Couple Jailed For Lee Rigby YouTube Videos

A man has been sentenced to five years and four months for posting YouTube videos glorifying the murder of Fusilier Lee Rigby.

Royal Barnes, 23, was sentenced at the Old Bailey on Friday, with his wife, Rebekah Dawson, getting a 20-month sentence.

The videos posted by the British Muslim couple were "offensive in the extreme", the court heard.

They published the clips shortly after the brutal murder of Fusilier Rigby in Woolwich last May.

Barnes filmed himself laughing as he passed flowers left for the soldier

The couple, from Hackney in London, made three videos - the first uploaded on the day after the attack, with Barnes calling it a "brilliant day".

It was edited together with pictures of a man holding a decapitated head, a scene from Woolwich, and images of the World Trade Center.

The second clip showed Dawson ranting about how British troops would be killed on London's streets.

Fusilier Rigby, 25, was hacked to death in broad daylight on May 22, 2013

A third video showed Barnes mocking the public's grief at Fusilier Rigby's murder and laughing uncontrollably as he and his wife drove past flowers at the murder scene.

Barnes pleaded guilty last month to inciting murder and three counts of disseminating a terrorist publication.

Dawson, 22, who insisted on wearing a full veil in court, also admitted charges of disseminating a terrorist publication.

Rebekah Dawson's video was posted shortly after the murder

Judge Brian Barker QC said the pair showed "a total and continuing disregard" for the effect it would have on the soldier's family and the wider public.

Fusilier Rigby's killers were jailed last month for the attack, which saw them hack the solider to death on the streets of southeast London.

Michael Adebolajo, 29, was given a whole-life term, and Michael Adebowale, 22, was jailed for at least 45 years.

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West Brom Sack Anelka After 'Quenelle' Storm

West Brom say they have terminated Nicolas Anelka's contract for gross misconduct, following his ban for performing the controversial 'quenelle' gesture during a match.

In a statement on their website, the club said their decision was the result the player's conduct while celebrating a goal against West Ham on December 28 and his remarks posted on social media.

"The club considers the conduct of Nicolas Anelka on December 28, coupled with his purported termination on social media this evening, to be gross misconduct," it said.

"As a result the club has tonight written to Nicola Anelka giving him 14 days' notice of termination as required under his contract."

The 35-year-old, whose deal at the Premier League side was due to expire in the summer, had earlier announced he would leave the club over its response to his five-match ban and £80,000 fine from the FA.

He wrote on his Twitter account that he had decided to "put an end" to his contract, saying the club had proposed "certain conditions that I cannot accept".

The Frenchman's tweets on Friday evening

In three posts written in French on Twitter, the player said: "Following talks between the club and me, propositions were made to me in order to reintegrate me into the squad under certain conditions that I cannot accept.

"Wishing to retain my integrity, I have therefore taken the decision to free myself and put an end to the contract linking me with West Bromwich Albion to 2014, with immediate effect."

West Brom previously issued a statement in response, indicating Anelka's words had taken them by surprise.

It said: "The club has received nothing formally regarding the termination of Nicolas Anelka's contract from either him or his advisers.

"The club regards the release of such a statement on social media as highly unprofessional and will make a further statement when appropriate."

It was claimed the quenelle was anti-Semetic, but Anelka says the gesture was merely anti-establishment and made in support of his friend Dieudonne M'bala M'bala, a French comedian who has been convicted seven times of anti-Semitic crimes.

A Football Association commission found it was abusive and/or indecent and/or insulting and/or improper, and that it included a reference to ethnic origin and/or race and/or religion or belief.

It accepted there was no intent by Anelka to be anti-Semitic, but banned him for five matches and fined him £80,000. He was subsequently suspended by West Brom.

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EuroMillions: Lucky Brit Wins £107.9m Jackpot

A British ticket-holder has scooped £107.9m on the EuroMillions draw, becoming the fourth biggest UK winner in the history of the National Lottery.

The winning ticket belongs to a single player.

Friday's winning numbers were 06, 24, 25, 27 and 30, while the lucky stars were 05 and 9.

A National Lottery spokesman said: "With the weather set fair for the coming week, this UK winner is set fair for the rest of their lives having just become a multimillionaire.

"This single UK ticket-holder will enter the exclusive top five on the National Lottery Rich List - at number four - and we've got the champagne on ice ready for the lucky winner to claim their prize."

Top of the National Lottery Rich List are Colin and Chris Weir, who won a £161m EuroMillions jackpot in July 2011.

The Scottish husband and wife said they were "tickled pink" by their winnings and reportedly bought a fleet of cars for friends, as well as a mansion.

The second largest jackpot of almost £150m was claimed by Adrian and Gillian Bayford, from Suffolk, in August 2012.

At the time, Mr Bayford said he would carry on running his music shop in Haverhill. Mrs Bayford, a children's ward healthcare assistant, said she would treat herself to her dream car, an Audi Q7.

However just 15 months after their win, the couple announced they were divorcing following the "irretrievable" breakdown of their marriage.

The third biggest jackpot of £113m was claimed in October 2010, but the lucky ticket-holder decided not to go public.

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Anger Over Bomb Hurled At Belfast Police Car

An explosive device was thrown at a police vehicle in Belfast, just hours after a separate car bomb was found a few miles away.

A Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) spokesman said the officers targeted had escaped serious injury following the attack near the City Cemetery in the west of the city.

Paramedics treated up to four members of the public for shock but no one was badly hurt.

A PSNI spokesman said: "Police in west Belfast have escaped serious injury tonight after an explosive device detonated close to their vehicle on the Falls Road.

"The incident occurred shortly before 10.30pm close to the entrance of the City Cemetery.

Debris from the explosion. pic: Press Pix / Samuel Severn

"It is believed some form of explosive device was thrown at their vehicle."

SDLP councillor Claire Hanna tweeted: "Hoping no serious injuries following explosion. Throwback (to) terrorists reduced to trying to embarrass Northern Ireland over St Patrick's. Get off our backs."

The City Cemetery, at the junction of Falls Road and Whiterock Road, is one of Belfast's oldest public cemeteries.

Police in Northern Ireland have been urged to tighten personal security measures after a separate under-car bomb was found a relatively short distance away from City Cemetery on Friday morning.

It fell from the vehicle and failed to explode, and even though the target has not been positively identified, the PSNI has not ruled out the possibility it was meant for one of their officers.

The device was discovered at Blacks Road, a busy route close to the M1 not far from Woodbourne police station.

Dissident republicans have been blamed for planting the bomb in what appears to have been a deliberate attempt to embarrass Northern Ireland First Minister

Peter Robinson and deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, who are in Washington to meet senior members of the Obama administration as part of St Patrick's Day celebrations.

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Revealed: Oxford Is 'Most Expensive City'

Oxford is the UK's least affordable city, a study finds, because homes there cost 11 times the average local wage.

According to the report, by Lloyds Bank, the average cost of a property in the university city was almost £341,000.

Winchester, Truro, Bath and Brighton made up the top five list of "least affordable" places to live, while Westminster in central London came in seventh place.

Although property prices in Westminster are among the highest in the UK, relatively high earnings in the heart of London stopped Westminster from coming higher on the list.

High wages combine with high property prices in Westminster

The study suggested that city living had become less affordable over the last year - largely a result of stagnant wage growth and surging house prices.

It said the price of a home in a large town or city grew by 5% over the last year to reach £184,215 on average - or 5.8 times someone's average earnings.

Stirling in Scotland and Londonderry in Northern Ireland were named as the UK's most affordable cities to live in, with house prices in those areas typically costing 3.3 times and 3.6 times local earnings respectively.

Derry was among the most affordable places to live

Glasgow, Belfast, Lisburn, Bradford, Lancaster and Salford all featured among the most affordable urban areas to live.

York was the only northern city to make the line-up of the UK's least affordable cities, at number 20.

A home in York costs nearly six times average wages, while one in nearby cities like Hull and Sheffield would set someone back just over four-and-a-half times their earnings.

The report pointed to the large numbers of people living in Oxford who commute to London to work as part of the reason why house prices there are particularly out of step with local wages.

A year ago, a house in Oxford cost 9.8 times local earnings.

The UK housing market has picked up sharply in some areas over the last year amid Government schemes such as Help to Buy, which have unleashed a wave of fresh demand into the property market from people who had previously struggled to get access to a mortgage.

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Dog Attack: Armed Police Catch Pitbull

A 22-year-old woman is in hospital with "serious injuries" after being attacked by a dog on the outskirts of Lincoln.

The attack happened near the city's Outer Circle Road in an area close to a quarry at around 10.30pm on Sunday.

It sparked a hunt using armed officers and a helicopter, with police warning local people to stay away from the area.

The dog attacked the woman near the city's Outer Circle Road

The animal was caught at around 1.30am and police confirmed the attack victim was not its owner.

Staff at Lincoln County Hospital had raised the alarm when the woman was admitted with her injuries.

It is the latest attack by what is thought to be an American pitbull-type dog.

Last month 11-month-old Ava Jayne Marie Corless was mauled to death by a dog believed to be of that species while in bed at a house in Emily Street, Blackburn, Lancashire.

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Paralympics: Gallagher Wins GB's First Gold

Partially-sighted Kelly Gallagher has won Britain's first ever Winter Paralympic gold medal with victory in the Women's Super-G.

The 28-year-old and her guide Charlotte Evans were the first skiers out on the Rosa Khutor course in Sochi and clocked one minute 28.72 seconds.

She then waited as her rivals failed to beat her time.

Jade Etherington won bronze with the help of guide Caroline Powell for her second medal of the competition.

Britain has had athletes in every Winter Paralympics since the first event in 1976, but had never won gold.

The three medals won so far surpasses the minimum target of two set by UK Sport.

Jade Etherington with guide Caroline Powell

"It was nerve-wracking but I'm delighted with the result," said Gallagher.

"Normally when we compete, even in big events like World Championships, there is nobody interested in what we are doing, but here there has been a lot of hype and pressure, as well as expectation, and maybe we let some of that in, so today we just decided to ski and see what happens.

"I have to thank Charlotte for getting me to the line. We just threw ourselves at it. I prayed for the strength to ski and have fun."

Gallagher, from Bangor in County Down, has oculocutaneous albinism, a condition with affects the pigment in her hair, skin and eyes.

Etherington, Powell, Gallagher and Evans celebrate

She started skiing when she was 17 on a trip to Andorra.

Gallagher and Evans have been working together since 2010 and have previously won silver and bronze medals in the 2011 and 2013 World Championships.

Evans added: "I was yelling a lot and she wasn't doing what I told her, but finally it paid off. It didn't feel as good as we wanted to on the course, but who cares, we won a gold medal and it feels amazing."

The pair are in action again in Tuesday's Super Combined event.

Etherington and Powell will both compete in Friday's slalom.

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Max Clifford 'Left Me Frozen In Fear'

By Tom Parmenter, Crime Reporter

A woman has said she was "frozen in fear" during an alleged sex attack by Max Clifford.

The witness, who cannot be named, described meeting the publicist in a Wimpy burger bar in Morden in 1966.

She was 14 years old at the time and claims Mr Clifford, then in his 20s, offered her a lift in his car and said he had "something to show her".

She claimed in court that he showed her a collection of photos of big musical acts of the time such as the Beatles and asked her: "Who would you like to meet?"

The woman said he drove her in the opposite direction to her home and then pulled over.

She told Southwark Crown Court: "He put my seat right back and then he tried to force himself upon me basically.

"It was quite obvious what he wanted me to do, I thought at the time I was going to get raped if I didn't get out of the car.

"My body was frozen in fear."

The witness then described how she managed to struggle free and get out of the car.

She said she ran home and said she felt "relieved to get away with it", but did not report the incident to the police.

Mr Clifford could be seen shaking his head in the glass fronted dock as the allegations were made.

He denies eleven counts of indecent assault and his trial continues.

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Man Arrested After 'Explosives' Found

A 55-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of possessing explosives after "potentially hazardous material" was discovered at a property in South Yorkshire.

Around 50 homes in Chestnut Grove in Mexborough, South Yorkshire, were evacuated and a cordon put in place around the area.

The material is being assessed by police and army bomb disposal experts, who were seen coming and going at a bungalow in the cul-de-sac.

Speaking at the scene, Superintendent Liz Watson said officers acted on information that a local man had been buying items which could be explosive if put together.

She said: "The police had received some information regarding a gentleman that lives in the local area that's been purchasing hazardous material."

Police vehicles parked at a pub near the scene

Police said the 55-year-old who was arrested remains in custody in Doncaster.

Evacuated locals either spent the day with relatives or at a centre in Mexborough set up by Doncaster Council.

Supt Watson said: "I'd like to personally thank residents for the patience, co-operation and community spirit that has been shown today.

"Some of the people evacuated from their homes this morning were elderly and vulnerable, but our partner agencies and members of the community really rallied round to ensure that all those who had to leave their homes for several hours were well cared for."

Supt Watson said the incident had caused concern among the community, but that the multi-agency response was necessary to ensure the suspicious items could be removed safely from the property.

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TV Licence Dodgers May Not Be Prosecuted

Pressure Grows Over TV Licence Prosecutions

Updated: 1:18pm UK, Saturday 08 March 2014

By Anushka Asthana, Political Correspondent

What crime led to 180,000 people being hauled in front of magistrates in 2012, resulted in 70 prison sentences and accounted for one in nine of all cases heard by the courts?

OK, OK, I know you've read the news story and realise the answer is failure to pay a television licence fee.

Magistrates have long objected to being asked to deliver criminal records to these offenders, who tend to be poor, are often older and about two-thirds of whom are women.

They think it is an over-reaction and a waste of court time.

Instead, they want to divert cases to the civil system, along with parking offences or failure to pay your gas bill.

So could their argument be gathering steam in Parliament?

An amendment calling for the change by Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen is gathering support from across the political divide with a variety of motivations.

Some object to the "poll tax" nature of the fee - a £145.50 levy on the rich and poor is clearly regressive.

Others feel that criminal sanctions including prison are simply not the right response, particularly given the vulnerability of those it affects.

Then there is the idea of easing pressure on courts and prisons appeals across the political system.

And finally, there are those who simply detest the BBC.

The corporation itself would be uneasy about the change because of fears it would reduce the incentive to pay.

Even a 1% rise in evasion would cost £35m, which the Beeb tells us is equivalent to 10 local radio stations (or, to put a different spin on it, 11 Jeremy Clarksons).

What is notable about this story is that Chris Grayling, the Justice Secretary, has called Mr Bridgen's intervention "really interesting".

He says Maria Miller, the Culture Secretary, agrees and both departments will be doing some "serious work on the proposal".

In reality, any such change would be discussed as part of BBC Charter renewal.

The next round is due to be completed by the end of 2016, with talks starting around 18 months beforehand.

That means the middle of next year - probably not until after the General Election.

The magistrates, it seems, will have to wait.

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£140m Pothole Repair Fund After Winter Storms

By Tadhg Enright, Sky Correspondent

An extra £140m is being made available by Westminster to help local councils repair roads which have been battered by this winter's severe weather.

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: "Having the right infrastructure in place to support businesses and hardworking people is a crucial part of our long-term economic plan.

"This extra money will help make a real difference to the millions of road users and local residents who rely on local roads, giving them safer and smoother journeys."

Some £36.5m of the cash will be ring-fenced for councils which experienced the worst of the flooding and it brings the total amount of emergency government funding for these authorities to £80m.

All councils in England can apply for a share of the other £103.5m in additional funding to cover the cost of repairs after the wettest winter on record.

This winter has been England's wettest on record

Some of the most serious flooding was experienced in the Surrey County Council area where at least £15m - half its annual budget - has already been spent on repairing battered roads since Christmas.

Repair teams have been working at weekends to patch roads where a combination of rainwater and groundwater has caused more erosion than an average winter.

John Furey, Cabinet Member for Transport, Highways and Environment with Surrey County Council, told Sky News: "It's double the problem for this year. The reason is that it's been a continuous flooding situation, not something that happened and then we could deal with it. 

"The biggest problem has been the inspection times. We haven't been able to get in and look and see how much has needed to be done. 

"Now we're doing it. We've started the recovery stage. Now we're looking at what needs to be done and looking at what government is going to put into this."

Repair teams have been working at weekends to patch up roads

Surrey County Council will have to apply for extra financial help from the Government and its allocation will depend on the length of affected roads in its jurisdiction.

It does not expect its allocation to cover all the money spent on repairs and other budgets will have to be trimmed.

The Government intends to release the money by the end of this coming week and it hopes that councils will have completed repairs in time for the summer holidays.

Delays will cost motorists money too, as experienced by the increase in those seeking repairs to their cars at Reigate Motor Company.

The fund will be used for for fixing potholes and other dangers

The garage's director Simon Youthed told Sky News that business was particularly brisk and that potholes were to blame.

"We always see damaged cars at this time of year, but certainly the floods have had their effect on the roads, certainly in this area," he said.

"It's predominantly cars going through potholes, usually at speed, that often the drivers don't see. 

"One of the road wheels tends to go down into the pothole with force ... (and) that can either damage the wheel itself, it can damage the tyre, it can damage the suspension springs."

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Co-op Set To Hand Senior Staff Large Pay Boost

The Co-operative Group is set to hand senior staff large pay rises and bonuses, as the troubled mutual prepares to announce losses for 2013 which are expected to be its worst ever.

Chief executive Euan Sutherland is set to receive a salary of more than £3.6m, it has been claimed.

He said last month the mutual had "lost touch" with customers and launched an online poll so people could make suggestions about its future direction.

It comes amid plans to sell parts of its business that have left question marks over thousands of jobs.

Co-op Group chief executive Euan Sutherland

The Co-op runs supermarkets, pharmacies and funeral services. It is owned by its eight million members.

The Observer has seen documents that say the pay packages are necessary because "the (Co-op's) executive agenda is possibly the most complex one facing a large business in the country today", a reference to the recent troubles at the bank.

Mr Sutherland will be given a base salary of £1.5m this year, with a £1.5m retention payment, the paper claims.

It says that when pension contributions and extras are included, this rises to £3.66m.

Mr Sutherland's predecessor, Peter Marks, received around £1.3m last year.

Chief operating officer Richard Pennycook will receive a salary of £900,000 and a retention payment of the same amount.

Six other executives will be paid salaries of between £500,000 and £650,000, with the same amount in retention.

Ursula Lidbetter, chair of the Co-operative Group, said: "The remuneration packages of our executives are in the middle of a range of comparable companies.

"This represents an increase on the pay of their predecessors to reflect the greater commercial, management and turnaround experience they are bringing to bear.

"Euan and his team have already made a significant contribution to the group and we are confident that they will continue to do so."

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