Peter Stringfellow Threatens Nick Clegg Contest

Stripclub owner Peter Stringfellow has suggested he could stand against Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg in the General Election due to be held in 2015.

The 72-year-old has twice been singled out by the Liberal Democrat leader as someone who does not deserve state-funded pensioner benefits.

Sheffield-born Mr Stringfellow said that at his age he had "done everything a guy would probably like to do ... and I might take a serious view of moving into politics".

Asked by LBC radio's James Whale about the chances he might stand in Mr Clegg's Sheffield Hallam constituency, he said: "I think 'why not?'. It has opened my mind to the possibility and the idea of going back to my home city and taking him on would be my first choice.

"Everybody knows my clubs are full of beautiful girls taking their clothes off. I don't want to be Hugh Hefner ... so a bit later on in life I like the idea of going into politics and I think I could contribute the reality."

The millionaire nightclub owner has been angered by the Deputy PM using him to highlight his fight to take the winter fuel payment from wealthy pensioners, a move opposed by Prime Minister David Cameron.

"You cannot ask people to take big cuts in their ... benefits, and say it's ok for Peter Stringfellow and Alan Sugar to be given a whole bunch of free benefits when they don't need it, paid for by other taxpayers," he has said.

Mr Stringfellow is a Tory supporter but acknowledged he would probably have to stand as an independent because of his business interests.

And he added that he would live in the South Yorkshire city, saying: "My God, do you know how cheap those bloody big houses are up there."

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Plastic Surgeons Flying In From Abroad 'Pose Risk'

By Thomas Moore, Health and Science Correspondent

Doctors have warned of the dangers of 'seagull surgeons' who fly into Britain on daytrips to carry out operations, often without insurance.

Sky News has seen details of patients who have suffered complications from botched cosmetic surgery carried out at British clinics. But they have been unable to trace the surgeons abroad and have been left thousands of pounds out of pocket.

The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) said patients need better protection - and called on the government to get tough.

Kelly Dean went for a lunchtime liposuction with what she thought was an experienced surgeon in a reputable clinic.

But the £4,000 laser procedure was botched, burning tissue inside her legs and leaving her with lumps on her thighs.

She told Sky News: "I just remember the pain, and thinking: 'Oh my God, what have I done?'"

"I kept telling him: 'I'm in pain, you're hurting me'. And I was crying, really crying."

A solicitor tried to track the surgeon down in Italy, without success, and the clinic which had hired out the room denied any responsibility.

"You think you are in safe hands," she said.

"To them it is just money, you are just a number. They don't care about it.

"As soon as they take your money, that's it, bye-bye."

Leeds-based surgeon Muhammad Riaz has had to treat complications in several patients after their original surgeon had returned abroad.

He said all surgeons should be responsible for their patients' after-care.

"That's the time the patient suffers," he warned.

"If they don't get into the same hospital and are not able to see the same surgeon, the NHS ends up picking up the pieces and dealing with those problems."

Rajiv Grover, presidet of BAAPS, which is the professional body for cosmetic surgeons, said the government must regulate the "fly-in, fly-out" surgeons and insist they have proper indemnity insurance.

"They may be working here for a short time and perhaps it's not cost effective for them to do so," he said.

"But for the protection of the patient it is imperative they have insurance of a level that allows them to work here and explicitly states they can work in the United Kingdom."

The Department of Health spokesperson said: "The NHS Medical Director Sir Bruce Keogh is currently carrying out a review into regulation of cosmetic surgery.

"The review will be published in March. Its recommendations will be evidence-based, with the safety of the patient at the forefront."

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Weather: Flood Warnings As Snow Thaws

There are fears of flooding in the UK as rain moves in and rising temperatures spark a rapid thaw of the snow and ice which built up in the past fortnight.

The Environment Agency has warned there is a risk of surface water and river flooding this weekend across England and Wales.

The agency has issued around 15 warnings, mostly in the South West, and about 80 less serious flood alerts, mainly in the south, the Midlands and Wales.

Warnings mean flooding is expected and immediate action is required, while alerts signify floods are possible.

A spokesman said: "Emergency teams from the Environment Agency will be out in force throughout the weekend to shore up defences, monitor river levels and clear blockages from watercourses."

The Met Office has also issued a severe weather warning about possible localised flooding in many parts of the country on Sunday, and the public should be aware of potential disruption to travel.

Forecasters are predicting up to 50mm of rain on Saturday over high ground.

And temperatures will steadily rise above freezing before reaching more than 10C in the south on Sunday.

Sky News Weather Presenter Isobel Lang said: "During today much of eastern England and eastern Scotland will be fine but rather chilly, with some good sunny spells. This evening and tonight it will turn wet and windy with snow thawing rapidly. It will be mild.

"Across Western Scotland, western England, the Midlands and Wales there will be a few showers but many places should be dry and sunny.

"Through the afternoon, cloud will increase from the west bringing outbreaks of rain by to most places by evening. Winds will strengthen too bringing in mild air overnight and leading to the rapid thaw of snow.

"Around 30 to 50mm (two inches) of rain is possible over high ground exposed to the strong southerly wind. Some local flooding is possible."

She added: "Sunday will see rain and strong, gusty winds clearing eastern Britain followed by sunshine but scattered blustery showers."

Forecasters are predicting a very wet spell through the latter part of Monday and through Tuesday.

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Weather: Snow Storm Brings M6 To Standstill

Hundreds of drivers spent up to eight hours trapped in their vehicles on the M6 in Lancashire after heavy snow brought the motorway to a standstill.

The motorway became blocked in both directions between junctions 25 and 27, near Wigan, on Friday night after vehicles became stuck in more than a foot of snow and some drivers abandoned their cars.

Many drivers were affected along the stretch between Wigan and Standish after struggling to make it up inclines in the treacherous conditions, while a number of accidents including jack-knifed lorries also blocked lanes.

Prime Minister David Cameroon tweeted: "Huge sympathy for those affected by heavy #uksnow. Govt working closely with transport operators to minimise impact on everyone."

Mountain rescue teams were brought in to help police and the Highways Agency clear roads and assist those who were stranded.

One man had to be taken to hospital after becoming ill in his car while it was stuck.

And some of the stranded drivers passed the time with snowball fights and building snowmen.

The M6 gridlock. Pic Kevin Collister

The M6, as well as the M56 and M58 which were also blocked, are now all moving again but remain heavily congested with long tailbacks, Lancashire Police said.

Motorists contacted Sky News overnight to share their tales of woe.

Kevin Collister, stuck on the motorway just past the M58 junction heading northbound, said: "There is absolutely no movement whatsoever on my side of the carriageway, all the snow is squashed down into ice and there are wagons trying to move and sliding sideways.

"It's an absolute nightmare, we've been here for three hours so far. A few people are saying we might be here for the night but we're just hoping we can get through."

Conservative MP David Morris, stuck on the southbound carriageway, said: "We've ground to a halt on both sides. Nothing is really moving.

"But the emergency services have been fantastic and are doing the best for us, and everyone is in good spirits.

Some M6 motorists made the most of the snow. Pic Ashley Pinches

"I've just seen a snowball fight and the man next door to me has built a snowman on top of his car roof ... it's very surreal."

Barry Pinches, on his way to Blackpool, told Sky News: "At one stage we didn't think we would make it but it looks like things are moving slowly now. We saw some snow ploughs on the southbound carriageway but there doesn't seem to be too many of them - they have their work cut out."

Pete Martin, from the Highways Agency, confirmed to Sky News that the carriageways had been gritted before the snow came down.

"We had an extremely intense fall of snow across Lancashire between 8.30pm and midnight and basically there wasn't enough traffic to keep the lanes moving," he said.

The M6 was blocked both ways in Lancashire

"A number of HGVs lost traction between junctions 25 and 27 and once they blocked the carriageway the snow stacked up and the result was a number of stranded vehicles."

The agency worked throughout the night to clear the routes with snow ploughs. It is urging those who had abandoned their cars to return to them as soon as possible.

A spokesman said: "With the rain falling and ice melting onto very cold road surfaces, we are now warning drivers of the danger of ice."

Hazardous driving conditions led to collisions and delays on many routes across the north of England, including the M18, M60, M65, M56 and M58.

Meanwhile, all flights were suspended at Leeds Bradford International Airport during the morning as a fresh blanket of snow covered most of the Yorkshire region.

North Yorkshire Fire Service said a couple had to be rescued from a snow drift on the North York Moors last night.

North Yorkshire Police said some main roads were blocked by snow and abandoned vehicles including the A59 between Harrogate and Skipton and the B6265 at Rylstone.

Weather experts have warned of the risk of flooding this weekend, as heavy rain moves in and rising temperatures spark a rapid thaw of the built-up snow and ice.

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Armed Robber Pinned Down During Raid Dies

An armed man has died after being restrained by customers during an attempted robbery at a bookmakers, police said.

The man, in his 50s, was believed to be wearing a gas mask and holding a gun when he entered a Ladbrokes branch on Crownhill Road in Plymouth shortly before 7pm.

Customers managed to disarm him and held him on the floor while others raised the alarm, Devon and Cornwall Police said.

Police arrested the man, who was already unconscious, but he was declared dead shortly afterwards.

"It quickly became clear the man was unresponsive and an ambulance was immediately requested by police who carried out CPR until they arrived," a police spokesman said.

"A few minutes later three paramedics arrived at the scene and continued to carry out further CPR. Around 20 minutes later the man was declared dead at the scene by the paramedics."

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has been informed of death.

Chief Inspector Ian Drummond-Smith said: "This is a very serious incident. We cannot speculate on what has actually taken place here today.

"A full investigation has now begun and while the IPCC carry out their investigation it is not appropriate to comment further."

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Elsa Salama: Plea For Abducted Girl's Return

By Gerard Tubb, North of England Correspondent

The mother of a little girl who was snatched by Egyptian relatives while on a family holiday has pleaded for her to be returned.

Naomi Button, 39, has not seen her daughter Elsa Salama since she was abducted in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el Sheikh on December 27, 2011 while visiting relatives.

Elsa's father, Egyptian-born Tamer Salama, 35, is in prison in England for refusing to comply with court orders to return Elsa to her mother.

Standing in her daughter's bedroom in Leeds, which has been kept just as she left it, Ms Button said she finds it difficult to cope.

Elsa was abducted in December 2011

"The worst times are when I wake up in the middle of the night, sometimes I wonder if that's because she's woken up and she's crying for me," she said.

Elsa will be six on February 2 and her mother has set up a Facebook page hoping that making a public appeal will finally bring her daughter home.

"I don't know what she's been told, I don't know if she thinks I didn't want her and I just left her in Egypt and that's mortifying to me," she said.

Salama was jailed in January 2012, having said Elsa was with his mother, but refusing to say where she was being held.

Ms Button is making a public appeal for the return of her daughter

Sentencing him, the judge Mr Justice Mitchell said: "It is unspeakably harmful to the emotional welfare of your daughter.

"It shows me that you are a man with a hard heart, determined only to get your own way."

Last week Salama was jailed for a further 12 months for his continuing failure to comply with court orders to return his daughter to her mother.

The couple met in Sharm el Sheikh in 2005 and were married in Egypt the following year, before moving to Leeds in 2007.

They separated in 2009 but agreed that Elsa should continue to see her family in Egypt.

Elsa's father is in jail for refusing to say where she is being held

Ms Button has a custody order in Egypt and the support of the Child Abduction Section of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Her lawyer, Kate Bannerjee, who heads the children's department at Jones Myers and is a panel member of the International Child Abduction and Contact Unit, warns that parental child abduction is on the increase.

"The Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Child Abduction Section is receiving an average of four calls per day," she said.

"Understanding of parental child abduction is alarmingly low and cases can take years to resolve."

Ms Button has kept a pile of unopened Christmas presents in her daughter's room.

"I know that she wants to be back home with Mummy," she told us.

"My mission in life is to find my daughter and, no matter how long that takes, to be here for her.

"I want her to come back and see how her life was, so I do everything I can to find her but also to maintain the life she had, and that's what I get up for every day."

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River Wye Crash: Dad Killed On School Run

A father has been killed during a family school run after the car he was driving veered into a river - moments before the same thing happened to his wife.

David Cox, 42, was driving his 11-year-old daughter to school along a bridle path near to the Monsal Trail, north of the A6, when the Toyota Aygo plunged into the River Wye.

His wife, Ruth, was driving their nine-year-old son in another car behind him which also slewed into the water.

Derbyshire Police said the two children and their 39-year-old mother managed to escape unhurt from the cars and swim to safety but the father could not be saved, despite attempts from local residents, and died a short time later.

The Toyota Rav4 driven by Mr Cox's wife is recovered from the water

Paul Hawker, station manager at Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service, was one of the first on the scene and said the wintry weather in the area was a contributing factor in the accident, a fire service spokeswoman said.

Both mother and father were taking their children to school when the tragedy happened just after 8.30am.

Neighbours waded into the river to try to help the man and when police arrived on the scene an officer also plunged into the water to try to aid the rescue attempt.

Victoria Bamber, 32, said the man's son came running down the country lane shouting for help.

She said: "He came banging on the door saying 'There's been an accident, Daddy is trapped'. When I got to the scene, I could only see the silver 4x4 upside down in the water and Ruth was desperately trying to find David."

Emergency vehicles and personnel, local mountain rescue volunteers, land ambulances, and the air ambulance, attended to take all four passengers to hospital.

Police said the man later died at Stepping Hill Hospital.

Mr Cox worked for the BBC as part of the Future Media team in Salford.

Tim Davie, the corporation's acting director general, said: "We are very sad to learn of David's tragic death.

"He was a popular member of the Future Media team in Salford and had been key to the success of the red button service during the Olympics in the summer.

"Our thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues here at the BBC at this difficult time."

Deaths linked to the recent cold snap have now hit double figures and forecasters are predicting more heavy snow before a thaw at the weekend.

The Met Office said it has amber warnings in place for much of Scotland, the north of England, east of England and East and West Midlands, with yellow warnings in Wales, southwest England and London and the South East.

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Newcastle Striker Ranger Held Over Rape Claim

Newcastle United striker Nile Ranger has been arrested on suspicion of rape.

The 21-year-old Premier League footballer was held by Northumbria Police following an allegation made by a woman that she was attacked at a hotel in Jesmond, Newcastle between Wednesday and Thursday.

London-born Ranger, who lives in Forest Hall, North Tyneside, was still being questioned today.

Nile Ranger was arrested after an alleged incident at a hotel

A police spokeswoman said: "On Thursday, January 24 a woman reported to police that she had been raped overnight at a hotel in Jesmond.

"A 21-year-old man has been arrested at an address in Forest Hall on suspicion of rape."

Ranger, a former England under-19 player, angered fans by criticising them for booing after Newcastle lost to Reading at the weekend.

He has had a troubled time at Newcastle, with loans to Sheffield Wednesday and Barnsley. A Newcastle United spokeswoman declined to comment.

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Dummy Taped To Baby's Face: Worker Suspended

A scandal-hit NHS trust has apologised and suspended a member of staff after a four-month-old baby had a dummy taped to his face at a hospital.

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust, which is at the centre of a public inquiry into serious failings of care, said the boy was unharmed and police had begun an investigation.

A spokesman for the Staffordshire force said officers were investigating a complaint about the treatment of a youngster by a worker at Stafford Hospital earlier this month.

Colin Ovington, director of nursing and midwifery at the trust, said: "A member of staff has been suspended pending the outcome of the police investigation and the trust's investigation under our disciplinary policy.

"We cannot emphasise strongly enough that this incident is exceptional and apologise again to the family.

"We want other hospitals to learn from this incident so that we can be sure that it does not happen to any other baby."

A report from the public inquiry into failings at the trust will be published on February 6.

Inquiry chairman Robert Francis QC will recommend wide-ranging reforms of the NHS, it is understood.

The £11m review of what went wrong at Stafford Hospital between January 2005 and March 2009 will suggest hospitals that cover up mistakes by doctors and poor treatment of patients should face fines and possible closure, it has been reported.

A separate highly-critical report by the Healthcare Commission in 2009 revealed a catalogue of failings at the trust and said "appalling standards" had put patients at risk.

Between 400 and 1,200 more people died than would have been expected in a three-year period from 2005 to 2008, the commission said. 

In February 2010, an independent inquiry into events at the trust found it had "routinely neglected patients".

Mr Ovington said: "We have a zero tolerance approach to poor patient care and we take immediate, appropriate action as soon as we know about any potential serious incidents which happen in our hospitals.

"We are proud that our staff now feel confident to report any incidents which happen.  We will continue to encourage staff to do this, and will continue to report incidents, even before they have been fully investigated, despite any negative attention this may create."

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Barry George Loses Jill Dando Compensation Case

Barry George, who was wrongly jailed for murdering Jill Dando, has lost his High Court bid for compensation.

Two judges rejected his claim that the Justice Secretary unfairly and unlawfully decided he was "not innocent enough to be compensated".

Lord Justice Beatson and Mr Justice Irwin ruled that the Secretary of State was "entirely justified in the conclusion he reached."

Ian Lawless, who spent eight years behind bars for murder before being freed by the Court of Appeal in 2009, won a similar legal challenge.

Mr Lawless was jailed for life in 2002 after confessing to the murder of retired sea captain Alf Wilkins on the Yarborough estate in Grimsby, Lincolnshire.

His conviction was later ruled unsafe after fresh medical evidence revealed he had a "pathological need for attention".

The judges ruled that in his case the decision to refuse compensation was legally flawed and must be reconsidered in the light of their judgement.

More follows...

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Burger King Dumps Products Over Horsemeat Row

Burger King is dumping thousands of beefburgers from the supplier at the centre of the horsemeat scandal - despite insisting its food was not contaminated.

Staff have been ordered to box up Whoppers and Angus burgers and ensure they are not sold to customers.

The fast-food giant was bitten by the controversy last week after tests showed the Silvercrest meat processing plant in Ireland and another site in Yorkshire had supplied burgers with traces of equine DNA to supermarkets.

Several supermarkets took burgers off the shelves, but Burger King said last Thursday it would not be following suit.

By the weekend its restaurant managers were being ordered to remove all Silvercrest burgers.

Burger King has now said it is switching to a different supplier for its British and Irish restaurants as a "voluntary and precautionary measure".

The ABP Food Group, one of Europe's biggest suppliers and processors, stopped work at its Silvercrest plant in Co Monaghan after new tests last week revealed contamination in frozen burgers.

But ABP has insisted that meat for Burger King was stored and processed separately and there is no evidence that its burgers are affected.

Work was stopped at Silvercrest after new tests revealed contamination

Burger King said the withdrawal could lead to shortages of burgers in its restaurants.

It said: "We apologise to our guests for any inconvenience. However, we want to let them know that they can trust us to serve only the highest quality products.

"We take this matter seriously and will continue with our investigations to determine how this situation occurred and what lessons can be learned."

Ten million burgers have been removed from supermarkets across Ireland and the UK as a result of the scandal.

Tesco took out full-page adverts in a number of newspapers apologising for selling the contaminated beefburgers, and Aldi, Lidl and Iceland also withdrew burgers after they were found to contain horsemeat, which is safely eaten by millions on the Continent.

Sainsbury's, Asda and the Co-op later withdrew some frozen products but stressed that the move was "purely precautionary" and they had not been found to be selling contaminated food.

Meanwhile, Labour has claimed a drug with the potential to cause cancer in humans might have entered the food chain through meat from horses slaughtered in UK abattoirs.

The anti-inflammatory drug, phenylbutazone, is banned from being allowed in the human food chain in the EU.

Labour's shadow environment secretary Mary Creagh told the Commons there was evidence the drug - also called Bute - was found in "several" horses slaughtered in the UK last year.

Britain's Food Standards Agency (FSA) said Bute was found in five cases during checks on slaughtered horses in 2012. None of the meat had been placed for sale in the UK and foreign safety authorities were informed, the FSA said.

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland has retested all burgers found to contain traces of horsemeat and all were negative for Bute.

Companies involved in the separate horsemeat scandal that emerged last week have blamed meat suppliers on the Continent rather than British abattoirs.

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Giant Irish Wind Farms Bid Passes Hurdle

Ministers are to sign a deal that could pave the way for millions of British homes being supplied with electricity from 700 huge wind turbines across a vast swathe of rural Ireland.

A total of 40 wind farms would be built in the Bog of Allen, which covers several counties in Ireland's midlands.

They would be connected to the UK's National Grid through two giant undersea cables linked to Pentir, near Bangor, and Pembroke, in southwest Wales.

Element Power, the US company behind the £6.5bn scheme, said the 600ft turbines could supply 10% of the UK's renewable energy target for 2020 and save British households £7bn over 15 years.

However, the plan, which is still in its infancy, is set to face significant opposition from conservationists who fear damage to the countryside.

Because the area is relatively windless compared to Ireland's gusty coastline, the company says the turbines need to stretch high into the sky to catch enough wind.

Britain's Energy Secretary Ed Davey and his Irish counterpart Pat Rabbitte are signing a memorandum of understanding on the export of energy between the countries.

Mr Rabbitte has said the project is still in its infancy.

Element Power's proposals still face scrutiny from planning officials in the Republic.

The company says the construction and maintenance of the farms would create thousands of jobs.

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Police In 'Muslim Vigilantes' Victim Appeal

Officers investigating "Muslim vigilante" attacks are appealing for a victim who was abused by the gang for being "gay" to come forward.

Scotland Yard says the man is crucial to their investigation into a number of incidents where a gang calling themselves Muslim Patrol have harassed members of the public.

Videos of the attacks in east London where the self-styled gang appear to have started to operate have been posted on YouTube.

The police are appealing for the man in the footage, titled Muslim vigilantes in London harass and taunt gay male, to contact them.

In the film, the gang can been seen to abuse and intimidate the man using homophobic language, shouting: "Get out of here you f** …don't stay around here any more."

Investigating officers from the Community Safety Unit on Tower Hamlets borough said they are unsure where and when the video took place.

In a second video, posted online, men from the gang in Whitechapel, east London, tell another man "no drink in this area, it's a Muslim area" before ordering him to pour away his alcohol.

Another video posted on YouTube featured a woman wearing a miniskirt being told not to "expose" herself near a mosque.

Detective Chief Inspector Wendy Morgan from Tower Hamlets borough said: "The Met takes such homophobic behaviour very seriously.

"This man is a crucial witness in the investigation and would encourage him and anyone else with information relating to this incident to make contact in confidence as soon as possible."

Additional police patrols are being mounted across east London to reassure the public.

Two men have been arrested in connection with the investigation.

A 22-year-old man was arrested in Acton, west London on Sunday, and a 19-year-old man was arrested on Wednesday after going to an east London police station.

The pair were arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm and public order offences and were bailed to return to an east London police station in February and March pending further inquiries.

A police spokesman said: "The Metropolitan Police Service takes these incidents very seriously and is pursuing various lines of inquiry with a view to identifying and prosecuting the individuals concerned."

Islamic leaders in east London condemned the vigilantes.

A spokesman for the East London Mosque said: "These actions are utterly unacceptable and clearly designed to stoke tensions and sow discord. We wholly condemn them.

"The East London Mosque is committed to building co-operation and harmony between all communities in this borough. The actions of this tiny minority have no place in our faith nor on our streets.

"We advise anyone who has been harassed by these individuals to contact the police.

"We will monitor the situation closely and our Imams will be speaking out against such actions."

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Big Freeze Hits UK With Final Wintry Flurry

Icy temperatures and snow flurries look set to make way for milder weather next week as the end of the cold snap raises fears of flooding.

But a final heavy snowfall will hit the UK on Friday, centred around northern England and southern Scotland, which could see up to 15cm on higher ground.

A sharp increase in temperature, possibly reaching 10 degrees Celcius in the south west on Sunday, will spark a rapid thaw of ice and the Environment Agency has warned of the risk of localised flooding.

That will be coupled by rain crossing the south west on Friday and further showers over parts of the UK at the weekend.

Sky News Weather Producer Jo Robinson said: "The weekend will mark the end of this gloomy, cold snap, but not before another transient spell of significant, possibly disruptive, snow.

"Friday brings the return of heavy snow. Scotland, north-west England and north-east Wales will be at risk first.

"Other parts of England will see that snow during the late afternoon, evening and overnight as it spreads eastwards.

"Over the weekend it will turn milder, windier and wetter. Snow melting will bring the risk of flooding, worsened by spells of heavy rain."

The severe weather has been blamed for at least nine deaths and has caused widespread disruption across the UK.

In Somerset, gritting crews have been working around the clock after nearly 15cm of snow fell in 24 hours on Wednesday.

In one of the worst cases, 30 people had to spend the night in a shelter after becoming stranded when the A39 between Bridgwater and Williton became impassable.

The snow also forced the closure of hundreds of schools across Wales for a second day running on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Kent, Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance revealed it had flown an 18-year-old man to hospital in London after a sledging accident.

The victim was flown to St George's Hospital after suffering head injuries in the accident in Caterham, Surrey.

The AA has said it has attended more than 160,000 breakdowns since January 11 - including around 2,200 vehicles stuck in snow or ice.

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Football Sex Assault Trial: Woman Breaks Down

A woman alleged to have been sexually assaulted by four footballers has broken down in court after being questioned about lies she told police.

The 21-year-old became emotional and tearful after Sonia Woodley QC, defending Steve Cook, suggested she was mistaken about him.

The woman, who was giving evidence behind a curtain at the Old Bailey, raised her voice and said: "I knew something bad had happened.

"Do you understand how scared I was? I don't think you understand.

"After this, they were taunting me, calling my name out in the street.

"I didn't want to say who they were because I was scared. It's spiralled out of control."

She added: "I am sorry for wasting police time. I didn't want to go to police, and then I had to make up these stupid stories."

The woman agreed that Cook did not shout at her in the street.

The prosecution say he and three other Brighton and Hove Albion players sexually assaulted the woman while she was asleep in a hotel room in Brighton in July 2011.

In the morning, she said she saw pictures on a mobile phone, but she could not remember what happened.

Her employers called police after she failed to turn up for work but the woman told them "a pack of lies" saying she had been assaulted in the street.

Brighton players Anton Rodgers, 19, Lewis Dunk, 21, and George Barker, 21, and former team-mate Steve Cook, 21, who now plays for Bournemouth, deny sexual assault and voyeurism.

Later, a friend of the woman who had been clubbing with her earlier in the evening, said they had each drunk between 10 and 15 shots of alcohol and shared a bottle of wine.

The woman, who was then 19, left with two men after kissing one of them, she said.

The case continues.

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Stuart Hall: Rape Charge For BBC Presenter

BBC presenter Stuart Hall has been charged with further sexual offences - including an alleged rape.

The 83-year-old veteran broadcaster was arrested on Tuesday after attending a Cheshire police station.

The Radio 5 Live football presenter was charged with 14 offences of sexual assault involving 10 girls aged between nine and 16 between 1967 and 1986.

He is also accused of raping a 22-year-old woman in 1976.

In December, Hall was charged with three counts of indecent assault against young girls in the 1970s and 80s. He denied these three charges at a court hearing earlier this month.

Following the latest charges he was bailed to appear before magistrates in Preston on February 7.

Hall, of Wilmslow, Cheshire, has worked for more than a half century in British broadcasting and was awarded an OBE in this year's New Years Honours.

He presented the It's A Knockout show in the 1970s.

The BBC has previously said he would not be working at the corporation while he is facing allegations.

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Police Officers 'Abuse Positions For Sex'

Police officers are buying steroids from criminals and abusing their positions to have sex with vulnerable women, a police leader has warned.

Mike Cunningham said that most forces were investigating cases where officers had become embroiled with criminals after gym use escalated to taking body-building drugs.

There were also probes into claims of officers using their positions to persuade vulnerable women to sleep with them, he said.

Mr Cunningham, the Chief Constable of Staffordshire, said the two were the greatest corruption risks among the country's police officers.

He said: "We do our own assessment of corruption threats, one of them is steroid abuse and gym use by officers.

"What that starts off is very often officers going to the gyms, beginning to dabble in steroids, then the relationships they form when they're using steroids become corrupt and corrosive.

Stephen Mitchell who was given two life sentences

"There is good evidence of officers getting way out of their depth with serious criminals who they are beholden to."

Mr Cunningham, who was speaking after the release of an Association of Chief Police Officers' report into corruption, also said that dozens of officers across England and Wales were abusing their positions to have sex with vulnerable women.

He said: "We found that when we asked force professional standards departments that again most forces were investigating allegations against individual officers abusing their position for sexual favour."

One example is Stephen Mitchell, who worked for Northumbria Police and was given two life sentences in 2011 for two rapes and three indecent assaults.

The court heard how the 42-year-old abused women he met on duty, including a disabled teenager, heroin addicts and shoplifters.

Chief constables are to discuss plans for tackling corruption.

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Lloyds Confirms 940 More Banking Job Cuts

Lloyds Bank has confirmed it is to axe another 940 jobs, taking job loss announcements at the firm to 1,300 in the past few days.

Sky News has confirmed the cuts will occur in the group operations, insurance, retail, wealth and international and commercial divisions.

In a statement, the bank said: "Lloyds Banking Group is committed to working through these changes with employees in a careful and sensitive way.

"All affected employees have been briefed by their line manager today.

"The Group's recognised unions Accord, Unite and LTU were consulted prior to this announcement and will continue to be consulted."

But unions have reacted with anger to the job cuts.

Unite said  25% of Lloyds' workforce has now been cut since 2009, while the Accord union said almost 200 posts were being moved offshore to India.

Unite national officer Dominic Hook said: "Since 2009 Lloyds have slashed a quarter of the workforce.

"It is a complete disgrace that the bank, which is 41%-owned by the taxpayer, continues to cut jobs in such a cavalier manner.

"In the middle of an economic crisis, a bank part-owned by the public should be keeping jobs in the UK, not exporting them abroad."

Mr Hook added: "Unite has warned Lloyds Banking Group that if they are looking for a period of stability and growth to return it to profitability, this cannot and will not be achieved by continuous and damaging job loss announcements.

"Unite opposes these cuts and will be doing everything possible to stop compulsory redundancies."

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Weather: Big Freeze Leads To Nine Deaths

The icy weather has led to the deaths of nine people in the last week.

Motorists walk back to their cars after a fire in Dartmoor blocked the road

Among those who died was 54-year-old James Hurst who fell over after he had been dropped off by taxi following an evening at a local pub on Saturday.

Neighbours saw his body lying near a doorstep at about 8am the next day. Police confirmed Mr Hurst suffered a head injury which they were treating as an accident.

Tributes were also paid yesterday to postman John Bircham, who collapsed as he approached the end of his deliveries in and around the Somerset town of Dulverton on Saturday.

Ablaze: a car fire on the B3212 at Dartmoor, Devon

It is understood that the 57-year-old father of two was towed out of a snowdrift by a farmer before collapsing soon afterwards.

A woman found dead in a garden early on Sunday is believed to have collapsed in the snow after a night out.

Bernadette Lee, 25, was discovered in the front garden of the house next to her sister's by a man walking his dog in Church Meadows, Deal, Kent, at 7.30am.

Driver Matthew Shipton was on his way home from work when the blaze started

Kent Police are investigating the cause of death but there have been reports that she had no visible injuries and was found without a coat.

A man was also killed in another weather-related incident when the car he was driving left the road and crashed into a tree on the A12 in Essex on Sunday night.

Elsewhere, 16-year-old Liam Stafford remains critically ill in hospital after being injured while sledging in Flatts Lane Country Park, Normanby in Middlesbrough on Sunday afternoon.

Fire crews use a raft to reach a boy who fell through the ice (Pic: WMFS)

Meanwhile, more snow has fallen across some parts of the UK causing disruption to schools and travel networks and stranding motorists in their cars.

Up to 9cm fell overnight across parts of south and south-west England, the West Midlands and parts of Wales, but it has been generally light.

In Somerset, 30 people were forced to abandon their cars and spend the night in a shelter after heavy snow and fallen trees blocked the A39 between Bridgwater and Wilton.

Children make their way through the ice to school in Princetown, Dartmoor

Police rescued the stranded drivers in the early hours of the morning and took them to a local village hall where they spent the night.

A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset police said: "At 1am we became aware that about 30 people were stuck on a road that was impassable, primarily because of snow but also because of fallen trees.

"Officers from different districts in 4x4s were first on the scene to help and we asked the local fire station to open up and serve hot drinks and spoke with the council and identified a key holder for a nearby village hall.

Snow today is expected to be generally light

"It was a group effort by the emergency services and a bit of community spirit."

Another driver had a lucky escape after his car caught fire on the B3212 at Dartmoor in Devon. Matthew Shipton, 21, was driving home from work when his engine suddenly burst into flames.

Firefighters were called and put out the blaze.

Emergency services were also called to Sutton Park in Sutton Coldfield where a boy, believed to be 15, had apparently tried to walk on the frozen surface of a large pool of water.

Blizzard: People struggle across a car park in Shepton Mallet

After falling through he managed to escape the icy water and reach an island about 30 metres (100ft) from the shore, but was suffering from the effects of the cold.

Fire crews from Sutton Coldfield, Erdington and Perry Barr were sent to the park, along with the police and ambulance service.

They were able to rescue the boy using an inflatable raft, and he was taken to hospital.

A spokesman for West Midlands Fire Service said: "This incident is a very timely reminder about the need for us all to stay safe and sensible in these very cold weather conditions.

Icy: Snow and ice covers Bradgate Park in Newtown, Leicestershire

"As sturdy as it might look, there is no way of knowing the thickness of ice on pools, lakes and other waterways. Please stay off it, and make sure that any children you know are aware of the dangers.

"People who put themselves at risk by venturing on to ice also endanger the lives of anyone who might have to rescue them.

"We're also urging dog owners to keep them on leads, so that they and their pets don't get into difficulties."

The icy weather has already caused problems across the country this week with hundreds of schools closed, dozens of flights cancelled and train networks disrupted.

Snow is cleared by a farmer on a road near Auchterarder, Scotland

It has also led to the deaths of at least nine people, including a man who is believed to have died after slipping on ice near his home in in Accrington, Lancashire after a night out.

Temperatures are expected to become milder at the weekend; however melting snow coupled with rainfall could lead to flooding.

Sky's weather producer, Joanna Robinson, said: "The next few days will be quieter in terms of snowfall, but ice and freezing fog will remain hazards.

"The next spell of heavy, possibly disruptive, snow will be on Friday in the north and east, but it will be fairly short lived as it will turn milder over the weekend. Flooding will then be an issue.

"In terms of snowfall today, there will be patchy outbreaks across the West Midlands, Wales and south-west England, but it will be much lighter than last night.

"Parts of Wales and south-west England could see another 2-5cm, locally 10cm over the hills.

"Generally the snowfall should ease today but there may be some very local issues of disruption across the south-west.

"Tonight and Thursday night look very cold, with temperatures dropping below minus 10 Celsius in some rural spots."

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David Cameron Promises 'In-Out' EU Referendum

Mixed Reaction To Cameron Speech

Updated: 2:06pm UK, Wednesday 23 January 2013

David Cameron's key speech on Europe has sparked a predictably mixed reaction from within Britain and beyond. Here are the key quotes.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg

"It's entirely for the Prime Minister, as leader of the Conservative Party, to set out what he wants to put in the Conservative Party manifesto and what he wants to do if there was a Conservative majority government.

"My priority remains, and will always remain: yes, reform in Europe; yes, a referendum where the circumstances are right, as we've set out in law; but above and beyond anything else, promoting growth and jobs and building a stronger economy in a fairer society."

Labour leader Ed Miliband

Mr Miliband said that his party "do not want an in/out referendum".

"He is going to put Britain through years of uncertainty and take a huge gamble with our economy. He has been driven to it not by the national interest, he has been dragged to it by his party...

"He is running scared of Ukip and has given in to his party and he can't deliver for Britain."

Mayor of London Boris Johnson

"David Cameron is bang on. What most sensible people want is to belong to the single market but to lop off the irritating excrescences of the European Union.

"We now have a chance to get a great new deal for Britain - that will put the UK at the heart of European trade but that will also allow us to think globally."

Tony Blair

"Europe does need Britain and Britain needs Europe, which is why the sensible thing to do is to argue the case for reform in Europe.

"But the issue for me is why put that other question, why say we are actually going to put on the agenda the prospect of leaving altogether?

"Why would we do that? Why would we do that now when we don't know either what we are proposing, what the rest of Europe's proposing or what the outcome of these negotiations is going to be?"

Labour peer Lord Mandelson

Claims Mr Cameron has conceded "game, set and match to the hardliners in his party".

"It is not a search together in unity with our partners in Europe. Effectively, it's an ultimatum to them with a deadline.

"In my view, what he is doing is treating the European Union like a cafeteria service at which you arrive with your own tray and try to leave with what you want.

"Whether you believe that Mr Cameron's European gamble is a sincere attempt to reform and improve the European Union or a cynical ploy to head off opposition to his leadership in his own party, there is no mistaking he is playing for very high stakes indeed and I do not believe he is going to get what he wants by attempting to put a pistol to the heads of his fellow member states."

UKIP leader Nigel Farage

"Winning this referendum, if and when it comes, is not going to be an easy thing but I feel that UKIP's real job starts today.

"For the first time, a British prime minister is at least discussing the fact that leaving is an option. I remember many long, very lonely years in UKIP when, without a friend in the world, we were advocating this point of view.

"What today means is that in terms of the overall debate, the genie is out of the bottle and from now on the European debate will be taking place on terms that UKIP wants."

Shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna

"After this speech, we know that global companies looking to situate European headquarters are probably going to shy away from the UK, which will cost growth and cost jobs."

Former Lib Dem leader Sir Menzies Campbell

"This is more about Ukip than it is about the UK. The Prime Minister's efforts to reconcile his own position with that of his eurosceptic backbenchers leads logically to the position that if he could not get what he wanted out of Europe, he would be willing for the UK to leave.

"This will hardly commend his approach to those in the EU whose co-operation he requires."

Tory MP Dominic Raab

The Tory hailed a "moderate, statesman-like approach ... rightly focused on a fundamental change in strategic direction rather than tactics". "The ball is now in the EU's court," he said.

CBI director general John Cridland

"The EU single market is fundamental to Britain's future economic success, but the closer union of the eurozone is not for us.

"The Prime Minister rightly recognises the benefits of retaining membership of what must be a reformed EU and the CBI will work closely with Government to get the best deal for Britain."

Tory donor Lord Ashcroft

"Tories must remember that we can only get what we want once we win an election. The more we talk about changing our relationship with Europe, the less likely it is to happen.

"The new policy will be in the manifesto. The only question is whether we will get a chance to implement it - and that depends on whether we get a majority at the next election.

"And that depends on how voters think we are doing on the economy, jobs, public services, welfare, crime, immigration: whether we are on their side and understand their priorities.

"It is time for Tory Eurosceptics to declare victory and talk about something else."

Fiona Hall, leader of the Liberal Democrat delegation in the European Parliament

"David Cameron spoke not as Prime Minister but as a Tory Party leader backed into a corner by his outspoken tea-party backbenchers.

"Cameron has failed to reassure our European partners over the UK's commitment to push for EU-wide reform rather than unilateral repatriation and cherry-picking.

"As a result, the UK will lose further influence in Europe as other member states anticipate a 'Brexit' and discount the UK's views altogether."

Simon Walker, director general of the Institute of Directors

"A future referendum to decide the workings of our relationship is the best way to affirm Britain's participation in a free-market Europe which is competitive and deregulated.

"It is far better to deal with these issues than to shy away from them. British business is resilient. It is flexible and it can cope with change - or uncertainty. The eurozone crisis is the source of far more uncertainty than a referendum."

UKIP MEP and ex-European Commission chief accountant Marta Andreasen

"Mr Cameron fundamentally fails to understand the federal EU freight train. Whilst flexibility sounds great and was probably dreamed up by the Prime Minister whilst sitting in his slippers in Chequers, there is a different reality in Brussels.

"I can assure the Prime Minister that there is no such thing as flexibility when it comes to the EU's objective: a deeper federal Europe where member states' sovereignty becomes an anachronism.

"His speech, therefore, was naive. The train is on a one-way track."

Daniel Hannan Eurosceptic MEP

"This is David Cameron's finest speech."

French foreign minister Laurent Fabius

"We are like a football club, and if you want to join the football club, you can't then say you want to play rugby."

Martin Schulz, president of the European Parliament

Mr Schulz accused Mr Cameron of "playing a dangerous game for tactical, domestic reasons".

"The Prime Minister increasingly resembles the sorcerer's apprentice, who cannot tame the forces that he has conjured - forces that want to leave the EU for ideological reasons, to the detriment of the British people.

"Attempting to revisit major parts of the Acquis Communautaire and picking and choosing the bits of which the UK approves, sets a dangerous precedent.

"Indeed, it could lead to piecemeal legislation, disintegration and potentially the breakup of the Union.

"In a globalised world, it is not in the UK's interest to seek to downgrade to some kind of 'second class' EU membership and so choose to weaken its own influence on European and global affairs.

"We need a UK as a fully fledged member, not harbouring in the port of Dover."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel

"Germany, and I personally, want Britain to be an important part and an active member of the European Union.

"We are prepared to talk about British wishes but we must always bear in mind that other countries have different wishes and we must find a fair compromise.

"We will talk intensively with Britain about its individual ideas but that is some time over the months ahead."

Guido Westerwelle, German foreign minister

"Germany wants the United Kingdom to remain an active and constructive part of the European Union."

However, he insisted EU membership was an all-or-nothing proposition, saying: "Cherry-picking is not an option."

Ex-Belgian prime minister and Liberal Democrat leader in the European Parliament, Guy Verhofstadt

"By holding out the prospect of renegotiating the terms of Britain's membership of the EU and subjecting it to a referendum, David Cameron is playing with fire.

"He can control neither the timing nor the outcome of the negotiations and in so doing is raising false expectations that can never be met.

"There can be no question of individual renegotiation or opt-out by a single member state from agreed policies.

"To do so would precipitate the unravelling of the internal market as other countries sought their own concessions in return.

"Mr Cameron will not succeed if he attempts to hold his European partners to ransom."

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TweetDeck: Twitter Bosses Sent Closure Letter

By Pete Norman, Sky News Online

Sky News has obtained a letter sent to one of Twitter's UK companies by the business regulator, giving it written warning of impending closure.

Cardiff-based Companies House sent the letter to the two American directors of TweetDeck, at their registered London address.

The letter, dated January 22, stated: "The Registrar of Companies gives notice that, unless cause is shown to the contrary, at the expiration of 3 months from the above date the name of TweetDeck Ltd will be struck off the register and the company will be dissolved."

The letter sent by Companies House on January 22

The two directors are also top executives of the social media giant's San Francisco-based parent firm, Twitter Inc.

Dick Costolo is the social media giant's chief executive and Alex Macgillivray is general counsel and head of trust and policy.

TweetDeck is a platform used by 'power users' of Twitter and helps integrate the programme with other social media platforms, but has repeatedly failed to file compulsory accounts.

It was bought from British founder Iain Dodsworth in May 2011 for a reported £25m, but has not filed any accounts to Companies House since that time.

TweetDeck missed account filing deadlines last September and again last month.

In December Sky News revealed that both of the social media giant's British firms, TweetDeck and Twitter UK Ltd, had been fined £375 each by Companies House for separate filing oversight.

Twitter UK, which is controlled through a Dublin-based parent firm, subsequently filed its abbreviated accounts for 2011, revealing a profit of £16,500.

Twitter CEO Dick Costolo (l) and general counsel Alex Macgillivray

But TweetDeck has still not delivered accounts and has now been fined £750 and is now at heightened risk of closure and legal action.

According to Companies House, more than 2.7 million firms are actively registered and 99.1% are up to date in their filings.

Approached by Sky News, Twitter Inc declined to address the issue of continued regulatory filing problems in Britain.

Asked if it had plans to wind-down its UK subsidiary, a Twitter spokesperson said in a statement: "TweetDeck gives the Twitter experience more flexibility and allows advanced users to gain valuable insight into what's happening at this moment on Twitter.

"The TweetDeck team has been steadily innovating and improving the product, and we expect to see much more of that to come."

Last week Companies House informed the London Gazette of "a proposal to strike off" TweetDeck from the register.

TweetDeck has failed to file its compulsory accounts

The London Gazette is the official Government journal of record and allows officials at HM Revenue and Customs, along with creditors, to see firms at risk of being dissolved.

There is no suggestion TweetDeck has any outstanding tax liability.

Corporate solicitor Maung Aye, of Mackrell Turner Garrett, told Sky News: "Global companies usually have procedures in place to prevent problems like this arising in the first place. There should be clear lines of communication between the directors of the company and its professional advisors who would liaise with the directors to ensure the company's accounts are filed on time.

"At this stage it is unclear why the company has not filed its accounts. One possibility is that the company is in financial difficulty and is therefore not opposing the striking off action."

Mr Aye added: "I would however, expect the directors of the company to be advised that they should respond to the letters from the Registrar, in order to avoid any potential criminal liability and the company being fined."

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Ecstasy: Police Warning After Third Death

By Nick Martin, North Of England Correspondent

Police in northwest England are warning drug users that a possible contaminated batch of ecstasy tablets could be on the streets.

It comes after two men died in Greater Manchester and another collapsed and died in Liverpool.

Up to six other people were admitted to hospital with symptoms including shaking, shivering and complaints of a fever.

Detective Chief Inspector Howard Millington from Wigan CID, talking about the men who died in Greater Manchester, said: "We are very concerned at how these deaths of two apparently fit young men have occurred.

"It is possible that they are linked and this is something we are exploring as part of the investigation.

"Our main concern is that there may be a contaminated quantity of illegal drugs and if this goes unchecked it could result in further deaths.

Jordan Chambers, 19, who died in Manchester on Saturday

"If you are suffering adverse effects after taking one of these tablets I would advise you to go to hospital for a check up.

"I would always urge people not to take illegal drugs and remind them that you do not know what they have been made up with. They can contain poisons and illicit chemicals that can have potentially fatal effects."

The ecstasy tablets are said to be heart-shaped in purple, green, yellow and blue.

One of the men was admitted to Wigan Infirmary on Monday (pic:David Long)

Greater Manchester Police have urged anyone who may have purchased such pills to contact them.

Superintendent Andrea Jones, said the men are believed to have bought the drugs in the Wigan area.

"These deaths were closely linked, both had taken drugs prior to admitting themselves to hospital.

"We want to raise awareness in the community of the risks and dangers of taking illegal drugs. No one knows what poisons these drugs contain."

The men who died in Greater Manchester were 19-year-old Jordan Chambers, who was treated at the Royal Oldham Hospital on Sunday and 28-year-old Gareth Ashton, who died at Wigan Infirmary on Monday. Both had similar symptoms.

Deadly: the batch of ecstasy pills are known to be heart-shaped (file pic)

In Liverpool, a 26-year-old man collapsed and died in the early hours of Sunday. Merseyside Police believe it was also drugs related.

Greater Manchester Police are not currently linking his death to the two in their region, but said they could not discount a connection.

A spokesman for Merseyside Police said: "Emergency services were called at about 3.30am to a guest house in Tuebrook to a report that a male guest was unwell and had collapsed. Paramedics attended and the 26-year-old was taken to hospital where he unfortunately died a short time later.

"Although the investigation is in the early stages it appears that the deceased man visited Liverpool on Saturday and is believed to have taken tablets, possibly ecstasy somewhere in the city."

Anyone with information has been urged to phone police on 0161 856 7149 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

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Ian Terry Death: Manchester Police Plead Guilty

By Mike McCarthy, North Of England Correspondent

The chief constable of Greater Manchester Police Peter Fahy has pleaded guilty on behalf of the force to a criminal charge following the death of an officer.

PC Ian Terry, 32, died after being shot in the chest by a blank round during a training exercise in June 2008. 

The father of two from Burnley, Lancashire, had not been wearing body armour as the unit practised in a disused factory in Newton Heath.

The officer's widow Joanne was at Liverpool Crown Court to hear the chief constable admit "systemic failure" by the police in Manchester.

The case was brought by the Health and Safety Executive after the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to press charges.

An inquest in March 2010 found that PC Terry was unlawfully killed.

The Greater Manchester force will be sentenced in March this year.  The court heard that Mr Fahy was not with the Manchester force during the time of the officer's death but accepted "organisational failures".

Two police training officers identified only by the pseudonyms 'Francis' and 'Eric' pleaded not guilty to breaches of Health and Safety law.

They were granted anonymity and made their pleas from behind a specially erected screen.

Their case has been adjourned to a trial date in June.

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Defence Cuts: 5,300 Soldiers To Lose Jobs

Do Defence Cuts Weaken Britain?

Updated: 2:38pm UK, Tuesday 22 January 2013

By Alistair Bunkall, Defence Correspondent

There is really just one question to consider when analysing the announcement of the latest defence cuts: will the resulting military be capable of defending Britain against any threat?

Defence of the realm is of course no longer dogfights over Dover or cannon balls in the Channel.

The threat to the UK comes from global terrorism, groups that operate in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen, North Africa… the list goes on.

The threat is now terrorism not invasion, although that should go without saying.

Defence is now achieved through attack - that is how the US and its allies approached the threat of al Qaeda in Afghanistan. They went in to seek out the enemy post 9/11.

This article is not the place to get into a debate over the success or otherwise of that intervention but I use it as an example because that kind of approach is how future threats will be addressed, whether in the Middle East, Africa or wherever

Of course, governments would prefer operations to play out along the lines of the Libyan conflict - in and out within months, objective achieved, loss of life minimal.

But a government can hardly shape its armed forces using that model as its guide. It is too perfect and war is never perfect.

And so while we are considering all of this we have the perfect hypothesis - Mali.

The threat in Mali has been apparent for sometime, but French intervention came somewhat out of the blue.

And that highlights an important point: Britain's armed forces need to be ready for the unexpected.

My instinct remains that the UK government will resist temptation or requests to send troops to bolster the French effort. That continues to be the firm government line.

If there is one caveat though, then it would be to reiterate the point that conflicts are fluid.

What starts out as being a stubborn political position can quickly change as a war progresses.

Britain is providing logistical support and I would expect transport aircraft like the C-17s to remain on loan for a little longer.

Intelligence gathering is also an area that Britain could help with, and I believe it will.

It would be no surprise if a Sentinel aircraft leaves its base at RAF Waddington to provide eyes and ears 40,000 feet above West Africa for example.

But there simply is not the public or political appetite to get involved in a big way right now, and neither is there the budget.

The threat posed by insurgents in Mali and terrorists in Algeria is of very great concern to the UK government, but they want this to remain a French issue with British help on the fringes.

What if the Kenyan or Nigerian governments ask Britain for support at some point in the future, in the way the Malian government turned to the French?

Then the UK would be hard pushed to keep its distance. What if Syria or Iran demands international military intervention some time down the line?

It is against these prospects that the redundancies must be judged. And we should not just focus on job losses - budget restraints affect equipment too.

Much has been written about the wisdom or lack thereof, of future aircraft carrier capability and the prospect that the new Queen Elizabeth carrier will be without planes to fly of it for some time.

I mentioned 9/11 earlier and that event, like the 7/7 bombings, gives us another area of defence capability to examine - intelligence gathering.

A massive army, air force or navy is not going to prevent domestic terrorism - effective intelligence gathering can.

The Government would be unwise to reduce the capabilities of MI5 or MI6.

A country's security services provide a first line of defence at home and serve as an invaluable source for all matters international. A first class defence set-up must have balance.

Another area of concern that the job cuts raise is the potential loss of experience.

British soldiers have seen more than a decade of continuous conflict which has come at a cost, but has bred experienced troops. Britain needs to be careful not to lose this experience.

It should be said that Britain is far from being the only country to cut its defence budget - most western countries are doing the same, the US included.

And with a long military history, the like of which Britain is very proud, it is especially difficult to witness a respected army being cut to a size not seen since the 18th century.

It does not necessarily follow though that Britain's armed forces cannot retain that global respect.

Defence and political chiefs argue that they are shaping the armed forces for they way they imagine future conflicts will pan out, but no-one likes budget cuts, that goes against simple human nature.

And anyway, what country can ever truly determine the passage of a conflict? Do we really think the US, Britain and others imagined they would still be in Afghanistan when they went into the country all those years ago?

The conclusion I come to is this: it will be the scope of future prospective conflicts that determine the nature of British military intervention rather than what has for centuries been the opposite: Britain pro-actively involving itself in conflicts in an attempt to shape the world.

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Footballers In Court Over Sex Assault Claims

A group of footballers took pictures of themselves sexually assaulting a drunken 19-year-old woman, the Old Bailey has heard.

The Brighton and Hove Albion players wanted to have "a permanent record of their conquest", jurors were told.

The four sportsmen took the young woman back to their hotel room and assaulted her after celebrating victory for their club in the Sussex Senior Cup, it was alleged.

Anton Rodgers, the 19-year-old son of Brendan Rodgers, manager of Liverpool FC, Lewis Dunk, 21, George Barker, 21, and former team-mate Steve Cook, 21, who now plays for Bournemouth, all deny sexual assault.

The four also deny voyeurism.

Anton Rodgers arrrives at court, accompanied by his father, Brendan

The offences are said to have happened at the Jury's Inn Hotel in Brighton in July 2011.

Richard Barton, prosecuting, said: "This case concerns how a group of young professional footballers, intoxicated after a night out together celebrating a cup final victory, took advantage of a young woman, who herself was intoxicated and who was obviously in a vulnerable condition.

"After taking her back to a hotel room, they waited until she had fallen asleep, and so was unable to resist, and then sexually assaulted her in a deliberately humiliating way.

"Her dress was pulled up, exposing her body ...

"They compounded the humiliation by taking photographs of themselves doing so in order to have a permanent record of their conquest."

He added: "They did so for their own gratification, intending to share the photographs between themselves and they may have done so to share with others at their football club.

"These were the actions of a group of arrogant young men labouring under the misguided belief that, by reason of their privileged position, they could with impunity take advantage of a young woman in this way, because even if she realised what they had done to her, she would not dare report it."

He said the teenager - described as chatty and bubbly - did not tell police for six months "through fear of repercussions".

She finally made a complaint after being "repeatedly taunted" about the incident by another footballer at the club.

The families of the accused, including Rodgers' father, were in the public gallery as the case was opened.

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British Toddlers 'Europe's Fussiest Eaters'

By Liz Lane, Sky Reporter

A survey into European toddlers' eating habits has found those from the UK are the most likely to refuse food - with British parents most likely to give in to what their child wants.

The European Toddler Nutrition Index research suggested children under five years old from the UK are the fussiest eaters, with 26% refusing meals at least once a day - compared to 15% in both France and Germany.

Nikki Carlisle, from south London, has a 15-month-old daughter, Ella, and admits mealtimes can be a struggle.

"It can be stressful because you want the best for them, and you know the best is home-cooked food, and if they're refusing to eat it then, yeah, naturally stressful," she said.

The survey found that 43% of mothers from the UK let their toddler get away with not eating certain foods in order to save time and effort, compared to 33% in France and 41% in Germany.

French mother Astrid Guler lives in London with her 17-month-old son Mathis and said she was surprised by some of the eating habits here.

"When I take the tube or the bus I'm always quite amazed when I see kids going to school eating a bag of crisps in the morning, which is quite shocking," she said.

"And also, when I go shopping and I see the baskets of certain women and what they're buying for their children, it doesn't seem very balanced."

Children's food expert Annabel Karmel believes UK mums have a hard time though.

"We work longer hours than anyone else in Europe and, as a consequence, parents feel quite guilty about not spending enough time with their children, and so often just give children whatever they want to eat just so they're happy," she said.

According to the survey, 69% of UK toddlers regularly refuse food, compared to 54% of French under-fives and 58% of those in Germany.

A total of 1,005 British mothers and 1,531 across Netherlands, France, Germany, Spain, Sweden, and Italy were surveyed for Growingupmilkinfo.

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Avalanche Survivor Leapt To Safer Ground

A survivor of an avalanche that killed four climbers in the Scottish Highlands escaped by leaping from the collapsing sheet of snow and wedging his ice pick into firmer ground.

The man, who did not want to be named, said in a statement: "All in the group loved the mountains and are experienced winter walkers.

"My sincere thanks goes to the members of the public, mountain rescue teams and other emergency services who assisted."

PhD students Christopher Bell and Tom Chesters, and junior doctor Una Finnegan, were swept 1,000ft (305m) to their deaths while descending from a mountain in Glencoe on Saturday afternoon.

A second woman also killed in the accident was later named as Dr Rachel Majumdar, 29, who worked at Harrogate District Hospital.

Dr Majumdar was originally from Merseyside, but was most recently living in Leeds. Her next of kin had asked for her name to be withheld until her extended family were informed.

Another survivor, a 24-year-old woman, remains in a critical condition after suffering severe head injuries.

Christopher Bell and Una Finnegan died in the avalanche

She is being treated at Glasgow's Southern General Hospital, where she was flown after initially being treated at Belford Hospital in Fort William.

Friends have been paying tribute to the three young climbers killed.

Mr Bell, 24, from Blackpool, Lancashire, was studying for a PhD in ocean mapping in Oban, while 28-year-old Mr Chesters had been living in Leeds and working towards his qualification at Hull University.

Their friend Sam Morris, 35, said both were elite outdoor pursuits competitors who spent most of their free time on the mountains.

"It was so few years lived but I know there's not much either one of them would have done differently," he said.

"They seized every opportunity. They'd do things that people who spend their whole lives sitting behind a desk wish they could have done.

"When they died they were with the people they loved, doing what they loved."

Ms Finnegan, 25, who was living in Edinburgh, was originally from Coleraine in Co Londonderry.

Independent councillor David McClarty said his thoughts and prayers were with the Finnegan family.

"This young woman, a qualified doctor, had her whole life ahead of her and then it is tragically cut short.

Prayers were held for the victims at St Munda's Church in Glencoe on Sunday

"The family is a Christian one and hopefully they will get some comfort from the fact that she died doing something she enjoyed."

The tragedy struck at about 2pm as the group of six made their descent on Bidean Nam Bian.

A major search operation was launched involving both Glencoe and Lochaber mountain rescue teams, and specialist police dogs.

Andy Nelson, deputy head of Glencoe Mountain Rescue, who co-ordinated the rescue, said the avalanche would have unfolded in "a split second".

"Being in an avalanche is literally like standing on a carpet and having it pulled out from underneath you. Any thoughts of trying to swim out from out of it is futile," he said.

"You are on steep ground, essentially standing on a raft of snow that is sliding downhill at speeds of maybe 40mph to 50mph.

"It would have unfolded in a split second, they would have felt the snow moving and then they would have been travelling at a speed that was impossible to stop.

"The man that survived was standing above the snow and we think he actually jumped and got his ice axe into firmer snow.

"They slid over some very rocky ground and ended up about 1,000 feet below, under between 1.5 and two metres of snow.

"It's a brutal experience. There are enormous forces at work and you are being twisted about at high speed," he added.

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British Grandfather Wrestles Shark in Oz

By Jonathan Samuels, Australia Correspondent

An heroic British holidaymaker helped wrestle a 2m (6ft) shark off the Australian coast to stop beachgoers being attacked.

Paul Marshallsea, 62, from Wales, was on a month's break with his family when the shark swam right up to swimmers and children paddling on the shore on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.

A local TV crew, which was on the beach filming another story, captured the moment when Mr Marshallsea and two other men  ran into the water and grabbed the shark in an attempt to get it to swim away.

At one point the shark is seen thrashing about in the water as Mr Marshallsea tries to stop it lunging at beachgoers. It eventually breaks free, pushing one of the other men over.

The grandfather, from Merthyr Tydfil, told Wales Online: "We got hold of his tail and pulled with all our might to get the shark back into deep enough water so that the poor thing could survive.

"While I was pulling the shark by the tail back into deeper water her 2ft-long babies were swimming through my legs. They must have got lost and marooned by the shallow sand banks and got beached.

"But the trouble was when we got the shark to just over knee deep it then turned on us and just missed me with a bite which was a fraction away from my leg.

"A shark that one minute ago was so docile now just nearly took my leg off in a split second - it was that quick."

Holidaymakers and locals watched as the men tried to persuade the distressed dusky whaler shark to head back out to sea. 

Lifeguards on the beach advised the men to stay clear of the shark, but in the end the man helping Mr Marshallsea managed to push it out to deeper waters.

Lifesaver Luke Turner was on duty at the time and told Sky News: "A shark beaching itself means one of two things, it wants to die because it is either really sick or because it's really hungry."

Tourist Tash Kimlin was with her family at Bulcock Beach when the drama happened.

She shouted out to her two young children when the alarm was raised.

"It was pretty scary, yeah, I was just calling out to them and they couldn't really understand what I was saying," she said.

The dusky shark, which reaches 4.2m (14ft) in length and weighs 347 kg (765 lb), is considered dangerous to humans and has been known to attack.

It has a slender, streamlined body and can be identified by its short round snout, long sickle-shaped pectoral fins, the ridge between its first and second dorsal fins, and faintly marked fins.

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Two Die As Winter Weather Continues Grip On UK

A 25-year-old woman found collapsed in the snow could have died after falling in sub-zero temperatures after a night out, Kent police said.

The woman, named as Bernadette Lucy Lee by Sky sources, was discovered by a man walking his dog in Church Meadows in Deal at 7.30am on Sunday morning.

A man also died following a crash in snowy conditions on the A12 near Kelvedon in Essex about 7pm on Sunday.

Ms Lee was found dead in Deal (Kent Online)

Police are still investigating the cause of Ms Lee's death but confirmed they are looking at the possibility that the she got into difficulties as she made her way to her sister's house, which was near to where she was found. 

A police spokesman said: "There are other possibilities we are looking out but one theory is that this is a tragic accident where a young woman was on her way home from a night out, but she didn't make it to where she was staying.

"We don't know if that was because of the cold, or she slipped or she was drunk or she became ill."

Earlier, police said the woman was pronounced dead at the scene and the death was not being treated as suspicious but it was unexplained.

A post-mortem examination will be held later this week.

Police said Ms Lee's death may have been a "tragic accident"

The man killed in the car crash was a 59-year-old from the Colchester area, police said. He died at the scene after his car left the road and crashed into a tree on the embankment.

His passenger, a 57-year-old woman, also from the Colchester area, was taken to hospital with serious but not life-threatening injuries. 

And a teenager who was badly injured while sledging in Middlesbrough remains critically ill in hospital, police said.

Liam Stafford, 16, hit a tree in Flatts Lane Country Park, Normanby, about 1pm on Sunday.

He would usually be playing football for his team North Ormesby FC Under-16s, but the game was cancelled due to the weather.

He was flown by the Great North East Air Ambulance to the James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough suffering from head injuries.

In Kent, a man was taken to hospital with broken bones in his face when he was racially attacked after confronting a group of youngsters throwing snowballs at him.

Also, a young woman who was seriously hurt in an avalanche that killed four of her friends in the Scottish Highlands remains in a critical condition in hospital.

The freezing temperatures and icy conditions are once again causing delays and disruption, with more than 3,000 schools shut and motorists being urged to take extra time and care on roads.

The bus slipped off the road in icy conditions in Caerphilly

The icy conditions caused a school bus with 20 children and three adults on board to skid off the road before going down an embankment in South Wales.

Fire crews were called to the scene of the accident in Llanfach, Caerphilly, south Wales, just after 9am.

No-one was injured but some of the youngsters, who were all aged eight to 12, were taken to a doctor's surgery as a precautionary measure.

As much as 10 to 20cm (four to eight inches) of snow is expected across Scotland and northern England, prompting the Met Office to issue amber warnings which urge the public to be prepared.

Yellow warnings - which advise people to take extra care - continue for parts of the north, east and southeast England as well as Northern Ireland, where up to five centimetres (around two inches) of snow could fall. 

"Today's snowiest areas will be northeast England and eastern Scotland," said Sky News weather presenter Isobel Lang.

"Although sleety on the east coast, it will be snow inland where 10 to 20cm is forecast. Drifting snow, poor visibility and blizzard conditions are likely over higher routes.

"The snow will continue in the northeast tonight and into Tuesday although it should turn drier across northeast England.

"Later tonight and during Tuesday morning the weather is set to deteriorate across the southwest with the potential for some heavy snow across South Wales and parts of southwest England."

The temperatures will not start rising until the weekend, said Lang.

"Until then there will be further problems with ice and snow and daytime temperatures will continue to struggle to climb much above freezing," she said.

"Wednesday and Thursday look largely dry and cold with ice and patchy fog. Friday should see a slow change spread eastwards and westerly winds bring a rise in temperature later and a slow thaw."

On the roads, there are lane closures on motorways up and down the country, with hazardous driving conditions on the M4 at Bristol.

Heavy snowfall has closed two major roads across the Pennines, the A628 Woodhead Pass and the A66 between Brough and Bowes.

The Highways Agency said both routes were closed for some hours and advised drivers to find alternative routes across the Pennines.

Spennymore in County Durham

A section of the M6 in Cumbria was temporarily closed after a Land Rover vehicle towing a trailer of bullocks overturned.

Heavy falls in the North East made for a tricky morning commute for many. Northumbria Police said the A68 in Northumberland was blocked, with problems at its junction with the A69.

Drivers were advised to avoid the B6341 at Rothbury and reported a four-vehicle collision on the Spine Road at Cramlington, next to the 3 Horse Shoes roundabout.

Officers also said the A1 in the Newcastle area suffered traffic congestion.

There is also another day of snow and ice-related delays and cancellations on the country's rail network.

Virgin Trains warned of some cancellations in its services between London and Birmingham and the North West, while services into London King's Cross were also affected.

Eurostar said snow and ice in the UK and northern France were leading to speed restrictions and delays on all its trains. Six services were also cancelled, with customers told they could exchange their tickets for another date.

South West Trains said it was running a revised timetable throughout its network because of the weather, and would be concentrating on its mainline services.

Freddy the Boston Terrier plays in the snow in Nottingham

The company said there would be no services between Ascot in Berkshire and Ash Vale in Surrey, between Virginia Water and Weybridge, or from Salisbury to Bristol. It was also running revised timetables on other routes.

Southern said trains were unable to operate between Lewes and Haywards Heath in Sussex or between Horsham and Dorking or Reigate and Redhill in Surrey. The Southern service between South Croydon and Milton Keynes was also suspended.

At Heathrow Airport planes have been grounded for a fourth day and passengers were advised to check the status of their flights before travelling to the airport. More than 180 flights have been cancelled - about 10% of the day's capacity.

People were left fuming after 260 flights were cancelled - 20% of the airport's usual business - on Sunday.

Gritters have been out in force at Gatwick Airport to keep the planes running. The airport has only had two cancellations on Monday morning, although there are delays of around an hour on the Gatwick Express train service.

Flights have also been suspended at Leeds Bradford, Doncaster Sheffield, Norwich airports and East Midlands airports.

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Algeria Crisis: PM To Provide Crisis Update

Algeria's prime minister says 37 foreign hostages were killed during the four day gas plant crisis - with several executed with a bullet to the head.

Abdelmalek Sellal said at least one Canadian was among the gang of kidnappers also from Egypt, Mali, Niger, Mauritania and Tunisia and that the kidnappers crossed the border from northern Mali before swooping on the desert installation.

He said that 29 of the militants were killed and three arrested as the siege was brought to an end by an Algerian military assault at the weekend.

Mr Sellal said one Algerian hostage was also killed - bringing the total hostage death toll to 38 - and that at least five foreigners are still missing.

David Cameron is due to update MPs on the aftermath of the siege in the House of Commons this afternoon.

Paul Morgan

Three Britons are now known to have died in a four-day siege at the BP gas plant and three more are believed to be dead. A UK resident from Colombia is also thought to have died.

Veteran terrorist Mokhtar Belmokhtar's Mulathameen Brigade has threatened to carry out more attacks unless Western powers cease operations in neighbouring Mali, according to a Mauritanian news agency.

In a statement the al Qaeda linked group, whose name means "The Masked Ones", reportedly said the hostage-takers offered negotiations on freeing the gas plant captives but that Algerian authorities responded with a military assault.

A Downing Street spokesman has ruled out the possibility of Britain sending troops into combat to support France's intervention against Islamist rebels in neighbouring Mali.

Another image shown on Algerian TV

The first two British victims to be officially named are Paul Morgan, 46 and Garry Barlow, 49, both from Liverpool.

Mr Morgan was reported to be a former Foreign Legion soldier and Gulf War veteran who was in charge of security at the In Amenas plant.

His mother Marianne, 65, and partner Emma Steele, 36, described him in a statement as a "true gentleman".

They said: "Paul was a true gentleman, a family man, he very much loved his partner Emma, his mum, brothers and sister, of whom he was very proud.

"He loved life and lived it to the full. He was a professional man proud to do the job he did and died doing the job he loved.

"We are so proud of him and so proud of what he achieved in his life. We are devastated by Paul's death and he will be truly missed."

Married father-of-two Mr Barlow was a system supervisor for BP at the In Amenas plant.

In a statement released through the Foreign Office, his widow Lorraine said: "Garry was a loving, devoted family man. He loved life and lived it to the full.

"He was very much loved by myself, his sons, mother and sister and the rest of his family and friends and will be greatly missed.

"He was very proud of his family, as they were of him. We are totally devastated by the news of his death."

The siege ended on Saturday and Algerian authorities warned the figure of 23 hostages killed at the remote facility would rise sharply.

Bomb squads searching for booby-trap devices left by the Islamist militants discovered 25 bodies, some so badly disfigured they could not be identified.

A Filipino survivor of the siege has told how foreign hostages were used as human shields to prevent Algerian troops firing on them from helicopters.

Father-of-four Joseph Balmaceda said: "Whenever government troops tried to use a helicopter to shoot at the enemy, we were used as human shields.

"We were told to raise our hands. The government forces could not shoot at them as long as we were held hostage."

Mokhtar Belmokhtar sent a video to a Mauritanian-based news website in which he claimed one of his cells, known as "Those Who Sign In Blood", was responsible for the attack.

Foreign Secretary William Hague branded the militants "cold-blooded murderers" and said reports they had "executed" seven of their hostages before the final battle could well be true.

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