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London 2012 ‘wake up’ for firms

Wenlock and Mandeville, soft toy mascots for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic GamesThe games in 2012 could provide business opportunities for UK firms

The London Olympic games in 2012 should bring economic benefits to UK firms, but many are not sufficiently prepared to take advantage, a report says.

At the same time many companies are not aware of the potential risk of disruption from the event, says the survey from Deloitte.

The report comes in the week that the Commonwealth Games have ended, and eyes turn to London in two years’ time.

“Many of these businesses need a wake-up call,” says Deloitte.

‘Clock ticking’

“We believe that – with insight and planning – businesses can maximise the opportunities to benefit commercially from London 2012,” added Rick Cudworth, head of business continuity and resilience at Deloitte.

“The clock is ticking and the planning needs to start now.”

The report from the international auditing and business consulting firm also says that 60% of businesses in London expect virtually no impact on their ability to operate “business as usual” during the games.

Meanwhile, 70% of UK retailers expect no impact, despite this industry being one Deloitte feels “faces a direct impact in terms of a need to have high numbers of staff in store and product on the shelf”.

Transport is a worry for firms but the report says very few are concerned about supply disruption or resource scarcity, such as hotel rooms – which Deloitte says will be in short supply.

‘Disconnect’

More than half of companies surveyed expect the Games to deliver an increase in demand for their services.

But, said Deloitte, even here “there is a disconnect with many companies expecting an increase in demand, but not planning for how they are going to secure that extra business”.

London 2012 – Begin your journey here

London view

Sport, news and more 2012 informationBBC London 2012

However, it also says that many businesses have recognised the need to plan for the games.

About a quarter of large businesses in the UK have appointed an individual or group to manage the potential risks to their business and assess the opportunities on offer as a result of the Games.

Heather Hancock, London 2012 Partner at Deloitte, said: “It’s a good start that, with just under two years to go, 25% of the businesses we surveyed are already thinking about the impact and the opportunities of London 2012.

“These companies stand to be best-placed to benefit from the business boost the Games can deliver.”

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

Sick Thatcher cancels No 10 visit

Lady ThatcherLady Thatcher was prime minister between 1979 and 1990

Baroness Thatcher has pulled out of a visit to Downing Street to mark her 85th birthday because she is suffering from flu.

The former prime minister had been due to attend an event hosted by David Cameron with about 150 friends and colleagues on Thursday evening.

Mr Cameron invited her to Number 10 soon after he became prime minister earlier this year.

Baroness Thatcher’s birthday was on Wednesday.

She previously returned to see Mr Cameron’s two Labour predecessors, Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.

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

DRC troops ‘in rapes and murders’

Margot Wallstrom, the UN's special representative on sexual violence, listens to villagers in Kitchanga, in eastern Democratic Republic of CongoMargot Wallstrom visited the Democratic Republic of Congo last week to hear first hand testimony from witnesses and victims of abuses

A UN envoy says some government troops in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have committed rape and murder.

The UN special representative on sexual violence in conflict, Margot Wallstrom, has been briefing the Security Council on her visit to North Kivu province.

She said the abuses were happening in the same area where rebels committed mass rapes in July and August.

UN peacekeepers based just 20 miles (32km) away were criticised at the time for not responding quickly enough.

Around 300 civilians and more than 50 children in the Walikale region were raped by the rebels – many of them in front of their families and neighbours.

Ms Wallstrom blamed the rebel Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and Mai-Mai militia.

The attacks had focussed international attention on the endemic sexual violence in Congo and UN failures to deal with it.

Since then, Ms Wallstrom said government troops (FARDC) had been deployed to the territory to reassert control and to implement the president’s moratorium on mining in the area, which is rich in minerals.

The UN special representative heard directly from locals on her visit last week and said UN peacekeepers in the area had also told her of rapes, killings and lootings perpetrated recently by government soldiers.

Map of DR Congo

She urged the DRC government to investigate the new attacks and “swiftly hold any perpetrators to account”.

“The possibility that the same communities that were brutalised in July and August are now also suffering exactions at the hands of the FARDC troops is unimaginable and unacceptable,” she said.

The BBC’s United Nations correspondent, Barbara Plett, says Ms Wallstrom’s warning underlines the enormous difficulty of protecting civilians in a region overrun by rebel groups, with an army made up of former militias.

The UN Security Council also heard a call for sanctions against a Rwandan Hutu commander known as “Colonel Serafim” who the special representative says is among those responsible for the July and August attacks.

Ms Wallstrom welcomed the recent arrests of two rebel leaders, saying this should serve as a warning that sexual violence would not be tolerated.

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

Medal of Honor game goes on sale

Medal of HonourThe decision to allow users to fight as The Taliban caused controversy

The video game Medal of Honor (MoH) has gone on sale despite calls by the UK defence secretary to ban it.

The game follows the exploits of Special Forces troops battling insurgents in Afghanistan in 2002.

In August, Defence Secretary Dr Liam Fox called for the game to be banned after it emerged that users could fight as The Taliban.

Its developer said the game was meant to be realistic, but eventually renamed The Taliban as “The Opposition”.

This edition, the latest in EA’s long running series of games bearing the MoH title, has dispensed with its World War II theme and opted to recreate modern combat in the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan.

But with 150,000 American, British and Allied troops fighting in Afghanistan, many felt taking on the role of the Taliban was a step too far.

Dr Fox described the game as “un-British” and said it was “shocking that someone would think it acceptable to recreate the acts of the Taliban against British soldiers”.

The Canadian and Danish Defence Ministers also criticised the game.

EA weathered the storm for a few weeks, but in early October the firm bowed to pressure and took the term “Taliban” out of the multiplayer option.

Despite the change, the game is still banned from sale on military bases, although troops can purchase it elsewhere and play it on station.

Johnny Minkley, a journalist with video gaming website Eurogamer, told BBC News that he thought EA’s decision to allow users to play as the Taliban was a marketing ploy.

“I don’t think EA was that naive,” he said.

Medal of HonourPlayers fight as Special Forces operating in Afghanistan in 2002

“They knew that this would be controversial, but they needed to do everything to get attention, especially when they are going up against Call of Duty: Modern Warfare – the biggest brand in the world.”

The game itself has received mostly positive reviews, scoring an average of 75% according to the review aggregator site Metacritic. Computer and Video Games Magazine described it as “an accomplished, confident online shooter”.

Mr Minkley agreed, saying the developers had done “a really good job” but added that the product was some way from being perfect.

“The campaign stands up well and it is a competent and exciting first person shooter.

“But I do have a problem with it, and that is that the single player mode is very short.

“A competent gamer could get through the entire game in under five hours.”

In the 1990s, single player games usually lasted for days, if not weeks. However, that changed with the 2001 release of Max Payne, which could be completed in under 12 hours.

“This is an ever growing trend – we saw it with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare – of having an exciting, but short, single player game,” said Mr Minkley.

“Developers claim that the multi-player aspect – where players compete on line – extends the life of the game, but the fact remains many people cannot or do not want to play online,” he added.

US developer Activision’s last modern combat shooter – Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 – grossed over $1bn in sales, and the follow on title Call of Duty: Black Ops, due for release on 9 November this year, is expected to do as well, if not better.

EA’s decision to switch the Medal of Honor theme from the Second World War to a modern day conflict has prompted some critics to accuse the US firm of imitation.

Mr Minkley agreed, but said the decision was a financial one and Medal of Honor was not a pale imitation.

“What they’ve tried to do is focus on the confusion and uncertainty of western forces in Afghanistan and it feels different from a Hollywood style shooter like Call of Duty.

“You also have to bear in mind there is a degree of WWII fatigue and, ultimately, games developers are there to make money,” he said.

“This is a commercial decision to follow the success of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 but – other than The Taliban issue – is far less deliberately proactive than Call of Duty.”

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

Health and safety reforms urged

People playing conkersThe traditional game of conkers has been targeted by over-officious rulings, David Cameron said

Health and safety laws must be reformed to stop the growth of a “compensation culture” in the UK, a government-commissioned report is expected to say.

David Cameron has asked former cabinet minister Lord Young to carry out a review of current laws.

He has previously said that workers, including emergency services staff, are being prevented from doing their job by health and safety legislation.

But Labour insists reforms should not be based on “myth and exaggeration”.

Lord Young, who served as trade and industry secretary under Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, was asked in June to carry out a survey of health and safety rules.

Many were “absolute nonsense”, he argued, meaning that safe work-related activities were often deemed by officials to be dangerous.

Restaurants had banned toothpicks on safety grounds and contestants in a pancake race had been told to walk, not run, because of rain, he added.

Speaking last year, Mr Cameron said the UK had become “saturated” by health and safety laws.

In recent years children had been told to wear goggles to play conkers and trainee hairdressers had been banned from using scissors, he added.

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

South Lebanese cheer Ahmadinejad

Crowds greet Ahmadinejad in BeirutHuge crowds came out to welcome the Iranian leader to Beirut

Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is due to make a visit to southern Lebanon, close to the Israeli border.

He is on the second day of a state visit that has been called provocative by Israel, the US and some Lebanese.

On Wednesday, Mr Ahmadinejad was greeted by large crowds and attended a rally organised by Hezbollah.

Related stories

He praised Lebanon for “resistance to the world’s tyrants”. But he also said Iran supported a strong, unified Lebanon.

Iran contributed heavily to the cost of rebuilding villages destroyed in the south during the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah.

The border area between Lebanon and Israel is rarely without tension. In August, two Lebanese soldiers, a Lebanese journalist and a senior Israeli army officer were killed in a clash sparked by the trimming of a tree on the Israeli side of the frontier.

Mr Ahmadinejad’s motorcade was showered with rice and flowers on its way from Beirut airport to the presidential palace on Wednesday.

Analysis

The next stage of the Iranian leader’s controversial visit is to Hezbollah strongholds in southern Lebanon – an act described by Israel as a commander reviewing his troops and the transformation of Lebanon into an Iranian protectorate.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was earlier among friends at the huge rally of flag-waving Hezbollah supporters in Beirut’s southern suburbs – listening to patriotic music praising the Shia movement’s clashes over the years with its avowed enemy – Israel.

He had basked in similar scenes of adulation as he arrived at Beirut airport on this state visit – his image and that of Iranian religious leaders flanking the road to the city centre. But many inside Lebanon and outside see this trip as nothing short of inflammatory – upsetting Lebanon’s fragile political system and provoking another conflict with Israel. Calls from some to calm the rhetoric fell on deaf ears as Mr Ahmadinejad and Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah – appearing via video link for security reasons – addressed the crowd.

“We support a strong and unified Lebanon. We will always back the Lebanese government and its nation,” he said, standing beside President Michel Suleiman.

But he said Iran stood ready to help Beirut confront any Israeli aggression.

“We will surely help the Lebanese nation against animosities, mainly staged by the Zionist regime,” he said, in reference to Israel.

Many Lebanese are alarmed at the visit, as Iran backs Hezbollah, the powerful Shia Islamist group whose war with Israel left 1,200 Lebanese and 160 Israelis dead.

Speaking during a visit to Kosovo, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Washington rejected any efforts “to destabilise or inflame tensions” in Lebanon.

“We would hope that no visitor would do anything or say anything that would give cause to greater tension or instability in that country,” she said.

Members of Lebanon’s Western-backed parliamentary majority have called the visit a provocation, saying Mr Ahmadinejad was seeking to transform Lebanon into “an Iranian base on the Mediterranean”.

Israel accuses Iran of supplying Hezbollah with weapons, but officials close to the group stress instead the Islamic Republic’s support for reconstruction.

They say they have spent about $1bn (£0.6bn) of Iranian money since 2006 on aid and rebuilding.

HezbollahEmerged in 1982 to fight Israeli invasion of LebanonSet up with money and arms from Iran, and has operated with Syria’s blessingMilitary wing regarded as terrorist organisation by Western countries such as USHezbollah attack on Israeli soldiers in Israel in 2006 sparked devastating month-long conflictPolitical wing and allies control several government ministriesWho are Hezbollah?

“Ahmadinejad has done a lot for Lebanon, we are here to thank him,” 18-year-old engineering student Fatima Mazeh told the Associated Press.

“He’s not controlling Lebanon. Everyone has a mind and can think for himself. We are here to stand with him during the hardest times.”

But elsewhere in the country, Hezbollah and its patron are viewed with suspicion by some.

“I am disgusted by this visit,” Mona, a 23-year-old Christian, told the AFP news agency. “They refer to [Ahmadinejad] as a saviour, but all he has brought us is trouble.”

The state visit also comes amid tension over a UN inquiry into the 2005 assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

The UN tribunal is believed to be close to issuing indictments, including ones naming members of Hezbollah. Prime Minister Saad Hariri is under pressure from Hezbollah and Syria to denounce the inquiry into his father’s death.

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

Peru president denies slap claim

Alan Garcia in June 2006It is not the first time President Garcia has been accused of lashing out

Peruvian President Alan Garcia has denied slapping a young man who insulted him when he visited a hospital last weekend.

The alleged victim says he was struck by the president and then beaten up by his bodyguards after he called Mr Garcia corrupt.

Mr Garcia initially denied the incident had taken place.

He then said he had responded indignantly when insulted, but had not hit the man.

The incident has caused considerable controversy in Peru, where insulting the head of state is an offence.

President Garcia was visiting Edgardo Rebagliati hospital in Lima with his daughter last Saturday when the confrontation took place.

Richard Galvez, 27, a volunteer worker at the hospital, says he shouted “corrupt” at Mr Garcia when he saw him pass by.

Mr Galvez alleges the president turned on him and struck him in the face.

He further alleges he was then beaten by some of Mr Garcia’s security guards, while other hospital workers and patients shouted in protest.

The incident was widely reported in Peruvian newspapers, quoting witnesses.

President Garcia initially denied there had been a confrontation.

He later said he had responded with a gesture and told Mr Galvez to “Go to hell” after he was insulted, but had not hit the man.

And he said he was right to be indignant.

“Nobody shows me disrespect, much less to the president, and much less in front of my daughter or mother”, he said.

“It is impossible that someone calls you ‘corrupt’ to your face and you stay silent in front of your daughter”.

Another man later came forward and said it was he, and not the president, who struck the volunteer, saying he was enraged at hearing insults directed at the president’s mother.

It is not the first time Mr Garcia has been accused of lashing out in public, says the BBC’s Dan Collyns in Lima.

In 2004 he is alleged to have kicked a man with mental health problems who passed in front of him as he took part in a protest march.

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

Paterson pledge on capital cash

Owen PatersonOwen Paterson was reported to have said last week that Gordon Brown had “written a cheque he could not cash”.

The Secretary of State Owen Paterson has said that Northern Ireland will receive the capital investment funding pledged under the St Andrews Agreement.

Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness had raised concerns that the £18bn investment pledge promised by the Labour government could be halved.

Last week, Mr Paterson was reported to have said that Gordon Brown had “written a cheque he could not cash”.

However, he said on Thursday that the government would fulfil the commitment.

He added: “Having had discussions with the treasury, we are confident that having spent £9.8bn since 2005, that by 2017-18, we will be on track for Northern Ireland to have spent £18bn.”

Economist John Simpson told the BBC that he believed a total of £14bn will have been invested by 2014-15, the end of the period covered by the Comprehensive Spending Review next week.

He added that he believed the government was then hoping that with an improved economy it would make up the rest of its commitment over the following three years.

Mr Paterson declined to say how the funding would come.

“These are the nitty gritty details that we are still negotiating over the last few days before we decide to make the announcements next week.

“But there was this bad headline that the £18bn was at stake so I would like to reassure everyone that as far as we are concerned, we are on track to spend 18 by 2017-18.”

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

US asks judge to delay gay ruling

Supporters of gays in the militaryThere is strong support for lifting the ban on gays serving openly in the US military

The US administration has asked a judge to stay her order lifting a ban on gay people serving openly in the US military, pending an appeal.

District Judge Virginia Phillips issued an injunction forbidding the military from enforcing the 17-year-old ban.

In another development, the Pentagon said it had issued guidelines to troop commanders to comply with her order.

Related stories

The “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy allows gay people to serve, but only if their sexuality is not revealed.

Although the Obama administration favours scrapping the policy, it would prefer it be done in Congress rather than through the court system.

The US Justice Department filed the stay request in California on behalf of the administration.

In court papers, President Obama’s administration said serious legal questions had been raised by the case and that the government would be irreparably harmed unless the current policy was allowed to remain in place temporarily.

“The precipitous changes to military policy required by the court’s injunction would result in a host of significant and immediate harms to the recognised public interest in ensuring that the nation has strong and effective military operations,” the administration said.

The administration asked Judge Phillips to respond by Monday “given the urgency and gravity of the issues”.

If the judge refuses, the Justice Department said it would seek a ruling blocking the judge’s decision from the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.

The 1993 law was a compromise aimed at resolving a thorny issue.

However, critics say it violates the rights of gay military personnel and has harmed US national security by forcing out some 14,000 qualified troops.

A legislative attempt to overturn the ban failed in the US Senate last month.

On Wednesday, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates warned that court order could have “enormous consequences” for US forces.

“I feel strongly this is an action that needs to be taken by the Congress and that it is an action that requires careful preparation, and a lot of training,” he said. “It has enormous consequences for our troops.”

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

Firefighter injured by Antrim mob

Antrim fire engineThe front window of a fire engine was smashed during the attack

A firefighter has been injured after his fire appliance was attacked by a mob of stone-throwing youths in Antrim.

The Fire Service was responding to reports of a grass fire, but found that a burning bin had been pushed against the wall of Stiles Community Centre.

Firefighters battled the blaze despite being repeatedly pelted with stones and after eventually managing to put it out, they withdrew.

The injured firefighter is currently being assessed in hospital.

Station commander Keith Black said that the damage to the fire appliance meant cover was now reduced.

He added: “We have resilience for this sort of thing but we do not have a spare fire appliance sitting at the back of the fire station.

“I would ask everyone that, rather than throwing stones at fire engines, they should come and talk to us if they have any issues with us.”

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

Facebook and Skype in social deal

Mobile phone with Facebook appTogether the deal means access to around 1 billion users

Skype is integrating with Facebook to make it easier to call and video chat with friends and family on the social network.

The deal comes amid fevered rumours that Facebook plans to launch a phone of its own.

Meanwhile Skype is gearing up for a $100m (£62m) share issue.

“The essence of the Skype experience is communicating with the people you care about,” said Rick Osterloh, Skype’s head of consumer products.

The new Skype for Windows will include a Facebook tab. This means that for the first time Skype users can keep up-to-date and interact with their Facebook news feed including posting status updates, commenting and liking directly from Skype.

Added to that, the Facebook phonebook in Skype allows users to call and text Facebook friends directly on their mobile phones and landlines.

And if your Facebook friend is also a Skype contact, then users can make free Skype-to-Skype calls.

Group video calling is available in beta form as a free trial.

“We’re working with companies such as Skype to make it easier to find your friends anytime you want to connect,” said Ethan Beard, director of Facebook’s developer network.

‘New market’

The move is seen as a natural one for the world’s biggest social network, which is aiming to be the central communications and messaging platform for its users across a range of media.

Commentator Ben Popper of business technology blog BNET.com told BBC News it is a win-win for both firms.

“For Skype they are getting built right into the conversation. For Facebook, which has the bulk of its users in the US, this is good in terms of expansion because a chunk of Skype users are in Europe and the rest of the world.”

Mr Popper also said he believed this points towards “a possible new market”.

“The deal makes this space a lot more interesting and indicates a different direction of where communications could go.

“Right now phones are owned by the cellular networks. This partnership is big enough and deep enough, it could point towards a different kind of telco [telecommunications company] in the future.”

Skype has around 560 million registered users and 8.1 million paying users. The Luxembourg-based company said that people spend an average of 520 million minutes every day talking to one another on the service.

Facebook has more than 500 million users, helping the two companies close in on around one billion users, though there will be some overlap.

The research company ComScore reported that in August Facebook users spent more than 40 million minutes on the social networking giant.

The new Skype version 5.0 for Windows is available now. There has been no announcement about when Mac or Linux versions will follow.

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