Twitter: Police Investigate MP Rape Threats

Detectives are investigating a string of sexually explicit and violent tweets sent to an MP as TV classics expert Mary Beard outed an internet troll on Twitter.

Stella Creasy faced a vicious online attack after she spoke out in support of feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez, who received threats to rape and kill her on Twitter following her successful campaign to put Jane Austen's picture on the new £10 note.

The Walthamstow MP retweeted some of the sinister messages to her 30,000 followers as she warned the "morons" behind the abuse would face justice.

A spokesman for Scotland Yard said: "Officers in Waltham Forest received an allegation of malicious communications from an MP. The allegation relates to comments made on Twitter and is currently under consideration."

Ms Creasy has called for Twitter to take faster and stronger action against online thugs, and criticised the microblogging site's security policies.

She told Sky News: "This is illegal activity. It would be illegal if someone said this to you in the street, it would be a form of harassment, and it's legal online.

"And what we're looking for is companies like Twitter not simply to ask people to report stuff so they can think about it, but to actually work with the police so they can identify the individuals committing this crime."

She added: "It's not the technology that makes them idiots, it's because they are idiots. And actually Twitter has a role to play in helping us end the violence against women that this represents."

Tory MP Claire Perry, who has been advising David Cameron on measures to tackle the spread of extreme pornography and child abuse on the internet, has also received a torrent of abuse from Twitter users.

Ms Perez described how the online abuse had left her feeling "under siege"

The Devizes MP tweeted: "I am tempted to shut down my Twitter account given the trolling going on incl. to me - but that would be giving in."

Meanwhile, Ms Beard silenced an internet troll after naming and shaming him on Twitter.

The professor of classics at the University of Cambridge retweeted the "highly offensive" post from Oliver Rawlings, who has 243 followers on the social networking site.

In his tweet, Mr Rawlings called Ms Beard a "filthy old slut" and made a sexual comment.

Fellow users responded by condemning Mr Rawlings and within minutes he responded: "I sincerely apologise for my trolling. I was wrong and very rude. Hope this can be forgotten and forgiven."

Ms Beard said exposing trolls was the best tactic.

Talking to a fellow user about her decision to highlight the abuse, she tweeted: "It is a tough call. I have increasingly opted for name and shame. It has to be outed. And maybe his friends can say 'stop'."

Ms Perez described how the online abuse had left her feeling "under siege" and terrified in her own home.

She criticised the response from Twitter and claimed to have been blocked by Mark Luckie, one of its senior managers, after he was made aware of her ordeal.

Police have arrested a 21-year-old man in Manchester in connection with the abuse.

Twitter said it plans to include a button for reporting abuse within every tweet, which is already available on its iPhone app.

John Whittingdale, chairman of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee has told Sky News Twitter bosses may be called as witnesses in an inquiry to be held in the autumn on "harmful content on the internet".

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Todmorden: Major Clean-Up After Flash Flood

A major clean-up is under way after a flash flood burst through homes and swept away roads in a Pennines village.

Walsden, near Todmorden, in West Yorkshire, was hit by up to 18in (46cm) of water last night after a cloudburst and torrential rain.

Residents said the flood caused "sheer devastation" as it poured from a culvert, ripping out huge chunks of tarmac, and destroying roads.

Water is still pouring down a side street and through at least one house.

Around 20 homes have been flooded, and more heavy rain is on the way, bringing the risk of more flooding.

Police warn waves from cars will damage homes. Pic: Twitter/@jams1999

Roger Stansfield, who was cleaning up his property this morning, said: "It started raining really heavily and within 15 minutes this road was completely flooded to the depth of my wellington boots.

"There's nothing you can do."

Rushing water ripped up tarmac in Todmorden

Flood warden Keith Crabtree said an "unprecedented" amount of rain caused "sheer devastation" in the village.

"Every road in and out of Todmorden was flooded. There's still a lot of water coming off the hillside," he said.

"It happened so quickly. The floods 12 months ago took three days to build up.

"This one, we just got three quarters of an hour of cloudburst and there's just nothing you can do about that."

West Yorkshire Police have asked people to avoid travelling through the area, saying waves from driving through water could damage houses.

A man walks through floodwaters. Pic: Twitter/@jams1999

Railway lines are submerged and Walsden station is closed as maintenance crews repair the tracks.

People in the region are still struggling to recover from last year's severe flooding, which caused more than £3m of damage.

Prime Minister David Cameron went to Yorkshire in June 2012 to visit flood victims and warned he would "robustly" negotiate with insurance companies to make sure they paid out.

Water floods the tracks but does not stop services. Pic: Twitter/@jams1999

The Environment Agency currently has three flood alerts in place - two in the Midlands and one in the South East.

Joanna Robinson, Sky News weather producer, said: "There'll be further heavy, possibly thundery, showers around this afternoon.

"Torrential downpours will bring the risk of local flooding, especially across northeast England, including West Yorkshire.

"The showers will ease and fade going into the evening, but more general rain will move in from the South West tonight.

Parked cars in the floodwaters. Pic: TWITTER @jams1999

"Wednesday will bring yet more rain, locally torrential, to much of England, Wales and Ireland.

"By Thursday, the South East will turn briefly hot and humid, with temperatures up to 31C."

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London Stabbings: Murder Probe As Man Held

A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a woman was killed and two others - including her sister - suffered serious stab wounds.

The 40-year-old was detained overnight after officers were alerted to attacks at two separate south London flats on Monday evening.

A woman aged 28 and her 17-year-old sister were found with knife wounds at 7.10pm at an address in Tilson Gardens, Brixton.

Police said the teenager had suffered wounds to her head and hands as she tried to protect her sister.

The woman was pronounced dead at the scene, while the girl was taken to a south London hospital and is in a serious but stable condition, Scotland Yard said.

Half an hour earlier, another woman, aged 46, was found at a property in Redlands Way with a number of injuries, including stab wounds. Her condition is described as critical.

The suspect was arrested in Leigham Court Road, Streatham

Young children were present at the scenes of both attacks and officers want to establish if they saw anything significant.

Forensic examinations were taking place at the two properties, which lie less than a mile apart.

Police said all three victims were known to the man being held in custody at a south London police station.

A woman who lives in Redlands Way said she came outside when she heard a woman screaming that someone was trying to kill her.

She said: "The woman had got out on to the balcony and she was just screaming. There was this tall, black guy who came out of nowhere - it was like a film.

"He just grabbed her and stabbed her in her back - a couple of us saw it. The children were playing out in the park right in front which made it more traumatic.

"People started calling the police and I was trying to get my daughter inside so I could go down to see whether I could do anything.

"The guy escaped but we saw her coming down with bandages and the bandages were bleeding."

It is understood an eight-year-old boy was in the bathroom of the Tilson Gardens property when the attack happened.

The suspect was arrested on a bus in Leigham Court Road, Streatham, south London, shortly before 1am.

Detective Inspector Will Reynolds said there was no suggestion it was a random attack and officers are not looking for anyone else.

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Hospital Family Test: More Than 30 Wards Fail

The Government's flagship test designed to highlight poor patient care has been condemned as "misleading" amid confusion over the results.

The "Friends and Family Test" asks patients whether they would recommend the ward or A&E department where they have been treated.

They must pick between six options, from "extremely likely" to "extremely unlikely", and their answers are put together to generate an overall score.

However, because "likely" to recommend is classed as a neutral response, critics claim the end picture can be distorted.

Indeed, nine in every 10 patients at the hospital with the "worst" A&E department in England said they would recommend it.

Patient charities also argued the results are meaningless because they are so general and may not directly relate to the quality of care.

The Patients Association said they are "confusing to navigate" and will not address the "fundamental failures" in the health service.

Chief executive Katherine Murphy said: "Asking people to recommend a hospital is not like asking someone to recommend a hotel.

"This could really be seen as a smoke screen to cover some of the more fundamental issues that need to be addressed - like the issue around poor care that so many elderly people experience on a daily basis.

"I think that it could be quite misleading from a patient's point of view."

More than 400,000 people completed the survey, which was introduced in April, with results relating to around 4,500 NHS wards and 144 A&E services.

Most appeared happy with their treatment, although 36 wards received a negative score in June - down from 66 in April.

Despite months of criticism, only one A&E department - Chase Farm Hospital in north London - was given a negative score.

And even then, 295 of 516 patients asked about the hospital said they were "extremely likely" to recommend it and another 167 said they were "likely" to do so.

One ward at Fairfield General Hospital in Bury, Greater Manchester was given a negative grade.

But of the patients quizzed, not a single one said they would be "unlikely" or "extremely unlikely" to recommend being treated there.

The low overall response rate of 13.1%, which fell short of the 15% target, also raised fears would-be patients would be judging hospitals on the views of a tiny minority.

And the Point Of Care Foundation warned that it was impossible to tell whether a negative response was due to poor care or an issue such as car parking.

Director Jocelyn Cornwell said: "Some hospitals were using much better methods of collecting feedback but they have had to abandon what they were doing and replace it with this rather blunt instrument which is not good for patients, or for developing useful information to improve health services.

"We would ask the Government to think again about how more useful information on patient care could be collected and used to improve services."

NHS England's national director for patients and information Tim Kelsey insisted the initiative was a "major step forward".

"Direct patient and citizen feedback is vital to improving the services the NHS provides. Trusts can concentrate their focus on improvement with this information," he said.

"From this first publication, we can see a significant and real variation in the quality of customer service across the NHS.

"There are home truths here and everyone will expect those Trusts who have large numbers of their patients choosing not to recommend their services to respond as quickly as possible."

David Cameron, who is on holiday in Portugal, said: "I want the NHS to put patient satisfaction at the heart of what they do and expect action to be taken at hospitals where patients and staff say standards are not good enough."

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt called it a "historic moment".

"By making these ratings public, we're giving patients the power to choose the best place for their care - and driving other hospitals to raise their game," he said.

NHS England will now publish monthly updates on patient feedback.

By the end of next year, it hopes to roll the test out to include GP practices, community services and mental health services. All other services will be included by April 2015.

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Vicky Pryce Is Stripped Of Queen's Honour

Chris Huhne's ex-wife has had her honour for government service cancelled by the Queen, completing her fall from grace.

High-flying economist Vicky Pryce was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in the 2009 Birthday honours.

The honour is the equivalent of a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) but is just a different order.

Pryce received her CB in recognition of her contribution as head of the Government economic service.

But the award has now been cancelled and annulled and her name will be removed from the register of the Order of the Bath.

The Forfeiture Committee revokes honours where their holder is considered to have brought the system into disrepute.

Chris Huhne with girlfriend Carina Trimingham after his release

Its decisions have to be submitted to the Queen for approval by the Prime Minister before a notice can be put in the London Gazette.

The announcement said: "The Queen has directed that the appointment of Vicky, Mrs Pryce, to be a Member of the Civil Division of the Third Class, or Companion, of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath, dated June 13 2009, shall be cancelled and annulled and that her name shall be erased from the Register of the said Order."

Pryce and Huhne were jailed for eight months in March after they were finally punished for lying about a speeding offence in 2003.

Huhne repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and battled to get the case dismissed but eventually admitted his guilt on the eve of his trial.

In court, Pryce argued she was forced to take the points by her then husband but her story was ultimately rejected.

Allegations about the points swap only emerged in the press in 2011 after the senior Lib Dem dumped his wife for another woman.

During Pryce's trial, it emerged she had deliberately leaked the story in a bid to "nail" her former husband as revenge for his betrayal.

The pair, who have three children together, were released in May after almost two months behind bars and have to wear electronic tags.

Greek-born Pryce, a regular TV pundit before her conviction, immediately announced she was publishing a book on her experiences called Prisonomics.

She also recently gave evidence to a Lords committee on the eurozone crisis.

By contrast, Huhne - who was once seen as a future Lib Dem party leader - has kept a low profile since leaving jail.

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Manchester Stabbing: Girl Fights For Life

Neighbours have spoken of their shock after a 13-year-old-girl was left fighting for her life from a stabbing attack in which her father died.

The pair - named locally as Robert Jackson, 41, and his daughter Ayesha - were knifed at Mr Jackson's home in Moston, north Manchester on Sunday night.

The suspected attacker also died with stab wounds a short time later after driving a car into the wall of a nearby pub.

Police found the seriously injured girl and the body of her father at 10.20pm in the Delta Walk house.

Neighbours in Moston heaped praise on Robert Jackson and his daughter

Neighbours said former carpet fitter Mr Jackson was separated from Ayesha's mother, named locally as Sam Collins, and that the teenager was visiting him when the attack happened.

He was described as quiet but well-liked on the estate where he had lived for more than 20 years.

A few hours after arriving at Mr Jackson's home, police were called to Watfield Walk in Harpurhey, a two-mile drive away, after reports that a man had threatened a car owner with a knife before stealing the vehicle.

The car was then seen by police near Rochdale Road, where a 34-year-old named locally as Darren Gasper drove it into the side of the Alliance Inn pub as officers approached him.

Wall damage to the Alliance Inn, which the suspected knifeman crashed into

He was taken to hospital suffering from a stab wound and injuries from the crash but died a short time later.

The two men are said to be known to each other.

One man who said he was friends with both dead men said: "Darren was more one of the boys round here. He'd been in jail. He was a tough kid, a big lad.

"I heard Ayesha was upstairs when it started and came down to protect her dad.

"They both had kids, it's sad what this leaves behind for them."

Mr Jackson's neighbour, Clare Calvert, told Sky News: "He was the nicest bloke you'd ever meet ... He'd bend over backwards to help anybody - (he) wouldn't hurt a fly."

Flowers are left at the house in Moston

She described Ayesha, Mr Jackson's only child, as "lovely".

Another elderly neighbour said he was "very quiet" and "didn't have any enemies".

A woman who lived nearby said: "He was known by everyone as Jacko, always said hello and his girl was absolutely beautiful. I only saw them together yesterday walking down the street."

Ayesha is understood to attend the Manchester Communication Academy.

Forensics officers are at the scene of the attack, where an area around the house has been sealed off. Flowers have been left nearby.

The attack happened a two-mile drive from where the stolen car was crashed

Sky's Nick Martin, who is in Moston, said: "The priority now will be to ensure that the girl pulls through - she will have critical information about the events that played out here."

Detective Superintendent Simon Barraclough, of Greater Manchester Police, said: "We are in the very early stages of our inquiries and are piecing together the circumstances that led to two men losing their lives and a 13-year-old girl fighting for her life in hospital.

"Obviously the community will be shocked as to what has happened but we can say we do not believe anyone else was involved and are not looking for anyone else in relation to this incident."

Harpurhey has been regularly cited as one of the most deprived inner-city areas in Britain. Mr Jackson's mother lives nearby and was recently widowed.

Anyone with information can call police on 101 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

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Wedding Knife Killer Gets 25 Years In Jail

A jilted husband who stabbed his wife to death after arming himself with knives given to them as a wedding present has been jailed.

Ty Medland will serve at least 25 years behind bars after "brutally" attacking 24-year-old Samantha in public.

He thought she had started a relationship with another man and could not accept her decision that their marriage was over, according to the judge.

Medland, 26, was described in court as a "petulant, self-centred man" incapable of dealing with rejection.

Before the "frenzied and savage" murder in central Brighton, East Sussex, he uploaded to his Facebook page a link to a series of graphic pictures and videos of the couple having sex.

A message he wrote accompanying the link referred to Mrs Medland as "the cheating, lying, unloyal whore who destroyed everything I loved and believe in".

Medland armed himself with four knives - three were wedding gifts. The fourth, and the one Medland most likely used to fatally stab his wife, was a lock knife.

He attacked her as she collected belongings from him near her workplace in Queen Square on February 17.

A two-week trial at Lewes Crown Court heard she had become close to another man and had rebuffed her husband's repeated attempts to patch up their marriage.

Judge Anthony Scott-Gall told Medland: "I am satisfied, as were the jury, that you couldn't accept this rejection, added to which was the suggestion in your mind that your wife had started a relationship with another man."

The judge said he accepted that tragedy had touched Medland's life before he murdered, including the death of his daughter and a miscarriage suffered by Mrs Medland.

But Judge Scott-Gall added: "In my judgement, your motive was clear. You intended to kill your wife because a) she had rejected you and b) because you couldn't bear the prospect of her being with another man.

"This was a brutal attack that was pre-planned."

Medland, of Peacehaven, had pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility but on Friday he was convicted of murder.

Defence counsel Graham Trembath QC said Medland was "indescribably sorry" for his actions and that he was "desperate" for that to be publicly known.

He said: "He knows he will live with what he has done for the rest of his life."

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Baby's Body Discovered In Undergrowth

By James Matthews, Scotland Correspondent

The remains of a baby have been discovered in undergrowth near a cemetery in Edinburgh.

Police have cordoned off the area around the Restalrig Path, close to Seafield cemetery.

A spokesman for Police Scotland said officers were called to the Seafield area of Edinburgh around 5pm on Sunday after a member of the public reported having discovered what they thought were human remains.

DCI David McLaren told Sky News: "It's too early to form an opinion around what's happened, we are keeping an open mind in terms of how the baby came to be here and, indeed, how it passed away."

"At this stage, I would appeal for the mother of the child to come forward.  Regardless of how the child ended up here, the mother of that child will, perhaps, need medical assistance or, indeed, emotional support."

"So our focus, in the first instance, is to track her down and take care of her welfare, while we establish exactly what has happened here."

The baby's remains were discovered near the path by a dog walker. A post-mortem is being carried out to establish the cause of death.

Sky News understands the infant was born recently but the sex has not been revealed.

Police officers stood on a footbridge over Seafield Place which was cordoned off, and a forensic team was at the scene.

There was police tape around a section of the residential street which borders the public park known as Leith Links.

Seafield Cemetery and Crematorium is privately-run and remained open today.

A worker at a car body repair centre on Seafield Place said he arrived to find lots of police activity outside the shop.

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Charles: 'New Prince Will Be Called Georgie'

Prince Charles has joked his one-week-old grandson George will be called Georgie "in no time".

The third-in-line to the throne was born last Monday in a London hospital and went home a day later.

Outside the Lindo Wing of St Mary's, George Alexander Louis was photographed with his parents, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, in front of the world's media.

Charles was given a T-shirt for Prince George

HRH Prince George of Cambridge is set to be known as King George VII when he one day becomes king.

As they attended the Whitstable Oyster Festival in Kent, Charles and his wife the Duchess of Cornwall were congratulated on the new arrival by throngs of well-wishers.

And Charles gave the newborn's name the Royal seal of approval, describing George as "very good".

But Sonia Rule, 38, whose partner works for the Whitstable RNLI Lifeboats crew said she heard Charles joke his grandson will "be known as Georgie in no time".

The Royal couple were showered with gifts for the baby including a tiny lemon T-shirt which they could pass on as a souvenir from their trip to the festival.

Shona Corcoran, 38, from Whitstable, and her three-year-old daughter Hannah gave Charles the gift.

"He said, 'Oh, that's fantastic, thank you. I'm sure he'll like to wear that'," she said.

Charles met a woman who also has a grandchild called George.

Margaret Quinney, 67, said: "He was talking about the grandchildren. He said there are lots of grandparents around."

It was after Charles met Mrs Quinney and her daughter Jo that he said: "George - a very good name."

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Mairead Philpott Fails To Appeal Sentence

Mairead Philpott, who received 17 years for killing her six children in a Derby house fire, has failed in her first attempt to get her sentence cut.

The 32-year-old was jailed alongside her husband Mick at Nottingham Crown in April after being found guilty of the manslaughter of Jade Philpott and her brothers John, Jack, Jesse, Jayden and Duwayne.

A Judicial Office spokeswoman confirmed today that Mairead Philpott has had her application for permission to appeal against her sentence refused by a single judge considering it on the papers.

It is open to her to make a renewed application, which would then be considered by a panel of Court of Appeal judges in London.

At the sentencing hearing, Mrs Justice Thirlwall told Philpott she had ignored "obvious" risks to her children's lives by going along with a plan to set fire to her home in Allenton, Derby.

Mick Philpott was jailed for life with a minimum term of 15 years after being branded a "disturbingly dangerous" man.

His wife, who is likely to be released after serving half of her 17-year term, took part in a plan to set fire to the couple's home in Victory Road in an effort to frame his former mistress.

The children were aged between five and 13.

Paul Mosley, 46, who was also found guilty of six counts of manslaughter and jailed for 17 years, had his sentence application rejected.

He can also make a renewed application if he wishes.

More follows...

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