IDS: Tax Credit System 'Haemorrhaging Money'

More than £10bn of public money has been lost in fraud and error under the tax credit system put in place by Labour, the Work and Pensions Secretary has claimed.

Attacking the welfare model developed by the last government, Iain Duncan Smith said tax credits were "not fit for purpose" but had been extended ahead of the 2005 and 2010 general elections in a pitch for votes.

The system was "wide open to abuse" and "haemorrhaging money", he wrote in an article for The Daily Telegraph.

"In the years between 2003 and 2010, Labour spent a staggering £171bn on tax credits, contributing to a 60% rise in the welfare bill.

"Far too much of that money was wasted, with fraud and error under Labour costing over £10bn."

Mr Duncan Smith said HM Revenue and Customs conducts checks on far fewer tax credit claims than suspected benefit fraudsters.

That is despite about one in 12 tax credit claims being incorrect or fraudulent, compared with fewer than one in 25 benefit claims.

Payments are based on estimates of income for the coming year, and after 2008 HMRC did not attempt to reclaim overpayments of less than £25,000.

That is set to be reduced to £5,000 under the coalition, alongside moves to require proof of payments from those claiming for childcare or that children aged between 16 and 19 are in full-time education.

The Government hopes to save more than £300m in the next three years by reducing fraud and error, and also wants to recover more than £400m in unpaid debts.

Mr Duncan Smith is overseeing a fundamental overhaul of welfare which will see tax credits rolled into a new Universal Credit which is meant to simplify the system and better incentivise work.

"Even for those in genuine need of support, tax credits were not fit for purpose," he said.

"The system was haemorrhaging money while at the same time trapping people in a system where those trying hard to increase the amount of hours they worked weren't necessarily better off."

Mr Duncan Smith said tax credit payments had risen by 58% in 2005 and by more than 20% in the two years before the 2010 election.

"At the most basic level, Labour used spending on tax credits as an attempt to gain short-term popularity. They knew what they were doing - it was a calculated attempt to win votes," he claimed.

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Plastic Surgery Campaigns Target 17-Year-Olds

By Jason Farrell, Sky News Correspondent

A study commissioned by the Government to look into the cosmetic surgery industry has found that 17-year-olds are being targeted by aggressive marketing campaigns.

The interim report has found people want to see tighter restrictions around the industry to protect patients from certain sales techniques.

The review was commissioned by the Department of Health following the PiP breast implant scandal.

Science journalist Vivien Parry, who is on the review panel, told Sky News: "I have been really shocked by what I've seen.

"Extraordinary things. For instance, 17-year-olds being plagued by texts saying, 'In less than a year's time you'll be able to have cosmetic surgery.'"

She added: "I just think that's awful. What it does to the psyche of young girls is one thing. But it sets up a cosmetic procedure, which has both short-term and long-term risks, as if it were something entirely trivial."

The report found patients and industry groups want tighter restrictions on advertising including banning two-for-one or time-limited deals, and cosmetic surgery as competition prizes.

The final report is due to be published in March

They want to introduce a two-stage written consent process so that people have time to reflect.

Another demand is for patients to receive better information before making their decision. For example, providing them with photographs showing expected bruising and scarring.

Ms Parry said: "Cosmetic procedures are being sold like double glazing. If you make a decision within a week, you'll get money off.

"You can buy one procedure, get another procedure for free, bring along a friend, or have cosmetic surgery as a raffle prize.

"It concentrates on the money side of it so people forget about the health side."

PiP victim Victoria Newton, who had to have her breast implants replaced after they both ruptured, welcomed the report.

She told Sky News that when she first considered surgery, aged just 19, she was pressured and misinformed ahead of her decision.

Victoria Newton was a victim of implants by the now-defunct PiP company

Ms Newton said: "There was nothing personal about my consultation. It wasn't like I was going in for an operation. It was like I was buying a car or booking a holiday.

"There was a time-limited offer and I was really encouraged to go for that. At the time, I thought I was getting a good deal. They offered £500 off the price of the surgery, if I signed up that day."

After sparking a global health scare, the implants made by now-defunct French company Poly Implant Prothese were pulled from the market in several countries due to fears they could rupture and leak silicone into the body.

The interim report into cosmetic surgery practices suggests anything that pressures patients like Ms Newton to make a snap decision about surgery should be banned.

It states that consultations should always be conducted by the surgeon who will carry out the procedure, rather than sales staff.

But the president of the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons, Rajiv Grover, says the recommendations do not go far enough.

"We're very pleased the report has focused on sales tactics used in cosmetic surgery. It's something we've been campaigning for, for the last decade," he told Sky News.

"However, we'd like to go further and suggest an outright ban on advertising, just as you would have for prescription-only medicines and other types of surgery."

He added: "This is a medical procedure and should be subject to the same regulations as any other medical procedure."

The suggestions highlighted in the interim report will feed into the work led by the NHS Medical Director Sir Bruce Keogh, who is due to publish his full recommendations in March.

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Ronnie Wood's Wedding Photo With New Wife

Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood has released an official wedding photo with his new wife and his two famous best men.

The 65-year-old married Sally Humphreys, 34, at the Dorchester Hotel in London earlier this month.

It is the third time the guitarist has been married but he has told Hello! magazine that Sally is the perfect partner for him.

At the ceremony on December 21, he told guests: "I wish I'd met Sal earlier. I can't think of another girl more suited to me."

He also tells the magazine it was a wonderful day, saying: "She looked beautiful walking through that doorway. I feel very blessed to have a new family.

"My dad and brothers are no longer with us so it's really nice to be welcomed by a new gang. Her relatives are lovely."

Pictures of the wedding, taken for Hello! magazine, show Wood and his new wife alongside rock star best men Rod Stewart and Sir Paul McCartney.

The photograph, which also features her seven-year-old niece Heather, comes from the official wedding album, with the couple donating their entire fee to charities.

Wood said his new wife accompanied him to Sir Paul's wedding to Nancy Shevell last year.

"Paul was saying at the time 'Wow, this is wonderful, you two make a great couple,'" he said.

The 34-year-old bride married in the same wedding dress as her mother and wore a red heart-shaped pendant designed by Wood.

Wood's children Jesse, Tyrone and Leah took pride of place in the front row.

"They are happy to see their dad happy," he said. The Stones star said he chose his two best men because "they have always been very supportive of me and Sally".

Wood also reveals how he was so relaxed before the ceremony that he played a game of snooker with friends.

He previously married Krissy Findlay in 1971, before divorcing seven years later.

Wood split from his second wife Jo in 2008, after 23 years together, when he had an affair with a 21-year-old cocktail waitress.

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Curtain To Rise On UK's First City Of Culture

By David Blevins, Ireland Correspondent

To nationalists on one side of the River Foyle, it is Derry. To unionists on the other, it is Londonderry. Now, they are uniting around one name: the UK City of Culture.

Northern Ireland's second largest city beat off stiff competition for the inaugural title - Birmingham, Norwich and Sheffield were shortlisted.

Those behind the successful bid had a rich heritage to draw on.

Martin Bradley, City of Culture chairman, said: "When you look at the prominent people who left the city - Nobel Peace Prize winners, Eurovision Song Contest winners, a Poet Laureate, Field Day, Peter Cunnah, The Undertones - the list is absolutely endless."

Changing the image will not be easy. The place is synonymous with 'The Troubles'. In 1972, British soldiers shot 13 people dead during a civil rights protest on the streets here.

Memorial to those who died on Bloody Sunday

John Kelly, whose brother Michael died on Bloody Sunday, said: "We're in a much better place after the public inquiry. It helped heal our people and heal the city.

"The Saville Report and (Prime Minister) David Cameron's apology helped move things forward."

For others, the war will never be over. Hard-line republicans are still making their presence felt. Terrorist attacks and paramilitary-style "punishment shootings" remain part of the culture in some areas.

Eamon McCann, Derry Journal columnist, said: "The ideology being promoted by what are called 'dissident republicans' is part of what we are in Derry. Are we not to admit that there are these tensions, that there's still this incipient murder?"

For the most part however, things have changed. Protestants and Catholics, previously separated by the river flowing through the centre of the city, have been connected by a peace bridge.

The British army barracks is now a concert venue and the year-long programme is diverse - from Britain's Royal Ballet to the All-Ireland Fleadh, the world's largest festival of Irish culture.

Derry, Londonderry or #Legenderry - the promotional hashtag on Twitter - it certainly has no shortage of names. Most residents would prefer that their city had only one reputation: culture, not conflict.

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New Year's Reprieve: Rain Clears For 2013

The heavy rain which has washed out December will stop in time for New Year's Eve celebrations - bringing a brighter start to 2013.

Showers will soak much of Britain overnight and during the day tomorrow - but skies will clear over many parts in time for the evening of the 31st.

Forecasters predict that London - where thousands will turn out for fireworks - should have clear skies, though temperatures will be quite low.

The heavy rain should also subside in time for the celebrations in Edinburgh, but there will still be a risk of some light showers.

2012 is set to become the wettest year on record in the UK

Sky weather presenter Nazaneen Ghaffar said the start of 2013 should be brighter, and less wet, than the worst of December.

The south of the country should be mostly dry during the first few days of the new year, with some outbreaks of rain further north.

Meanwhile, flood warnings remain in place across Britain with another band of miserable weather swamping the country today.

Strong winds and showers followed by more heavy downpours are bringing the last weekend of the year to a wretched end.

Days of almost relentless downpours blighted parts of the country for much of December, punctuated only by the briefest of dry spells.

Hundreds of alerts have been issued by the Environment Agency this month, as several days' worth of rain has fallen in just a few hours at its worst.

It has contributed to a year of bad weather with records, dated up to Boxing Day, showing England on the brink of its wettest year since records began in 1910.

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Paralympic Heroes Hit Out At Honours List

Leading Paralympians have criticised the New Year honours system, claiming it is easier for able-bodied athletes to get knighthoods.

Cyclist Sarah Storey was the only Paralympic athlete among the knights and dames, despite many racking up more gold medals than Bradley Wiggins or Ben Ainslie, the Olympians given top awards in this year's list.

Dressage rider Lee Pearson, who has won 13 medals including 10 golds at four Games, was one of two Paralympians to get OBEs in the list, which was published on Saturday.

He told the Independent: "Obviously, 10 gold, one silver and one bronze just isn't enough.

"I'm disappointed because I do feel I've given a lot to Paralympic sport and equestrianism. I think 10 gold medals is quite an achievement."

David Weir was given a CBE after winning four gold medals at London 2012

Wheelchair racer and six-time gold medal winner David Weir suggested Paralympians have to work harder to earn recognition than their non-disabled counterparts.

Weir, who was the only disabled athlete among five CBEs in the list, told the Telegraph: "Kelly Holmes was made a Dame when she won two gold medals, but it seems we have to get into double figures to get it.

"Sarah Storey should have been awarded this years ago, and I just feel that sometimes we are left out perhaps because we are not in the public eye.

"It is a bit strange, but I am just honoured to get anything from the Queen for doing a sport I love."

The list was drawn up by the Sports Honours Committee, which is chaired by Lord Coe and includes the former Paralympic athlete baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson.

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City Leaders Warn Of 'Civil Unrest' Amid Cuts

City leaders have warned that spending cuts could lead to social unrest and the "break-up of civil society".

The council leaders of three of England's biggest cities - Newcastle, Liverpool and Sheffield - say the north of England has been unfairly targeted.

But there are also signs of a backlash from rural authorities, mostly Conservative-led, who claim the shires are losing out disproportionately under the Government's cuts.

The criticism presents a headache for David Cameron, who announced in the Autumn Statement that councils must find a further 2% of savings in 2014/15.

David Cameron is under pressure from council chiefs

That comes on top of the 27% cuts announced in 2010.

The Labour leaders of Newcastle, Liverpool and Sheffield - where Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg is an MP - wrote to The Observer accusing Whitehall of "Dickensian" views.

"Rising crime, increasing community tension and more problems on our streets will contribute to the break-up of civil society if we do not turn back," they write.

"The one nation Tory brand of conservatism recognised the duty of government to help the country's most deprived in the belief that economic and social responsibility benefited us all.

"The unfairness of the Government's cuts is in danger of creating a deeply divided nation.

"We urge them to stop what they are doing now and listen to our warnings before the forces of social unrest start to smoulder."

Separately, The Sunday Telegraph reported that more than 120 rural councils were weighing up a judicial review of the spending settlement for local authorities because it was "grossly unfair" and would hit services in remote areas.

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Organist Death: Greiving Widow Speaks Of Evil

The wife of a church organist murdered on his way to midnight mass has told a prayer service that she has not stopped crying for her husband as she grieves over "the evil that's been done".

Maureen's husband Alan Greaves, 68, was discovered badly beaten near his church in High Green, Sheffield, on Monday.

The father-of-four died in hospital on Thursday after suffering serious head injuries in the attack.

Two Sheffield men - one in his 20s and the other in his 40s - are in custody after being arrested on Saturday on suspicion of murder.

At the service at St Saviour's Mortomley and High Green Church, Mrs Greaves thanked the community.

"I've never stopped crying for Alan, and I know that you've never stopped crying with me," she said.

"I've grieved over the evil that's been done, and I know you too have grieved over the evil that has been done.

"I have prayed for you, and I know that you have prayed for me.

Mr Greaves has been described as a 'gentle soul'

"I want to thank you because I really have sensed your very deep love and affection for me.

"You were Alan's Christian family and he loved belonging to this church."

The Bishop of Sheffield, Dr Steven Croft, led the service at the church, where Mr Greaves was a member and also a lay preacher.

Dr Croft said Sheffield had lost a "shining light".

"There is a sense of shock and a sense of outrage, not just in this community but across the whole city of Sheffield," he said.

"Alan was the victim of a brutal attack as he was on his way to church on Christmas Eve, as he was walking to this church to bear witness to his deep Christian faith.

"There will be immense grief for those who knew Alan well, which includes many in this church and community."

He went on to speak of the love and support that has been offered to the family and also appreciation for the medical teams that tried to save Mr Greaves's life.

"And in the midst of all this, I am sure, many will be giving thanks for Alan himself, for all he showed us of God's grace and love," he said.

Police say they're baffled by the killing

"There will be occasions in the future for many generous tributes to be given.

"Goodness is not as common as it should be and this community and this city have lost a shining light."

Detectives are still appealing for anyone with any information about the murder to come forward.

Police are treating his death as murder but say the motive for it is unclear.

His widow, church community worker Maureen Greaves, 63, told The Sun: "There was no motive.

"We are devastated. It is just not what you expect, somebody to walk down the street and get murdered - and at this time of year as well, it's just dreadful."

Canon Simon Bessant, from St Saviour's, described Mr Greaves as a "good man" who fell victim to an evil act.

He said: "He was a gentle soul. He wasn't foolish - he would have handled the situation as best as anyone would, but we don't know what he encountered."

Canon Bessant said Mr Greaves had been attacked 250 yards from the church and that his family had been at home.

"His wife wants justice but she doesn't want vengeance. She is not embittered but obviously she wants this person to be caught."

Mr Greaves had recently become a grandfather to twin boys adopted by his daughter in Mozambique.

He and his wife had recently set up a food bank and community project in the area where he was killed.

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Hector Sants: Ex-FSA Chief Awarded Knighthood

The man tasked with regulating the City in the run-up to the near-collapse of the UK banking system has been knighted in the Queen's New Year Honours.

Former Financial Services Authority (FSA) chief executive Hector Sants has been recognised for services to financial regulation after overseeing sweeping reforms following the nationalisation of Northern Rock and the bailout of major banks.

The knighthood may be seen as a controversial decision, as it was Sir Hector who led the organisation accused by MPs of being "asleep at the wheel" in the run up to the collapse of Northern Rock.

While he was criticised for the FSA's failure to spot and prevent the credit crunch and subsequent banking meltdown, he has since won praise for cleaning up the regulator and for his role in forcing banks to beef up their balance sheets.

Sir Hector said the award was a "testament to the hard work of everyone at the FSA during the crisis, their willingness to learn lessons and to bring about the changes that were necessary".

The 56-year-old had planned to leave his role in February 2010, but was convinced by Chancellor George Osborne to stay on to see through the coalition's break-up of the FSA.

It was thought he would become a deputy governor of the Bank of England and head the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) - one of two new regulatory bodies that will replace the FSA as part of an overhaul in the wake of the financial crisis.

But Sir Hector unexpectedly resigned earlier this year and has courted more controversy, joining scandal-hit Barclays, where he will become the bank's first point of contact for regulators.

He is believed to be in line for a £3m pay package.

The FSA received a mauling from MPs in the wake of the banking crisis and collapse of Northern Rock.

Northern Rock had to be nationalised in 2008, with the Government also having to bail out Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds TSB and HBOS.

In the aftermath of the crisis, Sir Hector warned the City to "be frightened" as he pledged an era of more intrusive and direct regulation.

He also laid the blame at the door of the US and UK governments for their part in the crisis, saying authorities worldwide sought to "encourage a significant credit boom particularly for the benefit of consumers who wished to purchase housing".

Sir Hector joined the FSA wholesale markets arm from Credit Suisse in 2004. He became chief executive in 2007 - just two months before the run on Northern Rock.

It had been widely expected that Sir Hector would return to the private sector when he resigned from the FSA.

Barclays, which has had its reputation battered following this summer's rate-rigging revelations, has appointed Sir Hector to the newly-created role of head of compliance. He is due to start on January 21.

It is believed he will also play a central role in rewriting the bank's pay and bonus strategy.

Sir Hector is married with three children.

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New Year Honours: Kate Bush Heads Arts Field

Figures from the worlds of music, the sciences and the arts were among those to receive recognition in the New Year Honours.

Illustrator Quentin Blake, best-known for his work in Roald Dahl's children's books, has been awarded a knighthood.

Artist Tracey Emin, choreographer Arlene Phillips and singer-songwriter Kate Bush have all been given CBEs in the list.

Bush said she is "deeply honoured", while former Strictly Come Dancing judge Phillips said: "I am very pleasantly surprised but mostly absolutely thrilled and delighted to receive such a wonderful honour."

Actor Ewan McGregor gets an OBE in the New Year's Honours

Former Prime Minister Tony Blair's wife, Cherie, is given a CBE in recognition of her service to women's issues and to charity in the UK and overseas.

Actor Ewan McGregor - star of Trainspotting - and fashion designer Stella McCartney both get OBEs.

And Professor Peter Higgs, namesake of the Higgs boson or so-called "God particle" - which was finally proved to exist in July - has been awarded a Companion of Honour 48 years after his discovery.

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe has been awarded a knighthood, while MI5 head Jonathan Evans is made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath.

Captain Raymond "Jerry" Roberts - one of the four founder members of Bletchley Park's Testery section tasked with breaking the German top-level code Tunny - has been recognised with an MBE.

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Bradley Wiggins Knighted In New Year Honours

By Ian Woods, Senior News Correspondent

Britain's gold rush during the London Olympic and Paralympic Games has led to 78 athletes and coaches being named in the New Year Honours List.

Among the top honours are knighthoods for cyclist Bradley Wiggins and yachtsman Ben Ainslie, while Paralympic cyclist Sarah Storey becomes a Dame.

Dave Brailsford and David Tanner, the Performance Directors who have ensured that Britain now leads the world in cycling and rowing are also rewarded with knighthoods.

Every British athlete who won a gold medal in the Olympics or Paralympics is included in the list unless they have already been honoured in the past.

Heptathlete and face of London 2012 Jessica Ennis is awarded a CBE

So Sir Chris Hoy, who was knighted after the Beijing Games, is omitted from the list despite adding two more gold medals to his career tally of six.

Somali-born middle-distance runner Mo Farah becomes a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for his stunning double gold medal performances in the 5,000m and 10,000m.

He joins four other competitors who become CBEs having previously collected the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) - rower Katherine Grainger, cyclist Victoria Pendleton, heptathlete Jessica Ennis and wheelchair athlete David Weir.

David Weir was also given a CBE after winning four gold medals in London

Sir Bradley admitted to having mixed feelings about receiving a knighthood. Born in Kilburn, he is now almost as famous for his sideburns and Mod image as his cycling exploits.

This was the year he became the first Briton to win the Tour De France, and he also won the Olympic Time Trial title and the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.

He told Sky News: "It's an incredible honour and it's an incredible thing to have. It's still not something that sits incredibly easily with me, I don't think it's something I'm going to use in daily life.

"(It's) an amazing thing to have in the drawer for my wife my kids and my family. It's topped the year off really."

Dame Sarah Storey first won Paralympic gold as a swimmer, and achieved even greater success when she switched to cycling.

A birth defect means she does not have a left hand, but she also competes against able-bodied cyclists and was pushing for a place in the Olympic squad.

Ben Ainslie was also knighted after winning four gold medals

"I really hope that everybody who's been connected to what I've done feels a part of what has happened," she told Sky News.

"To be honoured in this way - the top gong as you might say - you never even imagine or dream of it. It's just beyond your wildest dreams."

Her boss, Dave Brailsford, becomes Sir Dave after overseeing not just the Olympic triumphs, but the rise of Team Sky as a professional road racing team. Like Sir Bradley he is struggling to adjust to the adulation.

He said: "[It feels] very strange. On the one hand you feel proud and honoured, on the other hand it feels quite humbling really.

Swimmer Ellie Simmonds gets an OBE, while Sarah Storey becomes a dame

"It's a recognition for everything that's happened in cycling over a period of time. I'm the lucky one who gets recognised."

Jessica Ennis CBE told Sky News: "It sounds very surreal. It's such an honour.

"When you get involved in sport, and when I started, it certainly wasn't something that I ever thought of, so to now be in this position at 26 and be receiving a CBE is such an honour."

Cyclists Jason Kenny and his girlfriend Laura Trott end 2012 sharing four gold medals and two OBEs (Officer of the Order of the British Empire).

Andy Murray gets one not just for his Olympic victory, but also for winning the US Open.

Andy Murray caps his Olympic gold and US Open title with an OBE

Olympic rower Katherine Grainger, double equestrian gold medalist Charlotte Dujardin and paralympic swimmer Ellie Simmonds and paralympic horsewoman Sophie Christiansen add OBEs to the MBEs they collected following winning performances in the 2008 Beijing Games.

Christiansen told Sky News: "As athletes we work towards getting gold medals but this is the icing on the cake to be recognised."

Lord Coe, the mastermind of the Games, becomes a companion of honour, but one notable absentee from the list is film director Danny Boyle, the creator of the opening ceremony.

He appears to be one of the minority who for various reasons decline to be honoured.

London 2012 mastermind Lord Coe becomes a companion of honour

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First-Time Home Buyers 'Up 12% In Past Year'

The past 12 months saw 12% more first-time buyers take the plunge into the property market than in 2011, according to a report by the Halifax.

About 216,000 people got their feet onto the property ladder in 2012, the highest number since the credit crunch began.

But it is still almost half the 402,800 people who bought their first home in 2006.

The average age of a first-time buyer has increased to 30, from 29 a year ago, and the typical deposit required is now 20% - compared with the deposit of around 10% put down in 2007.

Halifax said the rise was due to more mortgages coming on the market.

The number available has increased by around a fifth since a multibillion-pound Government scheme was launched in August to kick-start lending to firms and households.

The Government also recently introduced the NewBuy scheme, which helps people to buy a new-build home with a fraction of the usual deposit.

Martin Ellis, housing economist at Halifax, said: "The number of first-time buyers has risen to a five-year high, boosted by the improvement in affordability resulting from the reductions in both house prices and mortgage rates in recent years.

"Conditions for potential first-time buyers, however, remain very difficult with problems raising the necessary deposit and concerns over the economic climate."

He also said that first-time buyers have become increasingly reliant on extra help to give them a push onto the ladder.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) recently estimated that 65% of this sector of the market had financial assistance in mid-2012, compared with 31% seven years earlier.

First-time buyers in London put down the largest average deposit, at £62,356, while those in the north put down the smallest, at £14,936.

The average deposit needed across the UK is £27,984.

The average house price paid by a first-time buyer increased slightly to £139,921 in 2012 - representing a 3% rise compared with 2011.

Related stories

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Weather: Downpours To Bring Yet More Flooding

Large parts of Britain are braced for yet more flooding with heavy rain forecast on Friday and Saturday.

Just under two inches of rain are needed by Monday for 2012 to be the wettest year on record for the UK overall.

A new record has already been set for England with 43.1in of rain falling between January 1 and Boxing Day, the Met Office said.

The Environment Agency (EA) said that the west of the UK should prepare to take the brunt of more wet weather, with many areas still saturated with water from before Christmas, when floods forced many to flee their homes.

The Thames Barrier was closed to keep the high tide out of London

Heavy rain in the north and west on Friday will increase the risk of flooding, while more downpours are forecast on Saturday.

"The weather is set to remain unsettled into the weekend. With the ground still very wet, and river levels running high, any rain is likely to increase the risk of flooding," an EA spokesman said.

"There is also an ongoing risk of flooding from groundwater, particularly in Dorset, and some larger rivers like the Thames and Severn are still rising as they slowly respond to the recent downpours.

"As a result, we may see further flooding of low-lying land, such as flood plains and low-lying roads as the peak in river levels moves downstream."

A car drives down a flooded road between Sonning and Playhatch in Berkshire

There are 82 flood warning and 182 less-serious flood alerts in place, focused on the Midlands, South West and South East.

The recent heavy rain, coupled with late-running engineering work and other problems, meant a miserable return to work for rail travellers on Thursday.

First Great Western said the main line in the South West, which has been closed since before Christmas because of flooding between Exeter St Davids and Tiverton, is expected to reopen on Saturday.

The Thames Barrier was also raised on Thursday morning to keep the high tide out of London and reduce the risk of flooding.

It reopened later in the day, but was closed again from 10.15pm through to 3am.

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Abducted Atiya Anjum-Wilkinson 'On Way Home'

Missing six-year-old girl Atiya Anjum-Wilkinson is reportedly on her way home three years after being abducted by her father.

Atiya vanished in November 2009 after going to stay with her father, Razwan Ali Anjum.

The former insurance salesman said he was taking the girl to Southport.

Instead he took her to Lahore, Pakistan, and told Atiya's mother, Gemma Wilkinson, that she was "never going to see Atiya again", courts have heard.

Anjum is serving a prison sentence in Britain for refusing to reveal his daughter's whereabouts despite a court order.

Atiya vanished in November 2009

However, sources have now suggested Atiya has been located in Pakistan and is due to arrive back in the UK this afternoon.

In November, Ms Wilkinson, 32, from Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, made a fresh appeal for information on her daughter's whereabouts.

She said: "It's been an absolute nightmare.

"As to her whereabouts we know nothing. We've had no contact. I'm worrying every day, every single day. Everything is affected by it. When I close my eyes I see her.

"I say goodnight to her every night before bed. I pray she's OK. There is no proof she is still alive. It's been discussed that she could have been sold, but I don't want to believe it.

"She was so funny. She was a little bundle of joy. We just want her home."

Atiya is thought to have been found in Pakistan

Ms Wilkinson's "on-off" relationship with Anjum ended in 2008.

Anjum was handed a fourth consecutive jail term by a High Court judge in April after he refused to reveal where his daughter was.

Mr Justice Moor imposed a 12-month sentence after he found him in contempt of a High Court order instructing him to disclose Atiya's whereabouts.

He said Anjum, who is in his late 20s, would not be eligible for release until he had served at least six months.

Judges have previously imposed jail terms of two years, 12 months and another 12 months in the hope that Anjum would provide information.

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Pensioner Dies After Midnight Mass Attack

A man has died after being attacked while on his way to midnight mass on Christmas Eve.

Alan Greaves, 68, from Sheffield, was found on the pavement close to his home.

South Yorkshire Police said Mr Greaves died last night in the city's Northern General Hospital.

Mr Greaves, a father of four from High Green, died from head injuries.

Detective Superintendent Matt Fenwick said: "Mr Greaves appears to have suffered a brutal attack after leaving his home address to attend midnight mass.

"At this stage, the motive is unclear. I want to hear from anyone who witnessed the incident. If you know who did this, please come forward and offer your support to the family at this difficult time."

The Sheffield Star newspaper has reported that Mr Greaves was on his way to play the organ at the service at St Saviours C of E church when he was attacked at around 11pm.

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Norfolk Car Crash: Two Young Girls Killed

Two girls aged seven and 10 have been killed and three other people injured after a car crash in Norfolk, police have said.

The children were in a car along with two adults and another child which crashed on the A47 near Wisbech at 6.40pm, according to Norfolk Police.

All five occupants of the black Ford Focus were taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King's Lynn, where the girls died from their injuries.

The other three occupants of the car remain in hospital, although police said their injuries are not believed to be serious.

A Norfolk Police spokesman said: "The incident happened on the A47 at approximately 6.40pm when a black Ford Focus left the road, ending up on its side at the edge of a ditch.

"Five people were travelling in the car, two adults and three children, who were all taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King's Lynn.

"Sadly, two girls aged seven and 10 died in hospital as a result of injuries sustained in the collision."

The girls were taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King's Lynn

The road was closed in both directions for several hours at the scene of the accident - close to the Norfolk border with Cambridgeshire - before reopening just before 10.30pm.

A police spokesman said officers were continuing to investigate how the vehicle came to leave the road and asked for witnesses to the crash to come forward.

The accident comes two days after two young brothers were killed in a Christmas Day motorway crash.

Adnan Habib, 10, and four-year-old Arsalaan were killed when the car they were in - also a Ford Focus - crashed on the M6.

The crash happened on the A47 at 6.40pm on Thursday

In a statement their family said: "Adnan and Arsalaan were our family's precious jewels, spreading joy wherever they went. They were happy and joyous boys who were a central part of the family, always smiling and bringing smiles to everyone they met."

Their 32-year-old aunt, Bushra Tazarib, also died in the crash which happened close to junction 15, near Stoke-on-Trent, at about 11.25am.

Two other women were travelling in the car, including the boys' mother, who was driving at the time of the crash. Both were taken to hospital but discharged on Boxing Day after treatment.

The scene of the crash near Wisbech, Norfolk.

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Graphene: Super Funds For Super-Material

Investment funds totalling £21.5m are going to some of Britain's top universities to develop commercial uses for the "super-material" graphene.

Manchester University academics Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov won the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics for demonstrating the remarkable properties of the material.

Graphene is a kind of two-dimensional carbon which is one of the thinnest, lightest, strongest and most conductive materials known to man.

Graphene atoms are arranged in a regular hexagonal pattern similar to graphite, but in a sheet one-atom thick.

A sheet measuring one metre square weighs only .77 milligrams.

The aim is to see the material put to use in a wide array of industrial and everyday applications.

Graphene could deliver potentially lucrative technological breakthroughs in areas ranging from electronics to energy generation and telecommunications.

George Osborne saw Manchester University's graphene research labs last year

The Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council has identified the most promising graphene-related research projects in British universities to benefit from state funding.

The University of Cambridge has been awarded more than £12m for research into graphene flexible electronics and opto-electronics, which could include things like touch-screens and other display devices.

London's Imperial College will receive over £4.5m to investigate aerospace applications of graphene, working with a number of industrial partners including Airbus.

The other successful projects are based at Durham University, the University of Manchester, the University of Exeter and Royal Holloway.

The universities will be working with industrial partners including Nokia, BAE Systems, Procter & Gamble, Qinetiq, Rolls-Royce, Dyson, Sharp and Philips Research. They will together bring a further £12m to the table.

News of the funding was announced by Chancellor George Osborne, who said: "The Government moved quickly and decisively to make sure this Nobel Prize-winning technology invented here in the UK was also developed here.

"It's exactly what our commitment to science and a proactive industrial strategy is all about - and we've beaten off strong global competition.

"Now I am glad to announce investment that will help take it from the British laboratory to the British factory floor."

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Child Abuse: New Database Of Medical Visits

By Liz Lane, Sky News Reporter

A national database is being introduced in hospitals to flag up potential vulnerable children to nurses and doctors.

It is in order to prevent cases similar to that of Baby Peter Connelly in which health and social service workers repeatedly failed to pick up on signs that the toddler was being abused.

Social services failed to detect signs that Baby P was being abused

He died of multiple injuries in August 2007.

Health Minister Dr Dan Poulter is behind the system and said: "For many years there's been a problem of getting joined-up and co-ordinated information to front-line healthcare professionals about children that may be potentially at risk from abuse."

Under the system, a flag will appear on the child's medical record at any hospital they attend if they have already been identified by a local authority as being at risk, or if they have frequently been taken to accident and emergency departments.

Currently, this sort of information is not shared between hospitals up and down the country.

Dr Simon Eccles, of Homerton Hospital in east London, believes it will help doctors make better judgements.

"Spotting those characteristic injury patterns that tell you a child has been abused is one thing," he said, "but what's much harder is the child whose injuries are completely understandable but actually have just been happening too often."

Lauren Matthews, whose nine-year-old son Leo has been in hospital recently, told Sky News she has her concerns: "Two weeks ago we had to take him to hospital because his friend closed his hand in the door. And then yesterday we had to come into hospital again because he had an asthma attack, so in certain situations it could be taken out of context."

Doctors say the system will only deal in facts and they will objectively assess each case.

Work will begin on it in early 2013 and it will start to be introduced to NHS hospitals in 2015.

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Knife Crime: Funding To Tackle Youth Violence

By Niall Paterson, Sky News Correspondent

The government has announced extra cash to help tackle youth violence and gun crime.

Half a million pounds will be given to the voluntary sector, charities and other organisations working directly with young people at risk of becoming violent offenders and those already involved in knife and gun crime.

In addition, the Home Office intends to expand the "priority areas" in which its Ending Gang and Youth Violence frontline team works from 29 to 33.

Home Secretary Theresa May said: "Serious youth violence has a devastating impact on communities and needs to be stopped.

"We need to change the life-stories of the young people who too often end up dead or seriously injured on our streets or are sucked into a life of violence and crime.

"This package of support will help police protect communities as well as boost the innovative work being done at a local level by charities and voluntary groups to provide vulnerable youngsters with a way out."

The Home Office has already committed £18m to help police, local agencies and the voluntary sector tackle gangs and youth crime in 2013.

Gang involvement and knife crime are commonly linked to social deprivation and poor upbringing.

Figures from the Metropolitan Police show that as many as 60% of knife crime attacks are gang-related.

Home Office Minister Jeremy Browne told Sky News: "The consequences of knife crime are often devastating and when knife crime does take place it rightly worries people a huge amount. There is a clear link between knife crime and gang membership."

Yet critics of the government's approach suggest that until the London riots of 2011 too much emphasis had been placed on criminal justice, and how courts would deal with offenders after crimes had been committed.

The government's Ending Gang and Youth Violence report, published in November 2011, suggested far greater emphasis on utilising the experience of the voluntary sector.

But one youth worker and former gang member, Sheldon Thomas, told Sky that the sums of money being discussed were too small to have any real effect.

He said: "There are many deprived communities up and down this country that are in need of sufficient resources.

"Those resources are being shipped out into foreign wars... to the normal Joe Public I don't think they matter. I think what matters is what's happening next door."

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Floods: 2012 One Of The Wettest Years Ever

The year just past looks set to be one of the wettest on record, and draws to an end with more than 100 flood warnings in place.

Homeowners in the South West - already mopping up after recent flooding - were warned by the Met Office to expect heavy rain on Thursday, with similar conditions in Wales and the North West on Friday and Saturday.

On Thursday morning, the Environment Agency had 103 flood warnings and a further 217 alerts in place.

It is a very different picture to the start of the year, which began with the most severe drought since the summer of 1976 - a legacy of the previous two - and in some places, three - dry winters.

Some reservoirs were less than half-full and ground water levels were unusually low.

However, Isobel Lang, Sky News weather forecaster, said: "Conditions changed rather unbelievably through April, with a switch to significantly wetter weather as the jet stream was positioned further south than usual, driving in a succession of Atlantic fronts and depressions."

The soggy summer that followed was the wettest for a century, and although ground water and river levels recovered, the Environment Agency and the Met Office raised concerns that flooding was increasingly likely during the autumn.

With very little precipitation needed to tip the balance, late September and November saw significant flooding. More followed in the run up to Christmas as mild, southwesterly winds from the Atlantic brought both warmth and torrential downpours.

A flooded road in Spring Cottage, Leicestershire, two days after Christmas

The wettest year on record is 2000 when more than 1,300mm of rain fell.

In 2012, rainfall has already exceeded the 1981-2010 annual average of around 1,150mm, and is far greater than the 950mm seen in 2010.

With the wet weather set to continue, National Rail warned train passengers to expect further disruption after delays before Christmas, while First Great Western warned people not to travel because of line problems in Devon and Cornwall.

Late-running engineering work added to the misery, with no trains between London Paddington, Heathrow Airport and Reading, delays at Birmingham New Street and hold-ups between East Midlands Parkway, Leicester and Peterborough.

In other developments, the British Geological Survey put an amber landslide warning in place for the South West, urging walkers to take extra care along coastal routes.

The weather has been blamed for the death of a monkey in Cornwall

Meanwhile, a monkey sanctuary in Looe, Cornwall, appealed for help after its premises were devastated by the wet and windy weather.

A large tree was brought down, while experts believe the death of a 10-month-old capuchin at the centre from tetanus may be linked to the floods.

"We're hoping (next year) doesn't get any worse," said Claire Turnbull, education officer at Looe Monkey Sanctuary.

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Hunting Ban Repeal Vote 'Is Not Imminent'

There is no imminent prospect of a parliamentary vote on repealing the hunting ban, a Cabinet minister has signalled.

Environment Secretary Owen Paterson appeared to rule out bringing the issue before the Commons next year.

Mr Paterson, a keen supporter of country sports including hunting, told the Daily Telegraph: "There's only a point having a vote if you're going to win.

"At the moment, it would not be my proposal to bring forward a vote we were going to lose. There needs to be more work done on Members of Parliament."

He went on: "It is our clear intention to have a free vote but we need to choose an appropriate moment."

Owen Paterson has appeared to rule out the vote in 2013

The comments emerged as an estimated 300 Boxing Day hunts gather up and down the country for the busiest day of the season.

They will go ahead despite the ban on hunting with dogs that was passed under Labour in 2005.

Campaigners say enforcing the restriction wastes police time, and suggest some officers turn a blind eye to breaches of the law.

But David Cameron has been accused of dragging his heels over acting on the coalition agreement promise of a free vote on overturning the ban.

Many Tories would support repeal, but most Labour and the Liberal Democrats are still in favour of the ban.

Animal welfare charities, including the RSPCA, have commissioned research which suggests that only 15% of people want to scrap the ban.

But the Countryside Alliance says it has seen no slackening of support for hunting in recent years.

For Labour, shadow environment secretary Mary Creagh said there was no public support for ending the hunting ban.

"Most people back Labour's ban on hunting wild animals with dogs and accept there is no place for animal cruelty in a civilised society," she said.

"People are worried about their incomes falling, prices rising and losing their jobs, yet this out of touch Tory-led Government wants to bring back hunting.

"After the recent high profile conviction of members of the Prime Minister's hunt, I hope that hunts will respect the law this year."

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M6 Car Crash Killed Two Young Brothers

Two of the three people killed after a car flipped over on the M6 motorway on Christmas Day were brothers, aged four and 10.

The third victim of the accident on a busy stretch of the motorway in Staffordshire was a 32-year-old woman.

The boys' mother, who was believed to have been driving the car, and another female passenger remain in a stable condition at University Hospital North Staffordshire.

Staffordshire Police said the crash happened on the northbound carriageway of the M6 near junction 15 at around 11.25am.

Chief Superintendent Martin Evans said: "Colleagues from the emergency services have worked seamlessly throughout the day in these very sad and exceptionally difficult circumstances.

"Unfortunately the outcome is extremely tragic and our thoughts are with the family of those who have died."

The motorway was closed in both directions following the accident but reopened after several hours.

The accident occurred on the M6 between junctions 14 and 15

A West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) spokesman said: "Crews arrived to find a single vehicle that had crashed and overturned.

"Two children and an adult that were travelling in the vehicle suffered serious injuries.

"Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of ambulance crews, nothing could be done to save the two boys and one woman, and they were confirmed dead at the scene.

In a separate accident on the M6, four adults and three young children were injured on the southbound carriageway, near Corley Services, at around 7pm on Christmas Day.

A WMAS spokesman said two cars were substantially damaged and it was fortunate nobody was more seriously injured.

Earlier on Christmas Day, Ann Mary Goodrich, 57, and her husband Paul John Goodrich, 56, from Hampshire, died following the collision on the B3349 Odiham Road at Heckfield Heath, near Basingstoke.

A 29-year-old man from Farnborough, believed to be the driver of the other vehicle involved, received medical attention at the scene before being taken to hospital with serious injuries.

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Boxing Day Sales: Bargain Hunters Hit Shops

Bargain hunters are hitting shops up and down the country as the Boxing Day sales get under way.

People queued overnight in London's Oxford Street in preparation for stores opening this morning, with thousands pouring through the doors of Selfridges when its sale started.

Up to 7.1 million shoppers are expected in stores, with one in 10 venturing out for a deal before 9am, according to research from Green Flag.

According to MoneySupermarket.com, shoppers in the UK are set to spend a total of £2.9bn.

A poll for the website found almost four million Britons (8%) planned to head to the high street on Boxing Day in addition to more than five million (10%) who will be searching online.

However, figures from one survey, by comparison website Pricerunner, suggested that almost half (47%) of those questioned were not planning on buying anything in the post-Christmas sales.

Consumers in London could struggle to get to the shops as Tube drivers prepare to strike over a dispute about bank holiday pay.

Extra buses will be laid on for those travelling to the West End, as well as the Westfield shopping centres in Stratford, east London, and White City, west London, Transport for London said.

Online retailers tried to stay one step ahead of the competition by offering heavy discounts on Christmas Day with Amazon's UK website seeing a 263% rise in sales over the last five years.

Analysts Experian predict that Christmas 2012 will be the "biggest and busiest ever" for online retailers in the UK, with visits to retail websites expected to reach 126 million today, up 31% on 2011 and consumers predicted to spend £472.5m online.

But there was more gloom for the high street in the run-up to Christmas with shoppers preferring to buy presents online, according to Business recovery group Begbies Traynor.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said high street spending was "acceptable but not exceptional" this festive period - blaming it poor accessibility to high streets and weak consumer demand rather than online shopping.

Richard Dodd of BRC said: "There are a lot of myths around online retail. 10% of overall retailing over the year comes from online shopping and actually it presents lots of opportunities for the retail sector."

A Begbies Traynor report said almost high-street 140 firms were in a critical condition in the fourth quarter, meaning they are on the brink of collapse, while more than 13,700 were in "significant" distress - up 35% during the three months to December 17.

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New TV Campaign As Men's Cancer Risk Hits 50%

A TV advertising campaign has been launched as research reveals that half of all men will get cancer.

Cancer Research UK has released figures showing that diagnosis of men with the disease is increasing - but more are also surviving.

The charity used Boxing Day to launch a TV campaign highlighting how research can save lives and featuring stories from survivors.

New figures suggest that by 2027, 50 men out of every 100 are likely to be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lifetime.

That compares to 44 out of every 100 in 2010.

Women's lifetime cancer risk is also increasing and is predicted to rise from 40 to 44 out of every 100 women by 2027.

However, the charity says that cancer survival has doubled in the last 40 years thanks to detection techniques and improved treatments.

Age is the biggest risk factor for cancer and the increase in risk is largely due to more people living longer.

The cancers set to increase most in the next 15 years include prostate, bowel and melanoma, Cancer Research UK says.

Prostate cancer remains a continuing challenge. Cases of the disease are rising but it is not yet possible to distinguish which prostate cancers will be life-threatening.

Professor Malcolm Mason, Cancer Research UK's prostate cancer expert, said: "Prostate cancer needs research. We have many questions and research is key to providing answers about the disease.

"As our population ages, growing numbers of men will be diagnosed with the disease.

"Over the last 40 years prostate cancer incidence rates in Great Britain have tripled, and three-quarters of cases are diagnosed in men aged over 65 years."

One example of useful research by Cancer Research UK scientists is work indicating that a protein called MSMB may help identify men at greater risk of prostate cancer.

The researchers showed that this protein seems more accurately linked to prostate cancer than the marker currently tested for - the prostate specific antigen (PSA).

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Christmas Day Online Sales Surge Predicted

Bargain season begins in force today as online retailers slash prices ahead of an expected onslaught of consumers hitting the high street for the traditional Boxing Day sales.

Amazon's UK website said it had seen sales on Christmas Day increase by 263% over the last five years.

It expects this to be its busiest Christmas Day to date, partly due to the growth in home broadband and the popularity of tablets and smartphones.

The retailer is launching its Boxing Day deals a day early, which include clearance offers and "lightning deals" for a limited time and quantity of stock.

Shopping frenzies are moving from the high street to the internet

Trends seen on past Christmas Days on Amazon include an 11am rush for last minute gift cards, the spending of gift cards at midday and sofa surfing at 8.15pm.

Amazon's vice president of EU retail, Xavier Garambois, said: "The digital revolution has certainly played a part in this growth and Christmas Day is our biggest day of the year for MP3 and Kindle book downloads, as many people are buying content from new devices that they have just received.

"It's not just digital items though, we are seeing purchases of everything from baby products to women's clothing rapidly growing on Christmas Day.

"Many customers are shopping on Christmas Day in a way that has previously only been seen in the retail industry on Boxing Day."

According to MoneySupermarket.com, shoppers in the UK are set to spend a total of £2.9bn in the Boxing Day sales.

Furniture Village said visits to its website on Christmas Day last year peaked at 25,000 at 4pm, with that figure increasing to 50,000 on Boxing Day, suggesting that the majority of customers researched products online before buying from high street stores.

Chris Webster, a spokesman for technology analyst Capgemini, said: "Online tills will be ringing all the way from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day, including a massive £300m spent on Christmas morning itself.

"Christmas Day will see a surge in online sales as new tablets and smartphones are put through their paces and vouchers are cashed in for virtual goods such as movies and music.

"This year we're as likely to be downloading Queen's Greatest Hits as watching the Queen's speech."

Meanwhile, high street spending was "acceptable but not exceptional" this festive period, according to the British Retail Consortium.

Head of media and campaigns Richard Dodd said poor accessibility on high streets, a lack of parking and weak consumer demand were to blame rather than an increase in online shopping.

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Troops Send Christmas Cheer From Front Lines

British troops stationed at Camp Bastion in Afghanistan have sent Christmas messages back home to their loved ones.

Soldiers serving with the 21 Engineer Regiment wished family and friends a happy festive season, before celebrating with a traditional Christmas lunch and dinner.

Lance Corporal Kane Hollings said: "Big shout out to all my family, my friends, my little dog Bella. I'm sorry I can't be home for Christmas, but I hope you have a good time without me."

Corporal David Allan said: "I'd just like to say Merry Christmas to all my friends and family back home. My mum, my dad, and especially my beautiful wife Cheryl, I miss you and love you and I can't wait to see you in January."

Troops also celebrated the festive season with a Santa sleigh race at Camp Bastion, as some 9,000 troops serving in Afghanistan tried to make the most of a Christmas spent away from their families.

Senior officers serve mince pies and mulled wine to the troops

A major logistical effort saw two-and-a-half tons of turkey, 850kg of Brussels sprouts and 350kgs of Christmas pudding flown in for the troops.

Activities such as carol services, pantomime and sporting competitions were also being carried out at many bases.

At Lashkar Gah main operating base, soldiers are expected to take part in the Lash Dash, a Christmas Day fun run with prizes for the best costumes.

Senior-ranking officers are also keeping up with Army tradition by serving squaddies tea and coffee on Christmas morning.

Thousands of balloons, crackers, party poppers and hats have been ordered and around 130 tons of Christmas post has been delivered to Camp Bastion in the last week, to be dished out among bases.

Troops will also share the 23,500 mince pies and 40,000 After Eight mints flown in for the day.

Major Mark Yates, 40, from Manchester, who serves with The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, 1st Battalion, (1 Lancs), has a cameo role in the pantomime production of Aladdin in Lashkar Gah.

"We're all away from our families but we want to make sure we remember Christmas as it is a link with home," he said.

"Many of us have young children and would probably have gone to see a panto at this time of year.

"It's been a bit of fun between work, but not at the cost of any of our operations."

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Floods: UK To Remain On Alert For Another Week

Christmas has got off to a soggy start for many parts of the UK, as more rain falls on flood-threatened areas.

Hundreds of homes and businesses have been swamped with floodwaters as winter rain continues to fall on saturated land.

Police have closed the junction 10 exit of the M27 at Wickham and the A127 near its junction with the M25 due to flooding.

The Environment Agency (EA) said widespread showers meant many places remain on flood alert despite the persistent heavy rain being expected to ease off by the end of today.

An EA spokeswoman said: "While the worse of the weather is behind us, the risk of flooding continues with rain falling on already saturated ground.

Railway engineers check inflatable dams on the railway line near Exeter

"As a result, flood warnings and alerts will remain in place for much of the week ahead.

"This is because river levels remain high and sensitive to further rainfall."

The rivers Severn, Trent, Avon and Thames are most at risk of flooding, the EA said, and another band of rain is expected to swamp the country on Boxing Day.

Kempton clerk of the course Barney Clifford said he saw no need to call an inspection and that the William Hill King George VI Chase meeting on Boxing Day should go ahead as planned.

There are more than 150 flood warnings in place across the country, and 256 less serious flood alerts.

The Holme Pierrepont National Watersports Centre in Nottingham was flooded

The Met Office has issued an amber weather warning - its second highest alert - for southwest England.

The Met Office said the wettest place in the UK since the heavy rain began last week was Tyndrum in Perthshire with 6.1in (155mm).

Cardinham, near Bodmin in Cornwall, is the wettest place in England with 5.1in (128.8 mm) of rain and the wettest place in Wales has been Mumbles Head in West Glamorgan with 4.2in (107mm) of rain.

Ballypatrick Forest in Antrim has been the wettest place in Northern Ireland, with 3.5in (89mm) of rain.

Some areas have exceeded their full-month December average since December 19 - such as Plymouth, which has seen 5.1in (128.8mm) of rain compared with a December average of 4.7in (118.8 mm).

Lower-level yellow weather warnings have also been issued for much of southern England and Wales.

Following a an extremely dry start, Britain is now set for one of its wettest years ever, the Met Office said.

The UK's average rainfall in 2012, excluding December, is 1,202mm -  placing it 13th in the list of wettest years since records began in 1910.

Forecasters said December's deluge of rain means this year is now likely to finish among the country's highest rainfall totals on record.

The year 2000 remains the UK's wettest year, with an average rainfall of 1,337.3mm.

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Queen And Royals Attend Christmas Day Service

The Royal Family's traditional Sandringham festivities are getting under way with three notable absentees.

The Queen joined other members of the royal family for the Christmas Day church service after recovering from a cold.

Wearing a turquoise coat dress and matching hat, Her Majesty was wished a merry Christmas by about 1,000 wellwishers at St Mary Magdalene.

She made the short journey from Sandringham House in a Bentley with princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.

The Duchess left hospital earlier this month

The Duke of Edinburgh, 91, who missed last year's service with a heart problem, walked the few hundred yards from the house to the church accompanied by the Duke of York and the Earl and the Countess of Wessex.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are spending the day with Kate's family, while Prince Harry is serving as an Apache pilot in Afghanistan.

Traditionally, the whole family would gather at the Queen's estate home over the festive period.

But this year's appearance is slightly more low-key without William and Kate who are spending the day privately in Bucklebury, Berkshire.

Prince Harry is currently serving in Afghanistan

The Duchess has had a testing few weeks, having been forced to announce her pregnancy earlier than planned when she was admitted to King Edward VII's Hospital in London following a bout of severe morning sickness.

The condition, known as hyperemesis gravidarum, leaves expectant mothers so ill they cannot keep food or liquids down.

Days later, she and Prince William found themselves offering their condolences to the family of nurse Jacintha Saldanha, 46, who was found hanged in her nurses' quarters after answering a prank call made to the hospital by two Australian DJs impersonating the Queen and Prince of Wales.

The Duke and Duchess are expected to follow their stay in Bucklebury with a visit to Sandringham at some point over the festive period.

In Afghanistan Prince Harry, like thousands of other servicemen, is celebrating Christmas with troops.

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Queen To Hail Olympics In 3D Xmas Message

Monarch's Message: From Radio To 3D

Updated: 4:41am UK, Monday 24 December 2012

The Queen's grandfather, King George V, delivered the first royal Christmas broadcast live on the radio from Sandringham more than 75 years ago.

He had reigned since 1910, but it was not until 1932 that he gave his first festive speech.

He was unsure about using the relatively untried medium of the wireless, but eventually agreed and read a message composed by author Rudyard Kipling.

The original idea was suggested by Sir John Reith, the founding father of the BBC, to inaugurate the Empire Service, now the BBC World Service.

The fixed time of 3pm each year was chosen in 1932 because it was considered the best for reaching most of the countries in the British Empire by short wave.

The General Post Office was used to reach Australia, Canada, India, Kenya and South Africa.

George V's eldest son, who became King Edward VIII, never delivered a Christmas speech as his reign lasted less than a year, ending in abdication.

There was no broadcast in 1936 or 1938.

King George VI, Edward's younger brother, made his first broadcast in December 1937 in which he thanked the nation and Empire for their support during the first year of his reign.

It was the outbreak of war in 1939 which firmly established the tradition, when George VI sought to reassure people and boost morale.

Following her father's death, the Queen made her first Christmas broadcast in 1952 and her first televised Christmas broadcast in 1957, live from Sandringham.

She has delivered one every year except for 1969, when she decided the royals had been on TV enough that year following an unprecedented documentary the family made about their life.

Today the speech is available on the television, radio, the Royal Channel on the YouTube website, and in HD.

This year for the first time the national address will also be broadcast in 3D.

The Queen usually does her speech in one take, recording it a couple of weeks before December 25. Accompanying TV footage is gathered throughout the year.

She writes her own message and each one has a religious framework and reflects current issues.

The speech is one of the rare occasions when the Queen does not turn to the Government for advice and is able to voice her own views.

While the Royal Family gathers together round the TV to watch the broadcast on Christmas Day, the Queen sometimes watches it alone, heading off to another room to scrutinise her message in private.

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Weather: Rain Hits Roads And Rail Amid Floods

Flood victims are facing a festive washout as people hoping to get home to friends and family for Christmas are warned rain could prompt travel misery.

Persistent downpours across large parts of the UK caused widespread flooding over the weekend, with a number of routes still affected.

Southwest England, Wales and northeast Scotland have been worst affected, although the Midlands is also on high alert.

Almost 400 flood warnings have been issued by the Environment Agency - which said up to 30mm of rain was expected to fall between midnight and noon - contributing further to the possibility of flooding.

Sky News Weather Presenter Nazaneen Ghaffar "We're really looking at unsettled weather for the rest of the year.

"Rain this morning will move north-eastwards across southern and central England, Wales, the Midlands and up to Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.

"It should clear off into the North Sea just after midday but this rain will add further to the flooding problems in the west as it falls on already saturated ground."

CrossCountry, East Midlands Trains, First Great Western and First TransPennine Express are all experiencing major delays, according to National Rail.

Flooding in Stonehaven

In the South West there were no trains running between Bristol Parkway and Swindon because of flooding, while services between London Paddington and Swansea were diverted.

Trains will not run between Exeter St Davids and Tiverton Parkway until Friday at the earliest, with replacement buses and diverted routes offering passengers some alternatives.

But First Great Western warned that poor road conditions mean that buses will not be able to travel on many routes.

London Midland is also facing disruption on most of its routes today - this time because of a shortage of train crew - while flooding means services between Derby and Nottingham are suspended.

Network Rail (NR) yesterday said it was working closely with the Environment Agency and its weather service to try and keep things moving where possible.

Robin Gisby, NR's director of network operations, said: "We apologise to passengers who have had their journeys disrupted at this busy time and we are doing all we can to keep things moving.

Meanwhile, numerous roads were flooded, many of them in areas which were under water only a few weeks ago.

Worcestershire was one of the worst-hit counties, with roads also closed due to floods in Worcester, Bromsgrove and Evesham.

It comes as a clean-up continues in Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire, after flooding forced dozens of people out of their homes and a rest centre set up at Mackie Academy to keep the victims safe and warm.

Environment Minister Paul Wheelhouse was due to visit the town to speak to residents and thank people for the efforts to mitigate and clean up the damage.

Devon and Cornwall were also among the worst-hit regions, with RNLI flood rescue teams across the area.

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Paul Daniels Reveals He 'Kissed Schoolgirl'

Veteran TV magician Paul Daniels has revealed his shock after discovering a girl he picked up as a hitch-hiker more than 40 years ago and began kissing was a schoolgirl.

The 74-year-old entertainer, writing in his blog The Life and Times of Paul Daniels, said he gave the girl a lift after spotting her as he drove home from a late-night show on a country lane, The Sun newspaper reported.

He wrote: "I kissed her goodnight and it got a bit more passionate.

"Thank God it didn't get too passionate because something she said sent a shiver down my spine - she said she was still at school.

"I had her out of the car as fast as I could and I drove off with the lights off so she couldn't see my number plate! I felt sick."

In his blog, Daniels said the encounter occurred when he was 30. The blog has since been taken down.

The Sun reported that the magician described showbusiness in the 1970s as plagued by teenage "groupies" and added it was difficult to know their age.

He added: "The super-short mini-skirts, the teetering high heels, the full slap made it, as I say, impossible.

"Did I have such a life? Yes. I would be lying if I said I didn't. Were they all over 16? OMG I hope so. Can I remember them? No."

The father-of-three, married to former assistant Debbie McGee, 54, added that performers and pop stars were surrounded by female fans in the 1970s.

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Edinburgh Car Crash Leaves Three Dead

Three people have died in a car crash near Edinburgh, police say.

The A68 south has been closed following the accident involving two cars on the road between Pathhead and Soutra.

More follows...

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Rugby Football Union: 'Ref-Cam' To Be Trialled

The Rugby Football Union (RFU) will trial a "ref-cam" for the first time later today during the Championship tie between Newcastle Falcons and London Scottish.

Match official Matt Carley will have a camera attached to his shirt to show television viewers close-ups of the on-field action.

Referees at televised matches are already connected to microphones which help broadcast the dialogue between players and officials.

In both union and league rugby codes, cameras are also located in the dressing rooms.

RFU official Ed Morrison has backed the camera's use on the field

However, this is the first time a camera has been used in this way.

Ed Morrison, the RFU's head of elite referee development, said he was impressed by the quality of the footage in a training ground trial.

"I was gobsmacked really by the quality of the footage that came from it," he said.

"The quality of the filming from this one little camera that was worn on the chest of the referee blew me away really.

The camera will give viewers a brand new aspect on matches

"From that point on I thought: 'There's something in this for us.'"

However former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher said football should not follow suit.

"I don't want the general public to listen in to conversations between referees and players on the field," he said.

"There's a lot of interaction, there's a lot of man management, you'd be fascinated how much players talk to referees and referees talk to players.

"That's a way of dealing with them, it's a very effective tool that the referee uses to keep control of the matches."

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Hospital's £400,000 Payout Over Care Failings

A hospital has apologised and paid out more than £400,000 for 38 cases of failings in patient care.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said he was "disgusted and appalled" at the accounts of suffering and neglect at Redditch's Alexandra Hospital.

Health bosses are now writing to all of the families involved to apologise, after legal action exposed years of bad practice.

Claims ranged from nurses taunting patients to leaving an elderly woman unwashed for 11 weeks.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said he was 'disgusted and appalled'

In one case, a man had starvation recorded as the cause of his death after being treated at the hospital for two months.

Many of the families are to receive compensation for cases that their lawyer described as "appalling".

In total the hospital has paid out £410,000 in 38 separate cases, five to people who survived, the rest to those whose relatives died.

The hospital did not admit liability but agreed to apologise fully to the families.

A spokesman for Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust said the hospital has massively improved.

"Whilst the Trust has accepted that certain aspects of the care afforded to some patients fell below the standard that they were entitled to expect, all of the cases cited are several years old, in many incidences, more than a decade old.

"This Trust now has the sixth best standard hospital mortality index (SHMI) in the Midlands and East Strategic Health area based on 2012/13 figures which put the figure at 97 - which is below the national average.

"A number of very serious allegations made by the families of deceased patients are not borne out by the medical records.

"Nevertheless, the Trust accepts that, the care afforded to some patients, some years ago - between 2002 and 2009 - fell below the requisite standard and has apologised for the shortcomings."

Mr Hunt said the Government was acting to ensure failings in care were detected more quickly.

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Scottish Boy Who Died Hiking In Oz Is Named

A 14-year-old Scottish boy who died from heat exhaustion after collapsing during a hike in Western Australia has been named.

Ewan Williamson, from Largs in North Ayrshire, was with his father in the Cape Range National Park, south of Exmouth, on Friday when he collapsed.

Police said the pair had not been carrying much water despite temperatures in the region being well above 40C (104F).

Ewan's father called the emergency services and they were found by police around 700m down a gully and not far from a car park.

The teenager was treated on the track before being transferred to Exmouth Hospital, where he later died.

His father is 49 and from Geraldton, in Western Australia's mid-west, but has not been officially named.

A police spokesman told The West Australian: "It is a known path and bush track. They were not lost. It is not suspicious. It is just a tragic accident."

No further details are being released about the death and police are now preparing a report for the Western Australia State Coroner.

Any tourists hiking in the region have been urged to carry plenty of water.

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Sally Bercow's Twitter Account Hacked Again

Sally Bercow's Twitter account has been hacked for the second time in two months.

The controversial wife of the Speaker of the House of Commons had signed off to her followers for Christmas.

However, hours later her account had been hacked and a stream of offensive, sexually explicit messages posted.

The hacker, who struck at 2.20am, criticised the strength of her password in the first post tweeting: "Berkow [sic] password got it. So ******* obvio0us she is a bint."

Mrs Bercow had bid her followers goodbye for the Christmas break saying: "kids break up today & I'm aiming 4 an old-fashioned, twitter-free Xmas. Yes, really".

Her Twitter account was taken down hours after the hack attack, although it was not clear whether it was removed by the hacker, the social networking site or Mrs Bercow herself.

Sally Bercow arrives to take part in Celebrity Big Brother

Mrs Bercow, who has courted notoriety by posing naked but for a strategically placed bedsheet and appearing on Celebrity Big Brother, was previously hacked in November.

It followed a series of gaffes she had made on the social networking site, including breaching a court order by naming a schoolgirl and linking Lord McAlpine to the flawed Newsnight programme about child abuse.

She had been advised by both her lawyers and her husband not to continue to use Twitter and posted a message saying: "Looking at tweets but (sadly) can't reply (#lawyerswhippedmyass #asdidMrB). So text/email/DM if you're a mate. Hope 2 b back soon.xx"

Days later she was hacked by a user who called her a "stupid woman" and again criticised how easy it was to crack her password.

She closed down her account immediately after but returned to the social networking site just over a week later.

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Retailers Geared Up For 'Busiest Day'

By Tadhg Enright, Business Correspondent

As the last full shopping day before Christmas Eve, today is expected to be the busiest day of the year on high streets and in shopping centres.

The British Retail Consortium expects between £4bn and £5bn to be spent throughout this weekend.

Researchers at the credit card company, Visa, have forecast sales to peak this afternoon between 2pm and 3pm.

At Brent Cross Shopping Centre in north London, management think today could be their busiest on record and extra security and traffic staff have been deployed to help customers.

Centre manager Tom Nathan told Sky News: "Everything shows us that when Christmas is on a Tuesday and the schools only broke up yesterday that today is going to be enormous because people haven't had the chance to go and do their full Christmas shop.

"So combine that with buying the turkey - and today is the start of the big turkey run - and today is going to be a huge one I think."

But the Local Government Association said confidence on the high street remained low.

Its annual Christmas survey found that 84% of town centre managers said confidence among shoppers had either not improved or worsened compared with this time last year.

It also suggested that the particularly cold and wet start to the winter could also be taking its toll on the number of shoppers visiting town centres.

Sales at Brent Cross Shopping Centre could be the busiest yet

Normally the busiest day of the year is December 23 - the last day before Christmas Eve - but this year that falls on a Sunday when trading hours for bigger shops are restricted by law to just six hours.

Big name retailers including John Lewis, Morrisons and Marks & Spencer failed in a bid to convince the Government to relax the restrictions on Sunday trading tomorrow.

M&S has responded by opening more than 100 of its stores at 12.01am on Christmas Eve morning to help shoppers get their Christmas essentials in time.

An M&S spokesman said: "We know that the days leading up to Christmas are some of the most hectic for our customers.

"Due to Sunday trading rules, we can only open for six hours on one of the busiest days of the year.

"We hope that these early bird hours on Monday will ease the pressure and give busy shoppers a bit more time to pick up Christmas food orders or last minute presents."

Waitrose, part of John Lewis, will also extend Christmas Eve trading hours in two thirds of its supermarkets by opening an hour earlier at 7am and closing an hour later at 6pm.

Sky News visited one of its four regional distribution centres at its head office in Bracknell, Berkshire, and saw staff working to deliver twice the normal volume of food to its stores.

They will be working 24 hours a day between now and 6am on Christmas Eve to ensure Waitrose shelves remain stocked.

But management are disappointed for them and their customers that trading will be curtailed on December 23 which is usually their most important shopping day.

Waitrose supply chain director David Jones told Sky News: "If you can imagine what you'd normally take in trading over 14 hours and shrinking that into six hours, it's quite challenging as you walk around the supermarket.

"You're trying to get people through checkouts and we would have loved to have had the opportunity to trade for a longer time."

Mr Jones will be taking time out from his executive duties to man the tills in his local branch over Christmas.

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Domestic Abuse Charities May Not Cope At Xmas

By Isabel Webster, West of England Correspondent

Cuts to domestic abuse charities are "putting victims at risk" as organisations warn they are expecting more cases than ever during the festive period.

The Association of Chief Police Officers reports a much higher volume of 999 calls from women over the Christmas holiday.

Gwent Police Chief Constable Carmel Napier said: "Normal life is not going on. The children aren't at school. People aren't at work.

"The expectation of a good time adds pressure and alcohol can be an aggravating factor.

"This combination of factors seems to cause a combustion of tensions that are already there."

According to the charity Refuge, one in four women in England and Wales experience domestic abuse in their lifetime and two women a week die.

Carol, a mother-of-four from Bristol, managed to escape her abusive relationship with the help of the grassroots charity, Survive.

Over several years her partner physically and mentally abused her, sometimes in front of her young children.

"The first night anything happened he just took his belt off and started whipping me. I was so shocked as I'd never seen him violent before," Carol said.

"He hit me with his mobile phone, so hard it left an imprint on my chest. He said he was going to kill me and threatened to throw me out the window - picking me up by my throat. He said he was going to rip my head off.

"But the worst part was the mental abuse. I had to walk behind him, I was timed if I went out to pick up the kids and had to ask permission to leave the room to go to the loo.

"I thought if I just did what I was told, if I was better, I could make it right for everyone, but I was never going to win."

Survive chief exec Anna Smith says charity is under increasing pressure

Carol is now safe and rebuilding her life, but the effect on her and her children remains.

Breaking down in tears, she sobbed: "If I'd known what I know now - what a bad effect it would have on my kids I would have got out sooner.

"I tried to protect them physically but you can't protect someone mentally from what they hear, what they see."

Carol maintains that Survive is the one good thing that came out of her ordeal.

But the charity, which supports women in South Gloucestershire and Bristol, is under growing pressure.

It has seen a 76% increase in high risk cases in the last year.

Over the Christmas period it estimates it will have to turn away 15% of the women and their families who need emergency refuge.

Chief Executive Anna Smith said: "We've been cut, yet we're seeing more women and children than ever.

"I am seriously concerned about it. Vulnerable people won't necessarily be able to get access to the help that they need this Christmas."

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Weather: Heavy Rain Sparks Christmas Misery

Families preparing for Christmas have been hit by floods and travel chaos as heavy rain batters Britain.

The south west of England has been particularly badly affected by the downpours and four severe flood warnings for Devon and Cornwall are now in place.

Some residents in Helston, Cornwall, were evacuated overnight after river levels rose and the Environment Agency warned that widespread flooding was "imminent".

There are fears about the River Cober in the town with more rain expected later on Saturday, raising fears some families may not be back home for Christmas.

Cornwall Council spokeswoman Trisha Hewitt said: "There is expected to be 30mm of rainfall during a six hour period from 5pm.

"As this is falling on saturated ground, this could cause further flooding."

The River Fowey is also subject to a severe flood warning, with another two for the River Caen in Braunton, Devon.

Floods in Helston, Cornwall, led to homes being evacuated

Braunton, which is in north Devon, has already been effectively cut off after the river burst its banks.

"The public are not attempted to attempt to drive to the town as it is flooded," Devon and Cornwall Police said.

There are a further 101 flood warnings, where flooding is expected, and another 301 alerts where it is considered possible.

Much of Britain saw deluges of rain early on Saturday as millions started the holidays, with Christmas Day now looking set to be a washout.

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The water has already led to major issues on road and train networks, which will spell trouble for Britons travelling this weekend.

Conditions are so bad in the south west that First Great Western has told passengers not to travel.

Flood-hit streets in York

Flooding between Taunton and Exeter St Davids and a signalling problem are causing major disruption.

There are no trains between Plymouth and Tiverton Parkway or Taunton, and a replacement bus service is running from Exeter St Davids to Tiverton Parkway and Taunton.

Further road replacements are being organised to run between Plymouth and Exeter St Davids, but this is expected to add another 90 minutes to journey times.

First Great Western and CrossCountry services are accepting each other's passengers, National Rail said.

A major signalling problem caused by a fire yesterday that affected electrical cables and railside signalling equipment at Preston Park is also causing major disruption near Brighton.

Diversions are in place, with trains between Brighton and Gatwick airport travelling half-hourly and buses laid on for some passengers.

There are also signalling problems affecting some Cross Country and London Midland routes in and around Birmingham.

Flooding near Rhoose Cardiff International Airport is causing disruption on Arriva Trains Wales.

And there remain problems on all London Midland routes because of driver shortages that have been an issue since October.

A man wading through Braunton, Devon

Replacement bus services are also in place between Bedford and Bletchley because of a lack of crew and in Liskeard and Looe in Cornwall due to flooding.

A landslip has caused rail problems in the Glazebrook area near Warrington, affecting some First TransPennine Express services and links to Manchester.

On the roads, the A38 from Bodmin towards Exeter is currently closed because of flooding. The northbound exit slip road on the A19 in Cleveland at the junction with the A139 is also shut.

There are also delays on the A27 eastbound between B2144 and A285 near Chichester because of flooding.

Mike Williams, from the Environment Agency, said: "This is the last weekend before Christmas, so it will be particularly busy with people travelling through the region.

"We would urge people to take extra care when planning their journeys and we aware of the risk of flooding.

"Our teams have been out around the clock to minimise the risks and prepare for flooding.

"People need to keep up to date with the weather forecast and remain prepared for flooding in their area and stay away from dangerous flood water or attempting to drive through it."

Britons attempting to get to Heathrow have also been hit by changes to the Heathrow Express service, which on Friday forced thousands of passengers onto the Underground.

Rain is affecting much of the UK (Pictures: Met Office)

Trains are running normally on Saturday but are due to start later on Sunday and will then not run at all on Christmas Day and Boxing Day because of engineering work.

British Airways alone is set to handle nearly 31,000 passengers on Christmas Day as an estimated four million Britons travel abroad for the rest of the holidays.

There was some good news after two main line rail strikes that threatened to cause travel chaos over the Christmas period were called off.

But the train drivers' union Aslef is still striking on Boxing Day in a move that will hit the Underground and has already forced the cancellation of the Arsenal-West Ham United football match.

The other main train problem for the festive period is likely to be engineering work on the West Coast Line.

There are no direct services from London Euston to Milton Keynes, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool or Glasgow on December 23 and 24.

Direct services resume on December 27 but with two of the four lines closed up to and including New Year's Eve.

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