Written By Unknown on Selasa, 17 Maret 2015 | 14.59
A one-year-old boy has been killed after a recovery truck crashed into a wall in Birmingham, West Midlands Police say.
Officers were called to Queens Road in the Stechford area of the city at around 5pm on Monday following a report a recovery truck had hit a wall which then fell on to the child.
The boy suffered a serious head injury and was pronounced dead at the scene.
He has not been formally identified.
The incident happened in Queens Road, Stechford
Investigators are working to establish what happened, and the road is likely to be closed for some time between Sedgemere Road and Broadstone Road.
Inspector Paul Bennett said: "This is a very tragic set of circumstances - words cannot describe what his family are going through and our thoughts are with them at this time.
"Specialist officers will be supporting the boy's family and - as with all serious and fatal collisions - an investigation has been launched to establish the cause."
West Midlands Ambulance Service said there had been desperate efforts to save the boy.
A spokesman said: "A rapid response vehicle was on scene within four minutes of the call and was backed up by an ambulance, a paramedic officer, an emergency doctor and the Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance.
"Ambulance staff carried out advanced life support but sadly nothing could be done to save him and he was confirmed dead at the scene."
:: Anyone with information about what happened should call police on 101 and ask for the Collision Investigation Unit quoting log 1637 16/3/2015.
The minimum wage will rise by 20p to £6.70 an hour this October, benefiting 1.4 million low-paid workers.
David Cameron and Nick Clegg have announced the Coalition has accepted the 3% rise recommended by the Low Pay Commission (LPC) for all workers aged over 21.
The shift represents the largest real-terms increase in the rate since 2008 but is not enough to restore the rate to its value before the financial crash.
The Trades Union Congress said the low paid workers in line for an increase were also those who had been hardest hit by Coalition cuts.
Labour said it fell "far short" of the £7 hinted at by George Osborne as the level needed to put the minimum wage back on track in real terms.
The Chancellor did say at the time that it would be up to the independent LPC - made up of employers, unions and academics - to set the actual rate.
The Coalition has also accepted the commission's call to raise the level for younger workers over 18 by 17p to £5.30, and for 16 and 17-year-olds by 8p to £3.87.
But it has gone further when it comes to the pay of apprentices.
The LPC suggested a 2.6% increase to £2.80.
Instead ministers are increasing the level by 57p to £3.30 - which is the first step in an ambition to complete a £1 rise in the rate.
The minimum wage is a sensitive issue because of pressures from both the left and right.
When it made this latest recommendation, the LPC said: "We have carefully weighed the risk of doing too little to raise the earnings of the lowest paid against the risk of recommending more than business and the economy can afford."
For politicians the issue is clearly important because of the nearing election.
Labour has long criticised the Coalition for a situation in which inflation outstripped wages, but that trend has reversed more recently.
David Cameron has called on employers to "give Britain a pay rise" following the improved economic situation.
Today, he added: "At the heart of our long-term economic plan for Britain is a simple idea - that those who put in, should get out; that hard work is really rewarded; that the benefits of recovery are truly national."
Mr Clegg said it was one of many ways in which to create a "fairer society".
He said: "Whether you're on low pay or starting your dream career through an apprenticeship, you will get more support to help you go further and faster."
But Chuka Umunna, the shadow business secretary, said: "Ministers have misled working families who have been left worse off.
"Where under David Cameron we've seen the value of the minimum wage eroded, we need a recovery for working people."
Labour has promised that the level will rise to £8 by 2020, but there has been a suggestion that the real-terms rate could be higher than that by then.
Written By Unknown on Senin, 16 Maret 2015 | 14.59
Three British teenagers suspected of attempting to join Islamic State have been released on bail.
A man aged 19 and two 17-year-old boys, all from northwest London, were arrested on Saturday night on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts after returning to the UK, police said.
They were apprehended at Sabiha Gokcen airport in the Turkish city of Istanbul.
It is believed they travelled from England to Spain before flying on to the country.
A Met police spokesman said: "Officers alerted the Turkish authorities who were able to intercept all three males, preventing travel to Syria.
Video:Girls 'Pictured On Way To Syria'
"On Saturday, March 14 the three males returned to the UK and at approximately 11.10pm were arrested on suspicion of preparation of terrorist acts contrary to section five of the Terrorism Act 2006.
"They have been bailed to return to a central London police station pending further enquiries."
The trio have not been named, but Sky sources in Turkey say the initials of the men are GH, MNG, and MA.
The Met police said counter-terrorism officers were alerted on Friday that two 17-year-olds from northwest London had gone missing and were believed to be travelling to Syria. Inquiries revealed they had gone with a third male, aged 19.
Reports suggested their families told police they were missing and believed to be travelling to Syria.
Scotland Yard declined to say exactly how long in total they had been away from home.
The developments point to a new level of cooperation between the UK and Turkish police forces, which has faced criticism after three British schoolgirls travelled to Syria to join IS.
Kadiza Sultana, 16, Shamima Begum, 15, and Amira Abase, 15, flew to Istanbul on 17 February and are feared to have continued to Syria to become so-called "jihadi brides".
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Gallery: Three Schoolgirls From East London Missing
These pictures were taken from Kadiza Sultana (l) and Shamima Begum's (r) Twitter accounts
Kadiza and Shamima are feared to be on their way to Syria with a third girl, 15-year-old Amira Abase
A senior police officer has told Sky News his officers spend 20% of their time dealing with mental health issues even though they are not trained or equipped to do so.
Assistant Chief Constable Paul Netherton from Devon and Cornwall Police said tensions were rising between police forces and mental health care providers, possibly as a result of shrinking budgets.
"Certainly over the last few years that tension has been growing. We are all in austerity. We understand that," he said.
"The problem is that the Government funded the health service to provide the establishments for these people to go to. The challenge for the health service is that they've got to provide the staff to look after the patients and they are simply having to make some very tough choices.
"The view of the police service is we understand that but it's never right that these patients are coming into police premises and we're having to look after them.
Video:Mother Speaks Of Daughter's Trauma
"We haven't got the skills, we haven't got the facilities. And to be frankly honest a custody block is never somewhere you should put someone who is suicidal."
ACC Netherton took to social media last year after his officers were forced to arrest and detain a mentally-ill schoolgirl.
The 16-year-old, with a history of serious self-harm, was taken into police custody and had to stay in a police cell for three days because a secure hospital bed could not be found anywhere in the country.
The police officer's tweets described the situation as "unacceptable" and added "this can't be right".
Video:£1.25bn Mental Health Pledge
The scandal forced high level government intervention and focused attention on the use or misuse of police detentions under section 136 of the Mental Health Act.
"When I was a young police officer it was all about catching car thieves and criminals. Now my officers are spending about 20% of their time dealing with the after effects of mental health issues or dealing with people suffering from mental health episodes."
The mother of the schoolgirl told Sky News she had nothing but respect for ACC Netherton and said his tweets had helped her daughter's case but she hoped the vulnerable teenager has not been damaged by the detention.
"She would have been very scared. She would have had to obviously hear whatever was going on in the other cells, the drunks coming in on a Friday night. I know she was asleep a lot of the time because of the medication so I'm hoping she wasn't damaged too much by it."
Video:Mental Health Needs More Attention
The misery for the sick girl and her family is continuing. She is currently being held at a hospital in Norwich but her family lives on the other side of the country in Devon. The long journey takes time, money and effort - it explains why the girl's mother has only been able to see her daughter twice since Christmas.
The mother said: "She needs us and when we are with her it's amazing because all the staff tell us how well my daughter is doing and why she needs to be near her family, but it's crazy because she's so far away and I'm having to fight for my child to get what she needs to get better."
At least one police force in the country is achieving results with reducing the number of people it detains under the Mental Health Act.
West Midlands Police began trialling a triage service last year. An unmarked ambulance with a police officer, a psychiatric nurse and a paramedic are dispatched to emergencies. The hope is people suffering from mental health issues can be identified and referred for treatment.
Video:Blue Light Programme Launched
Chief Inspector Sean Russell, who leads the initiative, told Sky News the force is significantly reducing the number of police detentions.
"We've seen a 51% reduction in the number of people detained. That's over 300 people in Birmingham and Solihull in the last 12 months. So that's really significant. We've also stopped nearly 700 people being admitted to A&E because of the way our process works with the paramedic now."
But the success of the West Midlands project is not being replicated everywhere, meaning police forces, against their will, are still having to criminalise society's most vulnerable.
Written By Unknown on Minggu, 15 Maret 2015 | 14.59
Chancellor George Osborne is expected to extend pension freedoms to some five million people who have already purchased an annuity.
The change - due to be announced in Wednesday's Budget - will remove limits on buying and selling existing annuities.
The reform lets people cash in their annuity without incurring heavy tax penalties.
It also allows pensioners the same access to their retirement funds as the Chancellor announced last year for people who have yet to take their pensions.
Under those changes, from 6 April people can cash in their pension savings when they retire, rather than purchase an annuity.
Video:The Sky News Budget Rap Battle
With just weeks to go before the General Election, the announcement is expected to be popular with elderly voters.
The Chancellor is also reportedly considering cutting inheritance tax in a move which could allow millions to pass on their homes to their children tax free.
The Sunday Express reports that Mr Osborne is considering raising the death tax threshold from £325,000 to £1m, or abolishing the tax for a main family home.
The reform will either be announced in the Budget or as part of the Conservative manifesto, according to the newspaper.
Mr Osborne is expected to say on Wednesday that his Budget will deliver "a truly national recovery".
Video:60-Second Economist: The Budget
The Chancellor will outline measures to invest in industries around Britain, not just in London and the South East.
The measures are expected to include increased support for regional technology clusters and investment in the chemical sector in the North East.
Writing in The Sun On Sunday, Mr Osborne said: "We mustn't go back to the bad old days of just relying on the City of London for growth.
"New analysis shows that if all parts of England outside London and the South East grew at the national average then the UK economy as a whole could be an extra £90bn bigger by 2030.
"And it can be done. Between 2010 and 2013 Yorkshire and the Humber alone created more jobs than the whole of France, and in the South West over the last year someone has got a new job every 10 minutes."
A state of emergency has been declared in Vanuatu after at least eight people were confirmed dead in the aftermath of tropical Cyclone Pam.
Officials say the death toll is likely to rise after the storm caused widespread destruction across the 65 inhabited Vanuatu islands.
An emergency aid team from the Australian city of Darwin is leading the international response to the Pacific island nation and will be among the first aid crews on the ground later.
The cyclone saw winds of up to 168mph strike villages across the islands, leading to power outages and the destruction of major infrastructure.
The confirmed fatalities occurred in and around Vanuatu's capital Port Vila, according to World Vision emergency communications officer Chloe Morrison.
Video:Vanuatu President Lonsdale In Tears
Officials are yet to assess the full extent of the damage in many of the hard-hit outer islands, Ms Morrison added.
Isso Nihmei, Vanuatu coordinator for the environmental and crisis response group 350, said: "Most people right now, they are really homeless."
"We're still not having communications with the other provinces," he added.
Video:Drive Shows Extent Of Island Damage
"We're just running around trying to get information around Port Vila; with the other islands it's really hard to get anything."
UNICEF estimated that 54,000 children are among those affected by the cyclone.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the impact and scope of the disaster remains unclear.
Video:Husband Missing Since Cyclone Hit
"We hope the loss of life will be minimal," he said at the World Conference on Disaster Risk and Reduction in Japan.
The UK has pledged to contribute up to £2m in aid to help in the wake of the storm.
Britain's Department for International Development said "up to £1m" will be made immediately available to UN organisations and international aid agencies already working in the region.
1/15
Gallery: Fears Dozens Killed By Powerful Cyclone Pam
There are fears dozens of people have been killed after Cyclone Pam stuck the Pacific's Vanuatu archipelago
The streets of Porta Vila are reportedly littered with debris and uprooted trees following the storm
Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 14 Maret 2015 | 14.59
Jeremy Clarkson has hinted he may be ready to leave Top Gear after being suspended over a bust-up with a producer.
Writing in his column for the Sun newspaper he appeared to refer to himself as a "dinosaur", explaining that "the day must come when you have to wave goodbye to the big monsters".
He wrote: "Nature made a mistake when it invented the dinosaur. It was too big, too violent ...
"All the dinosaurs died and now, years later, no-one mourns their passing.
"These big, imposing creatures have no place in a world which has moved on."
Video:Family: We Saw Clarkson's Abuse
Clarkson, 54, has been suspended over a row in which he allegedly tried to hit a producer, named in reports as Oisin Tymon.
A petition calling for Clarkson to be reinstated has reached more than 840,000 signatures.
But the controversial presenter wrote: "You can start as many campaigns as you like and call on the support of politicians from all sides, but the day must come when you have to wave goodbye to the big monsters, and move on.
"We lose one animal and get another. The world turns."
He goes on to say: "As you may have heard, I've been suspended by the BBC following a fracas at a North Yorkshire hotel.
Video:'I'm Off To The Job Centre'
"I don't intend to dwell here on what happened then or what will happen in the future. I'm sure you're as fed up with the story as I am.
"One of the things which has cheered me is how many people have expressed support in the last few days. I'm touched and grateful."
Clarkson is being summoned to appear before a BBC disciplinary panel that will decide his fate.
The panel will be chaired by Ken MacQuarrie, the head of BBC Scotland who conducted the investigation into Newsnight's false expose of Lord McAlpine.
The corporation has not revealed when or where the hearing will take place.
Video:Clarkson Is TV's Kevin Pietersen
:: Read Sky News' interview with a family who say Clarkson launched into an expletive-ridden rant at the producer.
According to reports, he lashed out because he was unable to order a steak at the Simonstone Hall Hotel near Hawes, North Yorkshire, where the production team were staying.
The Sun and Daily Mirror said the hotel's chef had gone home by the time they arrived and they were only offered cold meat platters, although Clarkson had ordered a £21.95 steak.
The papers quoted a source who claimed Clarkson blamed Mr Tymon for not arranging hot food and said there had been a "scuffle".
