Smokers Who Quit 'Live Up To A Decade Longer'

By Nick Martin, Sky News Correspondent

The largest ever study of the hazards of smoking amongst women has revealed that those who give up by middle age can extend their lives by more than a decade.

The research, published in the medical journal The Lancet today, shows that women who stop smoking before the age of 30 slash their chances of a smoke-related death by 97%.

In one of the biggest studies of its kind more than 1.3m women were recruited between 1996 and 2001.

Those who were still smokers after three years were nearly three times as likely as non-smokers to die over the next nine years, the study revealed.

Professor Sir Richard Peto from the University of Oxford, who co-wrote the report, said: "If women smoke like men, they die like men.

"But whether they are men or women, smokers who stop before reaching middle age will, on average, gain about an extra 10 years of life."

Leanne Dixon, 21, a customer service assistant from Manchester, started smoking when she was 13.

"These statistics really make me think," she told Sky News.

"I've thought about giving up for ages but never have. But it makes you think that you have to stop while you're young."

Alyson Aston and her friend Lyn Faulkner started smoking at the age of 15. Now in their 40s, they say giving up is not an option.

"It's not these statistics that make me want to give up, it's the cost," said Ms Aston.

Ms Faulkner added: "I think a lot about giving up but I don't have the willpower.

"But when you think about living an extra 10 years, it really is a long time."

Those who have had a brush with cancer have a cautionary tale to tell.

June Atherton, 66, used to smoke 60 cigarettes a day. She gave up at the age of 50 but was diagnosed with lung cancer 10 years later.

She said: "I stop young women in the street and tell them that they're killing themselves by smoking. They think I'm mad but it's an important message."

Paula Chadwick, chief executive of the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation, told Sky News: "This is important research and tells us that stopping as early as you can will prolong your life.

"More women are being diagnosed with lung cancer and we need to bring those figures down by supporting those who want to give up and making sure the young don't start."

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CCTV Clue In Hunt For Fugitive 'Sex Attacker'

Police hunting for a fugitive who is believed to have sexually attacked two schoolgirls while on the run have released CCTV pictures.

Ivan Leach, also known as Lee Cyrus, did not return from day release from North Sea Camp open prison in Boston, Lincolnshire, earlier this month.

People are being warned not to approach him under any circumstances and described him as "dangerous and predatory".

Officers fear he carried out a very serious sexual assault in Tayside, Scotland, since he absconded on October 9.

Despite a large police search and numerous reported sightings 47-year-old Cyrus remains at large.

New CCTV footage, believed to be of Cyrus in Preston city centre on October 17, has now been released in the hope that someone might come forward with information. It shows him walking down Friargate at 6.50pm in the direction of the railway station.

He has links to Preston, and has known to be in the city on a number of occasions since he absconded, but it is believed he could be anywhere in the country.

Police enquiries are also ongoing in Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire and Tayside.

Cyrus was jailed in 2005 for robbing a 90-year-old woman in Ribbleton, Lancashire. He was given a life sentence with a minimum tariff of five years. He also has convictions for burglary and robbery and assault.

Detective chief inspector Ian Dawson of Preston Police said Cyrus "is an extremely dangerous and predatory individual who poses a serious threat to members of the public".

He added: "He has previous convictions for burglary, sex offences against a young girl, assault and robberies in which he has targeted elderly people in their own homes.

"We believe he could be sleeping rough and travelling extensively throughout the country."

Cyrus is described as white, around five feet 11 inches tall, of stocky build with cropped hair and hazel eyes.

Anyone with any information about his possible whereabouts is being urged to contact local police either in person or on 101, or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

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Victory For Man Who Took Cold Caller To Court

A businessman plagued by nuisance phone calls offering compensation for Payment Protection Insurance has secured £220 in an out-of-court settlement.

Richard Herman, 53, was so fed up with the unwanted calls arriving from India, he decided to take matters into his own hands.

He warned the company that, in future, he would invoice them £10 for every minute of his time they used.

When the calls continued he began recording them before finally invoicing the company £195 for their use of his "time, telephone and electricity".

Upon receipt of the invoice the marketing firm acting on behalf of UK-based PPI Claimline Ltd, denied making the calls. When Mr Herman revealed he had recorded evidence, they still refused to pay.

But when Mr Herman filed a claim in the small claims court for the unpaid invoice - plus £25 in costs - the company offered to settle the debt out of court and transferred £220 into his bank account.

Mr Herman filed in the small claims court when his invoice was not paid

Mr Herman said: "I kept being called, as we all do, and I thought the only way for them to stop would be for me to speak to them and say, 'For goodness sake, take me off your list!'

"Then it occurred to me to tell them that if they call again I'll charge for my time. When they continued calling I sent them an invoice for 19.5 minutes."

To encourage others to do the same Mr Herman has set up a website with examples of covering letters and invoices to send to nuisance callers.

Even though the validity of Mr Herman's original invoice was not tested in court, he believes anyone who warns cold-calling companies they will be charged if they call, have a right to invoice them.

"I did business studies at 17 and studied 'offer-and-acceptance' so I knew a verbal contract is just as valid as a written one but harder to prove.

"The recorded calls proved I did tell them I would charge for my time if they called again".

Mr Herman, who works in the telephone industry selling call-recording equipment, said his action was a last resort after asking the Information Commissioner and the Telephone Preference Service for help.

In a statment, PPI Claimline said: "We would like to stress that all our supplier relationships are subject to strict contractual provisions requiring full compliance with all relevant regulations, including those which relate to data protection and the telephone preference service.

"We would like to draw a clear line between the two calls to Mr Herman made on behalf of PPI Claimline and any other calls he received, which were nothing to do with PPI Claimline or its suppliers."

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Trains Cancelled Due To Driver Shortage

By Adele Robinson, Midlands Correspondent

A train company has cancelled more than 100 services due to a shortage of train drivers, causing anger among commuters.

London Midland cancelled 60 services and partially cancelled 40 others on Saturday, after hundreds of trains have been disrupted in recent weeks due to the problem.

The company has apologised to customers, saying the shortfall in qualified train drivers should be addressed by mid-December.

The services affected run mainly through the West Midlands to London and the north-west.

In the past three weeks 1.6 % of their services have been disrupted. The company usually provide 1,300 services a day.

A spokesperson from the train firm told Sky News: "We are being open and transparent so people can plan their journeys. Not all the disruption caused today (Saturday) is as the result of train driver shortages."

In the meantime, London Midland said they were working hard to ensure the impact on customers was kept to a minimum.

"We have a dedicated team focusing on delivering the train service on a day-by-day basis and as a result we have been able to run a near-normal timetable on all but a few days, compensating for the shortage with drivers who have volunteered for overtime."

However, some train passengers at Birmingham New Street say they are annoyed by the disruption.

One woman travelling into the city centre said: "I think it's a scandal really when lots of people are looking for work and there are enough people to do the work here. It's silly I can't understand it...I don't understand why they suddenly don't have enough."

Another family travelling from Northampton said: "We live in Northampton and we often like to come to Birmingham to see some shows but we have had to pay £10 parking at Northampton only to be told there were no trains available.

"How it's come to this I don't know. We have managed to get in this morning but getting home I don't know if we have a train or not."

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Anti-Tank Mines Stolen From Freight Train

Police are searching for a Ministry of Defence shipment of munitions stolen from a goods train in Warrington.

Sky sources understand they are powerful anti-tank mines.

Ten packages, each containing four separate plastic cases, were taken from the train as it travelled between Cumbria and Oxfordshire.

They were reported missing to British Transport Police at around 7.30am on Thursday when the train arrived at Didcot, Oxfordshire.

Seven of the packages were later discovered near a railway line in the Folley Lane area of Warrington, Cheshire.

The remaining three, which were made up of a total of 12 plastic cases, are still missing.

The munitions were on the train when it left Longtown in Cumbria at 11.30am on Wednesday.

Police understand the munitions were taken off the train while it was temporarily stationary in Warrington, and seven of the packages were discarded nearby.

They are described as being rectangular plastic tubes, approximately 4ft (1.2 metres) in length.

The North West Counter Terrorism Unit (NWCTU) is leading a joint investigation, which includes the Metropolitan Police, British Transport Police and MoD.

Assistant Chief Constable Terry Sweeney, from NWCTU, said: "A number of enquiries are now being made by police officers into this theft, and our main priority is to safely recover the missing items.

"At this stage there is nothing to suggest the theft is terrorist-related, but due to the potential complexity of the investigation, our enquiries are being led by counter-terrorism officers.

"We would like to appeal to any members of the public who may know the whereabouts of these items, or any persons involved in the theft of these items to contact the police immediately.

"I want to make it clear that, in their normal condition, these munitions are stable and do not pose a risk to the public.

"However, the materials could be hazardous if they were to be tampered with and we therefore ask that anyone who sees them or knows where they are to call the police as soon as possible."

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 0161 856 1027 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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EDF To Raise Gas And Electricity Prices

Energy giant EDF is to increase prices for householders by an average of 10.8%.

The rise, gas and electricity, around four times the rate of inflation, is set to be implemented on December 7.

EDF, which has 3.1 million customers and 5.5 million accounts overall, said its annual dual fuel bill was the lowest of the suppliers to have announced price rises so far.

Companies have blamed the changes on rising wholesale prices and increased running costs - especially for transporting gas and electricity to customers' homes - and the cost of energy efficiency programmes.

Martin Lawrence, EDF managing director of energy sourcing and customer supply, said: "We know that customers will not welcome this news and do not want to see prices going up.

"Our new prices will, however, be cheaper on average than those of all the other major suppliers which have announced standard price rises so far this autumn.

"We've taken extra measures to make sure the most vulnerable benefit from the best deals and we continue to help customers reduce their bills with energy efficiency measures."

Earlier this month Npower became the third of the so-called Big Six energy firms to confirm steep rises in its gas and electricity bills ahead of winter.

It said bills would increase by an average 8.8% for gas and 9.1% for electricity from November 26.

Just hours beforehand British Gas confirmed that its average dual fuel tariff would rise by 6% - or £80 annually - from November 16.

The Big Six - British Gas, EDF, E.On, NPower, Scottish Power and SSE - control 99% of the UK's domestic energy supplies.

E.ON is the only big supplier yet to announce price rises after it made a promise not to raise tariffs this year.

Last week the energy regulator Ofgem said it would make the market "simpler, clearer and fairer" for consumers.

The promise follows a call by the Prime Minister to energy giants to overhaul confusing tariff systems.

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Malala Dad: My Daughter Will Rise Again

By Lisa Dowd, Midlands Correspondent

The schoolgirl shot in the head by the Taliban in Pakistan will "rise again", her father has said.

Fifteen-year-old Malala Yusufzai was reunited with her father Ziauddin, mother Toorpekai and two brothers at Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital, where she is being treated.

The family flew in from Islamabad on Thursday night.

Malala was shot because she had campaigned for girls' education in Pakistan.

At a news conference, Mr Yusufzai described the shooting as a pivotal moment for the country. "When she fell, Pakistan stood. This is a turning point," he said.

Pakistani police are hunting prime suspect Atta ur Rehman

"I'm thankful to all the people all over the world. They condemned the attack and prayed for my daughter. 

"She will rise again, she will stand again."

Mr Yusufzai said Malala was walking, talking, eating and smiling - and that all signs of infection were gone. He added that she would be having hearing and sight tests later.

He said: "I am thankful that you are very much concerned about my daughter's health. You have supported the cause for which she stands, the cause of peace and education."

He said Malala had just done a second mid-term exam and was on her way home in a school van in the Swat Valley on October 9 when two men stopped the vehicle at pistol point and asked which child was Malala, before one opened fire.

Mr Yusufzai, who was speaking with his 12-year-old son Kushal Khan sitting beside him, said Malala had received good wishes from all over the world.

"She is a daughter of everybody, a sister of everybody," he said.

Malala hugs a toy as she recovers in hospital

When asked how he felt when he and his family saw Malala on Thursday night, he said: "I love her and last night when we met her there were tears in our eyes out of happiness."

Mr Yusufzai told reporters that he was thankful to doctors for the "excellent" and "world class" care Malala - who is now expected to make a full recovery - had received in Birmingham.

He was visibly moved as he described how he was told to prepare for Malala's funeral.

"I'm thankful to God," he said.

"I found angels on my side all around me ... she got the right treatment, at the right place, at the right time.

"In Pakistan for the first time we saw that all political parties, the government, children, women, elders, they were crying and praying to God. Christians, Sikhs, Hindus, indifferent of caste, colour or creed, they prayed for my daughter."

It comes after police in Pakistan named the prime suspect in connection with the shooting as 23-year-old Atta Ullah Khan, a chemistry student from the Swat district.

The hospital's Medical Director Dave Rosser said both Malala's long and short-term memory appeared to be intact - and that specialists do not believe there is any significant brain damage.

Describing the mood on Malala's ward, he said: "I think everyone is very pleased. Her father is a remarkable man, she is a remarkable young lady and I think everybody involved is pleased to help."

He said her skull would need to be reconstructed over the coming weeks but that her long-term prognosis was "excellent".

"There's no reason to think she won't make near to a full recovery," he said.

Dr Rosser said she would remain in hospital following the surgery for "a couple of months at most".

He added that Malala had been eating hospital food -and had also enjoyed a halal takeaway.

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Twitter Map Shows London's Top 10 Languages

By Lulu Sinclair, Sky News Online

London 2012 is now famous for something else as well as the Olympic Games - the languages spoken via the Twittersphere.

A heat map of languages used during the summer reveals the top 10 languages used in London with by far the largest number of tweets - 3.3m or 92.5% - being sent in English.

The top ten languages in London were sampled

The map, inspired by a one by self-named "map geek" Eric Fischer, was compiled for the social network site by James Cheshire, a lecturer at University College London's Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis and Ed Manley, a PhD student at UCL.

"London is such a diverse place and we had so many visitors arriving over the Olympics that we thought it would be interesting to see where the groups clustered - if they did - or where they separated out," James Cheshire told Sky News.

"In some ways, the results weren't so surprising in the sense that London is an international city and we expected a wide range of languages.

"Edgware Road, for example, had a lot of Arabic tweets (shown on the map in green), as we'd expect and the tweets confirmed that certain groups seem to be more dominant in some areas than in others.

"But we were interested to see that French tweets (shown in red) are not just restricted to South Kensington - which we'd expected - but there are quite a large number towards Lewisham and further out to the west of the city."

Some groups were not as prevalent as the researchers imagined.

"The Chinese are very low down in the rankings at 25. That could just be for cultural reasons - perhaps they don't tweet much. Or it could be that they don't have their location switched on - in that case, we weren't able to log the tweets. Or it could be that they're tweeting in English."

One particularly surprising revelation came from a language from the Philippines deciphered as Tagalog which came up as the 7th most tweeted language.

The unknown language turned out to consist of English online colloquialisms such as 'hahahahaha', 'ahhhhhhh' and 'lololololol'.

"I don't know much about Tagalog but it sounds like a fun language," Ed Manley said in his blog, going on to explain the language was excluded from the analysis.

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Tearful 'Rogue Trader' Tells Of UBS Losses

A trader accused of Britain's biggest fraud was allegedly trying to cover millions of pounds worth of losses incurred during the financial crisis for the bank he called his "family", a court has heard.

Kweku Adoboli, 32, is accused of gambling away £1.4bn while working as a trader for Swiss bank UBS.

At one point, he was at risk of causing the bank losses of $12bn (£7.5bn), jurors at Southwark Crown Court were told.

Adoboli wept as he gave evidence for the first time at his trial, in which he claimed his off-book trades were to cover $40m (£24.9m) annual losses of his portfolio of companies from 2008.

The court heard that by 2007 Adoboli, aged just 27, and more senior trader John Hughes, 25, were in charge of a portfolio of companies with assets of $50bn (£31.1bn).

"Our book was massive. A tiny mistake led to huge losses. We were these two kids trying to make it work," he said.

Mr Adoboli, wearing a dark suit and red tie, denied he was a "gambler" and said his knowledge of UBS's systems did not result in "fraudulent behaviour".

Fighting back tears, he said: "It's hard to find the words to describe the relationship I had with UBS as an organisation. It isn't about a bank. It was about what I thought was my family, considering how much (I) neglected my real friends and family.

"Every single bit of effort I put into that organisation was for the benefit of the bank, the people around me and the book I worked on.

"If I was not so proud to work for UBS, I would never put so much effort trying to convince them that we could achieve something at this bank."

He added: "To find yourself in Wandsworth Prison for nine months because all you did was work so hard for this bank..." before stopping as he broke down in tears.

Mr Adoboli is facing two counts of fraud and four counts of false accounting between October 2008 and September 2011, allegedly gambling away the money on high-risk illegal trades aimed at boosting his annual bonuses and job prospects.

The former public schoolboy worked for UBS's global synthetic equities division, buying and selling exchange traded funds (ETFs), which track different types of stocks, bonds or commodities such as metals.

Ghanaian-born Mr Adoboli enjoyed a rapid rise at UBS after completing an internship while a student at Nottingham University in 2002, the court heard.

Mr Adoboli told the court he feared UBS would not survive $52bn (£32.3bn) losses incurred in 2007-08 as the banking crisis took hold.

He said: "The effect on the organisation was incredible. There were times we thought there was no way the organisation would survive. I grew up with UBS. I felt very loyal to UBS.

"What could we do to help this organisation survive this incredible crisis?"

The trial continues.

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Hannah MacLeod's Olympic Medal Returned

Hockey player Hannah Macleod has had her missing Olympic bronze medal returned.

Scotland Yard said it been posted anonymously to the England Hockey head office in Buckinghamshire.

Bronze medals belonging to Macleod and rower Alex Partridge were allegedly stolen along with their TeamGB Olympic jackets on Tuesday.

The alleged thefts happened as they partied at a London nightclub after a reception hosted by the Queen at Buckingham Palace to celebrate the achievements of the 2012 athletes.

Metropoitan Police said they were retaining the medal as part of their inquiries, but that they were "looking forward to reuniting Hannah with her medal shortly".

Detective Chief Inspector James Harman, of Westminster CID, said: "We are still looking to recover the second medal, and we stress that our inquiries remain active.

"Our appeals for information stand and I take this opportunity to reiterate them. If the public can help we ask them to do so.

"Alex's medal has yet to be traced, and he is understandably keen to be reunited with it as soon as possible."

Macleod, 28, had asked via Twitter for whoever took the medal to post it back to the hockey headquarters at Bisham Abbey.

On Wednesday she tweeted: "I'm not after punishment. If you picked up a Bronze Olympic medal that isn't yours pls just send anonymously back to GB hockey-Bisham Abbey."

She told the Sun that she had been scouring eBay to see if it was on the popular auction website.

"I want it back so much. I had a look on eBay in case it ends up there," she told the newspaper.

A 31-year-old man was arrested in connection with the investigation on Thursday, before being bailed to return to a west London police station on 23 November, pending further enquiries.

Anyone with information is asked to call Westminster CID on 0207 321 7650, or Crimestoppers, anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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