Friday, February 28, 2014

GAO report: Too few pilots or too little pay?



WASHINGTON (AP) — The nation’s regional airlines are having trouble hiring enough pilots, the government says, suggesting one reason may be that they simply don’t pay enough.


A pool of qualified pilots is available, but it’s unclear whether they are willing to work for low entry-level wages, the Government Accountability Office said in a report released Friday.


One key economic indicator supports the emergence of a shortage, something regional airlines have complained of and point to as a reason for limiting service to some small communities. But two other indicators suggest the opposite is true, GAO said. Also, two studies reviewed by the GAO “point to the large number of qualified pilots that exist, but may be working abroad, in the military or in another occupation, as evidence that there is adequate supply,” the report said.


The U.S. airline industry will need to hire 1,900 to 4,500 new pilots annually over the next 10 years due to an expected surge in retirements of pilots reaching age 65 and increased demand for air travel, the report said.


Eleven out of 12 regional airlines failed to meet their hiring targets for entry-level pilots last year, the report said. However, no major airlines were experiencing problems finding pilots.


Regional carriers account for about half of all domestic airline flights. One big concern is that communities served only by regional airlines will see their service reduce or eliminated. Five regional airlines told GAO they are already limiting service because of a pilot shortage.


Major airlines generally pay significantly higher salaries than regional carriers and frequently hire pilots from regionals. The average starting salary for first officers, also called co-pilots, at regional airlines is $22,400 a year, according to the Air Line Pilots Association.


Earlier this month, Wyoming-based Great Lakes Airlines ended service in a handful of small towns, citing a dearth of qualified pilots. The pilots association says Great Lakes pays newly hired first officers $16,500 a year.


“Data indicate that a large pool of qualified pilots exists relative to the projected demand, but whether such pilots are willing or available to work at wages being offered is unknown,” the report said. And, the size of the pilot pool has remained steady since 2000, the report said.


There are currently 66,000 pilots working for U.S. airlines, but there are 109,465 currently active pilots with a first-class medical certificate who are licensed to fly airline passengers, the report said. An additional 100,000-plus pilots with commercial licenses might at some point choose to pursue an airline career, the report said


The unemployment rate for professional pilots is very low, only 2.7 percent. That would normally indicate a shortage, but that may not be the case, GAO said. Average professional pilot salaries went down 9.5 percent from 2000 to 2012, while the number of pilots employed went up 12 percent. Both trends are inconsistent with a shortage, the report said.


At the same time, pilot qualifications have been ramped up. Both captains and first officers need at least 1,500 hours of flying experience, although there are some exceptions. First officers used to need just 250 hours.


In a statement, the trade group for regional airlines blamed that rule for the pilot shortage and called on Congress to address it. “Its impact has proven more immediate and significant than analysts predicted,” said Roger Cohen, president of the Regional Airline Association.


The new regulations stem from an aviation safety law Congress passed more than three years ago following the 2009 crash of a regional airliner near Buffalo, N.Y., that was blamed on pilot error. All 49 people on board and a man on the ground were killed. An investigation revealed that the first officer had been paid only about $16,000 the previous year, her first year at the airline. The captain was earning about $63,000. The Continental Connection flight was operated by the now-defunct regional carrier Colgan Air Inc.


The National Transportation Safety Board concluded that both pilots were suffering from fatigue, although the board stopped short of citing fatigue as a contributor to the crash. Neither pilot had slept in a bed the night prior to the fatal flight. The first officer, who lived at home with her parents, commuted across the country overnight in a jump seat in order to make the fatal flight.


Afterwards, some lawmakers questioned whether the pilots could afford hotel rooms on their salaries and said raising the qualifications for entry-level pilots would force airlines to pay more for greater experience.


So far, that doesn’t appear to be happening. The average new pilot at 14 regional airlines is paid about $24 per hour for the first year of employment, GAO said. Hourly wages increase for the second year on the job for first officers to about $30. The average hourly pay for first officers at a major carrier is $48.


Classroom work and flight training in a 4-year program to qualify for commercial flying can cost well in excess of $100,000. Pilot schools GAO interviewed reported fewer students entering their programs because of the disparity between high education costs and low entry-level pay at regional airlines.


“People aren’t going to work for $22,000 again, and the reason they’re not going to do it is they spend $100,000 or so to get their certification, and you can’t live on that amount of money, pay your student loans off and function,” said Lee Moak, president of the Air Line Pilots Association.


Some regional airlines have offered new first officers signing bonuses or tuition reimbursement to attract more pilots, the report said.


___


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GAO report: Too few pilots or too little pay?

Google loses bid to keep anti-Islamic video online during appeal



By Dan Levine


SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Google Inc on Friday lost its bid to keep an anti-Islamic film on its YouTube video sharing website while it appealed a federal appeals court order that the company said would have “devastating effects” if allowed to stand.


Earlier this week, a panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals voted 2-1 to reject Google’s assertion that the removal of the film “Innocence of Muslims,” which sparked protests across the Muslim world, amounted to a prior restraint of speech that violated the U.S. Constitution.


In a court filing on Thursday, Google argued that the video should remain accessible to the public while it asks that a larger, 11-judge 9th Circuit panel review the issue. Google called this week’s opinion “unprecedented” and “sweeping.”


However, the 9th Circuit on Friday rejected Google’s request in a brief order. Google representatives could not immediately be reached for comment.


The plaintiff, Cindy Lee Garcia, had objected to the film after learning that it incorporated a clip she had made for a different movie, which had been partially dubbed and in which she appeared to be asking: “Is your Mohammed a child molester?”


Garcia’s attorney, Cris Armenta, opposed Google’s request to repost the video while the appeal proceeds. The actress received death threats as a result of her appearance in the film.


The controversial film, billed as a film trailer, depicted the Prophet Mohammed as a fool and a sexual deviant. It sparked a torrent of anti-American unrest among Muslims in Egypt, Libya and other countries in 2012.


That outbreak coincided with an attack on U.S. diplomatic facilities in Benghazi that killed four Americans, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya. U.S. and other foreign embassies were also stormed in the Middle East, Asia and Africa.


For many Muslims, any depiction of the prophet is considered blasphemous.


Google had refused to remove the film from YouTube despite pressure from the White House and others, though it blocked the trailer in Egypt, Libya and certain other countries.


In court filings, Google argued that Garcia appeared in the film for five seconds, and that while she might have legal claims against the director, she should not win a copyright lawsuit against Google. The film has now become an important part of public debate, Google argued, and should not be taken down.


But Garcia argued that her performance within the film was independently copyrightable and that she retained an interest in that copyright. The 9th Circuit panel agreed on Wednesday.


In its court filing on Thursday, Google said the 9th Circuit order would produce “devastating effects” if allowed to stand.


“Minor players in everything from Hollywood films to home videos can wrest control of those works from their creators,” Google wrote, “and service providers like YouTube will lack the ability to determine who has a valid copyright claim.”


The 9th Circuit on Friday said its order does not preclude posting a version of “Innocence of Muslims” that does not include Garcia’s performance.


Shortly after Google learned of the 9th Circuit’s takedown order, it hired Neal Katyal, the former acting U.S. solicitor general, to advocate for further 9th Circuit review, according to the court docket.


The case is Garcia vs. Google Inc et al., 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 12-57302.


(Reporting by Dan Levine; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Ken Wills)





Google loses bid to keep anti-Islamic video online during appeal

Gains in China's home prices slow in February-surveys



BEIJING (Reuters) – Gains in China‘s home prices moderated in February, two private surveys showed on Saturday, in the latest signs of a cooling down in the country’s frothy property market as government curbs appear to be biting.


Prices of new homes in 288 major cities in February rose 9.08 percent in February from a year earlier, easing from January’s annual rise of 9.39 percent, a poll by real estate services firm E-House China showed.


That was the slowest gain in 10 months, marking the fourth consecutive month of easing annual gains.


A separate survey by the China Real Estate Index System(CREIS) also showed average prices in 100 biggest cities rose 0.54 percent in February from January’s 0.63 percent rise, to post a 21st straight month gain.


On average, prices rose 10.8 percent in February from a year earlier, CREIS said in a statement, moderating from 11.1 percent annual gains in January and marking the second consecutive month of easing annual gains.


The latest surveys added to signs of a cooling down in the property market, fanning fears of a slowdown in the economy.


“Against the backdrop of slowing economic growth and no obvious signs of loosen credit environment, the residential market has cooled down a little in the slack season,” said CREIS, a consultancy linked to China’s largest online property information firm, Soufun Holdings .


China’s property market has shown initial signs of losing steam since late 2013 as local governments took further tightening measures and banks gradually tightened lending to this sector.


Official data showed China’s home price gains eased for the first time in 14 months in January as some property developers have been stepping up the use of sales promotions for some suburban housing projects.


A Reuters poll of 13 industry watchers this week showed the chance of a sharp drop in China’s property market was slim, although some smaller cities may see a correction of up to 10 percent.


China’s central government did not introduce any nationwide property curbs since the new leadership formally took office in March 2013, but local authorities in some areas have taken targeted steps to try to cool prices, including raising minimum down payments for second homes and promising more land for building.


Still home prices are at record highs and well beyond the reach of ordinary Chinese in most cities as the unrelenting rise has been buoyed by a view that property remains one of the best investments.


China’s statistical bureau is due to publish official home prices data for 70 major cities for February on March.18.


(Reporting By Xiaoyi Shao and Kevin Yao; Editing by Michael Perry)





Gains in China's home prices slow in February-surveys

Syrian activists urge release of delegate's brother



Syrian activists Friday called for the brother of an opposition delegate to the Geneva peace talks to be released after he was snatched from a Damascus suburb by Syrian security services.


Mahmoud Sabra, the brother of Mohammed Sabra, was arrested on his way home in Jaramana on February 20 only days after the second round of peace talks aimed at bringing in a transitional government collapsed.


“He was on his way back home from work, and he was abducted… from the streets,” Mohammed Ghanem, senior political advisor for the Syrian American Council, told AFP.


Witnesses got a message back to his family and to his brother who now lives in Turkey, and it is feared that Mahmoud Sabra is incarcerated in the notorious Far Falastin, or Palestine Branch, jail near the Syrian capital.


“If you’re held in this facility, one receives the worst kind of torture, things you can’t even describe,” said Ghanem.


The United States has already condemned Sabra’s arrest and called for his unconditional release.


But Ghanem said it was part of a relentless campaign of intimidation by the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.


“There’s been retaliation against literally everyone,” he said.


“All of those who went to Geneva have been designated as terrorists, and all of their moveable and immovable assets have been seized. … jewelry, furniture, cars stocks, money stashed in bank accounts,” he said.


“This is their punishment for sitting across the table from regime delegates and trying to work out a plan for transition in Syria.”


The second round of the UN-led talks in the Swiss city dubbed Geneva II, broke down in acrimony on February 15, only weeks after the warring parties sat down in January for the first time to seek a political settlement.


So far no date has been set for the talks to resume.


Ghanem said he believed UN-Arab League special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi would manage to get the talks going again, as the international community seeks an end to the brutal three-year war.


“But I think ultimately the talks will fail. No one believes that Assad will negotiate his own demise, his own departure,” he said.


“He doesn’t think he needs to negotiate because he thinks he has the upper hand on the ground.


“So unless conditions on the ground are created so they are conducive to talks, it will be one round after one round of talks, and time-buying just so Assad can continue his offensives.”


The opposition has insisted the focus of the Geneva talks must be on creating a transitional government, without Assad.


The regime representatives meanwhile stubbornly insisted Assad?s position was non-negotiable and refused to discuss anything beyond the “terrorism” it blames on its opponents and their foreign backers.





Syrian activists urge release of delegate's brother

Chris Brown told to return to rehab for 2 months



LOS ANGELES (AP) — A California judge ordered Chris Brown to remain in an anger-management rehab program and told the pop singer to return to court in two months.


On Friday, Superior Court Judge James Brandlin scheduled Brown’s next hearing for April 23. That would come after what’s expected to be a brief assault trial in Washington, D.C., earlier that month.


Prosecutors have asked that Brown be sent to jail for violating probation with his October arrest in the district. In that incident, Brown and his bodyguard are accused of punching a man and breaking his nose outside a hotel. Brown is on probation for his 2009 attack on then-girlfriend, Rihanna.


But Brown’s attorneys have asked the judge to await the outcome of the Washington, D.C., case before hearing evidence on whether Brown should go to jail.





Chris Brown told to return to rehab for 2 months

Free Bus Services For Elderly 'Under Threat'



Free bus services for the elderly and disabled people are under threat as councils struggle to fund the services.



Funding for free, off-peak travel has fallen by 39% since 2010, according to the Local Government Association.



Councils are now being forced to subsidise free travel at the cost of other essential services, the LGA added.



Among the county councils forced to cut back on the services due to funding shortages are Buckinghamshire, Cumbria and Somerset.



Peter Box, the LGA’s economy and transport board chairman, said: “The concessionary fares scheme provides a lifeline for our most vulnerable residents to go shopping, pick up medication, attend doctor appointments or socialise with friends. However, it is now under real threat.



“Years of underfunding of the scheme forces councils to spend millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money to subsidise the scheme.



“This is now impossible with councils having to make savings while struggling to protect vital services like adult social care, protecting children, filling potholes and collecting bins.”



A Government spokeswoman said: “We know that bus services are vital for many older and disabled people.



“That is why the right to free travel is enshrined in law and government provides funding to meet the cost of subsidising off-peak travel for these groups.



“In addition, the Department for Transport provides funding to bus operators to help more services run and keep ticket prices down.



“The current level of this funding is protected until 2015/16.”



:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.




Source Article from http://uk.news.yahoo.com/free-bus-services-elderly-under-threat-044848407.html



Free Bus Services For Elderly 'Under Threat'

Kendrick Lamar Finally Responds To Macklemore's Grammy Text







Drake said it was “wack as f–k,” but Maino said he respected it. Almost everyone has had something to say about Macklemore‘s infamous post-Grammy text to Kendrick Lamar after he “robbed” the good kid, m.A.A.d city MC of Best Rap Album — except K.Dot.


Until now.


In a cover story with Billboard, the TDE rapper finally addressed the apology.


“That text surprised me, but Macklemore is a genuine dude,” Lamar said, diplomatically. “However it panned out, I wish him much success. He touched people’s souls, and no one can take that away. Really, the whole Grammy moment was incredible. Not everyone gets that shot.”


Not quite the response one might expect from the man who lobbed lyrical grenades at all of his rap peers on last year’s most-talked-about battle cry track, “Control.”


For those living under a rock or somehow missed the copious amounts of hilarious memes, the “Thrift Shop” rapper’s apology basically acknowledged that he felt Kendrick should have won and that it felt weird to sweep every hip-hop award that night.


“You got robbed. I wanted you to win. You should have,” Macklemore wrote. “It’s weird and sucks that I robbed you. I was gonna say that during the speech. Then the music started playing during my speech, and I froze. Anyway, you know what it is. Congrats on this year and your music. Appreciate you as an artist and as a friend. Much love.”


For his part, though, Kendrick has moved on from his Grammy snub. The “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe” rapper has been busy in TDE’s House of Pain studio working on the follow-up to his groundbreaking debut, which, according to Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith, has a tentative release for this coming September.


“Our thing is not being confined to whatever everybody else is doing or what’s supposed to be the ‘it’ thing,” Kendrick said. “We building our brand just by doing what we wanna do. The sound we that like and love…the people followed that.”










Kendrick Lamar Finally Responds To Macklemore's Grammy Text

High-calorie diet may slow Lou Gehrig's disease



A diet rich in calories and carbohydrates may slow progression of the lethal, degenerative Lou Gehrig’s disease, according to a small-scale study reported in The Lancet on Friday.


Formally called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or motor neuron disease, the disorder affects nerve cells that control muscle movement.


Patients become tired and weak and lose the power to move and eventually breathe; they die three years on average after being diagnosed.


The new study follows up on suspicions that ALS patients may be placed at even greater risk if they lose weight. They find it hard to eat and swallow, and eventually have to be fed with a tube directly into the stomach.


Experiments on mice genetically engineered to display ALS symptoms have found that those given a high-calorie diet rich in fat survived longer.


Building on this work, researchers in the United States tested 20 volunteers with advanced ALS who were at the stage of being tube-fed.


The patients were divided into three groups.


One was a “control” group which received a nutritional formula designed to keep their weight stable, while the other two received 125 percent of the calories they needed to maintain their weight.


Of these two groups, one received a high-calorie diet rich in carbohydrates, and the other a high-calorie diet rich in fats.


The diets lasted for four months, and patients were followed for a further five months afterwards.


Patients on the diet that was high in calories and carbs did far better than counterparts in the two other groups, the researchers found.


They experienced fewer “adverse events” — health problems ranging from pneumonia to muscular pains or rashes.


They also gained more weight, picking up 390 grammes (0.8 pounds) per month on average, compared to a gain of 110g (0.24 pounds) in the control group and a loss of 460g (1.01 pounds) in the high-calorie high-fat diet group.


During the five-month followup, no deaths occurred among the high-calorie, high-carbohydrate group, compared with one in the high-fat group and three in the control group, said the study.


The experiment was only conducted on a small scale and its chief goal had been to see whether ALS patients could safely change diet, rather than testing how effective the switch might be.


“This pilot study demonstrates the safety of a novel, simple, low-cost treatment for a devastating disease where currently very few treatment options are available,” said lead researcher Anne-Marie Wills at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.


“The adverse outcomes that we feared might result from weight gain, such as diabetes or heart disease, were not observed in our study period.”


The team called for larger trials among patients at an earlier stage of ALS, to see whether these optimistic but cautious findings hold true.





High-calorie diet may slow Lou Gehrig's disease

Documents show 1990s effort to 'humanize' Hillary Clinton



By John Whitesides and Will Dunham


WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Aides in former President Bill Clinton’s White House crafted a strategy to “humanize” then-first lady Hillary Clinton and work around her “aversion” to the national media, according to documents released on Friday.


The documents also detailed the first lady’s struggles in the early 1990s with her healthcare task force, including worries about resistance on Capitol Hill and an aide’s warning the plan could not meet a pledge to allow patients to pick their doctors, a promise that also came back to haunt President Barack Obama.


The release of nearly 4,000 pages of previously sealed documents by the Clinton Presidential Library served to revisit Hillary Clinton’s record and early struggles with her image as she gears up for a potential 2016 run for the presidency. The documents had previously been withheld from the public under a legal authority that expired last year.


The documents shed light on efforts to overcome the perception that the first lady was aloof and calculating, detailing her attempts to win positive press coverage around the time she gave a speech at a U.N. conference in China in 1995 and ahead of her successful run for the U.S. Senate in 2000.


An August 31, 1995, memo by Clinton’s press secretary Lisa Caputo suggested she do interviews with “regional media.”


“Hillary is comfortable with the local reporters and enjoys speaking with them,” the memo states. “This will help us get around her aversion to the national Washington media and serve to counter the tone of the national media.”


The memo recommended a “Hillaryland Staff Outreach to Media” and urged Clinton aides to “socialize more” with reporters.


“I believe it would create enormous good will for Hillary since we can all tell wonderful Hillary anecdotes that humanize her and show the press the good person that she is,” it said.


Such an effort would also correct the picture of Clinton’s “being in a bunker mentality,” the memo stated. It further suggested the “wild idea” of having the first lady make a guest appearance on the then-popular ABC sitcom “Home Improvement,” starring Tim Allen.


‘A FIASCO’


In a July 6, 1999, memo to Clinton as she headed off on a “listening tour” in New York state to introduce herself to voters ahead of her successful run for the Senate, consultant Mandy Grunwald advised her to be “chatty, intimate, informal” and “real.”


The memo listed two questions she might prepare for: “Have you ever used drugs?” and “Your only government assignment was health care which was a fiasco. How does that record stack up against Mayor Giuliani’s?”


Then-New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani was seen as a possible Republican Senate candidate but did not run. Clinton won a Senate seat, beating Republican Rick Lazio in 2000.


The documents also showed administration aides were worried early about the prospects for the first lady’s healthcare initiative and went to elaborate lengths to court key lawmakers and sell the plan to the public.


The plan to provide universal health coverage was dropped in September 1994 amid heavy criticism in Congress and from the health insurance industry that it was too complex and bureaucratic.


In the early stages of the debate in 1993, a staff memo suggested Clinton hold a series of meetings and working dinners with congressional leaders to build support and offered suggestions for ways to stroke the egos of individual members.


In a January 1994 memo, a White House aide said the president’s plan to include a promise in the State of the Union address that Americans could pick the health plan and doctor of their choice “sounds great” but might come back to haunt the administration.


“I am very worried about getting skewered or over-promising here on something we know full well we won’t deliver,” the memo said.


The incident echoed Obama’s later inability to keep a similar promise about his healthcare law that all patients would be able to keep their doctors.


The documents also included a transcript of a 1993 speech to Democratic congressional leaders in which Hillary Clinton said the individual mandate to purchase insurance – a basic tenet of Obamacare but not part of her proposal in the 1990s – was a “much harder sell” that would send shockwaves through the insured population.


The documents, the first of about 33,000 pages that will be released in the next few weeks, are posted online by the library at http://www.clintonlibrary.gov/formerlywithhelddocuments.html.


(Editing by Prudence Crowther)





Documents show 1990s effort to 'humanize' Hillary Clinton

Begg in court on terror charges



Former Guantanamo Bay detainee Moazzam Begg will appear in court today, charged with Syria-related terror offences.


Begg, 45, of Boden Road, Hall Green, Birmingham, is accused of providing terrorist training and funding terrorism overseas, West Midlands Police said.


He will appear at Westminster Magistrates Court alongside a woman, Gerrie Tahari, 44, of Ashway, Sparkbrook, Birmingham, who is charged with facilitating terrorism overseas.


Both were arrested on Tuesday. Two other men arrested the same day remain in police custody.




Source Article from http://uk.news.yahoo.com/begg-court-terror-charges-004444294.html



Begg in court on terror charges

Anger over £1.2m divorce award



One of Britain’s wealthiest men has reacted angrily to a High Court award made to his son-in-law – despite prenuptial agreements.


In a bitter divorce battle, a judge ordered that estranged husband Frankie Limata was entitled to about £1.2 million funds from his wife Victoria Luckwell to give him a home and pay off his debts following their split.


The judge warned his decision could mean Miss Luckwell having to sell her home in London’s exclusive Connaught Square where neighbours include Tony and Cherie Blair.


Victoria’s father is Mike Luckwell, 71, who was the director of the media company which created children’s programme Bob The Builder and is estimated to have a £135m fortune.


He made a gift of the Connaught Square property to his daughter and said he was “disgusted” that Mr Limata, 45, had gone back on three pre-marital agreements that he would not make claims against family assets.


But High Court Family Division judge Mr Justice Holman yesterday ruled proper provision must be made for Mr Limata – despite the agreements – particularly to avoid the divorce having a damaging impact on the couple’s three children.


He said the children could find themselves living with their 37-year-old mother “in relative luxury” and then staying with their father, who was in debt and lacked assets, “in relative penury”.


The judge said: “If all the facts were the same but the genders reversed, it is inconceivable that the agreements would outweigh making a substantial award to the wife, even if the children were primarily living with the husband and only intermittently staying with her.”


Today’s ruling followed six-and-a-half days during which the judge was told that self-made millionaire Mr Luckwell had threatened to disinherit his daughter if she broke a promise not to sell her home to benefit Mr Limata.


The judge said the father had also said “with absolute clarity and firmness” on oath that if his daughter were forced to break her promise he would not continue to pay either her allowance or the school fees for his grandchildren.


Mr Justice Holman said he believed the father was “not bluffing”. He did not trust his son-in-law “an inch” and clearly regarded him as lazy and workshy. He had been told that Frankie had had a number of girlfriends “who were rich or the daughters of very rich parents”.


The judge said: “He had always regarded Frankie as a gold-digger who had married for money and from whom Victoria’s money and the assets he proposed to give Victoria had to be utterly protected.”


The judge described the court hearing at which both sides gave evidence a s “an exceptionally bitter hearing which was very painful to behold”.


The judge predicted that the outcome of the case was “likely to be controversial with some polarised public reactions to it”.


Miss Luckwell, who now uses her maiden name, married Mr Limata in Mayfair in July 2005 and they have three children. They split up in 2012 following rows over money.


The judge said: “The two sides are now very entrenched indeed. Many hurtful things have been said.


“Caught in the cross fire are three adored, innocent but vulnerable children.”


The row over money had already cost some £550,000 – “and rising”. Other aspects of the divorce litigation had cost a further £107,000 “with more to come”.


The judge added: “It did not have to be like this.” The “tragic fact” was that there was scope for a negotiated settlement last summer, “assisted by the generosity of the father”, which had now all been lost.


The judge said he had repeatedly urged the sides to settle. “But alas there has been no settlement and the wife’s primary open position remains that there is not a penny on the table.”


The husband had no assets at all. His net debts, including all he owed in costs, amounted to about £226,000.


Miss Luckwell was property rich and owned the £6.7m house she lived in, but she had no free assets.


In July 2005 the couple had signed a pre-marital agreement, and then two supplementary agreements. The judge said he was sure the marriage would never have taken place without the initial agreement, even though Miss Luckwell was already pregnant.


When Frankie signed it he was a mature man of normal intelligence, though with just two O-levels and knew exactly what he was signing.


“He was keen to demonstrate to Victoria and her family that he was marrying her for love and not for her money.”


The judge said that Mike Luckwell had accused Frankie in court of “lying” when he signed the agreement and said he had no intention of being bound by it, or by two supplementary agreements.


But the judge ruled that Miss Luckwell must fund a house or flat for the use of Mr Limata not exceeding £900,000. When their youngest child reaches the age of 22 that property must be sold, unless the court amends the order.


The judge said 45% of the net proceeds of the sale must go to Miss Luckwell and the balance reinvested in a home for Mr Limata to use for the rest of his life.


The judge said Miss Luckwell would also have to produce in the near future funds to rent a property until Mr Limata has a new home, further funds to pay off his debts and cover other costs including him buying furniture and a second-hand car.


The judge stressed he was expressing the outcome of his judgment “only broadly”, and many details remained to be worked out, but the total she would have to find would be about £1.2m leaving her about £5.5m from the sale of Connaught Square.


Later Miss Luckwell said she was “distressed” by today’s ruling. She said: ” Frankie contributed nothing to my marriage in terms of capital, all of which came from my family on the basis that Frankie entered into three separate agreements.


“He also made repeated oral promises, to my parents and me, on which we relied, that he would never make any claim against my family’s assets, which he has broken.


“My father’s stated position that it would be outrageous if the Court ordered Frankie anything is entirely understandable. We are all distressed that today Frankie was given a financial award at all, given the unforgivable breaches of his promises.


“Regrettably, the court order also means that I am solely responsible for funding the upbringing and education of our three young children, from the proceeds of the sale of our family home.”


Mr Limata’s solicitor, Miranda Fisher of law firm Charles Russell LLP, said: “Mr Limata has never sought a share of his wife’s wealth.


“He sought and was given sufficient funds to meet his real financial needs, including a home in which to live, having made financial contributions himself during the marriage from employment and his own inheritance.


“Marriage brings with it important legal and moral obligations to care for the other spouse in a time of need, including if a marriage breaks down.


“Whilst those obligations can be properly regulated and defined by a pre-nuptial agreement, it cannot be right for it to remove entirely the obligation to provide for real need.”




Source Article from http://uk.news.yahoo.com/anger-over-1-2m-divorce-award-002004029.html



Anger over £1.2m divorce award

Australia to turn on the lights for Sheffield Shield



MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Australia will play a number of first-class matches in the domestic Sheffield Shield competition under lights next week as a trial for playing day-night test cricket, Cricket Australia said on Saturday.


Brisbane’s Gabba ground, the Melbourne Cricket Ground and Adelaide Oval will all host matches with sessions played at night using pink balls and black sightscreens.


“We’re serious about day-night test cricket and next week’s trials will play an important role in making that happen,” CA chief James Sutherland said in a statement.


“Cricket needs to try and find a way to schedule the premium form of the game at a time when the most number of fans are able to attend and watch.”


Sutherland said there were no guarantees and obstacles included the durability of the coloured ball and dew on the ground.


“However, without conducting trials in serious first-class competition, we won’t know how far away we are. That’s why next week’s matches are an important advancement in our plans,” he added.


“We want test cricket to remain the number one form of the game in the long term. We believe day-night test cricket can play an important part in that.”


Cricket Australia have set a goal of hosting the first day-night test match in the home summer of 2015/16.


(Reporting by Ian Ransom; Editing by Greg Stutchbury)





Australia to turn on the lights for Sheffield Shield

Obama could pull Russia trip amid Ukraine tumult



WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. officials said Friday that President Barack Obama may scrap plans to attend an international summit in Russia this summer and could also halt discussions on deepening trade ties with Moscow, raising specific possible consequences if Russia should intervene in Ukraine. Obama himself bluntly warned of unspecified “costs” for Russia.


“Any violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity would be deeply destabilizing,” Obama declared. Such action by Russia would represent a “profound interference” in matters that must be decided by the Ukrainian people, he said.


While the president spoke only of “reports” of military movements inside Ukraine, the officials said the U.S does believe that Russia is intervening.


Separately, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said he would not address specific U.S. options, “but this could be a very dangerous situation if this continues in a provocative way.” Asked about options in a CBS News interview, he said that “we’re trying to deal with a diplomatic focus, that’s the appropriate, responsible approach.”


As Obama prepared to speak late Friday, a spokesman for the Ukrainian border service said eight Russian transport planes had landed with unknown cargo in Crimea. Serhiy Astakhov told The Associated Press that the Il-76 planes arrived unexpectedly and were given permission to land, one after the other, at Gvardeiskoye air base.


In Washington, it was unclear whether the administration’s threats to pull trade talks or cancel presidential travel might have any impact on Russia’s calculations. Obama canceled a bilateral meeting with President Vladimir Putin last year after Russia granted asylum to National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden, though Obama still attended a separate international meeting in Russia.


Putin is scheduled to host the Group of Eight economic summit in June in Sochi, the site of the recently completed Winter Olympics. The U.S. is in discussions about the summit with European partners and it is difficult to see how some of those leaders would attend the summit if Russia has forces in Crimea, according to the administration officials. They were not authorized to discuss the situation by name and spoke only on condition of anonymity.


The administration’s warning that trade talks could be halted came as Russian officials were in Washington for economic discussions with Obama advisers.


For the U.S., levying punishments on Russia is complicated by the myriad of issues on which the White House needs Moscow’s help. Among them: ending the bloodshed in Syria, negotiating a nuclear agreement with Iran, and transporting U.S. military troops and equipment out of Afghanistan through Russian supply routes.


At the White House, a somber Obama decried the situation in Ukraine and warned about deeper outside intervention.


“Just days after the world came to Russia for the Olympic Games, that would invite the condemnation of nations around the world,” he said. “The United States will stand with the international community in affirming that there will be costs for any military intervention in Ukraine.”


Political turmoil in Ukraine has pushed President Viktor Yanukovych from office. Yanukovych held a news conference in southern Russia Friday in which he said he was not asking Moscow for military assistance and called military action “unacceptable.”


In his appearance before reporters, however, Yanukovych, who still regards himself the president, also vowed to “keep fighting for the future of Ukraine” and blamed the U.S. and the West for encouraging the rebellion that forced him to flee last weekend.


Any Russian military incursion in Crimea would dramatically raise the stakes in Ukraine, which is at the center of what many see as a tug of war between East and West.


One of the catalysts for massive demonstrations that led to Yanukovych’s ouster was his rejection of a partnership agreement with the European Union in favor of historical ties with Moscow. That EU agreement would have paved the way for Ukraine’s greater integration with the West, including potential affiliation with NATO, something to which Russia strongly objects for former Warsaw Pact members.


Secretary of State John Kerry and other senior U.S. officials have tried without success to dispel widespread sentiment in Russia that the United States and Europe are trying to pry Ukraine out from under Russian influence. They have insisted repeatedly that Ukraine is not a “zero-sum game” in which one side — Russia or the West — wins and the other loses.


Their argument, though, seems to be falling on deaf ears in Moscow, where Russian officials have been accusing the U.S. and its allies of meddling, fomenting anti-Russia sentiment and actively encouraging Kiev’s Western aspirations at the expense of its historical connections.


There was no known contact Friday between Obama and Putin, who last spoke a week ago.


Kerry did call Russian Foreign Minister Sergey for the second time in two days to press the Kremlin to keep its promise to respect Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Kerry said he warned Moscow against military moves in Crimea that could further inflame tensions.


Lavrov repeated Russian President Vladimir Putin’s pledge to do just that while also pointing out that Russia has broad interests in Ukraine, Kerry said.


The secretary of state said the U.S. was watching to see if Russian activity in Crimea “might be crossing a line in any way.” He added that the administration would be “very careful” in making judgments about that.


Kerry reiterated the U.S. view that Russian military intervention in Ukraine following the ouster of the country’s Russia-backed leader would run counter to Russia’s self-professed opposition to such operations in other countries, such as Libya and Syria.


Underscoring U.S. concerns about Russian intervention are memories of the conflict in Georgia, where Russian troops remain in two disputed enclaves in violation of a 2008 cease-fire.


Amid the heightened tensions over Ukraine, the U.S. this week twice renewed its objections to the Russian military presence in Georgia’s breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions.


_


Associated Press writer Darlene Superville contributed to this report.





Obama could pull Russia trip amid Ukraine tumult

Fashion disaster? Downpour douses Oscars red carpet



By Mike Davidson


LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The most glamorous of all runways, the 500-foot-long Oscars red carpet, might be a fashion disaster on Sunday.


A rare heavy rain storm on Friday in Southern California has soaked parts of the red carpet laid down on Hollywood Boulevard, where movie stars and Tinseltown powerbrokers will make their grand entrance to the Academy Awards, film’s highest honours.


Dozens of workers spent the morning securing the red carpet from the pelting rain and overflowing street gutters 48 hours before hundreds of attendees will parade designer gowns, extravagant jewels and tailored tuxedos.


Workers cleared pools of water that had collected atop the tent built to shield stars from the rain while others hustled to plug any leaks and a team wielding squeegees pushed standing water out of the protective plastic over the red carpet.


“It has been a challenge, a lot of water in a short amount of time,” said Joe Lewis, the associate producer of arrivals for Hollywood’s biggest night. “There is no perfect science to (a) rain plan. It is going to rain, there is going to be water, we have got to protect as best we can.”


The rain began in Los Angeles on Thursday evening and according to the National Weather Service is not expected to let up until Sunday morning, hours before Hollywood’s movie stars begin their walk across the red carpet at 3 p.m. PST (2300 GMT).


“I think the carpet is probably wet underneath us, which is going to be a problem in a couple days,” said Doug Neal, the stage manager of the Oscars red carpet show. “But we are well protected. They have put this up a few days ago so I think we will be alright.”


While the rain is a welcome sight for many in California, which is mired in its third year of a debilitating drought, high winds and debris caused road closures, power outages and about 1,000 homes in the Los Angeles area were ordered to be evacuated due to possible mudslides.


Organizers as a precaution had already wrapped the large gilded Oscar statues that flank the red carpet like columns to shield them from possible water damage.


“Well we have put in all the gutters, we have protected all the carpet, we’ve got all the scenery protected, we have got all the stages built,” Lewis said.


“We know how tough it is, but when they get out of the car on Sunday afternoon, this is their first impression of the Academy Awards and, by God, we want it to be a good one,” he added.


(Reporting by Reuters TV; Writing by Eric Kelsey; Editing by Mary Milliken and Lisa Shumaker)





Fashion disaster? Downpour douses Oscars red carpet

Katy Perry Channels 'The Craft' After Reported John Mayer Split: See The Pic







Katy Perry is channeling her dark side.


Just days after rumors began circulating that Perry and long-term boyfriend John Mayer had called it quits, the pop star was seen out in Los Angeles on Thursday (February 27) looking like she had just stepped off the set of one of her favorite ’90s flicks, “The Craft.”


Sporting bangs and her new jet-black short bob, the “Dark Horse” singer was wearing a multicolored plaid skirt, feathered top and black tights as she met up with friends, Shannon Woodward and B.J Novak at Jiltlada restaurant in Hollywood.


On Friday, Perry posted a puzzling message on Twitter, writing, “The bad news: there is no key to the universe. The good news: it was never locked.”





While she has yet to comment on the breakup reports, Perry seemed to have her hands full earlier this week when she helped to deliver a baby in a living room. The pop star shared with her followers that she was now “Auntie Katy.” For his part, Mayer has been spending time in New York. He reunited with his namesake trio for their first TV performance in five years on “Light Night with Seth Meyers.”


This isn’t the first time the couple have supposedly parted ways: The duo broke up last March but eventually reconciled. Since then, both have spoken highly of each other and even released a song and music video together for

“Who You Love.” They sparked engagement rumorsafter Perry was seen wearing a large diamond ring.










Katy Perry Channels 'The Craft' After Reported John Mayer Split: See The Pic

Aaron De Silva Jailed For Killing Pensioner



A burglar has been jailed for life for murdering a pensioner in a brutal knife attack.



Aaron De Silva, 21, had admitted the manslaughter of Joseph Griffiths, but denied murder.



He was found guilty of murdering the 73-year-old retired businessman following a trial at the Old Bailey.



It is believed Mr Griffiths heard De Silva breaking into his home in Fulham, southwest London, in the early hours and tried to challenge him.



Mr Griffiths, who had two grown-up sons and seven grandchildren, was discovered in a pool of blood by his wife and a friend after the “completely brutal and overwhelming assault” in November 2012.



He had been stabbed 22 times and was pronounced dead at the scene.



De Silva was caught on CCTV taking a “cool, calm and collected walk” back to the Earls Court hostel where he was staying to wash his clothes and get rid of evidence.



Footage of him at the hostel an hour later showed him listening to music, seemingly unaffected by the killing.



De Silva was sentenced to life with a minimum of 32 years.



He was also sentenced to 12 years to run consecutively after admitting aggravated burglary armed with a lock knife.



Investigating officer detective inspector Simon Pickford said: “De Silva is an extremely violent individual who had no hesitation in stabbing the victim repeatedly in a frenzied and brutal attack after he was disturbed having broken into Mr Griffiths’ home.



“I must pay tribute to Mr Griffiths’ family who have been left utterly devastated by what happened.



“They have conducted themselves with the utmost restraint and dignity throughout this tragic incident and my and my team’s thoughts are with them.”



:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.



 




Source Article from http://uk.news.yahoo.com/aaron-silva-jailed-killing-pensioner-215309543.html



Aaron De Silva Jailed For Killing Pensioner

Philip Seymour Hoffman died of accidental overdose - official



By Patricia Reaney


NEW YORK (Reuters) – Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, who was found in his New York apartment on February 2 with a needle in his arm, died of an accidental overdose of drugs, the New York City Chief Medical Examiner said on Friday.


The cause of death was acute drug intoxication, including heroin, cocaine, benzodiazepines and amphetamine, according to Julie Bolcer, spokeswoman for the Medical Examiner’s Office.


She added that it is the final determination in Hoffman’s death. Only the cause and manner of death will be released to the public.


A drug overdose had been suspected when Hoffman, 46, was discovered in his apartment along with dozens of small plastic bags containing a substance believed to be heroin. The confirmation puts the actor, regarded as one of the best of his generation, on a growing list of entertainers who succumbed to drugs.


“Glee” actor Cory Monteith, 31, died in Vancouver of an accidental overdose of heroin and alcohol in October. Drugs were also the cause of death of Australian actor Heath Ledger in 2008 and singer Whitney Houston in 2012.


Overdoses from legal or illegal drugs also have claimed the lives of entertainers including Marilyn Monroe, John Belushi, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin.


Hoffman is survived by his long-time partner, Mimi O’Donnell, and their three young children, Cooper, Tallulah and Willa.


The actor’s tragic death coincides with an increase in U.S. heroin use, which government officials say has reached epidemic proportions in the past five years. Fatal heroin overdoses have risen 45 percent from 2006 to 2010, according to the Office of National Drug Control Policy.


Hoffman, a best actor Oscar winner for his role in the 2005 biographical film “Capote,” won accolades for his versatility and mesmerizing performances on the stage and screen.


From his Tony-nominated role as Willy Loman in Arthur Miller’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play “Death of a Salesman” to complex characters in such films as “Happiness,” in which he played an obscene phone caller, and “Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead,” Hoffman transfixed audiences with his talent.


He also earned Tony award nominations for “Long Day’s Journey Into Night” and “True West.”


His screen roles included “The Master,” “Doubt” and “Charlie Wilson’s War,” for which he won best supporting actor Oscar nominations, and appearances in blockbusters such as “The Hunger Games” series.


(Reporting by Patricia Reaney; Editing by Gunna Dickson)





Philip Seymour Hoffman died of accidental overdose - official

Watch One Direction's Favorite '2013 Memories' GIF By GIF







Wish you could go back and relive every adorable, heart-melting and silly moment from One Direction’s past year? Well, today is your lucky day!


Much like last week, 1D encouraged fans, via Instagram video, to show off their best bad dance moves. Once they had enough submissions, One Direction unlocked their “vault” revealing another video of behind-the-scenes footage.





Directioners were taken on trip down memory lane in the latest 3 minute clip, titled “2013 Memories.” The video gives an inside glimpse at what life was like for Harry, Zayn, Liam, Niall and Louis as they jetted around the globe on their Take Me Home tour, put on an seven-hour live stream on 1D Day and went back to where their career started on the “X Factor U.K.”


Along the way, the boys had a lot of fun getting to know their fans, picking up some interesting dance moves and meeting up with some famous friends.


MTV News rounded up some of the standout moments from the video, so enjoy these 13 One Direction memories from 2013.


Niall Gives the Best High-Fives


Now We Know Why Louis is A Pro


Dirty Dancing


Round of Applause For Naill’s Sweet Moves


Seriously, They Can’t Stop Dancing


Liam’s Hips Don’t Lie


Break It Down Boys


Niall Pretending He’s a Monkey


Katy Perry Gives A Great Side-Eye…And Look, John Mayer!


Strike a Pose


The Magic That Was Harry Pottery


Happy Birthday, Louis!


Pucker Up! Harry’s Coming In For A Kiss


More Reasons One Direction’s New Video The Best










Watch One Direction's Favorite '2013 Memories' GIF By GIF

Turkish opposition challenges law tightening grip on judiciary



By Gulsen Solaker


ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey’s main opposition party asked the top court on Friday to overturn a law tightening government control of the judiciary, which it sees as part of efforts by Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan to snuff out a corruption scandal.


Hours after the law was enacted late on Thursday, Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag appointed at least nine new senior members of the judiciary. The opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) said the law contained many violations of the constitution, and appealed to the Constitutional Court to repeal it.


Voice recordings posted on YouTube this week purporting to be Erdogan discussing financial matters with his son have piled pressure on him as he battles graft allegations, which pose one of the biggest challenges of his 11-year rule.


Erdogan has said the recordings are a “fabricated montage” and has accused U.S.-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, whose network of followers is believed to have built extensive influence in the police and judiciary over decades, of contriving the corruption scandal to try to unseat him.


The new law gives the government more control over the High Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), which makes top judicial appointments.


After a preliminary review, the Constitutional Court late on Friday asked the CHP to remedy technical errors in its paperwork and resubmit the appeal, NTV news channel reported and cited party officials as saying they would do so.


Erdogan had already responded to the graft investigation by dismissing or reassigning thousands of police officers and hundreds of judges and prosecutors, in what his aides acknowledge is a drive to wipe out Gulen’s influence.


“With this law, the HSYK comes under the orders of the justice minister,” Akif Hamzacebi, a senior deputy of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), told reporters.


“This is clearly in violation of the principles of separation of powers and the independence of courts,” he said, after filing the party’s appeal.


SUSPECTS ALL RELEASED


The corruption scandal, which Erdogan has described as an attempted “judicial coup” ahead of elections this year, erupted on December 17 with the arrest of dozens of bureaucrats and businessmen close to him, as well as three ministers’ sons.


Prosecutors decided on Friday to release the two remaining ministers’ sons and an Iranian gold dealer arrested that day, the Dogan news agency said, which will mean none of those originally detained two months ago are still being held.


The law on the judiciary is among several the government is pushing through parliament before local elections on March 30. It has already tightened control of the Internet and is seeking greater powers for the state intelligence agency MIT.


Turkey has been seeking membership of the European Union for decades, and the moves have raised concerns in Brussels that it is shifting away from EU norms.


The government says they are necessary to rescue judicial independence from Gulen’s influence, to protect individual privacy online from the sort of recordings appearing on YouTube and to give its spy agency greater power to guard its citizens.


Gulen has repeatedly denied seeking to pull the levers of state power.


President Abdullah Gul, who approved the judiciary law on Wednesday, has said his objections secured last-minute changes to the bills addressing some of the concerns. But the opposition still disputes their legality.


Hamzacebi called on the Constitutional Court to suspend the implementation of the HSYK law to prevent staff being removed from their posts, as envisaged by the legislation.


Around 1,000 unelected staff, including its secretary-general, inspectors, audit judges and administrative staff, could lose their jobs or be reassigned as a result of the law, according to media reports.


Bozdag appointed five new deputy general secretaries, a new head of the HSYK’s supervisory board and three supervisory board members on Friday. He also named a new head of the Justice Academy, where members of the judiciary receive training.


(Writing by Daren Butler; Editing by Nick Tattersall and Alistair Lyon)





Turkish opposition challenges law tightening grip on judiciary

'Boiler Room Fraud' Smashed In Police Raids



Suspected fraudsters who led extravagant lifestyles like Leonardo DiCaprio’s character in hit film The Wolf Of Wall Street by conning victims out of millions of pounds have been targeted in an international clampdown.



Police swooped in a series of raids stretching from London and Barcelona to the US and Serbia in a move to smash the so-called boiler room fraud, where investors are duped into buying worthless or non-existent shares.



A total of 110 alleged fraudsters were held in what was one of the biggest anti-fraud operations ever staged.



To date, 850 British victims, many of them pensioners and one of whom killed themselves after being defrauded, have been identified.



They lost a total of around £15m – ranging from between £2,000 and £500,000 per person – but police believe this figure is only “the tip of the iceberg” and suspect thousands more people may have been duped.



The operation, which was two years in the making, saw 40 officers from City of London Police join 300 of their Spanish counterparts from the Policia Nacional to target a number of organised crime gangs.



It aimed to take out criminal kingpins, as well as scores of conmen who work for them, including lawyers, money launderers and financiers.



The alleged fraudsters spent their ill-gotten gains on sports cars, designer watches, drugs and prostitutes.



One of the suspects was believed to have been paying £40,000 per month to rent an apartment.



An Aston Martin and Ferrari were among the cars seized by police, along with various watches and £500,000 in cash.



The raids took place earlier this week, but can only now be revealed after a reporting ban was lifted by a Spanish judge.



Speaking near the site of one of the searches in Barcelona on Tuesday, City of London Police Commander Steve Head said: “You see real victims in real communities whose lives have been devastated. Savings that they thought they could rely on in their old age have gone in a heartbeat.”



He added: “These people have no conscience in terms of what they do to people’s lives. This is not at all a victimless crime. We’ve seen lives that have been utterly devastated.



“We have dismantled an international network of fraudsters. Make no mistake, this will make a difference to the ability of fraudsters to operate at this level.



“This network has been dismantled, hopefully we have sent a message to those who think that it’s an easy crime that it doesn’t matter where you are, we will come after you.”



In total, the international team executed 35 warrants on offices from where the fraud is said to have been run, as well as the alleged criminals’ luxury homes.



The operation closed down 14 boiler rooms in Spain, two in the UK and one in Serbia.



As well as the fraud, the gangs were also allegedly involved in drug dealing, money laundering and gun crime.



Most of the suspects targeted are British and a main group is expected to be extradited back to the UK to face trial.



Commissioner Jose Luis Andre Vega from the Spanish national police, said: “This sort of crime knows no frontiers or boundaries. It’s important to investigate this sort of organised crime on an international level.”



Of the 110 arrests, there were 84 in Spain, 20 in the UK, two in the United States and four in Serbia, with most of the suspects arrested on suspicion of money laundering and fraud offences.



:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.




Source Article from http://uk.news.yahoo.com/boiler-room-fraud-smashed-police-raids-120517404.html



'Boiler Room Fraud' Smashed In Police Raids

US: No security pact could cost Afghanistan



WASHINGTON (AP) — The top U.S. envoy to Afghanistan says if U.S. and NATO troops are not allowed to stay to advise and train Afghan forces, the country risks more widespread violence and political disintegration.


James Dobbins says that U.S. public support of the war continues to wane with Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s refusal to sign a bilateral security agreement. The agreement would provide a legal basis for some U.S. troops to stay in the country after the international combat mission ends this year.


Dobbins says President Barack Obama’s decision to possibly wait to sign the agreement with Karzai’s successor means a deal might still be worked out.


But he says the delay could prove costly in terms of the size of that force and future financial assistance to Afghanistan.





US: No security pact could cost Afghanistan

Spaniards pay last respects to flamenco legend Paco de Lucia



Spaniards from all walks of life flocked as devoted fans to a Madrid music hall on Friday to pay their final respects to flamenco guitar virtuoso Paco de Lucia.


A stream of visitors ranging from politicians and music stars to ordinary citizens who only knew him from afar streamed past his closed coffin laid out in the Spanish capital’s main music venue.


“He was a genius, a genius in all aspects. In the way he composed, in the way he innovated, in everything,” said Pedro Benitez, 45, a lifelong fan who was the first in the line of people waiting in silence to pay their respects.


“He is a Mozart of our times,” added Benitez as he stood at the entrance to the venue beside his wife Maria who arrived there at 7:30 am to mark their place in the queue.


Born Francisco Sanchez Gomez, the guitarist died of a heart attack aged 66 on Tuesday after feeling unwell while playing football on a beach with his eight-year-old son near the Caribbean resort of Playa del Carmen.


His body arrived in Madrid on Friday and the coffin was displayed at the red-brick National Auditorium of Music for four hours.


He will be buried in his home town of Algeciras in southern Spain on Saturday.


Culture Minister Jose Ignacio Wert said the huge numbers of people who turned out to bid farewell to the musician showed “the immense affection” Spaniards had for him.


“He has always been an ambassador of Spanish culture, a master, someone who took flamenco to the end of the world,” the minister said as he arrived at the music hall.


De Lucia brought flamenco to a world audience with his speedy fingerwork, which is credited with modernising the gypsy tradition of his native Andalusia by absorbing jazz and pop influences.


His casket was drapped with the red and yellow Spanish flag and the green and white flag of Andalucia, the southern Spanish region where he is from and which is the cradle of flamenco.


It was surrounded by yellow rope and flanked by over 20 round floral wreaths set up on easels.


Mourners walked slowly by the coffin which was on the stage of the music hall. Some took pictures with their mobile phone or gave flowers to a young boy who laid then by the coffin.


“We have a lot of affection and respect for everything he did to promote flamenco,” said Javier Pinto, an unemployed house painter from Cadiz who held a red carnation and his black motorcycle helmet as he stood in the queue.


Fans left tributes in three condolence books laid out on a table in the lobby of the music hall.


“Thank you for your legacy, thank you for being born, thank you master,” one mourner wrote on the first page of a condolence book.





Spaniards pay last respects to flamenco legend Paco de Lucia

Hewitt 'Backed Age Of Consent As Low As 10'



Former Labour cabinet minister Patricia Hewitt allegedly called for the age of consent to be reduced to as low as 10.



From 1974 to 1983, the former Labour MP was general secretary for the National Council for Civil Liberties (NCCL), when it granted “affiliate” status to the Paedophile Information Exchange (PIE).



The ex-Health Secretary has apologised and conceded she had been “naive and wrong” about the group, which wanted to make child sex legal, and that as general secretary she took responsibility for the mistakes.



Sky’s Political Correspondent Sophy Ridge said: “I think the timing of this (apology), well you can draw your own conclusions, it came a day before The Sun uncovered concrete evidence linking her to some very controversial policies.”



It is alleged that in March 1976 Mrs Hewitt put her name to a NCCL press release, that not only supported abolishing incest as a crime, but also lowering the age of consent.



The press release, obtained by The Sun, quoted her as saying: “NCCL proposes that the age of consent should be lowered to 14, with special provision for situations where the partners are close in age, or where consent of a child over 10 can be proved.”



The policy caused controversy at the time and Sky News has uncovered a letter sent to Ms Hewitt in July 1976 by a woman, a member of the public, who expressed her concerns.



The woman wrote: “I really feel that if you consider you must protect men, rather than little girls, then you cannot be taken seriously.”



Ridge said: “Clearly, some people were worried about the policies that the NCCL were pursuing.”



In her first public response to the allegations on Thursday night, Ms Hewitt said any suggestion she condoned or supported the “vile crimes” of child abusers was “completely untrue”.



She said: “As general secretary then, I take responsibility for the mistakes we made. I got it wrong on PIE and I apologise for having done so.



“I should have urged the executive committee to take stronger measures to protect NCCL’s integrity from the activities of PIE members and sympathisers and I deeply regret not having done so.”



She, along with Labour’s deputy leader Harriet Harman and her MP husband Jack Dromey – who also worked at the NCCL – have been accused in a series of Daily Mail articles of being sympathetic to paedophiles.



Ms Hewitt also defended the roles played by Ms Harman and Mr Dromey, a Labour frontbencher.



“When Jack Dromey, as NCCL chairman in 1976, vigorously opposed PIE at the NCCL AGM, he did so with the full support of the executive committee and myself as general secretary,” she said.



“Harriet did not join the NCCL staff until 1978. She was one of two legal officers, neither of whom was a member of the executive committee.”



Unlike Ms Hewitt, Ms Harman, the NCCL legal officer from 1978 to 1982, has refused to apologise saying there was no reason for her to do so, but she “expressed regret” PIE ever existed.



PIE, which has now been disbanded, was founded by Tom O’Carroll, who has been described as a “sexually predatory” paedophile.



He was allowed to make a speech at the NCCL spring conference in 1977.



:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.





Hewitt 'Backed Age Of Consent As Low As 10'

U.S. GDP revised down, but hints of economic thaw emerge



By Lucia Mutikani


WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. government slashed its estimate for fourth-quarter economic growth on Friday in the latest sign of a loss of momentum, but some tentative signs emerged that suggested the worst of the slowdown may be over.


Gross domestic product expanded at a 2.4 percent annual rate, the Commerce Department said, down sharply from the 3.2 percent pace it reported last month and the 4.1 percent logged in the third quarter.


The economy has faced a number of headwinds, including a 16-day shutdown of the government in October and an unusually cold winter that has weighed on activity since late December.


Growth has also been dampened by the expiration of long-term unemployment benefits, cuts to food stamps and businesses placing fewer orders with manufacturers as they work through a pile of unsold goods in their warehouses.


“I don’t think the fundamentals have changed appreciably,” said Ryan Sweet, a senior economist at Moody’s Analytics in West Chester, Pennsylvania. “Heading into this year we knew it wasn’t going to be smooth sailing.”


First-quarter growth is forecast at below a 2 percent pace. But other data on Friday on consumer sentiment, regional factory activity and housing suggested some economic thawing, which should put growth on a stronger path later in the year.


Consumer sentiment rose modestly in February, while factory activity in the Midwest edged up after three months of slower growth. In addition, contracts to buy previously owned homes nudged up in January after being on a downward trend since July.


“That suggests some stabilization in economic activity,” said Millan Mulraine, deputy chief economist at TD Securities in New York. “It bolsters the current narrative that the slowing in activity has been the result of the unseasonably cold winter conditions, which we expect to reverse in coming weeks.”


Stocks on Wall Street rose on the mixed economic data, with the Standard & Poor’s 500 index <.SPX> touching fresh all-time highs for a second straight day. Prices for U.S. government debt fell, while the dollar weakened against a basket of currencies.


STRONGER 2014 GROWTH EYED


Frigid temperatures have slammed retail sales, industrial production, residential construction and home sales, while also putting a brake on hiring early this year.


The Federal Reserve, which has been cutting back on the amount of money it is pumping into the economy through monthly bond purchases, views the recent soft patch as temporary.


Fed Chair Janet Yellen told lawmakers on Thursday the cold weather had played a role in the weakening data, and that it would take a “significant change” to the economy’s prospects for the central bank to suspend plans to wind down its stimulus.


Indeed, a number of Fed officials on Friday made clear they still believed the economy was on an improving path.


“I’d still project that 2014 would have stronger GDP growth than 2013 did,” even if recent signs of weakness turned out not to be weather-related, St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard told CNBC television.


The economy averaged growth of just 1.9 percent last year after expanding 2.8 percent in 2012.


The revision left GDP just above the economy’s potential growth trend, which analysts put somewhere between a 2 percent and 2.3 percent pace. Even with the downgrade, the second-half growth pace was a solid 3.3 percent and a jump from 1.8 percent in the first six months of the year.


Consumer spending accounted for a large chunk of the revision. It grew at a 2.6 percent rate, not 3.3 percent as previously reported.


Still, it was the fastest pace since the first quarter of 2012 and it contributed 1.73 percentage points to GDP growth.


An upward revision to inflation was also a factor.


A price index in the report rose at a 1.0 percent rate, instead of the previously reported 0.7 percent rate. A core measure that strips out food and energy costs increased at a 1.3 percent rate, revised up from a 1.1 percent pace.


“While that is not runaway inflation by any means, it will certainly alleviate concerns about disinflation,” said Omair Sharif, senior economist at RBS in Stamford, Connecticut.


The contribution from trade was lowered to 0.99 percentage point from 1.33 percentage points, reflecting a wider trade gap than previously estimated. Nevertheless, it was the largest contribution trade has made to GDP growth since late 2010.


Inventories, previously reported to have risen by $127.2 billion in the fourth quarter, were revised down to $117.4 billion. Even so, the rise in the stocks was the largest since early 1998.


“The downward revision to inventories is good news for near-term growth,” said Stuart Hoffman, chief economist at PNC Financial Services in Pittsburgh.


With fewer stocks on their shelves or in their warehouses, businesses now are more likely to need to place new orders or otherwise ramp up production to meet demand.


Government spending was revised down by more than half a percentage point to show its biggest decline in a year.


Business spending was revised sharply higher. Economists said businesses likely pushed through equipment purchases to take advantage of tax credits expiring at the end of last year.


“That’s going to hurt us a little bit this quarter,” said Moody’s Analytics’ Sweet.


(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Additional reporting by Steven C Johnson and Rodrigo Campos in New York; Editing by Paul Simao)





U.S. GDP revised down, but hints of economic thaw emerge

Lea Michele And Cory Monteith Talked Children, What They Would Look Like When They Grew Old







Despite it being an extremely difficult year for Lea Michele, she has managed to turn something beautiful out of her tragedy: her album.


The “Glee” star’s Louder chronicles the past two years of her life, telling E! News on Thursday that it will tell stories of the “the incredible, beautiful, happy moments of my life, as well as the worst.”


On the record, she sings about the heartbreaking death of her longtime boyfriend and costar Cory Monteith, who died last July.Michele postponed the album to add two songs: the lead single “Cannonball” and the personal, intense “If You Say So,” which takes place seven days after Monteith’s death.


Michele admits that she wanted to make an album that was “honest” and “true” to who she is, and fans can clearly see that on her favorite song, “You’re Mine.”


“It’s really about making that commitment in a relationship,” she told E!. “At the beginning being scared to take the leap, but once you take it, committing yourself to another person, this is it for life … You know I’m so grateful to say that I experienced true love and I think that a lot of people unfortunately don’t. They’ll go a whole lifetime without experiencing it, and I did and I consider myself so lucky that I got to.”


The “Battlefield” singer is also opening up in the April issue of Glamour UK, where she admits she feels “little bit more back together” and revealed what she and Monteith were planning for their future.


“We talked about a lot of things. We talked about children and what we would look like when we grew old and who would be fat and how we would stay thin,” said Michele, who also told the magazine she is not ready to start dating again. “We talked about where we wanted to go and what we wanted to do.


We were done. We were it. When you’re at that place in your life with someone, you talk about everything. But today I feel like I was given the best part of Cory and I’m thankful for that.”










Lea Michele And Cory Monteith Talked Children, What They Would Look Like When They Grew Old

Full recovery for Schumacher unlikely, some say



LONDON (AP) — Nearly two months after Michael Schumacher suffered serious head injuries in a skiing accident and was placed in a drug-induced coma, some neurologists say the seven-time Formula One champion seems unlikely to make a full recovery.


The 45-year-old Schumacher fell while skiing in France and hit the right side of his head on a rock, cracking his helmet. Doctors operated to remove blood clots from his brain but some were left because they were too deeply embedded.


Schumacher’s condition stabilized after he was placed in the coma. Late last month, doctors began the process of withdrawing sedatives to try to wake him up.


His agent, Sabine Kehm, said in an email on Friday that “Michael is still in the wake-up phase” and that “this phase can be long.” Schumacher’s family has released few details of his condition to protect his privacy.


“It does not bode well,” said Dr. Tipu Aziz, professor of neurosurgery at Oxford University who is not connected to Schumacher’s care. “The fact that he hasn’t woken up implies that the injury has been extremely severe and that a full recovery is improbable.”


Patients who have had major head injuries are sometimes put in a drug-induced coma to give the brain a chance to heal; a coma reduces the need for blood flow and may help the swelling go down.


Aziz said doctors typically try every few days to bring someone out of a coma.


“If you don’t start getting any positive signs, that becomes very worrisome,” he said, adding that Schumacher’s doctors are probably doing regular brain scans to look for signs of activity — though such signs may be difficult to detect if he is still being sedated.


Other experts said it was premature to make an accurate prognosis.


“About 90 percent of the recovery is made within nine to 12 months, so this is still early days,” said Dr. Anthony Strong, an emeritus chair in neurosurgery at King’s College London. “The longer someone is in a coma, the worse their recovery tends to be.”


Now that several weeks have passed since the accident, doctors may also have a better idea of how the rest of Schumacher’s brain is doing.


“MRI scans can show any secondary deterioration in the brain structure,” said Dr. Colin Shieff, a neurosurgeon at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London and a trustee for Headway, a British brain injury charity.


He said other parts of Schumacher’s brain that weren’t directly affected by the accident might now be starting to show worrying signs that may not have been visible before.


Shieff said that if Schumacher does eventually come out of the coma, he probably would face significant disabilities because of the length of time he has already spent comatose.


While there have been rare instances of people emerging from comas months and years later with the ability to communicate, Shieff was doubtful that would be the case with Schumacher. He said the cases where comatose people made a surprising recovery had mostly suffered things like poisoning, strokes or failed resuscitation attempts.


___


Associated Press writer Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.





Full recovery for Schumacher unlikely, some say

Parents Jailed Over Death Of Boy With Rickets



The parents of a boy with rickets who died after his care was neglected due to their religion have been jailed for manslaughter.



Nkosiyapha Kunene, 36, and his wife Virginia, 32, admitted the manslaughter of their son Ndingeko and were imprisoned at the Old Bailey received three years and two years, three months’ in prison respectively.



Delivering sentence at the Old Bailey, Mr Justice Singh said: “The secular courts of this country apply the secular law of the land. They do so equally to all who come before them. The law respects the right of everyone to freedom of thought and belief.



“However the right to manifest one’s religion is not absolute. It is limited in particular by the rights of others. The state has a particularly important duty to protect the right to life, especially when a young child is concerned.”



More follows…




Source Article from http://uk.news.yahoo.com/parents-jailed-over-ricket-toddlers-death-164426016.html



Parents Jailed Over Death Of Boy With Rickets

Tokyo bitcoin exchange files for bankruptcy



TOKYO (AP) — The Mt. Gox bitcoin exchange in Tokyo filed for bankruptcy protection Friday and its chief executive said 850,000 bitcoins, worth several hundred million dollars, are unaccounted for.


The exchange’s CEO Mark Karpeles appeared before Japanese TV news cameras, bowing deeply. He said a weakness in the exchange’s systems was behind a massive loss of the virtual currency involving 750,000 bitcoins from users and 100,000 of the company’s own bitcoins. That would amount to about $425 million at recent prices.


The online exchange’s unplugging earlier this week and accusations it had suffered a catastrophic theft have drawn renewed regulatory attention to a currency created in 2009 as a way to make transactions across borders without third parties such as banks.


It remains unclear if the missing bitcoins were stolen, voided by technological flaws or both.


“I am sorry for the troubles I have caused all the people,” Karpeles, a Frenchman, said in Japanese at a Tokyo court.


Karpeles had not made a public appearance since rumors of the exchange’s insolvency surfaced last month. He said in a web post Wednesday that he was working to resolve Mt. Gox’s problems.


The loss is a giant setback to the currency’s image because its boosters have promoted bitcoin’s cryptography as protecting it from counterfeiting and theft.


Bitcoin proponents have insisted that Mt. Gox is an isolated case, caused by the company’s technological failures, and the potential of virtual currencies remains great.


Debts at Mt. Gox totaled more than 6.5 billion yen ($65 million), surpassing its assets, according to Teikoku Databank, which monitors bankruptcies.


Just hours before the bankruptcy filing, Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso had scoffed that a collapse was only inevitable.


“No one recognizes them as a real currency,” he told reporters. “I expected such a thing to collapse.”


Japan’s financial regulators have been reluctant to intervene in the Mt. Gox situation, saying they don’t have jurisdiction over something that’s not a real currency.


They pointed to the Consumer Affairs Agency, which deals with product safety, as one possible place where disgruntled users may go for help.


The agency’s minister Masako Mori urged extreme caution about using or investing in bitcoins. The agency has been deluged with calls about bitcoins since earlier this year.


“We’re at a loss for how to help them,” said Yuko Otsuki, who works in the agency’s counseling department.


It’s hard to know how many people around the world own bitcoins, but the currency has attracted outsize media attention and the fascination of millions as an increasing number of large retailers such as Overstock.com begin to accept it.


Speculative investors have jumped into the bitcoin fray, too, sending the currency’s value fluctuating wildly in recent months. In December, the value of a single bitcoin hit an all-time high of $1,200. One bitcoin has cost about $500 lately.


Roger Ver, a Tokyo resident who has provided seed capital for bitcoin ventures such as Blockchain.info, a registry of bitcoin transactions, said he believes bitcoin will survive, possibly emerging with better technology that’s safer for users.


He said Mt. Gox people were likely sincere but had failed to run their business properly.


“Mt. Gox is a horrible tragedy. A lot of people lost a lot of money there, myself included,” he said ahead of the bankruptcy filing. “I hope we can use this as a learning experience.”


Some countries have reacted sternly to bitcoin’s emergence, but many people remain fans of its potential.


Vietnam’s communist government said Thursday that trading in bitcoin and other electronic currencies is illegal, and warned its citizens not to use or invest in them.


Late last year, China banned its banks and payment systems from handling bitcoin, although people still use them online. Thailand earlier put a blanket prohibition on using bitcoins and Russia has effectively banned them.


There was still considerable appetite for bitcoin in China, where it has become attractive as an investment since tightly-regulated state banks offer very low interest rates on deposits.


Even some with money tied up in Mt. Gox were undaunted.


Huang Zhaobin, a 21-year-old student in Chengdu, said he had lost 50,000 to 60,000 yuan ($8,125 to $9,750) from the Mt. Gox closure.


“Actually this money itself is the benefit from bitcoin investment,” said Huang, who plowed 10,000 yuan into bitcoins about three months ago.


“If it is legal, I will continue to invest for sure as it is the trend in the world.”


In Singapore, Tembusu Terminals, a joint venture specializing in crypto-currencies, announced Friday its first bitcoin ATM in the city-state and plans for many more. In Hong Kong, a group opened what it said was the world’s first bitcoin retail store.


Yang Weizhou, analyst at Mizuho Securities Co. in Tokyo, said laws to regulate virtual currencies may have to be created by countries including Japan.


She said lawsuits from those who lost money were likely, and any court rulings would chart unexplored territory and help define the reach of virtual money.


The trend toward such technology for peer-to-peer payments wouldn’t replace traditional money but was here to stay because of its convenience, she said.


“It is undeniable,” she said. “One must separate the Mt. Gox problem from the overall concept.”


__


Associated Press video journalist Kaori Hitomi in Tokyo, researcher Fu Ting in Shanghai and writers Chris Brummitt in Hanoi, Vietnam and Satish Cheney in Singapore contributed to this report.


Follow Yuri Kageyama on Twitter at twitter.com/yurikageyama





Tokyo bitcoin exchange files for bankruptcy