaghadee, County Down. Life took a dramatic turn for the teenager when he was diagnosed with cancer on Christmas Eve. He was due to have an operation on his appendix at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast. However, doctors instead discovered and removed a large primary cancer and five smaller growths. The news shocked Josh's family, but since his diagnosis they have received lots of support from people all over the world. It began as a hashtag on Facebook and Instagram by Bangor Elim Church, where Josh's father is on the pastoral staff, and has since gone viral. The church's senior pastor, Gary Beattie, said he was amazed by how many people have supported Josh and his family so far. "We were in total shock when he was diagnosed, and really the family just wanted support from people and to ask people to pray for Josh," Gary said. "It certainly isn't a campaign as such, we just put the hashtag on our Facebook posts to get some of our congregation thinking about him. We had no idea that it would take off. "We would use social media quite a lot because we have quite a young congregation, and we've been posting updates about Josh from his family. "The update was shared 948 times and it's been seen by over 79,000 people. It's absolutely phenomenal. "We thought there had been a mistake, but you can look at the views and where they've come from, and there are people all over the world supporting him, which is great." But how did a social media hashtag lead to the appearance of the massive billboard? Gary said that last week a mystery donor paid for the sign and it was erected at Holywood playing fields. "We do not know where it came from, we didn't put it there, but it means a lot to have such support," Gary said. There has also been a huge outpouring of support on Twitter for the Bangor Grammar pupil, with his classmates using the now-global hashtag for their friend. As Josh's family and friends continue to support him in his recovery, it now seems there will be people all over the world will be following suit, thanks to the kindness of County Down strangers.

A large billboard has been puzzling residents of a County Down town, and commuters on the main route between Bangor and Belfast.

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About 10 caravans arrived at the King George V playing fields car park in Topsham Road, Exeter on Friday. Nigel Parker, the Central Youth Football Club chairman, said he could not have children walking through their campsite to the changing rooms and had cancelled all games this weekend. He described the situation as "irritating". "They are parked next to the changing rooms. I couldn't take the risk," said Mr Parker. The site has a number of full-sized football pitches, a youth rugby pitch and a children's playground. Labour councillor Marcel Choules said: "It's disastrous that the football matches have had to be cancelled as a result. "People aren't against travellers, what people are against is the disruption caused." A spokesman for Exeter City Council, which owns the site, said they have attended for an initial inspection. The travellers are yet to comment.

Fourteen football matches have been cancelled after travellers set up camp next to playing fields.

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Former Newmarket Town player Shaun Whiter lost both his legs when he was hit helping his friend Joey Abbs to change a tyre near the Suffolk town. Abbs suffered a serious leg injury. Cambridge United will host a Football Family Day on 9 October to raise funds. Messi's shirt and one from team-mate Arda Turan will be auctioned off. Wayne Rooney and John Terry have also donated signed shirts, as well as the first teams of Liverpool, Tottenham, Chelsea and West Ham, and the England senior squad. Newmarket Town, Soham Town Rangers, Cambridge City and Fulbourn Institute - teams for whom the pair played - will take part in a mini-tournament at the League Two club's stadium as one of a number of activities on the day. "I can't thank Lionel Messi and Arda Turan enough for donating their shirts and getting them to Cambridge," Whiter told BBC Look East. "We're going to auction them off and see what we can get." Jan Adamec, 40, from Haverhill, pleaded guilty to two charges of causing injury by dangerous driving and was jailed earlier this month for three years and four months. And Whiter, who has previously said he would like to compete at the 2020 Paralympics, spoke of the bond between him and Abbs following the incident. "He's a great friend. I've asked him to be one of the ushers at my wedding next year. He made that call that night to the paramedics to save my life," he added. "He saved my life and I can't repay him any more than with my friendship and support him through this time as well."

Barcelona's Lionel Messi has donated a signed shirt to raise funds for two former non-league footballers who were victims of a hit-and-run driver.

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The 22-year-old has scored 11 times in 18 games in the seventh tier this season and will join the Premier League champions' under-23 side for the rest of the season. Rangers said: "We are proud to have played a part in a young man's journey to a top club." Gordon had eight years at Stoke before dropping into non-league football. Former Leicester player Stan Collymore began his career with Stafford, while Foxes and England striker Jamie Vardy started out at Stocksbridge Park Steels, also in the seventh tier. Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.

Leicester City have signed forward Josh Gordon from Northern Premier League Premier Division side Stafford Rangers.

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The current 56 day waiting time target for treatment is to be halved to 28 days, Health Minister Mark Drakeford said. Health boards have until next March to hit the new target and Mr Drakeford said there has already been "significant progress" in services. Charities have warned of the growing mental health problem in Wales. Under the old arrangements, patients had to be seen for an initial assessment within four weeks - and then there was another wait of up to eight weeks for treatment. Now that wait for treatment time after being first evaluated has been cut to four weeks too. The Welsh government said its waiting times for mental health assessment and treatment were are already more stringent than those in England. £587m spending, 2015-16 11.4% of NHS budget Women treated for mental illness 14% Adults being treated for depression 9% Rise in child and adolescent referrals since 2011 100% NHS England has a target that 75% of adults should expect treatment within six weeks and 95% within 18 weeks. Mr Drakeford said: "This announcement will help ensure timely access to treatment, ensuring people who need expert care and support receive the right services in the right place at the right time." Sara Moseley, director of Mind Cymru, the mental health charity, said the new target was "welcome" but more needed to be done, including improving the type of treatment offered to people. "I think the minister is making it very clear that mental health is a priority and we welcome that but we think this is a journey," she added. Under the old measure, 85.5% of patients in Wales were treated within the eight weeks of being assessed in June 2015. Cwm Taf health board had the best record with 97.7% meeting the target compared to only 67.4% in the Aneurin Bevan area. But Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Kirsty Williams said hundreds of young people would be"left behind" as they will still be subject to a longer 16 week target - one that is met only 50% of the time.

People with mental health problems are being promised faster access to treatment by the Welsh government.

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Environment Minister Mark H Durkan said drilling could have a significant impact on the environment. Tamboran Resources wanted to drill a 750m deep hole at a quarry at Belcoo, using permitted development rights. It issued a statement saying it was "deeply concerned" by the minister's decision. By John CampbellBBC News NI Economics & Business Editor Tamboran had intended to drill using "permitted development rights", which meant the firm would not have needed to apply for planning permission. The minister could only veto this if he assessed that work was likely to have "a significant environmental impact". And that is exactly the position he has arrived at. Tamboran will now have to make a full planning application with an accompanying environmental statement, a process that will, conservatively, take months to complete. But it does not mean the borehole will not eventually be drilled. Alternatively, Tamboran may want to try to get a judicial review of the decision, arguing that the minister has not interpreted the planning regulations correctly. "The company is currently reviewing its position and will release a further statement in due course," Tamboran said. Tamboran will now have to make a full planning application with an accompanying environmental statement. On Monday night, protesters held an ecumenical service at the gates of the quarry to celebrate the minister's decision. Donal O'Cofaigh from Belcoo Frack Free welcomed the decision and said it could delay the project considerably. "It's a great relief, the minister has made the right decision," he told the BBC. "This is the first time that we are going to have the opportunity to be consulted on that. This is something that is of grave concern to the local community." The MP for the area, Michelle Gildernew of Sinn Féin, also welcomed the announcement. "The decision to deny Tamboran to begin deep bore test drilling in Belcoo, Fermanagh, is the correct decision given the clear opposition to fracking in the area," she said. Tamboran staff moved into the quarry three weeks ago and carried out work to secure the site. Protesters objecting to both fracking and gas exploration had held a permanent vigil at the quarry. The aim of the borehole was to check if there was enough gas below ground to warrant seeking a licence to set up a fracking operation. Protesters said they feared a borehole could be the first step towards the setting up of an industry that they believe could damage the environment and the health of local residents. The borehole drilling process would not have involved fracking. Currently, Sinn Féin, the SDLP and UUP say they oppose fracking, while the DUP has said exploration should take place, and any application for extraction should be judged at the time. Last week, politicians condemned a petrol bomb attack that targeted the family home of a Tamboran worker in Letterbreen.

Anti-fracking protesters have been celebrating a decision to block permission for an exploratory borehole for shale gas in County Fermanagh.

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Keane, 23, who has played for England at under-19, under-20 and under-21 levels, will report to St George's Park on Tuesday with the rest of the squad. Gareth Southgate called him up after Johnson was ruled out of Saturday's World Cup qualifier against Malta. On Monday, Andros Townsend replaced the injured Raheem Sterling in the squad. Crystal Palace's Townsend, 25, has played 11 times for his country and scored three goals, but was not selected for Euro 2016. He has played in all seven of Palace's Premier League games since joining from Newcastle for £13m in the summer. England, led by interim manager Southgate, face Malta on 8 October and Slovenia three days later. No details have yet been given on Manchester City player Sterling's injury. Keane has featured in all of Burnley's Premier League games this term. Between 2013 and 2016, the former Manchester United trainee made 16 appearances for the under-21s side under Southgate. Goalkeepers: Fraser Forster (Southampton), Joe Hart (Torino, on loan from Manchester City), Tom Heaton (Burnley) Defenders: Ryan Bertrand (Southampton), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Phil Jagielka (Everton), Michael Keane (Burnley), Danny Rose (Tottenham), Chris Smalling (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Kyle Walker (Tottenham) Midfielders: Eric Dier (Tottenham), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal), Michail Antonio (West Ham), Jesse Lingard (Manchester United), Theo Walcott (Arsenal), Dele Alli (Tottenham), Andros Townsend (Crystal Palace) Strikers: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool), Jamie Vardy (Leicester)

Burnley defender Michael Keane has been handed his first international call-up after Stoke's Glen Johnson withdrew from the England squad through injury.

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Jo Deering died in 2011, aged 52, just months after being sectioned under the Mental Health Act. Under-fire Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust admitted it could have made better decisions about her care. However, Ms Deering's sister, Maureen Rickman, said the trust's findings "deserved to be binned". In December, the BBC revealed that the trust, which provides services to about 45,000 people in Hampshire, Dorset, Wiltshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, had failed to investigate hundreds of unexpected deaths since 2011. Ms Deering, from New Milton, Hampshire, had paranoid schizophrenia and was discharged from hospital two weeks after being sectioned. She was sent home where she was the main carer for her 89-year-old mother, who had dementia. Four months later she took her own life. Her family said the trust should not have allowed her to go home while she was still ill. In its 2012 report, the trust said the medical team based at Waterford House who cared for Ms Deering should "be commended for their ongoing efforts to work with Joanna and her whole family in as an inclusive a way as possible, despite significant complications". Ms Rickman said: "There isn't an investigation here, nothing of the sort. I could have carried out a better investigation myself to be quite frank." She added: "It deserves to be binned - nobody would have known anything from this at all, there is nothing to take away from this other than a load of psycho babble and twaddle." In a statement, Dr Lesley Stevens, medical director at the trust, said the report found its "decision-making process about granting leave, and how we communicated this with Jo and her family, could have been better". "Robust actions to learn from this incident were fully implemented at the time," she added. She said the trust had provided community support to help Ms Deering with her role as a carer. "The way we investigate and learn when things go wrong, has changed substantially," she added.

The family of a woman who killed herself after being discharged from hospital has labelled a report into her death "psycho babble and twaddle".

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The greatest foreign policy disasters have tended to come when the UK has either ignored America - such as when it joined France in invading Suez - or when it has followed the US too blindly, as in the invasion of Iraq, against the warnings of many in Europe. Britain has done better when it has played its traditional role as a bridge between the two continents: seeking to manage America's swings between isolationism and interventionism while at the same time reassuring Europe that the US could be more than just a brash Nato ally. This Atlanticist analysis is, of course, a simplification of a complex relationship, but the point stands: the UK has a unique opportunity by virtue of its history and geography to bring the US and Europe together, not take sides. And yet the election of Donald Trump risks doing just that, driving a wedge between Britain and the EU just when both sides need it least. Since the president-elect's shock election, the British government has staggered, recovered its balance and started making overtures to the emerging administration. Its public statements have been welcoming and warm. Here is Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson's latest description of the president-elect, in a Czech newspaper: "Donald Trump is dealmaker, he is a guy who believes firmly in values that I believe in too - freedom and democracy. As far as I understand, he is in many aspects a liberal guy from New York." This is a long way from the criticisms that he and Prime Minister Theresa May uttered during the campaign. But both are now eating their words without shame, for they believe that it is in the national interest for the government to engage with next president of the United States, whatever his character, temperament and policy agenda. The prime minister's Guildhall speech - arguing that everyone should benefit from globalisation - may have been designed to show British voters that she has an agenda for change. But it also sent a strong signal to Mr Trump that she understood the forces that led to his election and the shared need for the whole world to address them. In contrast, some EU countries have worn their hearts on their sleeve and expressed their dissatisfaction at the election of a man whose opinions they find distasteful. This was the context of the emergency meeting of EU foreign ministers this week, which Boris Johnson dismissed as a "whinge-o-rama". Some British diplomats saw the meeting as an attempt by the EU foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, to grandstand and use Mr Trump's election to drive forward her own agenda for more EU defence cooperation. She was distinctly sarcastic about Mr Johnson's refusal to attend the meeting, saying it was "normal" for a country that had decided to leave the EU not to be interested in its relations with the US. As if that were not enough, Mr Johnson also clashed with his EU counterparts over Turkey, urging them not to lecture Ankara over the death penalty. And some EU leaders will not like Mrs May acknowledging the strength of Mr Trump's anti-globalisation arguments just as they prepare to do electoral battle with populist parties flying the same anti-establishment flag. So on the face of it, Britain is falling out with Europe over Mr Trump just when its overwhelming foreign policy objective should be preparing the way for Brexit, working closely with European allies to find the areas of common ground where a potential deal could be done. This should be a time for cool diplomacy, not hot-headed spats over who is going to which meeting. And all this before the tough decisions come. Responding to an election is one thing. It is quite another to choose sides when there are real policy dilemmas on the table. What happens if Mr Trump makes overtures to Russia and calls for sanctions over Ukraine to be reduced? What happens if Mr Trump ends US support for Syrian rebels and orders the US military to join forces with Russia against the Islamic State group? This was the one issue of substance Messrs Trump and Putin discussed in their telephone call this week. And what happens if Mr Trump is true to his word and reduces the US commitment to Nato? All of these are policy choices that could see the UK not only reverse longstanding positions but also place itself at odds with either the US or the EU. This is the context for Mrs May's trip to Berlin on Friday where she will meet President Obama and four of her most important European counterparts, from Germany, France , Italy and Spain. The challenge for this untested, newly appointed prime minister will be to walk that traditional fine line between the US and Europe. She has to prepare the way for these tough policy decisions, urging Europe to engage with a president-elect who cannot be ignored. But equally she will be under some pressure to make it clear to the travelling Americans that Britain will not roll over and accept automatically whatever foreign policy emerges from a Trump-led Washington. The UK-US relationship is hardly special at the moment. Mr Trump has shown no hesitation at embarrassing Mrs May by giving Nigel Farage a photo-opportunity at Trump Towers, giving the impression that the UKIP leader is filling a vacuum left by the Foreign Office. Mr Obama has chosen to visit Greece and Germany and not the UK on a valedictory European tour and in a news conference described Chancellor Merkel as "probably... my closest international partner these eight years". In vain did David Cameron flip those burgers in the Downing Street garden with the president. As the one time US Secretary of State Dean Acheson once wrote: "Of course a unique relation existed between Britain and America... but unique did not mean affectionate." So the task now for the British government is to engage with Mr Trump's incipient administration and do what it can - if anything - to shape and influence his foreign policy before firm positions are established. Officials recognise there is a window of opportunity in the coming weeks that should not be wasted that could set the terms for discussions about trade and security. Mrs May is pushing for an early meeting with Mr Trump before the inauguration in January. The Foreign Office is already holding talks with the Trump team about the possibility of Mr Johnson travelling to Washington to meet the Vice-President-elect, Mike Pence, and potentially others in the Trump team in the next few weeks. Officials insist that these discussions began before Mr Farage began claiming his ambassadorial role with Mr Trump. But at the same time, the government also has to ensure that this process of engagement with the US does not make Brexit harder by losing what little political support it still has in Europe's chancelleries. The former Chancellor George Osborne told ITV this week that Britain's focus should be on Europe. "For the first time really, the most important decisions over the next few years are going to be about our relationship with Europe, not about our relationship with the United States," he said. In the past few months, the votes for Brexit and Donald Trump have overturned many of Britain's traditional foreign policy assumptions. The government needs to repair relations with both the US and the EU while not antagonising both in process. Falling between the two geopolitical stools would leave the UK floundering mid-Atlantic without a paddle.

In the arc of history, Britain has rarely flourished when it has had to choose between Europe and the United States.

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But there are about 500 deaths a year in the UK from cardiac arrest among the under-30s. When it happens it is shocking. Doubly so when it affects a sports star like 23-year-old Fabrice Muamba. He is said to be one of the fittest players at his club, Bolton Wanderers. The same sentiments were expressed about Marc-Vivien Foe, the Cameroon footballer who collapsed and died during an international match in 2003. But the underlying cause of such deaths are likely to be inherited rather than a reflection on their fitness. Genetic abnormalities are usually associated with arrhythmias - irregular heart beats - or cardiomyopathies, which is a disease of the heart muscle. But where sport can play a role is on the likelihood of these conditions leading to a cardiac arrest. The evidence is not clear-cut. But research has suggested that those with inherited conditions are twice as likely to suffer a cardiac arrest if they play sport at a high level. Dr Leonard Shapiro, a consultant cardiologist and medical adviser to the Football Association, says it is always difficult to know exactly what triggers the attack. But he says: "There is a predisposition in some individuals to have a cardiac event under very high physical and emotional stress." The question that is always asked after such events is whether anything can be done to prevent them. Many sports in Britain regularly screen top athletes, although it is not mandatory as it is in some countries such as Italy. In football, players are checked at 16 and then are likely to have regular check-ups as their career goes on. Those that are diagnosed with a problem often have to give up top-level sport. Sports cardiologist Sanjay Sharma, who also works for the charity Cardiac Risk in the Young, says the tests are thorough, but not perfect. "It involves taking a history relating to cardiac symptoms, which include chest pain during exertion or breath which is disproportionate to the amount of exercise being performed, and blackouts, and asking about a family history because many of these conditions that can cause cardiac arrest are hereditary. "We then perform a cardiac examination and following that we do an ECG (electrocardiogram), which is an electrical tracing of the heart which looks for electric faults of the heart, and a cardiac ultrasound, which looks at heart muscle problems or problems with the heart valves." However, they do not guarantee that an abnormality will be picked up. The difficulty is that such abnormalities are not always permanent. They can come and go - as the Muamba case suggests. It has been reported that the Bolton player had four such screenings during his career, the latest of which was done last summer.

Most people associate heart problems - and cardiac arrest in particular - with older people.

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The Whitesands project would see the creation of a raised walkway along the waterfront area. The scheme has been revised a number of times to address public concerns about the river view and loss of car parking. Last year an estimate of project costs put the overall bill at between £15m and £17.8m. The Scottish government would provide 80% of the funding for the scheme with the remainder coming from Dumfries and Galloway Council. It has already approved nearly £4.5m towards the project which means it has a maximum of about £500,000 to find. A report to the local authority will ask it to agree that the project be officially published and adopted as a flood protections scheme. It cites a range of reasons for the increased costs which include: The council has spent nearly a year refining the scheme which it said had produced a range of "positive developments". Those actions include: Councillor Colin Smyth said: "I am pleased that we are now at the stage to seek committee agreement to commence the formal process of publishing the Whitesands project as a flood protection scheme. "It is unacceptable that the largest town in our region continues to flood. "That is why all councillors agreed for a flood protection and regeneration scheme to be progressed for the Whitesands, demonstrating the need for change and putting an end to the regular flooding that has plagued our regional capital for too long." He added that it was more than a flood protection scheme and could create a "high quality public open space" to encourage the use of the Whitesands.

A major flood protection scheme in Dumfries is set to make a step forward but has seen its cost estimate rise significantly to £25m.

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Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier are charged with attempted first-degree intentional murder over the attack. The ruling means they may face decades in jail. Their lawyers failed to get the case heard by a juvenile court. If tried as juveniles, the pair only face a five-year term. The victim, 12 at the time, was stabbed 19 times but survived. She was found by a cyclist crawling from the woods where she was attacked with stab wounds to her arms, legs and torso, after the attack in May 2014. Wisconsin Judge Michael Bohren decided the pair, now both 13, should remain in adult court after four days of hearings in May and June. They told investigators they had stabbed their victim in "dedication" to Slender Man, a fictional horror website character. They spoke of their desire to become the paranormal figure's "proxies" by killing to demonstrate their loyalty, police said. Following the attack, both suspects were found walking near a local highway, and a knife was found in one of their backpacks, police said. They said the girls planned to stab the classmate during a sleepover but instead decided to commit the crime the next morning in a nearby park. After the murder, they reportedly intended to walk to Slender Man's mansion, which they believed was situated in Wisconsin's Nicolet National Forest. The victim has recovered and since returned to school.

Two 13-year-old girls accused of stabbing a classmate to please the online horror character Slender Man will be tried in an adult court, a US judge has ruled.

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Mr Trump said Mr Obama had learned well before the 8 November poll about the accusations and "did nothing". His comments followed an article in the Washington Post which said that Mr Obama learned last August of President Vladimir Putin's "direct involvement". The alleged meddling is the subject of high-level investigations in the US. President Putin has repeatedly denied any Russian interference into the presidential election. The Washington Post article says Mr Obama was told early last August by sources deep within the Russian government that Mr Putin was directly involved in a cyber campaign to disrupt the election, injure Hillary Clinton and aid a Trump victory. The Post said Mr Obama secretly debated dozens of options to punish Russia but in the end settled on what it called symbolic measures - the expulsion of 35 diplomats and closure of two Russian compounds. They came in late December, well after the election. The Post reported that Mr Obama was concerned he might himself be seen as trying to manipulate the election. The paper quoted a former administration official as saying: "From national security people there was a sense of immediate introspection, of, 'Wow, did we mishandle this'." Measures Mr Obama had considered but which were not put into action included planting cyber weapons in the Russian infrastructure and releasing information personally damaging to Mr Putin. Imagine, for a moment, that you're Barack Obama in August 2016. You've just been informed by the CIA that Vladimir Putin has ordered a wide-ranging effort to disrupt the US presidential election. What do you do? Mr Obama responded in typical fashion - cautiously. He alerted state officials, warned Russia and attempted (unsuccessfully) to fashion a bipartisan response with Republicans in Congress. Now the second-guessing has begun. Some Democrats are saying the Obama team should have gone public with such a startling discovery before election day. The president feared such a move would prompt the Republican nominee to accuse him of meddling and undermine faith in the electoral process. He believed Mrs Clinton was going to win anyway, so it was best not to rock the boat. Mr Trump himself is now questioning why Mr Obama didn't do more - a curious position given that he recently described the Russia hacking story as a Democratic "hoax". These latest revelations add yet another wrinkle to a 2016 campaign that will be hashed and rehashed for the foreseeable future. The most pressing question now, however, is not what Mr Obama did. It's what the US government does next. Mr Trump tweeted on Friday: "The Obama Administration knew far in advance of November 8th about election meddling by Russia. Did nothing about it. WHY?" He followed that up with two more tweets on Saturday, the second saying: "Obama Administration official said they "choked" when it came to acting on Russian meddling of election. They didn't want to hurt Hillary?" He repeats the argument in an interview with Fox News, which will air on Sunday. "If he had the information, why didn't he do something about it? He should have done something about it. But you don't read that. It's quite sad." Allegations of collusion between the Trump team and Russian officials during the election have dogged the president's first five months in office. He has repeatedly denied the allegations, calling the investigations a "witch hunt". US investigators are looking into whether Russian cyber hackers targeted US electoral systems to help Mr Trump win. US media say special counsel Robert Mueller is also investigating Mr Trump for possible obstruction of justice over the Russia inquiries. They involve the president's firing of FBI chief James Comey, who led one of the inquiries, and Mr Trump's alleged attempt to end a probe into sacked national security adviser Michael Flynn.

President Donald Trump has accused his predecessor Barack Obama of inaction over alleged Russian interference in the US election in 2016.

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Officers were alerted to the find just south of Porth Neigwl (Hell's Mouth), near Abersoch on the Llyn Peninsula, at about 16:00 GMT on Sunday. Police and members of the coastguard placed a 100m (330ft) cordon around the object. The Ministry of Defence confirmed it was possibly some kind of ordnance. Explosive experts are set to detonate the device on Monday morning to make it safe.

Part of a Gwynedd beach has been closed after a member of the public found a suspected explosive device, North Wales Police has said.

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