Baby Boy's Death: Mother Arrested In Oldham

By Becky Johnson, North of England Correspondent

Police are questioning a mother on suspicion of murdering her seven-week-old baby in Oldham.

The 23-year-old mother's partner, a man aged 35, and the couple's lodger, a 26-year-old man, have also been arrested on suspicion of murder.

The baby was taken to the Royal Oldham Hospital with serious head injuries last Saturday.

Hospital staff contacted police and the child's mother and her partner were originally arrested on suspicion of assault.

Following the baby's death and the results of a postmortem examination they were re-arrested on suspicion of murder.

The baby was taken to Royal Oldham Hospital

Along with their lodger they are also being questioned on suspicion of conspiring to pervert the course of justice.

All three remain in police custody.

Detectives are searching the house where the child lived in the Clarksfield area of Oldham.

The couple's next door neighbour, who did not want to be named, told Sky News she was "shocked" to hear the news.

She said she understood the couple had only moved into the house in November and said they had put up balloons and banners when the baby was born.

Inquiries are ongoing to trace the child's father.

The infant died at Royal Manchester Children's Hospital

Detective Inspector Andy Cunliffe from Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said: "This is a tragic case in which a very young baby has lost his life.

"We are determined to find out exactly what the circumstances were that led to him suffering such injuries.

"News of the death of such a little boy will no doubt come as a great shock to people.

"And I would like to try to reassure the community as much as I can that we have a team of detectives dedicated to working on this investigation, and they will today be interviewing the three people in our custody.

"If anyone has any information at all that they believe may assist us with our enquiries, then please get in touch and tell us what you know."

Anyone with information is asked to contact GMP's Major Incident Team on 0161 856 1722 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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Lloyds Sets Target For Women Executives

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

Lloyds Banking Group is to break new ground in the debate about gender diversity in British business by pledging that 40% of its top 5,000 jobs will be occupied by women within six years.

Sky News can reveal this weekend that the taxpayer-backed lender will become the first FTSE-100 company to establish a formal gender target for its most senior management positions.

The pledge, to be outlined by Antonio Horta-Osorio, Lloyds' chief executive, in a speech next week, will come at a time of unprecedented scrutiny of boardroom diversity and governance.

Mr Horta-Osorio is expected to set the target as part of a broader set of objectives aimed at demonstrating Lloyds' awareness of its wider societal role as the UK's biggest high street lender.

Sources said that he was also planning to establish formal annual goals for lending to small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) and to first-time house-buyers.

Targets for the number of female executives and a commitment to the level of funding for Lloyds' charitable causes would be made over a six-year period, they added.

It is the gender diversity target, which will entail the appointment of an additional 600 women to senior jobs at Lloyds by 2020, that is likely to attract the greatest attention.

Speaking exclusively to Sky News, Fiona Cannon, the bank's director of diversity and inclusion, said the initiative made sound business sense.

Fiona Cannon says the workforce should reflect the diversity of customers

"One of our visions is to be the best bank for customers. As the largest UK bank we are located in communities across the country and our customers are incredibly diverse," she said.

"There is a whole body of research suggesting that where organisations have a diverse senior management team they are much more financially successful than those that do not."

The Lloyds executive said that a 40% target was stretching but achievable. 28% of the bank's top 5000 jobs are currently held by women, a spokesman said.

"Creating an organisation that is meritocratic is good for everyone, not just for women," Ms Cannon said.

Lloyds' pledge comes amid mixed results from a concerted push in recent years to get more women elevated to board positions, with advocates arguing that greater diversity improves the stewardship of major companies.

That argument has acquired more weight in the aftermath of the financial crisis, although empirical evidence backing the superior performance of boards populated by women remains patchy.

The Government has thrown its weight behind a voluntary campaign to ensure that 25% of the directorships of FTSE-100 companies are held by women by the end of next year and has threatened to impose formal quotas if the objective is not met.

Since the initiative was launched by the former Trade Minister, Lord Davies, the proportion of women on boards has grown from 12% to 20%.

However, amid additional pressure from Brussels for the introduction of legally-binding quotas, there are concerns that the pace of change has been insufficiently rapid.

Vince Cable supports voluntary targets for women on boards

Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, said he supported Lloyds' work and hoped it would become a template for other major businesses.

"We are not tapping into the talents of half the population. If we are going to get proper balanced representation in companies, it has got to start with senior executives, working up to chief executive level," he said.

Mr Cable has been a supporter of voluntary rather than mandatory targets for women on boards, saying there was little evidence that more female leadership of financial institutions would have averted the 2008 banking crisis.

"I don't buy into that stereotype one way or the other," he said.

"All the evidence we have suggests that companies which do make use of the female labour force do very well at the top end. We need to make sure that becomes standard practice in the UK."

Lloyds' plan to announce the gender target is understood to have been signed off by the bank's board on Friday, less than two weeks before it reports full-year results for 2013.

The company, which provoked a row with Mr Cable by axing more than 1000 jobs this week, is preparing for a return to full private sector ownership in the coming months.

Ms Cannon dismissed the idea that Lloyds' proposals could be labelled as a publicity stunt, although critics of gender targets have argued that they are tokenistic and risk promoting mediocrity at the expense of genuine talent.

The 'gene pool' of available women to fill senior positions is questioned

Only four FTSE-100 companies - Burberry, easyJet, Imperial Tobacco and Royal Mail - have female bosses. Severn Trent, the water company, has also named a woman as its next chief executive, although Angela Ahrendts, the boss of Burberry, has resigned to take up a role with Apple.

Even fewer companies have a female chairman, with reform-minded businesspeople urging the pipeline of executives to be bolstered in order to facilitate future boardroom appointments.

Speaking to Sky News, Ruth Lea, an economist and director of Arbuthnot Banking Group, said doubts remained about the "gene pool" of available women to fill senior positions.

"I don't think positive discrimination is the best way forward for women. It breathes tokenism and suggests that somehow women cannot make it on their own merits," she said.

"It isn't a matter of discrimination. There simply isn't the gene pool of qualified and experienced women in comparison with the number of men. Men and women make different choices about their lifestyles and careers."

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Reception Children Face Compulsory Tests

Four-year-old children will have to sit tests when they start primary school under new Government plans.

The compulsory tests, designed to measure each child's level of development at the start of their formal schooling, will come into force by 2016 under the new proposals.

It comes after a Department for Education (DfE) consultation last year which proposed a "baseline assessment" in primary schools in order to measure how children have progressed by age 11.

The tests are to be carefully crafted to estimate a child's academic abilities in very basic literacy, reasoning and cognition, rather than testing their knowledge as in a traditional exam.

As a result, it is believed the current key stage one tests that take place at the end of year two, when most pupils are aged seven, will be scrapped.

The Government is soon expected to shortly announce the results of the consultation and reveal the new reception class test, which was first reported in The Times newspaper.

A DfE spokesperson said: "We have consulted on our proposed primary school assessment and accountability measures and we are considering our response."

Some educational campaigners fear the tests for the younger age group will place children under undue stress.

Deborah Lawson, general secretary of Voice The Union - a union representing education professionals, told Sky News: "I want to know what is the purpose? Why should we be putting children at a younger and younger age through a testing regime.

"I think also we have to remember that developmentally is this the right thing for young children?"

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Miliband Outlines 'One Member, One Vote' Plan

Ed Miliband wants to scrap the system which gave him a thin victory over brother David in the race for the Labour leadership and replace it with a 'one member, one vote' election.

The proposals will "let people back into our politics" and complete 20 years of unfinished business, Mr Miliband said.

He told The Guardian: "These are the biggest changes to who can become involved in the Labour Party since probably its formation."

Under the current electoral college system for leadership elections, a third of votes go to trade unions, with the same proportion for party members, MPs and MEPs.

The unions will keep their collective voice at party conferences, with 50% of the vote, and their quota of seats on the national executive, although Mr Miliband has pledged to look at this in the future.

Under changes announced by Mr Miliband last year, individual trade union members will no longer be automatically affiliated with the party through the payment of a political levy.

They will be able to take part in elections if they chose to become an affiliated member for a fee of £3, Mr Miliband revealed in the interview.

The electoral college system gave Ed a close victory over David in 2010

The party hopes this will encourage them to become more involved in campaigning and provide a new source of activists.

The reforms were sparked by the controversy surrounding the selection of Labour's candidate in Falkirk.

The Unite union was accused of signing up members in the constituency to try and influence the outcome. An internal inquiry found no evidence of wrongdoing, but some have said it did not have all of the facts.

While he hailed the reforms as a "great advance", Mr Miliband admitted the changes are a risk. There are warnings altering the automatic levy will see the party suffer a significant drop in funding.

To ease these concerns the changes will be implemented over five years.

A decision on whether to adopt the reforms will be made at a special conference in London on March 1.

Some MPs have voiced their unease with the plans. There are warnings the proposals will increase the power of unions, who could try and persuade affiliated members to back their preferred candidate.

"This would be disastrous," one former minister told the Daily Mirror.

"It could be the death of the Labour Party."

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E-Cigarettes To Be Banned For Under-18s

Under-18s will be banned from buying electronic cigarettes under new Government plans aimed at cracking down on teenage smoking.

The announcement comes as e-cigarettes are enjoying a boom in sales, with an estimated 1.3 million people in the UK thought to use them.

The law, which will be introduced next week as an amendment to the Children and Families Bill, will also make it illegal for adults to buy cigarettes on behalf of someone under 18.

Adults caught flouting the law could be given a £50 a fixed penalty notice or fined up to £2,500.

The move comes as Department of Health figures reveal that 41% of 15-year-olds who smoke say they usually buy their cigarettes from other people rather than buying them from a shop.

And 95% of 11- to 15-year-olds who smoke have managed to get someone else to buy cigarettes for them in a shop at least once in the past year.

Public Health Minister and Conservative MP Jane Ellison said: "Two thirds of smokers say they smoked regularly before they were 18, showing that this is an addiction largely taken up in childhood.

"We must do all we can to help children lead a healthy life. That's why this measure is designed to help protect children from the dangers of being bought cigarettes by irresponsible adults - something that I hope concerned parents and responsible retailers will welcome."

While many people view the tobacco-free devices as a better alternative to traditional cigarettes, health experts remain concerned about the long-term effects they could have on users' health.

The long-term effects of e-cigarettes on people's health are unknown

E-cigarettes provide a hit of nicotine and some fear they reinforce the behaviour of smoking, making it harder to give up in the long term.

England's chief medical officer, Professor Dame Sally Davies, said: "We do not yet know the harm that e-cigarettes can cause to adults let alone to children, but we do know they are not risk free.

"E-cigarettes can produce toxic chemicals and the amount of nicotine and other chemical constituents and contaminants, including vaporised flavourings, varies between products meaning they could be extremely damaging to young people's health."

Currently there is no restriction on people under the age of 18 buying e-cigarettes, and they are hugely popular among teenagers in Britain.

But it is feared that children are turning to the smokeless devices - designed to help users quit - before moving on to traditional cigarettes.

Many secondary schools across the UK have resorted to banning e-cigarettes over fears they are encouraging pupils to take up smoking.

Smoking rates have fallen to their lowest ever, in the wake of the ban on smoking in public and a series of shocking public health campaigns highlighting the dangers of cigarettes.

But more than 1,000 people end up in hospital every day as a result of smoking, and experts have warned that the growth in e-cigarettes could reverse some of the good work that has been done in tackling the habit.

Ministers hopes the new legislation will come into force by the autumn.

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Charlie Webster On The Run For Victims Of Abuse

Sky Sports presenter Charlie Webster is preparing to run 250 miles in seven days to raise awareness of domestic violence.

The 31-year-old will visit 40 football clubs along the way,

including Goodison Park (Everton), Anfield (Liverpool) and the Reebok Stadium (Bolton), in support of domestic abuse charity Women's Aid.

Webster recently revealed she had been sexually assaulted by her running coach when she was 15. Her assailant was later sentenced to 10 years in prison and put on the sex offenders register after another girl reported the abuse to police.

Charlie Webster was assaulted by her running coach when she was 15

Sexual abuse at the time, she said, was "one of these taboos, like domestic abuse is now". The presenter says she chose to waive her anonymity to "break the taboo about abuse as a whole".

British Crime Survey statistics suggest a quarter of women in the UK have experienced some form of domestic violence; a figure which Women's Aid says has remained static for a while.

Webster, who starts the first leg of her run on Sunday, says she has been motivated by the experience of other women and children who have suffered domestic and sexual abuse.

"I have been warned by various experts how much it is going to hurt and the toll it will take on me both mentally and physically," she said..

"I know that it is 100% worth it, though. I don't want any woman or child to live in fear, worthlessness projected on them through another person's cowardly actions. Knowing how that feels is motivation enough."

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Weather: Heavy Rain Could Add To Flood Misery

Communities across southern England have been told to prepare for possible flooding as further heavy rain is forecast for today through to Tuesday.

The Environment Agency (EA) has 10 flood warnings in place for the South West, which mean flooding is expected and immediate action is required.

It highlighted the Somerset Levels, which run south from the Mendip Hills to the Blackdown Hills, as an area which should be prepared for further flooding.

An EA spokeswoman said: "With the ground already saturated, rivers and groundwater levels remain very responsive to rainfall, particularly on the Somerset Levels.

"Environment Agency teams continue to operate up to 62 pumps 24 hours a day to drain an estimated 65 million cubic metres of floodwater off an area of the Levels spanning 65 square kilometres."

There is also potential for further river flooding across the southwest and southern counties including parts of Wiltshire, Dorset, Hampshire, West Sussex, West Berkshire and Surrey into next week.

Somerset flood warnings (red) and alerts (orange). Pic: Environment Agency

The Met Office has issued an amber warning of severe weather for the South West from 6am to 2pm today.

It said rain across the UK would be accompanied by strong winds, and up to 20mm of rainfall is expected.

Many communities are still coming to terms with the flooding that hit Somerset at the beginning of January.

Somerset County Council has declared a "major incident" for all areas affected by flooding in the county.

The leader of the council, John Osman, told Sky News: "There's no let up in the rain coming down. The water levels on the moorlands are rising. We are getting towards breaking point."

A vital boat service operated by Somerset County Council, which is ferrying people to work and school, as well as taking in supplies, is continuing as the access roads are still flooded.

The Somerset village of Muchelney has been cut-off by floodwaters

Sedgemoor District Council has also declared a "major incident" on the Somerset Levels.

Strong winds on Saturday blew bricks and tiles off the roofs of houses and forced residents to be evacuated in a street in Nuneaton, Warwickshire.

Several people dialled 999 as the storm swept through the town but nobody was hurt, Warwickshire Police said.

Elsewhere in the county the emergency services and the highways agency have been working with local councils to deal with a number of other storm related incidents including trees which had been brought down by the strong winds, and flooded roads as a result of the heavy rain.

Sky New weather presenter Jo Wheeler said: "Today's rain may exacerbate the problems  in the South West but is unlikely to have  much impact away from the already flooded areas.

"This week, there may be some small improvements, in so much as there is no further prolonged heavy rain expected before next weekend, but showers will continue."

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Scottish Independence: 46% 'Don't Mind'

An exclusive poll for Sky News suggests almost half of people living outside Scotland "wouldn't mind" waking up to discover the country was independent from the rest of the UK.

YouGov questioned more than 2,500 people across Scotland, Wales and England.

Some 46% of those outside of Scotland asked to imagine waking up and finding the country independent from the rest of the UK said they "wouldn't mind", while 34% said they would be dismayed and 11% said they would be delighted.

When adults in Scotland were asked the same question, there was more evidence of the task facing Alex Salmond, the leader of the Sottish National Party, and the Yes campaign - with 46% saying they would be dismayed and just a quarter saying they would be delighted.

Speaking to Sky News for a special programme this morning on Scottish independence, Mr Salmond, told Dermot Murnaghan he was confident people will vote in favour of Independence in the September 18 referendum.

The referendum is sue to take place on September 18

He said the move would bring  potential benefits and opportunities for people living in the north of England and Wales - referring to northern English councils' proposals to collaborate far more closely with their Scottish neighbours, as part of the Borderlands initiative.

"It is not for me to intervene in English affairs, but if you want a commentary, if I were a politician in the north of England, I would be campaigning avidly for more economic and political powers for that area.

"There are many people in Wales for example cheering Scotland on, because the tendency over the last generation has been that as Scotland has had increased power Wales has followed that. Therefore it has been a good thing for other areas of the country."

The Yes campaign is a long way behind the polls. But the First Minister, who believes independence will benefit the Scottish economy, also believes he can turn the situation around.

"Opinion polls tens to ask people how are you going to vote tomorrow, and people will answer on that basis.

"The referendum is not tomorrow. This referendum is in September, and therefore the campaign you will fight to win this referendum is one that engages people ... and that engagement is going to culminate in September - that's the point to be in front.

Alistair Darling believes the referendum will be closer than people think

"I'm in certainly no doubt that there will be a range of amazements over the next eight months or so."

He also re-emphasised the proposal for a Scottish Broadcasting Corporation with "dedicated Scottish channels" which would look at Scottish, international and UK news from a Scottish perspective.

Mr Salmond said: "Scotland is not a county, or a district, or a region - Scotland's a country, it's a nation.

"That nation exists in friendship with other nations, and after Scottish independence, England will be our best pals, our closest neighbours, our best pals in the world. That's as it should be.

"That doesn't nullify or attack our case for Scottish independence - on the contrary, inter-dependence in the modern world strengthens the case."

Asked what he would do if he wok up on September 19 and found that he had lost the referendum, he replied: "I intend to win."

Former chancellor Alistair Darling, who is chairman of the Better Together campaign, said: "The advantage for us, the opportunities that come from being part of something bigger, in terms of jobs because we have got a bigger economy, in terms of the clout we have in the European Union and other international organisations, and the bonds between the four countries - I think you have to think long and hard before throwing that away."

He said he believed the referendum was "going to be closer than people think", adding: "It is all to play for."

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