The former PM told the BBC the vote was a "catastrophe" and said it was vital to study the "real-life implications". Mr Blair said he accepted the verdict of June's referendum, but recommended looking again at Brexit when "we have a clear sense of where we're going". Downing Street said it was "absolutely committed" to seeing Brexit through. A spokesman said the British people had expressed their view very clearly on 23 June, when 51.9% of voters opted to leave the EU, adding: "There will be no second referendum." Supporters of leaving the EU argue it will free up the UK to trade better globally and give the government better control of immigration. But Mr Blair told BBC Radio 4's Today programme he believed the Brexit vote was a catastrophe and argued that it was important that the views of the "16 million" people who had backed remaining in the EU should not be ignored. He added: "If it becomes clear that this is either a deal that doesn't make it worth our while leaving, or alternatively a deal that's going to be so serious in its implications people may decide they don't want to go, there's got to be some way, either through Parliament, or an election, or possibly through another referendum, in which people express their view." But he said the vote for Brexit could not be changed "unless it becomes clear that the British people have had a change of mind". Mr Blair's interview followed an article in the New European newspaper in which he said those who believed in the EU "have to recognise we're the insurgents now". "We have to build the capability to mobilise and to organise. We have to prise apart the alliance which gave us Brexit." UKIP MP Douglas Carswell tweeted that Mr Blair was "seeking to de-legitimise and reverse" the referendum result. The government has promised to invoke Article 50 - setting formal talks with the EU in motion - by the end of March next year. It says it will not provide a "running commentary" on its stance before negotiations for leaving the EU begin but has pledged to make Brexit work for the whole country. Mr Blair told the BBC it was unclear what the outcome of negotiations, in terms of restrictions of movement of people and access to the single market, would be, adding: "We will start to see the real-life implications of this decision to go." "We've got to work out: are the freedoms that we are going to gain really so substantial that we want to leave the European Union?" He warned of the talks with the EU: "I'm convinced that it's going to be very, very tough. We have to understand we are not going to be conducting these negotiations with a group of European businessmen who might well decide that they want maximum access to the UK... "The people we are going to be conducting these negotiations with are the political leaders of the European Union and their parliaments. "I'm arguing we should keep our options open," he said. Mr Blair, who was prime minister between 1997 and 2007, announced last month that he was winding up most of his commercial ventures to focus on not-for-profit work. In 2004, Mr Blair said a UK referendum would be held on ratification of the European Constitution Treaty, creating, among other measures, a European Council president and a "common defence policy". But voters in France and the Netherlands rejected the treaty, which was discarded. In 2007, the Labour government rejected calls for a referendum on a second treaty, which came to be known as the Lisbon Treaty, arguing it was a different document and a UK referendum was not needed. Earlier this month, Mr Blair told Esquire magazine he was considering whether there was a "role" for him in UK politics, having not been actively involved for almost a decade.

Question: The UK should keep its " options open " over Brexit , Tony Blair has said , adding that a second referendum should not be @placeholder out .


No inquest has been held into the 2012 murder at her family's request. Ms Meagher was originally from Drogheda, but moved to Australia from Ireland in 2009 with her husband. She worked for ABC Radio but went missing during a night out with colleagues. Her body was discovered six days later buried on the outskirts of Melbourne. Adrian Bayley, who had a history of violent sex attacks, was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum jail term of 35 years for her murder. On Friday, coroner Ian Gray said Jill Meagher's death had been "preventable". He pointed to failings by Community Correctional Services (CCS), a division of Corrections Victoria and the Adult Parole Board (APB), a separate body within the Department of Human services. "A more rigorous, risk-averse approach by CCS and the APB would have led to a cancellation of Bayley's parole," Mr Gray said. "The approach taken is difficult to understand ... it did not bring dangerous and high risk parolees immediately to account." Bayley had been on parole for previous rapes when he raped and murdered Ms Meagher as she walked home from Brunswick in the early hours of 22 September 2012. He was also on bail pending an appeal of a three-month sentence after pleading guilty to attacking a man outside a pub at Geelong in 2011. At the time of that incident, Bayley had been on parole after serving eight years' jail for 16 counts of rape against five women. He had already served time for rapes committed from the age of 18. The coroner noted Victoria's parole system had been amended since Ms Meagher's murder. Had it been changed when Bayley was charged with the Geelong assault, a representative from Corrections Victoria told the coroner, his parole probably would have been cancelled automatically when he was convicted of that offence. "The poignant truth of this ... will resonate with Ms Meagher's husband, family and friends," the coroner said.

Question: The Australian authorities could have prevented the rape and murder of Irish woman Jill Meagher by revoking her killer 's parole as soon as he @placeholder it , a coroner has found .


Matt Godden opened the scoring from the penalty spot against the run of play in the 18th minute. Cheltenham had made the brighter start, but Emmanuel Onariase tripped Godden on the edge of the box and referee Trevor Kettle pointed to the penalty spot. Godden stepped up to convert his 16th goal of the season and Stevenage took control, with Jobi McAnuff denied by a fine Scott Brown block in the 27th minute. The lead was doubled five minutes into the second half when Steven Schumacher's free-kick was nodded down by Charlie Lee and Luke Wilkinson forced it over the line from close range. Lee was sent off for a second yellow card in the 56th minute after bringing down Alex Pike. Cheltenham failed to make their extra man count until 10 minutes from the end when a flying volley from Kyle Wootton gave them hope, but only two more saves from Brown denied Stevenage a third. Report supplied by the Press Association Match ends, Stevenage 2, Cheltenham Town 1. Second Half ends, Stevenage 2, Cheltenham Town 1. Attempt missed. James Dayton (Cheltenham Town) right footed shot from more than 35 yards is too high. Foul by Michael Tonge (Stevenage). Billy Waters (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Attempt saved. Dan Holman (Cheltenham Town) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Foul by Jobi McAnuff (Stevenage). Alex Pike (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Connor Ogilvie (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Foul by Dan Holman (Cheltenham Town). Tom Pett (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Jordan Cranston (Cheltenham Town). Connor Ogilvie (Stevenage) is shown the yellow card. Foul by Tom Pett (Stevenage). Liam Davis (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Corner,  Cheltenham Town. Conceded by Jamie Jones. Foul by Luke Wilkinson (Stevenage). Billy Waters (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Corner,  Stevenage. Conceded by Manny Onariase. Attempt saved. Jobi McAnuff (Stevenage) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Foul by Luke Wilkinson (Stevenage). Kyle Wootton (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Jamie Jones (Stevenage) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Harry Pell (Cheltenham Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Goal!  Stevenage 2, Cheltenham Town 1. Kyle Wootton (Cheltenham Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by William Boyle following a corner. Corner,  Cheltenham Town. Conceded by Steven Schumacher. Attempt saved. Dan Holman (Cheltenham Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Substitution, Cheltenham Town. Jack Munns replaces Liam Davis. Substitution, Stevenage. Michael Tonge replaces Josh McQuoid. Fraser Franks (Stevenage) wins a free kick on the left wing. Foul by Kyle Wootton (Cheltenham Town). Ben Kennedy (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Liam Davis (Cheltenham Town). Corner,  Stevenage. Conceded by Scott Brown. Attempt saved. Jobi McAnuff (Stevenage) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Steven Schumacher (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Harry Pell (Cheltenham Town). Attempt missed. Ronnie Henry (Stevenage) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Corner,  Stevenage. Conceded by Manny Onariase. Substitution, Cheltenham Town. James Dayton replaces Billy Waters.

Question: Stevenage made it four @placeholder wins in a row by defeating relegation - threatened Cheltenham 2 - 1 in League Two .


Media playback is not supported on this device Selby's IBF featherweight world title defence against Jonathan Victor Barros in Las Vegas was called off on Friday. The Welshman has said Carl Frampton and Abner Mares, the regular WBA champion, could be future opponents. "Selby's not really had that one big fight which can make him that name," Khan told BBC Wales Sport. "I think beating someone like Abner Mares or someone like [Leo] Santa Cruz or Frampton would definitely take him to a different level. "They're big names in the world of boxing and [some] have titles so, definitely by beating one of those big names, Selby would be right up there. "I think Selby has the talent to do it. He's a prospect to keep an eye on in the future." Selby's third defence of his IBF world title was meant to take place on the undercard of Frampton's WBA featherweight title bout with Mexico's Leo Santa Cruz at the MGM Grand. If he had beaten Barros, Selby was planning to challenge Frampton - with the Northern Irishman saying he would like the fight to take place at Belfast's Windsor Park. Media playback is not supported on this device The abandonment of Selby's fight against Barros could delay those plans but, whenever it may happen, it is a fight Khan would like to see materialise. "I like Selby. Selby is a very good fighter. He's a world champion himself, having that IBF title," the 2004 Olympic lightweight silver medallist added. "The fight between Santa Cruz and Frampton is for a world title so unifying it and to have it [a Selby-Frampton fight] in the UK would be massive. "Two British fighters fighting for two world titles in the same division would be huge. I think that could happen in the future." The featherweight division is one of boxing's most competitive and open at the moment, and a bout between Selby and three-time world champion Mares would also excite Khan. "It makes sense. Us fighters will fight anyone, whoever they put us in front of," he said. "I think that Abner - I know him, I've trained with him - is a good fighter. I think that would be a good fight for Abner to have. "And the winner of that could go on and fight the winner of the Frampton fight."

Question: Lee Selby @placeholder a high - profile fight to take his career to the next level , according to former light - welterweight world champion Amir Khan .


John Edwards, 61, is planning to be buried on Friday in Halifax and to "bring people words of light from the grave", in a bid to reduce the number of addicts' funerals he has to attend. The Walking Free charity founder works with suicidal addicts and their families. Mr Edwards is due to stream his incarceration live via a smartphone. His coffin, 8ft long, 3.5ft high and 4ft wide (2.4m x 1m x 1.3m), gives him some room to move. He will receive food and water through a pipe and a second pipe will be connected to a caravan toilet, Mr Edwards told the BBC while standing in the grave as he was digging it. "I've been to hundreds of funerals and I am so desperate to stop others," he said. "It's an extreme thing to do, but so is suicide and drug addiction." Me Edwards hoped he would be able to talk to people while in the ground and give them hope. "I've been there and done it all, I've really been there. I'm speaking their language. "I am saying don't end up in a premature grave - that's extreme. "But extreme times demand extreme measures." There is to be a team above the ground during his incarceration helping his unusual stay at a community centre.

Question: A @placeholder drug addict and charity worker is to bury himself for several days and broadcast on social media .


It said the increase provided further support for "the view that the housing market is gradually gaining momentum". The annual rate of price growth rose to 1.1%, the fastest pace since November 2011. The increases mean that the average house now costs ??167,912, the Nationwide said. Robert Gardner, Nationwide's chief economist, said a number of factors were likely to have contributed to the recent pick-up in activity. "There has been an improvement in the availability and a reduction in the cost of credit, partly as a result of policy measures, such as the Funding for Lending Scheme," he said. "With the UK returning to growth in the first quarter of 2013, the improvement in wider economic conditions may also be playing a role in boosting sentiment." The Funding for Lending Scheme allows banks to borrow money at a discount from the Bank of England, providing they can show they have passed it on to customers in the form of loans. Mr Gardner said that this had increased the availability of mortgages and pushed down rates. As a result, prices in the last three months compared with the previous three months were up by 0.4%, and have been growing according to this measure since October 2012. Mr Gardner said that property sales were also up, running at about 5% higher each month this year than the average monthly level in 2012. The number of mortgages approved, which can be expected to feed through to sales, also picked up at the start of the year, he said. He expected the market to continue to gain momentum, partly owing to government support for more credit. However, the government's Help to Buy scheme has come in for criticism, with claims that this would simply create another housing market bubble. Under the Help to Buy Scheme, borrowers are able to take out an equity loan from the government, which will enable them to put down a deposit of just 5% on a property. That scheme began on 1 April. Under the second scheme, starting in January 2014 and due to run until 2017, the government will guarantee up to 15% of a mortgage on homes worth up to ??600,000. The scheme will be used to support ??130bn of mortgages. Critics have included the outgoing governor of the Bank of England, Sir Mervyn King, who warned that the scheme must not become permanent. Source: Land Registry. Annual change to end of April "I'm sure that there is no place in the long run for a scheme of this kind," he told Sky News in a recent interview. On Wednesday, the OECD said that while new housing measures were likely to encourage residential investment and supply, there could be "upward pressure on house prices" if builders did not build more homes. The Nationwide figures are based on its own lending data. Its rival, the Halifax - which is part of the Lloyds Banking Group - recorded a 2% average annual rise in prices a month ago. The two lenders calculate their year-on-year figures slightly differently. Karelia Scott-Daniels, managing director of buying agents, Manse & Garret Property Search, said: "Much of the momentum is coming from London and South East England, and there is a danger that this is masking the stagnation in some other regions. "But for properties that are priced correctly, there is no shortage of buyers." Other commentators were more sceptical about Nationwide's conclusions. "The rise in house prices recorded by the Nationwide in May could further boost the growing sense of optimism regarding the housing market. But the fundamentals are still weak, and we think much of that optimism is misplaced," said a spokesman for Capital Economics. Data from the Land Registry has shown that price changes have varied widely across the UK. Figures published on Thursday, covering England and Wales, showed that house prices rose by 6.2% in the 12 months to the end of April in London, and by 1.4% in the South East of England. However, the North East of England saw average price falls of 5.7% and there was a drop of 3.7% in the North West of England over the same period. The annual increase across England and Wales was 0.7%, the Land Registry said. These rises were dwarfed by the increases seen recently in the US. US house prices in March were up 10.9% from a year earlier, the biggest rise in nearly seven years, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller index which was published on Tuesday.

Question: UK house prices recorded a " modest " rise in May , increasing by 0.4 % , according to the latest survey from the Nationwide building @placeholder .


Omran Ben Shaaban was kidnapped, shot and tortured by people who many in Misrata believe were supporters of the late dictator. The 22-year-old died in France, where he was receiving medical treatment for his injuries. His body was flown back to Libya, met by hundreds of mourners. In Misrata, protesters called for the government to avenge his death. Mr Shaaban was kidnapped by armed men in July and held for 50 days in the town of Bani Walid, a former Gaddafi stronghold that lies south-east of the capital Tripoli. He was freed last week following the mediation efforts of Mohamed Magarief, Libya's interim leader and president of the ruling General National Congress (GNC). Mr Shaaban arrived in Misrata with torture marks on his body and a bullet wound near his spinal cord, according to reports. He was taken to Paris for treatment, but died on Monday. Hundreds of people gathered at the airport in Misrata to greet his body. His coffin was carried in a procession to a football stadium where funeral prayers were held. Mr Shaaban came to prominence on 20 October last year when he was pictured at the scene as Col Gaddafi was dragged from a drainage pipe where he was hiding in Sirte. The GNC mourned the "loss of a brave hero" and has said it will take all necessary measures to bring the perpetrators to justice, according to a statement issued on the official Lana news agency.

Question: One of the Libyan rebels credited with capturing ex-leader Muammar Gaddafi last year has been @placeholder in his hometown of Misrata .


Each year, according to the conservation group Project Jonah, around 300 dolphins and whales become stranded in New Zealand. Many of these incidents occur at Farewell Spit, a thin arc of sand at the top of the South Island which separates a shallow bay from the open ocean. Last week, more than 400 pilot whales became stranded on this 5km-long (three mile-long) stretch and, while some were saved by conservation officials and volunteers in a desperate rescue effort, most died. The beachings occur in the summer months, according to Gary Riordan, who is 62 and has lived in the area for most of his life. "It pretty much happens every year," says Mr Riordan, who runs a beachside camp ground not far from where they often become stranded. "There's a lot of theories out there as to why it happens, but at the end of the day I think there's four or five hotspots where they strand [in New Zealand], and the one thing they all have in common is shallow water." "As far as often goes: It's pretty much seasonal, always around January or February. It's something that the locals expect every year about this time." Joanna Wheaton, who also lives in the area, said she was pleasantly surprised there wasn't a mass stranding in 2016. "Farewell Spit is a unique natural trap for them," she says. In February 2015 about 200 pilot whales - which, despite their name, are actually members of the dolphin family - beached not far from the cafe where she works. At least half of them died. "It's always the same species, pilot whales, and the same extreme tide situation on the inner beach," she says. Dr Rochelle Constantine, a marine biologist at the University of Auckland, also says the shallow water around Farewell Spit is what causes the whales to beach. "Farewell Spit, geographically, is quite an interesting place," she says. "It spans around in a broad arc. On either side is large bay and the open ocean. "There's a series of really large sand banks all through there in the bay, and it just gradually becomes more and more shallow," Dr Constantine says. Because the water becomes shallower gradually, the whales may not be able to detect the change using echo-location, in the same way they would a sudden rise in gradient, she says. "They can echo-locate, but it's [a problem with] the signal that they get bounced back. It's a combination of this gentle gradient and the soft sand. They probably aren't detecting that they are swimming into more and more shallow water." By the time they do realise, it's often too late. The tide has already begun to run out. Farewell Spit is especially deadly as it sits, like a hook, right in the pilot whales' path. "They can swim straight into Golden Bay and the embrace of the Farewell Spit. It's just geographically a very tricky spot," Dr Constantine says. While the shallow water and its effect on echolocation is the most likely reason the animals become stranded at Farewell Spit, Dr Constantine says pilot whales also have strong social bonds, and this could explain why such large numbers become stuck, or return once rescuers re-float them. "I have attended a fair few strandings and what is highlighted is how variable they all are," she says. "We do know that because they are quite strongly socially-bonded, they will hang out with each other, but to be honest, every stranding is different. Sometimes they just muck up and don't get the right cues, and other times its because they are strongly bonded to [stranded] individuals in the group." "We think there's some confusion going on in each stranding, but finding a reason is often difficult," she says. Scientists don't know for sure why they regularly beach in January or February, though Dr Constantine said it could be because of feeding patterns and changes in ocean temperature which see more whales passing through the Cook Strait at that time of year. "These are quite hard things to measure as scientists, because the reality is we don't often see pilot whales in this area until they are about to strand. They are not really coastal." "We really don't know much about the movements of pilot whales in New Zealand. It could be simply they are not around at other times of the year." According to the New Zealand Department of Conservation, the largest recorded stranding was an estimated 1,000 pilot whales on the Chatham Islands, another stranding hotspot, in 1918.

Question: Each year locals from Golden Bay at the top of New Zealand 's South Island know to expect a whale beaching at a narrow strip of sand @placeholder into the Cook Strait , known as Farewell Spit . Ben Collins looks at what makes the area so deadly .


In many ways, that game at the Stade de France set the tone for much of what was to follow in the championship - some admirable stuff mixed with some self-defeating errors and all adding up to a defeat, albeit one that contained encouraging nuances. Jonny Gray was a colossus that day. The second-row made 19 tackles and stole two French line-outs to mark himself out as a world class player in the making. Stuart Hogg typified the pockets of elan in Scotland's play, running for 88 metres, the second-highest total of the day. Scotland played with ambition before the French juggernauts trundled in and won the match, 15-8. In what was to become a recurring theme of the season, Cotter's team failed to score in the second half. There was a feel-good about the way that Scotland played, though. So many line-breaks, so much positivity in a backline that was once bereft of ideas. The feeling before round two, at home to Wales, was that a win was possible. They came within three points. Scant consolation. Again, we drew out the upside. Hogg was magnificent once more, the game's most lethal attacker, the full-back adding another 144 metres, and a try.  After a poor 2014, Hogg's devil had been restored and he was delightful to watch. The points famine returned, a 25-minute block in the second half where Scotland went pointless. There was controversy, too. Glen Jackson, the referee, dished out penalties and inconsistencies like confetti at a wedding. Cotter felt aggrieved and expressed his disquiet in his own inimitable way. The less the Scotland coach says the more chilling he becomes. Stern Vern has no need for a hair-dryer. Two games, two honourable losses and now Italy to come. This was the day that Cotter's championship would achieve lift-off. That was the plan, but not the reality. It was a cataclysm. Discipline went out the window. Thirteen penalties made it 38 conceded in three games. Too many. In that fateful second half, Scotland spent 62% of the game in Italy's half and scored the sum total of three points. The flair of the opening matches evaporated. Still, the win looked likely until Peter Horne, playing nicely up to that point, missed a kick to touch and Italy grew as a consequence. The great Sergio Parisse took control. Scotland lacked that kind of leader. The endgame was horrific. Two yellow cards in quick succession for Scotland. Confusion. Panic. Then a late try that gave victory to the visitors. This is the ultimate one-that-got-away. And it was sore. Where there was hope, now there was despair and the dread of a whitewash. Scotland went to Twickenham, got their noses in front at half-time then sank. Another 40 minutes without a score. There were good things in there, some big performances, some suggestion that there can be a brighter tomorrow, but the bottom line - four losses from four - came as a kick in the gut. The Wooden Spoon was served up on a dramatic last day where Scotland's only role in the championship-defining drama was as Ireland's whipping boy. Once more, 40 minutes went by without Cotter's men troubling the scoreboard. As the home team came to terms with their failure, the Irish took over Murrayfield. Champions again. In the midst of this despond, Glasgow emerged. Thank goodness. They were like a beacon in the dark. Their Pro12 semi-final win over Ulster at a heaving Scotstoun and their conquering of Munster in the final in Belfast summed up what Gregor Townsend has created. Both of those wins were seismic, but in different ways. Against Ulster, it was a grind, a test of endurance, will and nerve - and Glasgow passed it right at the death. The final was an exhibition of their ambition and their execution. They were a riot of clever and accurate rugby, a joy to behold. What quickened the pulse wasn't just the fact that Glasgow won the Pro12 for the first time, it was the way they won it. No sense of anxiety in the final, just an embracing of the occasion and a belief that they were good enough to set it alight. Edinburgh had a major journey in the European Challenge Cup. They made a final, too, but didn't have the confidence that Glasgow had and a great chance was lost against Gloucester. Their Pro 12 was poor. If Glasgow's next challenge is proving their worth in the Champions Cup then Edinburgh's is to make the top four of the Pro 12. It's time they delivered. Summer saw the countdown to the World Cup. John Hardie was parachuted in from New Zealand and straight into Cotter's squad. WP Nel and Josh Strauss made it, too, on the residency rule. Every game that Scotland played had a fascination. The eyes of the rugby world were on their opener against Japan, who had just caused international tremors by beating the Springboks. Scotland scored five second half tries to win by 35 points. Hardie scored the game-turning try - and made 21 tackles to boot. The protest against his sudden arrival on the scene quietened somewhat in the wake of a wonderful performance. The USA were seen off with another five-try romp, a further illustration that Scotland now possess an ability to score that hasn't been as strong for 15 years. There was an unbreachable gulf in power against the Springboks in the third game. Even still, Scotland's capacity to conjure a try out of nothing served them well and kept within seven points until the hour-mark. They had no right to be that close. In the end, it was 34-16 to South Africa. That was about right. The must-win game was won, but only just. Scotland weren't so much in a hole against Samoa as a crater. Defensively they were a shambles, conceding three tries and 20 points in the opening 21 minutes. In previous years, Scotland might have folded altogether after that start, but they didn't. They fought against their own deficiencies, stayed calm, drew level with a converted Hardie try and saw it out in the second half. It was heart-stopping, but it was enough. They were in the quarter-finals. And now it got serious. The Wallabies had been supreme in their pool of death with England and Wales. They had a wondrous attack and a defence that the Welsh couldn't score against when the Wallabies had two men in the bin. Scotland scored three tries against Australia. The problem was that Australia scored five. Well, it was one of the problems. The other was a referee who made a bad call under pressure and then ran away. Everybody looked at Craig Joubert, but the bigger truth could be found by looking in the mirror. Scotland played clinically and heroically in attack and had earned their lead going into the closing minutes. They had a line-out and had they secured it they would almost certainly have made the semi-final. The line-out was a mess and the controversy happened as a result. It was a missed opportunity that will live with this team forever. Going into 2016, what do we expect of Scotland? It's impossible to know. The World Cup would indicate that Nel has made a big difference to the scrum and that Hardie has a made a huge impact in the back row. The Gray brothers can be immense in-between. As a pack of forwards, they're very encouraging. There is a menace about the Scottish backline that excites, but also a vulnerability that's worrying. Scotland can score, but can they stop the big guns scoring? They conceded three tries against South Africa, four against Samoa and five against the Wallabies. Three wins from their 10 most important Tests in 2015 is a meagre return, but there are signs of life and hope. Scotland have the talent to turn those numbers around, but they need to get mean in 2016.

Question: Vern Cotter 's first Six Nations as Scotland head coach began in Paris in the first week of February , but given how much rugby has been played in the @placeholder it almost seems like an eternity ago .


Concern has been raised across the UK about the practice of so-called "sex-for-rent". Now Dawn Bowden claims examples of the practice have now been seen in Wales. Carl Sargeant, Welsh Government Communities Secretary, called the practice abhorrent and said he would raise the issue with the Home Office. A recent BBC investigation in England found that young, vulnerable people were being targeted with online classified adverts offering accommodation in exchange for sex. Justice secretary Liz Truss has already pledged that the UK government will review the matter. Ms Bowden told AMs on Wednesday of one advert for "Tenants with benefits" in Cardiff and the south Wales valleys that stated: "Must reply with a picture." An advert for a room in Bridgend, she explained, asked for someone with a "Naturist lifestyle". Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney Labour AM Ms Bowden said the advert stated: "Will want to meet and get to know and discuss the ground rules for services required." She said: "Whilst this practice may not be illegal, it is inherently immoral and is deliberately targeting desperate women, and sometimes men, who feel they have no other options than to give into this exploitation." Welsh housing charity Shelter Cymru said that although it had not seen explicit sex-for-rent arrangements, it had seen cases of private landlords demanding sexual favours from their tenants. Jennie Bibbings, campaigns manager at Shelter Cymru, said: "This is a problem that has its roots in the power imbalance between landlord and tenant, as well as the housing supply crisis which means that tenants simply don't have enough choice of affordable accommodation." Ms Bowden's call for an amendment to the Housing Act (Wales) 2014 - which regulates landlords in Wales - was backed by opposition groups in an assembly debate on Wednesday, Welsh Conservative AM David Melding said he was in "great sympathy" with the proposal, calling the practice "morally repugnant". Plaid AM Sian Gwenllian argued that part of the solution was to provide more affordable housing, saying fewer people would be forced into such situations as a result. UKIP's Gareth Bennett called some of the adverts he had seen an "eye-opener". The Communities Secretary with responsibility for housing, Carl Sargeant, said sex-for-rent was a "symptom of a more fundamental problem" of young people struggling to get accommodation. But he said the measure that Ms Bowden called for "will simply not tackle this issue on its own". A Welsh Government spokesman said: "We condemn this abhorrent practice which takes advantage of the poverty and social inequality of the people it preys on. "We will do everything in our power to tackle this issue but amending the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 does not offer the solution."

Question: Advertisements for @placeholder offered in return for sexual favours should be banned in Wales , an AM has said .


Ashley Albert, 34, from Sacramento, California, is a real estate executive and the proud mother of Kayley and Teagan, both under four years old. She says she found using Baby Connect, an app that helps parents record breastfeeds, nappy changes, sleep times and so on, very useful. "The newborn days are such a blur - you're in survival mode - so having something to look back to was essential," she says. "It helped me with knowing how long in-between feedings my baby had gone, what side she last fed on - because I could never remember - and for how long she was averaging." The advantages of breastfeeding are well-known, with medical bodies across the world recommending the practice for the health benefits it provides both babies and mothers. But many mums find it difficult and painful, then struggle with feelings of guilt if they can't feed their baby naturally. So it's no wonder that Baby Connect is just one of scores of breastfeeding tracking and advice apps available for download in a fast-growing market forecast to grow from $36m (?¡ê28m) in 2015 to nearly $250m (?¡ê194m) by 2020, according to MarketsandMarkets. In 2016, breastfeeding was the second fastest-growing category on Amazon.com in the baby product sector, behind only portable cribs. And the baby care market generally is forecast to grow from $11bn this year to more than $13bn in 2021, according to research consultancy Trefis.com. One advantage of such apps is that all the recorded data can be automatically synchronised across devices - including those of other carers you authorise - and you can set up alarms to help plan your day. Mind you, babies are pretty good at setting their own ear-splitting alarms to let you know when they need something. "I used the app to log breastfeeding, pumping, diapers [nappies], growth, milestones, medical information/stats, medicines, and food," says Ms Albert. Xavier Launay, a 48-year-old French software engineer now based in the US, says he created Baby Connect in 2008 because he wanted to help his wife manage the breastfeeding of their two kids. Back then, all records were kept on paper at the daycare nursery and Mr Launay was convinced that digital records would be more efficient. Today, the app has attracted 700,000 users - mostly in the US - who have recorded millions of baby interactions. "When it's time for the paediatrician visit, parents know they can answer any question about the child's daily routine," argues Mr Launay. Alex Ooi, creator of the Feed Baby app, says he didn't see it as a business opportunity at first, more as a way of helping his partner. Now the app has been downloaded nearly two million times by users in the US, UK, Australia, Canada and Russia. He thinks that there is an opportunity for such tech to help new parents receive the advice they need. "From what we've seen there is probably more that could be done to help connect medically certified professionals with new parents via tech," says Mr Ooi. But not everyone is convinced of the benefits of such apps. "One of the major drawbacks of many such consumer apps is that the data collected does not provide meaningful insights," says Brahadeesh Chandrasekara, a health industry analyst at research consultancy Frost & Sullivan. "The data do not guide the mother or families if the numbers are outside the desired range. "There is a need for apps that can provide meaningful insights to the mother, families and the providers on the data gathered, as such valuable insights can help in identifying the root cause of a problem." For decades now, new mums have used breastfeeding pumps to help their babies receive the health benefits of breast milk but delivered from a bottle. But traditional designs often made women feel like ungainly milch cows. About 13 million women use them worldwide, but some analysts are predicting an 11% increase in the market by 2022 as the technology improves. "Though many women find them convenient," says Mr Chandrasekara, "these devices are known to be noisy and bulky, which can make them uncomfortable. So innovation is focused on reducing their noise and size." Leading breast pump makers include Philips, Lansinoh, Ardo, and Avent. But one, Medela, a Swiss company founded in 1961, has developed Sonata, a "smart" breast pump costing $399.99 (?¡ê300). "Based on clinical and academic lactation research, Medela developed a two-phase technology, an advanced algorithm that creates a vacuum pattern which emulates a baby's natural suckling behaviour," says Stephen Flint, the firm's chief technology officer. An accompanying app, MyMedela, tracks breastfeeding and pumping sessions, as well as other metrics, such as the baby's height, weight, sleep patterns, and nappy changes. "Sonata and MyMedela are meant to function as a complete support system that puts a mum in control of her own schedule, so that she can breastfeed, and continue to lead an independent, dynamic life," says Mr Flint. "A mum doesn't just take care of her baby, she has a life to live, and other goals to pursue. If she gets help and support, she can most easily combine breastfeeding with her other goals."

Question: Caring for a new baby can be an overwhelming experience - there 's lots to cope with and keep track of . And breastfeeding is n't as easy as it looks . Can technology help new mums or is it just another layer of @placeholder in an already hectic life ?


The officer, who has since died, used the name Rick Gibson to join Liverpool-based activist group Big Flame. In 1976, "Rick" was forced out of the group amid a "tirade of abuse" after members apparently found birth and death records for the real Mr Gibson. The details were released by a judge-led inquiry into undercover policing. The Undercover Policing Inquiry is being led by Sir John Mitting. It was previously led by Sir Christopher Pitchford, who has now retired. For two years it has reported on undercover police operations conducted by police forces in England and Wales since 1968. In this case, the officer had tried to explain to campaigners that he adopted a pseudonym to "avoid detection and arrest" because he was "wanted" by police. "No violence was used, but he was expelled from the group after a lengthy tirade of abuse," a Metropolitan Police risk assessment compiled for the inquiry said. Big Flame, which described itself as a "revolutionary socialist feminist organisation", was set up in 1970 but had largely disbanded by the mid-1980s. After the incident, the policeman was withdrawn as an undercover officer in the Special Demonstration Squad - the secretive Met unit responsible for infiltrating protest groups. The document included details of three officers who used cover names, revealed by the inquiry after the Met decided not to oppose their disclosure. One undercover officer used the pseudonym Douglas Edwards, and was deployed to gather information on the Independent Labour Party and the left-wing groups, Tri-Continental and the Dambusters Mobilising Committee. The document said the government was concerned about the risk of "large-scale public disorder" and that the officer, who was deployed between 1968 and 1971, posed as a "long-distance lorry driver". In a personal statement, the second policeman, who has since retired and did not want his real name to be revealed, said he was initially told to report on anarchist groups. "Some of them were quite nasty pieces of work," he wrote. He said problems linked to undercover policing were "blown out of all proportion", but added: "Other people have fathered children and you can't have that." In 2014, the Met paid ?¡ê425,000 in compensation to a woman who did not know the father of her child was an undercover officer, Bob Lambert, who was using the pseudonym Bob Robinson. A third policeman, whose cover name was John Graham, reported on the Vietnam Solidarity Campaign in the late 1960s. In his statement, he said: "I regarded the people I was with as intellectuals. "They were just people who believed that the Americans shouldn't be in Vietnam but had no idea how to get them out." The officer, who also gathered information on the Revolutionary Socialist Students Federation, grew a beard and was said to have been "scruffier" than his colleagues.

Question: A policeman who used a dead child 's identity to infiltrate a protest group in the 1970s was @placeholder out when his cover was blown , police documents show .


The League Against Cruel Sports said it has video evidence suggesting hunts were routinely using dogs to hunt foxes and not merely "flush" them from cover for shooting, which is allowed. The League's director said hunts were "flouting the law with impunity". The Scottish Countryside Alliance said the allegations were politically motivated. It added that a lack of prosecutions suggested the law was being complied with. Scotland became the first UK nation to ban hunting with dogs in 2002, with England and Wales following two years later. The League said it carried out surveillance on five recent hunts in Scotland between December 2015 and March 2015 and saw no shotguns used during 16 days of filming. Robbie Marsland, director of the League in Scotland, added: "Our footage suggests that at least half the hunts in Scotland are flouting the law with impunity and are operating as if the ban doesn't apply to them. "While the hunts we observed claimed to be 'flushing to guns', our investigators did not see a single shotgun either used or even brandished." The video evidence does not include any footage of a fox being killed by dogs. The Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Act 2002 states that a person who deliberately hunts a wild mammal with a dog is committing an offence. An exception is made whereby dogs under control may be used "to flush a fox or mink from below ground or...to flush a fox from an enclosed space within rocks or other secure cover above ground". This process is known as "flushing to guns". The League is now calling for an amendment to the law to reduce the number of dogs used in flushing to guns to two and the addition of a clause outlawing reckless behaviour. Campaigners will show MSPs a video containing some of the footage at Holyrood on Wednesday. Information on one of the hunts has been passed to Police Scotland. Jamie Stewart, director of the Scottish Countryside Alliance, which supports hunting foxes with dogs, called the current law "unjustified" but said it did at least allow hunts and hill packs to continue to deliver "a much-needed service" to livestock farmers. He told the BBC he was "appalled" that campaigners were trying to change the law on the evidence of a video that was "at best subjective, at worst contrived". He added: "There have been no convictions relating to fox control with hounds which suggests compliance with the legislation and that Police Scotland and other agencies have effectively monitored the practices over the 13 or so years since implementation. "The League Against Cruel Sports is a tiny organisation with a membership of less than 3,000 UK-wide. "It has a political agenda which rejects the case for managing foxes entirely and has no interest in the economic and environmental wellbeing of rural Scotland. "Serious animal welfare organisations recognise that the Act has achieved some level of balance." A Scottish government spokeswoman said there were no plans to amend current legislation. She added: "The offences laid out in the Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Act 2002 are very clear. "Evidence of criminal activity is a matter for Police Scotland, so as with any crime we would urge anyone with any information to inform the police immediately." Scottish Labour's rural affairs spokeswoman Sarah Boyack said the video evidence provided by the League was "deeply concerning" and urged ministers to consider the amendments. The Conservatives have pledged to hold a  House of Commons vote on repealing the ban in England and Wales. The SNP does not routinely vote on legislation that does not affect Scotland, but its MPs are being urged by campaigners to use their vote this time. The party has not yet said whether it will vote on the matter.

Question: At least half of Scotland 's @placeholder hunts are breaking the law on fox hunting , campaigners have claimed .


On Wednesday, Trump will spend his first full day in Europe as the US president. He's said so many different things about the place - sometimes he says he loves the continent and other times calls it a hellhole - that it's hard to know how things will go. One thing is certain: his schedule is packed. He'll visit Rome, the Vatican and Brussels on Wednesday, speaking on that day with Pope Francis and later in the evening with King Philippe of the Belgians. On Thursday he'll spend the day in Brussels, having lunch with President Emmanuel Macron of France and talking with European Union officials, then he heads to Sicily for a Group of Seven meeting. During his whirlwind tour of the continent, he'll speak with the Europeans about Nato and defence spending of various countries (he thinks they should make a bigger financial commitment to the alliance). He'll also talk about US foreign policy and his vision for the nation's role on the global stage. Over the course of the trip he's likely to be preoccupied, however, with the recent controversies in Washington, including the sacking of the FBI director James Comey and his own relationship with Russian officials. His meetings in Europe could go well, or they could go very badly. So much depends upon his mood, say those who are close to him, and on the temperament of those who meet with him. Trump is a "salesman", said Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a professor of Italian studies and history at NYU, and for that reason he's likely to adjust his remarks to make the people around him happy - at least for the moment. Why has Trump been so harsh on Iran? Saudi deals kick off Trump foreign tour How will homebody Trump cope abroad? Trump-Russia scandal: How did we get here? His aides believe that one of the president's strengths is his ability to deal with people in the moment and adapt on the fly. They cast him as a dealmaker par excellence, closing a sale when the time is right (or abruptly upping the ante), and in this way justify the way that he's expressed so many, conflicting views of the continent. Michael S Smith, a terrorism analyst who has advised the US government, said: "The biggest challenge he's going to face is managing relationships after sending so many mixed signals." He's offered up odd, disjointed praise: "Belgium is a beautiful city," he once said (he's also called Brussels "a hellhole"). He seems to be fond of Scotland, the place where his mother was born. Still he's not exactly embraced local customs. Last year he visited a Scottish town with pubs where, as one of his travelling companions told me, "They served rabbit." So they drove to a town about 25 miles away with a McDonald's. It was another sign that he doesn't embrace European traditions and - sometimes at least - views them with distaste. On a more serious level he's said Nato is "obsolete" and then seemed to change his mind. He once described Germany as a "total mess", tweeting that the country "owes vast sums of money to NATO & the United States must be paid more for the powerful, and very expensive, defense it provides to Germany!" In his reckoning, the Europeans exploit trade deals. He's said the trade agreements are "very unfair to the United States." He's said he doesn't think the EU "matters very much for the United States", and he's described it as "basically a vehicle for Germany". He was elected in part because of his outspoken manner and his tough, uncompromising positions: he made it clear that America wasn't going to get pushed around - by the Europeans or anybody else - and that he'd focus on American interests. It's harder to act like a pit bull about American interests when you're talking to people who don't see them as their priority. Since taking office, he's tried to make amends with the Germans and the other Europeans who've visited the White House. More recently he's been advised to soften his tone while he's in Belgium and Italy, and to downplay his views about trade. Still he's not going to soft-pedal all of his views. George Mason University's Francis Buckley, who worked on a foreign-policy speech for Trump during the campaign, said Trump has made it clear Europeans must contribute more to Nato and believes, Buckley explained, "that would have to be corrected". Critics of the administration believe that the president has a dark view of Europe and has aligned himself with nationalist forces - and point to his generous assessment of authoritarian leaders in Russia and Turkey. In this way the president's views are, said Ben-Ghiat, "destabilising". Smith adds: "The president has been posturing his intention to align the US with Russia in a manner that most people would consider stunning." Smith said he hoped the president's travels through Europe would help to clarify his positions towards Nato, the EU and other institutions and dispel concerns about his intentions. Up to this point, Smith said: "It's all been a fog of known unknowns."

Question: President Trump sees Europe as a place filled with cheaters and bedlam - and as a place populated by lovely people . Soon he 'll be meeting with European leaders and will try to explain his @placeholder views . What could go wrong ?


A skeleton of a meat-eating Jurassic dinosaur, the theropod, was uncovered by spring storms at Lavernock beach, Vale of Glamorgan, in 2014. The dinosaur's missing foot was found at the beach by palaeontology student, Sam Davies, of Bridgend, at the beginning of this month. "My first reaction was that I was very lucky," he said. The fossilised skeleton of the theropod - a distant cousin of the giant Tyrannosaurus rex - went on display at the National Museum Cardiff's main hall in June after it was found by fossil-hunting brothers Nick and Rob Hanigan. Mr Davies, who studies at the University of Portsmouth, visited Lavernock, near Penarth, after his tutor told him its cliffs were rich with fossils. He arrived only hours after a cliff fall had exposed the fossil and before it could be washed away by the tide. "It was pure luck that I found it. It was just sitting on top of a slab of rock," he said. His tutor, Dr David Martill, confirmed the find was the missing foot of the recently discovered dinosaur, after the student emailed a picture. Dr Martill said: "This was a chance-in-a-million find and highlights how important it is to encourage fossil hunting in this country." He said the specimen would help chart the evolution of dinosaur feet. The foot has been donated to the Amgueddfa Cymru, which hopes to put it on display with the rest of the skeleton soon. Dr Caroline Buttler, head of palaeontology at the museum, said: "The dinosaur found by Nick and Rob Hanigan is the first skeleton of a theropod found in Wales. "Sam's find adds to its significance because we can learn more about the animal and how it is related to the dinosaurs that eventually evolved into birds."

Question: The fossilised foot of a dinosaur has been discovered on a south Wales beach , National Museum Wales has @placeholder .


The deal comes after Sony's Amazing Spider-Man 2 under-performed at the box office last year. Despite a respectable $709m (¡ê465m) box office haul, it was the lowest-grossing of Sony's five Spider-Man films so far. The character could now appear in Marvel films such as Iron Man and Thor. However, the timing of the deal makes it likely his first outing will be in 2016's Captain America: Civil War. The character already appears in the comic book version of the story. Marvel will then co-produce the next solo Spider-Man outing, financed by Sony Pictures, which will be released in 2017. Kevin Feige, the Marvel boss who has overseen 10 consecutive box office blockbusters, including Avengers Assemble and Guardians of the Galaxy, will be involved in all future creative decisions about Spider-Man. He will work alongside Amy Pascal, the Sony executive who recently stood down following a cyber-attack that saw her private emails leaked. Fans have been clamouring for Spider-Man to join Marvel's roster on the big screen for more than a decade. The character is part of the Marvel's comic book empire, but Sony has owned the film rights since 1999, when it paid a reported $7m (¡ê4.6m). Evil Dead director Sam Raimi first brought the character to the big screen, with Tobey Maguire in the lead role. More recently, the series was rebooted, with British actor Andrew Garfield inside the iconic red and blue suit and Marc Webb directing. But the new deal effectively spells the end for Garfield's portrayal of Peter Parker and his superhero alter-ego, reported the LA Times. Sony had been casting around for ways to re-invigorate the franchise after his second outing failed to break the $1 billion (¡ê657 million) mark at the box office last May. A third Amazing Spider-Man film was postponed to 2018, while a spin-off film, The Sinister Six, focusing on Spider-Man's most notorious enemies, was slated for 2016. There was also discussion of introducing a female set of heroes in their own films; and a potential film based around Peter Parker's Aunt May. But, at the same time, Sony was holding discussions with Marvel - as revealed in emails leaked as a result of last year's cyber-attack. Those emails showed that Marvel was pushing for Spider-Man to appear in the next Captain America movie;  while Sony Pictures president Doug Belgrad wanted a Marvel-produced Spider-Man movie in which Sony retained "creative control, marketing and distribution." Although those talks were said to have stalled in December, the new announcement effectively fulfils all of those criteria. It has also led to Marvel reshuffling the release dates of its upcoming movies. The next Thor movie would have gone head-to-head with a new Spider-Man movie in the summer of 2017. It will now move to November of that year, shunting a film based on the Black Panther character into the following year. The two-part Avengers: Infinity War movies, however, will not budge. "The deal comes at a time when Sony needs not only hits at the box office but major franchises," wrote Marc Graser in Variety magazine. "It's why Ghostbusters is being revived, this time with a female cast, and why properties like Uncharted, based on Sony's hit videogame franchise are finally getting a greenlight." "This is the right decision for the franchise, for our business, for Marvel, and for the fans," said Sony chairman Michael Lynton. "I am thrilled to team with my friends at Sony Pictures along with Amy Pascal to produce the next Spider-Man movie," said Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige in a statement. "Amy has been deeply involved in the realisation on film of one of the world's most beloved characters. Marvel's involvement will hopefully deliver the creative continuity and authenticity that fans demand from the MCU [Marvel Cinematic Universe]. "I am equally excited for the opportunity to have Spider-Man appear in the MCU, something which both we at Marvel, and fans alike, have been looking forward to for years."

Question: Sony Pictures and the Walt Disney company have agreed to share custody of Spider - Man , in a deal that means the @placeholder - slinging superhero could appear in a future Avengers movie .


Chris Millar is also out while Keith Watson and Ally Gilchrist are not quite ready to return. Ross County defender Paul Quinn will be given a week off after playing against Rangers with a knock. Michael Gardyne and Martin Woods return after missing the draw with the Ibrox side while Erik Cikos has recovered from a dead leg. St Johnstone's Ricky Foster: "It was good getting a win up there earlier in the season and I'm hoping for more of the same. "You always want to do well against an old team. You have a point to prove and want to come out on top. "These are good games to play in, as long as you win." Ross County's Alex Schalk: "We have a massive opportunity on Saturday to narrow the gap with St Johnstone as well but you can't keep saying that. "You have to grab these opportunities. We are going to go on a run now that will help us back into the top six, I am confident of that. "The manager wants us to be an established top-six side, that has worked well so far but we have had a bad start. "We can look up to St Johnstone and how well they are doing but I think with the ability we have in this group, we should be there as well."

Question: St Johnstone midfielder Murray Davidson will not be @placeholder despite recovering from an ankle fracture .


The 9ft (3m) deep, 22ft (7m) long hole was caused by heavy rain washing away a drain running under part of Traigh Golf Course, near Mallaig. The club is now having to find money to help it pay the estimated ?¡ê16,000 cost of the repairs needed. The sinkhole has been fenced off and the nine-hole course remains open to members. Traigh, between Arisaig and Mallaig, is known as one of Scotland's most picturesque courses because of its views to Skye and the Small Isles. The club's insurance will cover some of the cost of the repairs, but it still expects to have to raise thousands of pounds. About 200 tonnes of sand will be needed to fill the hole near the seventh green.

Question: A large sinkhole has appeared near a green on the UK @placeholder 's most westerly golf course .


Linton Zoo manager Kim Simmons posted photos of Arnie the cat looking after some of the animals online after he died on 9 January. "We had hundreds of messages but it went crazy when MSN ran it in America," she said. "His story seems to have touched, and been shared by, so many." She added: "His most special job... was as the baby-sitter of abandoned newborn animals brought into the house for hand-rearing. "Arnie baby-sat all four of our adult lions when they were cubs and some of their offspring too." She said the zoo did not like to hand-rear animals unless absolutely necessary, but added: "Arnie did the job wonderfully for us. "He would climb into their baskets and snuggle up. There is nothing quite like a real, warm beating heart next to a young animal." The zoo's Facebook tribute, posted a few day's after Arnie's death, read: "On the morning of Wednesday 9th January, after completing his staff greetings and doing his usual morning rounds to see his zoo friends, purring all the way, Arnie, our ginger tom returned home for a spot of breakfast and then snuggled up on his bed and went to sleep. "There he passed away peacefully." Mrs Simmons said Arnie had arthritis in his rear legs together with "other age-related problems, for which he was receiving appropriate medical support". "He had a good and thorough life," she added. "He was outstanding in everything he did." Mrs Simmons said staff were now busy responding to requests from around the world for more photographs and stories about Arnie. "We are thinking about putting together a book," she said. "His life is the stuff of Disney movies."

Question: A cat who became a " baby - sitter " to newborn animals at a Cambridgeshire zoo has become a " global star " after his death was @placeholder online , staff said .


Zoe Morgan, 21, and Lee Simmons, 33, were found dead near the Queen Street store on 28 September at 5:50 BST. They had been in a relationship since July. Andrew Saunders, 20, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to murder at Cardiff Crown Court on Monday. He will be sentenced in the New Year. The discovery of the bodies of the couple led to the street being closed as police began their investigation. Saunders was arrested later that day and then charged with their murder. Miss Morgan, who worked as a window dresser, had recently graduated from the University of South Wales with an honours degree in fashion marketing and retail design. It is believed the couple struck up a romance while working together. In a tribute following the deaths, Miss Morgan's family said she was a "beautiful daughter, sister, granddaughter and auntie who had a heart of gold and would do anything for anybody." Mr Simmons was a described as a genuine and lovely young man by a childhood friend, who added: "he always had a smile on his face and he was well loved". Hundreds also attended vigils in memory of the couple around the city. Judge Eleri Rees, the Recorder of Cardiff, remanded Saunders into custody. The defendant, who had short brown hair and a beard and wore a blue hooded top, spoke only to confirm his name before entering guilty pleas. He will be sentenced next year by Mrs Justice Nicola Davies. Prosecutor Michael Jones said she would have to watch "disturbing" CCTV footage.

Question: A man has admitted murdering a couple found @placeholder on a street near the Cardiff city centre Matalan shop where they worked .


The car, in Glencaw Park in the Galliagh area of the city, was set on fire at about 23:45 GMT on Wednesday evening. It is believed a petrol bomb was used in the attack. No-one was injured. Three men, dressed in balaclavas and dark jackets, were seen running away from the car after it was set alight. The family were in the house at the time with their four children. The children's aunt said her brother chased the men but was not able to catch them. "He just wants to know why they did it," she said. "That's the only thing that is really bothering him. "He would like them to approach him and tell him why they did it with the children in the house. "We're not going to move out. We want to stay and get it sorted out." She added that the children were frightened after the incident. "The oldest one knows everything that's going on, she's terrified to stay in the house now," she said. "She was asking everything about the police being involved. She's only six years old. "It's not as if we could have hid it from her because she was awakened by all the noise and banging." SDLP councillor Brian Tierney said the family were "shocked and distraught" by the attack. The police have appealed for information.

Question: A family whose car was destroyed in an arson attack in Londonderry have said they want to know why they were @placeholder .


A rocket from the Hebrides missile range in the Western Isles has become the first vehicle to be launched into space from UK soil. But the achievement almost went unnoticed. It happened in October during an international military exercise in the Atlantic. The aim of At Sea Demonstration 15 was to test the ability of warships to defend themselves against incoming missiles. One of the those incoming target missiles was an American Terrier-Orion two-stage rocket which was launched from the Hebrides missile range in the Western Isles. Playing the part of a ballistic missile, it soared high over the North Atlantic, so becoming the first space vehicle to lift-off from UK soil and leave the Earth's atmosphere. Until now every UK space shot has had to go abroad to be launched. It was an exercise which achieved several firsts in military technology.  But this milestone passed almost unmarked. The point was to stop the missile coming down, not watch it go up. What's more the Terrier-Orion will never appear in a museum because it was blown to bits over the Atlantic by the US Navy's guided missile destroyer USS Ross. For Dr Malcolm Macdonald, of Strathclyde University and director of the Scottish Centre of Excellence in Satellite Applications, the milestone has brought particular pleasure, not least that it was launched from the Hebrides Range. "Probably the least-heralded event of 2015 is that an object was sent into space from the UK," he says. "Also, that's where my family croft was, according to our family history. "It'd be great to see some real spacecraft going up into orbit from Scotland." That may happen next. The news emerged as six sites are vying to become the UK's first commercial spaceport, four of them in Scotland. A conference organised by the Royal Aeronautical Society is hearing from six sites hoping to be the chosen by the UK as a spaceport. They are the airports at Prestwick, Campbeltown and Stornoway, the former RAF base at Leuchars in Fife, Newquay airport in Cornwall and Llanbedr airport in the Snowdonia National Park. Here the emphasis will be on horizontal launches, such as those achieved by the Virgin Galactic project. There's more to that than space tourism. Virgin Galactic are preparing to test a launcher which could put small satellites into orbit from a Boeing 747. And former Virgin Galactic president Will Whitehorn says the tourism spin-offs are not to be sniffed at. "People will come to see space launches," he says. "Would somebody go to Machrihanish to see a rocket launch? "Well, people go to Cape Canaveral to see rockets launched. "They even go to Roswell, New Mexico, to see a plastic alien because they're so interested in space." It is worth bearing in mind that Scotland is pretty good at this space business already. It's reckoned our space industry already supports five and a half thousand, mostly highly-skilled, jobs. In 2014, Ukube-1 became the first Scottish-built satellite to go into orbit. Does today's news mean the Hebrides Missile Range could host a space launch site? QuinetiQ, who run it for the UK Ministry of Defence, say they have no plans to use it as a commercial spaceport. But they do stress they have the expertise to support a spaceport anywhere in the UK. And a feasibility study is under way for a commercial vertical launch facility near Tongue in Sutherland. Could Scotland boldly go? We already have.

Question: Scotland has @placeholder another first in space .


Southend United striker Nile Ranger, 25, has been charged with conspiracy to defraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, police said. The offences are alleged to have been committed in February 2015. Mr Ranger appeared alongside two other defendants at Highbury Corner Magistrates' Court earlier. Aseany Duncan, 19, was charged with possessing the personal bank details of 500 people on his phone for the use of fraud. He was also charged with conspiracy to defraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering alongside Mr Ranger and Reanne Morgan, 18. The case will next be heard at Wood Green Crown Court in the New Year. Southend United have said Mr Ranger will continue to be available for selection at the League One club. Read more on this story and other Essex news Mr Ranger, of Bounds Green, north London, signed a new three-and-a-half year contract with Southend at the start of this month, having started his career at Newcastle United before moving to Swindon Town and then Blackpool. He joined Southend in the summer after a trial, having not played a first-team game since November 2014 while at Blackpool.

Question: A footballer has been charged over an alleged scam involving a vulnerable person 's bank details being taken so their savings could be @placeholder .


More than 700 travelling fans watched Vale suffer their fifth straight away loss to slip back into the bottom four. But Brown believes many fans are aware of the circumstances that he is working under, with his squad hit by injuries. "We can see they're frustrated, 100%," Brown told BBC Radio Stoke. "The ones who look into the true problems we have are very understanding of the situation," added the 40-year-old, who is still acting on a caretaker manager basis and awaiting a decision on his own future. The loss of defender Andre Bikey late on in Vale's defeat on Saturday, to become the club's ninth current injury casualty, was the sparking point to the fans' anger. But Brown is now ready to risk turning as his replacement to Remie Streete, who has been sidelined for three matches with a hamstring injury, when they host promoted Sheffield United on Good Friday. "We hope to have Remie for Friday," Brown added. "We certainly need him." Vale have only won three times in 2017 - but all three have been in the past month, in a run of good home form that has brought them 10 points out of a possible 12 at Vale Park. Their biggest home test to date comes on Friday against the Blades, one of Brown's old clubs and the likely League One champions. "Other teams are beating teams who are higher in the table," he said. "That's what we're going to have to do in the coming weeks. "We knew it was going to go all the way, but there are games we can still win. We need to be as positive as we can." Vale, in 21st, are one point behind three clubs - Bury, Shrewsbury Town and Gillingham. Brown's men have a game in hand, away at Walsall on 25 April, but Vale have the second worst away record in the division, having picked up just nine points in 20 games. They have lost last their past five away matches, having not won on their travels since beating MK Dons 1-0 on 9 October.

Question: Port Vale caretaker manager Michael Brown says he can understand why some supporters @placeholder their frustration at the end of Saturday 's 1 - 0 League One defeat at Chesterfield .


The court objected to a requirement that voters register no later than 15 days before polling day. Some other provisions were also deemed to be unconstitutional. The conservative party of PM Viktor Orban dominates parliament. Last year Fidesz changed some other laws amid EU pressure over democratic standards. After Friday's court ruling the head of the party's parliamentary group, Antal Rogan, said the new voter registration system would not be introduced for the 2014 general election. The new electoral law was adopted by parliament last November, but then President Janos Ader referred it to the constitutional court. He also highlighted public concern about the law's provisions on election campaigning and advertising. The court ruled that the law restricted voter rights to an unjustifiable degree, the Politics.hu news website reports. The court objected to a proposal that political ads be restricted to the publicly run media, calling it a grave violation of freedom of speech. The court also opposed proposed bans on cinemas screening political ads during the campaign and on the publication of any election-related opinion polls in the six days prior to election day. Last year the European Commission - the EU's executive arm - took legal action against Mr Orban's government over reforms to Hungary's central bank, data protection and the judiciary. There have been many protests in Hungary against Fidesz's laws which, in the eyes of critics, infringe on civil liberties. Mr Orban has accused the EU of interfering in Hungary's domestic affairs. He has argued that major reforms are necessary to "renew" Hungary's institutions, saying the legacy of communism has not yet been eradicated.

Question: Hungary 's constitutional court has struck down a controversial electoral law that critics said would have @placeholder the ruling party , Fidesz .


Theresa May has framed this election in terms of Brexit. The Conservatives are the party which will deliver on the referendum result, she has said, while other parties - namely Labour and the Lib Dems - want to frustrate the process. In doing so she's stolen a march on UKIP; the party which for so long was the sole advocate of leaving the EU. It hasn't abandoned Brexit. It has said it will continue to "hold the government's feet to the fire" and push for the kind of EU exit it wants, adamant there's still a role to play. But UKIP needs a new unique selling point. Cue a plethora of policies designed to appeal to the party's core voters; a moratorium on new Islamic schools in the state system, Sharia courts outlawed and a ban on face coverings in public places. This is a return to right-wing territory in which UKIP has dabbled before. A step away from the libertarian values the party has said in the past that it stands for. It's an extension of the party's popular stance on controlled immigration; limit the number of people who come to the UK and ensure those who do fully integrate into society. But it's more than that. UKIP has long appealed to a certain emotion among parts of the electorate, portraying itself as the true protector of British values, proud to stand up for a way of life it claims is at risk of erosion from political correctness. Its integration agenda was quickly labelled by some as offensive, even Islamophobic, but for UKIP these policies are true patriotism, a defence of the realm and its values from what it calls "crude multiculturalism". UKIP still sees itself as the party prepared to say things other politicians won't, unafraid to risk offence to create debate. It takes credit for forcing other parties to talk frankly about immigration; now they hope to do the same with integration and in doing so ensure their relevance beyond Brexit and appeal to their traditional supporters. The Tories have stomped on UKIP turf, so the party's trying to break new ground. If it's more radical as a consequence? So be it. The question is whether it will be enough.

Question: What do you do when the central policy on which your party was @placeholder and has long campaigned becomes the domain of a political rival ? If you 're UKIP , get radical .


But you might take a second glance when you notice that the footballer in question isn't playing in 2011, but in 1911. Leigh Richmond Roose was born in Holt near Wrexham on 27 November 1877, and died during the Battle of The Somme, aged 38, in October 1916. His biographer calls him a "forgotten hero" and the game's "first superstar". Roose started his amateur career at Aberystwyth Town in 1895, while studying medicine at the university there. But within two seasons Roose became famous throughout Wales, both for his keeping, and his crowd-pleasing antics. He would turn his back on play to tell jokes to the fans, and perform gymnastics from the goal crossbar while the ball was at the other end of the field. By 1900, he'd led Aberystwyth to the Welsh Cup, and earned an international call-up It also brought him to the attention of English First Division clubs, seeing him play for Stoke City, Everton, Sunderland, Celtic, Aston Villa and Woolwich Arsenal. His biographer, Spencer Vignes, explained the Football Association was even forced to change the rules of the game because of him. "Leigh revolutionised the way the game was played in England.  Before Leigh, goalkeepers were just shot-stoppers, if they came off their line they had no protection from being punched, shoulder-charged and trampled by the forwards, in a game which was vastly more physical than today. "Usually they were too terrified to come out of their goal, even though - in those days - they were allowed to handle the ball anywhere in their own half of the field." "But Leigh was such a physical specimen that he could take on the forwards at their own game. "He'd flatten the striker, catch the ball, and carry play up field like a rugby fullback does today.  So in 1912, at the end of his career, the rules were changed so that keepers could only handle the ball inside the penalty area." Practical jokes But Mr Vignes said the FA was not a fan of Roose. "They hated him every bit as much as the fans loved him. He insisted on staying amateur, playing practical jokes and larking around at a time when the FA were trying to portray football as a serious professional sport." "Leigh was also a bit of a London socialite, and made as many headlines off the field as on it; something else which didn't go down too well with the FA" In 1909 the FA launched an investigation into the expenses Roose, as an amateur, was claiming from his then club, Sunderland. As an amateur, he could not be paid for playing, but received more in expenses than his team-mates earned professionally. According to Mr Vignes, the FA's concerns weren't entirely unmerited. When Roose missed his train from Euston for a 1906 Stoke match away to Aston Villa, he hired his own locomotive and carriage, and sent the ¡ê31 bill to his club; this at a time when a miner would earn around ¡ê1, three shillings a week. Yet Roose's clubs considered it money well spent. "You have to remember that the people who run football clubs are businessmen.  If Leigh was getting ¡ê1,000 a season in expenses, then you can be sure that the clubs were making ¡ê2,000 a season through the turnstiles and in extra publicity." "He was the first football superstar, with the playing style of Peter Schmiechel, the bon viveur attitude of George Best, and the media-savvy sense of David Beckham." "People who'd never watched football in their life knew who he was, children chased his carriage, and women hung around his hotel for the chance to spend a night with him." Among those women was music hall star Marie Lloyd, who popularised the song My Old Man Said Follow The Van. Their relationship - Lloyd was married at the time - caused a media storm, displeasing the FA, but only serving to enhance Roose's popularity. In 1905 The Daily Mail listed Roose as London's second most eligible bachelor, behind cricketing legend Jack Hobbs. When the paper invited readers to vote for players in a World XI, Roose won the goalkeeper's spot by a landslide. Forgotten hero One hundred years ago, Roose ended his playing career with Arsenal, having never properly recovered from a broken wrist two years before. When war broke out in 1914, he joined the Royal Army Medical Corps, despite having never completed his medicine degree. Later he transferred to the Royal Fusiliers and served in the trenches at the Battle of The Somme in 1916. He earned the Military Medal for using his goalkeeping skills to fend off a flame-thrower attack on his unit, by hurling grenades into the enemy. But just weeks after learning of the honour, Roose was killed on 7 October, 1916. Details about his death had remained a mystery until Mr Vignes researched his biography. "Nobody knew exactly what had happened, Leigh had simply vanished from the official records." "It was only after studying the war memorial to the Somme victims at Theipval, that I discovered that he is listed on there, but as 'Corporal Rouse', not 'Corporal Roose." "I don't know why Leigh is largely a forgotten hero nowadays, his life had all the ingredients to make him a legend a century on."

Question: You could be forgiven for skipping over yet another article talking about a talented international goalkeeper who courts the cameras , dates the trendiest singers , lands himself in hot water through his bad @placeholder and gets big money .


Peace envoy Mr Waite was kidnapped in Lebanon in January 1987 as he negotiated the release of western hostages. After his release five years later he flew into RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire, where the bells of the nearby parish church were rung to mark his arrival. During his latest visit, he met the bell-ringers who had welcomed him home. Mr Waite was held captive, mostly in solitary confinement, chained and often blindfolded, for 1,763 days before his release on 18 November 1991. Now aged 77, he returned to the former RAF base where his plane landed, and where he stayed for several weeks as he began to get his life back to normal. During the return visit in which the bells were rung for him again, he thanked some of the original bell-ringers at the neighbouring St Michael and All Angels church. "One night my wife and I heard the bells ringing, and I said, 'Oh, the bell ringers must be practising', and she turned to me and said, 'They're ringing the bells for you'. "I thought it was lovely thing to do. Twenty five years on it gives me an opportunity to say thanks for people who cared," he said. "I experienced a real welcome. It was so nice and generous to welcome us in that way. "You don't have to say a great deal or do a great deal - little symbolic gestures mean so much at times of distress." Mr Waite, who was envoy to Robert Runcie, the then Archbishop of Canterbury, also wrote a personal message in the church visitors book, 25 years after he wrote an entry on his first visit to the church. A quarter of a century on from his release, Terry Waite's memories of what happened on that rainy and blustery day, when he flew into RAF Lyneham, have not faded. "It was raining so we went into the great hangar and there I gave my address, and then went to meet my family," he said. "It was an emotional occasion, but it also had an amusing side to it. "When the plane landed Robert Runcie, the Archbishop of Canterbury, was late because he'd been held up by traffic. "On the plane they collected all the paper cups and serviettes in the haste to make the plane tidy and presentable and shoved them in the front toilet, so when Robert ran up the steps late, and said "I must use the loo", he opened the door and was immediately showered with paper cups and serviettes. "It was not a dignified entry for the Archbishop of Canterbury. "It's the amusing things that stick in your mind." You can listen to an exclusive interview with Terry Waite as he returns to Lyneham, on Marie Lennon's programme on BBC Wiltshire on Wednesday 19 October from 09:00 BST.

Question: Former hostage Terry Waite has @placeholder the site of his return to the UK 25 years ago .


The Royal Lancaster Infirmary has again blamed "a significant surge in demand" for the problem. It comes three weeks after a similar appeal was issued over a lack of beds. University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust said: "Yet again we are experiencing increased pressure in our A&E department at the RLI." A trust spokesman said: "This is due mostly to patients that need to be admitted to our wards from A&E, however, due to delayed discharges and lack of bed availability, we are having to keep those patients in A&E." Another appeal was made in March. People who are not suffering serious illnesses or injuries are advised to dial the NHS advice line on 111, a pharmacist, Primary Care Assessment Centre, or GP.

Question: A hospital has urged people to @placeholder going to its accident and emergency unit for the third time in six months .


Excalibur Steel is the name of the management buy-out bid. It was thought to involve keeping the blast furnaces open for the production of new steel and was favoured by unions. It was based on the original turnaround plan submitted to - and rejected by - the board of Tata in March. The Liberty House bid was submitted by Indian businessman Sanjeev Gupta who has already snapped up some of Tata's assets. His plan involved recycling existing steel in less costly and labour-intensive Arc furnaces rather than producing brand new steel. These two bids have been submitted separately and seem incompatible but it emerges there is a potential compromise position in which Excalibur would work with Liberty on a plan that would see one of the blast furnaces continue operating for an unspecified time, while simultaneously introducing Arc furnaces alongside. In a potential tie-up, Excalibur would bring valuable management know how in the shape of Stuart Willkie, the man who ran Tata's strip products business until taking a recent leave of absence to mount the Excalibur bid. A combined bid is thought to be popular with the government which has offered hundreds of millions in debt financing and an offer to take a stake of up to 25% in the company that wins. Other names reported to be interested are: private equity group Greybull Capital, which recently bought Tata's Scunthorpe steel plant; Chinese producer Hebei Iron and Steel; Leeds-based private equity fund Endless; JSW, India's second largest steel producer; and NUCOR, the largest steel-maker in the US. The bids will be submitted to a Tata board meeting in Mumbai on Wednesday and the Business Secretary Sajid Javid will be going along in a show of government support. He was severely criticised for being in Australia at the time of the crucial board meeting in March when Tata put its UK business up for sale.

Question: As the deadline for bids for Tata 's UK steel business @placeholder by this lunchtime , it seems there is potential for two of the bidders to work together .


Whizz, a Newfoundland, worked with the Royal Navy Rescue, the Severn Area Rescue Association and the Marine Volunteer Service. He died on 1 March, aged 12, following a ten year water rescue career. The PDSA Order of Merit is given to animals that display outstanding devotion to their owner or society. Whizz, who had cancer, is only the third dog to receive the honour since it was brought in 2014. His handler Ellie Bedford, owner David Pugh and descendent Tizz, accepted the medal on his behalf from PDSA Director General Jan McLoughlin. Mr Pugh, from Portishead near Bristol, said Whizz was "exuberant - a fantastic working dog" who gave his all then came home for love and affection. He was trained to work with a lifeguard who swims with the dog on rescue missions. "A drowning person is like 10 people because they panic and can take a dog under with them, so the lifeguard swims with the dog to talk to the victim," said Mr Pugh. His work as a therapy dog included visits to children and adults in hospices and helping children overcome their fear of dogs. "I won't see his like again but I've got great memories," Mr Pugh said.

Question: A dog which rescued nine people during his working life @placeholder the Bristol Channel and River Severn has been given a posthumous award for his service .


The health director of Takhar province said the girls fell ill shortly after drinking water at their school. An education official in Kabul said preliminary investigations suggested the water had been poisoned. A local official in Takhar suggested that people opposed to education for girls were responsible. The BBC's Bilal Sarwary in Kabul says that similar events have been reported before, but no conclusive evidence of poisoning has been found. The official said 40 girls were treated and then discharged but 100 others including female teachers have been kept in hospital, after complaining of severe nausea, headaches and dizziness. The water has been sent to a laboratory for analysis, and the official said he had asked for a full inquiry. A spokesman for the education directorate in Takhar said the victims are aged from 14 to 30. He said it appeared that "narrow-minded people" opposed to education for girls were behind the incident.

Question: More than 100 schoolgirls in northeastern Afghanistan are in hospital suffering from @placeholder poisoning .


Plans for the €617m (¡ê517m; $656m) pre-Christmas handout were opposed by European bodies negotiating Greece's financial lifeline. A deal agreed earlier this month to provide the next tranche of debt relief for Athens is now on hold. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said Greece would not be blackmailed. Athens said the pension payment would come out of a €1bn tax surplus but European creditors on Thursday said the Greek move raised "significant concerns on both process and substance" regarding the country's bailout obligations. In a joint statement, representatives from the European Central Bank, the European Commission and the European rescue fund said they would now decide whether to uphold a Eurogroup decision granting Greece short-term debt relief earlier this month. Mr Tsipras said the situation had to be resolved "without blackmail" on the part of Greece's creditors. France has defended Greece against a hardening stance by Germany and the Eurogroup of EU finance ministers, headed Jeroen Dijsselbloem. A spokesman for Mr Dijsselbloem on Wednesday said the eurozone was suspending the recently announced debt relief scheme for Athens in retaliation for not being fully briefed on Mr Tsipras's handout plans, which also include a lower sales tax for Greek islands dealing with migration. "The institutions have concluded that the actions of the Greek government appear to not be in line with our agreements," said the spokesman. But France's Finance Minister, Michel Sapin, and the country's European economic affairs commissioner, Pierre Moscovici, have publicly distanced themselves from the Eurogroup decision. "Individual statements are not the collective statements of the Eurogroup," said Mr Sapin. The latest debt-relief deal with Greece was agreed on 5 December and would reduce the interest burden on the country's debts of more than €300bn. The Greek government announced its bonus for pensioners receiving below €800 a month just three days later but without consulting the eurozone representatives. It also scrapped a rise in VAT for residents of Aegean islands to help relieve the economic pressure caused by an influx of migrants. The arrangement of 5 December included extending the maturity on certain loans to the Greek government, and locking in the interest rate on some of its debts in order to reduce the country's repayment burden, but it did not alter the total amount owed. A key player in the latest decision to suspend the recent debt deal has been Germany. "If the rescue programme is going to be deemed a success, it is imperative that measures are not taken unilaterally," said a spokesman for the German finance ministry.

Question: The Greek parliament has defied the international creditors providing Athens ' bailout funds and @placeholder through a one - off payment to pensioners .


The raids came as the government banned the group, which it accused of trying to recruit fighters for so-called Islamic State (IS). An Interior Ministry spokeswoman said there was no indication DWR (True Religion) was planning attacks itself. She said the group had breached the constitution and incited hatred. There was no immediate statement from the group. Some of those who have gone to fight for IS in the Middle East had contact with the organisation before they left. Officials estimate that almost 900 people in total have so far left Germany to join IS in Syria or Iraq. "The message to the radical Islamist scene is clear: we do not tolerate fanatics who try to radicalise young people and send them to jihad," said Peter Beuth, interior minister for Hesse state, where some of the raids took place. "By banning this organisation, a major source of radicalisation has been eradicated nationwide. Those who spread hate messages can't hide behind freedom of religion."

Question: German police have carried out nationwide dawn raids on more than 200 mosques , apartments and @placeholder associated with an Islamist group .


In the video, a car can be seen mounting the pavement and striking the victim in Mansfield town centre. Nottinghamshire Police said it was "unbelievable" he suffered only minor injuries and is "recovering well" after the incident, which happened in April. Officers are appealing to garages which may have repaired a Skoda Octavia with front end damage. The victim was hit in Leeming Street by a dark-coloured vehicle, which also collided with an electric box before heading off along a bus lane and travelling down Clumber Street. Police believe the car was parked in Leeming Street before the incident and the driver may have been involved in an altercation with people outside the Bowl in Hand pub. Det Con Kelly Holloway said: "Had the car not struck the electric box this incident could easily have ended in tragedy."

Question: Footage of a hit - and - run in which a man @placeholder to be crushed against a wall has been released .


The 18th Century road bridge over the River Wharfe in Tadcaster is expected to take up to 12-months to repair at a cost of ¡ê3m. It collapsed on 29 December last year, splitting the town in two. The government provided ¡ê300,000 towards the costs of the footbridge, which has been built in sections over the river. The bridge was formally opened by the chair of North Yorkshire County Council, David Jeffels, and the town's Conservative MP, Nigel Adams. The men crossed the bridge accompanied by a mother and daughter who live on opposite sides of the river. Chrissie Wilson, whose home was flooded over Christmas, was crossing the bridge to stay with her mother Babs when it began to collapse. Miss Wilson said: "We're so proud to be doing this. Mum was born and grew up in Tadcaster and her family goes back 300 years in the town. "We're just so impressed with the way the town has pulled together through all this and delighted to have a bridge that connects the centre of the town again." The town's county councillor, Chris Metcalfe, said the opening of the temporary bridge was a chance for the whole town to celebrate. "Everybody has shown incredible community spirit through these past challenging weeks. "The county council and its contractors are proud to have met the challenges and completed the footbridge as swiftly as possible so that people and business can get back to some normality," he said.

Question: A footbridge reuniting a town @placeholder after its road bridge collapsed during flooding has opened .


The big difference is that the numbers from which you make your six selections will go up in October from one to 49 to one to 59. While this doesn't sound like it will make a huge difference, it actually takes your odds of winning the jackpot from one in 14 million to one in 45 million. Camelot, which runs the lottery, says that the new system will create bigger, rolling jackpots, which is true. Because it is so much less likely that anybody will win the top prize, there will be many more rollovers. It also says that the chances of winning a prize have increased, which is true, because people who match two numbers will get a free go on the game the following week. The chances of winning a cash prize, however, have fallen considerably. There will also be a raffle that will give prizes of ¡ê1m and ¡ê20,000, for which the odds of winning depend on the number of entries, but the organisers estimate that you have a one in 10 million chance of winning either ¡ê1m on the raffle or the jackpot. This change comes only two years after the last set of changes, which doubled the price of a ticket to ¡ê2 but introduced the raffle with ¡ê20,000 prizes. At the time, the prize for matching three balls increased from ¡ê10 to ¡ê25. The odds of matching three balls were unchanged, but of course the cost of entry had doubled, which effectively doubled the odds (because ¡ê2 would previously have bought two tickets). The estimated prize for matching five balls plus the bonus ball fell from ¡ê100,000 to ¡ê50,000 while the prize for matching five balls went from ¡ê1,500 to ¡ê1,000. It appears that the Lotto organisers have discovered that what persuades people to buy lottery tickets is rollovers to create enormous prizes. Camelot's commentary in its financial reporting about the effect that Euromillions rollovers (or the lack of them) have on ticket sales is very clear about that. The company is clearly counting on the lengthening odds of winning both vast amounts of money and small and middling sums having less effect. Because honestly, who can cope in their head with the difference between odds of 14 million to one and odds of 45 million to one? It's like comparing the odds of flipping a coin and getting 22 consecutive heads with the odds of getting 24. They both represent staggeringly unlikely events - it's just that in the case of a lottery it happens to someone every now and then.

Question: There has been outrage on some front pages about the shake - up to the Lotto game @placeholder this week .