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Captain loses post for lewd video

Frame grab taken from video provided to the Virginian-Pilot newspaper, showing US Navy Capt Owen Honors

The videos featuring Capt Owen Honors were apparently made in 2006 and 2007

Strong GM sales confirm recovery

GM raised $20bn through a public share offering in November

General Motors has reported strong sales for December, confirming the US carmaker’s steady recovery during 2010.

Sales rose by 7.5% in the final month of last year compared with a year earlier, rounding off a good year for the car giant in which sales climbed by 6.3% to 2.2 million vehicles.

GM sales slumped during the downturn and the carmaker was forced into bankruptcy protection in 2009.

GM is the first major carmaker to report full-year sales.

Other major carmakers are due to report their sales figures later on Tuesday.

“Our sales this year reflect the impact of GM’s new business model,” said GM’s vice-president of US sales Don Johnson.

“The consistency of results that we achieved demonstrates the focus on our brands, dealers and customers, and how we compete aggressively for every sale, every day.”

The strong sales figures provide further evidence of a remarkable turnaround in GM’s fortunes.

In the summer of 2009, the company needed $50bn in government assistance as it went through bankruptcy protection. Following the bail-out, the government owned 61% of the company.

Comprehensive restructuring, including selling off a number of brands, has helped the carmaker to return to profitability.

It posted a net profit of $2bn (£1.2bn) in the three months to the end of September, its third consecutive quarter of profitability.

In November, GM raised $20.1bn through a public share offering – the largest share sale in the US to date.

This will allow the government to reduce its stake to as low as 33%.

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

Top Pakistan governor shot dead

The governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province, Salman Taseer, has died after being shot in the Pakistani capital Islamabad.

Mr Taseer, a senior member of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party, was shot near a market popular with wealthy Pakistanis.

He was taken to hospital where he died from his injuries.

Police say he was shot by a member of his own security detail as he got out of a car.

The BBC’s Aleem Maqbool, in Islamabad, says Mr Taseer was one of Pakistan’s most important political figures and his death will further add to political instability in the country.

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

Man prosecuted for speed gun warning

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has defended a decision to prosecute a driver who flashed his lights to warn motorists of a mobile police speed gun.

Michael Thompson, 64, was pulled by officers in Grimsby in July after warning several oncoming cars.

He was fined £175 after being found guilty of wilfully obstructing a police officer in the course of her duties.

Some have questioned if the prosecution was a waste of resources but the CPS said it was “deemed appropriate”.

Thompson, of Augustine Avenue, was also ordered to pay £250 costs and a £15 victim surcharge at the hearing at Grimsby Magistrates’ Court.

He claimed he was flashing his headlights merely to try to warn motorists to prevent them braking dangerously when they saw the mobile speed trap.

A CPS spokeswoman said: “Cost is not a consideration in our decision to prosecute.

“When a file is provided to the CPS from the police, it is our duty to decide whether it presents a realistic prospect of conviction and whether a prosecution is in the public interest.

“In accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors a prosecution was deemed appropriate.”

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

New plea after sex attack on girl

Police are appealing for witnesses and information after a serious sexual assault on a 16-year-old girl in Powys in the early hours of New Year’s Day.

The girl was attacked as she walked from The Venue Nightclub in Llandrindod Wells to a friend’s on Saturday.

Dyfed-Powys Police said the teenager is receiving specialist care and support.

Officers said they particularly want to trace a white male, 5ft 9in to 5ft 10in tall, in his 20s, with a square jaw line and an English accent.

Det Insp Owain Richards said, “I appeal for anyone who was in the North Avenue area of Llandrindod Wells between 03.30am and 03.45am on 1st January 2011 to contact detectives at Llandrindod Wells police station”.

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

NI Water may meet on Wednesday

Thousands of people were left without a home water supply during the crisis

Related stories

The board of Northern Ireland Water is meeting on Tuesday, amid increasing speculation about the future of its chief executive, Laurence MacKenzie.

The directors of the government-owned company are meeting to examine lessons learned from the water supply crisis.

Tens of thousands of households were affected over the Christmas holidays.

Northern Ireland Water has confirmed that just 158 properties are still without water, although it is still not clear when they will be reconnected.

Forty-seven are in the west of Northern Ireland and 111 in the east. Many are thought to be on higher ground.

As chief executive of the company, with a remuneration package of about £250,000, Laurence MacKenzie has been the focus of media attention during the crisis.

Asked if Mr Mackenzie had offered to resign in the past few days, a company spokesman would only say the chief executive’s focus is to continue to deal with the incidents around water shortages.

He added that Mr McKenzie had made clear that issues in relation to his future would be considered when the incident was closed and that point had not been reached.

Mr Mackenzie, along with other senior managers, is due to appear before Stormont’s regional development committee on Thursday.

The committee wants to know who is going to take responsibility for the crisis that left 40,000 households without water. The utility regulator is due also to meet with senior managers this week.

Helicopter

NI Water has drafted in a police helicopter and postal workers to identify the remaining burst pipes.

The police helicopter is fitted with thermal imaging technology to help check trunk mains in remote areas, while postmen and women have agreed to report any leaks they find on their rounds.

Incidents were reported at hundreds of NI schools over the Christmas period

Schools

Eleven schools due to reopen after Christmas were closed on Tuesday due to damage caused by flooding.

It had been feared the number would have been higher after hundreds reported incidents over the holidays.

However, round-the-clock work to repair burst pipes at schools has been largely successful.

Northern Ireland Education Minister Caitriona Ruane said maintenance staff “played a huge role in keeping systems going” in schools.

Nigel Frith, the principal of Drumragh College in Omagh, said it was frustrating that the school had had to close on Tuesday.

“We hoped we would be ready, but as we looked at the situation yesterday we saw that we just couldn’t be sure enough that we had found all the leaks yet,” he said.

The school has only been in the building for two years and had a frost protection system in place, but had still suffered serious damage due to the weather.

“A number of our maintenance officers worked right over the Christmas period – missed their Christmas dinners – to ensure that schools would reopen”

Tony Murphy Southern Education and Library Board

“The flooding is fairly serious. There are nine different bursts within the kitchen alone and in the technology block unfortunately it’s come down over a number of computers,” Mr Frith said.

The Southern Education and Library Board managed to get all the schools under its control ready to open – 85 of which were damaged over the Christmas break.

The chief executive of the board, Tony Murphy, said an emergency plan was in place for the impact of the severe weather.

“A help desk was available 24/7 right throughout the period and I must compliment the schools, the principals, the caretakers and the local community,” he said.

“Our first callout was at 6.20am on Christmas eve and a number of our maintenance officers worked right over the Christmas period – missed their Christmas dinners – to ensure that schools would reopen.”

Schools with problems have been asked to contact the department between 0900 GMT and midday on 02891 279480, 02891 279481 and 02891 279473.

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