October 30, 2011, 6:54 am
![Ceasefire offer after Gaza fighting]()
A Gaza Strip militant group spearheading a recent campaign of rocket barrages into Israel has said it is prepared to cease fire if the Israeli military did so as well.
The rocket fire has provoked retaliatory Israeli airstrikes and on Saturday nine militants and an Israeli civilian were killed in some of the worst violence in the area in months.
The exchange of fire continued overnight, with Palestinians firing 10 rockets into Israel in the early hours of the morning, and Israeli aircraft targeting six militant sites in Gaza, the military said. No casualties were reported by either side.
Egypt had been mediating truce efforts over the weekend, and late this morning, the Islamic Jihad militant group said it was ready to halt its attacks if Israel would halt its air strikes.
"When all jet fighters leave the skies of Gaza we will stop firing rockets," said Dawud Shehab, a senior member of Islamic Jihad.
There was no official comment from Israel. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that Israel would step up its retaliatory attacks if necessary, but in the meantime, defence officials said, Israel was holding back in an effort to keep the violence from escalating further.
The latest round of violence was set off by a rocket attack earlier in the week.
Both sides have braced for further strikes.
As a precautionary measure, Israeli officials closed schools in southern communities within 25 miles of Gaza, as well as Ben-Gurion University in Beersheba and several colleges, which were to have begun their academic year today, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said. Police brought in reinforcements from other areas of the country.
More than a million Israelis live within the range of rockets possessed by Gaza militants.
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October 30, 2011, 6:54 am
![Royal Mail denies first class cuts]()
Royal Mail insists it is continuing to give first class mail priority over second class at all times after it was reported that it had stopped doing so on Saturdays.
The Mail on Sunday said customers had been needlessly putting first class stamps on post that has been treated the same as second class - making millions for Royal Mail since the changes were "secretly introduced" in July.
The newspaper said it had seen a confidential document circulated to managers in mail centres, which says: "Second class traffic posted Friday and Saturday will be processed along with first class posted Saturday, using Saturday first class labels."
It adds: "We want to move to a standardised way of dispatching our second class Saturday-posted traffic and to also simplify and reduce cost in our network by removing under-utilised services.
"Moving the traffic forward to a Saturday dispatch and ceasing Monday's second class dispatch is the most viable and cost-effective option that also protects quality."
The newspaper said the move had made the company £4 million from customers needlessly putting first class stamps on post that had been treated the same as second class.
It claimed that around 40 million 46p first class stamps will have been used since July when a 36p second class stamp would have been just as quick, meaning there had been an unnecessary overpayment of £4 million.
However Royal Mail spokesman David Simpson said: "The Mail on Sunday is completely wrong to state that Royal Mail has 'stopped giving priority' to first class mail on Saturdays. The opposite is the truth. First class mail always has the priority over second class mail at all times.
"There has been no change at all in the service specification for first and second class mail. While we are committed to excellent service for all our mail, first class mail is our priority; we do everything possible to deliver it the next working day. The specification for second class mail is still to deliver it within three working days after posting.
"The UK is one of the few countries in Europe that provides a six-day postal service. That service is expensive to run and it has been losing significant amounts of money for some time."
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October 30, 2011, 3:00 pm
![Qantas travellers buoyed by ruling]()
Stranded British passengers could be in the air within hours after a court ended the Qantas union strikes and the grounding of the airline's fleet.
The Australian government ordered an arbitration hearing after the carrier grounded all of its aircraft amid a dispute with striking staff, leaving tens of thousands of passengers stranded worldwide.
In the last few weeks, workers have staged strikes and refused overtime work over concerns that some of the airline's 35,000 jobs would be moved overseas.
On Saturday a Qantas spokesman said 600 flights had been cancelled because of the industrial action - affecting 70,000 passengers. The strikes have cost the airline 15 million Australian dollars (£10 million) a week.
Fair Work Australia issued its ruling after hearing evidence from the airline, unions and government at an emergency session.
The ruling requires the unions to return to the negotiating table and come to an agreement within 21 days or face binding arbitration.
A spokesman for Qantas said that flights will resume "as soon as possible".
On the company's Facebook page a statement said: "We will be getting our aircraft back in the air as soon as we possibly can, following the Fair Work Australia decision. It could be as early as Monday afternoon on a limited schedule with the approval of the regulator.
"We apologise to all Qantas customers that have been impacted by the industrial action over the past few months and in particular the past few days."
Chief executive Alan Joyce said the tribunal decision "provides certainty for Qantas passengers".
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October 30, 2011, 4:15 pm
![Three arrested after fatal shooting]()
Three people have been arrested after a man was killed in a shooting at a community centre.
South Yorkshire Police launched a murder investigation after the fatal shooting at the centre on Spital Hill in Sheffield at around 2.40am on Sunday morning.
The man was taken to the Northern General Hospital but later died.
A police spokeswoman said: "A man has died after an incident at a Sheffield community centre in the early hours of this morning.
"At around 2.40am, emergency services were called to a community centre on Spital Hill following a report of a person being shot.
"A man was taken to Northern General Hospital but died a short time later.
"Three people have been arrested in connection with the incident.
"The man will not be formally identified until after the post-mortem, which will be arranged in due course."
Anyone who was in the Spital Hill area in the early hours of this morning and who may have information about the incident is urged to contact police.
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October 30, 2011, 4:20 pm
![PM on mission to kick-start economy]()
David Cameron has promised an "all-out mission" to kick-start major infrastructure projects and get the economy moving.
The Prime Minister said he had given the go-ahead for two power plants in the north of England that will create 1,000 construction jobs.
He also welcomed news that BT will complete its roll-out of superfast broadband by 2014 - generating work for 500 more engineers. More announcements are expected over the coming months.
Writing in the Financial Times, Mr Cameron admitted that the eurozone crisis was having a "chilling effect" on global growth and he warned there were "no short-cuts to success".
But he urged people to be optimistic, warning that pessimism and fear "can become self-fulfilling prophecies".
"The eurozone crisis has had a chilling effect on major economies around the world, and has added to the unprecedented pressures facing the global economy," the premier wrote. "But, in spite of the difficulties, I am confident that we can both resolve the crises at hand and come through them with an economy that is stronger and fundamentally fairer."
He added: "I passionately believe that the global economy is presenting us with opportunities, not threats - and we must seize them."
Mr Cameron said he would be arguing at this week's G20 meeting in Cannes for "complete single-mindedness" on three fronts: confronting debts; strengthening economic competitiveness; and unlocking global trade.
Despite persistent calls from Labour for the coalition's cuts programme to be eased, he insisted the eurozone needed to show the "same resolve" at tackling deficits as Britain.
"The deal forged in Brussels marked very good progress," he wrote. "But in the coming weeks, the vital details need to be agreed - on the reinforcement of the bail-out, the recapitalisation of European banks, and the resolution of Greek's debt crisis."
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October 30, 2011, 4:20 pm
![Protest as BNP holds conference]()
Protesters have gathered outside the conference of the far-right British National Party.
Around 30 people, organised by local councillors and the Liverpool Anti-Fascists group, shouted and jeered as BNP leader and North West MEP Nick Griffin arrived at a cricket club in the outskirts of the city.
The party says around 100 delegates were attending the meeting which is discussing policy motions, mainly "matters on taxation", a spokesman said.
As the BNP members arrived for the conference, protesters shouted "fascist" and "Nazi scum" towards them. Several police officers stood at the gate of Wavertree Cricket Club to maintain order. Other officers were posted at the end of an access road to the venue.
Liverpool City Council leader Joe Anderson, who spoke to Mr Griffin in the car park as the BNP leader arrived, said afterwards: "I told him he is not welcome here, to take his cronies with him and to leave the city of Liverpool.
"They don't speak on behalf of any significant number of people in the city, every time the BNP stands here they are resoundingly beaten. Their negative, destructive policies are not wanted here."
The councillor said he will raise the matter with licensing officers: "I've told the people who operate Wavertree Cricket Club that I find it absolutely appalling that they have allowed this to happen on their site.
Inside the venue, called The Cricketers', around 70 people had gathered in a function room to hear Mr Griffin speak.
He described the protesters as "overaged students", and said: "I'm the MEP because thousands of people voted for me because they appreciate the fact that the BNP talks about issues the other parties won't talk about."
He denied that the small number of delegates signified low public support for the party, saying they represented the "hard core" of the party. "Here today are the people willing to travel, the ones willing to spend the whole weekend talking about policy," he said.
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October 30, 2011, 4:20 pm
![British workers die in Afghan blast]()
Two British contractors were among 13 people killed when a suicide bomber rammed a military convoy in Afghanistan, the Foreign Office said.
Five coalition troops and eight civilian contractors were killed in the Kabul attack on Saturday, Nato said.
The Taliban suicide bomber hit an armoured Nato vehicle as the convoy was passing the American University in the city.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: "Two British nationals were among those killed in yesterday's attack in Kabul. Next of kin have been informed.
"Consular staff in Kabul are in close contact with the employer of the deceased. Our thoughts are with the families of those who died, ISAF personnel, contractors, Afghan forces and civilians. We stand ready to provide the consular assistance needed to their families."
The armoured personnel carrier, known as a Rhino, was travelling on a four-lane road frequently used by Nato forces in a south-western section of the city.
In addition to those killed in the convoy, three Afghan civilians and one policeman died as a result of the attack. Eight other Afghans, including two children, were wounded, officials said.
The British nationals were employed by American engineering and construction company Fluor Corp, a spokesman confirmed.
The spokesman for the company, which is based in Irving, Texas, said: "Fluor confirms that some of its workers were involved in the recent bus attack in Kabul, Afghanistan. Regrettably, that included two British nationals who were killed in the attack.
"The company has notified those families involved. Out of respect for the privacy of the families, we will not be releasing their names. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families, friends and loved ones of our co-workers. Right now, our focus is on helping them deal with the situation."
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October 30, 2011, 4:20 pm
![Bishop backs legal action over camp]()
The Bishop of London has backed legal measures that could lead to anti-capitalist demonstrators being evicted from their camp outside St Paul's.
The Right Reverend Dr Richard Chartres told a crowd of hundreds on the steps of the cathedral that "nobody wants to see violence", including the police.
Later, he said he believed legal measures would be "prudent" and rejected protesters' claims that violence would be an inevitable if an eviction notice was served.
St Paul's and the City of London Corporation announced on Friday that they would try to gain separate High Court injunctions in order to evict members of the 200-tent Occupy London camp.
The cathedral re-opened on Friday after being closed for a week, the first time its doors were shut since the Second World War.
"I have spoken to the police and there is absolutely no use for a violent confrontation," said the Bishop. "I do not think we are on the inevitable road to violence. Getting the legal situation clear is probably a sensible precautionary measure.
"We do not know what is going to happen, the camp could be taken over by people who are very different from the ones who are in charge at the moment. I think it is a prudent measure."
Beforehand, Dr Chartres spoke alongside the Dean of St Paul's, Reverend Graeme Knowles, to a crowd of demonstrators, some wearing Guy Fawkes-style masks, media and passers-by.
He said Rev Knowles had assured him that a controversially delayed St Paul's Institute report on business ethics in the City would be published, but he did not know when. The report looks into the issues of bumper bonuses and high salaries and is based on a survey of 500 City workers taken in August.
Reaction amongst the protesters to the Bishop's words was mixed. Mark Weaver, 30, from Leeds, who chaired the question and answer session with the clerics, said: "I think if you are in our position and you are worried about being attacked by the police, very very definite answers is what you want to hear."
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October 31, 2011, 11:22 am
![China and Russia in cyber warfare]()
A Government adviser has accused China and Russia of carrying out cyber warfare attacks aimed at stealing national security secrets from other countries.
Baroness Neville-Jones, who is the Prime Minister's special representative to business on cyber security, said Beijing and Moscow were among the governments "interested in this kind of activity".
Her comments came on the eve of an international conference hosted by Foreign Secretary William Hague to discuss "norms of acceptable behaviour in cyberspace" which both countries are due to attend.
Earlier Iain Lobban, the head of Britain's electronic "listening" agency GCHQ, disclosed that the Foreign Office and other Government departments had faced a "significant" cyber attack on their computer systems over the summer. Mr Lobban, writing in The Times, did not say who was responsible for the attack and the Government has in the past been reluctant to point the finger of blame publicly at countries which it believes are engaged in such activity.
But pressed during an interview on BBC Radio 4's The World At One on whether China and Russia were among the countries involved in such attacks, Lady Neville Jones replied: "They certainly are."
Lady Neville-Jones, who was the security minister until last May, said countries needed to understand that such behaviour was actually counterproductive and would damage their own national interests.
"What we want to try and do is to create a climate in which people feel that obeying the rules and actually behaving above board serves the national interest and that it is damaging in the end to try to play both sides. Because if you are a company that comes from a country like China, you can suffer if people believe it is potentially threatening to employ your products," he said.
She said that such attacks were not only carried out by governments, but by individuals who then sold the secrets they had stolen to rival governments.
"There are a lot of private individuals who do this kind of 'hoovering' of other people's systems and then try and sell the stuff that they have managed to obtain to buyers. Those buyers can indeed be governments," she said.
Mr Lobban's disclosure of the latest attack on the Foreign Office computer system comes after Mr Hague revealed in February that it had been targeted by a "hostile state intelligence agency". Mr Hague did not name the country behind the attack, although media reports quoted intelligence sources as saying that China was responsible.
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October 31, 2011, 11:22 am
![The seven billionth babies arrive]()
She came into the world at two minutes before midnight, a tiny, wrinkled girl born into a struggling Manila family and a symbol of the world's population reaching 7 billion people and all the worries that entails for the planet's future.
Danica May Camacho, born in a crowded public hospital, was welcomed with a chocolate cake marked "7B Philippines" and a gift certificate for free shoes. There were bursts of photographers' flashes, and speeches by local officials.
The celebrations reflected symbolism more than demography. Amid the millions of births and deaths around the world each day, it is impossible to pinpoint the arrival of the globe's 7 billionth occupant. But the UN chose today to mark the day with a string of festivities worldwide, and a series of symbolic 7-billionth babies being born.
Danica was the first, arriving at Manila's Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital at two minutes before midnight on Sunday - but doctors say that was close enough to count for a Monday birthday.
Demographers say it took until 1804 for the world to reach its first billion people, and a century more until it hit 2 billion in 1927. The twentieth century, though, saw things begin to cascade: 3 billion in 1959; 4 billion in 1974; 5 billion in 1987; 6 billion in 1998.
The UN estimates the world's population will reach 8 billion by 2025 and 10 billion by 2083. But the numbers could vary widely, depending on everything from life expectancy to access to birth control to infant mortality rates.
In Uttar Pradesh, India - the most populous state in the world's second-most populous country - officials said they would be appointing seven girls born today to symbolise the 7 billion.
India, which struggles with a deeply held preference for sons and a skewed sex ratio because of millions of aborted female foetuses, is using the day to highlight that issue.
"It would be a fitting moment if the 7 billionth baby is a girl born in rural India," said Dr Madhu Gupta, an Uttar Pradesh gynaecologist. "It would help in bringing the global focus back on girls, who are subject to inequality and bias."
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October 31, 2011, 11:22 am
![Abramovich slams business rival]()
Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich has told a High Court judge that allegations he betrayed a Russian business rival were "wholly without merit".
Mr Abramovich, 45, is being sued for billions of pounds by exiled Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky, 65, during at a trial before Mrs Justice Gloster at the Commercial Court in London.
Mr Berezovsky says the Russian billionaire businessman "betrayed" him and "intimidated" him into selling shares in Russian oil company Sibneft for a "mere 1.3 billion" US dollars - £800 million - "a fraction of their true worth".
He alleges breach of trust and breach of contract and is claiming more than £3 billion in damages - more than five billion dollars.
However, Mr Abramovich said he owed Mr Berezovsky nothing in "law or honour".
"I would respectfully hope that it will be apparent to this court that Mr Berezovsky's claims are wholly without merit," said Mr Abramovich, in a written witness statement given to the judge.
"Mr Berezovsky has already obtained a very substantial sum of money from me and I do not believe that he has any entitlement to be paid anything more, whether in law or honour."
He says Mr Berezovsky was paid millions of pounds for his services as a "political godfather" but was not a business partner.
The court has heard that Mr Berezovsky "fled Russia, never to return" in late 2000, following a fall-out with then president Vladimir Putin - travelling initially to France then settling in England.
Mr Abramovich began giving evidence - in Russian, translated into English - at the start of his defence case as the trial entered its fifth week. He is expected to be in the witness box for several days.
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October 31, 2011, 12:53 pm
![Girlfriend hurt by internet stalker]()
The former girlfriend of an internet stalker jailed for posting sexual images of her online in a year-long campaign of harassment has said his sentence "will never make up for the hurt he has put me through".
Shane Webber, 23, from Nottingham, was jailed for four months at Southampton Magistrates' Court after admitting he harassed Ruth Jeffery by posting the images on social networking sites and tagging the photos to draw them to the attention of her family and friends, including her parents, unbeknown to her.
He also tried to implicate one of his friends, Lee Evans, by putting the posts in an email address bearing Mr Evans's name, leading to his arrest.
He was only found out when Miss Jeffery's family made their own inquiries and the emails were traced back to him.
In passing sentence, District Judge Anthony Callaway said the offence was a "gross violation of Miss Jeffery's privacy".
Outside court Miss Jeffery, 22, told the assembled media that even if Webber had got the maximum jail sentence magistrates can give - six months - it would not have made up for the hurt she had been caused.
She said: "I am extremely pleased with the outcome. The maximum sentence in a magistrates' court will never make up for the hurt he had put me through but I am pleased I can now put it behind me.
"I was absolutely devastated when I found out it was him. I could not believe it was Shane. I did not want to believe it."
Miss Jeffery said her family suspected it was Webber but she could not comprehend how he could do such a thing.
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October 31, 2011, 12:53 pm
![Clegg warning to Tory Eurosceptics]()
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has delivered a fresh warning to Tory Eurosceptics not to leave Britain isolated in the EU.
The Liberal Democrat leader said demands from Conservatives in the coalition for the repatriation of powers from Brussels could cost jobs and growth in the UK.
He accused Eurosceptics of a headlong rush down "a cul-de-sac of increasingly arcane legalistic arguments" about changes to EU treaties which may never actually happen.
"Isolation costs jobs, costs growth, costs people's livelihoods," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
"That is why people need to be careful what they wish for, because if you wilfully move to the margins of Europe, before you know it you will find that it is actually hitting people where it hurts most in terms of their jobs and their livelihoods, and that is not something I think anybody should seriously want."
Mr Clegg said the "urgent, overriding national priority" for the whole coalition should be to promote jobs and growth, saying: "We do that by being in the centre of the argument, not on the outer fringes of the argument in Europe."
Speaking at the giant Sheffield Forgemasters steel plant, Mr Clegg said he was "in favour of reform", not "isolation". He added: "Obviously the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives come at this from slightly different directions. But where we are completely united is that we want to put the national interest first.
"And what is the national interest? I don't support the European Union and Britain's role in it for the sake of it.
"I do it because of its importance for jobs. This company exports over 80% of the things it produces. I think it would be more difficult for world-beating companies like that to do that if we were on the margins of what is the world's largest, borderless single market.
"We've got 500 million consumers on our European doorstep. I think it's right that, if we want to create jobs and create growth, we're at the centre of that European debate and not on the fringes of it."
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October 31, 2011, 12:53 pm
![£950m investment boost to jobs]()
The Government is to invest £950 million to support growth in a move which will create or safeguard more than 200,000 jobs across England, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has announced.
The second round of the Government's £1.4 billion regional growth fund will support 119 bids from businesses and local partnerships with projects to expand their operations, create new jobs and attract private investment, said Mr Clegg.
The projects will directly create around 37,000 jobs, while 164,000 more will be created or protected in the supply chain, he said.
The Government investment is expected to support nearly £6 billion of private investment in the successful projects, said the Deputy Prime Minister.
Speaking in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, Mr Clegg said: "I am delighted to be able to announce this boost to business, which will jump-start growth and create jobs that last in the places that really need it.
"This targeted support for businesses across the country allows them to expand and create jobs. It unlocks private sector investment - with at least £5 put in for every £1 of public money."
The announcement came as David Cameron promised an "all-out mission" to kick-start major infrastructure projects and get the economy moving.
The Prime Minister said he had given the go-ahead for two power plants in the North of England - at Ferrybridge in West Yorkshire and Thorpe Marsh in South Yorkshire - which will create 1,000 construction jobs. He also welcomed news that BT will complete its roll-out of superfast broadband by 2014, generating work for 500 more engineers.
Meanwhile, Labour leader Ed Miliband accused the coalition Government of not grasping the extent of the economic problems and said the announcement was "too little, too late".
Speaking on the plant floor during a visit to Manthorpe Engineering in Ripley, Derbyshire, Mr Miliband warned of a "perfect storm" in the economy, with high unemployment and higher inflation.
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October 31, 2011, 12:53 pm
![St Paul's dean resigns over protest]()
The row over the anti-capitalist protest outside St Paul's Cathedral has claimed another victim.
The dean, the Right Rev Graeme Knowles, resigned saying his position was "untenable".
His departure followed those of Canon Chancellor of St Paul's Giles Fraser and part-time chaplain Fraser Dyer.
The dean made the initial announcement that the historic cathedral, in London, had closed its doors for the first time since the Second World War because of fears over health and safety. He asked demonstrators to move on, while the former canon chancellor and chaplain resigned because of the way the controversy had been handled, revealing divisions within the cathedral.
Mr Knowles, who had been dean for four years, said: "The past fortnight has been a testing time for the chapter and for me personally. It has become increasingly clear to me that, as criticism of the cathedral has mounted in the press, media and in public opinion, my position as dean of St Paul's was becoming untenable.
"In order to give the opportunity for a fresh approach to the complex and vital questions facing St Paul's, I have thought it best to stand down as dean, to allow new leadership to be exercised. I do this with great sadness, but I now believe that I am no longer the right person to lead the chapter of this great cathedral."
The dean said it was not an easy decision to resign and he had enjoyed the role. He said: "In recent days, since the arrival of the protesters' camp outside the cathedral, we have all been put under a great deal of strain and have faced what would appear to be some insurmountable issues.
"I hope and pray that under new leadership these issues might continue to be addressed and that there might be a swift and peaceful resolution."
The Archbishop of Canterbury described the resignation as "very sad news".
Dr Rowan Williams said: "The events of the last couple of weeks have shown very clearly how decisions made in good faith by good people under unusual pressure can have utterly unforeseen and unwelcome consequences, and the clergy of St Paul's deserve our understanding in these circumstances."
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October 31, 2011, 12:53 pm
![Milly police 'victims of hacking']()
Officers from Surrey Police are "likely" to have fallen victim to phone hacking as detectives investigated the disappearance of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler, a seminar has heard.
The force admitted earlier this month that it had known the teenager's phone was hacked by someone working for the News of the World in 2002.
Counsel for Surrey Police said a "number" of officers were also likely to have had their voicemail intercepted during the same period.
Addressing a seminar ahead of Lord Justice Leveson's inquiry into media ethics and hacking, John Beggs QC, for Surrey Police, said: "My instructions are that it is likely that a number of Surrey Police officers themselves were victims at the time of the launch of the Milly Dowler investigation, in March nine years ago - were themselves victims of hacking."
Mr Beggs's comments came as he made an application for Surrey Police to become a "core participant" in the inquiry which begins next month.
Lord Justice Leveson agreed to consider the request on the basis that the force may be subject to criticism over alleged failings during the Milly Dowler investigation.
Surrey Police have drawn increasing scrutiny in recent months after it emerged publicly in July that officers were aware Milly's phone messages had been hacked into shortly after she went missing as she made her way home from school in March 2002.
Chief Constable Mark Rowley said the now-closed Sunday newspaper made a call to the police operation room co-ordinating the inquiry into the schoolgirl's disappearance in April of that year which made it apparent it had accessed her voicemail.
But officers merely "focused on retrieving any evidence the NoTW had that could assist in the investigation into Milly Dowler's disappearance" as that was the priority, he said.
No criminal investigation was launched into how the News International newspaper came by the information it provided and Surrey Police neither arrested nor charged anyone in connection with the hacking. The force also failed to pass this information on to the Metropolitan Police's original phone hacking investigation in 2006, it later admitted.
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October 31, 2011, 12:53 pm
![PM urges adoption 'culture change']()
David Cameron has said the nation needs a culture change towards adoption and to move away from a "tick-box mentality".
The Prime Minister spoke as the Government published adoption performance tables of the best and most under-performing local authorities.
Speaking at a children's centre in Highgate, London, he urged officials to stop asking pointless questions such as when prospective adoptive parents gave up smoking, and to show more "discretion, judgment and responsibility".
He said: "We need a real culture change in this country to be more pro-adoption. For many children it is the right answer. They start in the care system with a terrible start in life. Many, many children in the care system under the age of one, actually a successful adoption can give them a great start in life and a great life."
He said many changes needed to be made, including cutting down the length of legal proceedings. He acknowledged that adoptive parents needed to be asked the right questions and face proper checks.
But after meeting foster and adoptive parents, he said: "But there are far too many stories today about pointless questions, very intrusive questions and also, a sort of tick-box mentality that means people are looking at things (such as) how long ago you gave up smoking, the age of your youngest natural child? There's too much ticking of boxes and not enough discretion, judgment and responsibility."
The performance tables revealed that 100% of children put up for adoption in York found homes within a year. This contrasted with just 52% in Brent, 43 in Derby. The national average was 74% from 2008-2010.
From a three-year average covering 2009-2011, England successfully adopted just 12% of children in care, according to the figures published by the Department for Education.
Though Derby was among the slowest to get children adopted within a 12-month period, it was the highest for overall adoptions with 26%, followed by North East Lincolnshire with 25 adopted, Bracknell Forest, Haringey and Kensington & Chelsea with 5%.
Alan Wood, director of children's services at Hackney council, told BBC Radio 4: "I think we will see an increase in the number of adoptions coming forward. I just want to hope and believe that that is because that is the right decision for the child and people have not been playing the league table game like they used to play with schools and the police and the health service, when league tables were initially introduced there."
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October 31, 2011, 12:53 pm
![Migration plan 'would harm economy']()
The Government's plans to stop tens of thousands of migrants from settling in the UK are misguided, impractical and likely to damage the economy and society, a think-tank has said.
The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) said the "radical policy shift" would essentially rule out settlement for all but the most wealthy economic migrants from outside the EU.
Announcing the plans to create a clearer distinction between temporary and permanent routes into the UK in June, immigration minister Damian Green said the UK needed to be "more selective about who we allow to stay".
The number of people granted settlement in the UK reached an all-time high in the 12 months to last September, up 35% from the previous year to 238,950 - the highest level since records began in 1960, Home Office figures showed.
Skilled workers coming to the UK from outside the EU, predominantly as a means of filling short-term skills shortages, "should expect to leave the UK after a maximum of five years", Mr Green said.
Temporary workers could be restricted to 12-month stays "to reinforce the temporary nature of the route".
The IPPR report found the moves would reduce the number of non-EU economic migrants settling each year from about 40,000 to about 1,000.
"For those who care only about reducing net migration, trying to keep settlement to a minimum makes sense," it said.
"But for anyone who cares about Britain's ability to continue to attract the 'brightest and best', about the impact on the economy as we try to grow our way out of recession, and about the effects on integration within our society, these proposals raise real concerns."
It went on: "The proposals are unlikely to work; they are also misguided. As it stands, the UK's proposed approach is impractical, likely to be damaging in economic and social terms, and - unusually for a 'tough' immigration policy - may even prove unpopular."
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October 31, 2011, 2:27 pm
!['Tsunami of bad news' hits markets]()
A "tsunami of bad news" has hit world markets as fears over the viability of the eurozone rescue package and the health of the financial sector caused traders to sell shares.
The FTSE 100 Index in London fell 2.8%, or 158 points, to 5544.2, with taxpayer-backed lenders Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds among the biggest fallers.
Traders were spooked amid reports that the Chinese Government may not contribute as much money to the one trillion euro (£877 billion) bailout fund as previously hoped, in a move that threatens to derail the recent rescue package.
And there were signs of fresh chaos in the financial sector, as international broker MF Global, which employs some 700 people in London, looks for a buyer amid fears it will collapse as a result of its exposure to eurozone debts.
A downgrade for the economic growth forecasts of the US and Europe by respected think-tank the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development added to the malaise.
The Cac-40 in Paris and the Dax in Frankfurt were both down 3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was off more than 1% as the London market closed.
Michael Hewson, an analyst at CMC Markets, said European markets were "hit by a tsunami of bad news" after being weighed down by scepticism surrounding last week's European bailout package as well as a deteriorating economic outlook in Europe.
Meanwhile, the OECD warned of a "marked slowdown" in eurozone economies next year, with growth to drop to just 0.3 growth this year. Figures also showed high eurozone inflation and unemployment.
Despite the falls, London's leading shares index has risen 8% in October, making it the best monthly performance since July 2009.
World markets have fluctuated wildly in recent months amid fears over the eurozone debt crisis but rallied strongly over the past fortnight as eurozone leaders announced a three-pronged package to write-down 50% of Greece's loans, recapitalise the banks and boost the bailout fund.
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October 31, 2011, 3:41 pm
![£950 million Growth Fund boost]()
Companies including Sheffield's Forgemasters are to receive Government support totalling £950 million which should create or safeguard more than 200,000 jobs, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has announced.
Mr Clegg, the MP for Sheffield Hallam, denied that Forgemasters' inclusion in the second round of the Regional Growth Fund was an attempt to repair the political damage he sustained last year when ministers pulled the plug on an £80 million loan promised by the previous Labour administration.
The 119 bids selected for support will "jump start growth and create jobs that last in the places that really need it", leveraging in up to £6 billion in private sector investment, said Mr Clegg.
But Labour leader Ed Miliband described the funding as "too little, too late", pointing out that the Fund's £1.4 billion budget over three years was one third of the money available through Regional Development Agencies, scrapped by the coalition.
The new money came as ministers were withdrawing allowances for companies to invest in plant and machinery, said Mr Miliband.
"I don't think the Government have come to grips with the scale of the problem afflicting our economy and what needs to change," he said.
Mr Clegg said the funding will directly create around 37,000 jobs, while 164,000 more will be created or protected in the supply chain.
"This targeted support for businesses across the country allows them to expand and create jobs," he said.
"It unlocks private sector investment - with at least £5 put in for every £1 of public money."
For too long, successive governments had been "in thrall" to the financial sector in the City of London, said Mr Clegg. RGF money would help "rebalance our economy so that every region and sector benefits".
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A Gaza Strip militant group spearheading a recent campaign of rocket barrages into Israel has said it is prepared to cease fire if the Israeli military did so as well.
The rocket fire has provoked retaliatory Israeli airstrikes and on Saturday nine militants and an Israeli civilian were killed in some of the worst violence in the area in months.
The exchange of fire continued overnight, with Palestinians firing 10 rockets into Israel in the early hours of the morning, and Israeli aircraft targeting six militant sites in Gaza, the military said. No casualties were reported by either side.
Egypt had been mediating truce efforts over the weekend, and late this morning, the Islamic Jihad militant group said it was ready to halt its attacks if Israel would halt its air strikes.
"When all jet fighters leave the skies of Gaza we will stop firing rockets," said Dawud Shehab, a senior member of Islamic Jihad.
There was no official comment from Israel. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that Israel would step up its retaliatory attacks if necessary, but in the meantime, defence officials said, Israel was holding back in an effort to keep the violence from escalating further.
The latest round of violence was set off by a rocket attack earlier in the week.
Both sides have braced for further strikes.
As a precautionary measure, Israeli officials closed schools in southern communities within 25 miles of Gaza, as well as Ben-Gurion University in Beersheba and several colleges, which were to have begun their academic year today, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said. Police brought in reinforcements from other areas of the country.
More than a million Israelis live within the range of rockets possessed by Gaza militants.
Royal Mail insists it is continuing to give first class mail priority over second class at all times after it was reported that it had stopped doing so on Saturdays.
The Mail on Sunday said customers had been needlessly putting first class stamps on post that has been treated the same as second class - making millions for Royal Mail since the changes were "secretly introduced" in July.
The newspaper said it had seen a confidential document circulated to managers in mail centres, which says: "Second class traffic posted Friday and Saturday will be processed along with first class posted Saturday, using Saturday first class labels."
It adds: "We want to move to a standardised way of dispatching our second class Saturday-posted traffic and to also simplify and reduce cost in our network by removing under-utilised services.
"Moving the traffic forward to a Saturday dispatch and ceasing Monday's second class dispatch is the most viable and cost-effective option that also protects quality."
The newspaper said the move had made the company £4 million from customers needlessly putting first class stamps on post that had been treated the same as second class.
It claimed that around 40 million 46p first class stamps will have been used since July when a 36p second class stamp would have been just as quick, meaning there had been an unnecessary overpayment of £4 million.
However Royal Mail spokesman David Simpson said: "The Mail on Sunday is completely wrong to state that Royal Mail has 'stopped giving priority' to first class mail on Saturdays. The opposite is the truth. First class mail always has the priority over second class mail at all times.
"There has been no change at all in the service specification for first and second class mail. While we are committed to excellent service for all our mail, first class mail is our priority; we do everything possible to deliver it the next working day. The specification for second class mail is still to deliver it within three working days after posting.
"The UK is one of the few countries in Europe that provides a six-day postal service. That service is expensive to run and it has been losing significant amounts of money for some time."
Stranded British passengers could be in the air within hours after a court ended the Qantas union strikes and the grounding of the airline's fleet.
The Australian government ordered an arbitration hearing after the carrier grounded all of its aircraft amid a dispute with striking staff, leaving tens of thousands of passengers stranded worldwide.
In the last few weeks, workers have staged strikes and refused overtime work over concerns that some of the airline's 35,000 jobs would be moved overseas.
On Saturday a Qantas spokesman said 600 flights had been cancelled because of the industrial action - affecting 70,000 passengers. The strikes have cost the airline 15 million Australian dollars (£10 million) a week.
Fair Work Australia issued its ruling after hearing evidence from the airline, unions and government at an emergency session.
The ruling requires the unions to return to the negotiating table and come to an agreement within 21 days or face binding arbitration.
A spokesman for Qantas said that flights will resume "as soon as possible".
On the company's Facebook page a statement said: "We will be getting our aircraft back in the air as soon as we possibly can, following the Fair Work Australia decision. It could be as early as Monday afternoon on a limited schedule with the approval of the regulator.
"We apologise to all Qantas customers that have been impacted by the industrial action over the past few months and in particular the past few days."
Chief executive Alan Joyce said the tribunal decision "provides certainty for Qantas passengers".
Three people have been arrested after a man was killed in a shooting at a community centre.
South Yorkshire Police launched a murder investigation after the fatal shooting at the centre on Spital Hill in Sheffield at around 2.40am on Sunday morning.
The man was taken to the Northern General Hospital but later died.
A police spokeswoman said: "A man has died after an incident at a Sheffield community centre in the early hours of this morning.
"At around 2.40am, emergency services were called to a community centre on Spital Hill following a report of a person being shot.
"A man was taken to Northern General Hospital but died a short time later.
"Three people have been arrested in connection with the incident.
"The man will not be formally identified until after the post-mortem, which will be arranged in due course."
Anyone who was in the Spital Hill area in the early hours of this morning and who may have information about the incident is urged to contact police.
David Cameron has promised an "all-out mission" to kick-start major infrastructure projects and get the economy moving.
The Prime Minister said he had given the go-ahead for two power plants in the north of England that will create 1,000 construction jobs.
He also welcomed news that BT will complete its roll-out of superfast broadband by 2014 - generating work for 500 more engineers. More announcements are expected over the coming months.
Writing in the Financial Times, Mr Cameron admitted that the eurozone crisis was having a "chilling effect" on global growth and he warned there were "no short-cuts to success".
But he urged people to be optimistic, warning that pessimism and fear "can become self-fulfilling prophecies".
"The eurozone crisis has had a chilling effect on major economies around the world, and has added to the unprecedented pressures facing the global economy," the premier wrote. "But, in spite of the difficulties, I am confident that we can both resolve the crises at hand and come through them with an economy that is stronger and fundamentally fairer."
He added: "I passionately believe that the global economy is presenting us with opportunities, not threats - and we must seize them."
Mr Cameron said he would be arguing at this week's G20 meeting in Cannes for "complete single-mindedness" on three fronts: confronting debts; strengthening economic competitiveness; and unlocking global trade.
Despite persistent calls from Labour for the coalition's cuts programme to be eased, he insisted the eurozone needed to show the "same resolve" at tackling deficits as Britain.
"The deal forged in Brussels marked very good progress," he wrote. "But in the coming weeks, the vital details need to be agreed - on the reinforcement of the bail-out, the recapitalisation of European banks, and the resolution of Greek's debt crisis."
Protesters have gathered outside the conference of the far-right British National Party.
Around 30 people, organised by local councillors and the Liverpool Anti-Fascists group, shouted and jeered as BNP leader and North West MEP Nick Griffin arrived at a cricket club in the outskirts of the city.
The party says around 100 delegates were attending the meeting which is discussing policy motions, mainly "matters on taxation", a spokesman said.
As the BNP members arrived for the conference, protesters shouted "fascist" and "Nazi scum" towards them. Several police officers stood at the gate of Wavertree Cricket Club to maintain order. Other officers were posted at the end of an access road to the venue.
Liverpool City Council leader Joe Anderson, who spoke to Mr Griffin in the car park as the BNP leader arrived, said afterwards: "I told him he is not welcome here, to take his cronies with him and to leave the city of Liverpool.
"They don't speak on behalf of any significant number of people in the city, every time the BNP stands here they are resoundingly beaten. Their negative, destructive policies are not wanted here."
The councillor said he will raise the matter with licensing officers: "I've told the people who operate Wavertree Cricket Club that I find it absolutely appalling that they have allowed this to happen on their site.
Inside the venue, called The Cricketers', around 70 people had gathered in a function room to hear Mr Griffin speak.
He described the protesters as "overaged students", and said: "I'm the MEP because thousands of people voted for me because they appreciate the fact that the BNP talks about issues the other parties won't talk about."
He denied that the small number of delegates signified low public support for the party, saying they represented the "hard core" of the party. "Here today are the people willing to travel, the ones willing to spend the whole weekend talking about policy," he said.
Two British contractors were among 13 people killed when a suicide bomber rammed a military convoy in Afghanistan, the Foreign Office said.
Five coalition troops and eight civilian contractors were killed in the Kabul attack on Saturday, Nato said.
The Taliban suicide bomber hit an armoured Nato vehicle as the convoy was passing the American University in the city.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: "Two British nationals were among those killed in yesterday's attack in Kabul. Next of kin have been informed.
"Consular staff in Kabul are in close contact with the employer of the deceased. Our thoughts are with the families of those who died, ISAF personnel, contractors, Afghan forces and civilians. We stand ready to provide the consular assistance needed to their families."
The armoured personnel carrier, known as a Rhino, was travelling on a four-lane road frequently used by Nato forces in a south-western section of the city.
In addition to those killed in the convoy, three Afghan civilians and one policeman died as a result of the attack. Eight other Afghans, including two children, were wounded, officials said.
The British nationals were employed by American engineering and construction company Fluor Corp, a spokesman confirmed.
The spokesman for the company, which is based in Irving, Texas, said: "Fluor confirms that some of its workers were involved in the recent bus attack in Kabul, Afghanistan. Regrettably, that included two British nationals who were killed in the attack.
"The company has notified those families involved. Out of respect for the privacy of the families, we will not be releasing their names. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families, friends and loved ones of our co-workers. Right now, our focus is on helping them deal with the situation."
The Bishop of London has backed legal measures that could lead to anti-capitalist demonstrators being evicted from their camp outside St Paul's.
The Right Reverend Dr Richard Chartres told a crowd of hundreds on the steps of the cathedral that "nobody wants to see violence", including the police.
Later, he said he believed legal measures would be "prudent" and rejected protesters' claims that violence would be an inevitable if an eviction notice was served.
St Paul's and the City of London Corporation announced on Friday that they would try to gain separate High Court injunctions in order to evict members of the 200-tent Occupy London camp.
The cathedral re-opened on Friday after being closed for a week, the first time its doors were shut since the Second World War.
"I have spoken to the police and there is absolutely no use for a violent confrontation," said the Bishop. "I do not think we are on the inevitable road to violence. Getting the legal situation clear is probably a sensible precautionary measure.
"We do not know what is going to happen, the camp could be taken over by people who are very different from the ones who are in charge at the moment. I think it is a prudent measure."
Beforehand, Dr Chartres spoke alongside the Dean of St Paul's, Reverend Graeme Knowles, to a crowd of demonstrators, some wearing Guy Fawkes-style masks, media and passers-by.
He said Rev Knowles had assured him that a controversially delayed St Paul's Institute report on business ethics in the City would be published, but he did not know when. The report looks into the issues of bumper bonuses and high salaries and is based on a survey of 500 City workers taken in August.
Reaction amongst the protesters to the Bishop's words was mixed. Mark Weaver, 30, from Leeds, who chaired the question and answer session with the clerics, said: "I think if you are in our position and you are worried about being attacked by the police, very very definite answers is what you want to hear."
A Government adviser has accused China and Russia of carrying out cyber warfare attacks aimed at stealing national security secrets from other countries.
Baroness Neville-Jones, who is the Prime Minister's special representative to business on cyber security, said Beijing and Moscow were among the governments "interested in this kind of activity".
Her comments came on the eve of an international conference hosted by Foreign Secretary William Hague to discuss "norms of acceptable behaviour in cyberspace" which both countries are due to attend.
Earlier Iain Lobban, the head of Britain's electronic "listening" agency GCHQ, disclosed that the Foreign Office and other Government departments had faced a "significant" cyber attack on their computer systems over the summer. Mr Lobban, writing in The Times, did not say who was responsible for the attack and the Government has in the past been reluctant to point the finger of blame publicly at countries which it believes are engaged in such activity.
But pressed during an interview on BBC Radio 4's The World At One on whether China and Russia were among the countries involved in such attacks, Lady Neville Jones replied: "They certainly are."
Lady Neville-Jones, who was the security minister until last May, said countries needed to understand that such behaviour was actually counterproductive and would damage their own national interests.
"What we want to try and do is to create a climate in which people feel that obeying the rules and actually behaving above board serves the national interest and that it is damaging in the end to try to play both sides. Because if you are a company that comes from a country like China, you can suffer if people believe it is potentially threatening to employ your products," he said.
She said that such attacks were not only carried out by governments, but by individuals who then sold the secrets they had stolen to rival governments.
"There are a lot of private individuals who do this kind of 'hoovering' of other people's systems and then try and sell the stuff that they have managed to obtain to buyers. Those buyers can indeed be governments," she said.
Mr Lobban's disclosure of the latest attack on the Foreign Office computer system comes after Mr Hague revealed in February that it had been targeted by a "hostile state intelligence agency". Mr Hague did not name the country behind the attack, although media reports quoted intelligence sources as saying that China was responsible.
She came into the world at two minutes before midnight, a tiny, wrinkled girl born into a struggling Manila family and a symbol of the world's population reaching 7 billion people and all the worries that entails for the planet's future.
Danica May Camacho, born in a crowded public hospital, was welcomed with a chocolate cake marked "7B Philippines" and a gift certificate for free shoes. There were bursts of photographers' flashes, and speeches by local officials.
The celebrations reflected symbolism more than demography. Amid the millions of births and deaths around the world each day, it is impossible to pinpoint the arrival of the globe's 7 billionth occupant. But the UN chose today to mark the day with a string of festivities worldwide, and a series of symbolic 7-billionth babies being born.
Danica was the first, arriving at Manila's Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital at two minutes before midnight on Sunday - but doctors say that was close enough to count for a Monday birthday.
Demographers say it took until 1804 for the world to reach its first billion people, and a century more until it hit 2 billion in 1927. The twentieth century, though, saw things begin to cascade: 3 billion in 1959; 4 billion in 1974; 5 billion in 1987; 6 billion in 1998.
The UN estimates the world's population will reach 8 billion by 2025 and 10 billion by 2083. But the numbers could vary widely, depending on everything from life expectancy to access to birth control to infant mortality rates.
In Uttar Pradesh, India - the most populous state in the world's second-most populous country - officials said they would be appointing seven girls born today to symbolise the 7 billion.
India, which struggles with a deeply held preference for sons and a skewed sex ratio because of millions of aborted female foetuses, is using the day to highlight that issue.
"It would be a fitting moment if the 7 billionth baby is a girl born in rural India," said Dr Madhu Gupta, an Uttar Pradesh gynaecologist. "It would help in bringing the global focus back on girls, who are subject to inequality and bias."
Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich has told a High Court judge that allegations he betrayed a Russian business rival were "wholly without merit".
Mr Abramovich, 45, is being sued for billions of pounds by exiled Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky, 65, during at a trial before Mrs Justice Gloster at the Commercial Court in London.
Mr Berezovsky says the Russian billionaire businessman "betrayed" him and "intimidated" him into selling shares in Russian oil company Sibneft for a "mere 1.3 billion" US dollars - £800 million - "a fraction of their true worth".
He alleges breach of trust and breach of contract and is claiming more than £3 billion in damages - more than five billion dollars.
However, Mr Abramovich said he owed Mr Berezovsky nothing in "law or honour".
"I would respectfully hope that it will be apparent to this court that Mr Berezovsky's claims are wholly without merit," said Mr Abramovich, in a written witness statement given to the judge.
"Mr Berezovsky has already obtained a very substantial sum of money from me and I do not believe that he has any entitlement to be paid anything more, whether in law or honour."
He says Mr Berezovsky was paid millions of pounds for his services as a "political godfather" but was not a business partner.
The court has heard that Mr Berezovsky "fled Russia, never to return" in late 2000, following a fall-out with then president Vladimir Putin - travelling initially to France then settling in England.
Mr Abramovich began giving evidence - in Russian, translated into English - at the start of his defence case as the trial entered its fifth week. He is expected to be in the witness box for several days.
The former girlfriend of an internet stalker jailed for posting sexual images of her online in a year-long campaign of harassment has said his sentence "will never make up for the hurt he has put me through".
Shane Webber, 23, from Nottingham, was jailed for four months at Southampton Magistrates' Court after admitting he harassed Ruth Jeffery by posting the images on social networking sites and tagging the photos to draw them to the attention of her family and friends, including her parents, unbeknown to her.
He also tried to implicate one of his friends, Lee Evans, by putting the posts in an email address bearing Mr Evans's name, leading to his arrest.
He was only found out when Miss Jeffery's family made their own inquiries and the emails were traced back to him.
In passing sentence, District Judge Anthony Callaway said the offence was a "gross violation of Miss Jeffery's privacy".
Outside court Miss Jeffery, 22, told the assembled media that even if Webber had got the maximum jail sentence magistrates can give - six months - it would not have made up for the hurt she had been caused.
She said: "I am extremely pleased with the outcome. The maximum sentence in a magistrates' court will never make up for the hurt he had put me through but I am pleased I can now put it behind me.
"I was absolutely devastated when I found out it was him. I could not believe it was Shane. I did not want to believe it."
Miss Jeffery said her family suspected it was Webber but she could not comprehend how he could do such a thing.
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has delivered a fresh warning to Tory Eurosceptics not to leave Britain isolated in the EU.
The Liberal Democrat leader said demands from Conservatives in the coalition for the repatriation of powers from Brussels could cost jobs and growth in the UK.
He accused Eurosceptics of a headlong rush down "a cul-de-sac of increasingly arcane legalistic arguments" about changes to EU treaties which may never actually happen.
"Isolation costs jobs, costs growth, costs people's livelihoods," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
"That is why people need to be careful what they wish for, because if you wilfully move to the margins of Europe, before you know it you will find that it is actually hitting people where it hurts most in terms of their jobs and their livelihoods, and that is not something I think anybody should seriously want."
Mr Clegg said the "urgent, overriding national priority" for the whole coalition should be to promote jobs and growth, saying: "We do that by being in the centre of the argument, not on the outer fringes of the argument in Europe."
Speaking at the giant Sheffield Forgemasters steel plant, Mr Clegg said he was "in favour of reform", not "isolation". He added: "Obviously the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives come at this from slightly different directions. But where we are completely united is that we want to put the national interest first.
"And what is the national interest? I don't support the European Union and Britain's role in it for the sake of it.
"I do it because of its importance for jobs. This company exports over 80% of the things it produces. I think it would be more difficult for world-beating companies like that to do that if we were on the margins of what is the world's largest, borderless single market.
"We've got 500 million consumers on our European doorstep. I think it's right that, if we want to create jobs and create growth, we're at the centre of that European debate and not on the fringes of it."
The Government is to invest £950 million to support growth in a move which will create or safeguard more than 200,000 jobs across England, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has announced.
The second round of the Government's £1.4 billion regional growth fund will support 119 bids from businesses and local partnerships with projects to expand their operations, create new jobs and attract private investment, said Mr Clegg.
The projects will directly create around 37,000 jobs, while 164,000 more will be created or protected in the supply chain, he said.
The Government investment is expected to support nearly £6 billion of private investment in the successful projects, said the Deputy Prime Minister.
Speaking in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, Mr Clegg said: "I am delighted to be able to announce this boost to business, which will jump-start growth and create jobs that last in the places that really need it.
"This targeted support for businesses across the country allows them to expand and create jobs. It unlocks private sector investment - with at least £5 put in for every £1 of public money."
The announcement came as David Cameron promised an "all-out mission" to kick-start major infrastructure projects and get the economy moving.
The Prime Minister said he had given the go-ahead for two power plants in the North of England - at Ferrybridge in West Yorkshire and Thorpe Marsh in South Yorkshire - which will create 1,000 construction jobs. He also welcomed news that BT will complete its roll-out of superfast broadband by 2014, generating work for 500 more engineers.
Meanwhile, Labour leader Ed Miliband accused the coalition Government of not grasping the extent of the economic problems and said the announcement was "too little, too late".
Speaking on the plant floor during a visit to Manthorpe Engineering in Ripley, Derbyshire, Mr Miliband warned of a "perfect storm" in the economy, with high unemployment and higher inflation.
The row over the anti-capitalist protest outside St Paul's Cathedral has claimed another victim.
The dean, the Right Rev Graeme Knowles, resigned saying his position was "untenable".
His departure followed those of Canon Chancellor of St Paul's Giles Fraser and part-time chaplain Fraser Dyer.
The dean made the initial announcement that the historic cathedral, in London, had closed its doors for the first time since the Second World War because of fears over health and safety. He asked demonstrators to move on, while the former canon chancellor and chaplain resigned because of the way the controversy had been handled, revealing divisions within the cathedral.
Mr Knowles, who had been dean for four years, said: "The past fortnight has been a testing time for the chapter and for me personally. It has become increasingly clear to me that, as criticism of the cathedral has mounted in the press, media and in public opinion, my position as dean of St Paul's was becoming untenable.
"In order to give the opportunity for a fresh approach to the complex and vital questions facing St Paul's, I have thought it best to stand down as dean, to allow new leadership to be exercised. I do this with great sadness, but I now believe that I am no longer the right person to lead the chapter of this great cathedral."
The dean said it was not an easy decision to resign and he had enjoyed the role. He said: "In recent days, since the arrival of the protesters' camp outside the cathedral, we have all been put under a great deal of strain and have faced what would appear to be some insurmountable issues.
"I hope and pray that under new leadership these issues might continue to be addressed and that there might be a swift and peaceful resolution."
The Archbishop of Canterbury described the resignation as "very sad news".
Dr Rowan Williams said: "The events of the last couple of weeks have shown very clearly how decisions made in good faith by good people under unusual pressure can have utterly unforeseen and unwelcome consequences, and the clergy of St Paul's deserve our understanding in these circumstances."
Officers from Surrey Police are "likely" to have fallen victim to phone hacking as detectives investigated the disappearance of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler, a seminar has heard.
The force admitted earlier this month that it had known the teenager's phone was hacked by someone working for the News of the World in 2002.
Counsel for Surrey Police said a "number" of officers were also likely to have had their voicemail intercepted during the same period.
Addressing a seminar ahead of Lord Justice Leveson's inquiry into media ethics and hacking, John Beggs QC, for Surrey Police, said: "My instructions are that it is likely that a number of Surrey Police officers themselves were victims at the time of the launch of the Milly Dowler investigation, in March nine years ago - were themselves victims of hacking."
Mr Beggs's comments came as he made an application for Surrey Police to become a "core participant" in the inquiry which begins next month.
Lord Justice Leveson agreed to consider the request on the basis that the force may be subject to criticism over alleged failings during the Milly Dowler investigation.
Surrey Police have drawn increasing scrutiny in recent months after it emerged publicly in July that officers were aware Milly's phone messages had been hacked into shortly after she went missing as she made her way home from school in March 2002.
Chief Constable Mark Rowley said the now-closed Sunday newspaper made a call to the police operation room co-ordinating the inquiry into the schoolgirl's disappearance in April of that year which made it apparent it had accessed her voicemail.
But officers merely "focused on retrieving any evidence the NoTW had that could assist in the investigation into Milly Dowler's disappearance" as that was the priority, he said.
No criminal investigation was launched into how the News International newspaper came by the information it provided and Surrey Police neither arrested nor charged anyone in connection with the hacking. The force also failed to pass this information on to the Metropolitan Police's original phone hacking investigation in 2006, it later admitted.
David Cameron has said the nation needs a culture change towards adoption and to move away from a "tick-box mentality".
The Prime Minister spoke as the Government published adoption performance tables of the best and most under-performing local authorities.
Speaking at a children's centre in Highgate, London, he urged officials to stop asking pointless questions such as when prospective adoptive parents gave up smoking, and to show more "discretion, judgment and responsibility".
He said: "We need a real culture change in this country to be more pro-adoption. For many children it is the right answer. They start in the care system with a terrible start in life. Many, many children in the care system under the age of one, actually a successful adoption can give them a great start in life and a great life."
He said many changes needed to be made, including cutting down the length of legal proceedings. He acknowledged that adoptive parents needed to be asked the right questions and face proper checks.
But after meeting foster and adoptive parents, he said: "But there are far too many stories today about pointless questions, very intrusive questions and also, a sort of tick-box mentality that means people are looking at things (such as) how long ago you gave up smoking, the age of your youngest natural child? There's too much ticking of boxes and not enough discretion, judgment and responsibility."
The performance tables revealed that 100% of children put up for adoption in York found homes within a year. This contrasted with just 52% in Brent, 43 in Derby. The national average was 74% from 2008-2010.
From a three-year average covering 2009-2011, England successfully adopted just 12% of children in care, according to the figures published by the Department for Education.
Though Derby was among the slowest to get children adopted within a 12-month period, it was the highest for overall adoptions with 26%, followed by North East Lincolnshire with 25 adopted, Bracknell Forest, Haringey and Kensington & Chelsea with 5%.
Alan Wood, director of children's services at Hackney council, told BBC Radio 4: "I think we will see an increase in the number of adoptions coming forward. I just want to hope and believe that that is because that is the right decision for the child and people have not been playing the league table game like they used to play with schools and the police and the health service, when league tables were initially introduced there."
The Government's plans to stop tens of thousands of migrants from settling in the UK are misguided, impractical and likely to damage the economy and society, a think-tank has said.
The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) said the "radical policy shift" would essentially rule out settlement for all but the most wealthy economic migrants from outside the EU.
Announcing the plans to create a clearer distinction between temporary and permanent routes into the UK in June, immigration minister Damian Green said the UK needed to be "more selective about who we allow to stay".
The number of people granted settlement in the UK reached an all-time high in the 12 months to last September, up 35% from the previous year to 238,950 - the highest level since records began in 1960, Home Office figures showed.
Skilled workers coming to the UK from outside the EU, predominantly as a means of filling short-term skills shortages, "should expect to leave the UK after a maximum of five years", Mr Green said.
Temporary workers could be restricted to 12-month stays "to reinforce the temporary nature of the route".
The IPPR report found the moves would reduce the number of non-EU economic migrants settling each year from about 40,000 to about 1,000.
"For those who care only about reducing net migration, trying to keep settlement to a minimum makes sense," it said.
"But for anyone who cares about Britain's ability to continue to attract the 'brightest and best', about the impact on the economy as we try to grow our way out of recession, and about the effects on integration within our society, these proposals raise real concerns."
It went on: "The proposals are unlikely to work; they are also misguided. As it stands, the UK's proposed approach is impractical, likely to be damaging in economic and social terms, and - unusually for a 'tough' immigration policy - may even prove unpopular."
A "tsunami of bad news" has hit world markets as fears over the viability of the eurozone rescue package and the health of the financial sector caused traders to sell shares.
The FTSE 100 Index in London fell 2.8%, or 158 points, to 5544.2, with taxpayer-backed lenders Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds among the biggest fallers.
Traders were spooked amid reports that the Chinese Government may not contribute as much money to the one trillion euro (£877 billion) bailout fund as previously hoped, in a move that threatens to derail the recent rescue package.
And there were signs of fresh chaos in the financial sector, as international broker MF Global, which employs some 700 people in London, looks for a buyer amid fears it will collapse as a result of its exposure to eurozone debts.
A downgrade for the economic growth forecasts of the US and Europe by respected think-tank the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development added to the malaise.
The Cac-40 in Paris and the Dax in Frankfurt were both down 3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was off more than 1% as the London market closed.
Michael Hewson, an analyst at CMC Markets, said European markets were "hit by a tsunami of bad news" after being weighed down by scepticism surrounding last week's European bailout package as well as a deteriorating economic outlook in Europe.
Meanwhile, the OECD warned of a "marked slowdown" in eurozone economies next year, with growth to drop to just 0.3 growth this year. Figures also showed high eurozone inflation and unemployment.
Despite the falls, London's leading shares index has risen 8% in October, making it the best monthly performance since July 2009.
World markets have fluctuated wildly in recent months amid fears over the eurozone debt crisis but rallied strongly over the past fortnight as eurozone leaders announced a three-pronged package to write-down 50% of Greece's loans, recapitalise the banks and boost the bailout fund.
