2018 National & International News Stories.

[boatbuilder]

Latest post of the previous page:

Boris Johnson faces call to be sacked

Boris Johnson's bid for a £5 billion annual cash injection for the NHS ran into trouble with the chancellor today and Tory MPs called for him to be sacked.

The Times

This is just about the only thing I support of what BJ has said and there are calls for him to be sacked because of it! What sort of country do we live in?

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A third of the alcohol sold in England is drunk by just 4 per cent of the nation, figures reveal

Just 4 per cent of the population consume almost one-third of all the alcohol sold in England, new healthcare data has revealed.
The figures emerged during a debate on a 50p minimum unit price on alcohol by a parliamentary committee on Monday.
Rosanna O'Connor, director of Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco at Public Health England (PHE) said: "Around 4.4 per cent of the population are drinking just under a third of the alcohol consumed in this country. That's around 2 million drinking just over 30 per cent of the alcohol."
Ms O'Connor said the majority of the group were drinking very cheap, high-strength alcohol such as cider. A three-litre bottle of cider containing 22.5 units of alcohol can be bought for as little as £3.60.
If the 50p minimum unit price were to be introduced, the costs would jump to £11.
Ms O'Connor said: "The result would be a significant impact on a small group of people. That's why it's such a targeted policy for such great health gains."
Full article:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/01 ... n-figures/

[boatbuilder]

Meat supplier to Wetherspoon's probed over food hygiene

A meat wholesaler which supplies Wetherspoon pubs, schools and care homes is being investigated over food hygiene concerns.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) said it had stopped any meat leaving Russell Hume company sites and unused meat had been withdrawn from its customers.
Wetherspoon pubs had removed steak from the menu on their weekly steak night.
Russell Hume said the recall was a "precautionary measure because of mislabelling".
The company, which also supplies a range of hospitality and catering businesses, added: "We have no reason to believe that the product was unsafe to eat."
In a statement on Wednesday the FSA said it had carried out an unannounced inspection of Russell Hume's Birmingham site on 12 January.
It then "became aware of instances of serious non-compliance with food hygiene regulations", it said.

Read the full report

[boatbuilder]

Sky signals the end of the satellite dish

Sky plans to make all its channels and content available online, meaning customers will no longer need a satellite dish on their property.
The pay TV company already offers some programming online on its Sky Go and Now TV services and through Sky boxes.
Sky called the move a "major development" that would reduce costs and allow it to enter new markets.
It hopes that making its hundreds of channels more widely available will increase both revenue and profits.
Italy will be its first market to get all Sky channels online, followed by Austria, with the UK expected to follow later this year or in 2019.
The move will allow properties that cannot have a dish to get Sky, a spokesperson said. Customers will still need a Sky box, however.
Sky's move is an attempt to competition from the likes of streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon.
Jeremy Darroch, Sky chief executive, said the consumer environment was expected to remain "challenging".

Full Story

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Jamie Oliver and Wetherspoons caught up in meat recall

'Supplier to restaurant chains and schools fails hygiene inspection and is ordered to recall meat’
Jamie Oliver’s Italian restaurant chain is among companies caught up in a meat recall that led Wetherspoon pubs to pull steak from the menu on its weekly steak night.
Meat products supplied by Russell Hume have been suspended from leaving the company’s sites across the country after Food Standards Agency inspectors found “serious non-compliance with food hygiene regulations” during a surprise visit to the company’s Birmingham premises on 12 January.
Wetherspoon pulled steak from its menu on its weekly steak club night on Tuesday.
Jamie Oliver’s restaurants said they had switched suppliers after taking all meat supplied by the company off their menus..
A spokeswoman for Jamie Oliver said: “All Russell Hume meat was removed from restaurants as soon as we were notified on Monday. This was a day before the FSA asked for meat to be removed. We also switched suppliers.
Bourne Leisure, which owns Butlins, Haven and Warner Leisure Hotels, said it had also used Russell Hume as a supplier.
A spokesman said: “Following a discussion earlier this week with our usual supplier, Russell Hume, we have sourced a number of meat products from an alternative supplier and will continue to do so until we receive further information.”
Full article: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/ ... eat-recall

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Venice restaurant that hit tourists with £1,000 bill faces £17,000 fines

A restaurant in Venice that charged a group of Japanese tourists €1,143 (£994) for four steaks Florentine, a plate of mixed grilled fish, two glasses of wine and mineral water faces fines totalling at least €20,000 (£17,400), according to local media.
The La Nuova Venezia newspaper said police and local authority checks carried out at the Osteria da Luca near St Mark’s Square uncovered breaches of health and safety and food hygiene regulations, as well commercial code infringements including issues over the accurate description of goods.
“Together, the infringements – not all of which have yet been formally notified – produce total fines running into tens of thousands of euros,” the paper said. No grounds were found to shut the restaurant down, it said.
The Osteria da Luca – which has a rating of 1.5 stars on Tripadvisor, with 83% of reviews classed as “terrible” – faces further awkward questions from financial crime investigators over its failure to give the group a full receipt detailing their meal.
The four Japanese men filed a formal complaint with police after their return to Bologna, where they are studying Italian cuisine, offering as evidence the credit card slip that was the only proof of what the restaurant had charged them.
Full article: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/ ... ia-da-luca

[boatbuilder]

I posted a report from the BBC on the Wetherspoons meat recall late last night - although I see this latest one has included Jamie Oliver as also being affected.

[boatbuilder]

Laura Plummer, jailed in Egypt for smuggling, could be released tomorrow

A British woman jailed in Egypt for smuggling 290 painkiller tablets for her partner may be released in the next 24 hours under a presidential pardon.
Laura Plummer, 33, was sentenced to three years in prison in the seaside resort of Hurghada on Boxing Day for trying to smuggle tramadol pills, an opioid drug which is banned in Egypt, through the airport. She said that her partner, Omar Saad, needed them for his bad back.
Her family said she had received a pardon from President Sisi as part of an amnesty to mark Revolution Day, the anniversary of the Tahrir Square uprising, which began on January 25, 2011.
Her lawyer, Mohamed Osman, told The Times that the pardon had not been confirmed but he was confident she would be released soon. “I haven’t yet, as her lawyer, received any official notice from the government or the Ministry of Interior of her release,” he said. “But I can say I’m 95 per cent sure she will be released soon, based on these rumours, though nothing is confirmed until it happens.”
He said the prison had not yet received an official notification of her release and that confirmation was not expected today, but could come tomorrow.

Full report

[boatbuilder]

Bombardier dispute: US court overturns punitive tariffs

Canadian aerospace firm Bombardier has won a landmark case in the US, overturning a decision to impose huge 292% tariffs on imports of its C-Series planes, partly built in the UK.
It follows a ruling by the US Commerce Department in December that the UK and Canada had given it unfair subsidies.
UK Prime Minister Theresa May welcomed the ruling - which safeguards thousands of jobs in Northern Ireland.
But it's seen as a blow to US President Trump's "America first" trade policy.
Bombardier had been widely expected to lose the case, which followed a complaint by its US rival, Boeing.
But in a surprise ruling, the US International Trade Commission (ITC) ruled in favour of the Canadian firm.
Mrs May said it was "good news" for UK industry.
"Bombardier and its innovative workforce play a vital role in the Northern Ireland economy," she said.
The ITC voted 4-0 in favour of Bombardier, ruling that there was no injury to US manufacturers.
Tariffs of 292% will not now be imposed on orders of C-Series planes by US airlines.

Full news report

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Three teenage boys killed by car near Hayes bus stop

Three teenage boys were killed when they were hit by a car while waiting near a bus stop in west London on Friday evening.
The three, who were all aged about 16, and were heading to a birthday party, died at the scene.
The crash happened just after 20:30 GMT on Shepiston Lane, Hayes, close to a petrol station.
A 28-year-old man, who was in an Audi involved in the crash, was arrested and taken to hospital for treatment.
The boys' next of kin have been informed, the Met Police said.
Other teenagers who were standing with the boys were uninjured.
Friends who left flowers at the scene on Saturday said the teenagers were going to a 16th birthday party.
The boys' next of kin have been informed, the Met Police said.
Other teenagers who were standing with the boys were uninjured.
Friends who left flowers at the scene on Saturday said the teenagers were going to a 16th birthday party.
Staff at the nearby Esso garage said a group had been fighting at the entrance to the forecourt just before the smash.
It is believed the Audi mounted the pavement just outside the entrance and travelled a few yards down the road before hitting a lamp post.
Tony Kitchin, 44, who works as security guard at a haulage firm nearby, said: "This road is busy 24/7. It's a speed trap.
"I'm really surprised we haven't had more horrific accidents like this. No parent should have to deal with that. My heartfelt sympathies go out to the family and friends of the people who lost their lives last night."
Det Sgt Jane Shaw, from the Met's serious collision investigation unit, said: "There are horrific circumstances that have resulted in three young people losing their lives." She appealed for anyone who saw what happened to contact the police.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-42843841

[boatbuilder]

'Frazzled' Boots pharmacist mixed up patient's pills

A patient has described suffering "horrendous" symptoms for three days after a Boots pharmacy gave him the wrong medication.
The 51-year-old was prescribed a drug to help with his insomnia, but was given one for high blood pressure with a similar name.
He believes Boots pharmacy staff are overworked and this led to the mistake.
Boots said the pharmacy in Basingstoke was "fully staffed" and it took patient safety "very seriously".
The patient's symptoms lasted for three days and included a "nasty, thumping, unbearable headache" and "constant nausea".
He contacted the BBC following an investigation into the Nottingham-based company, in which some pharmacy staff said they were under too much pressure and feared mistakes would be made.
The man has been getting medication from the same pharmacy in Basingstoke every month for 14 years and said he had "seen the pattern of them being overwhelmed".
The person who gave him the wrong medication was "looking a bit frazzled", he said, and he "chalked it up to them being really stressed".
"It is shocking that this happened to me, and what I went through was horrendous," said the patient.
"Had that been someone else who took different medication to me, they could have died as a result."

Full story

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Two British skiers die in Chamonix-Mont-Blanc fall

Two British skiers have fallen to their deaths while on holiday in the French Alps.
It is believed that the 25-year-olds slipped before falling several hundred metres while off-piste in the Chamonix-Mont-Blanc region.
A third skier - also British - raised the alarm on Sunday morning.
Mountain rescue services arrived at the scene within 10 minutes of being alerted but the two men were pronounced dead at the scene.
A spokesman for Le Peloton de Gendarmerie de Haute Montagne said: "The deceased were skiing off-piste but the route is very well-known and is popular with skiers."
He described conditions as "very unfavourable" and said the "snow was very compacted and very icy", adding that both Britons were believed to have slipped and fallen "several hundred metres to their deaths".
The Foreign Office is providing support to the families of the men.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42856594

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Man admits attempting to kill four children near Penistone

A man has pleaded guilty to attempting to murder four children by hitting them with a hammer before crashing a car into a pub.
Owen Scott, 29, of Fawley, Hampshire, admitted four counts of attempted murder and dangerous driving at Sheffield Crown Court following the crash near Penistone, South Yorkshire.
Two girls, aged seven and eight, and two boys, aged 21 months and nine months, were seriously injured.
Scott will be sentenced on 15 February.
Full article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-so ... e-42857427

[boatbuilder]

Paris residents battle floods as Seine level peaks

Forecasters say the flooded Seine River in Paris has reached its peak, but the waters are unlikely to begin receding until Tuesday.
Some residents of the suburbs have taken to boats and kayaks, as about 1,500 people have been evacuated from their homes.

VIDEO Report

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Cost of British passport to increase

The price of a British passport is to rise by £12.50 from 27 March for those applying by post.
Currently, an adult's passport costs £72.50 regardless of how you apply for it but under government plans this would rise by 17% up to £85.
The cost of online applications will also go up - but only by £3 to £75.50.
Children's passport applications will also increase by £12.50 (27%) from £46 to £58.50 for anyone under the age of 16, but will be £49 online.
Full article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42860723

[boatbuilder]

Manchester Arena attack 'hero' jailed for theft

A homeless man who stole from Manchester Arena bomb attack victims has been jailed for four years and three months.
Chris Parker was dubbed a hero at first after claiming he helped the injured, but CCTV showed him wandering in the arena foyer, stealing from victims.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please use the link below for the fullest version.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-42876790