L/Cpl James Ashworth Awarded Victoria Cross

A soldier killed protecting his comrades in Afghanistan is to be awarded the Victoria Cross - the UK's top bravery medal, according to Sky Sources.

Lance Corporal James Ashworth's courage was hailed as "beyond words" by friends who served with him until his death last June.

The 23-year-old died in a grenade attack during a fierce battle with the Taliban in Helmand's Nahr-e Saraj district.

He was on foot patrol and battling his way through compounds against enemy fighters when he was fatally wounded.

It is expected that the rare VC award to the soldier from Kettering, Northamptonshire, will be officially announced later this month.

The VC has been awarded 10 times to British soldiers since World War Two and only once for bravery in Afghanistan.

At the time of L/Cpl Ashworth's death, his family said: "We are devastated by the loss of our son, brother, uncle and boyfriend. He meant the world to everyone and has left an irreplaceable hole in our hearts."

The cross was first bestowed during the Crimean War

His father Duane was also a Grenadier Guard, while his younger brother Coran is also a soldier.

He also left behind his mother Kerryann, sisters Lauren and Paige, brother Karl and four-year-old niece Darcy, as well as his girlfriend, Emily.

His company commander, Captain Mike Dobbin, praised the soldier's actions.

He said: "Lance Corporal Ashworth was killed while fighting his way through compounds, leading his fire team from the front, whilst trying to protect his men and he showed extraordinary courage to close on a determined enemy.

"His professionalism under pressure and ability to remain calm in what was a chaotic situation is testament to his character."

Johnson Beharry is the last living recipient of a medal

Guardsman Jordan Loftus also paid tribute to his friend's bravery.

He said: "Selfless, brave, courageous ... words like these don't come close to what Ash demonstrated that day. He will be missed by all as a commander, but most of all a good mate."

L/Cpl Ashworth's Commanding Officer in the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, Lieutenant Colonel James Bowder said: "Lance Corporal Ashworth was an outstanding soldier whose loss has moved us all. A real self-starter, he excelled in everything that he undertook.

"Fit, strong and brilliant at his job, he set the bar very high. Indeed, such was his calmness under pressure, his charisma, and his selflessness that he made an exemplary junior leader."

The previous recipient of the VC in Afghanistan was 29-year-old Corporal Bryan Budd of 3rd Battalion the Parachute Regiment, who died when he single-handedly stormed a Taliban position in Sangin in 2006.

The last living recipient was L/Cpl Johnson Beharry of 1st Battalion the Prince of Wales's Royal Regiment, who twice saved the lives of colleagues under enemy fire in Iraq in 2004.

The medal is the British military's highest bravery award and was first bestowed on troops during the Crimean War in 1854-55.

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David Cameron To Give Tory Conference Speech

David Cameron will promise to foster "aspiration" and give school sport a £150m cash boost when he addresses the Conservative party's spring conference after a bruising couple of weeks.

Following the disastrous Eastleigh by-election, which saw the Tories beaten into third by UKIP, and just days before a Budget, the Prime Minister's speech is being viewed as a key test of his leadership.

Mr Cameron will tell activists his approach chimes with the Tory values of highly-popular figures such as Margaret Thatcher and Winston Churchill as he attempts to calm restive activists.

"The global race is not just about GDP," he will say.

"It's about saying to the mum who's worried about her children's future, we are building a country where there is a future, so your kids won't have to get on a plane to get on in life, they can make it right here in Britain.

"It's what this party's always been about - aspiration."

In a swipe at Labour opposition to tough benefit cuts being rolled out as part of the deficit reduction, he will paint them as "patronising people, patting them on the head and putting a benefit cheque in their hands".

Instead the Government was "giving people the tools to succeed".

Mr Cameron - who has come under fire from backbenchers over his "posh, male and white" inner circle - will acknowledge the "leg-ups" he enjoyed in life.

"I know the leg-ups I got in life. A loving family, wonderful parents, a great school and university.

"We want people to climb up through their own efforts, yes, but in order to climb up they need the ladder to be there in the first place, the family that nurtures them, the school that inspires them, the opportunities there for them.

Home Secretary Theresa May will also give a speech later today

"Great Conservatives down the generations have put those ladders in place. When Churchill invented the labour exchanges that helped people into work.

"When Macmillan built new homes. When Thatcher fired up enterprise so people could start their own businesses. That's what we're doing in the Conservative Party right now."

Mr Cameron will say the £150m a year cash injection for school sport will help bolster coaching for pupils in England.

A primary school with 250 pupils would receive £9,250 per year - this is around two days a week of a primary teacher or a coach's time, he will say.

At the conference today, Home Secretary Theresa May - who last week fuelled leadership ambition speculation with a speech which ranged far beyond her policy brief - will also give a speech.

She is reported to have been the target of Education Secretary Michael Gove's private warning to Tory Cabinet ministers earlier this week not to undermine David Cameron's position as PM.

But her speech is expected to be restricted to home affairs issues.

London Mayor Boris Johnson on Friday told Conservative Cabinet ministers accused of positioning themselves for the post-Cameron leadership to "put a sock in it and back the Prime Minister".

Mr Johnson, regarded as front-runner in the succession race if he can find a seat in Parliament, said speculation over a challenge to Mr Cameron's leadership was "complete nonsense".

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MP Arrested After House Of Commons 'Bar Fight'

The MP Eric Joyce has been arrested after an alleged fight in a bar at the House of Commons, Sky sources say.

The independent Member of Parliament for Falkirk was held after the incident at the Sports and Social Club bar.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "Police were called shortly before 10.30pm this evening to reports of a disturbance at a bar within the House of Commons.

"Officers attended and a man aged in his 50s was arrested in connection with this incident.

"He remains in custody and inquiries continue."

Joyce resigned from the Labour Party after butting Tory rivals Stuart Andrew and Ben Maney in a previous incident in a Commons bar last February.

On that occasion the 52-year-old also punched Tory councillor Luke Mackenzie and Labour whip Phillip Wilson and insulted police officers.

After leaving Mr Andrew with a bloodied nose, Joyce told police: "He deserved it."

Joyce, who accepted he was "hammered" on red wine during the brawl, launched into a frenzied attack after shouting that the Strangers' Bar "was full of ******* Tories".

The former soldier walked away from Westminster Magistrates Court with a fine and pub banning order after admitting four counts of common assault.

He was fined £3,000 and ordered to pay £1,400 to victims after he entered early guilty pleas.

Joyce was also given a 12-month community order - banning him from entering pubs and licensed premises for three months - and imposed with a curfew order from Friday to Sunday.

After the hearing, Joyce admitted he was lucky to avoid jail and said he was "deeply apologetic".

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School Places: Call For 250,000 Extra Spaces

By Gamal Fahnbulleh, Sky News reporter

More than 250,000 extra school places will be needed by next year to meet a continuing surge in demand, the spending watchdog has warned.

The rise in the number of children born in England between 2001 and 2011 was the largest 10-year increase since the 1950s.

This has led to an increase in demand for primary school places.

The Department for Education has increased the funding it provides to local authorities with a net increase of almost 81,500 primary school places in the last two years. More than £5bn has been invested into new school places since 2010.

It is expected more school places will be needed beyond next year

However, there are still indications of a real shortage, the National Audit Office has found.

In May last year just over 20% of schools were full or over capacity despite the more than 80,000 extra places created between 2010 and 2012.

In the next two years 240,000 of the new places needed are in primary schools - 37% in London.

Julian Wood, Study Director at the National Audit Office said: "I think it's important to say that of the 256,000 (places) there has been a year's further work that hasn't been reflected in these numbers.

"The level of funding has increased to something like that which was originally expected to be needed and local authorities are working hard to deliver these places.

"Nonetheless, we think there's an awful lot more that needs to be done to help that money work as efficiently as it can if those 256,000 places are to be delivered."

The report authors say it's important the right amount of money gets to the areas that need it most to prevent part of a younger generation missing out on the first few crucial years of education.

Lindsey Barrett, manager of the Busy Bees nursery in Ealing, London, told Sky News: "Parents are worried that perhaps they are not going to get a school in their local area, or their first choice.

"Being a parent myself I am completely in empathy with those parents because it is a very big decision that is being made - it's their child's future education.

"Parents worry that if it is a school perhaps out of their area, or perhaps if any of the numbers increase in classrooms - that is looking at the education and the quality that they will be receiving.

"Sometimes parents might try and move out of the area, obviously do a lot of research into the local school they hope they are going to get there, that they are going to get one of their first choices, but it doesn't always happen.

"As a parent you always want the best education you can get for your child."

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Pope Francis: Profile Of New Catholic Leader

Francis is the first ever pope from the Americas, an austere Jesuit intellectual who modernised Argentina's conservative Roman Catholic Church.

Known until Wednesday as Jorge Bergoglio, Pope Francis is respected as a humble man who denied himself the luxuries that previous Buenos Aires cardinals enjoyed.

In the past, the 76-year-old pontiff often rode the bus to work, cooked his own meals and regularly visited the slums that ring Argentina's capital.

He accused fellow church leaders of hypocrisy, and forgetting that Jesus Christ bathed lepers and ate with prostitutes.

"Jesus teaches us another way. Go out. Go out and share your testimony, go out and interact with your brothers, go out and share, go out and ask. Become the Word in body as well as spirit," the then-Cardinal Bergoglio told Argentina's priests last year.

His legacy as a cardinal includes his efforts to repair the reputation of a church that lost many followers by failing to openly challenge Argentina's murderous 1976-83 dictatorship.

He also worked to recover the church's traditional political influence in society, but his outspoken criticism of President Cristina Kirchner could not stop her from imposing socially liberal measures, from gay marriage and adoption to free contraceptives.

The new pope on the streets of Buenos Aires earlier this month

He came close to becoming pope in 2005, reportedly gaining the second-highest total in several rounds of voting before bowing out in the conclave that elected Pope Benedict XVI.

Initially trained as a chemist, Bergoglio taught literature, psychology, philosophy and theology before taking over as Buenos Aires archbishop in 1998.

He became cardinal in 2001, when the economy was collapsing, and won respect for blaming unrestrained capitalism for impoverishing millions of Argentines.

Sergio Rubin, Bergoglio's authorised biographer, said the new pope felt most comfortable taking a very low profile, and his personal style was the antithesis of Vatican splendour.

"It's a very curious thing. When bishops meet, he always wants to sit in the back rows. This sense of humility is very well seen in Rome," Mr Rubin said before the 2013 conclave to choose Benedict's successor.

Bergoglio has stood out for his austerity. Even after he became Argentina's top church official in 2001, he never lived in the ornate church mansion where Pope John Paul II stayed when visiting the country.

For years, he took public transportation around the city.

Bergoglio almost never granted media interviews, limiting himself to speeches from the pulpit, and was reluctant to contradict his critics, even when he knew their allegations against him were false, said Mr Rubin.

That attitude was burnished as human rights activists tried to force him to answer uncomfortable questions about what church officials knew and did about the dictatorship's abuses after the 1976 coup.

Bergoglio talks with a man as he rides the subway in Buenos Aires

Many Argentines remain angry over the church's acknowledged failure to openly confront a regime that was kidnapping and killing thousands of people as it sought to eliminate "subversive elements" in society.

It's one reason why more than two-thirds of Argentines describe themselves as Catholic, but fewer than 10% regularly attend mass.

Under Bergoglio's leadership, Argentina's bishops issued a collective apology in October 2012 for the church's failures to protect its flock. But the statement blamed the era's violence in roughly equal measure on both the junta and its enemies.

"Bergoglio has been very critical of human rights violations during the dictatorship, but he has always also criticised the leftist guerrillas; he doesn't forget that side," Mr Rubin said.

The bishops also said "we exhort those who have information about the location of stolen babies, or who know where bodies were secretly buried, that they realise they are morally obligated to inform the pertinent authorities".

But that statement came far too late for some activists, who accused Bergoglio of being more concerned about the church's image than about aiding the many human rights investigations.

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Pope Francis To Meet Benedict At Papal Retreat

Pope Francis is expected to visit his predecessor Benedict XVI at the papal retreat in Castel Gandolfo, as the pontiff begins his first full day as leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

The 76-year-old, who has become the first Jesuit pope and the first pope to be named Francis, will visit Benedict at the retreat south of Rome, according to prominent US cardinal Timothy Dolan.

Speaking at the North American College, the US seminary in Rome, Cardinal Dolan said Pope Francis told his fellow cardinals on Wednesday that "tomorrow morning, I'm going to visit Benedict".

The visit is significant because Benedict's resignation has raised concerns about potential power conflicts emerging from the peculiar situation of having a reigning pope and a retired one alive at the same time.

Huge crowds welcomed the announcement of Pope Francis

Francis has already spoken by phone with Benedict, who has been living at the papal retreat in Castel Gandolfo since the end of his papacy.

Known until Wednesday as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the Argentine Pope Francis became a cardinal in 2001.

He has spent nearly his entire career in Argentina, and becomes the first ever pope from Latin America.

He is respected in the church as a humble man who has denied himself the luxuries that previous Buenos Aires cardinals enjoyed.

Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio becomes the first Jesuit pope

Pope Francis is said to have finished second when Benedict was elected in 2005.

During this week's papal conclave, he was chosen on just the fifth ballot to replace the first pontiff to resign in 600 years.

Francis' election has pleased Latin Americans, who number 40% of the world's Catholics but have long been underrepresented in the church leadership.

Francis is sure to bring the church closer to the poverty-wracked region, while also introducing the world to a very different type of pope, whose first words to the faithful were a simple, "Brothers and sisters, good evening".

He asked for prayers for himself, and for Benedict, whose stunning resignation paved the way for his election.

"I want you to bless me," Francis said in his first appearance from the balcony of St Peter's Basilica, asking the faithful to bow their heads in silent prayer.

He also delivered a blessing to "all men and women of good will", before calling for "brotherhood" in the church.

A roar emanated from the crowds outside the Vatican in St Peter's Square on Wednesday as the white smoke indicated the new pontiff had obtained the required two-thirds majority in the voting by 115 cardinals.

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Danny Nightingale: SAS Sniper Awaits Ruling

By David Bowden, Senior Correspondent

An SAS sniper jailed for having an illegal weapon and ammunition he claimed to have "forgotten about" is due to learn whether his conviction will be quashed.

Sergeant Danny Nightingale, who has spent 11 years in the Special Forces and served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, was sentenced to 18 months in military custody after pleading guilty to illegally keeping a pistol.

He had been given the weapon as a present by Iraqi forces he had been training, but had no recollection of owning it after suffering a brain injury.

His sentence was cut to 12 months and suspended by the appeal court last November after a campaign by his wife Sally which gathered huge public support for a man described by the appeal court judge as an "exemplary soldier".

Sergeant Nightingale pleaded guilty to the original offence in a military hearing because he says the judge there told him he would get a lesser punishment.

He and his legal team wrongly believed this meant he would receive a non-custodial sentence.

Since his release the highly trained elite soldier has been at home in Cheshire, unable to re-join his regiment whilst awaiting the outcome of his appeal.

Sergeant Nightingale and his wife, Sally, upon his release

"It's very frustrating wanting to do something (but having) no routine," he said.

"And yes, being paid to do not what I'm supposed to do.

"You're trained up to do stuff, and you want to do stuff. You can't stand the futility of not doing it. To be told 'that's it, go and do nothing, you can't do anything'. That's hard."

The situation has meant he has spent a lot of time with his two young daughters, Mara, five, and Alys, two.

"I've probably had more time with my family in the last 18 months than regiment (SAS) guys will have in seven years," he said.

Nightingale is desperate to get back to work and said: "I still love it. It was the proudest day of my life when I passed (the notoriously tough SAS selection course)."

Mrs Nightingale is more circumspect about the possibility of her husband rejoining the SAS as a frontline soldier after his brain injury, which she believes still affects him.

For the time being though, her main concern is winning the court appeal.

"I feel quite nervous, our life is in their hands," she said - while adding that the lawyers are "quite confident" about their chances of success.

Mrs Nightingale feels her husband has been made a scapegoat by the Army and wants to know why, but acknowledges she will probably never get the answers to the questions she wants.

If he does win his appeal and returns to work then it will be more upheaval for his young girls according to Sally

"At some point in the near future he will be going back to work," she said.

"So they've got to get used to that again because they have had dad to take them to school, to pick them up from school, do clubs with them, take them swimming," she said.

"You know, he does all those extra bits while I'm working and doing other things. So they've had a really good time with dad."

All that will stop if the appeal is successful.

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Minimum Alcohol Pricing: Anger Over U-Turn

The Government is ditching its plans for a minimum price on alcohol in another U-turn by David Cameron, according to Sky sources.

The Prime Minister has personally backed the move for a base price in England and Wales, which experts argue would save lives and cut crime.

But there is division at the top of the Tory party, with opponents said to include Home Secretary Theresa May who has been at the centre of recent leadership rumours.

Education Secretary Michael Gove and Commons leader Andrew Lansley have also signalled their doubts about the proposal.

On the backbenches, supporters of the change have expressed their concern about the U-turn - which follows a 10-week consultation.

Totnes MP Sarah Wollaston - a former GP - tweeted: "Very concerned about suggestion that minimum pricing to be dropped from alcohol strategy."

Her Tory colleague Tracey Crouch added: "I really hope rumours of U-turn on minimum unit pricing for alcohol are not true. We must tackle problem of easily accessible cheap alcohol."

She later told Sky News: "We know that the Prime Minister is personally quite committed to this policy so I think we need to continue to press our case."

Alcohol Concern argued that minimum pricing would protect young people and vulnerable, heavy drinkers and insisted it must go ahead.

Chief executive Eric Appleby said: "All the evidence shows it will save lives and reduce crime - and we mustn't allow the interests of big business to derail this important policy."

But Miles Beale, the chief executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, said consumers would welcome the move.

"Minimum unit pricing would penalise responsible drinkers and treat everyone who is looking for value in their shopping as a binge-drinker," he said.

"Evidence has also shown it will do little to tackle problem drinking."

Labour accused Mr Cameron of "weak leadership and weak government", calling the U-turn a "humiliating climbdown".

Shadow home office minister Diana Johnson said: "The Home Secretary and the Prime Minister said this measure would cut crime and prevent alcohol abuse. What's changed?"

The Home Office said consultation on the plans had ended on February 6 and that it would "listen to all views" before setting out a response.

Scotland is already set to introduce a 50p minimum price. Northern Ireland has not followed yet and is still examining the issue.

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Savile Report: Police Failed Abuse Victims

Police forces across Britain have been criticised for ignoring Jimmy Savile's abuse victims, as it emerged the disgraced presenter's offences dated as far back as 1955.

The earliest record uncovered by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) naming Savile in connection with a sexual abuse investigation is dated 1964, but officers failed to act on the intelligence received.

But a damning report by the Metropolitan Police and the NSPCC said Savile's offending spanned from 1955 to 2009, meaning his reign of abuse could have been cut short by 45 years.

Policing inspectors warned there was a "distinct possibility" that officers could fail to prevent another Savile-like scandal from happening.

Just five allegations and two pieces of intelligence were recorded against Savile during his lifetime, HMIC found.

This is in stark contrast to the 450 claims made against the former Top Of The Pops presenter after Operation Yewtree was launched by the Metropolitan Police in October.

Alan Collins, a solicitor from law firm Pannone who is representing more than 40 of Savile's victims, said many opportunities to investigate Savile had been lost.

"Consequently, Savile was able to carry on regardless, duping the country in the process, and the price was paid by his many victims," he said.

"There is a definite risk that unless policies and attitudes change, Savile will happen again."

As well as the 1964 Metropolitan Police ledger, a record of an anonymous letter was found that was received by the Met in 1998, alleging that Savile was a paedophile.

Savile's offending is believed to have spanned from 1955 to 2009

In addition, five victims made complaints against the presenter - one to the Met in 2003, three to Surrey in 2007 and one to Sussex in 2008.

HMIC expressed concern that other police forces did not deal with complaints properly with eight victims claiming that they tried, unsuccessfully, to report crimes.

These include four who approached the Met and one each who went to police in Cheshire, Merseyside, West Yorkshire and the then Royal Ulster Constabulary.

One man who came forward in 1963 in Cheshire to make an allegation of rape against Savile was told to "forget about it" and "move on", HMIC said.

HM Inspector of Constabulary Drusilla Sharpling said: "The findings in this report are of deep concern, and clearly there were mistakes in how the police handled the allegations made against Savile during his lifetime."

The letter received by the Metropolitan Police Service in 1998 claiming the DJ was a paedophile was classed as "sensitive", meaning other investigators could not find it.

"The 1998 MPS anonymous letter was marked as 'sensitive' because of Savile's celebrity status and because there were allegations of blackmail and paedophilia," the inspectors said.

"This categorisation meant that the intelligence was not readily available to be searched by later investigating officers."

The Met sent the letter to West Yorkshire Police, the area where Savile lived, but other investigators could not access the information until 2011.

Considering whether such abuse on a similar scale could happen again, Ms Sharpling said it was neither "enough nor correct to say this couldn't happen now".

The HMIC report warned that "the inconsistencies in approach that the forces have taken mean that there is a distinct possibility that such failures could be repeated".

Home Secretary Theresa May said: "The public rightly want answers to how victims' voices were ignored for so long. This report brings into sharp focus police failings that allowed Savile to act with impunity over five decades.

A Met Police spokesman said: "All of this needs to be seen in the context of how much we have achieved through our approach to the public response to Operation Yewtree.

"We have seen a step change in the reporting of abuse, with a significant rise in the numbers of people coming forward."

The HMIC report recommended that recently formed professional body the College of Policing should issue guidelines to all police forces about how to deal with investigations of child abuse following the death of the alleged perpetrator.

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Snow: Hundreds Trapped In Cars Overnight

Hundreds of motorists have been trapped overnight in their cars for up to 10 hours after heavy snow brought traffic in Sussex to a standstill.

The British Red Cross sent emergency teams out to help those stranded in the freezing conditions on the A23 with tailbacks stretching 30 miles.

Ice and snow made roads across much of the South East impassable following up to 10cm (4in) of snowfall.

Snow ploughs and gritters struggled to get through to clear the roads after a number of vehicles jackknifed causing gridlock.

Temperatures plummeted to as low as -3C (27F), forcing many people to abandon their vehicles for service stations.

Abandoned cars had to be moved to allow the gritters, snow ploughs and emergency teams to pass.

Snow ploughs and gritters were stuck in the traffic. (Pic: Jonathan Lava)

The worst affected areas were the A23 between Crawley and Brighton and the M23 around Handcross Hill.

Cheryl Baker, the 1980s pop star with the Eurovision-winning group Bucks Fizz, was among those stuck on the roads as she tried to make her way along the A23 to Brighton to her children.

In a series of furious tweets she said: "8 hours and still at a complete standstill. Bloody ridiculous. And they KNEW snow was coming.

"Could have flown to NY by now. Was it the wrong kind of snow?"

Toyah Willcox, another 1980s pop star also found herself stranded on the A23 around 15 miles from Brighton tweeted: "Still on A23, not moved yet northbound is moving freely. 6 hours! Come on snow isn't that bad."

Others talked of nine and 10 hour waits, including Nathan Hetherington, who finally got home at 3.20am and posted on Twitter: "home now thanks. 9 hours on the a23 all for about an inch of snow. Mind blowing!"

One motorist, Mike Roche, estimated that he had moved around five or six miles on the A23 in 10 hours.

Popstars Toyah Willcox and Cheryl Baker were among those trapped

Speaking from his vehicle he told Sky News: "I have been in the car now for just over 10 hours. I left work in Surrey, in Thames Ditton, at 5.30pm and it's now 3.30am. It normally takes me an hour and a quarter to get back to Hove."

A number of motorists questioned why gritters had failed to keep the roads clear despite clear forecasts of heavy snow.

The Highways Agency said extra gritters had been out on the roads since 6am on Monday preparing for the freezing weather.

A spokesman said: "We've been working hard with our contractors and partners, including local authorities and the police, to keep the roads across the south east open.

"Our roads have been treated throughout the day; however some lorries have jackknifed causing closures at several locations and as a result our salt spreaders and recovery vehicles have become stuck in the traffic."

He said crews had been trying to recover broken down vehicles and checking up on motorists in stranded vehicles.

Sussex Police said they were working to "full capacity" to help motorists stuck in their cars and urged those with very young children to call 999.

Poor road conditions have hampered much of the UK

Inspector James Biggs from the Road Policing Unit said: "Many drivers have been rescued but I know many more have endured long hours stuck in their vehicles."

A number of roads in the county were closed, including the A27 at Worthing, the A29 at Bury Hill and the A259 at Beachy Head.

More than 100 people were also stuck for more than four hours on the A2 at Lydden near Dover after a lorry jackknifed last night, Kent Police said, leading to a build-up of snow drifts up to a metre high.

Officers said the areas around Dover and Folkestone were worst hit in the county, with delays on the M20 as lorries queued trying to get into the Channel Tunnel.

Acting Chief Inspector Kay Maynard said: "We have been trying to get to as many as possible to offer reassurance, as well as deal with the problems on the roads caused by collisions and broken down vehicles.

"The volume of snow and the drifting caused in exposed areas has been a major issue. As soon as roads were cleared and gritted, they were becoming covered in snow again."

More picturesque snow scenes at Allendale in Northumberland

Elsewhere, a party of 120 German students were forced to bed down for the night in Hastings town hall after families due to look after them could not reach them.

Jersey Airport was shut due to snow and a number of flights cancelled, and on the roads there were hazardous conditions on many major routes.

Blizzard conditions were reported on the M40 in Warwickshire and there were numerous morning rush-hour accidents.

Poor rail conditions led to delays in Sussex and Hampshire, while there was also a number of signalling problems.

There were hazardous driving conditions on the A69 and A6 in Cumbria and on the A54 in Cheshire.

One lane of the M48 Severn Bridge was closed and falling trees blocked some Welsh roads.

Forecasters believe Monday was the coldest March day in 27 years, since March 1, 1986. Saughall, in south Lanarkshire, reached -12C (10F).

The Met Office has issued an orange "be prepared" warning for Tuesday for parts of the south east and yellow warnings for Scotland, across the north and Midlands and down the east coast.

A man walks his dog in Tynemouth

Rail services are expected to face delays because of the weather, and Southern has warned that services from Brighton, Eastbourne and Worthing could be cancelled.

Intense showers and possible snowfall are due across Suffolk, Essex and the London area, with gusty winds of up to 55mph.

Eastern and central parts of Scotland have also been hit by poor weather conditions, and a dusting of snow is expected in all other areas of the country.

Some of the roads where driving conditions are at their worst include the A46 in Nottinghamshire, the A14 in Suffolk and the A353 in Dorset.

Up to 10cm (4in) of snow was forecast to settle in the worst-affected areas, including Kent, Sussex and southern Hampshire, and over higher ground in areas like the Pennines, while large areas could see around up to 4cm (1.6in) accumulate.

Temperatures are expected to stay below freezing in many areas for the next few days, with minimum temperatures as low as -7C.

Ladbrokes said they have been forced to slash the odds of snow reappearing across Easter weekend, March 29 to April 1.

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Antibiotic Resistance 'A Ticking Time-Bomb'

By Richard Suchet, Sky News Reporter

The Government's Chief Medical Officer is warning of "a dreadful future for our children and grandchildren" unless global action is taken to prevent diseases from becoming resistant to antibiotics.

Professor Dame Sally Davies said diseases are evolving faster than the drugs we have to treat them.

In the second volume of her annual report, she described the problem as a "ticking time-bomb" and calls for it to be put on the Government's National Security Risk Assessment register, alongside terrorism and severe weather.

She said routine operations such as hip replacements or organ donations could pose deadly risks in just 20 years' time if we lose the ability to fight infection.

Dame Sally has made 17 recommendations to politicians and policy makers including better hygiene in schools, hospitals, care homes and public places.

Professor Dame Sally Davies

She also called for better protection of our current stock of antibiotics and is urging GPs to prescribe antibiotics only when absolutely necessary.

"We all have a role to play. And as a public we need to accept that many infections that take us to GPs or keep us at home, don't need antibiotics," she said.

"So if a GP says 'no you don't need an antibiotic', please don't demand an antibiotic and put ridiculous pressure on GPs.

"All it's doing is building antimicrobial resistance and we're giving a dreadful future to our children and grandchildren."

A new infectious disease has been discovered every year for the last 30 years but there have been almost no new classes of antibiotics discovered since 1987.

The plan is to "incentivise" pharmaceutical companies to plough resources into research but no decision has been taken on how to do that.

"We have been waiting for the next new antibiotic to come along and treat those resistant cases but the pipeline is drying up," Prof Davies added.

"There are no new classes of antibiotics in the pipelines across the world and there are very few in development.

"That's because we have not, as a global society, incentivised producing antibiotics. We have market failure and we really need to do something about this."

The Chief Medical Officer said the issue should also be considered by the Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs because around 50% of antibiotics used in the UK are given to animals.

The Department of Health said it will soon publish the UK Antimicrobial Resistance Strategy setting out a five-year action plan aiming to address the issue.

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India Bus Gang Rape Suspect Found Hanged

The man accused of leading the gang rape of a student on a New Delhi bus has hanged himself in his prison cell.

Ram Singh was found dead in the high-security Tihar jail where he had been on suicide watch in an isolated cell, officials said.

The suicide has angered the family of the 23-year-old rape victim who said the authorities had been negligent and they had been denied justice.

Her father, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said: "We don't understand how could the police fail to protect Ram Singh? They knew he was the prime accused in my daughter's case.

"How could they let him choose the way he wanted to die? The police have failed and I wonder what will happen to the case now."

Days of protests followed the attack

Singh, 35, was accused of leading a gang of five others who subjected the physiotherapy student to a two-and-a-half hour sex attack in which she was gang raped.

Her internal injuries were so horrific she died two weeks later in a hospital in Singapore despite surgery to try to save her.

Singh's suicide comes in the middle of his trial. He and four others are accused of luring the woman and a male friend, who were on their way home from a trip to the cinema, on to the bus where they beat him before repeatedly raping her.

A senior police officer on the case said: "The case will continue. There is no reason for the case to suffer."

Singh's lawyer confirmed his client's death but claimed he had been "killed in prison". Lawyers for the men have previously accused police of beating confessions out of their clients.

Singh was the regular driver of the white private bus, usually used to carry school children, which is alleged to have been used in the December 16 attack.

Police say he had been out with friends and drinking heavily when they decided to take the bus out for a night-time joyride.

Rallies grew violent and water cannon were turned on protesters

The men are facing charges of murder, rape, and kidnapping, and if found guilty are expected to be given the death penalty.

A sixth suspect aged 17 is being tried in a juveniles' court, where he faces a maximum three years imprisonment.

The attack caused worldwide revulsion and outrage in India. Days of protests followed in a country where a woman is raped every 20 minutes.

The woman's friend, who is still suffering from the injuries he sustained in the attack, has already given evidence at the trial. His account was said to be a crucial part of the case.

He had previously spoken of the attack in an interview in which he told how he begged the rapists to stop "the cruelty that should never be seen".

Protesters have called for all rape suspects to be hanged and want a better deal for women so the streets are safer and men who rape women are put on trial.

National crime records show that 228,650 of the total 256,329 violent crimes recorded in India last year were against women and rape cases more than doubled between 1990 and 2008.

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Sex Trafficking Victims 'Failed' By Authorities

Full Interview With Sophie Hayes

Updated: 1:53am UK, Sunday 10 March 2013

Sophie Hayes speaks to Sky's Richard Suchet about her life as a sexual and domestic slave at the hands of the man she thought was her boyfriend.

SOPHIE: "I'd known my trafficker for five years before I was actually trafficked, from the UK to Italy. We'd become friends. Very good friends. Then I went on holiday ... and ... just that it would be a holiday ... until three days in, he told me that he hadn't waited five years for me to just leave and that actually I was there to work for him as a prostitute, and if I didn't there would be severe consequences."

SUCHET: "So you did?"

SOPHIE: "Yeah I did. The first night I thought 'this isn't real, this can't happen' and really believed that maybe the next day I could say 'actually, I just want to go home now' until ... I saw that he just wasn't the person that I thought he was. Everything that he was, everything that I knew had completely changed.

"He'd become aggressive, violent. Threats against me, threats against my family. My younger brother was only thirteen at the time and he was the one that had all of the death threats ... and ... the night that he told me, he strangled me, pinned me up against the wall, and told me that if I didn't do as I was told, I would be punished."

SUCHET: "Mentally, how do you cope with that? What goes through your head the first day, the second day, the third day? Where does your mind take you?"

SOPHIE: "Total disbelief. So ... going from a world where I had a good job, a relatively happy life, to another world with someone who had pretended to be something that he wasn't ... it just didn't feel like that was possible or that that could really happen. There's no way I could have done what he expected me to do.

"But as the days went on, I knew that actually there was no way out because he told me that he had friends in the police, that if I tried to run then someone would be there to catch me and ... the more .... the more time past ... I knew. I knew I would never escape him, I couldn't run anywhere ... until a few weeks later I just ... I just switched off.

"There was nothing left anymore. I wasn't me anymore and ... the best thing to do was ... just ... pretend it wasn't happening, that it was happening to someone else and ... just accept it."

SUCHET: "So you just switch off inside, do you?"

SOPHIE: "Completely. To begin with, I tried to hold on. I would look in the mirror and just ... want to scream. And I'd see bruises which I'd never had before.

"Until one night everything changed, with one of the men that came. After that night, I just let go. To the point that I stopped caring. Because nothing I could do or say, no matter how many tears, how many screams, nothing would change the situation ... because I was too afraid to run.

"Many people have asked me: 'Why? Why would you not run away? Why would you not ask for help?' ... but he was the person who kept me from asking anybody to help me, knowing that my family were at risk - my younger brother could be taken.

"He'd already taken me to a lake to show me that if I did something wrong, that's where he would take me. He would put a knife to my neck, a gun in my mouth, a gun inside of me. I knew there was no boundary for him. All I was to him was money. Other than that he didn't care."

SUCHET: "Was it always sexual? Or were there other things you had to do, like chores round the house, or looking after him in some other way? Or was it purely a sexual thing?"

SOPHIE: "It's always more than just sexual when someone holds you in that way. I was only allowed to speak when he said that was ok. When I cleaned, it had to be cleaned in a certain way. If I didn't do it properly, he would ... hurt me again. 

"If I cooked in the wrong way, there would be consequences. For example, I tried to make pasta one night and he told me there was too much sauce. So he smashed the plate ahead of me, and cleaned the floor up with my hair and then told me he was going to shave my hair off in punishment because I couldn't clean properly, I couldn't cook properly and what kind of a person was I that couldn't even do the most basic things?"

SUCHET: "I don't think people can really imagine how you end up in a situation like that. I mean, people might think you would see it coming?"

SOPHIE: "The general perception is that this happens to girls from a different country, from poor backgrounds, and that they perhaps should see it coming, when actually it's the opposite.

"The traffickers are professional businessmen. They have been doing this for years. How to groom a girl. How to make somebody feel completely isolated so that you don't see it coming. And then you're at the point that you're so frightened of them that you can't think about anything anymore, you can't do anything anymore and ... there's no other choice. No way of escape. They have you as a total prisoner."

SUCHET: "So how did you get out?"

SOPHIE: "During the time, I'd lost quite a lot of weight, so I'd gone down to about six stone. I was only allowed to eat once a day. I'd had pneumonia twice, a broken shoulder blade, and at the point I came out I'd been really ill.

"I couldn't have sex anymore. Because some nights I would have sex with up to 35 different men and it was just so painful. So I managed to go to a hospital. The hospital kept me there for a week. But they told me I had no passport, no ID, and that I would have to pay 10,000 euros.

"I managed to steal a moment to call my mum and they drove over to come and collect me, and drove me back from Italy, back to the UK."

SUCHET: "So, effectively, you became useless to him? That's how you managed to get out of his sight?"

SOPHIE: "I was still with a client when I managed to go to the hospital. I didn't tell him where I'd gone. He told me after three days of being in hospital that he was taking me out because he'd actually met some Russians, and he was going to take some girls. And ... I don't know whether or not I would have been sold to the Russians.

"And when I did come back to the UK, he took my credit card off me, and booked me a ticket to go back to Italy, and that I had to go back to work. He was never willing to just let me go. He would have just carried on. To him, he said I was a gold mine, and that because I was British I was actually the perfect person because I could stay freely in [Italy], and people paid more for me, so I was the perfect person for him."

SUCHET: "What was the reaction from the authorities when you got back to the UK?"

SOPHIE: "I had quite a challenging time with the authorities when I came back because at that time no one really knew - or understood - actually what is human trafficking and, because they'd never dealt with cases of somebody being British being taken out of the country and then back in, there wasn't really anywhere for me to go, or any real understanding.

"One policeman actually told me: "Well, you won't do that again," which ... just .... again made me lose all faith ... and ... I had no one. I was on my own. I had my mum, and my mum helped me through it. And I just .... had to pick myself up and carry on and try to live a normal life again."

SUCHET: "How did you finally extricate yourself from him?"

SOPHIE: "It turns out he was wanted in this country for an attempted shooting, years back. The police had him under surveillance and had an arrest warrant out for him. In 2008, when he returned to the UK, they performed a stop and search on him - but made it look completely random.

"They obviously knew he'd have fake documents and that they could arrest him on those grounds. And they knew that his fingerprint would then link him to other crimes. They sent me abroad for a week while all that happened so it would look as if I had nothing to do with his arrest. Anyway, he went to prison and was eventually deported back to Albania."

SUCHET: "You seem to me like the most stoic and normal person, if I may say. No one would ever be able to tell what you've been through. But is there a part of you that feels a little bit damaged? Do you ever get over something like that?"

SOPHIE: "This is something that I will never get over. But can I manage it? Yes, it has become more manageable. Although many people still don't know who I really am.

"I still have a lot of physical problems. After he broke my shoulder blade, I still have therapy and I need a lot of treatment on my back. And also ... mentally I have to stay really strong ... because ... something like that can't happen for no reason.

"And this is why I feel I have to try and help other women and other girls who are in the same situation, or could be at risk of that situation. I tell myself a lot that I can't let my past steal my future. And no matter what happened, I am still alive. And regardless of how painful it is, how many memories I have, how many times I cry ... actually it's the future, and the hope, and the hope I bring to others, that keeps me strong."

SUCHET: "Do you still cry about it?"

SOPHIE: "Yeah, if I see things or hear things and generally when I can see another women being abused or beaten - that brings it all back to me. Every day I can still picture how much he hurt me and how much he frightened me. What he made me do, hurts me. What he did to me and what he said to me is the memory that stays with me and the echoes that I can still hear."

SUCHET: "Do you trust men? Do you have problems trusting men anymore?"

SOPHIE: "I ... I would like to believe that I can still have trust in people because I can't allow one person to take over how I feel and how I behave in the future, and dictate how I have relationships. So I really try and make sure it doesn't, again, take over me, and absorb, and change my perception on men."

SUCHET: Where is the man who trafficked you? And do you now feel safe?

SOPHIE: "I don't know where he is. We've tried to locate him and police have markers on him so to speak. Potentially he's in prison (abroad). But no, I will never feel 100% free and safe. He will always be on my shoulder.

"So on a mental level, there's always a part of me that won't be free, that can't escape. But setting up the Sophie Hayes foundation has made me feel like he can't dictate my future. I can take a grip of my future, and, in that sense, I'm now free."

'Sophie Hayes' is not her real name. There are only a handful of people who know both her real name and her dreadful story and she says it's important that she remains anonymous: "Who is Sophie? Almost nobody knows. She could be anybody.

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'Mummy Tax': Cameron Under Fire Over Cuts

By Tadhg Enright, Business Correspondent

David Cameron will have a Mother's Day card delivered to his door by campaigners for new mums whose benefits are about to be capped.

Labour has accused the Government of imposing a "mummy tax" and said the welfare reforms are part of a series of austerity measures which unfairly target mothers.

Shadow minister for women Yvette Cooper MP told Sky News: "It's like David Cameron and George Osborne have a blindspot about women because they're paying three times more than men in tax and benefit and pay and pension changes.

"That is so unfair when women earn less and own less than men.

"It shows that the Prime Minister and the Chancellor just don't get it and it's outrageous that new mums are hurt hardest."

Yvette Cooper says the changes are unfair

Around 340,000 women claim either statutory maternity pay or maternity allowance every year.

Until now their benefits have gone up in line with inflation, which currently stands at 2.7%, according to the Consumer Price Index.

But from next month new mothers' benefits will go up by just 1% every year as part of a three-year cap on welfare increases.

So by 2015 critics have calculated the benefits will be effectively cut by £180 because they will not increase by as much as the cost of living will.

Conservative MP Amber Rudd said: "The fact is there are so many good things we are doing to try to help mothers.

"What mothers really want is welfare that works, improved education and jobs.

"That's what they talk to me about on the doorstep and I feel this Government is doing a lot on that front.

"And it's rank hypocrisy of Labour to accuse us on this front when they have made no suggestions about how to reduce the deficit."

Single mum-to-be Helen Mockridge has one clear suggestion for a better way to reduce the deficit.

"Taxing really rich people, obviously, that's where the money should come from," she said.

"For me it's a real no-brainer and it makes me really angry that certain parts of society are very, very wealthy and the gap between rich and poor is getting bigger.

"That's where the money should be coming from, not from single mothers or the disabled or any other vulnerable group."

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