Saturday, November 20, 2010

The Independent - UK RSS Feed

The Independent - UK RSS Feed

In Lisbon, they talk. In Afghanistan, they die.

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

Christopher Davies, a guardsman with the 1st Battalion Irish Guards, has been named as the 100th member of Britain's armed forces fighting in Afghanistan to die this year.

Minor British Institutions: Driving on the left

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

Traffic round this island has kept to the left for 2,000 years. Although the scything techniques of the Ancient British charioteers do not suggest lane discipline, there is good evidence for it in the contrasting ruts left by Roman carts at a quarry near Swindon.

Lord Young resigns after outcry at ill-judged 'never had it so good' claim

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

David Cameron's enterprise adviser resigned yesterday after he undermined the Government's attempts to show a caring face by saying that most Britons had "never had it so good".

Flood of new Coalition peers draws protests from Labour

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

An unusual mixture of show-business names, party loyalists and political donors are to be sent to the overcrowded red leather benches of the House of Lords.

The 'Big Society' crisis on Cameron's doorstep

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

Britain's Citizens Advice Bureaux face a funding crisis just as they are being hit with an unprecedented increase in demands on their resources, especially by people finding themselves in debt.

Village People: Coulson legacy of distrust

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

It did not go unnoticed that on the day that the royal engagement filled the air waves, the Government announced several bits of bad news, including the decision to take David Cameron's court photographer off the Civil Service payroll, which Tory spin doctors have been accused of trying to bury.

Electricity bills go up for 2.5m homes

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

The energy firm Scottish Power is raising gas and elecricity prices by an average of 2 per cent and 8.9 per cent respectively. The new charges, which will affect 2.5 million households, will take effect on 25 November, adding about £54 to the average annual dual-fuel energy bill.

Police escape censure over delays in finding body in van

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

A man found battered to death in a van on Wednesday has been named as Shaleem Amar, who was 40, married and had three children.

Labour MP steps down over drink-driving

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

A Labour MP has resigned from the party's front bench after being found guilty of drink-driving.

'The town seems affluent, but look at the evidence of people who need our help'

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

From the leafy serenity of Witney Green, with one of the Oxfordshire town's picturesque church spires and local pubs in the middle distance, it is not hard to see why David Cameron, the local member of Parliament, imagined a return to an old-fashioned community spirit could help solve many of Britain's social ills.

Google agrees to delete private data gathered by Street View cars

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

Google has agreed to delete all the personal data its Street View cars collected from unsecured wireless networks and will introduce new training and guidance for its staff, the Information Commissioner said yesterday.

Donor organ plane crash closes airport

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

Birmingham Airport was closed yesterday after a light aircraft carrying a liver for an organ donor transplant crashed in fog.

Labour hits out over attempts to 'fix' Parliament

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:00 PM PST

David Cameron and Nick Clegg came under ferocious attack from Labour last night for attempting to "fix" Parliament in the favour of the coalition parties.

'Never had it so good' Tory quits after rebuke

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 10:00 AM PST

David Cameron's enterprise tsar resigned today after coming under fire for claiming most people have "never had it so good".

Auditor jailed for indecent child images

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 09:30 AM PST

A former public spending auditor who oversaw how £20 billion of taxpayers' money was spent has been jailed for eight months for downloading pictures of child sex abuse.

Woman jailed over false rape accusation

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 09:08 AM PST

A woman who falsely accused a man of rape and turned his life into the "stuff of nightmares" was today jailed for 18 months.

Airport closed after light aircraft crash

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 09:00 AM PST

Birmingham Airport remained closed tonight after two people were hurt in an incident involving a light aircraft carrying a organ for transplant.

Probe continues into mystery forest blast

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 08:06 AM PST

A fingertip search was under way today following a mysterious explosion in a remote forest.

Arsenal's Jack Wilshere cautioned over assault

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 08:02 AM PST

England and Arsenal footballer Jack Wilshere today received a caution for common assault following a street brawl, police said.

Sunningdale 'murder' victim named

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 06:56 AM PST

The man found dying in the back of a van was named by police today as father-of-three Shaleem Amar.

Police officer cleared of three rape charges

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 06:02 AM PST

A police officer accused of raping and sexually abusing vulnerable women was cleared of seven of the 26 charges he faces today.

Google to delete Street View personal data

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:56 AM PST

Google has agreed to delete all the personal data its Street View cars collected from unsecured wi-fi networks and will introduce new training and guidance for its staff, the Information Commissioner said today.

Warning over Twitter impact on jury trials

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:43 AM PST

Court-based tweeting is likely to increase the risk of a mistrial and misuse of the internet by jurors must stop if the jury system is to survive, the country's most senior judge said.

50 Anglican priests 'to defect to Catholic church'

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:27 AM PST

Around 50 Anglican priests are expected to defect to the Roman Catholic Church next year, Catholic leaders said today.

Downton Abbey creator to become Tory peer

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 03:37 AM PST

The creator of hit ITV period drama Downton Abbey is to be made a Conservative peer in the House of Lords, it was revealed today.

Jury out again on PC accused of sex attacks

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 02:48 AM PST

A jury was sent out today to consider verdicts for a third day in the case of a police officer accused of raping and sexually assaulting vulnerable women.

New delays cap 'month of chaos' on Tube

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 02:17 AM PST

London Underground passengers suffered fresh delays today because of problems including a defective train, capping a "month of unprecedented chaos" on the Tube.

EDL fuel Islamic extremism claim police

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 02:00 AM PST

Demonstrations by far right activists fuel Islamic extremism, police said today.

Anti-terror probe after Scottish forest blast

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 01:30 AM PST

Counter-terror investigations were continuing today after an explosion in a remote forest.

M25 project delay 'behind £660m cost rise'

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 01:05 AM PST

The cost of widening Britain's busiest motorway has increased by 24%, or £660 million, partly due to the slow way the Highways Agency took the project forward, a report by a Government spending watchdog said today.

Cumbrian floods leave £276 million bill

Posted: 19 Nov 2010 01:03 AM PST

Wrecked homes and businesses caused by the Cumbrian floods left a £276 million bill, it was revealed today on the first anniversary of the disaster.

posted by Greg Shaw at Saturday, November 20, 2010