Human Leg Found: Body May Be Missing Man's

A body found by officers searching the area where a human leg was found behind a Conservative Club in Greater Manchester could be that of a missing 31-year-old.

The body was discovered on land behind Healey Conservative Club in Whitworth, near Rochdale, shortly before 2.45pm on Sunday.

Officers said that although a formal identification had not yet taken place, police believe there is a "strong possibility" that the body is that of Heath Nield.

The find was made near Healey Conservative Club

Mr Nield went missing from his home in Rochdale Road, Bacup, in July.

Lancashire Police say it appears to have been there for some time and is badly decomposed.

There is no indication of the sex or age of the body.

Formal identification of the body is yet to take place

A police statement said: "Mr Nield's family have been made aware of the latest development."

Further forensic tests will take place to confirm the identity of the body.

The Conservative Club declined to comment.

22.11 | 0 komentar | Read More

Alice Gross: Canal Searched In Hunt For Teen

Police have asked officials in Latvia for the case file of Arnis Zalkalns, the prime suspect in the disappearance of teenager Alice Gross, as they search a canal close to where she was last seen.

The hunt for the 14-year-old, who went missing in west London on August 28, is the biggest search operation since the 7/7 bombings in 2005.

Search teams are wading through Hanwell canal, using a dinghy and a search dog, and carefully combing surrounding land.

Zalkalns, a Latvian national, has been named as the main suspect by police after he, too, went missing from his home, in Ealing on September 3.

Zalkalns was spotted on CCTV cycling along a path by the Grand Union Canal

Sky's Crime Correspondent Martin Brunt says police have denied they linked the builder with the case only after a reporter made the connection.

He said: "The Yard are also saying that it has known about this suspect, had an interest in him, Mr Zalkalns, for perhaps a couple of weeks and they have had some formal discussions with the Latvian authorities."

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "We are maintaining a close and productive relationship with the Latvian authorities in relation to this investigation. We are not going to elaborate on the nature of information sharing with Latvian authorities."

It has emerged that the 41-year-old was jailed in his native country in the late 1990s for murdering his wife and burying her in a forest after a dispute about her sexuality.

Police in the garden of builder Arnis Zalkalns

He was also arrested in London five years ago on suspicion of indecent assault on a 14-year-old girl, but was never charged.

Zalkalns' ex-girlfriend has told The Daily Telegraph he was accused of drugging and molesting the girl.

Search teams, including dogs and divers, have been deployed across west London looking for Alice, who is from Hanwell.

Some 630 officers from eight police forces have been involved.

Police load a bike into a van during the search for Alice

They have searched 25 square kilometres (9.6 square miles) of open land and 5.5km of canals and rivers.

Scotland Yard insist they have no evidence to suggest that Alice, who suffers from anorexia, has come to harm.

On Friday, police recovered a bicycle belonging to Zalkalns after searching one of his former homes in Hanwell.

Zalkalns has not accessed his bank account or used his mobile phone since September 3, nor has he returned home to his partner and young child.

Police say they have no evidence to suggest Alice has come to harm

His passport was left at his house and police in Latvia have confirmed he has not entered the country by plane.

They have however acknowledged it is possible he could have got in undetected if he travelled by car or coach.

Zalkalns was seen on CCTV footage cycling along a path by the Grand Union Canal 15 minutes after the last sighting of Alice.

Detectives believe he is likely to have seen Alice as they were both going north along the canal towpath.

22.11 | 0 komentar | Read More

Major Incident Declared After School Bus Crash

A major incident has been declared after a school bus and a car were involved in a crash in Drumquin, Co Tyrone.

More than 50 people, mostly children, have been injured after the collision on Omagh Road, but Sky News understands none of them are seriously injured.

The bus and the car ended up on their sides in a field.

Northern Ireland Ambulance Service spokesman John McPoland said: "Fifty-two people were treated at the scene but none of their injuries were serious. The vast majority were checked as a precaution because of their age.

The bus was travelling to a secondary school. Pic: Ulster Herald

"Six people have slightly more than minor injuries. This would include children who banged their heads off the bus windows but no one went through any windows."

A total of 48 people have been taken to the South West Acute Hospital and Altnagelvin Hospital.

Omagh Road has been closed between Segully Road and Drumrawan Road.

The bus was travelling from Castlederg to a secondary school in Omagh.

The majority of those injured were children. Pic: Ulster Herald

The crash happened in Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness' Stormont constituency.

He has tweeted: "Relieved to hear there are no serious injuries to pupils & adults in this morning's bus & car accident on Drumquin-Omagh Rd #bestwishestoall."

Sinn Fein councillor Frankie Donnelly, who represents West Tyrone, said the crash "had the potential to be a major disaster".

He said: "This is obviously a traumatic incident for everyone involved, including the parents, so I would like to thank the emergency services for their swift response to the accident that ensured everyone was treated quickly and professionally."

22.11 | 0 komentar | Read More

Balls: 'We Have Learnt From Our Mistakes'

Ed Balls insisted Labour had learned from its mistakes as he set out plans that would see politicians' pay cut, a bank levy to pay for free childcare and a child-benefit freeze.

In an attempt to show the party could be trusted with the economy, the shadow chancellor said he would not "duck" the tough decisions and hinted at fresh welfare cuts.

He said he believed in tax cuts for the "millions not the millionaires", pushing forward a 50p income tax rate for those earning more than £150,000.

And he said any extra money would be pumped into the NHS, which Labour would have to save from the Tories again when it returned to power after the 2015 election.

Mr Balls says a cap in child benefit rises will save £400m

In a speech to the Labour Party Conference in Manchester, Mr Balls hit out at the "unfair, out-of-touch and failing Tory Government", pledging to raise the minimum wage and scrap the so-called bedroom tax.

However, he earned groans from delegates when he said the benefits cap would remain as he laid out precisely how a Labour government would "balance the books".

New free schools would be blocked in areas where there was an excess of pupil places, police and crime commissioners would be scrapped and the controversial "shares for rights" scheme, which allows workers to give up some rights such as unfair dismissal in return for shares, ditched.

He also took the opportunity to thank Alistair Darling, Jim Murphy and a host of other Labour names for their efforts on the Scottish Referendum campaign trail - but, crucially, failed to namecheck Gordon Brown.

Mr Brown gave what commentators called the "speech of his political life" in the dying days of the campaign, which has been credited with providing a significant boost to the Better Together campaign.

The shadow chancellor presented a 1% cap on rises for the first two years of a Labour government, which would raise £400m, as one of the "tough decisions" needed to deal with the deficit if the party takes power next year.

But he attempted to show that politicians were expected to shoulder their share of the £75bn deficit burden by announcing a 5% cut in ministerial salaries - taking £7,125 off the Prime Minister's annual wage and £6,728 from Cabinet ministers.

A 5% cut in ministerial salaries is also on the cards

Mr Balls insisted: "We are tough enough to make the difficult decisions. We won't spend money we can't afford."

He apologised for the party's past mistakes, including over immigration. He indicated they would put it right with tougher rules on immigrants claiming benefits and on bank regulation.

However, he said: "It's the oldest truth in the book - you can never, ever trust the Tories with the NHS.

"We don't just need to learn from our mistakes, we also need to put right mistakes this Government is making."

He pledged Labour would not "walk away from Europe" and said the party had learned from its past and mistakes.

Sky's Deputy Political Editor Joey Jones said Mr Balls was "wheeling out a whole sheaf of policies that have been announced over past months/years."

The speech earned Mr Balls a pat on the back from Ed Miliband. During the speech, Mr Balls praised him as a fine leader and "the next prime minister of the UK".

The leader of the Unite union, Len McCluskey, said freezing child benefit was not the "cleverest tactic" as he disclosed the union had yet to decide what it would contribute to the party's election war chest.

He told BBC Radio 4: "We want our party to go into the election not with one arm tied behind its back because the Tories' coffers are spilling over with money from the super rich and the corporate elite.

"We want it to be an even fight but we haven't spoken about the specific numbers."

The party also has plans to raise the minimum wage to £8 an hour, and introduce a jobs guarantee for young people and the long-term unemployed funded by a tax on bank bonuses and limiting pensions tax relief for the highest earners.

Treasury Exchequer Secretary Priti Patel poured scorn on Mr Balls' plan for the economy, claiming Labour would put the deficit up, not down.

The Children's Society said Labour's plans to freeze child benefit would leave the average family more than £400 a year worse off by 2017 and urged the shadow chancellor to reconsider.

22.11 | 0 komentar | Read More

Judge Allows Majority Verdict In DLT Trial

Jurors in the trial of former Radio 1 presenter Dave Lee Travis have been told that a majority verdict of 10-2 will be accepted.

The ex-Top of the Pops host faces two counts of indecently assaulting a woman, and one of sexual assault - all of which he denies.

But despite three days of deliberations at Southwark Crown Court, the jury have been unable to reach a unanimous decision.

Anthony Leonard QC gave the panel of six men and six women permission to return a majority verdict, where at least ten of them agree.

However, he urged: "Try and reach a verdict on which you all agree."

Travis was found not guilty of 12 indecent assault charges in February

The 69-year-old DJ, appearing in court under his real name, David Griffin, is being retried on two of the counts after a jury was unable to reach a verdict during an earlier trial in February.

Meanwhile, the third count of indecent assault relates to a new accusation from another complainant, which allegedly took place on 17 January, 1995.

As the judge summed up the evidence, he urged the panel to disregard accusations made about other celebrities in light of the Jimmy Savile affair.

Mr Leonard also warned the group to "not allow themselves to become overawed or deflated by the interest this case has attracted".

He stressed: "The fact that the defendant is a well-known media personality does not change the rules of this case."

22.11 | 0 komentar | Read More

22 Dogs Killed In Mystery Kennel Blaze

An investigation is under way after 22 dogs died in their cages in a fire in east Yorkshire.

Firefighters said the blaze "totally destroyed" a wooden kennel at a dog breeder's home in Graingers Road, Hornsea.

The owners, who are thought to breed Staffordshire bull terriers, returned to their home on Saturday night to find it alight with the dogs inside.

One family member had to be restrained by firefighters as he tried to save the animals, The Times reported.

The cause of the fire is not yet known, said a spokeswoman for Humberside Fire and Rescue Service.

One neighbour told the Hull Daily Mail: "It is terrible. I could see smoke and flames from my house and saw four fire engines rushing to the scene."

Another resident said: "There has been a lot of people walking down the road and looking at the damage caused by the fire.

"It is a wooden home so when it caught fire it burned down in minutes."

It comes a week after 53 dogs died in a fire at Manchester Dogs Home.

People donated more than £1.2m to the home after the suspected arson attack.

A 15-year-old boy arrested on suspicion of starting the blaze has been released on bail.

00.35 | 0 komentar | Read More

Miliband Sets Out Plan For £8 Minimum Wage

Labour leader Ed Miliband has pledged to raise the national minimum wage to at least £8 an hour if he becomes Prime Minister.

The minimum wage is due to rise from £6.31 an hour to £6.50 on October 1, but Mr Miliband plans to add £1.50 an hour on to that by 2020.

His increase would add around £60 a week, or £3,000 a year, to the pay packets of workers currently on the minimum wage.

And he said the rise would save the taxpayer "hundreds of millions of pounds" in welfare payments.

One in five UK workers - more than five million people - are categorised as being on low pay, defined as wages of less than £7.71 an hour.

Speaking to the Sunday Mirror, Mr Miliband said: "Too many working people have made big sacrifices but in this recovery they're not seeing the rewards for their hard work because, under the Tories' failing plan, the recovery is benefiting a privileged few far more than most families.

"One in five of the men and women employed in Britain today do the hours, make their contribution, but find themselves on low pay.

"But if you work hard, you should be able to bring up your family with dignity."

A Burger King worker was the inspiration for Labour's latest policy

Mr Miliband added: "This week Labour's Plan for Britain's Future will show how we can change and how we can become a country that rewards hard work once again. Because Labour is the party of hard work, fairly paid."

The announcement came on the eve of Labour's annual conference in Manchester - the last before next year's general election.

Mr Miliband said he was inspired to bring in the hike after meeting a woman who worked in Burger King.

He said: "She had worked there for six years and I think she was number two there, but was paid just above the minimum wage.

"She said, 'It's incredibly hard for me. I live three miles away. I can't afford a car and there aren't many buses. I often have to take a taxi. That's where my wages go.'"

Mr Miliband added: "It's just so ­grindingly hard, and it's time we stood up for people doing these hours."

The planned increase, which would affect around 1.4 million jobs, would be introduced in annual stages by the Low Pay Commission before October 2019.

The promised rate is said to be similar to that in force in Australia and EU countries such as Belgium and Germany, but still lower than in France and New Zealand.

Mr Miliband told the BBC's Andrew Marr show: "I can assure you, it doesn't cost money, it saves money. It saves hundreds of millions of pounds in getting the welfare bill down."

00.35 | 0 komentar | Read More

Briton's Body Found After Mexico Hurricane

The body of a British woman who went missing while travelling on a yacht off the coast of Mexico has been found.

The Foreign Office confirmed one Briton had died after a search operation was launched earlier this week for couple Paul Whitehouse and Simone Wood in the aftermath of Hurricane Odile.

The pair, from London and Wolverhampton, were reported missing on Friday after their yacht overturned in the Gulf of California, also known as the Sea of Cortez.

Mr Whitehouse is still missing. Pic: Facebook

The couple are thought to have been living in La Paz, Mexico, for a year.

Mr Whitehouse, who is believed to be a scuba instructor, is reportedly still missing.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "We can confirm the death of a British national, reported missing along with another British national earlier this week off the coast of Mexico.

The hurricane affected power and water supplies

"The Embassy is working with the local authorities and consular staff are providing assistance to both families at this very difficult time."

Hurricane Odile left a trail of destruction when it hit the Baja California Peninsula last Sunday.

Three other people have been confirmed dead following the storm - two Korean citizens and a German man who reportedly died from a heart attack.

00.35 | 0 komentar | Read More

Salmond: 'No' Voters 'Tricked' By Westminster

Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond has said No voters in the referendum were "tricked" by a late promise of more devolved powers for Scotland - and the "writing is on the wall for Westminster".

People who voted against independence are "angry and hurt" that the three main party leaders' promises for extra powers for Scotland are now being "reneged on", he said.

He told Sky's Murnaghan programme that within 24 hours of Friday's No victory there was already disagreement between Prime Minister David Cameron and Labour leader Ed Miliband on the timetable for devolution.

The "logjam" was caused by Mr Cameron saying it should go in tandem with constitutional reform in England, including barring Scottish MPs from voting on solely English matters, while Mr Miliband disagreed, Mr Salmond said.

He questioned why they had not already thought of that when they signed former prime minister Gordon Brown's timetable for the transfer of more powers to Scotland.

There were clashes in Glasgow on Friday night between Yes and No voters

Mr Salmond, who announced he was standing down as Scottish First Minister after voters rejected independence by 55% to 45%, said if the "Westminster gang" think Scots will accept the delay "they've got another thing coming".

The majority of voters under 55 backed independence, while most people over 55 voted against it, so the "destination is pretty certain" for Scotland, he said.

He said it was these No voters who are feeling most angry by Westminster's broken promises and fear they may have "impeded progress for the next generation".

The so-called West Lothian question about the voting rights of Scottish and English MPs has been met with wariness from Labour, which has most of Scotland's 59 seats.

"David Cameron doesn't think he can carry his own backbenchers, never mind the threat from UKIP, unless he links Scottish progress to changes in England," Mr Salmond said.

"Ed Miliband doesn't want to do that because Labour would lose their majority over English business in the House of Commons. That is the logjam the Westminster leaders got themselves into.

Voters in Scotland voted against independence by 55% to 45%

"There is a big issue there, but shouldn't they have thought of that before they made a solemn vow and pledge to the Scottish people."

Speaking on Murnaghan, Labour Deputy Leader Harriet Harman accused Mr Cameron of "slipping and sliding" on his promises for extra powers for Scotland.

Asked about the issue of ensuring English votes for English laws, she said the matter "must be sorted out" but "it's got to be done properly".

A Downing Street spokesman earlier said: "The three pro-Union parties have made commitments on further powers for the Scottish Parliament and we have set out a clear timetable to do this.

"Lord Smith of Kelvin has agreed to oversee the process to take forward the devolution commitments with powers over tax, spending and welfare all agreed by November and draft legislation published by January.

"This Government has delivered on devolution and we will do so again in the next Parliament."

Earlier, politicians from opposing sides of the referendum campaign went to a special church service at St Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh aimed at healing their divisions.

On Monday, Mr Cameron will host a summit at Chequers to discuss his plans for "English votes for English laws" with senior Tories, including some of the loudest critics of his decision to back Mr Brown's power transfer timetable.

The meeting is being widely seen as a bid to head off potential backbench rebellion on constitutional reform.

00.35 | 0 komentar | Read More

Thai Murders: 'Beautiful Hannah' Brought Home

The family of a British backpacker murdered in Thailand say they have brought their "beautiful Hannah" back to the UK.

It is nearly a week since the bodies of Hannah Witheridge, 23, and fellow Brit David Miller, 24, were found on a beach in Koh Tao, also known as Turtle Island.

In their first statement since the deaths, Ms Witheridge's family said they travelled to Bangkok on Tuesday.

"The main purpose of our trip was to bring our beloved Hannah home and to obtain information on the investigation," they said.

"We can confirm that we have now returned to the UK with our beautiful Hannah.

The Britons were murdered on Koh Tao

"As a family we feel enormous relief to have Hannah back at home where she belongs.

"We continue to work closely with officers to assist in the investigation and bring those responsible to justice.

"Our family is broken and require time to grieve in private - as do Hannah's many friends."

Ms Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth, suffered severe head wounds and Mr Miller, from Jersey, died from blows to the head and drowning, post-mortem examinations showed.

A garden hoe with Ms Witheridge's blood on it was discovered nearby, and investigators are searching for a blunt metal object used on Mr Miller.

Ms Witheridge was caught on CCTV in the hours before her death

Earlier, police hunting the killer told Sky News "sexual jealousy" may be the motive for the killings.

Sky's Jonathan Samuels, who is on the island, said officers have asked police in the UK to speak to British friends of the travellers to find out about their interactions in the days leading up to the murders.

He said: "They are also investigating rumours that they may have had a row with a Thai man in a bar."

Police Colonel Kissana Phathanacharoen said: "We have asked the Met Police to go back and ask their friends if they can help with any further information."

He added: "We still believe sexual jealously is at the heart of this crime.

Police are also examining CCTV footage of David Miller

"We are aware of reports they may have been involved in a row in a bar with a Thai man and we are currently investigating."

Police previously said DNA taken from the body of Ms Witheridge matches that of two Asian men.

Officers also said they do not know if the killer is still on Koh Tao, where she and Mr Miller were found murdered.

Sky News has obtained exclusive CCTV video of Ms Witheridge in the hours before she was killed, walking between bars with a group of friends.

Samuels said there had been criticism of the police investigation, with "the finger pointed at different people every day".

A message of support to the friends and families of the two victims

But the chief police officer has given assurances they are taking the investigation seriously.

A cash reward worth about £4,000 is being offered for information.

Two British brothers who were questioned by police were told they were free to return home to Jersey.

Christopher and James Ware, childhood friends of Mr Miller, were spoken to by officers but were never detained or named as suspects.

A group of Burmese migrants who were interviewed by police after bloodstains were found on their clothes have also been eliminated from police inquiries.

00.34 | 0 komentar | Read More