Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 20 Desember 2014 | 18.55
A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after an off-duty police constable was beaten to death in Liverpool.
Neil Doyle was attacked by a group of men during a Christmas night out with colleagues from Merseyside Police.
The 36-year-old got married in July and was due to go on honeymoon next month.
Two other off-duty officers suffered facial injuries in the attack, which took place near the Aloha nightclub in Colquitt Street at around 3.15am on Friday.
Officers are investigating the possibility they were targeted because of their jobs.
The 28-year-old suspect walked into a police station on Friday evening and is being interviewed by detectives.
Police at the scene of the killing in Liverpool
Mr Doyle, who joined the force in May 2004, was taken to the Royal Liverpool Hospital, but died a short time later.
A post-mortem examination concluded he died from fatal bleeding around the brain, consistent with an assault.
Chief Constable Sir Jon Murphy described the investigation as being at a "very early stage".
He said: "On behalf of everybody connected with Merseyside Police I extend our heartfelt and sincere condolences to his wife Sarah and the rest of his family.
"Constable Doyle was enjoying a Christmas night out with his work colleagues.
"At around 3.15am Neil left the Peacock bar and walked with two colleagues along Colquitt Street in the city centre.
"The three officers were subjected to an apparently unprovoked and vicious attack by a group of males."
Mr Doyle had received a commendation for his actions in arresting three men after a violent robbery.
Peter Singleton, chairman of Merseyside Police Federation, said the police community was "devastated" by his killing.
"He exemplified the British bobby. He was a solid, good, hard-working, honest copper," he said.
The two other officers required hospital treatment. One suffered a fractured cheekbone.
Flood victims in Somerset say they are facing insurance quotes of tens of thousands of pounds to protect their homes from future flooding.
Sky News has seen one renewal quote of almost £100,000 for one year. That falls to just under £500 for the year if flood cover is removed.
The owners did not want to speak on camera but told Sky their property in Moorland would only cost around £120,000 to rebuild from scratch.
Neighbour Sally Vize has been told she won't be able to move back into her home until March - 13 months after the winter storms caused £120,000 worth of damage.
Sally Vize's home suffered £120,000 worth of damage
She is due to renew her insurance in the next few months, but is extremely concerned she won't be able to afford the quote.
"I think someone said £12,000 if they want to insure for floods again, who can afford that? It's ridiculous, and I think it's morally wrong," she said.
Video:Home Ruined By Floods
One in six homes in England are at risk of flooding and the Association of British Insurers (ABI) estimates between 300,000 and 500,000 UK households could struggle to obtain affordably priced flood insurance.
From next summer, in conjunction with the Government, the ABI is hoping to launch its Flood Re scheme which will allow insurers to pass the flood risk element of a home insurance policy into a fund that will pay any subsequent flood claim.
Mark Shepherd, from the ABI, explained: "In certain parts of the country this is becoming a much bigger problem and that's why we are working with the Government to introduce Flood Re, which in the future will ensure those homes at the highest flood risk will still be able to get affordable flood insurance."
Video:Flood Emergency Aid Box
Since the flooding began last Christmas, a group called the Somerset Emergency Volunteers have been helping those in need of immediate help.
They have filled a warehouse with donations including food, clothes, furniture and household goods to allow people to begin replacing what they have lost.
They are also providing 400 homes with emergency boxes and sandbags so they are prepared for any repeat.
Video:Flood Aid Supplies Stockpiled
"Moorland and Fordgate were only given six sandbags by the council when it was flooded - three for the front door, three for the back," said assistant operations manager Sadie Forster.
"We're giving them 36 reusable sandbags."
The Environment Agency has now dredged 8km of river in Somerset, with the Government promising to spend £4.2m on flood defences in the county.
A man is due to appear in court accusing of murdering a community safety campaigner who was stabbed to death during the morning rush hour.
Trevor Gibbon, 48, of Harrow, northwest London, will appear before magistrates in Hendon.
Alison Morrison - Gibbon's neighbour - was killed on her way to work on Thursday.
Police were called to the attack in Alexandra Avenue at 7.47am.
Ms Morrison was taken to St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, west London, where she died from her injuries.
A post-mortem gave the cause of death as multiple stab wounds.
Harrow Council leader David Perry said: "Alison Morrison was passionately committed to creating a safer Harrow through her work with the Harrow Safer Neighbourhood Board and as a community champion, and it is terrible news that she has lost her life in this violent way in a borough she cared so much about.
"Alison's colleagues on the Safer Neighbourhood Board are absolutely shattered by this news, as are the staff of Harrow Council. Alison was a key member of the board and a tireless advocate of its work.
"We will do whatever we can to help the police. In the meantime, our thoughts are with Alison's family."
Ms Morrison's family said in a statement: "Alison was an inspiration, a warm and loving person who will be deeply missed by her husband and son. Her devastating loss as a result of this senseless attack is also felt by all the family, local community and all who knew her."
Written By Unknown on Kamis, 18 Desember 2014 | 18.55
Obesity can count as a disability, the European Court of Justice has ruled in the case of an overweight man who lost his job.
The judgment said it could qualify if the obesity "hinders the full and effective participation of the person concerned in professional life".
A 25-stone (160kg) Danish childminder, Karsten Kaltoft, pursued the case after his local council sacked him in November 2010.
The court admitted there was no specific law on discriminating because of obesity.
However, it decided it could be classed as a disability if it involves "long-term physical, mental or psychological impairments".
EU employment laws make it illegal to discriminate on disability, as well as factors such as religion, belief, age or sexual orientation.
Authorities in the Danish town of Billund admit mentioning Mr Kaltoft's weight during a meeting but deny it played a part in his dismissal.
They say he was let go because there were fewer children to look after.
The case now goes back to judges in Denmark to look again and decide whether Mr Kaltoft's is indeed obese enough to qualify as disabled.
If it agrees, the childminder is set to get a compensation pay-out.
Overweight workers in the UK could now also claim they are disabled because the court's decisions are binding in all EU countries.
Employers may then have to make special provisions, for example bigger desks or wider seats.
"Even if you are warned by a doctor that you are eating you way to obesity - if you bring it upon yourself - you could still be considered disabled," said Sky News' Richard Suchet.
Employment lawyer Vanessa Di Cuffa, from the firm Shakespeares, said the move would give more workers protection against discrimination.
"It is right that the EU has moved forward with enshrining this into law," said Ms Di Cuffa.
"However, employers must continue to, or start, providing appropriate support to staff with obesity issues at any level."
About 20% of European men and 23% of women are obese, according to the World Health Organisation, meaning they have a body mass index of more than 30.
Recently-announced NHS guidelines mean two million people could qualify for a £6,000 weightloss operation paid for by the Government.
A police force has apologised for letting prolific sex offender Jimmy Savile slip through their net by not properly investigating him while he was alive.
North Yorkshire Police has admitted it missed opportunities to act and let down people who reported abuse by the disgraced entertainer and another man in Scarborough.
Assistant Chief Constable Paul Kennedy apologised to 35 people who say they were abused in Scarborough between 1958 and 1998 by Savile or his friend Peter Jaconelli, a former mayor of the town.
Two of the alleged victims say both men attacked them.
"On behalf of North Yorkshire Police I am sorry, I am truly sorry we did not respond more effectively, we did not investigate those allegations early on," he said.
Savile's headstone was removed after his abuses were revealed
ACC Kennedy said if Savile and Jaconelli were alive they would be arrested on suspicion of child sex offences ranging from indecent assault to rape.
Savile died in 2011 before being exposed as a prolific offender who abused at least 500 children and Jaconelli died in 1999.
After Savile's crimes were made public campaigners and bloggers on the Yorkshire coast pressured the police over their claims that they had no knowledge of complaints against either Savile or Jaconelli when they were alive.
When several men came forward in March 2014 to say they had been abused by Jaconelli the force referred itself to the Independent Police Complaints Commission and began an investigation.
Nigel Ward from the North Yorks Enquirer website welcomed the apology but said more needs to be done.
"The only way to get to the bottom of this now is to have a full scale public inquiry and I would welcome that because I think there are a lot of people who have been culpable in terms of covering up and making it possible for these terrible people to get away with these offences," he said.
The IPCC has recently quizzed an unnamed serving detective sergeant from North Yorkshire Police as part of an ongoing investigation into potential misconduct over how information about Savile and Jaconelli was handled.
Both men are buried in Scarborough's Woodlands Cemetery, where Savile's grave is unmarked after his headstone was removed in 2012 while Jaconelli's prominent headstone records him as Alderman Peter Jaconelli.
Scarborough Council, which is led by Tom Fox, a former Scarborough police commander, stripped Jaconelli of his civic honours when the extent of the complaints against him were acknowledged earlier this year.
The European Court of Justice has ruled British citizens should be able to bring non-EU family members into the UK without a travel visa.
It means the UK's borders could be open to large numbers of foreign migrants from outside the European Union, and will intensify pressure on David Cameron to tackle freedom of movement rules.
The landmark ruling centres on the case of Sean McCarthy, who has dual British and Irish citizenship, and his Colombian wife Patricia McCarthy Rodriguez.
Mrs McCarthy Rodriguez, who has two children with her husband - both with British citizenship, had to get a "family permit" every six months to visit the UK with her family.
She and her husband took their case to court under the freedom of movement rules claiming she should be able to travel without the visa because she had an EU Residence Card issued by the Spanish government.
Video:Breakdown Of Immigration Figures
The European court has now ruled in the couple's favour, saying the rules did not allow the British government to stop family members entering the country if they did not have a visa.
The Government said it was "disappointed" with the ruling.
The Prime Minister has come under increasing pressure to take on the EU over the impact of freedom of movement rules on immigration.
Last month he announced a block on EU migrants claiming welfare for the first four years after they arrive in the country, suggesting that if the EU blocked the move he would campaign for Britain to leave the union.
Responding to the European ruling, Conservative MEP Timothy Kirkhope, spokesman on justice and home affairs, said: "Of course the UK should have an immigration system which is fair, and does not disadvantage the right of British citizens to be with their family.
"However, we are disappointed with this judgment as we believe that the UK's visa system is both fair and lawful, and does an important job in meeting this country's migration needs.
"Britain will always be best placed to decide and deal with its own immigration needs - not a judge in Luxembourg."
UKIP MEP and spokesman on immigration Steven Woolfe said: "This ruling extends the so-called 'right to free movement' to millions of people from anywhere in the world who don't have citizenship of any country of the EU.
"This is yet more proof that Britain can never take back control of its borders as long as it remains in the European Union."
It's the news everyone has been waiting for - and the answer is yes, it will snow on Christmas Day.
But as with all weather news, the devil is in the detail as the flakes will only fall on the hilly parts of northern Britain on 25 December.
The rest of the country is expected to be dry, bright and seasonally chilly as people open their presents.
Those low temperatures, however, could lead to a post-Christmas dusting across the whole of the nation.
Forecasters say that between Boxing Day and New Year the cold air and snow could head south, becoming more widespread.
Video:Snow In Aviemore
Conditions will be wetter and windier, say experts, with the potential for the white stuff.
And this could lead to travel disruption across the country.
The second half of this week has brought milder weather, but going into the weekend, it will become colder and brighter.
Then on Sunday and into the start of the Christmas week, the milder conditions should return.
Sky News' weather forecaster Isobel Lang said: "Temperatures will rise again to around 12C (54F), way above the seasonal average.
"At this stage it looks as though the rain will clear during Christmas Eve, pushed away by strong but colder north to northwesterly winds.
"Will this bring a white Christmas? Some snow will fall over the hills in the north in this weather set-up, although it may be that many places are dry and bright but seasonally chilly."
She added: "The forecast looks much more disturbed between Boxing Day and the New Year which may well impact travel up and down the country.
"It looks wet, windy and potentially snowy as cold air spreads south across us."
The odds on it being an official white Christmas in London this year are 9/2 according to Sky Bet, at 5/1 in Cardiff, 4/1 Leeds and 9/4 in Aberdeen.
Written By Unknown on Rabu, 17 Desember 2014 | 18.55
Petrol prices could soon fall below £1 per litre - the lowest level since the end of May 2009.
The RAC said the recent fall in the price of oil - now below the $60-a-barrel - would keep dropping.
Supermarkets have led the way in cutting pump costs in recent months - with Asda the latest to confirm another move in the right direction for drivers.
The chain said it was taking 2p-a-litre off petrol and 1p from diesel from Thursday.
It said the reductions would mean Asda customers would pay no more than 110.7p-a-litre for petrol, with the company's diesel costing 117.7p-a-litre.
Video:What's Causing Falling Oil Prices?
Sainsbury's later confirmed it would be cutting prices by the same amounts.
"What's currently happening at the pumps with falling fuel prices is something many motorists will not remember seeing before," RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams said.
"Talk of prices going up like a rocket and falling like a feather could not be further from the truth as retailers have been quick to pass on savings at the forecourt since we forecast on December 6 that prices were due to come down by 7p a litre for petrol and 6p for diesel."
The RAC added that it was hopeful drivers would benefit from the fall in prices in the first few months of the new year.
The group's monitoring of fuel prices shows the average price of a litre of petrol is 116.9p - nearly 14p a litre cheaper than at the start of the year.
Video:Petrol Prices
Diesel is nearly 16p cheaper - 122.33p a litre now compared to 138.24p in January.
The average supermarket price of fuel is 114.26p a litre for petrol and 120.18p for diesel.
Mr Williams added: "Current forecasts are for average petrol prices to fall to below 110p a litre in the next fortnight and diesel to drop to under 116p.
"At these average prices across the country the cheapest retailers will almost certainly be selling petrol for around 105p a litre, or even lower."
The Supreme Court has overturned a ruling made in favour of two Catholic midwives objecting to any involvement in abortions.
As conscientious objectors, senior midwifery sisters Mary Doogan and Connie Wood had no direct role in abortions.
But they argued they should also be entitled to refuse to delegate, supervise and support staff involved in pregnancy terminations or providing care to patients during the process.
The Court of Session in Edinburgh ruled in their favour last year.
Judges there said the right of conscientious objection "extends not only to the actual medical or surgical termination but to the whole process of treatment given for that purpose".
And the women said the ruling affirmed the rights of all midwives to withdraw from a practice that would "violate their conscience".
However, a health authority in Scotland appealed against the decision and the UK's highest court has backed them by overturning last year's decision made in the Scottish capital.
The case had centred on the extent of the right to conscientious objection under the Abortion Act 1967.
This provides that "no person shall be under any duty... to participate in any treatment authorised by this Act to which he has a conscientious objection".
Ms Doogan and Ms Wood said being called upon to supervise and support staff providing care to women having an abortion would amount to "participation in treatment" and would breach their rights under the European Convention on Human Rights.
But NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde argued conscientious objection is a right only to refuse to take part in activities that directly bring about the termination of a pregnancy.
The authority's appeal was unanimously allowed by five justices at the Supreme Court.
The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) and British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) had warned of the implications for services if the Court of Session decision was allowed to stand.
The first woman bishop in the Church of England has welcomed her appointment as a "historic day".
The church announced the Reverend Libby Lane would become the Bishop of Stockport 20 years after the first women were ordained as Church of England priests.
It ends 40 years of wrangling within the church and comes four weeks after it finally enacted the changes to canon law necessary to allow the appointment.
Celebrations after the first vote in favour of women bishops in July
In her first speech after the announcement the new Bishop of Stockport led a silence and prayer for the victims of the Pakistan school massacre.
She went on to say it was an "unexpected joy" and a "remarkable day" for her - and a "historic day" for the Church of England.
She paid tribute to all those who had fought the long and hard campaign for women bishops.
The 48-year-old, who was ordained a priest in 1994 and served as vicar of St Peter's Hale, Greater Manchester, for the last eight years, will be consecrated at a ceremony at York Minster on January 26.
The Prime Minister welcomed the appointment and said legislation to allow women bishops to sit in the House of Lords would be brought forward.
It is expected the new legislation will be announced on Thursday. Twenty-six Anglican bishops are allowed to sit in the upper chamber.
Mr Cameron said: "This is a historic appointment and an important step forward for the Church towards greater equality in its senior positions."
The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Justin Welby, previously said that the church was starting "a completely new phase of our existence" and estimated half of bishops could be women within 10 to 15 years.
He said: "It depends how quickly people retire or die - I rather hope they retire and have a long and healthy retirement.
"It has got to be 10 years, allowing for the fact that men will be nominated to some sees as well, and it could be longer."
The issue of women becoming bishops was first voted on by the General Synod in 1975. It was concluded that there was "no fundamental objection" to the ordination of women to the priesthood.
However, the first motion failed in 1978. In 1985 a vote allowed women to become deacons but it was not until 1992 the General Synod voted to allow women priests - the first 1,500 were ordained in 1994.
In 2005 a motion was approved to remove the legal barriers to women bishops but the first attempt at legislation failed by six votes in 2012.
Allegations of torture and murder, made against British soldiers by former Iraqi prisoners, are "wholly without foundation" a major investigation has concluded.
The Al Sweady Inquiry, which has cost the taxpayer £25m and taken five years, found accusations of war crimes were "entirely the product of deliberate lies, reckless speculation and ingrained hostility".
At the heart of the judge-led inquiry, the largest of its kind, was the claim that 20 or more Iraqis were unlawfully killed and mutilated after the so-called Battle of Danny Boy on 14th May 2004.
These claims were withdrawn earlier this year but the inquiry continued to examine claims British troops mistreated Iraqi detainees in their custody.
During the battle soldiers from the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders were ambushed by a number of insurgents and a fierce four-hour battle followed.
Video:Inquiry: Iraq Torture Claims 'Lies'
The Inquiry Chairman, Sir Thayne Forbes, noted that the British soldiers responded to the ambush with "exemplary courage, resolution and professionalism".
After the firefight British soldiers took the usual step of taking the bodies to base because they the military wanted to see if the prime suspect in the murder of six Royal Military Policeman in June 2003 was among the dead.
The bodies of 20 of them were recovered and taken back to Camp Abu Naji in southern Iraq. A further nine Iraqis were captured.
It was claimed some of the dead Iraqis were actually killed while in detention rather than on the battlefield. The prisoners claimed they were abused and tortured in custody by British soldiers.
The inquiry found no evidence of this and concluded the prisoners colluded to discredit the British Army.
Senior defence sources have told Sky News: "This has been a disgrace from start to finish. It has been the work of self-interested lawyers who, for whatever reason, have decided to take the word of those who sought to kill brave British soldiers"
However, the army did not escape criticism. Sir Thayne found there had been instances of ill-treatment during "tactical questioning" of the detainees on the night of May 14/15.
The inquiry found the prisoners were blindfolded or deprived of their sight for an unacceptable amount of time and not fed properly.
The former High Court judge also criticised British soldiers for "tasteless trophies" such as striking poses for photos with detainees but said none of the behaviour amounted to war crimes.
The inquiry, which is named after 19-year-old Hamid al Sweady, who died in British custody, received evidence from 610 witnesses.
The Defence Secretary Michael Fallon will comment on the conclusions of the inquiry this afternoon. He has been critical of the increasing cost and urged courts to treat compensation claims from Iraqi prisoners robustly.
Mr Fallon is expected to sharply criticise the legal teams acting for the Iraqis.
The report does makes nine recommendations for the British military including recording interrogations, making proper prisoner medical examinations and keeping records and making sure there are sufficient interpreters.
Written By Unknown on Minggu, 14 Desember 2014 | 18.54
By Sophy Ridge, Political Correspondent
The head of the UK's Intelligence and Security Committee is demanding to see material documenting any British links to the CIA's use of torture.
Sir Malcolm Rifkind, chair of the Commons committee, is seeking any intelligence relating to the UK that was redacted from the explosive Senate report into the CIA.
It concluded that the CIA lied over its torture and interrogation programme developed in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.
Sir Malcolm told Sky's Murnaghan programme: "This is a major United States' report and so we are requesting, both our colleagues on the Senate Intelligence Committee ... but also it will ultimately be the United States government, that will decide whether some of the material that has been redated in the American report can be shown to us.
Jack Straw has been questioned by police over renditions, say reports
"We don't need to see everything that's been redacted, what we need to see are the bits that might refer to the UK government."
Asked whether that information would be made public, he said the ISC would only agree for it to be withheld "if the Prime Minister was able to convince us that there were legitimate national security reasons why it shouldn't be published".
Video:Former CIA Officer Michael Scheuer
He said there had been "justified" criticism of the ISC in the past, but it had new powers to order intelligence agencies to hand over requested files and for its staff to go to MI5, MI6 and GCHQ to "personally inspect files to make sure nothing's been left out".
He said once the ISC had looked through the written material, "we will come to a judgement as to which people, first of all who in the intelligence agencies we wish to take evidence from, secondly either current ministers or former ministers who have intelligence on these matters".
Sir Malcolm said he does not think a judge-led inquiry into any British involvement in the CIA's rendition and torture programme is necessary.
Video:MP Demands Torture Report Material
He agreed the ISC does not have the power to compel ministers to give evidence, "but, of course, it would be huge scandal if they did refuse to".
The British Government has admitted requesting the deletion of references to Britain's intelligence agencies for national security reasons.
UK Government representatives had 24 meetings with members of the US committee responsible for the findings.
Video:MI5 And MI6 Involvement Questioned
Some of the deletions are believed to relate to the British Overseas Territory of Diego Garcia.
There is escalating pressure on the British government not to extend an agreement allowing the US to use the territory in the Indian Ocean as a military base.
Andrew Tyrie, chair of the all-party parliamentary group on rendition, said any negotiations should address allegations that it was used by the CIA to render terror suspects around the world.
Video:UK Involvement in CIA Torture
"The negotiations on the lease can focus minds on establishing the scope and limits of Britain's involvement, direct or indirect, in extraordinary rendition," Mr Tyrie said.
"We are talking about kidnap and taking people to places where they may be maltreated or tortured."
The former Home Office minister, Lib Dem MP Norman Baker, who has taken a close interest in the atoll, said: "As it comes up for renewal, we need a full explanation of what happened in our name on that island."
Video:UK Wanted CIA Report Changes
It comes amid reports former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw was questioned by police investigating the abductions of two Libyans who say they were handed to Colonel Gadaffi and tortured by his regime.
Mr Straw was interviewed as a "witness" by Scotland Yard following claims the Government was complicit in the rendition of the two men and their families, the Sunday Times said.
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Gallery: Geminid Meteor Lights Up Skies
Rottingdean Windmill, near Brighton. Pic: Sumitra Sri Sribhashyam
The sky was lit up in different colours. Pic: Mike Williams
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The display in the UK began just after midnight. Pic: Dave Algers
]]>
Another great view of the display, this time over Butser Ancient Farm. Pic: Adrian Jurd
]]>
Stargazers have enjoyed a celestial firework display as one of the year's most spectacular meteor showers reached its fiery peak in the UK.
Clear skies ensured good views of the Geminid meteor shower.
Just after midnight, some very bright meteors raced across the sky.
The official Geminid "maximum" is at 11am today, but daylight will prevent them from being seen then.
Meteor showers occur when the Earth ploughs through clouds of cometary dust.
1/5
Gallery: Previous Geminid Displays
A Geminid meteor between peaks of the Seven Sisters rock formation in Nevada, 2010
A meteor shower lights up the sky over the Mexican volcano Popocatepetl near the village San Nicolas de los Ranchos in Mexico, 2004
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The sky above the Seven Sisters rock formation in the Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada, 2007
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The tiny particles, some no bigger than a grain of sand, burn up brightly as they enter the atmosphere.
The Geminids are unusual in that they are not shed by a classic icy comet but a body that shares characteristics of both comets and asteroids.
Known as 3200 Phaethon, the three-mile-wide object was discovered in 1983 by two British scientists examining Nasa satellite images and initially classified as an asteroid.
But it has an eccentric orbit that looks more like that of a comet than an asteroid and brings it well inside the orbit of Mercury, the closest planet to the Sun, every 1.4 years. Nasa describes it as a "rock comet".
Traditionally asteroids are made of rock and comets mostly of ice.
Robin Scagell, vice-president of the Society for Popular Astronomy, said: "It's not as clear-cut as it used to be. A lot of asteroids are quite icy. There are asteroids that look a bit like comets and comets that look a bit like asteroids."
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Geminid Meteor Lights Up The Night Skies
We use cookies to give you the best experience. If you do nothing we'll assume that it's ok.
1/6
Gallery: Geminid Meteor Lights Up Skies
Rottingdean Windmill, near Brighton. Pic: Sumitra Sri Sribhashyam
The sky was lit up in different colours. Pic: Mike Williams
]]>
The display in the UK began just after midnight. Pic: Dave Algers
]]>
Another great view of the display, this time over Butser Ancient Farm. Pic: Adrian Jurd
]]>
Stargazers have enjoyed a celestial firework display as one of the year's most spectacular meteor showers reached its fiery peak in the UK.
Clear skies ensured good views of the Geminid meteor shower.
Just after midnight, some very bright meteors raced across the sky.
The official Geminid "maximum" is at 11am today, but daylight will prevent them from being seen then.
Meteor showers occur when the Earth ploughs through clouds of cometary dust.
1/5
Gallery: Previous Geminid Displays
A Geminid meteor between peaks of the Seven Sisters rock formation in Nevada, 2010
A meteor shower lights up the sky over the Mexican volcano Popocatepetl near the village San Nicolas de los Ranchos in Mexico, 2004
]]>
The sky above the Seven Sisters rock formation in the Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada, 2007
]]>
The tiny particles, some no bigger than a grain of sand, burn up brightly as they enter the atmosphere.
The Geminids are unusual in that they are not shed by a classic icy comet but a body that shares characteristics of both comets and asteroids.
Known as 3200 Phaethon, the three-mile-wide object was discovered in 1983 by two British scientists examining Nasa satellite images and initially classified as an asteroid.
But it has an eccentric orbit that looks more like that of a comet than an asteroid and brings it well inside the orbit of Mercury, the closest planet to the Sun, every 1.4 years. Nasa describes it as a "rock comet".
Traditionally asteroids are made of rock and comets mostly of ice.
Robin Scagell, vice-president of the Society for Popular Astronomy, said: "It's not as clear-cut as it used to be. A lot of asteroids are quite icy. There are asteroids that look a bit like comets and comets that look a bit like asteroids."
Tax bosses have promised the service offered by public helplines will be improved, after it was revealed that almost a third of calls are getting cut off.
Research by consumer group Which? found that, in a sample of 100 calls, only 71 were not cut off with an automated message saying the service was "very busy".
Those calls that did survive this initial cut waited an average of 18 minutes to speak to someone, with the longest waiting 41 minutes.
The system's voice recognition also made mistakes when directing queries to other departments, with more complex phrases being misunderstood.
For example, when asked "do I need to pay tax on premium bond winnings?" the system asked if the caller was inquiring about changing a name or about a VAT surcharge notice.
The research comes in the run-up to the self-assessment tax return deadline of 31 January.
HM Revenue and Customs admitted the service "isn't good enough" and that new technology is being brought in to improve responses.
Which? executive director Richard Lloyd said: "With large numbers of people soon to be seeking help with their self-assessment tax return, we want to see HMRC doing more to monitor and improve their call-waiting times."
A spokesman for HMRC said: "HMRC receives over 40 million calls a year but we know that some of our customers can struggle to get through on our helplines at very busy times. This isn't good enough, and we are working hard to improve the range of services we provide.
"This year we are introducing new technology to help us answer more calls quicker at busy times, and we are improving the digital services we offer so that more customers can find all they need online.
"There is more to do, and we are committed to improving the service we offer all of our customers at all times, to help them find advice and support when they need it."
The body in charge of Britain's air traffic control system was warned four months ago that its plan to deal with technical faults was not clear enough, it has been claimed.
A computer glitch at NATS control centre in Hampshire on Friday led more than 300 flights being cancelled or delayed and travel disruption for thousands of passengers.
The air traffic control organisation NATS said on Saturday that the computer meltdown was sparked by an unprecedented systems failure.
It was the second major problem to hit the Swanwick centre in just over a year.
A report in the Independent on Sunday says the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) warned NATS officials in the summer that they needed to be better prepared to deal with IT problems.
Video:Plane Chaos: Fault 'Unprecedented'
The newspaper also said that experts had warned NATS that a huge redundancy programme might deepen the problem, resulting in serious future meltdowns.
A spokesman for the CAA said: "We said to NATS that the report that they had produced as a result of their investigation into the December failing in 2013 lacked clarity ... and subsequently there was more work done on that."
He was unable to confirm whether or not that report contained information about plans NATS would put into action in the event of a technical failure.
But Business Secretary Vince Cable suggested Nats was using "ancient" computer systems after "skimping" on investment.
He told BBC One's The Andrew Marr Show: "I think the Transport Secretary very sensibly is wanting a report on this on Monday morning to find out what has happened.
"In agencies like Nats, as in the banks and the private sector, they've been skimping on large-scale investment for very many years.
"Often the easy thing to do under financial pressure is to be penny wise and pound foolish and to forego capital investment so they've got very ancient computer systems which then crash.
"We have to maintain a high level of capital investment."
Meanwhile, an MP called for the top boss of NATS to lose his bonuses as a result of Friday's fault.
Richard Deakin, NATS chief executive, said the software glitch was "buried" among millions of lines of code written a quarter of a century ago.
Video:Flights Delayed In London Airspace
But Labour MP Paul Flynn told The Sunday Times that Mr Deakin earns more than £1m after receiving a 45% pay rise this year.
"I hope after the chaos, which was dreadful, though a rare event, he will have his bonuses stripped from him," he said.
NATS said operations were back to normal on Saturday with only minor delays and cancellations at some of the UK's airports as a result of a backlog.
A statement from NATS said: "Swanwick controller workstations provide a number of tools and services to the controller to enable them to safely control a high volume of air traffic.
"In normal operations the number of workstations in use versus in standby fluctuates with the demands of the traffic being controlled.
"In this instance a transition between the two states caused a failure in the system which has not been seen before.
"The failure meant that the controllers were unable to access all of the data regarding individual flight plans which significantly increases their workload.
"We immediately took steps to reduce the traffic into and out of the UK network. At no time was safety compromised in any way."
Mr Deakin said NATS is investing a "huge amount" in new technology, with £575m set to be spent over the next five years to move towards more resilient, internet-based systems.
