Category: news

Chancellor George Osborne defends plans to make further cuts to the welfare bill saying current levels of spending on benefits cannot continue.

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’s trade unions are to demand an all-out assault on the government’s spending cuts programme when they gather for the TUC’s annual meeting.

Delegates in Manchester will accuse the Tory-Lib Dem coalition of failing the poor and damaging public services in its bid to reduce the public deficit.

They will vote on holding “joint industrial action” if the government does not change its mind.

But ministers insist they will protect vital public services.

The opening of the TUC’s 142nd congress – the first under a non-Labour government since 1996 – comes amid concern among unions about the speed and scope of the coalition’s programme to reduce the £155bn deficit.

Most Whitehall departments have been ordered to plan for savings of between 25% and 40% ahead of the comprehensive spending review of 20 October.

On Monday the congress will debate a motion calling for “joint industrial action”, potentially leading to strikes if the cuts are not scaled back.

This follows Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers’ (RMT) leader Bob Crow calling for a campaign of “civil disobedience” in protest.

However, in his speech, TUC general secretary Brendan Barber is expected to speak against a purely critical campaign, asking unions to promote an “alternative to austerity that encourages growth and jobs”.

He will add: “We have to start and win this great debate about the country’s economic future.

“We have to mobilise in every community and every constituency so that the cuts become the issue that decides the next election.”

Dave Prentis, general secretary of the Unison public services union, will call for united action to defeat the government’s “austerity agenda”.

He will say: “This is the most important congress for a generation. Already we are seeing the signs of blight hitting the poor hardest and creating a north-south divide…

“We are in no doubt that the coalition government’s cuts agenda is driven by ideology, not necessity.”

Mr Prentis will add: “Our counter-coalition can start from strength at this congress and build a movement for an alternative vision.”

Unite, the UK’s biggest union, says it wants a “robust campaign” to protect public services, while the GMB argues that three-quarters of a million jobs could be at risk.

The RMT accuses ministers of launching “all-out class warfare”.

The government is not sending a minister to address the congress but Business Secretary Vince Cable has said he would be willing to speak to representatives to discuss their concerns.

On Sunday, the Conservative mayor of London, Boris Johnson, urged the coalition not to cut large-scale projects in the city, such as Crossrail.

He said: “The point I’m making to government is that you’d have just got to be careful not to throw the baby out with the bath water. This is a sensitive time for the economy…

“You’ve got to make sure you protect those things that are going to deliver long-term growth not just for London but for the whole of the UK economy.”

The five candidates to become Labour’s next leader will also take part in a hustings on Monday, the last such meeting of the campaign.

It comes less than two weeks ahead of the party announcing a successor to Gordon Brown and with trade unions making up almost a third of the electorate in the contest, the contenders keen to make a good impression.

Acting Labour leader Harriet Harman will also address delegates on Monday.

The TUC congress is the curtain-raiser for the party conference season and will be followed over the next three weeks by events held by the Lib Dems, Labour and the Conservatives.

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

The annual Queen’s Speech setting out the government’s plans is set to be moved from autumn to the spring.

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

Scotland’s First Minister welcomes an announcement by Iberdrola that it will invest about £2.7bn in Scotland over the next two years.

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

Scottish ministers and opposition parties are meeting to discuss concerns that defence cuts could have a devastating effect on the economy.

The Ministry of Defence’s strategic review has led to fears two aircraft carrier contracts worth £5bn could be cancelled and RAF bases closed.

Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is holding joint talks with senior Labour, Lib Dem, Tory and Green MSPs.

The UK government is to make an announcement at the end of October.

It has stressed no decisions have yet been made, but has made clear the need to tackle the public spending deficit in a package of cuts likely to impact across many government departments.

The MoD is under pressure to cut its £36.9bn annual budget by up to 20%.

Ms Sturgeon, along with the Scottish Labour, Conservative and Green leaders – Iain Gray, Annabel Goldie and Patrick Harvie – are convening in Edinburgh to discuss a joint submission to the defence review.

Jeremy Purvis is representing the Liberal Democrats at the meeting, and all those taking part have already been sent a draft submission by the SNP government.

It has emerged that more than 100 contracts totalling about £1.25bn have already been awarded towards the construction of the two new aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, being built at Rosyth in Fife and on the Clyde and due to launch in 2016 and 2018 respectively.

Fears over their future were sparked after BAE systems chief executive Sir Ian King told the Commons Defence Select Committee on Wednesday that the company was asked to consider a number of options ranging from “one carrier to no carriers”.

Scottish ministers say cancellation could cost up to 10,000 jobs.

A spokesman for First Minister Alex Salmond, said: “This is a significant step forward in building a united campaign to protect jobs and skills in Scotland, and we look forward to the meeting on Monday morning to discuss a joint submission to UK strategic defence and security review.”

The future of Scottish RAF bases at Lossiemouth and Kinloss, in Moray, could also be in doubt.

Mr Salmond is not attending the joint meeting due to his visit to Bilbao, where he is aiming to strengthen Scotland’s economic links with Spain’s Basque region.

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 Belgium’s Roman Catholic Church is to announce how it will deal with cases of alleged widespread child sexual abuse.

An independent commission set up by the Church to investigate alleged abuse found that it had occurred in every Belgian diocese over decades.

The commission said some victims were infants when the abuse started and that 13 had committed suicide as a result.

The Church is under pressure to prevent further abuse and help the victims.

Archbishop Andre-Joseph Leonard, the head of the Catholic Church in Belgium, is expected to set out how the Church will deal with cases of alleged child sexual abuse, try to prevent further abuse and help the victims who have suffered at the hands of priests, teachers, lay workers and in at least one case, a bishop.

The level, extent and duration of abuse revealed last week shocked even members of the commission set up by the Church to investigate the allegations, says the BBC’s Jonty Bloom in Brussels.

It found that abuse occurred in every diocese and Church school over decades and totalled some 300 cases.

Although the commission’s investigation said it found no evidence of a systematic cover-up, the Church will now have to find a way of dealing with past abuses and also explain how it is going to prevent further abuse happening in future, our correspondent adds.

Belgian media have accused the Church of seeking to hide abuse despite prosecutions of abusers.

Two-thirds of victims were boys, but 100 girls also suffered, the head of the independent commission, Peter Adriaenssens, said last week.

While the commission he headed had found no indication that the Church had systematically sought to cover up cases, Mr Adriaenssens said its findings were a “body blow” to the Church in Belgium.

Many alleged victims came forward to testify to the commission after the Bishop of Bruges, Roger Vangheluwe, resigned this year, admitting to having sexually abused a boy before and after becoming a bishop.

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

Members of the Scottish Affairs Committee are to examine how a lack of tax breaks has impacted video games development 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.

The Unionist Unity candidate, who lost out in the general election to Sinn Fein’s Michelle Gildernew by four votes, begins a legal challenge on Monday over the result.

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

Elvis fans from across the UK paid tribute to “the King” in their own way at a concert in Hyde Park.

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

Only 2% of the rubble from Haiti’s devastating earthquake has been cleared, eight months after it struck Port-au-Prince.

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

Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, is insisting his government will last until the end of its term in 2013.

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

Half of 11-16-year-olds in Wales get drunk on average three times every six months, according to a Red Cross survey.

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

The US and Germany have welcomed the result of the Turkish constitutional referendum.

The US President Barack Obama and German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle have issued statements commending the vote.

Voters in Turkey gave strong backing to a package of changes to the country’s military-era constitution.

The changes are aimed at bringing Turkey in line with the European Union, which the government wants to join.

With nearly all votes in the referendum counted, about 58% had voted “Yes” to amending the constitution.

Prime Minster Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the result meant the country had “crossed a historic threshold toward advanced democracy and the supremacy of law”.

The opposition argues that the governing party, which has its roots in political Islam, is seeking dangerous levels of control over the judiciary.

Mr Obama called Mr Erdogan to congratulate him.

The US president “acknowledged the vibrancy of Turkey’s democracy as reflected in the turnout for the referendum that took place across Turkey today”, a statement released by the White House said.

Mr Westerwelle said the vote was critical for Turkey’s bid to join the European Union.

“This discussion in society, also about the concrete form of the balance of power in the state, is very much to be welcomed,” Mr Westerwelle said in a statement.

Analysts say the strong “Yes” vote will boost Mr Erdogan’s government.

His Justice and Development Party (AKP) will be seeking a third consecutive term in office in a general election due to take place before July 2011.

The AKP has clashed repeatedly with Turkey’s highest courts, which see themselves as guardians of the country’s secular values.

The opposition say two of the 26 planned amendments would give the government excessive influence over the judiciary.

They accuse the AKP of trying to seize control of the judiciary as part of a back-door Islamist coup.

In Istanbul – the most Westernised city in Turkey, where many are suspicious of the AKP’s religious agenda – Ozgur Deniz voted “No”.

“The bad thing about this referendum was that we had to either choose or reject the whole package,” he told the BBC.

“This is a package where some things are good for democracy – such as less power for the military. But there are some items which might be used by the government to use democracy for non-democratic purposes, like the item regarding the judiciary,” he said.

“This election shows the commitment of Turkish people to a more democratic Turkey, and the army has not got the same power as before,” wrote Ahmet from Eskisehir in an e-mail to the BBC.

The Turkish President, Abdullah Gul, appealed for national unity. “From tomorrow onwards, Turkey needs to unite as one, and look ahead.

“The public has the final say in democracies. I would like to remind everyone to welcome the result with respect and maturity.”

The present constitution was drawn up by a military junta which seized power in a coup exactly 30 years ago, on 12 September 1980.

In all, the reform package includes 26 amendments to the 1982 constitution, many of them backed by the EU.

Civilian courts will have the power to try military personnel for crimes against the state, while sacked military officers will have the right to appeal against their dismissal.

Gender equality will be strengthened, and discrimination against children, the old and disabled banned.

Workers will be allowed to join more than one union and the ban on politically motivated strikes will be removed.

In parliament, elected lawmakers will be able to stay on if their party is disbanded by the court.

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

BBC Wales tracks down a convicted conman, originally from Gwynedd, posing as a doctor in Africa, without any medical qualifications.

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

A motorcyclist has died following a crash at the Killalane Road Races north of Dublin.

It is understood a marshall was also injured in the collision which happened at about 1320 BST.

Irish police said the marshall’s injuries were not believed to be serious.

The Killalane Road Races first took place in 1984, and were the first races organized by the Loughshinny Motorcycle Supporters Club.

The event takes place on a three mile circuit outside the village of Skerries.

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