Plastic Bags: Shoppers To Be Charged 5p

Supermarkets and other big stores in England are to introduce a 5p charge for plastic bags.

The move is due to be announced this weekend by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg at the Liberal Democrat conference in Glasgow.

It will bring England into line with the rest of the UK - with charges already in place in Wales and Northern Ireland, and Scotland set to follow suit in 2014.

Lib Dem sources said the charge, intended to discourage use of the environmentally damaging bags, would come into effect in England in 2015.

However, it is not yet clear whether it will be before the general election, set for May that year, or after.

Mr Clegg was said to have had to fought hard within the Coalition for the scheme - which is Lib Dem party policy - at a time when ministers are under intense pressure over rising cost of living.

But with a 76% fall in plastic bag use in Wales since the levy was introduced there in 2011, the Lib Dem leader was said to believe that it was the right thing to do.

A Lib Dem source said the charge would be the "centrepiece" at the conference this weekend.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey told Sky News: "Liberal Democrats in the coalition are pushing the green agenda all the time.

"Sometimes it's quite a fight - this one we've won and it's very clear the evidence shows that plastic bags not only create lots of litter and a real eyesore, but they can be really bad for wild animals, particularly marine life." 

The charge will only apply to supermarkets and other large stores, with small corner shops excluded.

The proceeds will go to charities involved in clearing up the environmental damage caused by the bags rather than the Government or the retailers.

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Google Street View Driver In 'Triple Smash'

A driver filming footage for Google's Street View maps in Indonesia slammed into two vehicles after trying to escape responsibility for an earlier crash, police have said.

The Indonesian man had been driving a Subaru hatchback in the Bogor district on the outskirts of the capital, Jakarta, with Google's logo and a camera poking from the roof, when he hit a public minivan.

"He did accompany the minivan driver to the garage, but he said he was scared the repair fee would be high, so he got in his damaged car and fled," Bogor district police operations chief Hendra Gunawan told AFP.

The minivan driver got in his vehicle, Gunawan said, and gave chase for around two miles before the Google car smashed into a second minivan.

"He tried to flee again, but soon crashed into a parked truck before he gave up," he said.

The man, who has not been named, was detained after the third crash and taken in for questioning.

"He has been released and all the payments for the vehicles have been sorted out. The damage to the first one would probably have cost 200,000 rupiah (£11) to repair," Mr Gunawan added.

Google could not be contacted for comment.

Google has previously run into trouble with Street View, which allows users to zoom in on everyday images recorded with the company's cameras that take 360-degree footage.

Images of an Australian couple having sex on a car bonnet on a highway appeared on Street View in April, and in March, Google struck a deal with US authorities to pay a $7m fine for collecting people's personal data without authorisation.

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Syria Has One Week To Detail Chemical Weapons

Syria: How The Crisis Has Developed

Updated: 2:33pm UK, Saturday 14 September 2013

:: March 2011 - Protesters stage demonstrations in Damascus and security forces in Daraa shoot dead several campaigners, leading to unrest and violence.

:: May - The Syrian military deploys tanks in a bid to quash demonstrations.

:: July 19 - The UK freezes £100m of Syrian assets.

:: August 18 - US President Barack Obama calls on Bashar al Assad to step down. The US freezes all assets of the Syrian government.

:: November 16 - The Free Syrian Army attacks a military base near Damascus.

:: February 4, 2012 - A UN Security Council resolution on Syria is rejected for a second time by Russia and China.

:: March 1 - Government troops seize the Baba Amr district of Homs after an intense battle lasting for several weeks.

:: April 12 - A UN-brokered ceasefire comes into force after fierce fighting in the country.

:: May 23 - Dozens of people, many of them women and children, die in Houla, near Homs. Foreign Secretary William Hague says they were "massacred at the hands of Syrian forces". The UN later accuses the Syrian military of committing war crimes.

:: August - Barack Obama says the use of chemical weapons against civilians would represent the crossing of a "red line".

:: March 6, 2013 - Foreign Secretary William Hague says Britain will provide opposition forces with "non-lethal equipment for the protection of civilians".

:: April-May - Britain says there is credible evidence to suggest Syrian forces have used chemical weapons in Adra, Darayya and Saraqiq and calls for an investigation by the UN.

:: April 29 - Syrian prime minister Wael Nader al Halqi survives an assassination attempt as a car bomb explodes in Damascus.

:: May 14 - Footage of a Syrian rebel commander apparently cutting out a soldier's heart is condemned by the country's National Coalition.

:: June 6 - Syrian forces, backed by Hizbollah fighters, recapture the strategic border town of Qusair.

:: June 6 - Human Rights Watch releases footage which it claims shows Syrian troops shelling school buildings.

:: July 25 - The UN says the number of people killed in the civil war has reached 100,000.

:: August 21 - An alleged chemical attack in Damascus kills 1,300 people, according to the opposition. Doctors Without Borders says 335 people died from "neurotoxic" symptoms.

:: August 25 - Foreign Secretary William Hague says a chemical attack by the Syrian government is the only "plausible explanation" for the deaths.

:: August 26 - UN inspectors brave sniper fire to gather "valuable" evidence from one site of the alleged chemical attack, as the US Secretary of State John Kerry says the Assad regime would face action over the "moral obscenity".

:: August 27 - The UK recalls Parliament to hold a vote on August 29 on the use of chemical weapons in Syria. David Cameron and Barack Obama agree there is "no doubt" the Assad regime is responsible for the alleged attack.

:: August 28 - Britain tables a draft UN resolution condemning the alleged attack and "authorising all necessary measures".

:: August 29 - David Cameron is forced to rule out military action after narrowly losing a Commons vote on the principle of intervention.

:: August 31 - President Obama says the US "should take military action" in Syria but confirms he will seek authorisation from Congress before launching any strikes against the Assad regime. He says the US is "prepared to strike whenever we choose".

:: September 2 - a French intelligence reports claims the Assad regime was responsible for a "massive and coordinated" chemical attack in Damascus.

:: September 3 - Israel says it has carried out a joint missile test with the US in the Mediterranean.

:: September 4 - The Senate Foreign Relations Committee approve a draft US resolution authorising the use of military force in Syria. Meanwhile, MPs in France debate whether to join any possible military intervention, although they do not vote on the subject.

:: September 5 - World leaders meet at the G20 summit in Russia, with the crisis in Syria high on the agenda.

:: September 6 - Britain pledges £52m in aid to Syria, as David Cameron hits back at a reported jibe from Russia that Britain is a "small island".

:: September 8 - The RAF sends up two Typhoon jets in Cyprus as warplanes, thought to have come from Syria, enter international airspace. Meanwhile John Kerry says more nations than his country can use are prepared to join military action against Syria.

:: September 9 - Russia urges Syrian President Bashar al Assad to hand over his chemical weapons to avert a US-led military strike on Damascus.

:: September 10 - President Barack Obama delays a Congress vote on air strikes as Russia gives the US its plan for putting Syria's chemical weapons under international contral.

:: September 11 - A UN report confirms at least eight massacres were carried by the Assad regime and one by rebels over the past 18 months.

:: September 12 - Syria formally applies to join the Chemical Weapons Convention. Russia and US hold two days of talks on the issue.

:: September 14 - The US and Russia agree on a giving Syria a deadline of one week to produce a list of chemical weapons they possess. 

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Leicester Fire Victims 'Not Involved In Murder'

A mother and her three children killed in a house fire were not involved in the murder of a man hours earlier, police have said.

Sky News understands Leicestershire Police are investigating whether the victims of the blaze were mistakenly targeted in a revenge attack.

Shehnila Taufiq, who was in her 40s, died in the fire at her terraced home in Wood Hill, in the Spinney Hills area of Leicester, in the early hours of Friday.

Her children, named by a local mosque as 19-year-old daughter Zainab and sons Jamal, 17, and Bilal, 15, also died in their bedrooms.

About half a mile away on Thursday afternoon, a man in his 20s, named locally as Antoin Akpom, was found injured by police officers in Kent Street. He was taken to Leicester Royal Infirmary where he later died.

Police were called to the blaze by the fire service at 12.35am on Friday

Three people, a man and two women, all aged 19, have been arrested in connection with the murder.

Mrs Taufiq's neurosurgeon husband, Dr Muhammad Taufiq al Sattar, has returned to Leicester from Ireland, where he works.

He had been working at Beaumont Hospital in Dublin and with private hospitals in the city, the Blackrock and Hermitage clinics.

A representative of Leicester's Jame Mosque, Mohammad Uwais, said Dr Taufiq had addressed members of the mosque on Saturday afternoon.

"He said that he's been comforted by the condolences he's received not just from Leicester, from the UK, from Ireland, but from the world," Mr Uwais told reporters.

"He accepts what God has destined for him and for his family, and that he thanks God in times of joy and also times of tribulation."

Police have said the house fire and a nearby murder may be linked

The family, originally from Pakistan, had a home in Ireland for at least 15 years before the children moved to the UK with their mother about five years ago for Islamic education.

Police on Saturday appealed to residents with information to come forward to help them find the perpetrators of the attacks which they said had left two families "devastated by events of the past 48 hours".

Roger Bannister, Assistant Chief Constable of Leicestershire Police, said: "While we are investigating links between the two crimes there is absolutely no evidence to suggest those who died in the fire, or indeed anyone else who lives in that property, was involved in the assault in Kent Street.

"Because of the close proximity - in terms of time and location - of the two incidents, it is right that we look at whether there are links between the two crimes.

"However, at this stage in our investigations we have found nothing to suggest the residents of the house devastated by the fire had anything to do with the Kent Street incident.

"We have three people in custody in relation to the murder of the young man in Kent Street and we continue with the complex forensic investigations at Wood Hill.

"However, we know there are local people who know more about both incidents and the people responsible and we would appeal to their consciences. Two families have been devastated by events of the past 48 hours. Please help us to find those responsible."

Anyone with information about either attack can speak to their local beat team, call police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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Nicole Kidman Floored By Paparazzo Cyclist

Nicole Kidman has been knocked to the ground by a cycling paparazzo in New York.

Nicole Kidman falls to the floor as the cyclist crashes into her

The actress was returning to her hotel after an appearance on the red carpet at a fashion show when the cyclist - named by entertainment website TMZ as Carl Wu - crashed into her.

Kidman was helped to her feet by her entourage and later said she was "shaken" but "walking around".

One of the star's shoes fell off but she did not appear to be badly hurt

Photographs showed the paparazzo, who was wearing headphones and carrying a backpack laden with photographic equipment, lying on the ground, as security guards at the Carlyle Hotel ushered Kidman inside.

One of the Hollywood star's shoes fell off in the collision, but she did not appear to be seriously hurt.

A security guard removed the paparazzo's bicycle

A spokesman for New York Police Department said a 19-year-old man had been given three summonses for reckless endangerment, riding a bicycle on the pavement and riding without a helmet.

Kidman is ushered into the hotel - minus one of her high heels

Earlier, Kidman, who won an Oscar for her role in The Hours, was spotted wearing the same grey dress and gold belt at New York Fashion Week, where Calvin Klein was showing off its spring 2014 collection.

She attended an after-party at the city's Spring Studios later in the day.

The star had been at New York Fashion Week and later went to an after-party

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Syria: Russia And US Push For New Peace Talks

Syria: How Crisis Has Developed

Updated: 2:13pm UK, Friday 13 September 2013

:: March 2011 - Protesters stage demonstrations in Damascus and security forces in Daraa shoot dead several campaigners, leading to unrest and violence.

:: May - The Syrian military deploys tanks in a bid to quash demonstrations.

:: July 19 - The UK freezes £100m of Syrian assets.

:: August 18 - US President Barack Obama calls on Bashar al Assad to step down. The US freezes all assets of the Syrian government.

:: November 16 - The Free Syrian Army attacks a military base near Damascus.

:: February 4, 2012 - A UN Security Council resolution on Syria is rejected for a second time by Russia and China.

:: March 1 - Government troops seize the Baba Amr district of Homs after an intense battle lasting for several weeks.

:: April 12 - A UN-brokered ceasefire comes into force after fierce fighting in the country.

:: May 23 - Dozens of people, many of them women and children, die in Houla, near Homs. Foreign Secretary William Hague says they were "massacred at the hands of Syrian forces". The UN later accuses the Syrian military of committing war crimes.

:: August - Barack Obama says the use of chemical weapons against civilians would represent the crossing of a "red line".

:: March 6, 2013 - Foreign Secretary William Hague says Britain will provide opposition forces with "non-lethal equipment for the protection of civilians".

:: April-May - Britain says there is credible evidence to suggest Syrian forces have used chemical weapons in Adra, Darayya and Saraqiq and calls for an investigation by the UN.

:: April 29 - Syrian prime minister Wael Nader al Halqi survives an assassination attempt as a car bomb explodes in Damascus.

:: May 14 - Footage of a Syrian rebel commander apparently cutting out a soldier's heart is condemned by the country's National Coalition.

:: June 6 - Syrian forces, backed by Hizbollah fighters, recapture the strategic border town of Qusair.

:: June 6 - Human Rights Watch releases footage which it claims shows Syrian troops shelling school buildings.

:: July 25 - The UN says the number of people killed in the civil war has reached 100,000.

:: August 21 - An alleged chemical attack in Damascus kills 1,300 people, according to the opposition. Doctors Without Borders says 335 people died from "neurotoxic" symptoms.

:: August 25 - Foreign Secretary William Hague says a chemical attack by the Syrian government is the only "plausible explanation" for the deaths.

:: August 26 - UN inspectors brave sniper fire to gather "valuable" evidence from one site of the alleged chemical attack, as the US Secretary of State John Kerry says the Assad regime would face action over the "moral obscenity".

:: August 27 - The UK recalls Parliament to hold a vote on August 29 on the use of chemical weapons in Syria. David Cameron and Barack Obama agree there is "no doubt" the Assad regime is responsible for the alleged attack.

:: August 28 - Britain tables a draft UN resolution condemning the alleged attack and "authorising all necessary measures".

:: August 29 - David Cameron is forced to rule out military action after narrowly losing a Commons vote on the principle of intervention.

:: August 31 - President Obama says the US "should take military action" in Syria but confirms he will seek authorisation from Congress before launching any strikes against the Assad regime. He says the US is "prepared to strike whenever we choose".

:: September 2 - a French intelligence reports claims the Assad regime was responsible for a "massive and coordinated" chemical attack in Damascus.

:: September 3 - Israel says it has carried out a joint missile test with the US in the Mediterranean.

:: September 4 - The Senate Foreign Relations Committee approve a draft US resolution authorising the use of military force in Syria. Meanwhile, MPs in France debate whether to join any possible military intervention, although they do not vote on the subject.

:: September 5 - World leaders meet at the G20 summit in Russia, with the crisis in Syria high on the agenda.

:: September 6 - Britain pledges £52m in aid to Syria, as David Cameron hits back at a reported jibe from Russia that Britain is a "small island".

:: September 8 - The RAF sends up two Typhoon jets in Cyprus as warplanes, thought to have come from Syria, enter international airspace. Meanwhile John Kerry says more nations than his country can use are prepared to join military action against Syria.

:: September 9 - Russia urges Syrian President Bashar al Assad to hand over his chemical weapons to avert a US-led military strike on Damascus.

:: September 10 - President Barack Obama delays a Congress vote on air strikes as Russia gives the US its plan for putting Syria's chemical weapons under international contral.

:: September 11 - A UN report confirms at least eight massacres were carried by the Assad regime and one by rebels over the past 18 months.

:: September 12 - Syria formally applies to join the Chemical Weapons Convention. Russia and US hold two days of talks on the issue.

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Delhi Gang Rape: Four Men Sentenced To Death

By Neville Lazarus, Sky News Producer, in Delhi

Four men have been sentenced to death for the fatal gang rape of a 23-year-old woman on a bus in Delhi.

A judge said Akshay Thakur, Vinay Sharma, Pawan Gupta and Mukesh Singh should be hanged after they were convicted of the brutal attack.

In his 230-page judgement, Yogesh Khanna said the severity of the crime meant it fell into the "rarest of rare" category, telling the men: "We cannot turn a blind eye towards such a gruesome crime. There cannot be any tolerance.

"The victim was tortured to the end. There is a zero tolerance in society for such a crime."

A police vehicle carrying the four men arrives at a court in Delhi

Thakur, 28, Sharma, 20, Gupta, 19, and Singh, 26, lured their victim and her male friend onto the bus last December before raping the woman, assaulting her with an iron bar and dumping her on the roadside with her friend.

She suffered serious internal injuries and died in hospital in Singapore 13 days after the attack, which triggered violent protests across India.

New laws were introduced and existing ones amended, while fast-track courts were set up to try men accused of sexual crimes.

Police used CCTV images to track the bus and arrested two of the accused within 24 hours of the attack.

Tight security was in place outside Delhi's Saket District Court

The court case relied on evidence from the victim given to a magistrate before her death, as well as statements from her friend, forensic evidence, fingerprints and DNA samples.

Bite marks were also matched with dental impressions of the men.

A defence lawyer in the case had asked for sentences of life imprisonment, saying Indian law calls for execution only in exceptional cases.

The counsel referred to their family background and economic status and said they had clean past records.

However, prosecutor Dayan Krishnan joined the victim's family and leading politicians in calling for the men to be given the death penalty, telling the court: "There can be nothing more diabolic than a helpless girl put through torture."

Protesters outside court had called for the men to face the death penalty

The father of the victim said he was satisfied with the verdict, telling reporters: "We are very happy. Justice has been delivered."

Besides rape and murder, Thakur, Sharma, Gupta and Singh were found guilty of three abduction offences and various other counts, including attempted murder, banditry, destruction of evidence, voluntarily causing hurt in committing robbery and dishonestly receiving stolen property.

Defence lawyers said they will appeal to the High Court and, if necessary, the Supreme Court.

A fifth defendant in the case, Ram Singh, was found hanged in his cell in Delhi's Tihar prison in March.

A woman lights a candle at a vigil for the 23-year-old victim

A sixth person, who was a juvenile at the time of the attack, has already been found guilty of murder, rape and kidnapping and sentenced to three years in a correction facility.

On an average, judges in India hand down 130 death sentences a year, although in the last 17 years only three executions have taken place.

India, which voted against a draft UN resolution calling for a global moratorium on executions, currently has 477 death row prisoners.

According to the National Crimes Records Bureau, 1,121 rape cases were recorded in Delhi in the first eight months of the year - double the number in the same period in 2012.

Police say the increase is due to more cases being reported.

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Leicester Fire: Police Probe 'Revenge Murders'

A mother and her three children have been found dead in a house fire in what may have been a revenge attack after a man was killed several hours earlier.

Shehnila Taufiq, who was in her 40s, died along with her 19-year-old daughter and sons aged 17 and 15 when their property was engulfed in flames.

Their bodies were found inside the bedrooms of the terraced home in the Spinney Hills area of Leicester just after 12.30am on Friday.

Detectives said they could not rule out a link with a deadly assault on a man in his 20s half a mile away in Kent Street as they launched two murder investigations within 24 hours.

Officers were called to the scene at 5.30pm on Thursday and the victim was taken to Leicester Royal Infirmary where he died.

The fire ripped through the property in Leicester

Assistant Chief Constable Roger Bannister said police were examining the possibility of the blaze being a revenge attack.

Urging witnesses to get in touch, Mr Bannister said it was possible both offences, which he described as "terrible, terrible crimes", were linked.

He said officers were exploring different lines of inquiry but one included the fire potentially being a revenge attack.

Mr Bannister said he was particularly keen to speak to witnesses who were in both locations. He said the crimes might be linked because of the close locations and lack of time between them.

He added: "I can't confirm here and now it is a revenge attack - it may be, it may not be - but lines of inquiry will certainly get to the bottom of that."

Referring to neighbours talking about a "fire bombing", Mr Bannister said: "Fire bombing in my experience means different things to different people.

"We are working really closely with the fire brigade. Exactly how the fire started, where it started and of course who is responsible is something we will get to the bottom of."

The children were named by the local mosque as Zainab, Jamal and Bilal.

Mrs Taufiq's husband, Taufiq Sattar, works at a hospital in Dublin.

A spokesman for the Beautmont Hospital said: "We have learned, with shock, of the tragic loss suffered by our colleague Mr Taufiq Sattar.

"We wish to express our sincere condolences to Mr Sattar and assure him that our support and thoughts are with him at this terrible time."

Neighbours spoke of flames shooting out of the house which was gutted in the blaze.

Mr Bannister said neither the family nor the man who was killed were known to police.

An aerial view of the house

The force has drafted in extra officers and forensics staff to investigate both crimes and increased patrols in the area.

Officers are working to trace a man who also lived in the property.

Among friends and neighbours who paid tribute at the scene was teacher Mohammed Qasim Manjra.

Mr Manjra, who taught Jamal history at a nearby independent Islamic school, said: "He was a very sociable kid and we are very sad that he has gone."

Leicester-based Imam Ibrahim Mogra, the assistant secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, also visited the scene.

He told reporters: "I did not know them personally but from what people have told me they were a very religious family, very humble, very modest and very generous.

"The mother was a scholar herself and clearly they were a family that was into religion and education and were held in very high esteem by the local community."

Local store-keeper Sattar Raidhan, who has lived in the area for 35 years, said: "I believe the husband worked as a doctor in Ireland and he came home every weekend to see his family. I can't even imagine how this would happen to a family like that."

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Syria: UN Accuses Assad As Obama Backtracks

Russia has given the United States its plan for placing Syria's chemical weapons under international control, after President Barack Obama delayed a vote on air strikes.

Russia's Interfax news agency reported that the proposals had been handed over ahead of the meeting in Geneva on Thursday between the country's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and US Secretary of State John Kerry.

It followed an address to the nation from Mr Obama, who said he had asked Congress to postpone any decision on military action so a diplomatic solution could be pursued.

It came ahead of the release of a UN report that confirmed at least eight massacres had been carried out in Syria by President Bashar al Assad's regime and one by rebels over the past year and a half.

The UN commission investigating human rights abuses in Syria described the country as a battlefield where "massacres are perpetrated with impunity," and said it was looking into nine more suspected mass killings since March.

Towns and cities across Syria have been destroyed

Despite Mr Obama's decision to postpone the Congress vote, he said he remained cautious about Russia's plan for Syria to declare its chemical weapons - saying it was "too early to tell" if an agreement could be reached.

He said the images and videos of men, women and children dying in the suspected gas attack by the Assad regime were sickening and demanded a response.

But speaking from the East Room in the White House, he said he had asked Congress to postpone a vote on action in Syria while the possibility of a diplomatic solution is pursued.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al Moallem said the regime was ready to co-operate fully with the Russian proposal to put its chemical weapons under international control, and would stop producing more.

But Mr Obama has ordered the US military to maintain its current posture to keep the pressure on Mr Assad's regime should diplomacy fail.

"It is too early to tell whether this offer will succeed," he said. "And any agreement must verify that the Assad regime keeps its commitments. But this initiative has the potential to remove the threat of chemical weapons without the use of force."

Poison gas canisters

Mr Obama once again ruled out putting American "boots on the ground", but added that with "modest effort and risks", limited strikes could make Syria safer.

"A targeted strike can make Assad - or any other dictator - think twice about using chemical weapons," he said.

He accepted that many Americans were weary of military action after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Mr Obama said the limitations he was imposing on the potential strike would ensure against the US sliding down a slippery slope into another prolonged war.

"The purpose of this strike would be to deter Assad from using chemical weapons, to degrade his regime's ability to use them and to make clear to the world that we will not tolerate their use," he explained.

Mr Obama insisted the US was not the "world's policeman", but said when ideals, principles and security are at stake, his country must act.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was quoted by state TV as saying: "We hope that the new US attitude toward Syria would be a serious policy and not a media campaign.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said he hoped the US was serious about its stance

"The latest developments, if they can be taken seriously, show that they (US and its allies) have stepped back from the inconsiderate and mistaken actions that they had taken in the past few weeks."

At the United Nations, Britain, France and the US discussed elements of a draft Security Council resolution that would include a timeline for Syria to declare the full extent of its poison gas arsenal and to cede control of it to the UN.

An official close to French president Francois Hollande, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said tense negotiations had begun on a proposed resolution.

They said Russia objected not only to making the resolution militarily enforceable, but also to blaming the Syrian government for the chemical attack on August 21 that sparked the recent crisis.

The official said Russia also refused to agree on a demand that those responsible for the attack be taken before an international criminal court.

Russian President Vladimir Putin previously insisted the handover of weapons would only work if the US rejected a use of force against Syria.

Sky Moscow Correspondent Katie Stallard said: "Russia would be quite content for this now to get bogged down at the UN Security Council, because they are keenly aware here that there's a clock ticking down all the while, that President Obama is making his case for military action now.

"As long as the perception remains that there is a peaceful solution available, whether or not in the long term that is enforceable, they will be satisfied that it is taking the wheels off his argument and the momentum behind the calls for military action."

It comes after the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said Syrian government forces and rebel fighters were preventing medical assistance from reaching the wounded.

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Mark Bridger: Prisoner Admits Knife Attack

A prisoner has admitted slashing child killer Mark Bridger across the face at one of Britain's most secure jails.

Bridger, who was jailed earlier this year for abducting and murdering five-year-old April Jones, needed hospital treatment after he was attacked with a makeshift blade on July 7.

Bridger was sentenced on May 30 and was sent to HMP Wakefield, a category A prison where some of Britain's most dangerous offenders are held.

Juvinai Ferreira, 22, admitted attacking Bridger as he appeared via videolink for a short hearing at Leeds Crown Court.

On screen in court, Ferreira, originally from Gambia, looked bored and propped his head up with his hand for most of the proceedings.

At one point, he could be heard asking his guards: "I thought this was going to be quick?"

After judge Christopher Batty told him the case was going to be adjourned until sentencing on October 2, Ferreira said to him: "Can you just not sentence me? I can't keep coming back. Just give me anything and move on."

Ferreira is serving a life sentence for the murder of Elaine Walpole in Dereham, Norfolk, in April 2008.

Bridger was attacked by a fellow prisoner at HMP Wakefield

At the time police said Ferreira moved to Dereham in 2007 with a relative after escaping civil war in Africa.

He befriended Miss Walpole, an alcoholic who lived alone, after they met at a shop and she bought him cigarettes.

A post-mortem examination showed the 47-year-old mother-of-three had been stabbed three times and bitten.

Prosecutors in the case described Ferreira as "sex-crazed".

Father-of-six Bridger, 47, abducted April as she played near her home in Machynlleth in Powys before murdering the schoolgirl.

A judge at Mold Crown Court sentenced the former slaughterhouse worker to a whole-life tariff in May.

The five-year-old's body has never been found.

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Le Vell Trial: Prosecutor Denies 'Witch-Hunt'

One of Britain's top prosecutors has denied actor Michael Le Vell was subjected to a celebrity "witch-hunt", as the debate about whether to give anonymity to those accused of sex crimes continues to rage.

Nazir Afzal, the Crown Prosecution Service lead on child sexual exploitation, insisted "nobody should be above the law" and said he would not shy away from high profile cases.

It comes after Mr Le Vell, who plays Kevin Webster in the ITV soap Coronation Street, was cleared of all 12 charges against him by a jury at Manchester Crown Court.

"I absolutely detest this word witch-hunt. It is not a witch-hunt," Mr Afzal said.

"We look at the evidence. We follow the evidence. We present the evidence."

He said it "does not matter" if, when looking at the evidence, "it takes us to someone who might have drawn attention to themselves publicly in some way, shape or form".

Mr Afzal says evidence against celebrities will continue to be investigated

Defence lawyer Nick Freeman told Sky News that Mr Le Vell's acquittal "urgently highlights" the need for anonymity for those accused of sexual offences until they are convicted.

"These heinous allegations carry a terrible social stigma and a revulsion that transcends most other criminal offences," he said.

"These don't die with an acquittal - they stay with a person for the rest of their life."

However, Mark Williams-Thomas, a child protection expert, argued that under the current system victims feel "more confident" in coming forward and speaking to the police.

"We need to look at the detrimental effect not naming individuals could have," he said.

"We know that as a result of the (Jimmy) Savile investigations, people came forward and made allegations.

Ex-broadcaster Hall is serving a 30-month jail sentence for sexual assault

"Stuart Hall was then prosecuted, having initially vehemently denied the allegations ... and is now in jail."

Mr Le Vell's legal team argued it was a "strange case of child rape" without any DNA evidence or injuries to the alleged victim, who claimed she had been raped and abused when she was younger.

Jurors were told to decide whether the girl was telling the truth or had set out to "quite literally destroy" the actor's life.

Sky News Correspondent Nick Martin, outside the Manchester studios of ITV, which is in talks with Mr Le Vell about a return to Coronation Street, said the debate about anonymity had divided opinion.

"In the past, it's been very difficult for people who have been acquitted to move on," he said.

"Many people think the slur and the stigma can go on to ruin people's lives.

"On the other side of the argument ... other victims see that person going through the court. It's claimed they are then encouraged to come forward and that their evidence can bolster cases."

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Vince Cable Raises Help-To-Buy Doubts

Vince Cable has called for the Government's flagship help-to-buy property scheme to be reconsidered in comments likely to anger George Osborne.

The Business Secretary told Sky News there was a risk of a "new housing bubble" because of recent changes in the market.

Mr Osborne's plans were a key plank of his Budget last year but prompted fears of a price surge because they do not address property availability.

Under the first stage, an equity loan scheme allows buyers with only a 5% deposit to buy a new-build property worth up to £600,000.

In January, the scheme will be extended to include a mortgage guarantee for buyers of any home up to the same value with deposits of 5-20%.

It is due to last for three years.

Asked if it should be rethought, Mr Cable said: "We should certainly think about how it should come into effect, indeed whether it should come into effect in the light of changing market conditions.

"We don't want a new housing bubble."

He cited warnings from experts including from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors this week about the "real risk" involved.

George Osborne recently hailed the change in economic fortunes

"I think in many parts of the country it clearly isn't a problem. If you are in Northern Ireland or Wales or indeed the East Midlands you would wonder what all this is about," he said.

"But certainly in London and the South East, in the north east of Scotland, in other areas, there are serious housing inflationary pressures."

Despite the warning, Treasury sources confirmed the Government's commitment to the policy and its launch next year.

Government sources added there were no plans for a rethink but that Mr Cable wants the Bank of England to keep a close eye on the scheme's effects.

His comments came shortly before he had been due to warn about "complacency" over Britain's economic recovery, insisting ministers cannot "rest on our laurels".

The keynote speech in Warwick was set to be a stark contrast to an address by Mr Osborne on Monday, in which the Chancellor declared the economy was finally "turning a corner".

But Mr Cable ended up toning down his remarks while still making clear the recovery was not yet assured and further Government action was needed to address the skills shortage and boost exports.

"The kind of growth we want won't simply emerge of its own volition. In fact, I see a number of dangers. One is letting up just because we have had a few quarters of good economic data," he said.

"Recovery will not be fully established until we see strong and sustained business investment."

In a separate interview, he also stressed that he supported Mr Osborne's comments but said the economy remained in a "long, dark tunnel".

"I don't want the public debate about this to become obsessive about a few weeks' data, when what really matters is the long-term change we're trying to achieve, getting Britain more outward looking, avoiding a return to the boom-bust psychology," he said.

"The point I am trying to make is that this is a long-term haul. We have got a marathon not a sprint here."

Before Mr Cable altered his speech, shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna said he had delivered an "embarrassing slap-down" to Mr Osborne.

However, he insisted the Lib Dems could not distance themselves from the Chancellor's economic strategy.

"It also reminds everyone that you can't trust a word the Lib Dems say. Vince Cable has supported the Chancellor's policies which choked off the recovery in 2010," he said.

"Three wasted years of flatlining that has left families worse off and done long term damage to our economy is his record and he should take responsibility for it."

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Turkey: Mother Dead After British Family Shot

A gunman reportedly shot a British woman dead and injured her son and mother during a family holiday in Turkey.

The woman killed was named locally as Catherine Anne Bury, aged 56, from Swainby, North Yorkshire.

Also shot and now recovering in hospital were her son Alex, who is in his early 20s and who lived with her, and her mother Celia Bury, in her 80s from Nunthorpe, Middlesbrough.

A police officer at the family's holiday home

Vanessa Altin, a journalist in Turkey, said the family were shot while celebrating a birthday party at the villa in the small fishing village Dalyan, on Turkey's south coast.

The gardener is thought to have argued with the family, who reported him to Turkish police.

He was detained, but headed back to the villa on his release and opened fire with a pump-action shotgun.

Alex was reportedly shot in the leg, while his grandmother Celia was shot in the back. His mother is said to have been shot four times after attempting to hide from the gunman and died at the scene.

The family had reportedly been celebrating a birthday at the property

He is thought to have given himself up after the shooting and is due in court.

Stephen Garbutt, 72, who lives in the adjoining bungalow to the dead woman in Swainby, said: "I never ever heard a bad word, or a cross word or anything like that from any of them.

"How on earth they got into this situation I cannot imagine. I have never known Anne, for want of a better word, in trouble."

The Foreign Office confirmed in a statement: "We are aware of the death of a British national in Turkey on September 9.

"We are providing consular assistance to the family at this difficult time."

The statement added: "We can confirm the hospitalisation of two British nationals in Turkey on September 9."

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Syria: Britain And US Table UN Resolution

Weapons Handover 'Is Unrealistic'

Updated: 1:31pm UK, Tuesday 10 September 2013

By Tim Marshall, Foreign Affairs Editor

The Russian proposal for Syria to voluntarily give up its chemical weapons is logistically unrealistic but diplomatically clever.

US Secretary of State John Kerry either blundered into a Russian trap, or disguised an offer as an off-the-cuff remark when he suggested Syria could avoid air strikes by handing over its chemical weapons within a week. Most analysts believe it to be the latter.

Either way, it took about an hour for his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov to seize the moment and make his proposal.

A giant smokescreen quickly enveloped the international stage, but behind it you could hear a large ladder being dragged on to give everyone an opportunity to climb down from their current positions, especially Barack Obama.

The UN quickly embraced the proposal, the British and French gave it a cautious welcome, the Americans said they would look at it, the Syrians did what they will continue to do - they prevaricated.

Everyone spoke with a straight face. They either don't know the complexities behind the reality of the Russian idea, or they felt it better to ignore them until the smoke clears and the route down the ladder becomes apparent.

Who would actually go to Syria and secure the weapons under the auspices of the UN is unclear. It would take hundreds of scientists and others, and it could take months.

Syria is thought to have 1,000 tons of chemical weapons spread across dozens of sites.

In the event of full co-operation by the government, which has yet to even admit it has such weapons, the UN would have to beg, borrow and steal the experts from a variety of countries prepared to put their top scientists at risk.

It would also have to assemble a support team.

In the meantime Syria would have to sign and ratify the Convention on Chemical Weapons.

When the UN teams arrived they could venture to some of the relatively safe areas under government control, but getting to sites in contested areas would be problematic.

To put that into English, the UN inspectors would risk being shelled by the Syrian army as it attacked other targets, shot at by rebels for being part of the process which stopped US air strikes, blown up by roadside bombs, and kidnapped by whichever local gang wanted to get themselves into trouble.

This is not the type of job the world's top chemical weapons scientists are best suited for even with a UN security force alongside them.

In a controlled environment the Russian proposal can work. Syria is not a controlled environment.

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Le Vell Stripped Of Celebrity Status In Court

By Mike McCarthy, North Of England Correspondent

Who is Michael Turner? For the jury it's a question that has dominated all others in his sex abuse trial where he has now been found not guilty.

The prosecution urged jurors to forget the soap star who goes by the stage name Le Vell.

The judge said they should discount the familiar face known to millions of Coronation Street followers.

It sounded straight forward but psychologist Cary Cooper said that in general we believe, initially at least, an actor's on-screen persona.

"I think when we meet celebrities we are first I think influenced by our kind of stereotype of them, by the role that they're playing, by the image they project, by the image the media project of them," he said.

"But ultimately when we actually meet them we are computing in our brain different bits of information that may disconfirm our stereotypes, our positive or even negative feelings about them.

"So, as human beings we're taking this information in. We won't be influenced by a stereotype."

The camera flashes and media scrum that accompanied the actor each day of his trial seemed to belong more to the world of Michael Le Vell.

But once inside Manchester Crown Court he was stripped of his celebrity status and stood in the dock as plain Michael Turner.

Le Vell pictured outside court

Except he was not so plain. Even by his own admission the defendant struggled with a serious drink problem twice attending Alcoholics Anonymous.

His own barrister Alisdair Williamson QC accepted that his client was "a weak and stupid man".

The jury were told that Le Vell had cheated on his wife with a series of one-night stands and even had an affair as she was going through chemotherapy - but never a child abuser, the lawyer argued.

After being confronted by the alleged victim's mother in 2011, Michael Le Vell texted a message saying:  "Make sure she knows the magnitude of her lies. This is like a life-changing thing. It could cost me my job. It's not just a schoolyard story."

The chilling allegations were outlined in detail as the girl gave evidence in the witness box.

She said: "He put one of my favourite teddies over my mouth so that I could still breathe but couldn't say anything. He said he was getting rid of all the evil and bad inside me."

The court heard that she came forward after attending a seminar by life coach Ali Campbell on how to move forward in life and shed past "baggage".

By this time the girl was a teenager but she said that the actor had been abusing her since she was six years old.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decided in 2011 not to proceed with the case but changed its mind just over a year later after a review.

In the intervening period a national debate promoted by the Jimmy Savile case, which was entirely unconnected to Michael Le Vell's proceedings, led to fundamental changes in the way prosecuting authorities dealt with alleged victims of child abuse.

Criminologist and child abuse expert Mark Williams-Thomas said: "Police have had a big involvement (in the general change of procedure) looking back at some of the past cases, reconsidering whether or not they took the right evidence in the first place.

"We have seen a complete shift in the approach to victims as well - giving victims more power."

After the CPS decision not to go ahead with Michael Le Vell's case his alleged victim came forward with more evidence.

It might have been enough for the CPS to overturn its original ruling but it was not enough to convince the jury.

Michael Le Vell is now free - and wants to return to the role for which he is best known - the flawed, the imperfect but ultimately innocent Kevin Webster.

Not so far removed it seems from Michael Turner - the man who plays the part.

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Le Vell Rape Trial: Corrie Actor Not Guilty

Coronation Street actor Michael Le Vell has been found not guilty of child sex offences including rape at his trial in Manchester.

Mr Le Vell, 48, on trial under his real name Michael Turner, breathed out and said "thank you" as the jury's verdict was announced.

Sky's Nick Martin, who was in the courtroom, said the soap star was taken from the dock moments after the verdict, after one of his friends told security guards "get him out".

Mr Le Vell held his head up as the male foreman began giving the verdicts after around five hours of deliberations.

On the fourth count of not guilty he nodded his head in agreement with them.

His brother and sisters, who sat in the public gallery, were in tears as the verdicts were delivered.

One man shouted "get in" when the last verdict was read out.

Surrounded by supporters outside court, Mr Le Vell said he was "delighted" and that the verdict was a "big weight off everyone's shoulders".

He added: "I might go and have a drink now."

Asked when he would return to Coronation Street, Mr Le Vell replied: "I don't know, I might have a holiday first. I'll have to go and have a chat with my boss."

A Coronation Street spokeswoman said: "We are looking forward to meeting with Michael to discuss his return to the programme."

Mr Le Vell said the trial had been a 'traumatic time'.

The actor, who plays mechanic Kevin Webster in the ITV show, had denied 12 child sex abuse charges, including five of rape.

The eight female and four male jurors were told they must decide if the alleged victim was telling the truth or set out to "quite literally destroy the life" of the accused.

During the eight day trial the "demons" in Mr Le Vell's private life were laid bare - his alcoholism and womanising while his wife battled breast cancer.

The court heard of his "dark secret" that he had enjoyed a string of one-night stands behind the back of his wife of 25 years, Janette Beverley.

And he had abandoned the family home to get drunk in the pub each night.

But while Le Vell might be described as a "weak, stupid and drunk man" and a "bad husband", he was not a child rapist, the jury was told.

It was a "strange case of child rape" without any DNA evidence or injuries to the alleged victim, who claimed she had been raped and abused while a young girl, his legal team said.

One of his supporters and close friend Nigel Pivaro, who played Terry Duckworth in Coronation Street, said: "He has suffered two years of hell and probably more also due to his high profile far more than most.

"It has been a long journey for him.

"Now the jury has spoken, he can pick up his career and his life."

Le Vell was initially arrested on September 30, 2011, but the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to proceed with the case.

But after a review of the evidence following fresh allegations by the girl, Le Vell was re-arrested and charged in February 2013.

He first joined Coronation Street in 1983 and quickly endeared himself to fans, who have followed the trials and tribulations of Kevin, from his days as Brian Tilsley's apprentice mechanic through to his stormy marriage to Sally, played by Sally Dynevor.

He did not appear in any episodes of the soap during the legal proceedings.

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Le Vell Rape Accuser Had 'Nothing To Gain'

The alleged sex abuse victim of Coronation Street actor Michael Le Vell had "absolutely nothing to gain" from making the accusations, a court has heard.

Members of the jury at Manchester Crown Court were told they must find the actor guilty if they believe the alleged victim's account.

Le Vell, who has played garage mechanic Kevin Webster in the ITV1 soap for 30 years, is being tried under his real name Michael Turner.

The 48-year-old denies five counts of rape, three of indecent assault, two counts of sexual activity with a child, and two of causing a child to engage in sexual activity.

The alleged victim cannot be named for legal reasons.

But prosecutor Eleanor Laws QC said his accuser had no reason to lie and the only explanation for her allegations was that it was the "uncomfortable truth".

"Bear in mind what this witness has put herself through over a long period of time," she said.

"What has she got to gain from all of that? Absolutely nothing, unless it is the truth and that is what she wants to tell you.

"If you are sure that she is telling the truth and not lying, then it is your duty to mark her courage from the witness box with convictions."

Ms Laws urged the jury of eight women and four men to concentrate closely on the evidence of the alleged victim.

"You saw her as bubbly, lovely, naive, so lovely," she said.

"She was not twisted. You are the most important people in the courtroom. It is you who decide the facts. At the end of the day it is your collective decision that is important."

She said Le Vell had only come up with one reason for the allegations and that was revenge against him.

That explanation was "absurd", said the barrister, and "just does not hold water".

Alisdair Williamson gave the closing speech for the defence, describing the matter as a "strange case of child rape" without any evidence of blood or semen or injuries to the alleged victim.

"Welcome to the prosecution's hall of mirrors," he told the jury.

"Where up is down and left is right."

He suggested the alleged victim had given differing accounts of the frequency and details of the alleged abuse to her mother, her friends and to the police.

"You are going to throw a man's life away? You are going to cast him to the outer darkness of being a child rapist?" Mr Williamson continued.

"Where is the consistency, the solidity of evidence on which you are going to be sure? Not there, simply not there."

He also accused the alleged victim of making "silly" or "ridiculous" details in her story that "doesn't add up".

Summing up the trial before sending the jury out for deliberations, Judge Michael Henshell said the jury's assessment of the alleged victim was "critical in this case".

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England Fans Injured In Ukraine Knife Attack

A group of England football fans have been attacked in Kiev ahead of the World Cup qualifier with Ukraine, local media reports.

Around 30 hooded Ukrainians armed with knives brawled with England supporters in a coffee shop, the Komsomolskaya Pravda reported.

The attackers then fled, and no one has been arrested.

Three of the England fans were taken to hospital – one with a stab wound, one with a head injury, and a third with severe bruising.

It is understood all three have been released from hospital and have decided no to help the police with their investigation.

Amateur video showed one of the injured men lying on the pavement with other people attending to him while police and ambulances arrived.

The Foreign Office said: "We are aware of incidents in Kiev involving British nationals. We are providing consular assistance."

Three England fans were taken to hospital

England will take on their Ukrainian opponents in Kiev's Olympic Stadium on Tuesday night.

A win for England would move them to within touching distance of a place in next summer's finals in Brazil.

The British police delegation in Kiev for the match warned fans to be cautious in the city before and after the game.

Rachel Barber, head of the UK police delegation, said: "We are aware of what happened last night and we will be going round most of the major bars, including this particular one, to make sure there are no problems.

"We would urge supporters to enjoy themselves but to do so without upsetting anybody.

"I am pleased to say that currently the atmosphere in the town is good, so in that sense what happened last night was out of the blue.

"Sometimes there can be an element of bravado on social media and you can never legislate for something happening but hopefully the England fans will just have a good time in what is a fantastic city."

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Syria Urged To Hand Over Chemical Weapons

Russia has urged Syrian President Bashar al Assad to hand over his chemical weapons to avert a US-led military strike on Damascus.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called on Mr Assad to put the arms under international control so they could be destroyed to avoid a conflict that he warned would cause an "outburst of terrorism" and spark a new wave of refugees.

He said he had already conveyed the message to his Syrian counterpart, Walid al Moualem, at talks in Moscow and expected "a quick and, I hope, a positive answer."

Earlier, Mr Assad warned America "to expect everything" if it attacks in retaliation for his alleged use of chemical weapons that killed more than 1,400 civilians.

Speaking in an interview to US television network CBS, Mr Assad denied he was behind the chemical atrocity on August 21 and said the US had provided "not a single shred of evidence" that his forces were involved.

When pressed by CBS correspondent Charlie Rose about what would happen if the US attacked Syria, he replied "every action".

Mr Assad said war would not bring the US economic or political gain

Asked if that could include the use of more chemical weapons, he said: "That depends. If the rebels or the terrorists in this region or any other group have it, it could happen. I don't know. I'm not a fortune teller to tell you what's going to happen..."

America has urged Mr Assad to hand over his chemical weapons, saying it was the only way to stop a military strike against his forces.

US Secretary of State John Kerry made the demand after flying into London for talks with British Foreign Secretary William Hague in the latest stage of his diplomatic tour to garner support for attacking Mr Assad's regime.

He told a news conference at the Foreign Office that the US "was not going to war" with troops on the ground, but was instead planning a "very limited, very targeted, very short-term" strike.

But, conversely, he added: "Let me be clear, the United States, President Obama, myself, others, are in full agreement that the end of the conflict in Syria requires a political solution. There is no military solution, we have no illusions about that."

A Free Syrian Army fighter in Raqqa province, eastern Syria

He again set out the evidence America claims it has that the Syrian government was behind the Damascus gas attack, saying the "risk of not acting is greater than the risk of acting".

Sky's Foreign Affairs Editor, Tim Marshall, said that by telling Mr Assad he could avoid American action by turning over every chemical weapon he has in the next week, Mr Kerry was giving him an option.

"Damascus could now engage in linguistic gymnastics, admit it has small quantities of chemicals, and suggest the United Nations comes to secure them as quickly as possible," Marshall said.

"Given that 'quickly' and the 'UN' do not usually belong in the same sentence, that could drag things out for weeks. This is an unlikely scenario, but it is puzzling as to why Mr Kerry even bothered to formulate what can be taken as an ultimatum."

Mr Kerry also stressed the importance of the "special relationship" between the US and Britain and said the two countries were "enormously tied together".

Mr Hague said the US has Britain's "full diplomatic support" and supported "mustering a strong international response" to Mr Assad's alleged use of chemical weapons.

Congress will vote on whether to launch military action in Syria

US politicians are set to discuss backing for military action against Syria as President Barack Obama prepares to make a series of TV appearances to push his case.

Congress will start debating the issue today and is expected to vote later this week on whether to authorise force against the Syrian regime.

While the White House believes an endorsement from the Senate could be within reach, Mr Obama faces a wall of opposition from both Republicans and from many of his Democratic allies in the House of Representatives.

The White House has refused to state whether Mr Obama, elected in 2008 promising to end foreign wars, would order a strike even if Congress votes "no".

In a determined final effort for military backing, Mr Obama is due to appear on six US TV networks later, ahead of delivering a live address to the nation on Tuesday.

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Ex-BBC Boss: We Didn't Lose Plot On Pay-Offs

Mark Thompson has told MPs the BBC had not "lost the plot" when it agreed a pay-off of almost £1m for his former deputy.

The former director general is one of seven senior BBC staff - past and present - appearing before the Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to answer MPs' questions about who knew what about golden goodbyes which saw senior executives leave with thousands of pounds more than their contracts demanded.

Several current and former BBC executives are giving evidence to MPs

He said the move, which saw Mark Byford leave the BBC with a total payout of £949,000, was part of a move to axe senior executives which would give the BBC "£19m of savings for every year into the future" and he believed he "had the full support of the BBC Trust" to order it.

The committee's chair, Margaret Hodge, said people were looking at BBC management in "dismay" and asked Mr Thompson if the BBC had, under his management, lost the plot.

He said: "I do not think we lost the plot."

Ms Hodge asked Mr Thompson why Mr Byford needed an extra payment saying: "Why was £500,000, which is for most people mega bucks, not enough?"

Lord Patten has denied misleading the committee

Mr Thompson, who said he did not believe there was any "favouritism" in deciding pay-offs, said the pay-off to Mr Byford was needed so he would remain "focused" on his job and not be distracted.

He said he had inherited a way of doing things at the broadcaster, telling MPs: "I did not loosen the financial controls in this area."

At one point during the tense hearing, BBC human resources boss Lucy Adams apologised for partially inaccurate evidence at an earlier hearing.

Ms Hodge later said: "We will have no more lies this afternoon."

In written evidence published ahead of today's meeting, Mr Thompson accused BBC Trust boss Lord Patten and trustee Anthony Fry of "fundamentally misleading" committee members at a previous hearing.

Mark Byford left the BBC with a pay-off of almost £1m

At their last appearance before the committee, Lord Patten and Mr Fry told MPs members of the Trust were not always included in decision-making.

Lord Patten said he took the charge of misleading the committee "very strongly" and said his induction to the job included no references to severance pay and a media briefing he was given before the publication of the annual report said pay-offs to Mr Byford and former marketing boss Sharon Baylay were "contractual payments".

He said: "I'm in the position in which I'm accused of having misled the committee on something I didn't know and couldn't have been expected to know."

More follows...

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89% Of Nurses Say A&E Patients Put In Danger

Nine out of 10 nurses working in acute and emergency care believe current pressure on A&E services is putting patients in danger, a nursing union has warned.

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said a survey of its members found that 89% of nursing staff thought the people they were meant to be caring for were being put at risk.

Some 85% said patient safety was being compromised by the strain on departments, while one in five said this was the case on every shift.

The poll of 416 RCN members found 89% said they had experienced increased pressure in their A&E department in the last six months.

A lack of beds and staff were both key reasons for department strain

More than three quarters cited increased attendance at A&E as the reason for increased pressure, while 74% blamed inappropriate attendance at A&E where patients could have been treated elsewhere.

The survey also found 57% cited a lack of beds for patients coming into A&E, while 54% said there were too few health care staff on duty to cope with demand.

Dr Peter Carter, chief executive and general secretary of the RCN, said: "Our member survey demonstrates the same picture that NHS Confederation leaders are painting - that emergency services and the staff working within them are under increasing pressure which is putting patient safety at risk.

"Staff enter the health profession to save and improve lives through first class care.

"However they simply cannot deliver this if there are too few staff to properly treat and monitor the increasing numbers of patients, not enough beds to put them in and no clear signposting to community care that could prevent attendance at A&E."

The survey was conducted in July.

A Department of Health spokeswoman said: "We know A&E departments are under pressure. There are over one million more people visiting A&E compared to three years ago.

"However we know, on the whole the NHS is performing well, latest weekly figures show 96% of patients were seen in under four hours and there are more clinical staff, including 4,300 more doctors since 2010.

"We have given A&E departments an additional £500m to make sure the best care is available for every patient this winter and the next and have set aside an additional £3.8bn to help join up health and care services."

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RAF Scrambles Typhoons Amid Syria Tensions

Two RAF Typhoon jets were scrambled from their base in Cyprus to investigate unidentified aircraft in international airspace amid mounting tensions over Syria, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed.

Reports suggest the rogue aircraft, which were spotted on radar by the British and Turkish air forces on Monday, came from Syria.

An MoD spokesman said: "Typhoon Air Defence Aircraft operated from RAF Akrotiri on Monday, 2nd September 2013, to investigate unidentified aircraft to the east of Cyprus; the aircraft were flying legally in international airspace and no intercept was required."

The Sunday Mirror quoted a military source as saying: "This is a clear sign of the tension boiling over because of Syria. Everyone is on edge.

"It is a pretty serious move to send up Typhoons - one of their roles is to intercept any possible enemy strike."

A week ago, six RAF Typhoon jets were sent to Cyprus in what the MoD called a "prudent and precautionary measure".

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State John Kerry said the number of countries ready to take military action against Syria was now in the "double digits" after holding talks in Lithuania with EU foreign ministers.

Mr Kerry met French foreign minister Laurent Fabius on Saturday

Following the meeting on Saturday, the EU ministers issued a call for action against Syrian President Bashar al Assad's regime.

The EU did not explicitly back military action, but Mr Kerry said he was encouraged by the "very powerful statement" made by the bloc.

"There were a number of countries, in the double digits, who are prepared to take military action," he said.

"We have more countries prepared to take military action than we actually could use in the kind of military action being contemplated."

The US accuses the Assad regime of gassing to death 1,429 people, including 426 children, in an August 21 attack outside Damascus.

In his weekly address, US President Barack Obama warned of the dangers of "turning a blind eye" to chemical attacks.

"I call on members of Congress, from both parties, to come together and stand up for the kind of world we want to live in," he said on his return from a deadlocked G20 summit in St Petersburg.

My Kerry says support for airstrikes is mounting

Mr Obama has asked for Congress to authorise strikes on Syria. Congress reconvenes on Monday and the president is set to address the nation on Tuesday about the US response.

Mr Kerry said Mr Obama had made no decision about whether to wait for the release of a UN investigation into the alleged August attack before taking action.

Prime Minister David Cameron has ruled out bringing the issue of intervention back to the Commons and he has the support of the public, according to a new poll.

The ICM survey found voters opposed MPs voting again on British involvement - even if the UN inspectors concluded chemical weapons were used, by 46% to 36%.

But almost a quarter (24%) accepted that the decision to stay out would encourage other dictators to use chemical weapons, the poll for The Sunday Telegraph showed.

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Sky Poll: Drunk A&E Patients Should Be Charged

By Thomas Moore, Health Correspondent

Patients who visit A&E while drunk or under the influence of recreational drugs should pay for the treatment they receive, according to the large majority of people questioned for a Sky News poll.

More than seven in 10 of those questioned said anyone needing emergency medical care because they were intoxicated should be charged for using NHS services.

Experts say at least seven million people a year attend A&E while drunk, placing an enormous strain on health service resources.

Sky News is broadcasting from inside the Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham

The poll commissioned for State of Emergency, Sky News' weekend of live coverage from Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre, shows that two in three people believe A&E services are in crisis and patients are being put at risk.

The Sky News poll of 1,106 people carried out by Survation also shows that eight out of 10 believe the Government must take immediate action to avoid major issues in A&E.

And more than six in 10 blame government cuts for any staff shortages and poor levels of care.

However, three-quarters of those questioned agreed that doctors and nurses were trying their best, but were being worked too hard.

To address the A&E care crisis, almost two-thirds of those asked thought consultants should be forced to work weekends and nights, with four in 10 saying senior doctors who refuse should receive less pay.

More than nine out of 10 opposed the provision of breast enlargements and tattoo removals on the NHS.

Nearly two-thirds also believed NHS managers were paid too much.

:: A&E Live Updates: Sky News On Emergency Ward

The think tank 2020health estimates that on an average weekday up to three out of every 10 patients attending A&E are there because of alcohol, and at the weekend that goes up to seven in 10.

Chief executive Julia Manning said: "We should be sending a really strong message that this is a misuse of A&E. A&E is there for people who've had road trauma accidents (and) major health incidents.

"It's not there for people who have just been mucking around and drinking too much. So we need to think of a way of creating a disincentive for people to get drunk and go to A&E, and we think one of the ways is that people should be invoiced for that use of A&E."

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt told Sky News that while he understood the public desire for the move, it would be a difficult measure to introduce.

"I understand why people would want that, but I think in practice it's very, very difficult to differentiate between the people who have a health problem because of a direct decision they've taken themselves, and people who are unlucky.

"I think it's also one of the fundamental things that we all love about the NHS - that in an emergency you can turn up at a hospital and get treated.

"I think the day we started differentiating and saying we're only going to treat some people, and other people are going to have to pay, I think would be a step in the wrong direction."

On Saturday, Mr Hunt warned that it would be "very, very tough" for the NHS to avoid a repeat of last winter's A&E care crisis.

In an exclusive interview with Sky News, the Health Secretary admitted to being "concerned" about the high demand for emergency care and the pressure staff are under.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has warned of a repeat winter A&E crisis

In the first three months of this year 94 out of 148 hospital trusts failed to meet the target for treating 95% of patients within four hours of them arriving at A&E.

Although the pressure eased over the summer, waiting times have begun to climb once more. Some hospitals are already breaching the target, even before winter pressures kick in.

The Government has given the NHS an extra £500m to pay for short term measures over the next two years to help ease the pressure.

That could include employing more locum consultants in A&E departments and setting up GP surgeries inside hospitals.

"A lot of things are happening to give support to the front line," said Mr Hunt.

"But that's not to say we are not worried about it, because it is going to be very tough, and we understand that."

The national director for acute episodes of care for NHS England, Professor Keith Willett, told Sky News that demand for emergency care is likely to rise once again this winter.

He will shortly unveil plans to divert more A&E patients towards the care of GPs, paramedics and chemists.

But in the short term patients will have to accept they have to wait for care.

"Safety is the priority," he said.

"We will do everything we can to maximise the way patients receive their care as quickly and optimally as possible.

"But it is a pressured system and we have to work within the envelope we have and the skills and staff we have."

:: As part of the poll 1,106 adults were surveyed on September 2-3 by Survation on behalf of Sky News.

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Cops Apologise After Challenging Duke At Palace

The Duke of York has said he is "grateful" for an apology from police after officers challenged him in the Buckingham Palace gardens.

The Met confirmed he was ordered to verify his identity by two officers at around 6pm on Wednesday.

A police spokesman said: "The man was satisfactorily identified. No weapons were drawn and no force was used."

He was challenged after returning from an engagement in London's Piccadilly - at an event to support new business ventures.

The confrontation came less than 48 hours after a break-in at the palace where an intruder was able to scale a fence and get inside the building before being arrested.

A security review has been launched following Monday night's suspected burglary which happened when the Queen was not in residence.

Police said the man was found shortly before 10.30pm "in an area currently open to the public during the day" and arrested for burglary, trespass and criminal damage.

A second man was arrested outside the palace for conspiracy to commit burglary.

There was a break-in at the palace on Monday night

Both men have been bailed to return to a central London police station while enquiries continue.

Prince Andrew said in a statement: "The police have a difficult job to do balancing security for the Royal Family and deterring intruders, and sometimes they get it wrong.

"I am grateful for their apology and look forward to a safe walk in the garden in the future."

In response the Met said: "In light of media reports we can confirm that the man spoken to by officers was the Duke of York. We are making this public with HRH's permission.

"We are grateful to the Duke for his understanding and have apologised for any inconvenience caused."

The Queen made her traditional appearance at a Highland Games on Saturday as details of the break-in emerged.

She was joined by the Duke of Edinburgh and the Prince of Wales at the Braemar Gathering in Aberdeenshire, where the royal party watched pipe bands and dancers perform to a large crowd.

The Queen has been spending her summer break at Balmoral Castle since the beginning of August and is not expected to return to the palace until October.

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