Category: news

world news,online new,us news,uk news

Record-breaking cat hits purr-fect pitch

Smokey the catSmokey could be named the world’s loudest purrer if the record is confirmed

A cat from Northamptonshire has made an official attempt to become the world’s loudest purrer.

Smokey made the record attempt in front of four independent witnesses at her owner Ruth Adams’ home in Northampton.

Smokey was tested by a music expert from Northampton College who found her purr reached 73 decibels – 16 times louder than the average cat.

The evidence will now be submitted to the Guinness Book of Records for verification.

Mrs Adams said: “Guinness has very strict criteria and the college has been very helpful in supplying the specialist recording equipment needed to measure Smokey’s purr and for arranging the official witnesses.

“Smokey is actually quite camera-shy so I was very conscious not to upset her during the record attempt, so we kept it all kept very calm and low-key.”

Witnesses to the 12-year-old cat’s attempt were Daventry MP Chris Heaton-Harris, veterinary nurse Kaye James, Diana Johnson from Cats Protection, and British Airways captain Alisdair Tait.

Ray Meadham, curriculum manager in music at Northampton College, said: “You don’t get asked to help out with a world record attempt every day so of course we jumped at the chance.

“We had a few test sessions at the college’s studios before deciding to make the attempt in Smokey’s home environment where she felt more at ease and would perform at her best.

“The recording equipment we used to record Smokey’s purr included a Rode microphone, Logic music software and a category 1 sound meter which measures decibels – it’s the same equipment music professionals use.

“Luckily, Smokey was on top form and rose to the challenge.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Fighting traps Ivorians at church

Pro-Ouattara fighters in Abidjan (file photo)Pro-Ouattara forces have taken control of some parts of the main city, Abidjan

Forces loyal to Ivory Coast’s UN-backed president-elect Alassane Ouattara have attacked the major town of Daloa as they gain ground on two fronts from the army.

They are making progress against forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo in both the east and the west.

If it fell, Daloa would open the way to Ivory Coast’s cocoa region.

Mr Gbagbo refuses to stand down even though the UN says he lost last year’s election.

The UN estimates one million people have already fled the violence.

On Monday, pro-Ouattara fighters, known as the New Forces, attacked Duekoue, near Daloa, and Bondoukou in the east.

They have controlled the north of the country since a 2002 civil war.

Pro-Gbagbo troops have lost every battle with the New Forces since last November’s election, says the BBC’s John James in the central town of Bouake.

He says they are also now struggling to contain a guerrilla force, known as the Invisible Commandos, who have taken control of the northern part of the main city, Abidjan.

map

At least 462 people have been killed since December, according to the UN, which has a 9,000-strong peacekeeping force in the country.

The UN has accused pro-Gbagbo forces of firing shells at pro-Ouattara areas of Abidjan, causing widespread civilian casualties.

Pro-Ouattara forces in Abidjan have also been accused of killing supporters of Mr Gbagbo.

France last week circulated a draft resolution at the UN calling for sanctions against Mr Gbagbo and his allies.

The European Union has already taken similar measures, leading banks to shut down and badly hitting the cocoa trade, which is one of Mr Gbagbo’s main sources of revenue.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Police find bodies of two women

the crime sceneOne man has been arrested on suspicion of murder

The bodies of a mother and daughter have been found at a house in Sheffield.

Police made the discovery at an address on Ironside Road in the Hemsworth area of the city at 0740 BST.

One man has been arrested on suspicion of murder and is currently in custody being questioned by police.

The area around the property has been sealed off. Police said they were unable to release further information at this stage.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Walmart ‘sexism’ case in US court

Christine KwapnowskiChristine Kwapnowski claims she was held back by her bosses because of her gender
Related Stories

The US Supreme Court is set to begin hearing evidence on whether the largest sex discrimination lawsuit in American history should go ahead.

A group of women is suing the world’s biggest retailer, Walmart, claiming they were held back because of their gender.

They want to bring a class action suit on behalf of more than a million women.

Walmart denies the allegations, saying it has a long history of promoting women and paying them well.

Christine Kwapnowski, one of six women named as plaintiffs in the lawsuit, claims she was passed over for pay and promotion in favour of male colleagues.

“I asked what I needed to do to get promoted and my manager said I should ‘doll up and blow the cobwebs off my make-up’,” she told the BBC.

Analysis

This is the first step in what those bringing the case hope could become a landmark legal moment. What started out as a grievance over pay and promotion among a handful of women could turn into the largest sex discrimination lawsuit in America.

The first claims of women being passed up for promotion at Walmart stores surfaced 11 years ago, but the six women pursuing this case do not want their grievances to be heard separately.

Instead, they are pushing for the case to be heard as a class action – to include all female store employees since 1988 – because they claim there is a wider culture of sex discrimination in the company. It is up to America’s highest court to decide whether this is how the case should proceed.

Walmart denies the charges, but if a class action goes ahead, the company faces the prospect of a billion-dollar payout, as well as a dent to its reputation.

The group bringing the lawsuit believes Walmart systematically discriminated against women in stores across America.

The six are making their claim under the 1964 Civil Rights Act, arguing “the policies and practices underlying this discriminatory treatment are consistent throughout Walmart”.

The women, who are seeking lost pay and damages, want the US Supreme Court to allow the case to proceed a class action lawsuit against Walmart.

A class action would cover any woman who has worked for, or works for, the store.

The claims of discrimination are vehemently denied by Walmart, which points out that it has won awards for its women-friendly working practices.

“Walmart has had – for many years – strong policies against discrimination and these policies are there to ensure women are promoted and paid well,” company spokesman Greg Rossiter said.

Walmart argues that a class action lawsuit would unnecessarily include women who do not have a grievance against the firm.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

England rugby star Foden arrested

Ben FodenFoden has won 15 caps for England

England rugby player Ben Foden has been arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage.

Officers were called after reports of an altercation in Old Park Lane, central London, at 0330 BST on Monday.

Police said a 25-year-old man had been arrested for criminal damage and a 23-year-old man had been arrested for theft. Both have been bailed.

Foden’s club side, Northampton Saints, said it was carrying out its own inquiry.

In a statement, the club said: “Northampton Saints takes any such allegations very seriously and is conducting its own investigation to ascertain all the facts of the alleged incident.

“The club is working with Ben Foden and his representatives, the Rugby Football Union and Premiership Rugby and will continue to do so during the investigation process.”

The former Sale Sharks player has become a regular for England over the last year and played all five games of this year’s winning Six Nations campaign.

He scored the only try in England’s 17-9 victory over France at Twickenham last month.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Review into fan kicked by police

North Wales Police are to review video footage which appears to show an officer kicking a football fan on the floor at a match in Wrexham.

Three fans were arrested at the Blue Square Bet Premier game where Wrexham beat Newport one nil on Saturday.

The video, posted on the social media site You Tube, shows the officer kicking the fan twice in the back.

The force said three officers were injured – one with a broken wrist – after trouble flared.

The You Tube clip shows police with batons drawn at the rear of a bus from south Wales.

One officer appears to kick a fan twice as he lies on the floor. The fan is then dragged away.

A North Wales Police spokesman said: “We are aware of the video and will be reviewing the footage.

“Three people were arrested at the game on Sunday, two from Newport. One who has been charged with a public order offence and assaulting police, and has been bailed to appear before court.

“The other was given a caution for obstructing a constable.

“A Wrexham fan was also arrested and charged with a public order offence and has been bailed to appear before court.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Ex-Plaid chairman quits party

John DixonFormer Plaid chairman John Dixon quits over party’s direction
Related Stories

Plaid Cymru’s former chairman has left the party because he is unhappy about its direction.

John Dixon quit as Plaid chairman last year after eight years in the role.

At the time he said the party was moving in a way he could not support and he could no longer afford to devote so much time to the unpaid role.

He told BBC Wales his decision to leave the party was because he was unhappy with its strategic direction.

Writing on his blog, Mr Dixon said Wales’ four main parties had effectively committed themselves to strengthening Welsh institutions.

He said: “It’s no accident that they are sounding increasingly similar.

“But does Wales really need four parties all saying much the same thing?”

He told the Western Mail that he got into politics to win arguments.

“I think Plaid Cymru is moving in the direction where it’s in the business to win elections,” he said.

Mr Dixon last year said that party leader Ieuan Wyn Jones cited his age when he told him he did not want him as a candidate for May’s assembly election.

At the time the party said no one had been told they should not stand simply because of their age or sex, and pointed out that leader Mr Jones was older than Mr Dixon.

A Plaid spokesman said: “John Dixon chose not to re-join the party some months ago. Plaid Cymru is focusing solely on the upcoming assembly elections.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Kennedy and Miliband put AV case

Postal vote being pushed into a letter boxThe first UK-wide referendum since 1975 will take place on 5 May
Related Stories

Ed Miliband is to urge all “progressive forces” to come together to press for a new UK voting system as those seeking change launch their official campaign.

The Labour leader will join senior Lib Dem and Green Party figures in a cross-party push for a Yes vote in the 5 May referendum on the alternative vote.

But Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg, who also backs change, will not be at the event.

Meanwhile, four ex-foreign secretaries have said it would be a “grave error” to replace the system for electing MPs.

Voters will be asked on 5 May whether they want to keep the existing first-past-the-post system, where people select one candidate, or switch to the alternative vote where they are able to rank candidates in order of preference.

Mr Miliband, Lib Dem President Tim Farron, former Lib Dem leader Charles Kennedy and Green Party London Assembly member Darren Johnson are among those set to attend the launch of the official cross-party Yes to Fairer Votes campaign.

THE REFERENDUM CHOICE

At the moment MPs are elected by the first-past-the-post system, where the candidate getting the most votes in a constituency is elected.

On 5 May all registered UK voters will be able to vote Yes or No on whether to change the way MPs are elected to the alternative vote system.

Under the alternative vote system, voters rank candidates in their constituency in order of preference.

Anyone getting more than 50% of first-preference votes is elected.

If no-one gets 50% of votes, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated and their backers’ second choices allocated to those remaining.

This process continues until one candidate has at least 50% of all votes in that round.

Q&A: alternative vote referendum AV poll: Where parties stand

But Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg is not expected to be present amid tensions between the deputy prime minister and senior Labour figures.

Mr Miliband has urged the Lib Dem leader to “lie low” on the issue and senior Labour figures have suggested his involvement in the campaign could threaten the chances of a yes victory given public anger with his party over student tuition fees and public sector cuts.

At Tuesday’s event Mr Miliband will urge all those on the centre-left to unite behind the push for the alternative vote.

“The tragedy for progressive politics in Britain has been that division on the centre and left has handed a united right victory after victory,” he is expected to say.

“For most of the last 80 years, there has been one Conservative Party – and others competing with Labour for progressive votes. The result, over the years, speak for themselves.

“No wonder the Tories back the current system. They know Britain is not a fundamentally Conservative country. But with first-past-the-post, they too often govern when progressive forces are divided. Britain deserves an electoral system that fairly reflects voters’ views.”

Launching their own cross-party campaign last month, the No to AV camp argued the alternative vote was a costly and complex system which could produce unfair results.

And, in a letter to the Times on Tuesday, four former foreign secretaries suggest that the principle of one person one vote in the current system was an example to other democracies.

“Those of us who have represented Britain internationally know one of the many reasons why we have always punched above our weight in the world is our simple and straightforward voting system, a system which everyone can understand,” the signatories – including Margaret Beckett, Malcolm Rifkind, Lord Hurd, Lord Howe and current foreign secretary William Hague – argue.

“Today, billions of people elect their representatives through the system of one person, one vote… We believe it would be a grave error to abandon this principle.”

While Conservative MPs largely support the status quo and Lib Dems back a switch to AV, Labour is divided on the issue with senior figures in each camp.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Truancy in England falls slightly

policeman with truantsUnauthorised absences in secondaries have fallen, but they have increased in primaries
Related Stories

Unauthorised absences in state primary and secondary schools in England fell slightly last year.

Statistics published by the Department for Education show the percentage of half days missed fell to 1.04% in 2009-10 from 1.05% the year before.

While unauthorised absences in secondary schools fell from 1.49% in 2008-09 to 1.45% last year, primary schools saw a rise from 0.64% to 0.67%.

Schools Minister Nick Gibb said absenteeism was “still too high”.

The figures show unauthorised absences in special schools has improved from 2.14% of half days being missed in 2008-09 to 1.98% in 2009-10.

“Children who are absent for substantial parts of their education fall behind their peers”

Nick Gibb Schools Minister

The statistics are likely to raise fresh concerns that parents are still taking pupils out of school during term time to take advantage of cheaper family holiday deals.

Family holidays were the second most commonly reported reason for absence. One in four days was not authorised by the school.

But the most common reason for absence is still illness, the figures show.

The figures also indicate 1.4% of girls in primary schools in 2009-10 were classified as persistent absentees (missing 64 or more half days a year, either authorised or unauthorised).

This compares to 1.5% of boys in primaries.

However, in secondary schools, girls were more likely to be persistent absentees – 4.6% compared to 4.2% of boys.

Of all pupils with a statement of special educational needs (SEN), 8.4% were persistent absentees. This is 4.7 times higher than the number of persistently absent pupils who did not have SEN.

More than half (52.3%) of all persistent absentees live in the 30% most deprived areas and account for 8.3% of all absence.

Mr Gibb said that despite the “welcome” drop in secondary schools, absenteeism was “still too high”.

“We know that children who are absent for substantial parts of their education fall behind their peers and can struggle to catch up,” he said.

The government’s Education Bill will “put teachers back in control of the classroom so pupils can learn without disruption and teachers have more power to tackle truancy”, Mr Gibb said.

“Reducing truancy rates is critical to our objective of closing the attainment gap between those from poorer and wealthier backgrounds.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Post Office staff secure pay rise

Post office signThe Post Office says the Crown offices are losing £60m a year
Related Stories

Staff who work in Crown post offices have been offered a pay rise and a cash lump sum after they voted earlier this month to go on strike.

Staff were offered a 3.68% pay rise over the next two years in addition to a cash payment of £1,000, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) said.

The deal also guarantees no branch closures over the next 12 months.

Union members will now be balloted on the deal, with papers being sent out on Friday. The vote closes on 13 April.

It covers more than 4,000 staff working in 373 Post Office branches.

“We’re really pleased to have secured this pay rise for staff at the Post Office. It is a piece of good news following a hard set of negotiations,” said Dave Ward, the CWU’s deputy general secretary.

“The scale and quality of postal services is under threat from government plans to break up and privatise Royal Mail Group along with a declining market, so job security has been a major focus of our talks with the company.”

The Post Office said it was pleased to have reached a deal with the CWU.

“The agreement has been made against the backdrop of a difficult economic climate and financial challenges faced by Crown branches,” a spokesperson said.

“Both parties will now be working hard to return the Crown part of the network to profit.”

For the tax year 2010-11, staff will receive a 2.25% pay rise. For the 2011-12 tax year, they will get a 1.4% rise. They will also receive £1,000 to be paid before the end of April this year.

Earlier this month, union members voted by nine to one, on a 66% turnout, for industrial action over a pay freeze and threatened branch closures.

Before the ballot, the Post Office rejected the CWU’s claim for a staff pay rise, saying the Crown branches were losing money, amounting to about £60m a year.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Call for school walks in country

Kate Humble

Wildlife presenter Kate Humble says walks in the country should be compulsory for UK school children.

Humble told the Radio Times that if children enjoyed the countryside, they would be more likely to protect it in the future.

She said the countryside was “great for your brain and great for your soul and great for your bum”.

She promised to take up her thoughts with the Education Secretary Michael Gove.

“It should be obligatory for every school child to experience the countryside,” she said.

“There’s a fantastic RSPB reserve on the edge of Newport. I took a bunch of kids pond-dipping there recently.

“At first they were all saying ‘Whatever’, but then one of them caught a stickleback and, such was the excitement, you’d have thought she had landed a 50lb salmon.

“Children are the future. If you give them access to the countryside, they’ll protect it.”

Humble’s comments came as the presenter prepares to return to BBC Two next week for a second series of Lambing Live.

Lambing Live was one of last year’s surprise hit shows.

A spokesman for the Department for Education said: “We agree – the risk-adverse culture that has built up in our schools is preventing children learning valuable lessons about nature and the great outdoors.

“We are ripping up the health and safety red tape surrounding school trips to give teachers greater freedom to routinely explore outside the classroom.

“Keeping children wrapped up in cotton wool simply denies them lifelong learning opportunities and fresh air.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Sian police finish searching site

The scene at Eastleach where a body was foundThe remains are thought to be those of a woman aged between 23 and 30
Related Stories

Police have finished recovering the body of a woman in Eastleach, Gloucestershire, and work is continuing to identify her.

Officers have been searching the site since the body of missing Swindon clubber Sian O’Callaghan was discovered 17 miles away last Thursday.

A police spokesman said that if they could not get a DNA match for the Eastleach body on their database, identification would take longer.

The scene has now been released.

The remains are thought to be those of a woman aged between 23 and 30.

Det Supt Steve Fulcher of Wiltshire Police has previously said it was indicated to him that the woman was taken from the Swindon area between 2003 and 2005.

“Forensic investigations to establish the identity of this young woman are ongoing using DNA and the speed of this identification process relies on whether or not we have her DNA on a database,” the police spokesman said.

“If we don’t get a DNA match further investigations will need to be carried out which may take some time.

“The public can be assured that we will of course inform the victim’s family wherever possible before releasing any details in the media.”

In separate developments, 47-year-old taxi driver Christopher Halliwell appeared before Swindon magistrates on Monday charged with the murder of Miss O’Callaghan, 22.

He was remanded in custody to appear before Bristol Crown Court on 30 March.

Miss O’Callaghan disappeared after leaving the Suju nightclub in Swindon a week last Saturday following a night out with friends.

Her body was found near Uffington, in Oxfordshire.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.