PM Defends Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt

David Cameron insisted today that he had seen no evidence that Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt has breached the ministerial code of conduct in his handling of News Corp's bid for BSkyB.

In an emergency Commons statement, the Prime Minister said he was not going to set up a "parallel inquiry" into Lord Justice Leveson's inquiry into media standards.

But he said that if evidence of a breach of the code emerged when Mr Hunt appeared before the Leveson inquiry, he would refer the matter to his independent adviser on ministerial interests, Sir Alex Allan, or take action himself.

Mr Cameron was forced to go to the Commons to face MPs' questions after Commons Speaker John Bercow awarded Labour an urgent question.

He strongly defended the way Mr Hunt had handled the takeover bid for BSkyB by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp empire.

He said that at every stage of the bid, Mr Hunt had sought independent advice, even though he was not required to do so.

"He acted fairly and impartially and in line with the advice of his permanent secretary," Mr Cameron said.

"I have seen no evidence to suggest that, in handling this issue, the Secretary of State acted at any stage in a way that was contrary to the ministerial code," he said.

Mr Cameron said he had consulted Cabinet Secretary Sir Jeremy Heywood and decided it was right to allow Lord Justice Leveson to conduct his inquiry and not to set a "parallel process" to establish the facts.

"What we have is a judge-led inquiry, witnesses required to give evidence on oath, full access to papers and records, cross-examination by barristers, all live on television," he said.

"There is nothing this tough or this rigorous the Civil Service or the independent adviser could provide."

Mr Cameron said on Sunday that Mr Hunt could face an investigation over his relations with Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation as it was bidding for full control of broadcaster BSkyB, owner of Sky News.

But any probe would only come after he has given evidence to the Leveson Inquiry into media standards and ethics, he said.

Ed Miliband responded to Mr Cameron today by maintaining that Mr Hunt had "clearly breached the ministerial code" and the Prime Minister did not need to wait for Leveson.

The Labour leader said Mr Cameron was "weak and wrong" and was failing in his duty by not acting to sack Mr Hunt.

Labour called for the Prime Minister to answer questions before Parliament went into recess on Tuesday until the State Opening of Parliament on May 9. Local elections are to take place on Thursday.

Sky's deputy political editor Joey Jones said: "I would imagine on the Government side there would be a degree of frustration that the Speaker has granted this urgent question given that Jeremy Huntdid make a statement, quite a detailed statement, and took a lot of questions last week.

"But plainly the speaker feels there is information out there that needs to be dealt with on the Government side."

Mr Hunt is due to face Lord Justice Leveson in mid-May to discuss relations between politicians and the media.

On Sunday, Mr Cameron said: "If evidence comes out through this exhaustive inquiry where you're giving evidence under oath - if he did breach the ministerial code, then clearly that's a different issue and I would act."

Call for 'fairer' energy pricing

The gap between the "true cost" of energy and what consumers are actually paying in their bills will have swelled to nearly £2 billion by 2020 unless there is tougher regulation of the market, a think tank has warned.

The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) said unless tougher regulation is put in place by Ofgem to improve competition and make sure pricing is fairer, in 2020 customers will be missing out on £1.9 billion of possible savings.

In a new report, True Cost of Energy, the think tank estimates the true costs to energy companies of supplying households with gas and electricity.

It said IPPR analysis showed that annual efficiency savings of just 2.5% could deliver £1.9 billion in savings for consumers in 2020.

But it said Ofgem's own evidence gave no indication that the 'Big Six' energy companies have made efficiency savings and passed them onto consumers through lower bills, and were continuing to overcharge customers to subsidise cheap offers.

The IPPR investigated the costs to energy companies of supplying electricity and gas for the financial year 2011/12. It modelled a number of scenarios to see how different levels of competition in the supply market could affect energy bills in 2020.

With annual efficiency savings of 2.5% and profit margins at 4%, suppliers could knock £70 from the average annual bill - creating a saving of around £1.9bn across all consumers, the think tank said.

Its report found some families are paying as much as £330 more than their neighbours to use the same amount of energy from the same company.

IPPR associate director Will Straw said: "Our research adds to the growing body of evidence that competition is not working in the energy market.

"We are calling on the Big Six and Ofgem to demonstrate whether efficiency savings are being achieved in the energy market and whether consumers are benefiting from lower bills as a result, as we would expect if competition was working."

©Press Association

Royal Mail defends stamp price rise

Royal Mail has defended stamp increases, pointing out that the new 50p second class rate will still be the lowest in Europe.

The price is rising from 36p, while first class stamps will increase from 46p to 60p, which will be in the bottom half of most prices in other European countries.

Chief executive Moya Greene said the new prices were "incredible value for money", with first class stamps around half the cost of posting letters in France and Germany.

A Royal Mail spokesman said: "Raising prices is never easy. It is not a decision we have taken lightly but regretfully we have had no choice but to do so. We have thought very carefully about the impact on our customers and on our own business.

"We need to secure the future of the universal service. Ofcom (the postal regulator) has said there is a real risk to the universal service. They also found price controls failed and there is a need for material increases to ensure its viability. Royal Mail has made a loss in its core mail business, including packets, of almost £1 billion over the last four financial years. That is not a sustainable position for any business."

The postal group said it provided one of the highest quality postal services in Europe, with its next day target of over 90% the highest of any major European country. "UK stamp prices are amongst the best value in the EU. The price of a stamp in the UK is lower than the average price across Europe in five of the six weight steps available for first class and second class mail. In the 51g to 100g weight band, the new 50p price of a second class stamp will be the lowest in Europe."

The spokesman said stamped mail accounts for 12% of total mail volumes and any reductions in consumer sales would not necessarily apply across the entire mail market.

He said deliveries were already declining by around 5% per year although e-commerce was driving growth in packet delivery services and stressed that the company believes the stamp price rise will create a "positive benefit".

Millions of people on benefits will be able to buy stamps this Christmas at last year's prices.

Royal Mail delivers around 59 million items a day.

©Press Association

Call to clamp down on NHS tourism

GPs have too much freedom to register sick foreigners who may not be entitled to expensive British healthcare, campaigners have said.

Migration Watch UK claimed family doctors could decide whether to take on patients without identity documents and give them free treatment which should not be available to them.

The revelation follows a written Parliamentary answer from Health Minister Simon Burns admitting there was no formal requirement for foreigners to provide documentation when registering with a GP.

Mr Burns said: "A decision on whether to register a foreign national who has a six-month visitor's visa is therefore currently for the GP to consider."

Migration Watch chairman Sir Andrew Green said: "What this means is that someone getting off a plane with a valid visitor's visa is in effect able to access the GP services of the NHS without ever having paid a penny into the system.

"Once registered with a GP it is, in practice, an easy step to potentially highly-expensive and long term treatment - all at the expense of the UK taxpayer with little or no prospect of the beneficiaries ever being charged for it."

Sir Andrew said it was not for doctors to "act as an arm of the immigration service" and warned of "clear and substantial risks of abuse in such a lax system".

He added: "The present situation is outrageous. Everyone knows the pressure the NHS is under and its ever increasing cost to the taxpayer. To allow such easy and potentially hugely-expensive access without any entitlement must be stopped at once, otherwise the NHS risks becoming the World Health Service."

Health Minister Simon Burns said: "We won't tolerate abuse of our National Health Service. The NHS has a duty to anyone whose life or long-term health is at immediate risk but it is not there to serve the health needs of the globe.

"There are comprehensive rules and procedures to charge visitors for hospital treatment but we know that the system needs to be improved. That is why we are currently reviewing those arrangements to prevent inappropriate free access to the NHS and provide a fairer, more balanced system."

©Press Association

20 cannabis farms found 'every day'

More than 20 cannabis farms and factories were discovered by police every day last year as they seized drugs which could sell for £100 million on the streets, figures show.

Senior police chiefs said the size and scale of the farms were reducing as criminals producing cannabis were spreading the risk and minimising losses by employing a large number of so-called gardeners to manage small sites across multiple residential areas.

Over the two years since the last report by the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo), some 1.1 million plants have been seized with a street value of £207.4 million.

A total of 7,865 farms were found across the UK in 2011/12, up 15% from 6,866 in 2009/10 and more than a 150% increase from the 3,032 identified four years ago, the study by Acpo found.

There has been a "move back to the use of residential property" and dismantling factories was seen as "a short term solution, with missed opportunities for further investigation into potentially linked factories", the police chiefs said.

The number of offences related to cannabis production is also increasing, up from 14,982 in 2010/11 to 16,464 last year.

Scotland Yard Commander Allan Gibson, the lead on cannabis cultivation for the police chiefs, said: "Commercial cannabis cultivation continues to pose a significant risk to the UK. Increasing numbers of organised crime groups are diverting into this area of criminality but we are determined to continue to disrupt such networks and reduce the harm caused by drugs. This profile provides a detailed analysis of the current threat from commercial cultivation of cannabis and the work undertaken by law enforcement agencies to combat the threat."

The highest number of farms (936) were found in the West Yorkshire force area, equivalent to 42 factories per 100,000 people, the Acpo figures showed. But South Yorkshire had 64 farms per 100,000 people, the highest ratio in the UK, with 851 farms.

The two forces were followed by other heavily-populated force areas, including West Midlands (663 farms, or 25 per 100,000 people), the Metropolitan Police (608 farms, or eight per 100,000 people) and Avon and Somerset (653 farms, or 40 per 100,000 people).

But the Devon and Cornwall force recorded the highest rise in the number of farms since the last report in 2009/10, with the number of farms identified rising 1,664% from 11 to 183 (11 farms per 100,000 people).

©Press Association

Heathrow gagged over queues apology

Heathrow airport has been ordered by the Border Force to stop handing out leaflets to passengers acknowledging the "very long delays" at immigration.

Amid increasing anger at the length of queues for travellers arriving at border control, airport operator BAA has tried to defuse tensions with a leaflet apologising for the problems.

It said people arriving in the country "deserved a warmer welcome" and explained how to complain to the Home Office.

But Marc Owen, director of UK Border Agency operations at Heathrow, has told BAA that the leaflets are "inappropriate" and that ministers would take "a very dim view".

In an email obtained by The Daily Telegraph, he said: "The leaflet... is both inflammatory and likely to increase tensions in arrivals halls especially in the current atmosphere. It is inappropriate in that it is not for you to display how to complain on our behalf.

"Please refrain from handing out (the leaflets) or I will escalate (the matter) with ministers who are likely to take a very dim view. I know there are copies in the hall and your troops are ready with them."

Mr Owen also told BAA to prevent passengers taking pictures in the arrivals hall. Pictures of lengthy queues have been posted on Twitter by frustrated people.

Former transport minister Jim Fitzpatrick, Labour's aviation spokesman, said: "This is a pure cover-up. I can understand people wanting to take pictures of the queues. This is further evidence of Border Force trying to hide the severity of the problem. Passengers need to know how to register complaints and for Border Force to try to prevent them doing so is outrageous."

The latest row over delays at Heathrow comes as Immigration Minister Damian Green is to be grilled by the Home Affairs Select Committee about the situation. Committee chairman Keith Vaz said there was "a real problem".

In a joint statement issued tonight, the Border Force and BAA said: "The majority of passengers pass through immigration control quickly but there are sometimes delays at airports for a range of reasons. We think it's important passengers are given the full picture. We will not compromise border security but we will work together to keep delays to a minimum."

©Press Association

Flood-hit town at risk once again

A town devastated by flooding five years ago is on alert as rain and wind continued to wreak havoc across the country.

Tewkesbury, in Gloucestershire, was one of the worst hit places during flooding in July 2007, with more than 1,800 households turned upside down when torrential rainfall forced them to move out of their homes and into temporary accommodation.

The town, the scene of the striking image of Tewkesbury Abbeysurrounded by flood water in 2007, was on alert once again, with the Environment Agency setting up an incident room as heavy rain continued to cause the River Severn to rise.

Ian Lock, landlord of the Boat Inn at Ashleworth, which is south of Tewkesbury next to the River Severn, told the BBC the water was "worryingly high".

"If we'd had a high tide on Saturday night we would have had trouble - thankfully we didn't - just another three or four feet and we would have had problems. We still could flood, the worry is if other towns further up the river put their flood defences up the water will come down here and we'll suffer."

A spokeswoman for the Environment Agency said three incident rooms had been set up in the Midlands, including at Tewkesbury, while a further incident room was set up for the Wessex area as southern parts of the UK take the brunt of the bad weather.

The Environment Agency warned of localised flooding across parts of southern and eastern England, Midlands and Wales, with a total of 27 flood warnings and 173 flood alerts in place on its website.

South West England and Wales were battered by gusts of up to 71mph, while other parts of the country continued to suffer from strong winds and further downpours. Around 10,000 homes were left without power in South Wales and the West Midlands, as well as 2,000 in the South West, Western Power said.

The outages were caused by weather-related problems, such as trees bringing lines down, trees leaning on lines, or debris hitting power lines, a spokeswoman said, and the company is working anywhere from four to 10 times its normal fault investigation rate.

Cardiff Council received reports of 50 to 60 trees brought down by the weather across the city and set up an emergency response centre to co-ordinate their operation, a spokeswoman said. The M48 Severn Bridge was closed in both directions to high-sided vehicles on Sunday morning because of strong winds.

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Ex-Drugs Cheats Free To Compete At Olympics

Dwain Chambers and David Millar will be free to compete at the Olympic Games in London following a court ruling, Sky sources can reveal.

The judgement by the Court of Arbitration for Sport was due on Monday afternoon but Sky has learned that the court has ruled against the British Olympic Association.

It has decided that the association's lifetime ban on drug cheats is not compatible with the World Anti-Doping Agency's code and is therefore unenforceable.

Cyclist Millar and sprinter Chambers, who have both admitted cheating with drugs, will be eligible to compete for Team GB at the Games.

They both received a two-year ban for their doping offences, Chambers in 2003 and Millar in 2004.

Prior to this case, British athletes who were found guilty of doping were subjected by the BOA to a lifetime ban from the Olympics. This differed from other countries' approach to drug cheats and the case was taken to CAS for a ruling.

The BOA had argued that its lifetime ban for drug cheats was a "selection policy" and not a double sanction for cheats.

In November, in a case brought by American athlete LaShawn Merritt, CAS ruled that theInternational Olympic Committee's 'rule 45' which banned all athletes worldwide from an Olympic Games was illegal.

The latest decision appears to have backed up that ruling.

The BOA and Dwain Chambers said they would give their reaction on Monday.

Following the news, British Hurdler Andy Turner tweeted: "Either make a lifetime ban for drug cheats worldwide or scrap it completely.

"The world won't follow Britain's rules so I'm happy for Dwain. I know my opinion will annoy people but I don't care. I see convicted drug cheats on the world stage all the time."

©Sky News

PM discussed BSkyB bid with Murdoch

David Cameron has admitted that he discussed News Corporation's takeover bid for BSkyB with James Murdoch while the Government was deciding whether to approve it.

The Prime Minister acknowledged his embarrassment at attending a party thrown by then News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks - where the conversation took place - and hinted that he regretted doing so in retrospect.

But he insisted there had been no "grand deal" with Rupert Murdoch's media empire to wave through the takeover in return for support from News International newspapers.

"It would be absolutely wrong for there to be any sort of deal and there wasn't," he said. "There was no grand deal."

The Prime Minister admitted discussing BSkyB with senior News Corp executive James Murdoch at a Christmas 2010 dinner at the Oxfordshire home of Mrs Brooks.

Asked whether he was embarrassed that he was even at the party, Mr Cameron said: "Clearly, after all that's been written and said about it, yes of course one might do things differently."

The Prime Minister said he did not recall the exact details of his conversation with Mr Murdoch but that it concerned the recent controversy over Business Secretary Vince Cable's comments that he had "declared war" on News Corporation.

"What I recall saying, although I can't remember every detail of the conversation, is saying something like: clearly that was unacceptable, it was embarrassing for the Government, and to be clear from now on this whole issue would be dealt with impartially, properly, in the correct way, but obviously I had nothing to do with it, I recused myself from it," he told BBC1's Andrew Marr Show.

The Prime Minister offered qualified support for his under-fire Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who is facing calls for his resignation over his handling of the BSkyB deal.

"As things stand, I don't believe Jeremy Hunt broke the ministerial code," Mr Cameron said, but added that he could yet order an independent investigation after the Culture Secretary has given evidence to the Leveson Inquiry.

©Press Association

YouGov/Sunday Times poll

The full tables for the YouGov/Sunday Times poll are now up here.
The Conservatives dropping below 30%, the rest of the poll was not too good for the Conservatives. (Lab 40, Cons 29, LibDems 11, Other, 20)

David Cameron’s approval rating is down to minus 31 (from minus 23 a week ago), this is the first time it has dropped below minus 30. 

On the economy questions there is a clear negative impact from the return to recession. The proportion of people who think their finances will get better minus those that think it will get worse is minus 49, the lowest since the end of last year.

The proportion of people thinking that the government is managing the economy well is down 5 points to 26%, the first time it has fallen below 30.

Asked why they think the economy is back in recession 32% blame the government the most (including a majority of Labour voters), 29% blame the Eurozone crisis the most (the most popular answer amongst Conservative voters), 17% blame the last government the most.

31% now think the government should stick to their present strategy of prioritising the deficit, compared to 41% who think they should concentrate on growth instead. 

Finally there was a specific question on Jeremy Hunt, 59% of people think he should resign, 14% think he should stay. Even amongst Conservative supporters more respondents thought he should go than stay (by 36% to 33%).

Cameron blames double-dip recession on Eurozone crisis

David Cameron has warned the eurozone's debt crisis is not even halfway through as he blamed the continent for Britain's double-dip recession.

The Prime Minister said economies struggling across the channel, which receive 40% of all UK exports, were harming the UK's prosperity.

He said: "I don't think we are anywhere near halfway through it because what's happening in the eurozone is a massive tension between the single currency that countries are finding very difficult to adapt to.

"It's going to be a very long and painful process in the eurozone as they work out do they want a single currency with a single economic policy and all the things that go with it, or are they going to have something quite different?"

The PM admitted last week's figures showing Britain's economy shrank by 0.2% in the first three months of the year - plunging the UK back into recession - were "extremely disappointing", but pledged to "strain every sinew" and "redouble all our efforts" to spark growth.

"What we absolutely mustn't do is throw away our plans for dealing with the debt, dealing with the deficit, making sure public spending is properly reduced in the appropriate areas," he told BBC1's Andrew Marr Show.

"The low interest rates we have are absolutely vital."

He said the UK was going through "a very difficult, painstaking process" of rebalancing, moving away from a focus on financial services in England's south east.

Meanwhile, shadow chancellor Ed Balls claimed Britain faced a "lost decade" of sluggish growth and high unemployment if the Government failed to change course on the economy.

Mr Balls said there was a risk of prolonged stagnation in the UK like that experienced by Japan in the 1990s.

82% say Government 'out of touch'

David Cameron's Government is seen as out of touch by four in five voters, according to a poll.

Only 18% regard the coalition as in touch with the concerns of ordinary people, the Angus Reid survey for The Sunday Express found. Some 82% feel that it is not.

The poll comes after Conservative MP Nadine Dorries criticised the Prime Minister and Chancellor George Osborne for being "two arrogant posh boys who show no remorse, no contrition and no passion to want to understand the lives of others".

She said there was a clique at the top of the Government that prevented Mr Cameron and Mr Osborne "understanding or knowing what is happening in the rest of the country".

The Prime Minister, who has been under fire for the Government's handling of the fuel dispute and for tax cuts announced in the Budget, promised to "stay in touch".

"People in this country - they are struggling to meet their bills, they are having a tough time. I understand that," he said on Monday.

Angus Reid interviewed 2,002 people on April 27.

©Press Association

What Drought? Warnings Of Gales And Floods

Drought-affected areas already lashed by torrential rainfall in recent weeks are being told to brace for gales and more downpours that could trigger flash flooding.

England and Wales have experienced the wettest week since December and forecasters are seeing no sign of the rain letting up .

Strong winds and heavy downpours are expected to hit on Saturday night, with up to 40mm (1.57in) of rain forecast to fall in some drought-afflicted areas.

There is also a risk of falling trees and difficult driving conditions, with gusts of up to 50mph expected.

And forecasters say there will be no respite in the early part of next week.

Sky News weather presenter Nazaneen Ghaffar said: "Latest models are indicating further heavy and thundery showers across the far south of England and Wales on Monday."

Supermarkets have reported soaring sales of wellies and umbrellas in the face of the deluge.

The Environment Agency has warned of the possibility of localised flooding across parts of the South West, South East and Midlands, East of England and Wales on Sunday as the wet weather moves in.

Many of the areas at risk of floods are currently in a state of drought, which is gripping the South East, East Anglia, the Midlands, the South West and south and east Yorkshire after two unusually dry winters in a row.

In its latest weekly drought briefing, the Environment Agency said all regions had now received above average rainfall for April, boosting river levels and providing relief for farmers, gardeners and wildlife in drought areas.

But groundwater levels remained low and the rain was not yet making a difference to the drought conditions, the agency warned.

And the risk of flash floods is increased as heavy rain quickly runs off ground left hard and compacted by previous arid spells.

Nine flood warnings are in place for the North East, with properties at risk from rising water levels in a number of rivers including the Ouse in York.

Householders are being urged to take action to protect their homes.

Another band of rain looks set to hit the country on Tuesday.

The latest downpours come at the end of a particularly wet week for England and Wales, in which 42mm (1.7in) of rain fell in the South East and 55mm (2.2in) in the South West, which has now had 166% of the average rainfall for April.

More than two dozen properties were flooded in St Helen Auckland, Co Durham, on Thursday, while there were localised floods in Devon and Cornwall earlier in the week.

But the rain is unlikely to help shift the hosepipe bans imposed by seven water companies across southern and eastern England.

The Environment Agency has suggested householders buy water butts this weekend to capture rainfall which can be used to water gardens if dry weather returns.

©Sky News

Hunt probe 'could follow Leveson'

David Cameron is prepared to consider ordering an investigation into Jeremy Hunt's dealings with News Corporation but not until the Culture Secretary has appeared at the Leveson Inquiry.

Jeremy Hunt has been refused permission to bring forward his appearance at the Leveson Inquiry

The Prime Minister has been resisting demands to call in his independent adviser on ministerial conduct, Sir Alex Allan, insisting it is a matter for Lord Justice Leveson's inquiry into media standards.

However, he is understood to be open to the possibility of a separate inquiry into whether Mr Hunt broke the ministerial code after the Culture Secretary has defended himself in front of Lord Justice Leveson.

The deputy chairman of the Conservative Party, Michael Fallon, said that the evidence should be "tested" at the Leveson Inquiry.

"If later on, obviously, it looks as if there's something that needs to be investigated under the ministerial code that can be done," he said.

It has emerged that Lord Justice Leveson would not rule on whether Mr Hunt broke the ministerial code.

The Culture Secretary has been accused of acting as a "cheerleader" for News Corporation's BSkyB takeover bid after the Leveson Inquiry published a raft of email exchanges between the company's chief lobbyist and Mr Hunt's office.

Mr Hunt's special adviser, Adam Smith, resigned over the matter this week.

The Culture Secretary is now facing a lengthy wait to defend himself at the Leveson Inquiry after his request for an early appearance was rebuffed.

Lord Justice Leveson has refused to bring forward his appearance so that he can answer allegations about his conduct.

©Press Association

Northern Ireland Car Bombs 'Targeted Police'

Two potentially lethal car bombs found in Northern Ireland were aimed at killing police officers, a unionist minister has claimed.

The explosive devices were discovered after security alerts were triggered in a town near the Irish border and in Belfast.

Ulster Unionist Danny Kennedy, who is also a minister in theStormont government, said the device found near the border town of Newry was believed to be part of a plot to kill police.

Mr Kennedy said the dissidents were "dangerous and dedicated terrorists, who are determined to cause serious harm, injury and death to members of the security forces regardless of the consequences to local communities".

The Stormont minister said he was very concerned at the increasing number of attacks planned and executed by republican dissidents around Newry.

The bomb, containing 500lbs of explosives, was found in an abandoned car in the Fathom Line area on Thursday evening.

Army bomb experts confirmed the bomb was a "viable device" and successfully disarmed it.

The second bomb was found under a parked car in the Ballygomartin Road in north Belfast, causing the evacuation of homes in the area.

Chief Inspector Ian Campbell said: "Those responsible for this have shown callous disregard for members of the public.

"The operation resulted in the evacuation of up to 80 people, including families with young children and elderly residents, for several hours.

"The finger of suspicion points towards dissident republican terrorists and I appeal to anyone with information to come forward to police."

The explosives find comes after another arms cache containing guns and ammunition was discovered by police in Belfast on Friday.

©Sky News

McGuinness hints at royal meeting

Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness has given his clearest signal to date that he is willing to meet the Queen.

At a Dublin conference to mark the success of the peace process, the Northern Ireland Deputy First Minister said he would not be found wanting when compromises need to be made.

Mr McGuinness, who recently said he would not rule out meeting the Queen as part of efforts to build bridges with unionists, challenged his own community to foster reconciliation.

In response to questions on whether this would stretch to a royal meeting as the monarch celebrates her Jubilee year, Mr McGuinness pointed to his track record. "It's making clear that the enormous progress that's been made in recent times has been made because politicians have been prepared to compromise," he said. "Compromise to me in the peace process is never a dirty word.

"There are big challenges ahead for all of us. Not just for me, but others in the process. We all have to be big enough to rise to these challenges. Am I big enough to rise to these challenges? Absolutely. My track record shows that's the case."

The Queen is expected to visit Northern Ireland as she marks her Jubilee year. There is also speculation that she will be invited to open the new £90 million Giant's Causeway visitor centre on the north coast of Antrim in the summer.

The Dublin conference was attended by a string of high-profile figures linked to the search for peace and the signing of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, and included First Minister Peter Robinson, who urged his colleague in the Stormont Executive to take the leap and meet the Queen.

"I think it would be a step that should be taken. I made the gesture of meeting the head of state here in the Irish Republic. Meeting the President of the Irish Republic is now something that people would take in their stride in Northern Ireland," Mr Robinson said. "If he meets Her Majesty it would become the norm. Meeting members of the royal family would become part of everyday political life."

Mr McGuinness raised the theme of reconciliation as he joined Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore and the First Minister in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham to examine the experiences of the peace process. He said his references to reconciliation and compromise were about engendering trust in communities and showing how far the political situation in the north has moved.

The event, organised to mark Ireland's chairmanship of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, was also attended by Senator George Mitchell and Martti Ahtisaari, former Finnish president who helped oversee decommissioning. The aim was to use Northern Ireland as a case study to encourage others engaged in efforts to resolve conflicts elsewhere.

©Press Association

UK curbs military exports to Argentina as tensions rise

The UK has suspended all exports to the Argentine military as tensions rise between the two countries over the Falkland Islands issue.

The UK government said that the halting of exports should "ensure no British licensable exports or trade have the potential to be used by Argentina to impose an economic blockade" on the Falkland Islands.

Business Secretary Vince Cable has intimated that the UK intends introducing the export control policy with immediate effect. The move follows "recent actions by the Argentine government aimed at harming the economic interests of the Falkland islanders," said Cable.

At the heart of the issue is the sovereignty of the Falklands, which has been controlled by the UK since 1833. Argentina has never relinquished its claim on the islands. The two countries went to war over the issue in 1982 and earlier this month, both nations commemorated the 30th anniversary of the start of the conflict.

Tensions have been rising since Argentina kick started a trade war between the two countries, focussing on the oil and gas industries. The Falklands stand to benefit from a US$176 billion tax windfall as the result of oil and gas drilling in 2012 if exploration is successful, explained Fraser Thorne from the independent research house Edison Investment Research. Thorne expects the issue to "intensify over the coming months". 

Since 1998 the UK has exported only those products that would maintain, rather then enhance, the Argentine military. These exports have been worth £3m over the past five years.   

According to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, an estimated 25 companies exported to the Argentine military over the last five years. An additional 37 licences worth some £1 million are expected to be outstanding.

With the new policy becoming effective, these supplies will come to a halt, while existing and outstanding export licences will be reviewed and cancelled if they do not comply with this policy. 

Ex-Luton MP Margaret Moran 'not fit for trial', a court is told

Former Luton South MP Margaret Moran, who is accused of fiddling her parliamentary expenses, is not fit to stand trial, a court has been told.

Consultant forensic psychiatrist Philip Joseph said that Ms Moran, 56, was suffering from a depressive illness and extreme anxiety and agitation.

Dr Joseph also told Lewes Crown Court she had tried to harm herself and there was a risk of suicide.

The ex-Labour MP did not attend the hearing before Mr Justice Saunders.

Ms Moran, of Ivy Road, St Denys, Southampton, Hampshire, was described as weeping inconsolably when she appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court last year on 15 charges of false accounting and six of using a false instrument relating to expense claims totalling around £80,000.

It is alleged that Ms Moran, who stood down at the last election, "flipped" her designated second home, making claims for properties in London, Luton and Southampton.

Other allegations include that she dishonestly claimed £22,500 to repair dry rot at her Southampton home.

She is also accused of falsely claiming £14,805 for boiler repairs and work on her conservatory.

Dr Joseph told Lewes Crown Court the stress of the proceedings and allegations she was facing made it impossible for her to participate in court proceedings.

He added that she felt feelings of abandonment by the Labour Party and shame that her career was over.

©BBC

Parliament protest rules upheld

New rules preventing demonstrators sleeping near the Houses of Parliament have been upheld by the High Court in a landmark ruling.

Two judges rejected a test case human rights challenge brought by veteran peace campaigner Maria Gallastegui, who has been conducting an authorised 24-hour vigil on the East Pavement of Parliament Square in London since 2006.

Sir John Thomas, who is president of the Queen's Bench Division, sitting with Mr Justice Silber, said the rules were "plainly" lawful and did not offend against the Human Rights Act.

©Press Association