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Cuttings and links to other online information.
28 arrested in power station protest
Twenty-eight people have been arrested as demonstrators stage a day of "creative mass action" in a bid to shut down Britain's biggest coal-fired power station.
Chief Insp Barry Smith said the majority were arrested outside Drax power station in North Yorkshire, but conceded that "a small number" had gained access to the plant. (Telegraph, 31 Aug 2006)
Fireman demoted for refusing to attend gay festival
A fireman who refused to hand out safety leaflets at a homosexual pride march has been demoted.
Eight of his colleagues who also refused to attend the Pride Scotia parade in June have been told they must undergo intensive "diversity training", following a series of disciplinary hearings.
After several days of deliberation, senior officers at Strathclyde Fire and Rescue (SFR) today announced the nine would receive written warnings for disobeying orders. The demoted fireman faces a salary cut of up to £5,000. (Telegraph, 31 Aug 2006)
Fruit and veg juices 'cut Alzheimer's risk'
Drinking fruit and vegetable juice on a regular basis can dramatically reduce the chances of developing Alzheimer’s, a study has shown. (Times, 31 Aug 2006)
Casino not done deal for Dome, says inquiry chief
The head of the panel that will choose the location of Britain’s first supercasino insisted last night that the race was still wide open. (Times, 31 Aug 2006)
Blair to tackle 'menace' children
Tomorrow's potential troublemakers can be identified even before they are born, Tony Blair has suggested. ! (BBC, 31 Aug 2006)
New laws on body tissue ban secret DNA testing
Taking a sample of a person's DNA for analysis without their consent will be illegal from tomorrow as part of a package of measures designed to regulate the use of human body parts. (Guardian, 31 Aug 2006)
Battle of the London freesheets could launch newspaper revolution across UK
The woman thrusting free newspapers into the hands of London commuters did not look as though she was on the frontline of a media revolution and a bitter battle between rival newspaper moguls. But yesterday's launch of London Lite, a new free evening paper for the capital, threatens to have repercussions across the country, where venerable evening titles are battling falling sales as younger readers turn to the internet and free papers. (Guardian, 31 Aug 2006)
Spending on spin trebles under Blair
Spending on Government spin has trebled under Labour and taxpayers are now supporting an army of more than 3,200 press officers. (Telegraph, 30 Aug 2006)
Public casino meetings to begin
The independent body set up to decide where Britain's first super-casino should be built is to hold its first public meeting. (BBC, 30 Aug 2006)
Coffee 'key to reconciling Rwandans'
Coffee is being used in Rwanda to relaunch the economy as well as heal old wounds following the genocide. (BBC, 30 Aug 2006)
Junk-mail tip postman faces sack
A postman who advised people how to stop junk mail being delivered to their home could lose his job after bosses suspended him for misconduct.
Roger Annies composed and circulated a leaflet about the Royal Mail's opt-out clause for unsolicited mail during his rounds in Barry, south Wales. (BBC, 29 Aug 2006)
Alienation can be a humane response to globalisation
Home-grown terrorism has been bred from social dislocation as well as the destruction of alternative ideologies of hope. (Guardian, 25 Aug 2006)
Kelly vows that new debate on immigration will engage critically with multiculturalism
Ruth Kelly, the communities secretary, yesterday promised to respond to the fears of some white people about increased levels of immigration and revived the debate about whether multiculturalism has left society more divided.
Launching the government's new Commission for Integration and Cohesion, Ms Kelly said it had to engage with the argument made by Trevor Phillips, the chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality, that support for multiculturalism should be abandoned in favour of efforts to create a more homogeneous society. (Guardian, 25 Aug 2006)
Bye-bye to the beach
A lido is closing its doors early on the summer season so renovation work can begin. (South London Press, 25 Aug 2006)
New call for ban on junk food ads
Health charities today renewed calls for a ban on the advertising of junk food to children as new government research predicted rising obesity in the next few years. (Guardian, 25 Aug 2006)
UK 'must tackle ethnic tensions'
Tensions between people of different ethnic groups and faiths in British society must be tackled, says Communities Secretary Ruth Kelly. (BBC, 24 Aug 2006)
Free flight to Spain for terror error pair
Two Asian friends kicked off a holiday jet because fellow travellers feared they were bombers are to fly back to Spain - for free.
Bosses at easyJet offered students Khurram Zeb and Sohail Asarf return trips following the Mirror's exclusive story yesterday about their treatment on a Monarch flight from Malaga to Manchester last week. (Mirror, 24 Aug 2006)
Alarm at Spain's migrant children
Authorities in Spain's Canary Islands have raised concerns over 700 unaccompanied children who have arrived by boat. (BBC, 24 Aug 2006)
Canaries' migrant wave hits 1,000
The number of illegal immigrants arriving in Spain's Canary Islands from the north-west coast of Africa over the past three days has hit 1,000. (BBC, 20 Aug 2006)
Passengers explain pair's removal
Passengers on a Manchester-bound flight have described how two men were removed from the plane because other travellers thought they were speaking Arabic. (BBC, 20 Aug 2006)
'Suspicious' pair taken off plane
Two men were taken off a flight bound for Manchester after some passengers became alarmed about what they regarded as suspicious behaviour. (BBC, 20 Aug 2006)
City bonuses reach record £19bn
The high rewards on offer in the exclusive world of Britain's boardrooms and City dealing rooms were exposed yesterday by figures showing a jump of 16% in bonus payments this year to a record £19bn. (Guardian, 17 Aug 2006)
Cost of water shortage: civil unrest, mass migration and economic collapse
Cholera may return to London, the mass migration of Africans could cause civil unrest in Europe and China's economy could crash by 2015 as the supply of fresh water becomes critical to the global economy. That was the bleak assessment yesterday by forecasters from some of the world's leading corporate users of fresh water, 200 of the largest food, oil, water and chemical companies. (Guardian, 17 Aug 2006)
Government moves to tackle debt mountain
The Government has stepped in to help tackle Britain's £1,200bn consumer debt mountain, unveiling plans to fund more free advice and improve consumers' financial knowledge.
The plans, outlined in a cross-Government report Tackling Over-Indebtedness 2006, include a commitment to introduce basic financial skills into the GCSE maths curriculum in England from 2008 and £51m to fund 500 more staff offering free advice to people who are struggling to pay off massive debts. The National Debtline and Consumer Credit Counselling Service will also be expanded. (Telegraph, 17 Aug 2006)
Rwanda may review death penalty
Rwanda is to consider a proposal to scrap the death penalty for genocide suspects who are living in exile. (BBC, 16 Aug 2006)
Maoris mourn queen who helped to unify a nation
The Queen of the native Maori population of New Zealand died yesterday after 40 years as titular leader of her people and serving alongside 11 prime ministers.
Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu — the wealthiest Maori in New Zealand, with a NZ$10 million (£3.3 million) fortune — died aged 75 at her ancestral home in the North Island town of Ngaruawahia. (Times, 16 Aug 2006)
Lebanon says 3.5 billion dollars damage from Israel bombing
The month-long Israeli bombardment inflicted material damages on Lebanon worth 3.5 billion dollars, the head of reconstruction in the country said Wednesday. (Khaleej Times, 16 Aug 2006)
Chinese economy to expand by 10.4% this year
China’s red-hot growth is set to slow in the second half of the year, but its economy should still expand by a heady 10.4 per cent this year, the World Bank forecast yesterday. (Times, 16 Aug 2006)
Pardoned: the 306 soldiers shot at dawn for 'cowardice'
All 306 soldiers of the First World War who were shot at dawn for cowardice or desertion will be granted posthumous pardons, the Ministry of Defence said last night. (Telegraph, 16 Aug 2006)
Gap year students accused of being charity tourists who do little good
Gap year students who take their skills to developing nations may be doing more harm than good, a volunteer organisation said yesterday. (Telegraph, 16 Aug 2006)
Tenants say yes to homes transfer
People living on five estates have voted in favour of transferring their homes out of direct council control.
...The five Brixton estates in the new area Almo are Blenheim Gardens, Cowley, Loughborough, Roupell Park, and Waltham. (South London Press, 15 Aug 2006)
Blueprint for better book buying boosts libraries
The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) has today (14 August 2006) unveiled a plan to save up to £20million a year, creating major opportunities for significant reinvestment in improving library services to customers. (egov monitor, 14 Aug 2006)
Internet firms are morally wrong to help China, say MPs
Internet companies such as Google, Microsoft and Yahoo have been accused by MPs of "morally unacceptable" behaviour for helping the Chinese government restrict the information its citizens can get from the internet. (Telegraph, 14 Aug 2006)
BBC correspondents abroad 'too white'
The BBC's team of foreign correspondents should come from the same ethnic background as the country they are reporting from, according to the corporation's new diversity tsar. (Guardian, 13 Aug 2006)
Jail doesn't work, say crime victims
The vast majority of crime victims do not believe that prison reduces levels of offending, according to a major new report to be published tomorrow. The surprising findings of the first survey of those whose lives have been affected by crime suggest the public is losing faith in the penal system. (Guardian, 13 Aug 2006)
US accused of jumping the gun in blaming al-Qaeda
British officials are furious with the US Administration for “jumping the gun” by declaring that al-Qaeda was behind the airline terror plot, The Times has learnt. (Times, 12 Aug 2006)
Under the Green Oak, an old elite takes root in Tories
Despite Cameron's comments about equality, his shadow cabinet is home to 15 Old Etonians. (Guardian, 12 Aug 2006)
Street gang spreads fear across Brazil's biggest city
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil travelled to his country's biggest city yesterday to urge an immediate deployment of the army on its streets after weeks of sporadic violence involving a shadowy organised crime group.
Sao Paulo has been the scene of waves of attacks by criminals that have so far claimed more than 200 lives.
The violence, supposedly masterminded by the First Command of the Capital (PCC) group, began on May 12. This week police killed six suspects following three days of attacks across Sao Paulo state, which saw Molotov cocktails and a nailbomb used against public buildings. (Guardian, 12 Aug 2006)
Small cinemas lead a digital revolution
A village hall in Kent is one of the centres for a movement that the UK Film Council is convinced will stir a revolution in film-going.
...Britain leads most countries in cinema-going - 165 million tickets sold in 2005 - but the choice of what to watch is limited. (Telegraph, 12 Aug 2006)
Evangelicals urge museum to hide man's ancestors
Powerful evangelical churches are pressing Kenya's national museum to sideline its world-famous collection of hominid bones pointing to man's evolution from ape to human. (Telegraph, 12 Aug 2006)
BP fights to keep Alaska field open
BP held talks with state and federal regulators as it battled to keep at least part of the massive Prudhoe Bay oil field open.
Most of the field has been shut down following the discovery of corrosion on a key feeder pipeline, but around 155,000 barrels a day are still being produced in western Prudhoe Bay. (Telegraph, 12 Aug 2006)
Sets 'can make pupils feel thick'
Secondary school pupils placed in low-ability sets often feel stigmatised as "thick", a study suggests. (BBC, 11 Aug 2006)
Top officer in Stockwell shooting in line for promotion
The senior police officer involved in the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes is being backed for promotion to the upper echelons of British policing by Sir Ian Blair, the Guardian has learned.
Commander Cressida Dick is applying to be a deputy assistant commissioner in the Metropolitan police, a month after finding out she will not face criminal prosecution over the killing of Mr De Menezes at Stockwell tube station in July 2005. (Guardian, 9 Aug 2006)
Britain accused of refusing visas to prevent entry of world's poor
Thousands of would-be visitors to the United Kingdom are being illegally turned down for visas simply because they are from poor and repressive countries, according to an official immigration watchdog. (Times, 8 Aug 2006)
Raise air travel tax, report says
Taxes on air travel and "gas guzzling" cars should be raised to cut greenhouse gas emissions, says a committee of MPs. (BBC, 7 Aug 2006)
Britons go bust at rate of one per minute
One person is falling victim to insolvency every minute of the working day and home repossession applications show the biggest rise since the early 1990s housing crash. (Telegraph, 5 Aug 2006)
Two worlds collide as Tenerife sunbathers rush to help migrants
The sun was sinking towards the west and the bathers were packing up and gathering in a bar at the end of the beach for a chilled beer when someone shouted: "Oh my God, there's another boat." (Telegraph, 5 Aug 2006)
Coke and Pepsi deny Indian toxin allegations
India's Supreme Court yesterday ordered Coca-Cola and Pepsi to respond to allegations that their drinks in the country contain harmful chemicals and pesticides from local water used in production. (Telegraph, 5 Aug 2006)
Tesco offers carrot to reduce use of plastic carrier bags
In the first such scheme, Britain's biggest supermarket group will encourage shoppers to re-use bags by offering one point for the Clubcard loyalty scheme (worth 1p) for every carrier bag they do not use. It is the latest in a series of recent moves by the big grocery chains as each tries to show it is greener than the other. (Guardian, 5 Aug 2006)
Islamists' grip tightens on Somalia
The African front line in the West's war on terrorism has collapsed as mass resignations from Somalia's fragile government have all but handed power to hard-line Islamists.
...There are reports that Eritrea, traditionally Ethiopia's arch foe, has paid for plane-loads of arms for the Islamists which have landed secretly at an airstrip just north of Mogadishu. (Telegraph, 5 Aug 2006)
'We need a housing vote'
There must be a ballot on the future of a borough's council housing, according to a veteran MP.
Kate Hoey said tenants in Lambeth must get a vote on whether they want their homes transferred to an arm's length management organisation (Almo). (South London Press, 4 Aug 2006)
Annan visits Haiti's new leaders
Visiting UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has praised Haiti for making "great strides" but said much more needed to be done to ensure security. (BBC, 4 Aug 2006)
Barclays' bad debts soar to £1bn as card customers struggle to pay
Bad debts at Barclays bank surged to more than £1bn over the first half of the year, an increase of 50%, as its Barclaycard customers struggled to repay their mounting credit card bills. (Guardian, 4 Aug 2006)
Who's to blame for Britain's soaring household debt?
The British public has put £54bn on credit cards and taken billions more in personal loans. Add on mortgages, and the nation's total household debt tops £1,000bn. The crunch is coming, but who's to blame? (Telegraph, 4 Aug 2006)
World must race to develop green energy, urges Rees
An urgent project on the scale of the Apollo moon landings is needed to boost research into green energy sources and save the planet from environmental disaster, according to Britain's top scientist. (Guardian, 4 Aug 2006)
Lebanon counts human cost of 23 days in firing line
As many as 900 Lebanese have been killed by Israel's three-week onslaught, and one million, a quarter of the population, have been forced to flee their homes, said prime minister Fouad Siniora yesterday; a third of the dead are children under 12. Three thousand people had been injured, he added, in a video message to a conference of Islamic countries in Malaysia, which called for an immediate ceasefire. (Guardian, 4 Aug 2006)
Britain 'developing dangerous alcohol addiction'
Drinkers living in the North are far more likely to binge on alcohol, be admitted to hospital and die younger than their southern counterparts, research showed today.
Across all of England, 18.2 per cent of adults drink at least double the daily recommended level in one or more sessions a week. (Telegraph, 4 Aug 2006)
Between custom and Christianity
Throughout Ghana, spiritual leaders are merging adopted Christian practices with their own ethnic group's traditional customs. (BBC, 4 Aug 2006)
Digital cameras 'not backed up'
About one-third of digital camera users in the UK are not backing up their photographs, reveals research.
...The traditional photo album may be in demise; about seven out of 10 are printing less than a quarter of their images, while 30% said that they did not print out any hard-copies. (BBC, 3 Aug 2006)
Iraq civil war warning for Blair
Civil war is a more likely outcome in Iraq than democracy, Britain's outgoing ambassador in Baghdad has warned Tony Blair in a confidential memo.
William Patey, who left the Iraqi capital last week, also predicted the break-up of Iraq along ethnic lines. (BBC, 3 Aug 2006)
How salt campaign was scuppered
Britain's biggest food companies united to convince regulators to reduce tough targets for cutting the level of salt in their products, The Times has learnt. (Times, 3 Aug 2006)
Overcrowding affects 500,000
Overcrowding in homes affects up to 25 times more families than official statistics suggest, the government has warned. (Guardian, 2 Aug 2006)
At least 63 dead in Iraq after roadside bombings and suicide attack
The war of attrition in Iraq continued its bloody course yesterday with at least 63 people killed, including a busload of soldiers who died when a roadside bomb exploded in the northern city of Beiji. (Guardian, 2 Aug 2006)
Green light for new SA road names
"Verwoerdian" refers to the most extreme kind of racial segregation that was implemented while he was prime minister in the 1960s. (BBC, 2 Aug 2006)
Prisons 'failing to rehabilitate women'
The government should invest in community programmes rather than handing out prison sentences in order to help rehabilitate women offenders, a pressure group has said. (Telegraph, 2 Aug 2006)
The refugees' fury will be felt for generations to come
Israel is seeking to cast itself as the victim even as it expels the people of Lebanon and Gaza from their homes. (Guardian, 2 Aug 2006)
'Don't you want to know why I'm bleeding?'
Bilan Mohamud was walking her children home from school in October last year when a neighbour punched her in the face. She says he called her a "fucking nigger", threatened to kill her, then launched his fist at her. She was left with a fractured nose and cheekbone, and lacerations below her left eye. She still bears the scar.
Last Thursday, the man who did this to her, Gary Read, 38, of the Wendling estate in Kentish Town, north London, was convicted of grievous bodily harm and remanded in custody for sentencing next month. The jury did not accept the racially aggravated aspect of the charge against him. (Guardian, 2 Aug 2006)
Migrants die on way to Canaries
The bodies of 28 illegal West African migrants have been found washed up on a beach in Western Sahara, according to Morocco's state-run news agency. (BBC, 2 Aug 2006)
Jagdeo says Aug 1 is significant to all Guyanese
President Bharrat Jagdeo has said that August 1 is significant not only to those of African descent but to all Guyanese whatever their ethnicity, as emancipation is a continuing struggle. (Stabroek News, 1 Aug 2006)
High street solar panels on sale
A major British electrical retailer is selling solar panels in high street shops for the first time. (BBC, 1 Aug 2006)
Study shows how Chinese cure works
A traditional Chinese medicine used to treat type 2 diabetes may make the body more sensitive to insulin, according to new research.
Berberine, a plant extract, is found in the roots and bark of a number of plants and is used for conditions including diarrhoea, heart conditions and to promote the healing of wounds. (Telegraph, 1 Aug 2006)
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