The Government has been embroiled in a row with unions after being accused of "bullying" civil servants to leave their jobs with reduced payouts.
The Cabinet Office announced that it had ended negotiations on a new scheme, covering all civil servants, setting out the level of compensation if they are made redundant.
Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude said five unions - Prospect, the FDA, Prison Officers' Association, Unite and GMB - had made "great efforts" to reach an agreement and were set to consult their members.
But the POA reacted with "fury", saying the Government was giving the impression that the unions had agreed to the new scheme.
POA general secretary Steve Gillan said: "I am absolutely appalled that Francis Maude has stated that the POA have reached these new terms with four other unions. He is misleading Parliament and the general public by his outrageous claims. The National Executive Committee of the POA is not due to meet until next Tuesday and it will only then be decided on our approach and response."
The POA said it is concerned that any ongoing discussions may have been deliberately "sabotaged" by the Cabinet Office.
Unite also made it clear there was no agreement, saying its officials will be telling its 22,000 members that the offer was the best that could be achieved through negotiation, but the terms would be worse than before.
The Public and Commercial Services union (PCS), which has already taken legal action over changes to the compensation scheme, said the new scheme is "unacceptable". The union's executive demanded further negotiations with the Cabinet Office, warning it will ballot its members to reject the deal if talks are not successful.
The PCS also announced that it will go ahead with a challenge under the Human Rights Act to the current legislative attempts to cut redundancy pay.
General secretary Mark Serwotka said on BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I hope the minister's going to apologise because yesterday his Cabinet Secretary wrote to the entire civil service saying all five unions had agreed. We now know that the second largest - the Prison Officers' Association - overnight has issued a very tough statement saying that's misleading, that they haven't agreed to this package whatsoever and that they're still discussing it."
The Government has been embroiled in a row with unions after being accused of "bullying" civil servants to leave their jobs with reduced payouts.
The Cabinet Office announced that it had ended negotiations on a new scheme, covering all civil servants, setting out the level of compensation if they are made redundant.
Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude said five unions - Prospect, the FDA, Prison Officers' Association, Unite and GMB - had made "great efforts" to reach an agreement and were set to consult their members.
But the POA reacted with "fury", saying the Government was giving the impression that the unions had agreed to the new scheme.
POA general secretary Steve Gillan said: "I am absolutely appalled that Francis Maude has stated that the POA have reached these new terms with four other unions. He is misleading Parliament and the general public by his outrageous claims. The National Executive Committee of the POA is not due to meet until next Tuesday and it will only then be decided on our approach and response."
The POA said it is concerned that any ongoing discussions may have been deliberately "sabotaged" by the Cabinet Office.
Unite also made it clear there was no agreement, saying its officials will be telling its 22,000 members that the offer was the best that could be achieved through negotiation, but the terms would be worse than before.
The Public and Commercial Services union (PCS), which has already taken legal action over changes to the compensation scheme, said the new scheme is "unacceptable". The union's executive demanded further negotiations with the Cabinet Office, warning it will ballot its members to reject the deal if talks are not successful.
The PCS also announced that it will go ahead with a challenge under the Human Rights Act to the current legislative attempts to cut redundancy pay.
General secretary Mark Serwotka said on BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I hope the minister's going to apologise because yesterday his Cabinet Secretary wrote to the entire civil service saying all five unions had agreed. We now know that the second largest - the Prison Officers' Association - overnight has issued a very tough statement saying that's misleading, that they haven't agreed to this package whatsoever and that they're still discussing it."
Chile's mining minister has announced that a shaft wide enough to provide an escape for 33 trapped miners should reach the men by Saturday, and that their rescue could begin anywhere from two to 10 days after that.
Once the drill breaks through to the miners' cavern some 2,000ft underground, the time frame for the rescue will be determined by a technical evaluation of the risks involved, Laurence Golborne said.
The countdown hinges on whether the rescue team decides to use steel piping to line the walls of the shaft and reduce the risk of a rock fall or other obstruction jamming an escape capsule that will carry the miners up, Golborne said.
But inserting straight pipe with walls of half-inch-thick steel through a curved and fractured section of the shaft also risks clogging the hole or knocking rock loose, and if sections of pipe break apart or get stuck it could slow the rescue.
The alternatives are leaving the raw "live rock" unreinforced, inserting a sleeve in the top section only, or encasing the entire shaft, a process that would delay the rescue for another 10 days after the decision is made.
"They are all possible alternatives," Golborne said. "There are risks and benefits we have to think about."
Golborne said a decision will be based on technical factors once a video camera is lowered to thoroughly examine the shaft's walls.
While the "Plan A" and "Plan C" drills have been slowed by efforts to keep them on target, "Plan B" resumed on Thursday with fresh bits carving through the final 300ft.
On Monday, President Sebastian Pinera said he hoped the miners trapped deep underground could be rescued before he leaves for a trip to Europe, which officials have pushed back two days to October 17.
Incidents of football hooliganism involving young people have almost trebled in the past three years.
There were 103 incidents involving youths last season, compared with just 38 in 2007/08, the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) said.
More than 280 teenagers were banned from football grounds at the end of August, making up almost 10% of the 3,059 people on football banning orders. The youngest was just 13, with the oldest being 71, the figures showed.
But police chiefs said that while the trend was worrying, the rate of growth has considerably slowed and the number of violent incidents were a long way from the levels seen in the 1970s and 1980s.
Andy Holt, the Acpo lead on football policing, said: "If they're engaging in football-related disorder at an earlier age, then we're going to be stuck with that sort of behaviour potentially for some while.
"So it is something that we are acutely aware of. People are coming through and engaging in football disorder who perhaps weren't around in the heyday of football violence 15-20 years ago.
"So it is a worrying trend that the younger element are starting to pick up on this sort of behaviour."
The Acpo figures showed 47% of the 221 reported incidents of football disorder last season involved youths, compared with 51% of 182 incidents the previous season and 33% of 114 incidents in 2007/08.
Victims of asbestos and their families face more "confusion and uncertainty" after a Court of Appeal ruling.
A leading law firm gave the warning after insurers won a partial victory in a judgment that found only some sufferers could recover damages for the injuries they sustained at work decades ago.
The three judges were unable to agree on a High Court ruling in November 2008 - hailed as a victory for the victims - that employers' insurers at the time of exposure were liable to pay out on claims for mesothelioma caused by exposure to lethal asbestos in the workplace.
Instead, they found that in some cases the responsibility lay with the employers' insurers at the onset of symptoms, which in some cases is 50 or 60 years later.
Lawyer Helen Ashton from Irwin Mitchell, who represented one of the lead claimants in the case, said that although she was delighted the judgment had found in favour of her client, for many people in a similar position this long-awaited, complex judgment would cause more upset and uncertainty.
She said it is now a matter of pot luck as to which victims will be compensated and it will even leave business and insurance companies unsure of where they stand.
Ms Ashton also confirmed that the news received a mixed response from her client Ruth Durham, who had continued the legal battle in memory of her father Leslie Screach, the first person in this litigation to bring a claim.
Mrs Durham said that although her father had died from the fatal lung disease in 2003, after being exposed to the deadly asbestos fibres between 1963 and 1968 while working as a paint sprayer in west London, she had wanted to see justice done for him and other mesothelioma sufferers now and in years to come.
Ms Ashton said: "Without a uniform judgment, it remains unclear which victims are entitled to access the justice they deserve, and it really is pot luck.
"Most tragically, it has added another layer on to what is already a complex claim, meaning that many victims of mesothelioma who have been awaiting the outcome of this appeal decision may not live long enough to know if their families will receive the compensation they need to provide financial security when they are gone."
New Zealand's foreign minister has condemned a local television host's "insulting" comments on air about an Indian official's name which drew a complaint of racism from the New Delhi government.
Giggling uncontrollably, controversial presenter Paul Henry repeatedly mocked the last name of New Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit on a breakfast show.
He also called her name "so appropriate because she's Indian".
Ms Dikshit, the equivalent of the city mayor, stepped in to oversee much of the last-minute preparations for the Commonwealth Games in the Indian capital.
New Zealand foreign minister Murray McCully said that he wants India to know Henry's comments did not represent the view of most New Zealanders.
India "strongly and unequivocally denounces the racist remarks of the journalist in question", the government said in a formal protest to New Zealand High Commissioner Rupert Holborow.
Henry, regarded as a provocative "shock jock," is already suspended from Television New Zealand for a separate incident of insensitive remarks.
He questioned whether New Zealand-born governor general Sir Anand Satyanand, the son of Fiji Indian migrants, was "even a New Zealander" and whether his successor would "look and sound like a New Zealander".
Henry later apologised on air to Sir Anand, but he was suspended and had his pay docked for two weeks by the state-owned broadcaster.
Heavy US reliance on private security in Afghanistan has helped to line the pockets of the Taliban because contractors often do not vet local recruits and end up hiring warlords and thugs, Senate investigators said.
The finding, in a report by the Senate Armed Services Committee, follows a separate congressional inquiry in June that concluded trucking contractors pay tens of millions of dollars a year to local warlords for convoy protection.
Senator Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate panel, said he is worried the United States is unknowingly fostering the growth of Taliban-linked militias at a time when Kabul is struggling to recruit its own soldiers and police officers.
"Almost all are Afghans. Almost all are armed," Levin, a Democrat, said of the fleet of young men working under US contracts.
"We need to shut off the spigot of US dollars flowing into the pockets of warlords and power brokers who act contrary to our interests and contribute to the corruption that weakens the support of the Afghan people for their government," he said.
The Defence Department does not necessarily disagree but warns that firing the estimated 26,000 private security personnel operating in Afghanistan in the near future is not practical.
In recent months, US forces in Afghanistan pledged to increase their oversight of security contractors and set up two task forces to look into allegations of misconduct and to track the money spent, particularly among lower-level subcontractors.
The Defence Contract Management Agency has increased the number of auditors and support staff in the region by some 300 percent since 2007. In September, General David Petraeus, the top war commander in Afghanistan, directed his staff to consider the impact that contract spending has on military operations.
Military officials and Republicans on the Senate Armed Services Committee warn that ending the practice of hiring local guards could worsen the security situation in Afghanistan.
They say providing young Afghan men with employment can prevent them from joining the ranks of Taliban fighters, and bringing in foreign workers to do jobs Afghans can do is likely to foster resentment.
Police marksmen cannot "see the wood for the trees" because of reams of complex guidelines, a coroner said.
Paul Knapman, who oversaw the inquest into the death of barrister Mark Saunders, said the paperwork burden must be slashed.
In a letter to Home Secretary Theresa May, he said senior officers must encourage "common sense" and not a "slavish adherence" to documents and protocols.
Dr Knapman also said police should consider bringing a top level officer from any force to attend the most difficult operations. He said the officer should be given "huge authority" to review tactics, take a fresh look and change them if necessary.
A jury at Westminster Coroner's Court ruled Mr Saunders, 32, was lawfully killed by Scotland Yard snipers when he brandished a shotgun at them.
But it highlighted shortcomings in the police operation including confusion among senior ranks and a lack of consideration for the barrister's vulnerable state.
Dr Knapman said: "My perception is that 'not being able to see the wood for the trees' may be a problem. You may take the view (or encourage others with power to alter things to take a view) that much of this material may be amalgamated, simplified or dispensed with.
"You may also take the view that there has been over reliance upon the printed word of instruction in the police service (as with other public services) in recent times.
"It may be that there is merit in encouraging one or two shorter documents and all documents set out in simple and unsophisticated language thereby minimising jargon - indeed, encouraging more common sense rather than slavish adherence to written documents and protocols."
Dr Knapman highlighted six firearms manuals and guidance documents printed by the Met, Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo), Home Office and National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA).
Hospital bosses have apologised after two pregnant women were wrongly told their unborn babies were dead during routine scans.
Joanna Barro, 25, was told by staff at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton that they could not detect a foetal heartbeat when she went for a scan while eight weeks pregnant with her first child.
She was advised to go home and let the miscarriage procedure take its course. She returned for a follow-up scan a week later as she refused to accept her baby was dead, and learned there was a heartbeat. Miss Barro went on to give birth seven months later to healthy 7lb 4oz Ruby, who will be three in February.
Her case echoes that of Sofia Taylor, 22, who refused to accept her baby was dead at nine weeks in August at the same hospital and demanded a second scan which showed her pregnancy was progressing normally.
Hospital officials reassured pregnant women in the area, saying these were isolated cases of human error which happened more than three years apart.
Speaking from her home in Telscombe Cliffs, Miss Barro said: "Their words to me were, 'It's dead, she has miscarried, there is no heartbeat'. They sent me home with a miscarriage letter and told me to let nature take its course.
"Call it a mother's instinct, but I didn't believe she was dead. I thought having a miscarriage would be painful but I didn't get any of that.
"They shouldn't have told me I had miscarried without being 100% sure," she said. "They just need to sort it out because if I had not had a second scan I would have terminated Ruby."
Mrs Taylor, from Peacehaven, told the Daily Mail: "I insisted on having another test. They weren't happy about it and said I really should have a termination. If I had listened to them I would have lost my baby. It doesn't bear thinking about."
Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust said it carries out 6,000 scans a year and its safety record is in the best 5% nationally.
US tycoon Donald Trump has hinted he may run for the American presidency.
The flamboyant businessman spoke out after he was presented with an honorary degree by a Scottish university.
Mr Trump was given the honorary award of Doctor of Business Administration at Robert Gordon University (RGU) in Aberdeen.
The American billionaire is building a £750 million luxury golf development on the Menie estate on the Aberdeenshire coast.
But afterwards he told a press conference he may be in the running for another job.
He said: "A lot of people have asked me to do it and until recently I would have no interest.
"And that's not only having to do with our country but it's having to do with your country.
"There's been a lot of talk about me running and a lot of people want me to run, but I have not decided."
He also said it was "too early" to say who his potential running mate could be, and laughed when former Republican candidate for vice-president Sarah Palin was suggested.
A British Airways computer expert alleged to have offered himself as a suicide bomber has appeared in court .
Bangladesh-born Rajib Karim, 30, from Clarendon Mews, Brunton Lane, Newcastle upon Tyne, appeared at Winchester Crown Court charged with four offences under terrorism legislation.
Flanked by three security guards, Karim, who was wearing a black fleece jacket, did not enter pleas to the charges.
He was remanded in custody by Mr Justice Royce until a further hearing at Bristol Crown Court on November 18.
A trial date was also set for January 12 next year at Woolwich Crown Court with a time scale of six to eight weeks.
Karim faces two charges of engaging in conduct in the preparation of terrorist acts under the 2006 Terrorism Act.
He is also accused of one count of fundraising for the purpose of terrorism and one count of possessing a record containing terrorist material, both under the Terrorism Act 2000.
All four offences are alleged to have taken place between April 2006 and February this year.
Karim was arrested by officers from Scotland Yard's Counter Terrorism Command, working with colleagues in the north east of England, on February 25 this year.
They swooped on the office complex where he worked in Newcastle as a computer software developer and searched his home in the city.
A stricken tanker loaded with a type of gasoline was being towed to safety after colliding with a huge cargo vessel in the English Channel.
All 13 crew of the 6,970-tonne Uranus were rescued by helicopter after the Maltese-flagged vessel was in collision with the 179,000-tonne Hanjin Rizhao about 60 miles west of the coast of Brittany in north west France.
No one was hurt in the incident and none of the Uranus cargo of pygas is thought to have escaped.
The crew were airlifted to Lanveoc Poulmic, south of the French port of Brest.
The Uranus, which had been listing heavily to port, was connected to a French tug which was towing the vessel slowly to Brest.
The Turkish-owned Uranus was heading for Amsterdam from the Italian port of Porto Marghera when the collision occurred with the Panamanian-flagged Hanjin Rizhao.
The crew of the stricken vessel was made up of six Filipinos, five Russians, one Bulgarian and one Latvian.
Alan Johnson has been appointed to the key role of shadow chancellor in Ed Miliband's first shadow cabinet.
Ed Balls is shadow home secretary while his wife Yvette Cooper - who topped the ballot of Labour MPs for the shadow cabinet - is shadow foreign secretary.
Both had been tipped for the economic portfolio shadowing Chancellor George Osborne.
Mr Miliband said: "I am delighted with my new shadow cabinet, drawn from a broad range of talents across our party.
"My team is united in one central mission for the future - to win back the trust of the British people and take Labour back to power.
"Together, this new generation of Labour will work together to reject the pessimism of this coalition Government as we set out our vision of what Britain can achieve.
"Our values are those of the British people, and this shadow cabinet will ensure that the hopes and concerns of working families are at the heart of our offer to the country."
Other key appointments were another defeated leadership candidate Andy Burnham as shadow education secretary, Jim Murphy as shadow defence secretary and deputy leader Harriet Harman as shadow international development secretary.
Sadiq Khan, who was Mr Miliband's campaign manager in the leadership election, is rewarded with the plum post of shadow Lord Chancellor and justice secretary. He will also be responsible for shadowing Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg over his constitutional and political reform programme.
Peter Hain and Shaun Woodward, who both failed to secure election to the shadow cabinet, nevertheless carry on shadowing Wales and Northern Ireland respectively, as discretionary appointments of the leader. Mary Creagh is the new shadow environment secretary, Ann McKechin is shadow Scottish secretary, while Tessa Jowell carries on as shadow Olympics minister.
A teacher who declared the education system is "broken" at the Conservative party conference has been ordered out of her school, it has been disclosed.
Katharine Birbalsingh has been told to "work from home" while bosses at her school in south London review the situation.
The French and deputy head teacher at St Michael's and All Angels Church of England Academy was reportedly "devastated" at being told to stay away.
Speaking at the conference before Education Secretary Michael Gove on Tuesday, Miss Birbalsingh told delegates standards have been "so dumbed down that even the teachers know it" and that schools are bound by too many targets that prevent them from teaching properly.
The system is broken "as it keeps poor children poor", she said.
It is understood that Miss Birbalsingh, an Oxford graduate, asked her headteacher's permission to speak at the conference. She was asked to work from home on her return.
She told the Daily Mail: "I'm devastated by this. My whole life is about helping children fulfil their potential, particularly those in less privileged areas, and I love my school.
"All I wanted to do was to highlight the barriers that stand in the way of improving education in Britain. I just want this issue to be resolved and to get back to teaching again."
Miss Birbalsingh, who started at the academy in September, said she did not blame her school, and said the system "bans teachers from having freedom of speech".
Wendy Robins, director of communications for Southwark Diocese said: "She was asked to work from home on Thursday and Friday while the situation is reviewed."
Insurers have won permission to launch High Court contempt proceedings against a motorist and his wife for allegedly making false statements to support claims for compensation after a road accident.
Lord Justice Moses and Mr Justice Burnett granted permission to Acromas to take legal action against Graham and Susan Loveday, from Port Talbot, South Wales, who could face fines or possibly jail if the allegations against them are proved true.
The case at London's High Court is the first following a groundbreaking ruling by the Divisional Court last July which opened the way for insurers to bring contempt proceedings.
Insurance companies have signalled to the courts that insurance fraud is now endemic, and legal action is necessary to act as a deterrent. Insurers say "a flurry of claims" will now come before judges.
Proceedings were launched by Acromas (formerly known as Saga) and Edward Nield, an elderly motorist insured by the company who was involved in a road traffic accident with a vehicle driven by Mr Loveday in April 2006.
Mr Justice Burnett said Mr Loveday sued Mr Nield for compensation for personal injury at Basingstoke County Court in proceedings later transferred to Swansea. The six-figure claim advanced by Mr Loveday as to damages "was highly contentious" said the judge.
It was suggested by Mr Nield and his insurers that Mr Loveday, supported by his wife, provided false statements and fabricated the seriousness of a back injury. Mr Loveday also claimed "very substantial" loss of earnings as a lorry driver because his injuries prevented him from working.
The claim was eventually settled, with Mr Loveday formally being awarded a total of £1,850 on January 27 this year for the injuries he had received, plus legal costs of some £1,574.
Those amounts were never paid out to Mr Loveday but retained by Mr Nield and Acromas to offset against the costs - understood to amount to a substantial five-figure sum - they had incurred in defending the action brought against them by Mr Loveday.
The judge said it was now suggested that witness statements made by Mr Loveday in the course of his claim contained "14 untruths" about the nature of the accident and its causation, with a further six made by his wife. These included statements relating to his need to use a wheelchair.
Hundreds of mourners have paid their last respects at a moving funeral service for tragic rugby league star Terry Newton.
The 31-year-old former professional hanged himself at his home in Wigan after being sacked by his club and banned from the sport over drugs.
It is thought the father of two took his own life after plunging into depression over his career and private life.
The funeral for Newton, born and bred in Wigan, a rugby league stronghold, and a former player for his hometown club, attracted around 1,000 fans to Wigan Parish Church.
Applause rang out as his pine coffin arrived for the start of the service carried by pall bearers including former rugby league stars Barrie McDermott and Terry O'Connor and current England captain Adrian Morley.
His heartbroken wife Stacey had to be helped into church, followed by Newton's parents and extended family.
They were joined by rugby league greats of the past and present and 600 mourners inside. Many fans wore black but others were in the cherry and white of Wigan, lining the streets and in the church grounds listening in silence on a PA system.
Blowing In The Wind by Bob Dylan was played before the Reverend John Macaulay began the service.
He told mourners they had come to pay respect to Terry, whose life ended "prematurely and in tragic circumstances" but who had brought "his own vivid dash of colour and character" to all their lives.
His funeral was followed by a private burial for close family and friends, at St John's Church of England church in Pemberton, Wigan.
Alan Johnson has been appointed to the key role of shadow chancellor in Ed Miliband's first shadow cabinet.
The former home secretary will spearhead Labour's assault on Chancellor George Osborne's spending cuts after Mr Miliband drew back from appointing either Ed Balls or his wife Yvette Cooper.
Both had been widely tipped as possible candidates, with Mr Balls in particular having made no secret of his desire to take on the economic portfolio.
Instead he becomes shadow home secretary while Ms Cooper - who topped the shadow cabinet ballot of Labour MPs - gets shadow foreign secretary.
Despite his long Treasury experience, Mr Balls may have been seen as too independent, having already declared he would re-write former chancellor Alistair Darling's plans to halve the deficit in four years, slowing the pace of cuts.
Mr Johnson has a genuine popular touch and his appointment will be seen as an olive branch to the supporters of David Miliband, who he backed for the leadership.
In his first statement on taking up the post, he said he would not oppose Government measures "for the sake of it" and would work with Ed Miliband to develop a "real and responsible" alternative to the coalition's plans.
"We are both passionate about a new kind of politics where we will not disagree with our political opponents for the sake of it," he said. "These are testing times and we will be a responsible opposition acting in the national interest. Ed and I will work together to build a plan for growth and for jobs in our economy.
"We will offer a real and responsible alternative to the dangerous plans of this coalition Government which is damaging the economic future of millions of families."
Transport Secretary Philip Hammond however has dismissed him as a "caretaker appointment". He said: "Ed Miliband said that he wanted to move on to a new generation of Labour politicians - but Alan Johnson frankly is from the last generation of Labour politicians."
The Prime Minister has met veterans suffering the mental scars of battle and said helping them is a "priority".
David Cameron has made the comments after speaking to ex-servicemen suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and related conditions at a centre in Leatherhead, Surrey.
After helping some make poppies ahead of Remembrance Sunday, the PM said the mental health of those who have served in the Armed Forces needed to be taken "much more seriously".
The visit to a centre set up by the charity Combat Stress comes days after Defence Secretary Liam Fox announced new services for veterans. A 24-hour helpline and additional mental health nurses have been pledged under the new provisions.
The Prime Minister has said the move was needed, even though it comes at a time when Government departments are under pressure to find spending cuts.
He said: "It is a priority to do more to help the mental health issues that veterans in our country have.
"The fact is, for many people the mental scars that they have from the time they have served can be as serious or sometimes even worse than the physical scars and we need to take it much more seriously as a country."
Just how much additional support helps those suffering from mental health problems associated with their time serving their country has been brought home to the PM.
Touring the centre, which cares for 30 patients at any one time, Mr Cameron spoke to those still suffering flashbacks and depression resulting from their time fighting in places such as Afghanistan and Northern Ireland.
Combat Stress currently helps around 4,400 ex-servicemen and women at three treatment centres in the UK.
A British soldier has been killed in an explosion in southern Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence has said
The serviceman, from 2nd Battalion The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, died while on a patrol in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand Province on Friday morning. His family have been informed.
A total of 340 UK troops have died since operations in Afghanistan began in 2001.
Lieutenant Colonel David Eastman, spokesman for Task Force Helmand, said: "The soldier was carrying out a patrol in the Nahr-e Saraj area of the province, providing a reassuring presence to the local population seeking to go about their daily lives in peace, when he was hit by an explosion.
"He gave his life protecting the people of the United Kingdom and Afghanistan - no more could be asked of any man. He will be sorely missed."
Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams has clashed with Northern Ireland Secretary Owen Paterson after he wore a wristband supporting the Army at a meeting with families bereaved by British troops.
Details of their behind-the-scenes disagreement have leaked after the senior republican led a delegation of families from west Belfast to meet the Conservative MP to discuss what has become known as the Ballymurphy Massacre.
But as the relatives recounted how 11 of their loved ones were shot dead by troops in 1971, Mr Adams challenged Mr Paterson on his wearing of a wristband backing the Royal Irish Regiment at the meeting.
Government sources played down the incident and said Mr Paterson had worn the green wristband over a lengthy period in support of troops based in his North Shropshire constituency and that he had meant no offence.
But critics who recounted events in the meeting at Stormont House, near the Northern Ireland Assembly in Belfast, said: "During the course of the meeting, the wristband was clearly visible.
"At one point Gerry challenged Owen Paterson for wearing the wristband, given the nature of the meeting.
"Gerry made the point that this is a regiment that was born out of the UDR (Ulster Defence Regiment) which would not be thought of affectionately by nationalists.
"But more importantly this was a meeting at which a British Secretary of State was listening to a succession of horror stories from families who are victims of the British Army."
A Government source said Mr Paterson had not sought to cause offence and had worn the wristband for a lengthy period to back troops based in the area he represents at Westminster.
"The regiment is based in Owen Paterson's constituency and recruits soldiers from both communities in Northern Ireland, from the Republic of Ireland and from up to 11 nations," the source said. "The Secretary of State was very pleased to support them on their way in Afghanistan."
A man has admitted a series of sex offences after abusing a girl in India, police said.
Barry McCloud has pleaded guilty to raping a child under 13 and administering a stupefying drug to his victim to abuse her, Hertfordshire Police said.
The force said the case was the first time in Hertfordshire that someone had been charged with sexually abusing a child who lives overseas.
Police said McCloud, from Watford, befriended the girl's family in Goa and took advantage of their vulnerability, abusing her on a number of occasions when he travelled to India. The offences date back to 2005-2007.
The 53-year-old has pleaded guilty to a series of offences at St Albans Crown Court and will be sentenced at a later date.
Hertfordshire Police said they led the probe, supported by the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP), the Serious and Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and a non-government agency in India called Justice and Care.
CPS District Crown Prosecutor Tamsyn Wilcox said: "Barry McCloud abused the trust of a family living in extreme poverty in Goa.
"He befriended and sponsored the eldest son, and he used his position of trust to gain access to one of the younger sisters, the victim in this case."
She continued: "McCloud was charged under Section 72 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 which allows prosecutors to charge a person with an offence committed abroad if they are a British citizen or resident, and the crime would be an offence in the country in which it is committed, as well as here."
Detective Inspector Paul Doran, senior investigating officer, said the investigation had secured safety and justice for the victim but also reassurance that "this dangerous predator no longer poses a risk within our community".
