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Christmas rail services reduced

A train travelling in wintry conditionsMany people will be travelling around the country by rail for their Christmas break
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Train passengers making journeys before Christmas are being warned that some services have been reduced.

First Capital Connect, Chiltern and Merseyrail are likely to cut up to 25% of their services on Christmas Eve.

And roads around the country are expected to be busy again as traffic builds during the festive getaway.

Heavy snow is predicted to fall in north-east England on Friday, as well as northern and eastern Scotland, creating treacherous conditions.

Further heavy snow may return to the UK on Boxing Day, forecasters say.

The Association of Train Operating Companies (Atoc) said the reduced rail timetables would ensure scheduled services were able to run on time.

An Atoc spokeswoman said many of the train timetable alterations were “tweaks”, and that many affected services were commuter lines that were not expected to be busy.

She also said that services were expected to run at a similar level “at the moment”.

“We understand passengers’ frustration when there is disruption and apologise to anyone caught up in it,” she added.

But Anthony Smith, chief executive of Passenger Focus, warned people to expect packed trains on Christmas Eve as millions of Britons made trips for Christmas.

He told the Daily Telegraph: “Passengers should make sure they make a seat reservation to avoid the risk of having to stand for their entire journey or be turned away as carriages will be full.”

Cancellations are expected across the much of the rail network on Friday.

Train punctuality fell during the first bout of bad weather this winter, according to Network Rail figures.

They showed that 81.7% of trains ran on time in the period from 14 November to 11 December 2010 compared with 89.4% in the same period in 2009.

The punctuality of some train companies fell to about 70% in the early winter 2010 period, but Chiltern Railways managed to run 94.4% of trains on time, making it the best-performing company.

The poorest-performing company in this year’s early winter period was West Coast operator Virgin Trains, with punctuality falling from 83.6% to 70.4%.

As UK airports return to normal and continue to clear a backlog of flights, more snowfall has caused chaos at airports in Ireland and France.

Some 40,000 travellers have been stranded after Dublin airport closed on Thursday because of heavy snow falls and Northern Irish airports are all operating with delays .

In France, half of all flights in and out of Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris have been cancelled until Friday afternoon because of the freezing conditions.

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

Scots pessimistic about economy

money on till receiptThe survey suggests consumer spending is likely to remain weak.
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Scots are growing increasingly pessimistic about the state of the economy, according to research by Ipsos MORI.

The market research agency found that six out of ten people believed economic conditions would get worse over the next year.

The survey suggested consumer spending was likely to remain weak.

More than half the people interviewed said they were not planning to take a holiday abroad over the next 12 months.

Ipsos MORI’s “propensity to buy” tracking measure also showed that only 14% of people said they planned to buy or replace a car.

The research showed that Scots are more pessimistic about their own economy than about the UK situation.

While 60% thought economic conditions in Scotland would get worse – 54% thought the UK situation would deteriorate.

Ipsos MORI said the gap in perception between the economies has been a consistent one and “raises intriguing questions about national confidence”.

The economy has been one of the main concerns since MORI began monitoring the public mood in Scotland, however health and education have slipped down the agenda since the general election.

The company said those issues were given prominence in the election campaign but the economy is now seen as being more important.

Unemployment which was described by about 45% as the most important issue facing Scotland is now the major concern for 27%.

However Ipsos MORI said that it “might expect that to change as public sector jobs are cut”.

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

Concern at nursery teaching staff

children at a nursery school genericThe EIS said qualified staff were vital to a child’s formative education
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Scotland’s nursery teachers are being replaced by staff with lesser skills on lower pay, a teaching union has said.

A report from the Educational Institute of Scotland said children aged between three and five should have access to a teacher for at least five hours a week.

They added that the worst performing councils should be “named and shamed”.

The Scottish government said it did not accept the findings and that it was funding more nursery teaching places.

The report, prepared by academic George MacBride, pulled together research examining the provision of nursery education across Scotland.

The EIS said the drive to cut costs among local authorities was lowering the quality of children’s education at a formative stage.

General secretary Ronnie Smith said, “Without teachers in all nursery schools and nursery classes, there is the risk that this important early stage of Curriculum for Excellence will start to unravel which will cause greater difficulties for children and their teachers once they reach primary school.

“It is essential that we get this first stage of CfE right, which means that teachers must be involved to ensure a quality educational experience for all young children.”

In response, Isabel Hutton, from the Scottish council’s umbrella body Cosla, said: “We have known for sometime that the quality of services depends on having a well qualified workforce.

“This remains our aim, and it is the job of local authorities to try and get the right balance of qualified teachers and other professionals to ensure children and families get the best possible service.”

A Scottish government spokesman said they were “well aware” of the importance of pre-school education.

He said that there were legal obligations on councils to provide appropriate nursery staff and that the government had expanded the legal entitlement to 475 hours per annum – “delivering around eight million more hours for Scottish children”.

He added: “We do not accept that the concordat presents a danger to pre-school education, as a joint commitment to expand access to teachers was, in fact, set out in that document.

“Over the last two years, more than 9,000 more children had access to teachers in pre-school settings which represents steady progress against a worsening financial picture.

“We are funding Strathclyde, Stirling and Aberdeen universities to provide courses which offer more specialised early years teaching skills.

“Local decisions on teacher deployment are for councils to negotiate with their partners.

“There is no robust evidence on the amount of teacher time which is needed to improve children’s outcomes but we are clear that occasional or ad hoc access is unlikely to achieve such improvements.”

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

Iranian granted bail in Nigeria

Azim Aghajani outside a magistrate court in Abuja, 25 November 2010Azim Aghajani is believed to be a member of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps
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A court in Nigeria has granted bail to an Iranian man charged with arms trafficking after an illegal shipment of weapons was intercepted in October.

Judge Ishaq Bello of the high court in the capital, Abuja, set the amount at 20m naira ($131,150; £84,940).

Azim Aghajani, identified by court documents as a Tehran-based businessman and member of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps, says he is not guilty.

Three Nigerians have also been charged in connection with the incident.

The weapons, which included rockets, shells, mortars, grenades and ammunition hidden among building materials, were found on a ship docked at seaport of Apapa, in Lagos.

Nigeria reported the seizure to the UN Security Council for an apparent breach of sanctions relating to Iran’s nuclear programme.

Prosecutors later said Mr Aghajani was attempting to send them to The Gambia, which recalled its ambassador to Iran last month.

Nigerian soldiers and officials showing some of the arms seized at Apapa seaport in Lagos, 27 October 2010The Iranian government has said only that the shipment belonged to a private company

Senegal also cut diplomatic ties with Iran last week amid speculation the shipment was ultimately destined for its southern region of Casamance, where a low-level separatist rebellion simmers despite a peace deal.

The Iranian government has said only that the shipment belonged to a private company and was being sent to a “West African country”.

In his ruling on Tuesday, Judge Bello said Mr Aghajani’s bail application had not been opposed because recent “gestures” by the Iranian embassy in Abuja had “gone down well with the state”.

He said the Iranian would next be in court on 31 January.

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

Assange dismisses US jail threat

Julian AssangeJulian Assange says he could be killed if he was sent to jail in America

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has said it would be “politically impossible” for Britain to extradite him to the United States for espionage.

Mr Assange told the Guardian newspaper there was a “high chance” he would be killed if he was jailed in America.

US authorities are thought to be considering whether they could extradite him on espionage charges.

He is currently on bail facing extradition proceedings to Sweden on sexual assault allegations.

Mr Assange denies the claims and says the case is politically motivated.

His Wikileaks website has published tens of thousands of leaked US diplomatic cables.

Mr Assange said strong public support for him in the UK would make it difficult for the British to hand him over to the Americans.

“It’s all a matter of politics. We can presume there will be an attempt to influence UK political opinion, and to influence the perception of our standing as a moral actor,” he said.

“Legally the UK has the right to not extradite for political crimes. Espionage is the classic case of political crimes. It is at the discretion of the UK government as to whether to apply to that exception.”

He also said that if was extradited to the US, there was a “high chance” of him being killed “Jack Ruby-style”.

This is a reference to the man who killed Lee Harvey Oswald before he was brought to trial for the murder of President John F Kennedy.

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

Gbagbo denied Ivory Coast funds

Laurent Gbagbo (21 December 2010)Mr Gbagbo says the presidential poll was rigged in rebel areas that backed Mr Ouattara

The Central Bank of West African States has blocked Laurent Gbagbo’s access to Ivory Coast’s funds and has recognised Alassane Ouattara as president.

The bank says only appointed members of Ivory Coast’s “legitimate government” will have access to the deposits there.

The BCEAO had been urged to restrict access as it will make it difficult for Mr Gbagbo to pay the military, and increase pressure on him to step down.

Violence since last month’s disputed election has left 173 people dead.

A senior UN official said its investigators had also found evidence of extrajudicial executions, more than 90 cases of torture and 500 arrests, as well as abductions, kidnappings, acts of sexual violence, and destruction of property.

The UN Human Rights Council expressed deep concern about the unrest, and unanimously adopted a resolution condemning the “atrocities”.

Mr Gbagbo says the 28 November poll, meant to unify a country split by civil war in 2002, was rigged in rebel areas that backed Mr Ouattara.

The Independent Electoral Commission ruled that Mr Ouattara had won, a decision later certified by the UN. But the Constitutional Council said Mr Gbagbo had been elected, citing vote rigging in some areas.

The UN General Assembly gave Mr Ouattara a further boost late on Thursday, by unanimously deciding to recognise his choice of diplomats as the sole official representatives of Ivory Coast to the UN.

Eyewitness

Few journalists have had access to the hotel where Alassane Ouattara set up his makeshift HQ three weeks ago.

A UN helicopter flew some of us over the lagoon to land in the garden, next to the tents for UN peacekeepers which guard the hotel.

The lobby was busy with a few dozen stranded supporters – many of them wearing white T-shirts from Mr Ouattara’s electoral campaign. “It’s not too bad, we’re getting food,” one says.

With access to the hotel being denied – even for most UN convoys – food and supplies are often airlifted in.

The cabinet says it is at work. A long table has been arranged in a big air-conditioned tent and about two dozen computers are available for Mr Ouattara’s staff.

His men are up and running as if they were already in charge.

Life inside Ouattara’s hotel

At the same time as the UN Human Rights Council met in Geneva, finance ministers in West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) agreed to tell the BCEAO to hand over control of Ivory Coast’s state accounts to Mr Ouattara.

“The Council of Ministers has noted the decisions of the UN, African Union and Ecowas [Economic Community of West African States] to recognise Alassane Ouattara as the legitimately elected president of Ivory Coast,” a statement said, according to the Agence France-Presse news agency.

The council had decided that only “officials regularly designated by the legitimate government of Ivory Coast” could access the country’s deposits and represent it within the UEMOA, the statement added.

The ministers instructed the central bank and all regional banks “to take all security measures to ensure the rigorous application of these measures”.

The BBC’s John James in Abidjan says the decision cuts off a major source of funds for Mr Gbagbo, who has shown no sign of stepping down.

Mr Gbagbo still has control of state television and the public support of the army, but without access to Ivory Coast’s state accounts it is going to be extremely difficult to pay the salaries of soldiers and civil servants next month, even if he almost certainly has other financial reserves, our correspondent says.

But, analysts say the move by the finance ministers is risky, because Ivory Coast is by far the most important economy in the West African CFA monetary zone, whose eight members all use the franc CFA.

UN peacekeepers drive past a poster for Laurent Gbagbo on a street in Abidjan (23 December 2010)Mr Gbagbo has demanded that UN and French peacekeepers leave the country immediately

Although Mr Gbagbo has tried to paint the international condemnation of his decision to stay on in power as a plot by former colonial power France, West Africa’s leaders have been some of the most vocal critics, our correspondent says.

On Friday, they will gather in Nigeria for an emergency meeting of the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) and are likely to consider a range of measures against Mr Gbagbo, including the possibility of military action, he adds.

It sent troops to bring peace to Liberia and Sierra Leone in the 1990s.

Mr Ouattara and his supporters are currently holed up in the Golf Hotel in Abidjan, protected by 800 peacekeepers from Unoci. They are in turn being blockaded by soldiers loyal to Mr Gbagbo.

Map

The incumbent president has demanded that UN and French troops leave the country immediately. A close ally even warned that they could be treated as rebels if they did not obey the instruction.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Tuesday that any attempt to “starve the United Nations mission into submission” would not be tolerated, told the international community that it “cannot stand by”.

Guillaume Soro, the former rebel commander appointed prime minister by Mr Ouattara, meanwhile urged the use of force to oust Mr Gbagbo.

“The Ivorians cannot engage in talks with a dictator,” he said.

A US government specialist on Africa, William Fitzgerald, told the BBC that various options for defusing the crisis were being considered, but that “we’re really trying to avoid violence if at all possible”.

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

God surprises us says Pope on BBC

Pope Benedict XVIThe recording followed months of negotiations between the BBC and the Vatican
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God is faithful to his promises but often surprises us by how he fulfils them, the Pope is due to say in a BBC broadcast.

Pope Benedict’s Christmas message for the UK will be broadcast as Thought For The Day on the Today programme on Radio 4.

The child born in Bethlehem brought liberation – but not by military or political means, he will say.

In his message, he says he recalls his recent UK visit with “great fondness”.

“I keep all of you very much in my prayers during this Holy Season,” he adds.

It is the first time that the Pontiff has addressed a Christmas message especially for one of the countries he has visited during the year.

Listeners will hear him say: “I am glad to have the opportunity to greet you again, and indeed to greet listeners everywhere as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ.”

He goes on: “I pray for your families, for your children, for those who are sick, and for those who are going through any form of hardship at this time.”

At the Christmas season, says Pope Benedict, our thoughts recall a moment in history when the Israelites were waiting for the Messiah whom they pictured as a great leader who would restore their freedom.

But, he adds, the child who was born in Bethlehem would be the Saviour of all people throughout the world since he destroyed death by his own shameful death on the Cross.

Negotiations between the BBC and the Vatican went on for many months to enable the recording to take place.

Thought For The Day is broadcast within the Today programme at around 0745, from Monday to Saturday.

Since 1970, it has offered approximately three minutes of personal reflection from faith leaders and believers of a variety of religious denominations.

Gwyneth Williams, the controller of BBC Radio 4, has said she is “delighted Pope Benedict is sharing his Christmas message with the Radio 4 audience”.

However, the decision has been criticised by the UK’s atheist National Secular Society (NSS).

“After the overkill from the BBC during the Pope’s visit, this indicates the corporation’s obsession with religion, whereas the nation is largely indifferent to it,” commented its president, Terry Sanderson.

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

Queen focuses on sport in speech

The Queen at the recording of her Christmas messageThe monarch writes her own speech every year
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The Queen has made sport the central focus of her Christmas message this year, Buckingham Palace has revealed.

She emphasises how it can be used to build communities and create harmony, and highlights the important role that volunteers play.

Her message will also focus on how sport can be used to encourage the development of vital social skills.

The address will be broadcast in full on radio and television at 1500 GMT on 25 December.

The Queen will say: “In the parks of towns and cities, and on village greens up and down the country, countless thousands of people every week give up their time to participate in sport and exercise of all sorts, or simply encourage others to do so.

“These kinds of activity are common throughout the world and play a part in providing a different perspective on life.”

Footage showing William and Harry and a group of young African orphans from Lesotho bonding as they play football is included in the broadcast.

The Princes visited the country in June and travelled to the remote Semongkong Children’s Centre to meet the youngsters, during a tour of southern Africa.

Christmas Day messages are normally recorded at Buckingham Palace, but this year the Queen suggested Hampton Court Palace – the first time it has been used.

The broadcast, produced by ITN, will be available on the Royal Channel of the YouTube website.

It will also be shown in Commonwealth countries and on the British Forces Broadcasting Service.

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

Tory EU allies ‘nutty’ – Lib Dem

Jeremy BrowneJeremy Browne has been critical of Conservative immigration policies
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A Liberal Democrat Foreign Office minister has been recorded describing the Tories’ European allies as “quite nutty” and “an embarrassment”.

Jeremy Browne also told a Daily Telegraph undercover reporter how he believed the Conservatives’ immigration policy was “very harsh”.

The reporter was posing as a member of Mr Browne’s Taunton Deane consistency.

Two Daily Telegraph reporters have secretly taped hours of conversations with Liberal Democrat ministers.

The Conservatives broke away from the main centre-right grouping in the European Parliament last year, to join the European Conservatives and Reformists.

This is a coalition of small nationalist parties, some whom have been accused of anti-Semitism.

William Hague, the foreign secretary, has previously defended the decision to enter into the ECR after David Miliband highlighted the far-Right allegations in a Labour Party conference speech made when he was foreign secretary.

Mr Browne told the reporter: “They are quite nutty and that’s an embarrassment to them.”

He was also critical of the Tories’ approach to immigration, but insisted that the Lib Dems were having a moderating effect on the coalition government’s policy.

“The Tories had a very harsh, in my view, immigration policy. That’s not to say I think that there shouldn’t be, you know, a level of immigration which can’t be assimilated in society – I’m not in favour of letting rip and letting everyone in – I think we need to have a proper, functioning policy,” he said.

“But the Conservative one I thought was driven by quite a lot of uncharitable instincts. I think with the involvement of the Lib Dems plus the more liberal-minded Tories we’ll end up with a policy which is more enlightened.”

In recordings released earlier, Lib Dem ministers David Heath and Norman Baker both attacked Chancellor George Osborne.

And Paul Burstow was recorded suggesting David Cameron could not be trusted – which he later denied.

“George Osborne has a capacity to get up one’s nose, doesn’t he?” ”

David Heath Deputy Leader of the HouseAnalysis: What now for coalition?Your say: Is coalition working?

Paul Burstow, who told the two fake constituents “I don’t want you to trust David Cameron” told the BBC he is “embarrassed” by the comments.

The care minister said it was “not a question of me trusting the prime minister, of course I do”.

Transport minister Norman Baker and Deputy Leader of the House, David Heath, have also apologised for their remarks, a Lib Dem spokesman said.

The two senior Lib Dems told undercover reporters they voted in favour of tuition fees even though they opposed the policy.

Mr Heath also suggested Chancellor George Osborne was out of touch with ordinary people.

Mr Heath told the undercover reporters: “George Osborne has a capacity to get up one’s nose, doesn’t he?”

And Mr Baker said: “I don’t like George Osborne very much.”

Local government minister Andrew Stunell told the bogus constituents he did not know where Mr Cameron stood on the “sincerity monitor”.

“I don’t know where I put him on the sincerity monitor… is he sincere? I do not know how to answer that question.”

Business Secretary Vince Cable was stripped of his power to rule on broadcast regulation after he was taped saying he had “declared war” on media tycoon Rupert Murdoch.

But Prime Minister David Cameron has defended his decision not to sack Mr Cable – and other senior Conservatives have sought to play down the Telegraph revelations.

The revelations have been seized on by Labour as evidence that the coalition is a “sham” but senior Lib Dem and Tory ministers insist such tensions are inevitable when two parties work together in the national interest.

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