Category: news

A County Londonderry dentist admits murdering his wife and his ex-lover’s husband nearly 20 years ago.

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

Rangers owner Sir David Murray is in talks with businessmen Andrew Ellis and Craig Whyte about selling the club.

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

Nine out of ten fathers-to-be are present when the child is born, and nearly as many also come to scan appointments, says a survey.

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

A man who repeatedly raped a girl then buried her newborn child in a metal scrap yard in Stoke-on-Trent is jailed.

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

Singer Susan Boyle achieves a notable double as her new album – already number one in the UK – reaches the top spot in the US as well.

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

UK car production rose last month, fuelled by growing global demand for British-made models, industry figures show.

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

The secrets of Britain’s abandoned villages

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

UK mortgage lending continues to stagnate, the Council of Mortgage Lenders says as it releases figures for October.

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

A landslide has brought trains to a halt between Bargoed and Rhymney in Caerphilly county.

Gwent Police received reports on Wednesday night that a large hole had opened up near the railway line and road between Brithdir and Tirphil.

The landslide was said to have brought down power cables and caused a hole in the banking.

A section of road is reported to have been washed away, exposing a gas mains supplying 15 properties.

Wales and West Utilities said the incident was caused by stormwater overwhelming a culvert.

However, the gas main was not damaged and supplies to customers are not affected.

The utilities engineer who went to the scene reported that the damage to the road has also exposed an old mine shaft.

Excavations were made further along the road so the gas main can be cut off at short notice if necessary.

Further investigations with other agencies will be made this morning, Wales and West Utilities said.

Train services have been stopped but there is a replacement bus service operating between Bargoed and Rhymney.

It is not known yet when a normal service will resume.

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

The head of Portugal’s intelligence agency has resigned over budget cuts which would see the closure of most of its offices abroad.

The resignation of Jorge Silva Carvalho, director of the Defence Strategic Intelligence Service (Sied), was accepted, Portuguese media report.

Budget cuts planned for 2011 would mean the closure of seven of the service’s 11 foreign offices.

Mr Silva Carvalho was quoted as saying the decision was a “mistake”.

The outgoing director reportedly told senior colleagues on Wednesday he was quitting as “a matter of conscience” in a bid “to draw attention to the mistake that is being made” by the government.

He was quoted as saying that the closure of Sied’s foreign offices would be “a serious setback for the service”.

A new director will be appointed by 1 December, the government information office said.

Jorge Silva Carvalho had led the service since April 2008.

Portugal is under intense pressure from other eurozone countries and financial markets to restore confidence in its finances by cutting its budget to rein in its deficit.

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

Speculation over the venue and date of Prince William’s wedding intensifies after Kate Middleton visited Westminster Abbey on Wednesday.

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

A Swedish prosecutor is seeking a court order to detain Wikileaks founder Julian Assange for questioning in connection with a rape case.

A warrant was issued in August, then dropped, before the case was re-opened.

The warrant came days after the Wikileaks website published 75,000 leaked US documents about the war in Afghanistan.

Mr Assange denies all the allegations, which stem from his visit to Sweden in August.

Director of Prosecution Marianne Ny says she is requesting the court order to question Mr Assange because he is suspected of rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion.

“The reason for my request is that we need to interrogate him,” said Ms Ny. “So far, we have not been able to meet with him to accomplish the interrogations.”

Ms Ny reopened the rape investigation into Mr Assange in September but did not request his detention and allowed him to leave Sweden.

Mr Assange, a 39-year-old Australian, has suggested that the allegations are part of a smear campaign by opponents of his whistle-blowing website.

When the allegations first emerged, he said their appearance – at a time when Wikileaks had been criticised for leaking Afghan war documents – was “deeply disturbing”.

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

The UK government borrowed £10.3bn to plug the gap in the public finances in October, official figures show.

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

Singer Amy Winehouse is to play a series of gigs in Brazil early next year, her first full live shows since 2008.

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

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson reiterates his desire to remain in management for the foreseeable future.

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