Rally against youth service cuts

Children in a playgroundUnite is predicting major job losses in youth services among local authorities
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A major rally will launch a campaign by the country’s biggest union against “catastrophic” cuts in youth services.

The event in Solihull, West Midlands, comes as Unite warned that one in four youth services in England faced spending cuts of up to 30%.

The union said some councils, such as Norfolk, Suffolk, Bucks and Manchester, planned to cut the services completely.

The Department for Education said it was up to each council to decide where to target spending on youth services.

A survey by Unite of more than 40 local councils suggested that youth services would be hit the hardest by reductions in government funding.

The union warned of cuts of £100m from youth service budgets over the next year, with the loss of 3,000 jobs.

Unite national officer for youth workers, Doug Nicholls, said: “We desperately need the people of this country to lend their backing to the future of this country – our young people.

“If this unthinking cut is forced through, every part of the country will suffer from shire to city.

“Worse still, our collective futures will be hurt as, once again, young people are abandoned by the government.”

The Department for Education said it wanted to see councils working more closely with community and voluntary groups “who often have a raft of expertise in how to create fun and affordable youth services”.

“We have also seen some great examples of councils working in partnership with the private sector to design sustainable youth projects which benefit the whole community,” said a spokeswoman.

The rally will begin at noon on Saturday at Solihull’s Renewal Centre.

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China rail minister investigated

Liu Zhijun. File photoLi Zhijun had been railways minister since 2003

China’s Minister of Railways Liu Zhijun has been placed under investigation “for serious disciplinary violations”, the state-run Xinhua news agency says.

It gave no details, but in the past similar language has been used to refer to allegations of corruption.

Mr Liu was also replaced as the ministry’s Communist Party secretary.

He had been minister since 2003, leading an ongoing multi-billion dollar investment programme in China’s railway network.

He has not publicly commented on the allegations against him.

Last year, China publicly admitted in a report that its corruption problem was “still very serious”, setting out new measures to tackle it.

The report said that more than 200,000 cases – including embezzlement and bribery – had been investigated since 2003.

The document was released after the introduction of new rules requiring members of the governing Communist Party to report incomes and investments.

However, critics say corruption is ingrained in the system and new regulations will not solve the problem.

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Iraq bomber kills Shia pilgrims

breaking news

A suicide bomber in Iraq has killed at least 27 people in an attack on a bus carrying Shia pilgrims, police say.

The explosion took place just outside the Sunni-majority city of Samarra, north of Baghdad.

A police source at a hospital in Samarra told Reuters news agency that a number of women and children were among the injured.

Violence in Iraq has dropped sharply since the height of the conflict in 2006-07, but bombings are still common.

Samarra houses an important mosque and shrine to the 9th Century imam Hassan al-Askari.

On Thursday, at least eight people were killed in a car bomb attack in the town of Dujail on pilgrims heading to Samarra to celebrate Saturday’s annual commemoration of the imam’s death.

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VIDEO: Protests over sale of public forests

It is still not clear what the government plans to do about forests in England after the announcement that the planned sale of 15% of state-owned forests has been put on hold while ministers “re-examine the criteria” for disposing of them.

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‘Moby Dick’ captain’s ship found in Pacific

A maritime archaeologist examines a try pot from the Two Brothers. The researchers found large pots used to turn whale blubber into oil and other items
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US marine archaeologists have found the sunken whaling ship belonging to the captain who inspired Herman Melville’s classic 19th Century novel, Moby Dick.

The remains of the vessel, the Two Brothers, was found in shallow waters off Hawaii.

Captain George Pollard was the skipper when the ship hit a coral reef and sank in 1823.

His previous ship, the Essex, had been rammed by a whale and also sank, providing the narrative for the book.

The remains of the Two Brothers were found by researchers from America’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), about 600 miles (965 km) north-west of Honolulu in the remote chain of islands and atolls.

The wooden vessel has disintegrated in the warm waters, but the researchers found harpoons, a hook for stripping whales of their blubber and cauldrons used to turn whale blubber into oil.

“To find the physical remains of something that seems to have been lost to time is pretty amazing,” said Nathaniel Philbrick, an author and historian, who has been researching the Two Brothers, the Essex and their captain.

“It just makes you realise these stories are more than stories. They’re about real lives.”

The sinking of the Two Brothers was relatively uneventful compared with the Essex’s run-in with the sperm whale in 1821.

After the Essex sank, Capt Pollard and his crew drifted at sea without food and water for three months and even resorted to cannibalism before they were rescued.

Pollard – who gave up whaling and became a night watchman in Nantucket, Massachusetts – is not thought to have been the basis for the novel’s obsessive Capt Ahab.

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Man released over Michaela death

Sandip Moneea, 41, Raj Theekoy, 33, and Avinash Treebhoowoon, 29, have been charged over the killingSandip Moneea, 41, Raj Theekoy, 33, and Avinash Treebhoowoon, 29, have already been charged over the killing
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One of the men arrested in connection with the murder of Michaela McAreavey in Mauritius has been released without charge.

Seenarain Mungoo, 39, is a security officer at the Legends Hotel and had been charged with conspiracy.

Four men are still being held in connection with the murder.

Mrs McAreavey, 27,the daughter of Tyrone Gaelic football manager Mickey Harte, was found strangled in her honeymoon hotel room in Grand Gaube.

Mr Mungoo is from Petit Raffray- the same village as Sandip Moneea – who is charged with murdering Michaela but has not confessed to the crime.

Sandip Moneea, 41, and Avinash Treebhoowoon, 29, are charged with Mrs McAreavey murder.

Raj Theekoy, 33, has been charged with conspiracy to murder.

In January Mr Treebhoowoon confessed to the killing.

A fourth man, Dassen Narayanen, 26, who also works for hotel security was charged with aiding to commit a crime.

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Pakistan seeks Musharraf’s arrest

Pervez Musharraf in London, 1 OctExperts say that there is little prospect so far of Pervez Musharraf being indicted
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A Pakistani anti-terrorism court has issued an arrest warrant for former military ruler Pervez Musharraf over the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto in 2007.

Prosecutors say he was aware of Taliban plans to target her but did not act to prevent her murder in Rawalpindi.

They accuse him of failing to provide adequate security for the former PM.

Mr Musharraf – who lives is a self-imposed exile in London – denies the allegations.

Ms Bhutto was killed while in a gun and suicide attack while travelling in an election motorcade in the city of Rawalpindi in December 2007.

She was twice prime minister of Pakistan, from 1988 to 1990, and from 1993 to 1996.

Benazir Bhutto at a campaign rally in Rawalpindi - minutes before her assassination. Photo: 27 December 2007Benazir Bhutto’s assassination sent shockwaves across Pakistan

On Saturday, prosecutors at the anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi said that any further progress in investigating Ms Bhutto’s assassination was not possible without Mr Musharraf’s presence.

They said they had tried repeatedly to contact Mr Musharraf over the case but he had refused to co-operate.

They added that he would be declared a wanted fugitive if he did not appear for the next hearing on 19 February.

A questionnaire was also sent to Mr Musharraf’s London address.

Last year, the Pakistani authorities arrested two senior police officers suspected of not giving adequate protection to Ms Bhutto at the time of her murder.

According to prosecutors, the two officials told investigators that on the orders of Mr Musharraf they removed a security detail for Ms Bhutto just before she departed the venue where she was speaking in Rawalpindi.

She was killed shortly afterwards.

Mr Musharraf denies all the allegations, describing them as politically-motivated.

He has not publicly commented on the issuing of the arrest warrant.

Mr Musharraf seized power in 1999 when, as chief of Pakistan’s army, he ousted elected Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a coup. He resigned as president in 2008.

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Start late to tackle flu pandemic

Influenza virusWhen should you start dealing with a pandemic?
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Measures to reduce the impact of a flu pandemic, such as closing schools, should not necessarily take place at the beginning of an outbreak, according to computer models.

A report in PLoS Computational Biology argues that starting several weeks later could be more effective.

The researchers said this would have a lower impact on society and the economy.

Experts believe the work could be important for controlling pandemics.

Governments prepare for worst-case scenarios, such as the emergence of a deadly flu outbreak which spreads across the globe.

The UK’s pandemic flu plan sets out how the country will deal with such an outbreak.

In the early stages, vaccines are still being developed so measures rely on slowing the spread of a virus, such as closing schools, asking people with flu to stay at home or prescribing antiviral medicines.

“It’s like pacing yourself for a race: while you can cope with a pandemic you don’t want to disrupt public life.”

Dr Deirdre Hollingsworth Centre for Outbreak Analysis and Modelling

This study, by researchers at Imperial College London and Utrecht University in the Netherlands, investigated when those measures should be introduced.

It might be thought that the answer is at the start of the outbreak, but the research suggests this is not always the right one.

The problem comes from measures which the government would only want to apply in the short term, because they are expensive and difficult to maintain.

In this case, the mathematical models show that the timing of measures, such as closing schools or restricting public transport, is important.

If they are introduced when the first cases are recorded, it is costly to society and the economy and there is a large second surge if the measures are lifted.

However, when the researchers delayed the introduction of these measures by several weeks, the size of the pandemic and the peak number of cases were similar to the model in which the measures were introduced at the beginning.

This also has the benefit of reducing the second surge while putting off costly measures.

Dr Deirdre Hollingsworth, of the Centre for Outbreak Analysis and Modelling at Imperial College London, said: “If you take into account the impact that those policies will have on society, it might be better to hold back at the start.

“It’s like pacing yourself for a race: while you can cope with a pandemic you don’t want to disrupt public life.”

Professor Matt Keeling, who models infectious diseases at the University of Warwick, said: “For ages we’ve always been saying, hit hard and early, a bit like dealing with compound interest.

“However, if you can only hit for so long, then don’t do it at the beginning, target the bit you want to control.

“Like all good computer modelling, the conclusions seem obvious afterwards.”

The researchers are clear that their work is not a policy document. However, the Department of Health said it monitored all research in the area and noted the findings with interest.

Dr Nim Pathy from Princeton University said: “Experience of the swine flu pandemic showed just how much uncertainty there can be in these early stages, so this work could have important implications for the practicalities of pandemic control.

“If potentially costly interventions can be delayed even by a matter of weeks, this may buy valuable time to gather important clinical, virological and epidemiological information. Such data would be key in guiding flexible, responsive pandemic control measures.”

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

Yale to return Peru’s Inca relics

A student counts ceramic fragments of Machu Picchu artefacts at Yale. Photo: February 2011The agreement ends a long dispute over the ownership of the artefacts
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Yale University has signed an agreement to return to Peru some 5,000 Inca artefacts removed from the famed Machu Picchu citadel nearly a century ago.

The relics – stone tools, ceramics and human and animal bones – will be housed in a new centre in the city of Cuzco.

The deal ends a long dispute over the artefacts, which were taken from Machu Picchu by American explorer Hiram Bingham in 1912.

Machu Picchu, high in the Andes, is Peru’s main tourist attraction.

“This agreement ensures the expanded accessibility of these Machu Picchu collections for research and public appreciation in their natural context,” Yale President Richard Levin said.

Victor Raul Aguilar, rector of San Antonio Abad University in Cuzco, said he hoped that “all who visit Machu Picchu will enrich their experience and understanding of Inca culture with a visit to the centre”.

The International Centre for the Study of Machu Picchu and Inca Culture will be jointly run by the US and Peruvian universities.

Peru had argued during the dispute that the artefacts were lent in 1911 but never returned. It filed a lawsuit against Yale in 2008.

Aerial view of the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu in Cuzco, 3 November, 2010Machu Picchu is Peru’s most important archaeological site

Yale had said that it returned those relics which it borrowed, while it had full ownership of many others.

It also took protest marches and a letter penned by Peruvian President Alan Garcia to his US counterpart Barack Obama to win the battle over the artefacts, the BBC’s Dan Collyns in Lima reports.

The relics will be yet another draw for hundreds of thousands of tourists who visit the 15th Century Inca site every year, our correspondent adds.

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

Tuition fees ‘to soar despite warnings’

Nick CleggNick Clegg addressed students over tuition fee rises this week
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Despite all the government warnings, the clear signs are that the great majority of universities in England will raise fees above £6,000 – with most going straight to the £9,000 maximum.

Oxford and Cambridge were the first to put their heads above the parapet this week.

But others will follow over the next few weeks as universities set their fee levels for the 2012-13 academic year.

There are several reasons why universities say it makes no sense for them to stick to the £6,000 level.

The first is just brass tacks. Universities estimate that, on average, they need to charge at least £7,500 just to maintain their current income levels.

This is because the government is cutting teaching grant by 80% over the next few years.

Some universities say their “standstill fee” is even higher if they are to compensate for losses in research and capital funding too.

The second reason is that the maximum fee of £9,000 will inevitably become a badge of quality.

No university wants to risk being perceived as second-rate by charging less than others.

The few who did so when the fee cap was raised to £3,000 quickly regretted being out of line.

Indeed, as the NUS President, Aaron Porter, regretfully told an audience of university advisers this week: “Price will be set as a proxy for academic league table standings”.

“Are these warnings just bluster?”

And it appears that students may take the same view as their vice-chancellors.

Addressing the same audience, Professor Julia King, vice-chancellor of Aston University, said student representatives at her university’s council had argued fees needed to be set at £9,000 or they would object the university was planning to spend less on them than other universities.

There is also anecdotal evidence that students feel it may harm their employment prospects if they are seen as coming from a university with a £6,000 price tag, rather than a £9,000 one.

We have all got used to rating things by their price. There is a sense that “you get what you pay for”, whether it is mobile phones or university courses.

Professor King echoed the views of many other university leaders I have spoken to when she said “there is not going to be any real competition on price”.

The government should not be too surprised that universities will not stick to the £6,000.

At a meeting this week between the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, and vice-chancellors it emerged that the Treasury has modelled its future spending on average fees of £7,500.

And this is where it becomes interesting. On the Treasury model, the cost of funding student loans would be £3.6bn.

But if average fees are more like £8,000 or even £8,500 the Treasury will be out of pocket.

Vice-chancellors were told the government could not allow this to happen and the Treasury would claw back any excess spending on student loans from university teaching grants.

This is the background to the rather desperate warnings from government this week that universities charging above £6,000 could be fined or forced to cut their fees if they fail to admit more students from poorer homes.

“Vice-chancellors I spoke to doubted whether Offa has the teeth to impose a reduction in fees”

But are these warnings just bluster?

It will be two or three years down the road before the independent regulator, Offa, can decide if a university is failing to fulfil the “access agreement” imposed as a condition of exceeding fees of £6,000.

Like a struggling teacher threatening to send recalcitrant pupils to the head teachers’ office, the government also threatened universities with unspecified further punishment if they are found to be “clustering charges at the upper end of what is legally permissible”.

In the guidance letter to Offa, Business Secretary Vince Cable, said the government would consider taking new powers through legislation to ensure there is “differentiation” in fee levels.

However, despite this sabre-rattling, vice-chancellors I spoke to doubted whether Offa has the teeth to impose a reduction in fees.

They also seriously doubted whether the government could take such powers over autonomous institutions.

Finally, there is another reason why universities will see little reason to keep fees down.

This is the result of an anomaly in the repayment arrangements for graduates which means that they will pay back at the same rate, whatever level of fees they have paid whilst undergraduates.

This is counter-intuitive so needs some explaining. Under the new system graduates start to repay their loans once they are earning over £21,000. They will pay 9% of their salary above this level.

So, for example, a graduate on £30,000 a year will pay 9% of £9,000 (the amount they earn above £21,000). That comes to about £16 a week.

They will pay £16 a week whether they have a tuition loan of £27,000 (three years at £9,000 each) or £18,000 (three years at £6,000).

The only difference for those with the bigger loan is that they will have to keep paying for longer before they eventually repay their full debt.

In the example above, graduates are likely to be paying back for at least 10 years, maybe longer.

Indeed, as we know, the government expects that about a third of graduates will never pay off any debt and another third will only repay a proportion of it.

So, if you are a 17-year-old choosing between a £6,000 university and a £9,000 university, there is really little incentive to choose on the basis of price.

It will make no difference to your outgoings until you are approaching middle age.

So, one way and another, it is a one-way bet that from September 2012 the great majority of students in England will be paying close to £9,000 a year for their courses.

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

VIDEO: Five Minutes With: Jeanette Winterson

Author Jeanette Winterson talks to Matthew Stadlen about why novels should be more than just entertainment, her love of opera, how she learned to read quickly and why dinner parties are her idea of hell.

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New powers to vet online adverts

ASA logo on computerThe ASA will see staff numbers expand to cope with online changes
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People who use the internet are about to get a new opportunity to complain about company websites.

From 1 March, consumers are being invited to make official objections about indecent or misleading information on the internet.

They will be able to complain to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), which is taking on new powers to regulate commercial websites.

Up to now the ASA has only been able to monitor traditional advertising.

These were generally on billboards, in newspapers or on television.

From the start of March, the ASA will be able to police any statement on a company’s website which could be interpreted as marketing, even if it is not a paid-for advert.

“The principle that ads have to be legal, decent, honest and truthful is now going to extend to companies claims on their own websites,” said Matt Wilson, of the ASA.

Earlier this month, for example, the ASA ruled that an Yves St Laurent perfume advert was unfit for broadcast on television.

It showed a woman stroking her own arm, and writhing around on the floor.

The ASA said the advert “simulated drug use”, and its use on television was banned.

Under the current rules, however, the company would be entitled to use the same advert on its website, without fear of redress.

In fact the advert still appears on the Yves St Laurent UK website, but with a couple of “offending” shots removed.

In another ruling this year, the ASA decided that a regional television advert for the Metrocentre on Tyneside breached the advertising code.

“With 2,500 complaints, this does not mean they will all be upheld”

Matt Wilson ASA

The Gateshead shopping centre had claimed that it was “the best shopping centre in Britain”.

The ASA said that claim was based on a three-year-old survey, which was misleading.

However a quick look at the Metrocentre’s website shows that they are still claiming to be the best in the country.

That is acceptable within the current rules, but should anyone complain after 1 March, the ASA would have to look at it again.

“I think anyone with a website needs to have a fresh look at it, and say ‘am I totally happy about that?’ ” said Ian Twinn of ISBA, the industry body which represents British advertisers.

“Certainly if you have had a claim ruled against you by the ASA, now is a very good time to put that right before 1 March.”

The ASA has spent a year preparing for the change, and is expecting a large number of extra complaints.

Last year 2,500 people complained about website content, but under the old rules their objections were not admissible.

“With 2,500 complaints, this does not mean they will all be upheld,” said Mr Wilson.

Nevertheless the ASA is expanding staff numbers by 10%, to cope with the extra workload.

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