![Image]( "New curbs 'are control orders lite'")
Plans to relax restrictions imposed on suspected terrorists and rebrand controversial powers used to keep tabs on them are little more than "control orders lite", critics have said.
Liberty, the civil liberties campaign group, accused the Government of bottling the decision on the future of counter-terrorism powers, saying that, "spin and semantics aside, control orders are retained and rebranded, if in a slightly lower-fat form".
The new powers announced by Home Secretary Theresa May will no longer need to be reviewed every year, a clear signal that the restrictions against suspected terrorists against whom prosecutions cannot be brought are here to stay.
The term "control order" has been scrapped and will be replaced with "Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures", or Tpims, Mrs May said.
But Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, said: "When it comes to ending punishment without trial, the Government appears to have bottled it. As before, the innocent may be punished without a fair hearing and the guilty will escape the full force of criminal law. This leaves a familiar bitter taste. Parliament must now decide whether the final flavour will be of progress, disappointment or downright betrayal."
Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper also warned that the plans were a "political fudge" and the review of counter-terrorism powers left gaps which raised "serious questions about security and resources". The new powers will be limited to two years and will only be renewed "if there is new evidence that they have re-engaged in terrorism-related activities", the Home Office said.
But the decision to scrap 16-hour curfews but bring in overnight residence requirements, typically of between eight and 10 hours, were greeted with guffaws of laughter from MPs in the Commons. The overnight stays will be monitored by electronic tags and there will be an additional level of flexibility with the suspects allowed to apply to spend a night away from their main residence.
Asked about the difference between curfews and overnight stays, a Whitehall official said the overnight stays could be much shorter and more flexible, allowing arrangements to be made for a suspect's shift patterns at work or other needs.
The new powers will "more clearly target and focus those limitations", while still enabling authorities to ban a suspect from visiting a particular building or street, Mrs May said. The Tpims will also give greater freedom of communication and association than the control order regime, which was described as being akin to house arrest by critics.
Limited use of the internet on a home computer will also be permitted, provided that all passwords are given to the authorities. But curfews and further restrictions on communications, association and movement could all be brought in as part of "exceptional emergency measures", the Home Office said.
Councils wishing to fill budget deficits with cash from parking fines may be disappointed - because drivers are determined to avoid them, a motoring organisation has said.
AA members were asked to pick their motoring New Year resolutions, and by far the most popular was trying to park legally more often.
Some 70% were keen to keep parking attendants twiddling their thumbs, the study found.
Driving less aggressively (58%) was the next most popular aim, with obeying the speed limit more at 56% - the same as driving less often.
Driving more safely (46%) and more economically (36%) were also resolutions which probably reflect the high cost of fuel, it said.
AA president Edmund King said: "Too many councils are banking on extra revenue from raising parking fine levels - in London they want to charge £130.
"They may be sorely disappointed: high fuel prices and austere times mean fewer trips to the shops and less pressure on parking spaces.
"There is no justification for increasing parking penalties as compliance at current levels has improved. Yet many local authorities are now introducing parking charges on Sundays, extending parking charges until 10pm and hiking up the price of residents' parking permits.
"Hard times also manifest themselves in the high number looking at driving less often (56%) and more economically (36%). It may also suggest that many drivers now feel they cannot save any more fuel by changing their driving and that they are being forced to find ways of not driving."
Recent Government figures indicate that drivers are already complying more with parking restrictions as the number of penalty charge notices issued on-street in England in 2009/10 was 7.14 million compared to 7.41 million in 2008/09, a 4% decrease, the AA said.
Egyptian security officials said three people died and up to 200 protesters were detained during clashes with thousands of Tunisia-inspired demonstrators demanding an end to President Hosni Mubarak's authoritarian rule.
A policeman and two protesters were confirmed dead in Tuesday's violence, with some 250 people injured.
The protests were Egypt's biggest in years and are likely to fuel dissent in a presidential election year.
Thousands of riot police have been deployed across Cairo, but there are no signs of fresh protests erupting.
Officials said more people were likely to be detained as authorities reviewed police video tapes of the nationwide protests.
Egypt's benchmark EGX30 stock market index tumbled 4.63% to 6,411.94 points in the wake of the violence, and its year-to-date losses stand so far at over 10%.
Egyptians have grown increasingly frustrated with President Mubarak's 30-year rule, arguing that economic gains have failed to trickle down and that the government has done little to address crippling poverty.
Russia's president has fired a top transport police official and lashed out at "passive" officers who guard transport centres in the wake of the deadly bombing of the country's busiest airport.
Dmitry Medvedev, often criticised as hesitant or ineffectual, appears eager to show he is in control after Monday's attack that killed 35 people at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport.
He announced the firing shortly before leaving for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he aims to reassure elite figures of international business that Russia is safe for their badly needed investment.
The airport attack, believed to have been a suicide bombing, is likely to unsettle investors not only because it underlines Russia's persistent security problems, but because eight foreigners were killed.
The dead include two Austrian citizens, two Tajiks and one person each from Britain, Germany, Ukraine and Uzbekistan, according to a revised list released by authorities.
The bombing has demoralised many Russians, who are weary of years of separatist violence in Chechnya and other parts of the southern Caucasus and of terrorist attacks attributed to the separatists, including last year's double suicide bombing of the Moscow subway system in which 40 people were killed.
No claim of responsibility has been made and investigators have not named suspects or presented a consistent account of what happened. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, in a characteristically tough statement on Tuesday, vowed retribution for the attack, but it remains unclear against whom.
Mr Medvedev did not specify the reasons for dismissing Major General Andrei Alexeyev, head of the transport police for the region that includes Moscow. But he criticised transport police in general.
"The police that are at the large transport centres, in airports, at railway stations, take an absolutely passive position," he said.
The chief of the transport police division at Domodedovo Airport and two officers have also been fired, by Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev.
Banking giant Barclays is to move away from offering financial planning advice through its retail branches, likely to lead to around 1,000 job losses, it has been announced.
The bank said there had been a decline in the commercial viability of the services in recent years which it expected will continue.
Customers were increasingly buying and managing their investments online, said Barclays, adding it was proposing to offer retail investment services solely online.
"Barclays has been conducting a detailed review of its financial planning advice over recent months.
"This review has concluded that, given the changes to the retail investment market place, it is unlikely that this business would be able to deliver a return that would justify the investment required," the bank said in a statement.
Union leaders said the move will lead to 1,000 job losses.
Rob MacGregor, national officer of Unite, said: "Barclays management should hang their heads in shame as 1,000 hard-working staff are told they no longer have a job at the bank."
The BBC has confirmed plans to axe 650 jobs under huge cost savings, saying it was a "painful day" for its global news service.
Around 480 of the jobs will go over the next year and the savings will amount to £46 million a year by 2014.
The BBC made it clear the cuts were as a result of changes to the funding of the World Service, which will be paid for by the licence fee from 2014 rather than by the Government.
The World Service is to close five of its language services - Albanian, Macedonian, Portuguese for Africa and Serbian, as well as the English for the Caribbean regional service, which will reduce the service's 180 million global audience by 30 million.
BBC Global News Director Peter Horrocks gave the grim news to staff and said they were "clearly very sad". He made it clear that the BBC had made a strong case not to have its funding cut, and stressed the importance of the World Service to Britain's reputation across the world.
he told a news conference that people who listened to the World Service were likely to trade with Britain, adding: "We made that case to ministers. We explained in great detail the impact of the decision."
The BBC Trust said in a statement: "The BBC is today announcing large-scale and significant changes to BBC World Service. These changes have been fully considered and approved by the BBC Trust.
"As part of the new licence fee settlement agreed with the Government last autumn, the World Service will be funded from the licence fee from 2014. This was agreed on the basis that there are valuable synergies between the World Service and the rest of the BBC and the fact that it helps to deliver the BBC's public purposes.
"In the period up to 2014, the World Service continues to be funded by the Government through a grant from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Today's announcement reflects the financial settlement reached with the Government as part of the recent Comprehensive Spending Review, which sees the level of Government funding available for the World Service reduced by 16%."
BBC Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons said it was a "difficult day" for the World Service, adding: "We have no choice other than to live within the reduced Government grant."
Control orders used to keep tabs on suspected terrorists will be watered down and renamed, Home Secretary Theresa May has said.
But the new powers will no longer need to be reviewed every year, a clear signal that restrictions against suspected terrorists against whom prosecutions cannot be brought are here to stay.
The current 16-hour curfews will be replaced by an "overnight residence requirement", typically of between eight and 10 hours, Mrs May said.
The term "control order" has been scrapped and will be replaced with "Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures", or Tpims, Mrs May said.
The new powers will be limited to two years and will only be renewed "if there is new evidence that they have re-engaged in terrorism-related activities".
The overnight stays, which will replace the current curfews, will be monitored by electronic tags and there will be an additional level of flexibility with the suspects allowed to apply to spend a night away from their main residence.
Asked about the difference between curfews and overnight stays, a Whitehall official said the overnight stays could be much shorter and more flexible, allowing arrangements to be made for a suspect's shift patterns at work or other needs.
The new powers will "more clearly target and focus those limitations", while still enabling authorities to ban a suspect from visiting a particular building or street, Mrs May said.
But curfews and further restrictions on communications, association and movement could all be brought in as part of "exceptional emergency measures", the Home Office said.
In his review of counter-terrorism powers, Lord Macdonald QC said he would regard the use of curfews and tags as part of a replacement regime for control orders as "disproportionate, unnecessary and objectionable", adding they would "serve no useful purpose".
David Cameron has defended the Metropolitan Police over its phone hacking inquiry after a Labour MP called for another force to take over the investigation.
The Prime Minister said it was not "necessarily fair" to say the Met had not been active on the issue.
At Commons question time, former minister Tom Watson said: "The former investigating officer is now on the payroll of News International. Three senior editors are now identified with phone hacking.
"Isn't it time that another police force took over the inquiry? You have the status to make it happen, Prime Minister. What are you afraid of?"
Mr Cameron replied: "Let me be absolutely clear - phone hacking is wrong. Phone hacking is illegal.
"I think it's quite right that the Director of Public Prosecutions (Keir Starmer) is reviewing all of the evidence and they should follow the evidence wherever it leads.
"I don't think it's necessarily fair to say that the police have not been active - after all, there have been prosecutions, convictions and indeed imprisonments. But the law is quite clear - prosecuting authorities should follow it wherever it leads."
Mr Starmer this week announced that the Crown Prosecution Service will expand its review of evidence gathered during the phone hacking inquiry to include fresh claims swirling around the scandal.
He said any evidence from "recent or new substantive allegations" will be assessed by a senior barrister as part of an ongoing inquiry into material already held by Scotland Yard.
The Met is under intense pressure to reopen its investigation following the departure of Downing Street communications chief Andy Coulson.
Former Scottish Socialist Party leader Tommy Sheridan has been jailed for three years for perjury.
The disgraced politician was convicted last month of lying during his successful defamation action against the News of the World in 2006.
After a three-month trial at the High Court in Glasgow, Sheridan, 46, was found guilty of lying about the newspaper's claims that he was an adulterer who visited swingers' clubs.
Sheridan's wife Gail, who has vowed to stand by her husband, was also accused of lying to the jury at the Court of Session in Edinburgh in 2006, but she was acquitted when the Crown dropped the case against her last month.
Sheridan maintained his innocence throughout the trial, claiming he was the victim of a "vendetta" by the police and a "conspiracy" involving the News of the World and colleagues within the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP).
He claimed that 16 former allies were lying as part of a "political civil war" when they told the court that he had admitted at a 2004 meeting to having been to Cupid's swingers' club in Manchester.
Presenting his own defence, Sheridan called Andy Coulson, a former News of the World editor and Prime Minister David Cameron's ex-communications chief, to give evidence.
But the High Court jury ultimately convicted him of five of six allegations in a single charge of perjury against him, relating to his evidence during the civil case.
In doing so, they found him guilty of lying about an affair with SSP member Katrine Trolle in 2005 and a trip to Cupid's with her, Andrew McFarlane, Gary Clark, and News of the World journalist Anvar Khan on September 27 2002.
Judge Lord Bracadale said: "By pursuing and continuing to pursue a defamation action, you brought the walls of the temple crashing down not only on your own head but also on your family and your political friends and foes."
The pressure of soaring inflation saw the Bank of England edge closer to an interest rate hike days before figures revealed a shock reversal in economic growth in the UK.
The number of votes in favour of tightening policy increased at the Bank's January rates meeting, but the decision a fortnight ago was made before data showed gross domestic product declined 0.5% between October and December.
The details of the meeting followed a warning from Bank governor Mervyn King that the UK was facing the biggest squeeze on living standards since the 1920s as inflation moves towards 5% in coming months and wage growth slows down.
The minutes laid bare the challenge faced by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) as it grapples with a toxic combination of stubbornly high inflation and stagnant economic growth. Surging food costs and petrol prices led to an increase in the CPI rate of inflation from 3.3% to 3.7% in December.
The figures prompted warnings from economists that a rate hike was likely to come sooner than expected. Unconvinced that price rises are temporary, MPC members Andrew Sentance and Martin Weale voted to increase interest rates from 0.5% to 0.75%. In previous months, Mr Sentance had stood alone in calling for a quarter point rise.
In a speech at Newcastle's Civic Centre on Tuesday night, Mr King warned real wages will be no higher than 2005 levels as prices soar and the Government's deficit-busting actions take effect. But he defended the MPC's decision to hold rates at their historic low for 22 months.
He said: "Monetary policy cannot change the amount that we in the UK have to pay to buy food and other commodities, such as energy, from the rest of the world. Nor can it alter the need for a fall in the prices of the products that we sell to the rest of the world relative to world prices in order to reduce our trade deficit and rebalance the UK economy.
"Monetary policy can affect the inflation rate at which these adjustments take place, but it cannot alter the fact that, one way or another, the squeeze in living standards is the inevitable price to pay for the financial crisis and subsequent rebalancing of the world and UK economies. If the MPC had raised the bank rate significantly, inflation might well have started to fall back this year, but only because the recovery would have been slower, unemployment higher and average earnings rising even more slowly than now. The erosion of living standards would have been even greater."
However, economists said Tuesday's GDP figures had skewed any decisions made at this month's rates meeting and Philip Shaw, economist at brokers Investec, said a rate increase in the near future was looking more unlikely.
He said: "Putting the bank rate up next month, bearing in mind that cuts in public spending will begin to take effect in April, would be jumping the gun somewhat, to say the least. If and when survey and official data show evidence that the economy is expanding, it might be game on for a more serious set of rate hike discussions. But until then we would be surprised if a majority on the MPC voted to raise rates."
Police and firefighters investigating a house fire in which four children died have said there is nothing to suggest the deaths are suspicious.
Officers said they are keeping an "open mind" about the cause of the fire, which they think began in the lounge.
Four children, all under the age of 10, died when the fire engulfed the property while they slept upstairs at around 11.30pm on Monday.
Their 45-year-old mother, named locally as Rachel Henson, managed to escape from the semi-detached house in Highfield Road, Hulland Way, Derbyshire, and then tried unsuccessfully to get back in to rescue her children.
She was taken to the Royal Derby Hospital and treated for smoke inhalation but has since been released.
Two of the children, named locally as Tommy, aged nine, and Appolonia, two, were carried out of the house by firefighters but died later in hospital.
The bodies of the two other children, named by family members as Aleisha, six, and Rocco, four, were later found inside the semi-detached house in Highfield Road.
A former public schoolgirl who kicked and stamped on a gay civil servant during a deadly homophobic attack has been jailed for seven years for his manslaughter.
Ruby Thomas, 19, hurled obscene abuse at 62-year-old Ian Baynham during the drink-fuelled assault in London's Trafalgar Square in September 2009.
Mr Baynham died 18 days later in hospital. Police found his blood smeared on Thomas's handbag and the ballet pumps she was wearing when she kicked him.
The Old Bailey heard how she screamed "f****** faggots", and smiled as she "put the boot into" Mr Baynham after he was knocked to the ground by another teenager, Joel Alexander.
Thomas's ex-boyfriend Declan Seavers told the court that the teenager, of Anerley, south-east London, was "not the type of girl" to have done it.
But jurors did not agree and convicted her of manslaughter, along with Alexander, now 20, of Thornton Heath, south-east London, at the end of their trial last month.
Alexander was jailed for six years while 18-year-old Rachael Burke, of Upper Norwood, south-east London, was given a two-year sentence after being found guilty of affray at an earlier trial.
Judge Richard Hawkins increased Thomas's sentence from six years to seven years because of the homophobic nature of the attack.
He said: "This was a case of mindless drink-fuelled violence committed in public."
Thomas turned and looked up towards supporters in the public gallery as she was led down from the dock to begin her sentence.
Plans to relax restrictions imposed on suspected terrorists and rebrand controversial powers used to keep tabs on them are little more than "control orders lite", critics have said.
Liberty, the civil liberties campaign group, accused the Government of bottling the decision on the future of counter-terrorism powers, saying that, "spin and semantics aside, control orders are retained and rebranded, if in a slightly lower-fat form".
The new powers announced by Home Secretary Theresa May will no longer need to be reviewed every year, a clear signal that the restrictions against suspected terrorists against whom prosecutions cannot be brought are here to stay.
The term "control order" has been scrapped and will be replaced with "Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures", or Tpims, Mrs May said.
But Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, said: "When it comes to ending punishment without trial, the Government appears to have bottled it. As before, the innocent may be punished without a fair hearing and the guilty will escape the full force of criminal law. This leaves a familiar bitter taste. Parliament must now decide whether the final flavour will be of progress, disappointment or downright betrayal."
Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper also warned that the plans were a "political fudge" and the review of counter-terrorism powers left gaps which raised "serious questions about security and resources". The new powers will be limited to two years and will only be renewed "if there is new evidence that they have re-engaged in terrorism-related activities", the Home Office said.
But the decision to scrap 16-hour curfews but bring in overnight residence requirements, typically of between eight and 10 hours, were greeted with guffaws of laughter from MPs in the Commons. The overnight stays will be monitored by electronic tags and there will be an additional level of flexibility with the suspects allowed to apply to spend a night away from their main residence.
Asked about the difference between curfews and overnight stays, a Whitehall official said the overnight stays could be much shorter and more flexible, allowing arrangements to be made for a suspect's shift patterns at work or other needs.
The new powers will "more clearly target and focus those limitations", while still enabling authorities to ban a suspect from visiting a particular building or street, Mrs May said. The Tpims will also give greater freedom of communication and association than the control order regime, which was described as being akin to house arrest by critics.
Limited use of the internet on a home computer will also be permitted, provided that all passwords are given to the authorities. But curfews and further restrictions on communications, association and movement could all be brought in as part of "exceptional emergency measures", the Home Office said.
Scotland Yard detectives have launched a fresh investigation into the phone hacking scandal after receiving "significant new information".
Police said the new material is linked to allegations about the activities of staff at the News of the World in 2005 and 2006.
A review by senior prosecutors of existing evidence and the latest claims will continue as planned.
Senior officers said the complex inquiry was being moved from the Met's counter terrorism command.
It will now be led by Deputy Assistant Commissioner Sue Akers at the specialist crime directorate.
A Met spokesman said the move was necessary because of the counter terrorism workload and continuing "severe" level of threat.
He said: "The Met has today received significant new information relating to allegations of phone hacking at the News of the World in 2005/06. As a result, the Met is launching a new investigation to consider this material.
"This work will be carried out by the specialist crime directorate which has been investigating a related phone hacking allegation since September 2010.
"Discussions have taken place with the Director of Public Prosecutions in relation to the recently announced role of Alison Levitt QC.
"It has been agreed that her task will continue and she will evaluate any new evidence and advise as to the progress of the investigation."
Andy Gray has apologised for his part in the Sky Sports sexism row and said he was "devastated by losing the job that I love".
The pundit was dropped after he and Sky Sports commentator Richard Keys made sexist remarks about assistant referee Sian Massey before the Premier League game between Wolves and Liverpool at the weekend.
But Sky Sports fired former Scotland international Gray after new evidence of unacceptable and offensive behaviour emerged.
A statement released by Gray read: "I am very sorry that certain comments made by me have caused offence.
"Such comments were made off-air to work colleagues, and were, of course, never intended to be broadcast."
Gray's statement continued: "Football is my life and I am devastated by losing the job that I love.
"I am equally upset that third parties have been dragged into this issue. I ask that the media respect their privacy so that they can continue in their roles.
"I have worked for Sky Sports loyally for over 20 years and I do not wish to comment further at this time."
His comments came as Keys also chose to publicly apologise for his remarks.
Speaking on the talkSPORT radio station, he said: "Our prehistoric banter is not acceptable in a modern world. We were wrong. It was wrong. It shouldn't have happened."
The Government has been warned that it risks hitting Britain's reputation across the world after funding cuts were blamed for the loss of 650 jobs and the closure of five language services at the BBC World Service.
The news sparked anger from opposition politicians and unions and led to warnings of possible industrial action to fight the cuts.
The BBC blamed changes to the funding of the World Service, which will be paid for by the licence fee from 2014 rather than by the Government, and made it clear that the corporation had made a strong case against the cuts.
BBC global news director Peter Horrocks gave the grim news to staff and said they were "clearly very sad", stressing the importance of the World Service to Britain's reputation across the world.
People who listened to the World Service were likely to trade with Britain, he said, adding: "We made that case to ministers. We explained in great detail the impact of the decision."
Former Foreign Office minister Denis MacShane said the changes would see "irreparable damage" done to Britain, telling ministers in the Commons: "You are doing in part what no dictator has ever achieved - silencing the voice of the BBC, the voice of Britain, the voice of democracy, the voice of balanced journalism at a time when it is more than ever needed."
Foreign Secretary William Hague said the BBC World Service had a "viable and promising future" but could not be immune from spending cuts.
Closures to services were to be "regretted" but he blamed them on the BBC pension deficit and Foreign Office spending cuts required by the "vast public deficit inherited from the previous government".
The World Service confirmed that it will close five of its language services, Albanian, Macedonian, Portuguese for Africa and Serbian, as well as the English for the Caribbean regional service, which will reduce the 180 million global audience by 30 million.
More than one in four of the World Service's 2,400-strong staff will be axed, with around 480 of the job losses going over the next year, with savings amounting to £46 million a year by 2014.
Anti-government activists have defied an official ban on protests to clash with police in Egypt for a second day.
But strengthened forces on the streets quickly moved in and used tear gas and beatings to disperse them.
Security officials said a total of 860 protesters have been rounded up nationwide since Tuesday, when tens of thousands of people turned out for the largest protests in years - inspired by the uprising in Tunisia.
They demanded president Hosni Mubarak's removal and a solution to grinding poverty, rising prices and high unemployment.
More than 2,000 demonstrators were marching on a Nile-side road when dozens of riot police with helmets and shields charged the crowd. It was a scene repeated throughout the day wherever demonstrators tried to gather.
They were the latest in outbursts of political discontent in Egypt that have been growing more frequent and more intense over the past year. Protests have erupted sporadically over police brutality, poverty and food prices, government corruption and mismanagement, and more recently sectarian strife between Christians and Muslims. Parliamentary elections in November were widely decried as fraudulent.
Many in Egypt see these events as signs of the authoritarian president's vulnerability in an election year. There is speculation that 82-year-old Mr Mubarak, who has been in power for nearly 30 years and recently experienced serious health problems, may be setting his son Gamal up for hereditary succession.
But there is considerable public opposition and, according to leaked US diplomatic memos, it does not meet with the approval of the powerful military. And the regime's tight hold on power has made it virtually impossible for any serious alternative to Mr Mubarak to emerge.
The crackdown by authorities brought harsh words from European leaders, who expressed concern and said the events underline the need for democratisation and respect for human and civil rights.
Activists used social networking sites to call for fresh demonstrations but Facebook, a key tool used to organise protests, appeared to be at least partially blocked. On Tuesday, Twitter and mobile phones appeared to be sporadically blocked as well.
