"Boys were hit, force-fed sick, slippered, beaten in the sports barn," said Niomi Gabrielle, a former pupil of the now-closed Oakwood School, in Stowmarket, run for boys with emotional and behavioural problems. The school, which operated from 1974 to 2000, has been at the centre of a Suffolk Police inquiry into allegations of excessive physical abuse. Two former teachers admitted two offences each this week, while other charges against them, and two other teachers, were dismissed at Ipswich Crown Court. Corporal punishment was made illegal in UK schools in 1987. Brian Alliban was at a mainstream primary in Bury St Edmunds but was moved by the authorities and his parents to Oakwood, from the age of eight, until he left in 1986 when he was 16. He had gender reassignment surgery in adult life and is now known as Niomi Gabrielle. She watched the Oakwood trial from the public gallery at court. "There were teachers who were very demanding and very violent in the way they treated other boys and elements of that have traumatised me ever since," said Ms Gabrielle. "The punishments which were meted out were legal to a point, but when it got to the stage of whacking someone's head against a canoe for example, that is over the top in terms of how a child should be treated by a member of staff." She said one of her worst memories was being forced to eat liver at mealtimes, which she she did not like and then being forced to eat her own sick when she vomited. She said she was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder as an adult, as well as gender dysphoria. "I already had emotional problems, interpersonal and learning difficulties but certainly the physical abuse that happened at Oakwood and a lot of things I've struggled with since, are a result of being there." Ms Gabrielle is one of more than 100 former pupils who are mounting a civil legal case for damages against Suffolk County Council, which ran Oakwood. Speaking at the end of the trial at Ipswich Crown Court, a Suffolk County Council spokesman said: "[When individuals came forward] we immediately contacted the police who initiated a complex and detailed investigation into these allegations. "We are very glad this investigation has now reached a conclusion and that the voices of the people involved at the time have been fully heard and hope they feel justice has been done. "We would strongly encourage anyone who has previously experienced such treatment to bring it to our attention at the earliest possible opportunity." The two teachers, along with a former head teacher, are due to be sentenced on Friday. Ms Gabrielle said she had some good memories of Oakwood. "The school wasn't just full of bad people violating boys - there were also good teachers," she said.

Question: After two teachers admitted abusing children at a state boarding school , a former pupil has said she was left " traumatised " after being forced to eat vomit and @placeholder serious violence .


It is exactly a year since the last nuclear reactor was switched off at Wylfa on Anglesey. But staff told BBC Wales it had been 12 months of both personal and technical challenges to overcome. It includes the loss of over 200 jobs at the plant over the period, and more to come after de-fuelling ends. "There's been many challenges and there's times you have felt really uncomfortable," said site director Stuart Law. "You can see individuals you have known and worked with for many years coming to terms with the situation we are in. "We have so many good people across this site, and people who have left, and their knowledge was about how this all ran. "Today, it's about the de-fuelling process and how you take it apart. It's a different mindset and difficult to get your mind around." When the second of two reactors at Wylfa was turned off on 30 December, 2015, there were about 550 people working at the site. A year on, the roll-call of those working for Magnox at the Anglesey plant stands at 344. But the head of the Wylfa site said the firm had been "really fortunate" and had been able "to meet the aspirations of lots of people" - whether through voluntary redundancies, retirement, or redeployment at other Magnox sites - including Trawsfynydd in Gwynedd, which is also undergoing decommissioning. "Remember, we have a job to do, and that job is to do the de-fuelling," he said. "So we have kept a large number of staff as well - 344 today is still a big employer on Anglesey." It has meant people such as Gareth Jackson have had to rethink their roles. The senior production technician is one of many at the plant who have had to switch from working regular day shifts to a 12-hour pattern, as the de-fuelling operation runs around the clock. It has been a steep learning curve for him, as he trained for the new skills needed in the task. "I'm starting all over again," he said. "It's been a good change in many respects. Initially, I had just six months work - now I've got until when the fuel goes out of the reactor. "It's job security - and that's what we all need in the end." However, the task at Wylfa remains enormous. Since de-fuelling began at Easter 2016, about 25% of the total spent fuel used at Wylfa has been recovered and removed. But it still means there are 74,389 Magnox fuel elements on site that need to go for reprocessing. And it will require nearly 500 more journeys of specially constructed nuclear flasks from Anglesey to Sellafield in Cumbria.

Question: All nuclear fuel at a former Welsh @placeholder plant should be off the site within two years , specialist teams have said .


The sectarian nature of Syria's conflict is not just played out on the battlefield, but in the calculations of wealthy Gulf powers: the Sunni monarchies of the Arabian Peninsula are acutely aware of the opportunity in Syria to remove a Shia leader in Bashar al-Assad. But while they share this mutual interest in removing Mr Assad, their usually co-ordinated response is being severely tested, as respective Gulf leaders pursue different paths. Qatar openly supports the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood, and is thought to provide money and arms to many different groups inside Syria - including al-Qaeda-affiliated Jabhat al-Nusra. Saudi Arabia meanwhile has been chiefly concerned about Iran's role, and has been much more cautious, choosing instead to back its own carefully selected groups so as not to help Islamists that may pose a threat to its own security. Bahrain, conscious of its own majority Shia population that has rattled the leadership with months of clashes, has taken a more conciliatory tone, calling on Iran to withdraw its support for Assad, but hoping that a "new page" could be opened with the country following its recent presidential election. Kuwait's position has until now been one of neutrality, but the ancient tribal networks that link it with Syria, and concerns about extremists in the country, means it too has had to tread more carefully, focusing instead on aid efforts. These different approaches to the crisis reflect the different priorities and concerns inside each country. It is the same Sunni-Shia divide leaving scores dead in Syria that colours Gulf responses to Syria's war. The most active of all the Gulf states has been Qatar because it is not concerned about the consequences of its foreign policy on its domestic stability. Its internal dynamics are not being rocked by sectarian divides, and the dangers of political Islam and religious extremism are much more acute elsewhere in the Gulf. Qatar also need not worry about placating or managing an angry Shia population as the Saudis or Bahrainis do. But the active role some of these Gulf States have taken in trying to remove President Assad and their financial and political commitments to the opposition, seem at odds with their commitment to UN aid efforts. An international aid conference in January, hosted by Kuwait, saw the US, European countries and a number of Gulf states pledge a total of $1.5bn (?¡ê985m) to help the millions of Syrians forced from their homes. But while most Western pledges have been made - and were added to at the G8 summit last month - Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE are among the Gulf States who have yet to meet their targets. According to the UN, Qatar has donated just $2.8m of the $100m it pledged in January, while only $23m of the $78m Saudi Arabia promised has so far materialised. Kuwait's minister of state for cabinet affairs Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah al Sabah called on his neighbour states to contribute the promised funds. He told the BBC Kuwait was "honoured" to have met its $300m target, and that he was "sure our Gulf brothers will be at the forefront of this call to honour their pledges also." Sheikh Mohammad insisted his country remained neutral on the issue of arming Syria's rebels. "We are apolitical," he said. "We have been apolitical since the start of this crisis. We are not for or against arming." He refused to be drawn on Qatar's more aggressive policy, making clear that Qatar is "an integral member of the GCC," adding that Kuwaitis "are very close to our Qatari brothers." But Sheikh Mohammad warned that violence will continue as long as Syria remained a "theatre" for regional power games.

Question: As sectarian loyalties and foreign powers push Syria deeper into its bloody conflict , it has also @placeholder the competing interests of Gulf States , some of which have large stakes in the war .


Kearan Tongue-Gibbs, 11, from Redditch, is a spin bowler who grips the ball in the fold of his arm. He has been identified as a talented young disabilities player by the England and Wales Cricket Board. Volunteers from WellChild's Helping Hands project have cleared a space in Kearan's back garden and installed cricket nets. Kearan, who uses no artificial aids when batting and bowling, plays alongside able-bodied children at Walkwood Middle School and at Astwood Bank Cricket Club. His mother, Carrie, said her son's talent was first noticed when he was playing beach cricket on a family holiday. "At the time Kearan's uncle was playing cricket for his university and he said that Kearan had a knack for playing and that we should do something about it." Kearan lists England batsmen Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott among his cricketing heroes. He regularly attends special training sessions for cricketers with disabilities at Edgbaston cricket ground in Birmingham.

Question: A young cricketer born with no hands or forearms has had @placeholder facilities installed in his garden by a charity .


New admissions to the unit at University Hospital of Wales (UHW) stopped on Thursday because of a "cluster of infections". Cardiff and Vale University Health Board said infected babies had been treated and their condition was improving. Other babies who need neonatal care will be referred to other hospitals. The health board said enhanced infection prevention control measures had been put in place to prevent the infections - Acinetobacter baumanii and Enterobacter - spreading. Ruth Walker, director of nursing at the health board, said the hospital was looking to provide extra cot space elsewhere within its maternity services. There are 15 babies at the unit, which has 30 cots for intensive care, high dependency and special care. There are plans to expand the unit to 50 cots as part of proposals to centralise hospital services in south Wales, which would see more babies being treated at UHW. A health board spokesman said it recognised "capacity is being stretched" and work to refurbish the unit was due to start within months. Earlier on Friday, Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan Community Health Council (CHC) claimed "poor infection control measures" had led to the closure of the unit. A CHC spokesman said it had expressed concerns about the space available in the unit following a visit in February. Chief officer Stephen Allen said the "most pertinent" of these was the fact staff were changing in toilets and equipment was being stored in an isolation room. Mr Allen called on the health board to urgently create a brand new facility, saying: "The unit is so cramped there's not enough space for barrier nursing if a patient becomes infected. "For far too long we have had a poor facility which provides excellent care, we need to re-balance that." Ms Walker told BBC Radio Wales that staff could change in toilets if they wanted to but it was "not necessarily something we would be promoting". "There is nothing to suggest that there is a cross infection issue if staff change in a bathroom facility, but it's not the optimum approach. The key here is hand hygiene," she said. Staff would change into disposable uniforms when dealing with infections, she added.

Question: Twelve babies have tested positive for bacterial infections which have @placeholder a neonatal unit in Cardiff .


Funding now comes from local councils, the Clinical Commissioning Group and the Police and Crime Commissioner. The new service will be run by charity P3, which takes over from previous contractor St Mungo's. P3 said it would "not offer a one-size fits all service" and aimed to help people "rebuild their lives". Mark Simms, from P3, said: "Our first and foremost priority is to ensure that current clients accessing services are informed and engaged with, making the transition as smooth and positive for them as we possibly can." The funding will "mainly pay" for the outreach team who have been commissioned to "find and assess people who are new to sleeping on the streets, or who are longer-term rough sleepers with complex needs, and to support them into accommodation and support as quickly as possible". The money is expected to fund the service for the next two years.

Question: Rough sleeper outreach teams in Gloucestershire are to get ¡ê 312,000 to be able to continue services after a central government grant @placeholder .


Media playback is not supported on this device The 2014 Commonwealth Games champion lost to France's Kilian Le Blouch after a penalty in golden score. "People say to me 'you're only 33', but 33 in judo is old. In February I was almost on the verge of not wanting to come," the Norfolk athlete said. "I had a good few months, won European silver, but now it's time to reassess and see what comes next." He continued: "I never say never (about competing at Tokyo 2020). I think my staff may say it's a bit out of reach, maybe British Judo will look to youth for the next four years and maybe they're right to do so." Neither Oates nor his opponent scored a point in the match, and Oates was eight seconds from victory before being penalised by the referee to level the scores and taking it to a golden score, where he was penalised again. Oates continued: "I left it down to the referees, unfortunately. It was a scrappy fight, it's his style of fighting, he doesn't really want to score, he wants to win on shidos (penalties) and I played into that a little bit. "The worst thing is I've been feeling the best I've ever felt going into these Olympics but I've not produced the performance I think my training and work ethic has deserved."

Question: Judoka Colin Oates says he is considering his @placeholder after losing in the 2016 Rio Olympic - 66 kg first round .


The blaze at Bucharest's Colectiv club on 30 October was started by fireworks that ignited foam on the club's walls. On Sunday, four more people died of their injuries, bringing the number of deaths to 45, officials say. The drummer of the band playing the venue died after his condition worsened on a military plane taking him for treatment in Switzerland. The plane turned back to Romania but Bogdan Enache died soon after it landed. Another nine deaths were announced on Saturday. The fire led to mass protests and the resignation of Prime Minister Victor Ponta's government. Read more: Protesters prompt Ponta's fall More than 30 people remain in a serious or critical condition in hospital, Romania's health minister said on Sunday. The ministry says 21 people are being treated in hospitals across Europe and in Israel. The Nato plane left Romania late on Sunday to transport 12 burns victims to the UK and Norway, Emergencies Minister Raed Arafat said. It was not stated how many victims were being taken to each country. Three owners of the club have been arrested amid allegations that the venue was overcrowded, lacked the required number of emergency exits, and may not have been authorised to hold such a concert. Concerns that safety at the club was compromised because of corruption - a long-standing issue in Romania - have further fuelled public anger against the political elite. Hundreds of protesters continue to hold rallies in Bucharest. The demonstrations have now entered their sixth day. President Klaus Iohannis has called for a "sea change" in Romanian politics in the wake of the government resignation. He attended a protest on Sunday night in Bucharest's University Square, and wrote on his Facebook page afterwards: "I told people to stay involved, that only together we can all make Romania the country we want it to be."

Question: Twelve victims of the Bucharest nightclub fire have been @placeholder by Nato to hospitals in the UK and Norway .


When Lewis Kinsella was released by Aston Villa at the end of last season, he thought he would struggle to find a club before the new season began. The 21-year-old defender worked for his uncle as a plumber before he was signed up by League Two side Colchester United. "I was working part-time to earn a bit of cash over the summer in case nothing happened," he told BBC Essex. Kinsella began his career as a trainee with Arsenal before moving to Villa, where he failed to make a first-team appearance in five years with the club. Despite the drop down to the fourth tier of English football, Kinsella is happy to be playing senior football after just two loan spells during his time with Villa. "I think I was held back a bit [by Villa] but they've changed," he continued. "A lot of players there are getting out on loan and I think that's the best thing for young kids, they need to get out and play as many games as they can. "When you're playing in League Two, at the end of the day it's their jobs, they've got to play for their families. If they drop down one more league then there's a chance that you could go part-time."

Question: " I am so happy I 've got everything @placeholder now . I 'm a better footballer than a plumber . "


Concern over Mr Trump's protectionist policies hit the US currency, helping sterling rise 0.89% to $1.24860, a one-month high. Meanwhile the benchmark FTSE 100 index shed 47.26 points to 7,151.18. A stronger pound can hurt multinational firms, as overseas profits are worth less when converted back into sterling. The biggest faller in the FTSE 100 was bookmaker Paddy Power Betfair. Its shares dropped 4.38% after it said revenues had been affected by a run of "customer friendly" results. The company said football results in December and Donald Trump's surprise US election win had cost it about ?¡ê40m in the final quarter of 2016. Electronics giant Dixons Carphone fell by 2.58% ahead of a trading update on Tuesday, however airline Easyjet - which will also update the markets - gained 3.07%. Miner Antofagasta was the best performing stock, climbing 3.6% and leading other basic resources shares higher. Rival Fresnillo also did well, gaining 3.42%. Despite its recent gains, the pound is still down by about 17% against the dollar since the Brexit vote in June 2016.

Question: ( Close ) : UK stocks closed lower on Monday as the pound gained against the dollar following Donald Trump 's inauguration @placeholder .


But she hopes to be a fairly frequent guest as the principal Opposition leader at Holyrood. Consider the strategy here, born of a combination of external circumstance and internal calculation, of both facing reality and seeking to reshape it. Ruth Davidson's pitch to be the second party at Holyrood is, of course, predicated upon a presumption of who will be first. She is positing the return of Nicola Sturgeon as First Minister. Given the SNP's apparent lead in the polls, that would seem to be at the very least a working proposition. So how to gain ground for the Tories? The strategy here is to position the Conservatives as the bulwark standing in the way of the SNP. The Tories calculate that there is a significant section of the electorate who either dislike or distrust the SNP - or, perhaps, simply wish their power to be constrained. Who are seeking balance. The Tories believe there is a mood there to be tapped. So, in that sense, their pitch derives from the referendum result, however much they may state that they wish Scotland to move on from the referendum period.  I believe that desire to be genuine but, nevertheless, the Tories hope to derive a legacy. The SNP have contrived to corral the 45, the Yes voters, to remain in their camp for the UK General Election and quite possibly the Holyrood contest. In similar fashion, the Tories hope that a substantial section of the 55, the No voters, can now be recruited to pitch the Conservatives into the role of guarding against untrammelled SNP power. To do so, the Tories, of course, need to overtake Labour.  Rather a big ask - but that is their objective. They pursue this in a range of ways. Firstly, they suggest that Labour - and the Liberal Democrats - are no longer true, unalloyed Unionists. They make this point by noting that both parties have signalled that members would be free to campaign for independence, should they choose, in a future referendum. I would suggest that this argument in its pure form is relatively weak.  Firstly, Kezia Dugdale and Willie Rennie are not actively encouraging Yes campaigners in their ranks. They are simply acknowledging their potential presence. Secondly, the Conservatives are pursuing just such an open policy with regard to the referendum on the EU - to the extent that Cabinet members in the UK Government are openly on competing sides. However, the Scottish Tory pitch may work in another way. If there is a constituency which distrusts the SNP, if that same constituency dislikes the concept of a second referendum, then the Tories may well be able to depict themselves as the most stalwart in standing against that notion. Then there is the tax question. Ruth Davidson was hugely, hugely tempted to offer an eye-catching tax cut in her manifesto for May's elections.  And she insists she remains an advocate of small government and low tax. But she ruled out the prospect for a series of reasons, having tested the water on the doorsteps. She found that a tax cut was not trusted, not believed. Further, it risked prompting questions about possible cuts in service provision - tricky territory for the Tories. Thirdly, the ground shifted when Labour and the LibDems proposed a penny increase in income tax for Scotland. The Tories could undercut them without changing the tax rates. They could depict their MSPs as a phalanx against higher tax. Incidentally, the Scottish Tories will suggest that Scotland should match the plans by the Chancellor for an increase in the threshold at which folk enter the upper rate. That, they suggest, would amount to a tax cut in Scotland - but without altering the parity with the UK upon which they lay stress. In essence, the offer to the voters from the Tories is transactional. It is a deal, a bargain. They are saying:  vote for us and we will stand firm against a second independence referendum and against tax rises. We will be a bulwark against these plans. There is a further factor underlying the Tory offer. And that is Ruth Davidson herself. It was intriguing to notice how often she talked of electing "me and my team". Once an ing??nue, she has now gained experience and - the party believes - a reputation for determination and diligence. It is still a tough sell pitching for the Tories in Scotland. Nobody denies that. But the party strategists believe that she wins respect and, perhaps, can win votes. The electors will decide whether the strategy is successful. But will it all be subsumed by the European debate? That topic was everywhere at conference. On the floor, on the fringe, in gossipy groups. The divisions may be honourable within the Tories. But they are stark and they are real. There was, though, some evidence of anger at any who attempted to be over-partisan on this topic at a conference where the immediate objective was to focus upon the Holyrood elections. The party leadership in Scotland must simply hope that they - and the voters - can operate in silos; can keep the European choice in reserve, pending the Scottish elections on May 5.

Question: She is not , we are told , measuring the curtains at Bute House just yet . Ruth Davidson , that is . The Scottish Conservative leader told her party 's conference at Murrayfield that , much as she would like to @placeholder the First Minister 's official residence , she thought it unlikely .


Leicestershire Police is also said to have known Mark Cummings and Katie Leong were meeting in breach of a restraining order. On Tuesday, Leong was sentenced to a minimum of 17 years in prison after being found guilty of attempted murder. The force said it is co-operating with the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC). More on this and other stories from Leicestershire In July last year Daniel Rotariu was attacked with 96% pure sulphuric acid while he slept in his bed in a property on Turner Road, Leicester. The attack left him blind and with burns to 32% of his body, for which he still requires treatment. Leicester Crown Court heard Leong had become fixated with carrying out an acid attack. In his evidence, Mr Cummings told the court he had raised concerns about why Leong wanted to buy the acid to his probation officer. A spokesman for the IPCC said a referral from Leicestershire Police was received in August last year, and an investigation can now proceed following the conclusion of the trial. IPCC commissioner Derrick Campbell said the investigation would examine "whether the police response to the information received was appropriate". A spokesman for Leicestershire Police confirmed the referral was made after the attack "into what the force may or may not have known and how we responded to information about the two defendants".

Question: A police force is being investigated over claims it knew acid had been bought for use in a @placeholder attack .


15 February 2016 Last updated at 13:02 GMT The actions of Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris made Columbine a byword for the phenomenon of school shootings. For 17 years, the parents of the Columbine killers have kept their silence. Now Sue Klebold, the mother of Dylan Klebold, has written a book, A Mother's Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of the Columbine Tragedy. All of her proceeds will be donated to research and charitable foundations focusing on mental health issues. In an exclusive interview, she spoke to BBC Newnight's Kirsty Wark. More: The longer version of BBC Kirsty Wark's interview with Sue Klebold will air on BBC Newsnight on Monday 15 February at 22:30 GMT and on Our World on the BBC News Channel and BBC World News (click for transmission times) My life as the mother of the Columbine killer

Question: The Columbine High School massacre in 1999 , which killed 13 @placeholder and injured 24 others in Denver , Colorado , had a seismic impact on the US .


In a statement, the WHO said the deaths had occurred in January to March, with 151 suspected cases recorded. There was, it said, a "serious risk of further spread of the disease" in DRC. The acute, mosquito-borne viral disease has killed 225 people in Angola and infected about 1,600 there. The WHO said the DRC health authorities had set up a national committee to respond to the outbreak, including "screening and sanitary controls" on the country's borders. People travelling to Angola will now be vaccinated against the disease, it added. The WHO statement says that the DRC's health ministry has in addition activated a contingency plan which includes more community engagement to fight the disease and better training of health workers. Yellow fever is a virus that can cause bleeding, jaundice and kidney failure, It is spread by mosquitoes, usually the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the same species that spreads the Zika virus. It is endemic in tropical regions of Africa and South America. A vaccine can prevent infection but there is no specific drug treatment for people who are infected.

Question: An outbreak of yellow fever has killed 21 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo , the World Health Organization ( WHO ) says , @placeholder some cases to an outbreak in neighbouring Angola .


That's what the rhetoric is suggesting. But details of the ground-breaking announcements on health and social care in Greater Manchester are still patchy. The jury will be out for a while, but opinion formers in the health world are favourably disposed at this stage. News of such significance is often trailed in a controlled way with a few outlines released in advanced followed by the full package at a pre-planned press conference. It was nothing of the sort this time. The announcement was a genuine surprise  - there had been no nudges and winks in preceding weeks. It was leaked by over-eager councillors in the Manchester area briefing BBC Radio Manchester and the Manchester Evening News.  Well done to them on a fine scoop. I gather NHS England chiefs were livid that their thunder had been stolen by local authority sources in Manchester. They had planned to unveil the plan in the city today once the memorandum of understanding had been signed. The merger of health and social care for 2.7m people will be one of the most significant developments on Simon Stevens' watch. Understandably he wanted to be in control of the announcement. The Chancellor George Osborne, unsurprisingly, was smiling as he delivered a brief TV clip after the story broke. It fits in well with his Northern powerhouse agenda and the devolution of power and money from Whitehall to Manchester which he set in train last autumn. Cynics might think it all looks rather convenient with the election barely two months away. But I am told that his contacts amongst Greater Manchester councillors were important in facilitating an agreement. A Chancellor of the Exchequer has the clout across national and regional government to make things happen. So with the Chancellor and Simon Stevens of NHS England unveiling the plan in Manchester today, what have we learned? The first thing which has been made clear is that this is a joint initiative involving local authorities and the GPs who head the local health commissioning groups. The idea that ¡ê6 billion was being handed to local councillors was always wrong. A new strategic health and social care partnership board will have representatives from the councils, hospitals and other providers, clinical commissioning groups and local NHS England management. It has been emphasised that the deal does not amount to another reorganisation of the NHS. The new structure in Manchester will have to work to standards on care and patient rights and meet statutory duties set out in the NHS Constitution. Even so Simon Stevens described it as the greatest integration and devolution of care since the creation of the NHS in 1948. The ¡ê6 billion annual budget which has been much talked about includes a mix of money already provided to the local health economy and funds devolved from the centre by NHS England. About ¡ê1.5 billion currently spent by NHS England will be handed to the new Greater Manchester body. This includes money spent on specialised commissioning, for example treatments of rare diseases, and on GP services. The ¡ê6 billion pooled budget will also include funding for public health and social care at present held in town halls. There is no doubt of the excitement amongst health and civic leaders in Greater Manchester, with "defining moment" and "unprecedented agreement" spicing up the press releases. There is a genuine conviction that the new arrangements will help move the region from one with some of the worst health outcomes to the best. Joined up thinking and spending, its argued, will promote prevention and care outside hospitals which can only improve the lives of residents. And yet.....it will be a huge undertaking. The structure, we are told, will be in place by April 2016 and fully functional a year later. Remember, this has never before been tried in England.  It will be on a bigger scale than the integrated health and social care system in Northern Ireland which has been operational since the 1970s. There are suspicions in the health world that local councillors will distort priorities for the NHS. A former clinical director of an NHS drug and alcohol service warned in The Guardian today that devolving this service to a local authority had resulted in it being outsourced because of local government competitive tendering rules. Few doubt that the prize of genuine health and social care integration is well worth striving for.  But delivering it is a big ask. There will be unintended consequences and continued questions about whether this is the beginning of a fragmentation of the NHS in England. Perhaps the old cliche is applicable here - only time will tell.

Question: It has been a potentially momentous week for the NHS and the @placeholder of regional government in England .


At the end of this decade Japan will stage the 2019 Rugby World Cup, and the next year the Olympic and Paralympic Games will be held in Tokyo. Japan has already joint-hosted football's 2002 Fifa World Cup, but the size of the task ahead is of a much greater magnitude. However, the country sees there being equally strong economic, touristic, and sporting benefits. Progress this autumn has been a mixture of highs and lows, with the excitement of the Japan rugby team's showing at the recent Rugby World Cup being counterbalanced by controversy around the 2020 Games logo and stadium. Both those projects have gone back to the drawing board, but Yukihiko Nunomura, chief operations officer of the Tokyo Organising Committee of the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, tells me he believes these issues are "slowly starting to recede". "Both the stadium and logo are in the process of selection for new designs," he says. "When it comes to the logo, previously this was limited to designers who had [won] an award, however those limits have been taken off. The process needs to be open and involve the public. It is now a much wider selection process." One of the major targets for 2019 and 2020 is to see an upswing in tourism to the country, with hopes that the number of tourists will rise from 15 million last year to 20 million by Olympic year. "It is not an unachievable target," says Mr Nunomura. "It would bring great economic benefits, not just to Tokyo. "We have very rich attractions across Japan, including food and natural beauty, to cutting edge technology." Mr Nunomura also says more than 20 major local firms have already signed up as 2020 partners, including Asahi, Asics, Canon, Eneos, NEC, Fujitsu, ANA and Japan Airlines. "A lot of Japanese companies are already putting their hands up to be involved with the Olympic Games," he says. Other plans currently in the pipeline include a programme of cultural activities around the Olympics and Paralympics. And, for the period after the sporting events, a post-2020 legacy plan is also set to be launched next year, looking at areas such as Japanese traditional crafts and sustainability, among others. Mr Nunomura's sporting tourism goals for 2019 and 2020 are shared by Masanobu Mikami, executive director at the London office of the Japan National Tourism Organization. For the Rugby World Cup he says there are target markets such as the UK and Australia, but that Japan will be looking to attract visitors from other competing nations, and elsewhere. The 2019 RWC is being hosted from the north to south of the country, and will ensure sports fans visit a number of regional cities, including such as Fukuoka, Sapporo, Oita, Kobe, and others. And, for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games a year later, Mr Mikami hopes that visitors will not restrict themselves to the two tourism hotspots of Tokyo and Kyoto. "Obviously with the RWC being a year before, it gives us a very important opportunity to emphasise the appeal and attractiveness of regional cultures across the country," he says. "In 2020 we would again like to focus on the attractiveness of regional cities, and different parts of the country. It is really important that we get visitors to visit all parts of Japan." Despite the media attention in the West given to elements of youth culture such as manga and anime, and characters such as Hello Kitty, Mr Mikami says that "most people who visit are interested in traditional things, such as temples, the tea ceremony, culture. "But of course younger people who visit us are interested in these other things," he adds. "This current image we have is not a bad thing." Mr Mikami says that one of the biggest cheerleaders for the country during the two events can be the Japanese public. "We have to explain to them the importance of international visitors, and that if we welcome them with open arms, and get them to spend money then that will be of benefit to the whole country. "That mindset needs to be encouraged, and if visitors to the Rugby World Cup or Olympic Games experience enough hospitality in Japan, we are hoping they would be back afterwards to enjoy the experience again." The responsibility for a meaningful sporting legacy for 2019 and 2020 rests with Daichi Suzuki, head of the Japan Sports Agency, whose role is to integrate all the nation's sports administrative bodies under one umbrella. A former swimmer, who won gold in the 100 metres backstroke at the 1988 Olympic Games, he has ambitions for sporting progress in both the elite and general public spheres. Indeed, he says the two areas are related, as if Japan can grow the number of teams and athletes capable of winning on a global stage, that can inspire citizens to take part in sport. "One of the goals is for the general population to be fitter and take part in sport," he says, adding that at present there are no set targets regarding public sporting participation, although this could change. Conversely, he says there are specific targets for Japan's elite athletes, with a goal of finishing among the top three medal winning nations at the 2020 Games. "Medals are very important," he says. "In London we got seven gold medals, in Rio 2016 we hope to win more than 10. So Rio will be very important for Japan." Looking to the 2020 Paralympic Games, he says they can help integrate disabled people more into Japanese society, and put a focus onto issues which affect them, and also ones which affect the nation's elderly population. Mr Suzuki says the country has a strong background in swimming, judo, wresting, gymnastics, and athletics, while there have been encouraging signs recently in archery and cycling. In addition, team sports - such as rugby and football - are important too. "We [Japanese] are very good at taking action in a group," Mr Suzuki says, and he hopes that seeing Japanese teams doing well will encourage the public to take part in sport. "Japan spends 40 trillion yen on health care. That is very high, that could break Japan itself. It is very important to protect your own health and be fit. "Sport is fun when you start participation, and make friends - there is a real sense of community."

Question: To host one major global sporting event might be considered good @placeholder , but to host two in a couple of years shows not luck but planning and ambition .


The woman with the most paintings in the collection is the Victorian botanist Marianne North. Born in 1830, North devoted her life to travelling the world and painting plants. There is a gallery at Kew Gardens in south-west London dedicated to her work. North had no formal training, according to the Kew website. However, she put her natural talent to "prolific" use on her travels. During an eight-month stay in Brazil, she finished more than 100 paintings. Instead of painting individual plants, her work typically showed landscapes and natural habitats. The Marianne North Gallery contains 833 paintings by the artist, showing more than 900 species of plant. North approached Kew and offered to build the gallery in return for her life's work being displayed in it. It opened in 1882. The Stuart king's execution in 1649 enshrined his status as an object of fascination for artists. There are more than 200 paintings of Charles in the collection, about 40 more than his son, Charles II, who was restored to the monarchy in 1660. Andrew Ellis, director of Art UK, said: "It does not surprise me that Charles I is the monarch with the most portraits. "Not only was he the greatest of royal patrons and collectors of art but he was also keenly interested in how art could promote the image of kingship. Some of the portraits date from after his death including one in King's Lynn Town Hall, which was the subject of a sonnet written for Art UK by the poet John Fuller." Maritime trade, sailing and naval power have long captured the imagination of artists. We counted up the words used to describe the paintings in the collection. Boat (12th), sailing (14th), mast (16th), ship (17th), wave (18th), sea (22nd), sail (25th) and rigging (42nd) all feature in the top 50. Pieter van der Merwe, the general editor of the National Maritime Museum, said the emergence of the seascape as an art form in England was imported from the Netherlands in the 17th Century. "It's a British taste, but where did we get the taste for maritime art? We did not invent it ourselves, we got it from the Dutch," he said. We may be a nation of dog lovers, but there are more horses than dogs in the collection, according to the list of the most popular tags. The horse is the most popular animal tag (49th), followed by dog (132nd), bird (138th), cow (140th), sheep (172nd) and fish (200th). Pictured is the Scottish painter George Harvey's depiction of a horse from 1836. John Everett's 1,058 oil paintings form the largest collection by a male artist. Dorchester-born Everett, a well-connected Edwardian, was a graduate of the Slade School of Fine Art who lived his life according to his dual passions - painting and sailing. His life and work remained relatively unknown until art historian Gwen Yarker began researching his biography. The majority of his art lies in the storerooms of the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, while his landscapes can be viewed at Dorset County Museum. Ms Yarker said Everett shunned fame, was ambivalent about exhibiting and reluctant to take the limelight. "Art history has not been kind to him," she said. Works of art can be handed over instead of inheritance tax. Under the scheme, the government accepts the item at market value, and hands it over to a public museum or gallery. Andrew Ellis said: "We are aware that we are still missing key information for many of the paintings on the site. Who is the artist? Who is the sitter? Where is the landscape? "The Art Detective sub-site of Art UK is helping to fill in some of this missing information with the incredible help of the general public." BBC News examined the dates of the paintings in the collection. The median year was 1910, meaning half of the paintings we have a creation date for came before that date, and half afterwards. However, we could only ascertain dates for about half of the 214,000 artworks. Some 74,000 paintings had no year at all, and another 27,000 used either date ranges or other descriptions. Earlier works are less likely to be dated as record-keeping was poor. Andrew Ellis said: "At the other end of the scale, some 50% of the collections on the site have fewer than 10 paintings." What is Art UK? The data analysed relates to the artwork in Art UK's digital archive. Photo credits for collage picture: City of Edinburgh Council, Penlee House Gallery and Museum, Tate, Jersey Heritage, Budleigh Salterton Town Council, Wolverhampton Arts and Heritage, Ferens Art Gallery, Manchester Art Gallery Reporting team: BBC England data unit: Pete Sherlock, Paul Bradshaw

Question: Horses are a more popular artistic subject than dogs - that 's one of 10 @placeholder facts unearthed by BBC analysis of Art UK 's digital archive , which catalogues more than 200,000 of the nation 's oil paintings .


Instead, it was a little busier than normal. On Saturday, she released a previously unannounced new single, with a politically charged video. On Sunday, she performed at half-time of the 50th Super Bowl, American football's end-of-season extravaganza and the most-watched television event of the year in the United States. Soon after, she announced a 40-date world tour that will start in late April in Miami. But it was her Super Bowl show in California, referencing celebrated black figures of the past and recent black history, that gained the headlines. Super Bowl 50: Denver Broncos beat Carolina Panthers Formation is Beyonce's first new solo single in 14 months. In it, she refers to the Black Lives Matter movement, details what it is to be black in 2016 United States and sings: "I like my baby hair with baby hair and afros, I like my Negro nose with Jackson 5 nostrils." In what mic.com described as "one of the most political music videos in recent memory", she is seen lying on top of a New Orleans police car that sinks into water, a clear reference to Hurricane Katrina, which ravaged mainly black communities in 2005. New South Negress journal wrote that, in the video, Beyonce "becomes every black southern woman possible for her to reasonably inhabit, moving through time, class, and space". It was this song she launched into at the Super Bowl. Beyonce surprises with 'Formation' Black Lives Matter seen through a lens Why do US police keep killing unarmed black men? Even before the performance, when images of the backing artists were posted from backstage, plenty of people picked up on the visual reference - the berets of the Black Panther Party. A militant organisation that rejected the non-violent ideals of Martin Luther King, the party was set up 50 years ago to defend black people against violence. The group was established in Oakland, barely 40 miles (64km) from the stadium in Santa Clara where Beyonce performed on Sunday. At one point, the singer and her backing dancers raised a fist into the air, mimicking the Black Panthers' salute. The reference did not go unnoticed: At the end of the musical segment, which also featured Coldplay and Bruno Mars, a compilation aired showing some of the most memorable Super Bowl performances of the past. Among them was Michael Jackson's show in 1993, but in truth, that performance had been marked by Beyonce already. Beyonce has hailed Jackson's influence in the past, saying "Michael Jackson changed me, and helped me to become the artist I am". At one point, Beyonce and her dancers formed a large 'X' shape. They also formed an arrow, straight lines and a triangle, but it was this particular formation that people noticed. Malcolm X, the black civil rights leader, was shot dead in 1965. Three years ago, Beyonce's sister, Solange Knowles, was seen carrying a placard quoting Malcolm X in protest against the decision to acquit George Zimmerman of the murder of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin in Florida. It wasn't strictly part of the performance, but images later did the round on social media of Beyonce's dancers holding a sign while in the centre of the field. Mario Woods, 26, was shot dead by police in San Francisco in December. Pressure by civil rights groups has led the US Justice Department to open an investigation into the shooting. Police in cities throughout the US have been subjected to intense scrutiny for using excessive and lethal force against suspects, many of them black.

Question: As one of the world 's leading entertainers , Beyonce would have been @placeholder in seeking the weekend off .