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Oscars 2017: Best actor nominees - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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A look at the best actor nominees for the 89th Academy Awards on 26 February 2017.
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Entertainment & Arts
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Find out about the best actor nominees for the 89th Academy Awards, which will take place on 26 February 2017.
Nominated for: Manchester by the Sea
The character: Lee Chandler, an odd job man near Boston, who has a painful past and who suddenly finds himself with extra responsibilities.
Oscar record: A best supporting actor nomination for The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford in 2008.
The critics said: "Barricaded inside the shell that's become of him, Lee peers at the world through guarded eyes, only just summoning the basic drive to get up every morning, shuffle out, and carry on his tasks. He's played by Casey Affleck, in a clenched and riveting performance which fulfils all the promise he's ever shown, and then some." [Daily Telegraph]
The character: Desmond Doss, a World War Two medic who became the first conscientious objector to win the prestigious US Medal of Honor.
The critics said: "He's found a great fit for his talents in Hacksaw Ridge, which asks him to be a sweet Virginia boy courting a sweet nurse... and then a shell-shocked but determined man of valour in a lunar hellscape. Gosh, do we root for this kid." [Vanity Fair]
The character: Sebastian Wilder, a jazz pianist chasing his dreams in Hollywood.
Oscar record: Best actor nomination for Half Nelson in 2007.
The critics said: "Mr Gosling's performance is understated, with a tinge of touching earnestness, but it's also witty and commandingly smart. What's more, he does Seb's fluent piano playing without benefit of doubles on screen or on the sound track, an achievement I found astonishing." [The Wall Street Journal]
The character: Ben Cash, a hippy father who has raised his children in a remote home, far from the pressures of modern life.
Oscar record: One previous nomination for best actor, for Eastern Promises (2008).
The critics said: "The movie really belongs to Mortensen, who allows Ben to be exasperating, arrogant and impatient but also warm, loving and caring. He's a tough but adoring father, a grieving widower and an angry defender of his wife's final wishes, and Mortensen plays all these notes and more with subtlety and grace." [The Wrap]
The character: Troy Maxson, a Pittsburgh sanitation worker and former professional baseball player.
Oscar record: Two Oscar wins - best supporting actor for Glory (1990) and best actor for Training Day (2002). He also has a best supporting actor nomination for Cry Freedom (1988) and three best actor nominations for Malcolm X (1993), The Hurricane (2000) and Flight (2012).
The critics said: "While Denzel Washington's direction might leave a little to be desired, his acting has never been more relentless and fierce." [Cinema Blend]
Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected].
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38528729
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Ryan Mason: Hull City midfielder making 'excellent progress' - BBC Sport
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2017-01-24
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Hull City midfielder Ryan Mason is making "excellent progress" after fracturing his skull during Sunday's game at Chelsea.
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Last updated on .From the section Football
Hull City midfielder Ryan Mason is making "excellent progress" after fracturing his skull during Sunday's game at Chelsea, his club says.
The England international, 25, clashed heads with Blues defender Gary Cahill 13 minutes into the Premier League match at Stamford Bridge.
He was taken to St Mary's Hospital in London, where he had surgery.
Hull's statement said Mason would "continue to be closely monitored by staff" at the hospital.
It added: "There will be no further updates from the club until there are any changes in Ryan's condition."
Hull fans are being encouraged to show support for Mason by taking part in a minute's applause during Thursday's EFL Cup semi-final against Manchester United at the KCOM Stadium.
The club wants fans to applaud in the 25th minute to represent the number of Mason's shirt.
His team-mates will warm up on the pitch before the game wearing T-shirts with 'Mason 25' on.
The club said on Monday that Mason was conscious and talking and had been visited by captain Michael Dawson, club doctor Mark Waller, head of medical Rob Price and club secretary Matt Wild.
Cahill, Chelsea captain John Terry and assistant manager Steve Holland had visited on Sunday to check on Mason's well-being, and spent time with his family.
Mason, Hull's record signing, fractured his skull as he attempted to head the ball clear of his own box following a cross from Pedro.
He got to the ball a split second before Cahill, who was already committed to his attempted header, and the pair collided.
Mason joined Hull from Tottenham last August for a club-record undisclosed fee. He has scored one goal in 16 Premier League appearances for the Tigers.
Prior to his move, he made 53 top-flight appearances for Tottenham, and had loan spells at Yeovil, Doncaster, Millwall, Lorient and Swindon.
Hull lost Sunday's game 2-0 as goals from Diego Costa and Cahill gave Chelsea a victory that took them eight points clear at the top.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38734842
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Australian Open: Johanna Konta beats Ekaterina Makarova in straight sets - BBC Sport
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2017-01-24
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Britain's Johanna Konta beats Russian Ekaterina Makarova 6-1 6-4 to set up an Australian Open quarter-final against Serena Williams.
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Britain's Johanna Konta produces a terrific performance to beat Russian Ekaterina Makarova 6-1 6-4 and set up an Australian Open quarter-final against Serena Williams.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/38725228
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Ryan Mason: Hull City midfielder talking again after fracturing skull - BBC Sport
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2017-01-24
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Hull midfielder Ryan Mason is conscious and has been speaking about the incident in which he fractured his skull during Sunday's game at Chelsea.
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Last updated on .From the section Football
Hull City midfielder Ryan Mason is conscious and has been speaking about the incident in which he fractured his skull during Sunday's game at Chelsea, the club said in a statement.
Mason, 25, clashed heads with Blues defender Gary Cahill 13 minutes into the Premier League match.
He was taken to St Mary's Hospital in London, where he had surgery.
"Ryan and his family have been extremely touched by the overwhelming support," added the statement.
"They would very much like to thank all of those who have posted such positive comments both on social media and in the press over the last 24 hours."
Hull added Mason would continue to be monitored at the hospital "over the coming days".
Tigers captain Michael Dawson, club doctor Mark Waller, head of medical Rob Price and club secretary Matt Wild visited Mason in hospital on Monday.
Cahill, Chelsea captain John Terry and assistant manager Steve Holland had visited on Sunday to check on Mason's well-being, and spent time with his family.
Mason, Hull's record signing, fractured his skull as he attempted to head the ball clear of his own box following a cross from Pedro.
He got to the ball a split second before Cahill, who was already committed to his attempted header, and the pair collided.
Both players spent a lengthy period receiving treatment, though Cahill was able to continue.
Mason joined Hull from Tottenham last August for a club-record undisclosed fee.
He has scored one goal in 16 Premier League appearances for the Tigers.
Prior to his move, he made 53 top-flight appearances for Tottenham, and had loan spells at Yeovil, Doncaster, Millwall, Lorient and Swindon.
Hull lost Sunday's game 2-0 as goals from Diego Costa and Cahill gave Chelsea a victory that took them eight points clear at the top.
Head traumas and the damage they can cause
When head trauma happens, doctors are obviously concerned about how much damage there might be to the brain.
Some skull fractures need little or no treatment and will heal by themselves with time. Others need urgent treatment.
Any bits of bone that have been pressed inwards can be removed and returned to their correct position. If necessary, metal wire or mesh may be used to reconnect the pieces.
Once the bone is back in place, it should heal.
'Lessons appear to have been learned'
Peter McCabe, chief executive of brain injury association Headway, said the reaction of the medical teams was "exemplary".
McCabe, who was at Stamford Bridge, added: "Headway has been critical of the way in which head injuries have been treated in many high-profile football incidents in recent years, but it is positive to see that lessons appear to have been learned."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38718324
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Australian Open 2017: Johanna Konta showing mental strength in bid for major title - BBC Sport
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2017-01-24
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British number one Johanna Konta takes on Serena Williams against the background of upheaval and new pressures, writes Russell Fuller.
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Coverage: Daily live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live; live text on selected matches on the BBC Sport website; TV highlights on BBC Two and online.
As a hugely successful former coach to Grand Slam winners Kim Clijsters and Victoria Azarenka, Wim Fissette was not short of job offers for the 2017 season.
But after British number one Johanna Konta made her interest clear, the softly spoken 36-year-old Belgian spotted a wonderful opportunity.
"From the outside, she looked like a very ambitious, hard-working player with a very strong body," Fissette recalled on the eve of Konta's Australian Open quarter-final against Serena Williams (02:00 GMT, Wednesday).
'No weaknesses - but she can be better in every aspect'
Fisette and Konta started working together a couple of weeks after her rewarding partnership with Esteban Carril reached the end of the road. The two had been unable to agree financial terms for the new year, but after a promising week with Fissette at the Mouratoglou Academy in Nice, Konta had a plan in place for the next stage of her career.
The omens are extremely encouraging. After losing in the semi-finals in Shenzhen in the first week of the year, Konta beat Agnieszka Radwanska for the first time in her career to win the prestigious WTA title in Sydney. She won 10 sets in a row in the process, and has now extended her unbroken run to 18 after four comprehensive victories in Melbourne.
"The more I know about her, the more I like her as a player," Fissette told BBC Sport.
"She's physically very strong, she's got a big serve - for sure top three in women's tennis - and she's got big groundstrokes. I think there's not a weakness in her game, but I do believe she can be better in every aspect."
What is so impressive is that 2016 should be such a hard act to follow. Konta won her first WTA title in Stanford, and finished as the runner-up in Beijing (one of the four most important tournaments on the women's tour) having started the year with that semi-final appearance at the Australian Open.
Players often struggle to reproduce the form of a breakthrough season, but Konta is bucking the trend.
"We've seen this time and time again on both tours," says Courtney Nguyen, a senior writer for the WTA Tour.
"You get a big result, you have a breakout season, and the following season you end up suffering a bit of a sophomore slump.
"It can be very difficult playing with that pressure of knowing what can be expected of you. What's so refreshing with Jo is that's just not how she sees the world. She takes it all in her stride."
It is also remarkable how Konta appears to have dealt so well with the end of her partnership with Carril, as well as the untimely death of her mental coach. Juan Coto was a vital component of her team and it was his counsel which helped kick-start her rapid rise through the rankings.
Konta prefers not to reflect publicly on that difficult period, or how she has adjusted so successfully since, which is perhaps a strategy of which Coto would have approved.
'There will be a day when she wins a Grand Slam'
The 25-year-old is now very much in demand with the international - as well as the British - media. She conducted six meaty television interviews - including with Australia's Channel 7 and the US-orientated Tennis Channel - after her fourth-round victory over Ekaterina Makarova.
She is increasingly confident in her conversations, happy to discuss changing her two-month-old nephew's nappy, and slowly but surely prepared to give a little more insight into her approach.
But will all this be enough to bring her victory over Serena Williams the first time they ever share a court together? Some opponents seem to have lost such a match in their mind before a ball is struck, but Konta is different and will genuinely, and quite rightly, believe she can win.
No other current player can quite compare to the 22-time Grand Slam champion, but Konta was not at all overawed by Serena's sister Venus in their three meetings. Two of them she won: in the opening round of last year's Australian Open, and then in the final in Stanford last July.
And Fissette's very first impressions of Konta are also worth recalling.
"The first time she played a player I was coaching - that was Victoria Azarenka in China - I was very impressed with the attitude she had," he says.
"She showed respect to the player but she was there to win the match. She came on the court with the belief that she could beat a top player like her and I still see that.
"I believe there will be a day when she will win a Grand Slam."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/38721582
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Fire brigade help Yorkshire Wildlife Park give polar bear dental check-up - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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South Yorkshire Fire Brigade were called in to assist in giving a polar bear a dental check-up.
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South Yorkshire Fire Brigade were called in to assist in giving a polar bear a dental check-up.
Staff at the Yorkshire Wildlife Park noticed Victor had a discoloured tooth.
After being put to sleep and moved by fire officers, the 18-year-old was ready for his "scrape and polish".
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-38729348
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'Allo 'Allo! star Gorden Kaye dies at 75 - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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Gorden Kaye, best known for playing Rene Artois in the long-running BBC sitcom 'Allo 'Allo!, has died aged 75.
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Gorden Kaye, best known for playing Rene Artois in the long-running BBC sitcom 'Allo 'Allo!, has died aged 75.
The star's former agency confirmed to BBC News he died at a care home on Monday morning.
David Sillito looks back at his career.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38724051
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Bernie Ecclestone removed as Liberty Media completes $8bn takeover - BBC Sport
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2017-01-24
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Bernie Ecclestone is removed from his position running F1 as US giant Liberty Media completes its $8bn (£6.4bn) takeover of the sport.
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Bernie Ecclestone has been removed from his position running Formula 1 as US giant Liberty Media completed its $8bn (£6.4bn) takeover of the sport.
Ecclestone, 86, who has been in charge for nearly 40 years, has been appointed chairman emeritus and will act as an adviser to the board.
Chase Carey has had Ecclestone's former role of chief executive officer added to his existing position of chairman.
Liberty has also brought ex-Mercedes team boss Ross Brawn back to F1.
The former Ferrari technical director, who had been acting as a consultant to Liberty, has been appointed to lead the sporting and technical side of F1.
Ecclestone said earlier on Monday he had been "forced out".
He told Germany's Auto Motor und Sport: "I was dismissed. This is official. I no longer run the company. My position has been taken by Chase Carey."
• None Why F1's titanic leader was loved and loathed
Ecclestone, who added he did not know what his new job title meant, declined to comment when approached by BBC Sport, who revealed on Sunday he would leave his job this week.
Liberty began its takeover of the sport in September and earlier in January cleared the last two regulatory hurdles.
The deal was completed on Monday and Liberty Media is to be renamed the Formula 1 Group following the takeover.
As well as Brawn's return, former ESPN executive Sean Bratches has been hired to run the commercial side of the sport.
Brawn, 62, masterminded all seven of Michael Schumacher's world titles at Benetton and Ferrari and also won the championship with Jenson Button with his own team in 2009. He then moved to Mercedes, where he laid the foundations for Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg's title wins.
Both he and Bratches will report to Carey, a former long-time lieutenant of media mogul Rupert Murdoch and chairman of his 21st Century Fox company.
What they said
Bernie Ecclestone: "I'm proud of the business that I built over the past 40 years and all that I have achieved with Formula 1. I would like to thank all of the promoters, teams, sponsors and television companies that I have worked with.
"I'm very pleased that the business has been acquired by Liberty and that it intends to invest in the future of F1. I am sure that Chase will execute his role in a way that will benefit the sport."
Chase Carey: "I am excited to be taking on the additional role of CEO. F1 has huge potential with multiple untapped opportunities. I have enjoyed hearing from the fans, teams, [governing body] FIA, promoters and sponsors on their ideas and hopes for the sport.
"I would like to recognise and thank Bernie for his leadership over the decades. The sport is what it is today because of him and the talented team of executives he has led, and he will always be part of the F1 family.
"Bernie's role as chairman emeritus befits his tremendous contribution to the sport and I am grateful for his continued insight and guidance as we build F1 for long-term success and the enjoyment of all those involved."
Greg Maffei, president and CEO of Liberty Media Corporation: "We are delighted to have completed the acquisition of F1 and that Chase will lead this business as CEO. I'd like to thank Bernie Ecclestone for his tremendous success in building this remarkable global sport."
Zak Brown, executive director, McLaren Technology Group: "Formula 1 wouldn't be the international sporting powerhouse that it is today without the truly enormous contribution made over the past half-century by Bernie Ecclestone. Indeed, I can't think of a single other person who has had anything like as much influence on building a global sport as he has.
"Today is a day on which we should all pay tribute to a remarkable visionary entrepreneur called Bernie Ecclestone, and to say thank you to him too."
Murray Walker, F1 commentator, speaking to BBC Radio 5 live: "Formula 1 owes him an immeasurable debt. He is a very tough businessman but if he shakes your hand you don't need a contract. He's as good as his word.
"The most important thing under Bernie's rule was the safety aspect. Formula 1 has been absolutely transformed. There was a time when four or five people were being killed every year but Bernie, with the help of Professor Sid Watkins, transformed that situation."
What did Ecclestone do for F1?
Ecclestone, the former team boss of Brabham, began in the 1970s as a representative of his colleagues in negotiations with circuits, television and authorities and slowly moved into a position of almost absolute power.
He was central in turning F1 from a relatively minority activity into one of the biggest television sports in the world outside the Olympics and the football World Cup.
After selling Brabham in the late 1980s, he moved full-time into administration.
He took over the ownership of the commercial rights of F1 from the teams in the mid-1990s. He then struck a deal in 2000 with his long-time ally Max Mosley, then president of the FIA, to lease them for 110 years at what critics said was an absurdly low price of $360m (£287m).
That set in motion a series of sales where the rights were passed from one entity to another, a process that led Ecclestone to stand trial for bribery in Germany in 2014. The case was dropped after a payment of $100m (£79m) without presumption of guilt or innocence. Subsequently Liberty took over from previous owner CVC Capital Partners.
Ecclestone built F1 into a sport that could be valued by one of the world's biggest media groups at $8bn.
He did this by building up F1's exposure on television, forcing companies to transmit the whole championship rather than cherry-picking the odd race here and there as had been normal until the early 1980s.
But he has been criticised for his authoritarian grip on the sport and his controversial approach.
In recent years, his demands for ever-higher fees from race tracks led to several European races struggling to make ends meet. His decision-making was also questioned, particularly over issues such as the introduction of double points for the final race of the 2014 season, and the quickly abandoned change of the qualifying format in 2016.
A prize-money structure he created in the early years of this decade is believed by many insiders to be unfairly skewed in favour of the bigger and richer teams, and the governance system he set up at the same time has led to a log-jam when it comes to decision-making.
Equally, his public utterances were sometimes ill-advised, such as praising Adolf Hitler for "being able to get things done" and calling women "domestic appliances".
And some of his choices of locations for new races were also controversial - in countries such as Bahrain, Russia and Azerbaijan which secured huge fees for CVC but were criticised because of the regimes' records on human rights.
What changes does Liberty plan?
Liberty has not publicly revealed what changes it will make to F1 but insiders say it plans to act on many of the areas that were considered a weakness under Ecclestone.
In particular, it wants to exploit digital media, an area with which Ecclestone refused to engage, and it intends to invest in securing the futures of certain races which it considers valuable.
It also wants to grow the sport in the USA, where F1 has long struggled to gain a sure foothold and promote it much more extensively, talking of creating "20 Super Bowls", in terms of making much more of the build-up to each race.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/38723001
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John Humphrys' tribute to the 1990s film Trainspotting - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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John Humphrys pays tribute to Trainspotting with his own version of Ewan McGregor's famous 'Choose Life' monologue
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The sequel to Trainspotting is in cinemas this week. "T2" updates Ewan McGregor's famous "Choose Life" monologue from the first film in which he rails against the trappings of modern life.
In honour of the 1990s film, the Today programme decided to run its own tribute to that iconic monologue.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38731511
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Australian Open 2017: Roger Federer wins to set up Stan Wawrinka semi-final - BBC Sport
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2017-01-24
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Four-time champion Roger Federer beats Mischa Zverev in straight sets to set up an Australian Open semi-final against Stan Wawrinka.
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Last updated on .From the section Tennis
Coverage: Daily live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra; live text on selected matches on the BBC Sport website; TV highlights on BBC Two and online from 21 January.
Four-time champion Roger Federer coasted into the Australian Open semi-finals with a straight-set defeat of unseeded Mischa Zverev in 92 minutes.
The 35-year-old reached the last four in Melbourne for a 13th time with a 6-1 7-5 6-2 win over Zverev, who upset world number one Andy Murray on Sunday.
Federer, seeded 17th as he seeks an 18th Grand Slam title, faces compatriot Stan Wawrinka in the last four.
Wawrinka won his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in 2014.
The 31-year-old has since added victories at the French Open in 2015 and the US Open last September, and is rated by many as the favourite in Melbourne following surprise defeats for Murray and Novak Djokovic.
• None Watch day nine highlights on BBC Two from 16:45 GMT on Tuesday
Federer, playing his first competitive event since Wimbledon six months ago following a knee injury, brushed aside Zverev with the minimum of fuss.
He blitzed through the first set in just 19 minutes, and soon levelled in the second when he was broken by the world number 50.
Federer won 23 of 32 points at the net (72%) as he reached his 41st Grand Slam semi-final.
"My expectation was not to play Stan Wawrinka in the semis. I thought maybe I could get to the fourth round or quarters - that's what I told the Swiss press," he said.
"For me to play against Stan I have to play aggressive, the more time I give him the better he is. I'm happy he's got this far but he doesn't need to go a step further - Stan knows I'm joking."
Federer is the oldest men's singles semi-finalist at the tournament since Arthur Ashe in 1978, and the oldest at any Grand Slam since Jimmy Connors reached the 1991 US Open last four aged 39.
Wawrinka edged a tight opening set against Tsonga, with the pair exchanging words after the tie-break.
"What did you say? You're the one looking at me and talking to me. What are you looking for?" Wawrinka said to Tsonga in French. "Come on, let it go. Did I look at you once?"
It appeared as though Tsonga was fighting back when he finally broke serve to lead 4-3 in the second set, but Wawrinka snuffed out the danger with two successive breaks for a two-set lead.
An early break was enough to give Wawrinka the final set and he closed out a straightforward win to reach an eighth Grand Slam semi-final.
On the possibility of facing friend and compatriot Federer, he said: "Playing in a semi here is always special - I won my first Grand Slam here in front of amazing fans. If it's against Roger, I hope a few will cheer for me."
Asked about the exchange after the first set, Tsonga replied: "Sometimes it happens. We can talk during the game. Nothing special, yeah.
"We just spoke about things that I think is only between him and me, and that's it."
Wawrinka added: "You can have some tension during the match between players. Sometimes it can happen. Most important is that after the match it's all good."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/38728046
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Sean Spicer: Who is President Trump's spin doctor? - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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New White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has warned that the media will be held "accountable".
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US & Canada
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In a 2014 lecture to students at his former high school, Sean Spicer outlined a set of 17 "rules for life" that they would be wise to follow.
Rule number 16, he told the students at Portsmouth Abbey in Rhode Island: "Follow your mom's advice: It's not what you say, but how you say it. The tone and tenor of your words count."
The now White House press secretary also told students that they should be true to themselves. Rule number eight, was relevant here, he said. "Trust your gut. If it does not feel right, use caution."
With that guidance in mind, Mr Spicer's bellicose press conference with the White House press corps on Saturday suggests that the new presidential spokesman will not sugar-coat his words over the next four years.
While the press secretary-journalist relationship is naturally an adversarial one, Mr Spicer has, in his first few days in the role, already cast himself as being in open conflict with much of the mainstream media, pledging to "hold the press accountable".
This, it appears, is the frontline of a strategy that White House Chief of Staff Reince Preibus described as a will to "fight back tooth and nail every day" at supposed media efforts to "delegitimise" the president.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Sean Spicer, White House press secretary said "no-one had numbers" for the inauguration
Mr Spicer, 45, is not a new hand at managing negative press coverage.
He previously served as spokesman and chief strategist for the Republican National Committee (RNC) and has long criticised coverage of his party and Mr Trump.
He took the post of communications director at the RNC in 2011, a time when it "was deep in debt and had a badly tarnished brand", according to the Republican Party website.
He is said to have helped turn around its fortunes by boosting the social media team, leading rapid response efforts to combat attacks, setting up an in-house video and production team and expanding the use of surrogates - people who can publicly appear on behalf of candidates, defend them and boost their appeal.
Mr Spicer has not shied away from criticising Mr Trump in the past. In July 2015, speaking on behalf of the RNC after Mr Trump questioned Republican Senator John McCain's status as a war hero, he said that there was "no place in our party or our country for comments that disparage those who have served honourably".
Mr Spicer claimed President Trump's inauguration was the "largest inaugural crowd ever"
He also described Mr Trump's June 2015 comments about Mexican immigrants being rapists and criminals as not being "helpful to the cause".
Before joining the RNC, he worked as Assistant US Trade Representative for Media and Public Affairs in the George W. Bush administration: a role that involved promoting the kind of free trade that his boss now fiercely criticises as being unfair for the American worker.
Still, Mr Spicer was loyal to Mr Trump on the campaign trail even as the path-breaking candidate split the party and many Republican luminaries distanced themselves from him.
The broad-shouldered, compulsively gum-chewing Republican ("Two and a half packs by noon," he told the Washington Post) is a long-time member of the US Navy Reserve.
He received a Masters degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College in Newport in 2012 and is known to be fierce, and deeply competitive.
One editor who has been blasted many times by Mr Spicer told the Post that her young child recognises his voice on the phone and bursts into tears.
His wife Rebecca is the chief of communications at the National Beer Wholesalers Association and previously worked in the Bush White House after a career in television news.
As press secretary, Mr Spicer will serve as President Trump's most visible spokesman, and is expected to hold daily televised media briefings, though he has spoken of his desire to shake up the way White House media is managed.
While he has said that Mr Trump will do press conferences, he also wants to utilise technology to "have a conversation with the American people and not just limit it through the filter of the mainstream media".
He has also described White House press briefings as having become "somewhat of a spectacle". Many would use that word to describe the first under the Trump administration.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38711850
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Anti-Trump rant woman removed from Alaska Airlines plane - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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A passenger is removed from an Alaska Airlines flight for berating the President Trump supporter seated next to her.
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A woman has been removed from an Alaska Airlines flight after berating the President Trump supporter seated next to her.
Scott Koteskey - the man she confronted - filmed the incident and uploaded it to Facebook.
The airline told the BBC the woman had insulted other passengers before boarding the plane, and that it stood by the employee who decided to remove her.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38723929
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The NHS mental health chief who had a nervous breakdown - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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A social media post written by a former NHS director of mental health about her own depression has gone viral
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BBC Trending
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"Perhaps not the most flattering photo of me, but I'm sharing this awful picture and my story to help increase understanding of the impact of mental illness and to celebrate my recovery."
"As I have worked in mental health services for 29 years, one would think I would be immune to mental illness."
In a LinkedIn post that has been shared more than 5,000 times, Mandy Stevens shared a photo of herself, red-eyed with matted hair, in the midst of a depressive episode that resulted in her being hospitalised. She wrote the post on the day she was discharged from a 12 week stay on the inpatient ward at the City and Hackney Centre for Mental Health in London.
One thing that struck many people who read Stevens' post on the online professional network was her unique vantage point - she has been both an employee and patient of the UK's National Health Service mental health programme.
Stevens began her career in the NHS as a mental health nurse. After 15 years she became a hospital manager, and then a director.
Although she has suffered episodes of "mild to moderate" depression, she managed it through counselling and very few of her family and friends knew about it.
"There is a huge amount of stigma around mental illness," Stevens told BBC Trending, "and for the past 29 years I have worked in Mental Health Services and seen the negative effect this stigma has on people who use our services. From personal embarrassment, family embarrassment, not accepting diagnoses or treatment, not wanting to attend mental health community services in case they are recognised. There is also stigma amongst family, friends and colleagues, including whispered rumours and avoidance."
Then in November, things changed, and her depression became serious enough to warrant hospitalisation.
"When I was very, very depressed, anxious and suicidal I was so ill I was almost monosyllabic, I could hardy walk properly, I couldn't shower or dress properly. Eating and all the things that we take for granted were a huge struggle. I spent most of every day in bed, crying and wanting to be dead. I was absolutely terrible. So frightening and awful."
"The absolutely wonderful nurses on Gardner ward at City & Hackney Centre for Mental Health were amazing," Stevens says.
"They would come and see me very regularly throughout the day, spend time with me, encourage and support me, listen to me crying and talking and throwing up a huge amount of emotion. The staff nurses and the healthcare assistants were wonderful, accessible and compassionate 24/7. I am so proud of my profession."
Whilst in hospital and after she was over the worst Stevens says she felt a bit like an "undercover cop" as she observed how the ward was run.
"Without exception the staff treated all of the patients with dignity and respect."
When asked what she thinks of the state of the NHS right now, Stevens says, "Very difficult for me to answer this question now… I can only talk about my particular experience as a patient in an 'Outstanding Trust' - which has been a great experience."
"I am, of course, aware that not everyone is as lucky as me to receive this type of care. Unfortunately, mental health services are always seen as the 'Cinderella services' with lower levels of funding and cuts."
Analysis by the King's Fund think tank says 40% of the 58 mental health trusts in the UK saw budgets cut in 2015-16. It found six of them had seen budgets cut three years in a row. An NHS spokeswoman told the BBC that mental health services were "wider" than trusts, and care was funded in other ways.
Steven adds that help is there.
"There is a huge range of accessible services across the country. Your GP is usually the best place to start as they can signpost you to local services and, if necessary, they can refer you to formal mental health services, but there are also a wide variety of other services around run by volunteers," she says.
"My first message is to reach out to people. Speak to your close family and friends about your mental health, and start opening conversations about it. Don't say 'I'm okay' when you're not okay"
Next story: Trolls try to trigger seizures - is it assault?
Can sending a flashing animated picture constitute a physical assault against someone with epilepsy? READ MORE
You can follow BBC Trending on Twitter @BBCtrending, and find us on Facebook. All our stories are at bbc.com/trending.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-trending-38720826
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Rare bat born by C-section in San Diego Zoo - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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A Rodrigues fruit bat has been born by C-section at San Diego Zoo.
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A Rodrigues fruit bat has been born by C-section at San Diego Zoo.
The species is critically endangered and only found on Rodrigues Island, which is 300 miles east of Madagascar.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38727488
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Arsene Wenger: Arsenal manager is charged with misconduct by FA - BBC Sport
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2017-01-24
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Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is charged by the Football Association for verbally abusing and pushing a fourth official.
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Last updated on .From the section Football
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has been charged by the Football Association with verbal abusing and pushing fourth official Anthony Taylor during Sunday's Premier League game against Burnley.
Wenger, 67, pushed Taylor after being sent off in the closing stages of the Gunners' 2-1 win at Emirates Stadium.
He had been dismissed for reacting angrily to a 93rd-minute penalty given to Burnley, who trailed 1-0.
Wenger, who later apologised, has until 18:00 GMT on Thursday to respond.
An FA statement read: "It is alleged that in or around the 92nd minute, Wenger used abusive and/or insulting words towards the fourth official.
"It is further alleged that following his dismissal from the technical area, his behaviour in remaining in the tunnel area and making physical contact with the fourth official amounted to improper conduct."
After being sent to the stands by referee Jon Moss, Wenger moved away from the pitch but stood at the tunnel entrance and refused to move as he tried to watch the remaining few minutes of Sunday's match.
As Taylor encouraged him to move away, Wenger was seen to push back against him.
When asked about what had led to his dismissal, Wenger said: "Look, it was nothing bad. I said something that you hear every day in football. Overall, nine times out of 10, you are not sent to the stand for that."
He added: "But if I am, I am, and I should have shut up completely. I was quite calm for the whole game, more than usual."
In 2012, then-Newcastle manager Alan Pardew was fined £20,000 and given a two-match touchline ban for pushing an assistant referee during a game against Tottenham.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38722906
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Oscars 2017: Bluff your way through this year's best picture nominees - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Not seen the films up for the best picture Oscar? Let this guide bring you up to speed.
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Entertainment & Arts
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The biggest prize at the Oscars on Sunday is saved for last - the Academy Award for best picture.
This year, nine films are nominated.
If you've not had a chance (or the desire) to see them all, here's a guide to what you need to know - which means that this contains spoilers.
Make sure you read this before going anywhere near a water cooler on Monday morning.
"What do you mean, I'm not nominated for best actress?"
Who's in it and who directed it? Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker and some aliens that look like giant squid are the main stars. Denis Villeneuve is the director.
What's it about? Aliens. NO WAIT COME BACK.
Amy Adams plays Louise Banks, a linguistics expert who is called in by the US Army to translate what aliens who have landed at random spots around the world are trying to say.
Oh, one small thing, she can also see into the future. And has to deal with the fact that she knows her future daughter is going to die of cancer. So yeah, it's pretty intense.
What did the critics say? "An intelligent, eloquent and stirring sci-fi that grips from start to finish, Arrival is up there with the year's best movies." [Total Film]
How likely is it to win? It's picked up a string of trophies during awards season already, but it would it's unlikely to take home the main prize at the Oscars.
Talking point: Even though it's up for best picture, Amy Adams failed to secure a nomination in the best actress category - she was nominated at the Golden Globes and Baftas, though.
Who's in it and who directed it? Viola Davis and Denzel Washington play husband and wife Troy and Rose Maxson. Washington also directed the film, based on the August Wilson play Fences.
What's it about? This family drama set in 1950s America is centred around the domineering Troy Maxson, who rules his home with an iron fist and has a volatile relationship with his son Cory.
That's not to say he doesn't have a loving relationship with Rose, but it's fair to say her patience is tested by his behaviour later in the film (spoiler: he cheats).
What did the critics say? "It's all too seldom that a feature film combines brilliant acting with a spellbinding flow of language." [The Wall Street Journal]
How likely is it to win? While Washington and Davis are great, the film isn't exactly... cinematic. This one is an outsider.
Talking point: It's not the first time Washington and Davis have played these roles - they were the Maxsons on Broadway in 2010, winning Tony Awards for their performances.
Who's in it and who directed it? Andrew Garfield, Vince Vaughn, Hugo Weaving and Teresa Palmer are in the cast of this Mel Gibson war epic.
What's it about? The true story of a guy called Desmond Doss, a World War Two medic who joined the army but refused to even touch a gun - due both to his Christian faith and the fact he has a violent father.
He struggles to be accepted in the army at first but goes on to single-handedly save the lives of 75 men. Warning: it's quite (okay, extremely) gory.
What did the critics say? "Thanks to some of the greatest battle scenes ever filmed, Gibson once again shows his staggering gifts as a film-maker, able to juxtapose savagery with aching tenderness." [Rolling Stone]
How likely is it to win? It's currently the seventh favourite out of the nine - so not very.
Talking point: The film has been seen as something of a comeback for Mel Gibson. His nomination of best director is a sign of him being welcomed back into Hollywood after his career hit rock bottom.
Who's in it and who directed it? Jeff Bridges, Ben Foster and Chris Pine star; David Mackenzie directed.
What's it about? An ex-con (Foster) and his brother (Pine) resort to robbing banks in an attempt save their family's Texan ranch after the death of their mother. Bridges plays the ranger on their case.
It's been described as a modern Western, but it could also be described as a cops and robbers drama with slices of sharp comedy, or a study of two brothers battling against the system.
What did the critics say?: "Hell or High Water is a thrillingly good movie - a crackerjack drama of crime, fear and brotherly love set in a sun-roasted, deceptively sleepy West Texas that feels completely exotic for being so authentic." [Variety]
How likely is it to win? It's gritty, heartfelt and beautifully written, but it's fair to say this is the rank outsider. And you could be forgiven for it having gone under your radar - it was released in the UK last September, and in August in the US.
Talking point: The producers had to deal with sweltering conditions and rattlesnakes during filming, describing the conditions as "insufferable". What's that saying about suffering for your art..?
Who's in it and who directed it? Taraji P Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae play the three leads. Theodore Melfi directs.
What's it about? Three female mathematicians take jobs at Nasa during the 1960s space race, challenging racial and sexist prejudice along the way.
Katherine Johnson is made to drink from a "coloured" coffee urn and go on 40-minute breaks to get to the "coloured" toilets on the other side of the NASA campus, despite being one of the brightest brains of the whole project.
What did the critics say? "Hidden Figures, both a dazzling piece of entertainment and a window into history, bucks the trend of the boring-math-guy movie." [Time]
How likely is it to win? Could be a surprise winner - and it would definitely be a popular one. The film has done incredibly well at the box office.
Talking point: Free screenings of the film have been put on in the US for young girls who are likely to be inspired by it.
Who's in it and who directed it? Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are the all-singing, all-dancing stars in Damien Chazelle's film.
What's it about? For those who've been buried under a rock (or just refuse to be swept along by the hype)... the musical traces the stories of aspiring actress Mia and pianist Sebastian, who dreams of opening his own jazz club.
What did the critics say? "Audacious, retro, funny and heartfelt, La La Land is the latest great musical for people who don't like musicals - and will slap a mile-wide smile across the most miserable of faces." [Empire]
How likely is it to win? Very. Like, very very. Bookies say it is the overwhelming favourite - and it doesn't hurt that it's a film all about Hollywood itself.
Talking point: Some have deigned to suggest that La La Land is overhyped and overrated - but that hasn't stopped its juggernaut-like journey through awards season.
Who's in it and who directed it? Sunny Pawar is Saroo as a young boy, with Dev Patel playing him as an adult. There's also Rooney Mara and Nicole Kidman. The film is directed by Garth Davis.
What's it about? This is the staggering true story of a young Indian boy who is adopted after losing his family at a young age.
But he manages to find them again, decades later. With a bit of help from Google Earth.
What did the critics say? "The beauty of Lion is that it explores and allows for the unique possibilities and power of multiple homes, multiple families and multiple selves." [The Chicago Tribune]
How likely is it to win? Dev is certainly in the frame for best supporting actor, but it's not that likely to translate to best picture success.
Talking point: It's been making people cry. A lot. And not just audiences - both Dev and Nicole Kidman say the script made them weep. So if you go to see it, take tissues.
Who's in it and who directed it? Casey Affleck and Michelle Williams star, with Kenneth Lonergan the director.
What's it about? Caretaker Lee Chandler, played by Affleck, has to look after his teenage nephew after his brother (the boy's father) dies.
And he does this while still grieving for his own young children, who died in a house fire. It's safe to say this film is short on laughs.
What did the critics say? "Manchester by the Sea is heartbreaking yet somehow heartening, a film that just wallops you with its honesty, its authenticity and its access to despair." [Los Angeles Times]
How likely is it to win? The Academy tends to like gritty, serious films which could explain why it's currently fourth favourite.
Talking point: The original idea was thought up by Matt Damon and John Krasinski, from the US version of The Office. Damon was actually meant to star as Lee originally, but had other filming commitments.
Who's in it and who directed it? Mahershala Ali, Naomie Harris and Janelle Monae star in Barry Jenkins's film.
What's it about? Moonlight tells the story of a young man named Chiron through three stages of his life, as he battles life in extreme poverty with an abusive drug addict mother, all the while trying to come to terms with his sexuality.
He has one gay experience in his teenage years but struggles to accept his sexuality in a neighbourhood that is largely hostile towards it.
What did the critics say? "It's a thrilling, deeply necessary work that opens up a much-needed and rarely approached on-screen conversation about the nature of gay masculinity." [The Guardian]
How likely is it to win? It's currently second favourite and has been picking up awards left, right and centre - so watch this space.
Talking point: Naomie Harris is nominated for best supporting actress - yet she managed to squeeze all of her filming into just three days.
Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected].
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38586840
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Premature babies benefit from compact MRI scanner - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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Doctors in Sheffield are pioneering the use of a compact neonatal MRI scanner, one of only two in the world.
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Doctors in Sheffield are pioneering the use of a compact neonatal MRI scanner to scan the brains of premature babies.
The machine at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital, one of only two in the world, is being used instead of ultrasound.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-38724048
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Brexit: Supreme Court's Lord Neuberger announces decision - BBC News
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2017-01-24
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Lord Neuberger says Parliament must vote on whether the government can start Brexit.
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Supreme Court President Lord Neuberger says Parliament must vote on whether the government can start Brexit.
"The government cannot trigger Article 50 without an Act of Parliament authorised by law," he said.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-38729019
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Australian Open 2017: Venus Williams & Coco Vandeweghe through to semi-finals - BBC Sport
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2017-01-24
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Venus Williams beats Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to reach the Australian Open semi-finals for the first time in 14 years.
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Last updated on .From the section Tennis
Coverage: Daily live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra; live text on selected matches on the BBC Sport website; TV highlights on BBC Two and online from 21 January.
Venus Williams reached the Australian Open semi-finals for the first time in 14 years with a straight-set win over Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
Williams, the 13th seed, saw off 24th seed Pavlyuchenkova 6-4 7-6 (7-3) in the first of the quarter-finals.
The 36-year-old American has never won the title, her best effort a runner-up finish to sister Serena in 2003.
She goes on to face unseeded American Coco Vandeweghe, who thrashed Spain's seventh seed Garbine Muguruza 6-4 6-0.
• None Watch day nine highlights on BBC Two from 16:45 GMT on Tuesday
• None Konta 'as prepared as possible' for first Serena meeting
Vandeweghe, 25, followed up her win over world number one and defending champion Angelique Kerber with a crushing defeat of French Open champion Muguruza.
"I really wasn't feeling all that great out there, I was feeling kind of nervous," said Vandeweghe.
"I just tried to play my best, stay within myself, keep my patterns. I fought through a few break points on her serve, kept on the pressure in the first set and then she finally cracked.
"Once I got rolling in the second it was like a freight train. You couldn't stop it."
"I'd like to be champion" - Venus
Williams, meanwhile, dropped serve four times against Pavlyuchenkova but was much the stronger in the decisive moments, becoming the oldest woman to reach a Grand Slam semi-final since Martina Navratilova at Wimbledon in 1994.
"I'm so excited. Today was such a hard-fought match. She never let up," said the seven-time Grand Slam champion.
"It's wonderful to be here at the start of the year. I want to go further. I'm not happy with this.
"I try to believe. Should I look across the net and believe the person across the net deserves it more?
"This mentality is not how champions are made. I'd like to be a champion, in particular this year. The mentality I walk on court with is: I deserve this."
On Wednesday, Serena Williams will play Britain's Johanna Konta at about 02:00 GMT, following the match between Czech fifth seed Karolina Plisokva and Croatia's Mirjana Lucic-Baroni.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/38727575
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What would you do for your best friend? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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From being "best woman" at his wedding to donating a kidney - what one woman is doing for her best friend.
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Liverpool
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"It takes a special kind of person" to donate their kidney, Andy said of his friend Helen
About 3,000 people have kidney transplants each year in the UK and about a third of these are from living donors. Helen Crowther has given one of her kidneys to her best friend Andy Clewes. He has suffered with chronic kidney disease since birth and has recently started to need dialysis treatment.
When Helen first offered Andy her kidney he laughed along, thinking it was a joke.
"But she really meant it and as I got worse she became more insistent until about 12 months ago she said 'right, I definitely want to do it'," he said.
Helen's kidney was removed at the Royal Liverpool Hospital on Tuesday morning.
Helen said it "feels like a privilege" to be able to give her kidney to her best friend
It was then "whisked down the M62" to Andy in the Manchester Royal Infirmary.
"The last 12 months have gone so slowly and to finally get to this end point is fantastic," the 46-year-old said.
"I was just on the cusp of dialysis, feeling exhausted all the time and unable to concentrate in work - now I can't wait to get my life back. I'm really excited."
Andy, a radio DJ in Macclesfield, said: "I'm incredibly lucky and grateful. It's hard to put into words such a massive thing... it takes a special kind of person to do this."
The pair are hoping to encourage others to sign up to the organ donor register
Born a week apart, the pair struck up their friendship in 2006 after meeting at a charity fundraising event. Last year Helen, 46, was Andy's "best woman" at his wedding.
Helen, a charity worker from Runcorn, said she thought donating a kidney was "the obvious thing to do".
"I do appreciate it's a huge thing. I just didn't want to see Andy poorly. I was aware you can live well with one kidney so couldn't see why you wouldn't do it."
Helen's kidney was removed at the Royal Liverpool Hospital
When Andy's mum met Helen for the first time at his wedding and thanked her, she "was in tears".
"It's a bit embarrassing when people are saying you're so brave," she said. "His family were so lovely at the wedding and I was overwhelmed really. I was just doing it as Andy needed to get well. I had the ability to help him.
"It feels like a privilege. I am just so grateful I can do it."
For Andy, he is planning on getting back to a normal life.
"I've been restricted physically up to now but the doctors say I'll get a burst of energy.
"I'm going to want to go off on holiday... to do everything. I think I'm going to be quite annoying."
He said it had made him very aware that others "aren't so fortunate and rely on the kindness of strangers" so he hopes his experience will encourage people to become organ donors as they "really will be changing lives".
Kidneys filter waste products from the blood and convert them to urine.
These waste products can build up in people whose kidneys fail, which is potentially life-threatening and the reason a transplant is needed.
Kidneys are the most common organ donated by a living person and a healthy person can lead a normal life with one working kidney.
Before 2006, living kidney donation was limited to exchanges between family members and friends but since the UK allowed "non-directed altruistic donation" by strangers, more than 500 people have gone ahead with the operation.
There were 1,035 living kidney donor transplants performed in the UK in 2015/2016 - but as of September 2016, there are 5,338 people waiting for a kidney.
You can find more information on the NHS Organ Donation website.
Andy said the friends were "always there for each other"
"Nobody wants to see anyone they love on dialysis," said Helen. "This should improve his quality of life. He'll be healthier and that's all I want."
"It's just a couple of months out of my life when I'll feel a bit tired and sore, but for Andy it will be a whole new life."
Andy said: "It's a totally selfless act and she's got a friend for life whether she wants it or not."
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-38682073
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Rafael Nadal beats Milos Raonic to reach Australian Open semi-finals - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Rafael Nadal makes his first Grand Slam semi-final since 2014 with an accomplished victory over Milos Raonic.
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Last updated on .From the section Tennis
Coverage: Live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra; live text on selected matches on the BBC Sport website; TV highlights on BBC Two and online.
Rafael Nadal reached his first Grand Slam semi-final since 2014 with a superb 6-4 7-6 (9-7) 6-4 victory over Canada's third seed Milos Raonic.
The 14-time Grand Slam winner, who has been troubled by injuries in recent years, saved six set points in the second set before dominating the third.
Nadal, the 2009 champion, faces 15th seed Grigor Dimitrov on Friday after the Bulgarian beat David Goffin.
The Spaniard, 30, remains on course to meet Roger Federer in Sunday's final.
Federer, 35, will play his fellow Swiss Stan Wawrinka in the first semi-final on Thursday.
Nadal is attempting to become the first man in the Open era - and only the third man in history after Roy Emerson and Rod Laver - to win each of the four Grand Slam titles twice.
The ninth seed's victory means six of the eight players in the men's and women's semi-finals are over 30.
• None Watch day 10 highlights on BBC Two from 16:45 GMT on Wednesday
Nadal lost here in the first round to Fernando Verdasco 12 months ago and admitted to wondering if he may never again challenge for major honours.
"I think I am not a very arrogant person so I always have doubts," he said.
"Even when I was winning I had doubts and even more so when I had injuries. But doubts make you work harder.
"I have had a great career but I had some tough moments so that makes me enjoy moments like this even more."
Nadal close to his best
Nadal last reached a Grand Slam semi-final when he won the French Open - his last major title - three years ago.
A wrist injury in 2016 raised serious concerns about his future but he looked close to his very best against Raonic.
He broke the big-serving Canadian once in the first set to take the lead but Raonic, who was the highest seed left in the men's draw, looked like he would level the match in the second.
Raonic needed a medical timeout midway through the set for an abductor problem, but seemed to come back stronger and had three set points on Nadal's serve at 5-4.
Nadal saved them all, then saved two more in the tie-break before Raonic double-faulted on the sixth set point, and the former world number one took the set with his first chance.
Nadal took advantage of Raonic's lack of mobility in the third set to wrap up an impressive victory, his 50th since making his debut in the tournament in 2004, with a hold to love.
His win came after two hours and 44 minutes on court and he celebrated with a huge leap before falling to his knees as emotion took over.
Nadal was reluctant to talk about a possible dream final against Federer.
"Let me enjoy today, the victory, and being in the semi-final," he said. "For me, it is great news. It is a good start of the season and now I have a very tough match against Dimitrov."
Federer, who won the last of 17 Grand Slam titles at Wimbledon in 2012, has only just recovered from a knee injury that kept him out for six months.
"It is great for tennis that Roger is there again after an injury, after a lot of people talk about that probably he will never be back," Nadal added.
"The real thing is that he's back and he's probably ready to win again, fighting again to win a major. And that's good for the fans because Roger is a legend of our sport."
Dimitrov, who works with Dani Vallverdu, former coach of Andy Murray and Tomas Berdych, had earlier beaten 11th seed Goffin 6-3 6-2 6-4.
The 25-year-old began the year with a title in Brisbane and has now won 10 matches in a row.
"The last two years have been a rollercoaster for me, but I'm happy with the way it happened," said Dimitrov.
"I'm appreciating things much better now. To be back in the semi-finals of a Slam means too much for me right now."
He will be appearing in his second major semi-final, having made it to the same stage at Wimbledon in 2014.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/38740946
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France's Benoit Hamon rouses Socialists with basic income plan - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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What does the rise of left-wing presidential hopeful Benoit Hamon say about France's Socialists?
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Europe
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Benoit Hamon has been short on detail with his plan for basic income in France
He's been called the "French Bernie Sanders". After his decisive win in the first round of France's Socialist party primary, left-wing rebel, Benoit Hamon is suddenly the centre of attention.
But what do his rapid rise and eye-catching policies say about the future of the French left?
With his designer stubble and cheeky grin, the 49-year-old Socialist party rebel has been grabbing more than his share of the limelight over the past few weeks.
The most left-leaning of the seven initial candidates in the Socialist race, his programme has been built around the radical proposal of a universal monthly payment for all French citizens, regardless of income. He also wants to legalise cannabis, to tax the wealth created by robots and to ditch the labour law passed last year that made it easier to hire and fire.
The income plan he has outlined would be put into effect in three stages.
Critics have pilloried the plan as unworkable, estimating its cost at between €300-€400bn.
It's true that Mr Hamon has been short on detail when it comes to how his vision for France would be funded. But that doesn't seem to have affected his popularity among left-wing voters.
By finishing several points ahead of former Prime Minister Manuel Valls during the first round of voting on Sunday, Mr Hamon has drawn attention to some important questions for France's ruling left-wing party: most obviously, the deep split between the Socialist party's left-wing supporters and the more liberal, centrist line taken by the current Socialist government.
Manuel Valls was the prime minister who pushed through some of that government's most unpopular labour reforms and security measures. That left a rift with the party that may force him out of the presidential race in the run-off on Sunday.
Benoit Hamon is going into round two in a strong position, having secured the support of fellow left-winger Arnaud Montebourg, who came third in the first round.
Benoit Hamon (L) resigned as a minister with Arnaud Montebourg in 2014 after they called for an end to austerity
If Mr Hamon wins, it will reorient the Socialist party away from the centre of French politics, and back to its traditional left-wing positions.
That may not help him much during the presidential race. Whoever wins the Socialist nomination is tipped to come fifth, according to the opinion polls.
But it could have two important consequences for France.
A nomination for Mr Hamon is likely to funnel centrist votes towards liberal former banker Emmanuel Macron, whose growing popularity is starting to worry the far-right National Front (FN), which is now banking on a place in the second round of the presidential poll.
Francois Fillon, Marine Le Pen and Emmanuel Macron are leading the field in the presidential race
And, even as the populist campaigns gather speed in France, the appearance of Benoit Hamon at the head of the Socialist campaign could also signal a return to the politics of a previous era.
For years France's established parties have drifted to the centre ground and voter apathy has grown.
But now voters already have the prospect of an old-school Catholic conservative heading the main right-wing Republican party. And if Benoit Hamon wins the Socialist nomination on Sunday, the main left-wing party will once again embrace its traditional positions on workers' rights, redistribution, civil liberties and the environment.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-38723219
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Brexit white paper: Climbdown or goodwill gesture - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Giving MPs a white paper is a clear concession by Theresa May but one that is unlikely to affect her Brexit timetable or damage her authority.
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UK Politics
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It was only yesterday that the Brexit Secretary, David Davis, told MPs it just might all be a bit tricky to have a White Paper, a formal document outlining the government's plans for Brexit, and stick to the timetable they want to pursue.
Rebel Remainers though were "delighted", that, stealing Jeremy Corbyn's thunder, a planted question from a loyal Tory MP at PMQs today produced in fact a promise from the Prime Minister that, after all, there will be a White Paper.
It is a climbdown, no question, a last-minute change of heart.
Late last night Brexiteers were being assured there would be no bending, no delay to the government's plans and no giving in to the Remainers.
Even early this morning, government sources were privately suggesting that they were quite happy to have the white paper option up their sleeve, but there were no immediate plans to make that promise.
Then voila, at 1205 GMT, the pledge of a white paper suddenly emerged. As one senior Tory joked, "welcome to the vacillation of the next two years".
It may be being described as a "massive, unplanned" concession but it doesn't seriously hurt the government.
First off, it shows goodwill to the rebel Tory Remainers, many of whom feel their Eurosceptic rivals have had the upper hand of late. Schmoozing matters round these parts.
It takes one of the potential arguments that could have gathered pace off the table, before the Article 50 bill is even published. And, rightly or wrongly, no one expects a white paper will contain anything new that the prime minister has not yet already said.
It's largely a victory for the Remainers about process, rather than substance.
For her critics this is evidence of weakness, that's she has been pushed into changing her mind.
But it doesn't need to change the government's timetable, and today's embarrassment of a climbdown might be worth the goodwill that Number 10 will get in return.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-38747976
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Inflatable 'Trump' rooster orders overwhelm Chinese factory - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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A factory in China is cashing on the inauguration of the new US president as the Year of the Rooster approaches.
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A factory in China is cashing on the inauguration of the new US president as the Year of the Rooster approaches.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-38724044
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Voter fraud claims: White House defends Trump's stance - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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White House press secretary Sean Spicer spars with reporters over unproven voter fraud claims.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38735858
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Has La La Land been overhyped? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Not every moviegoer is a fan of La La Land - with many complaining it has been mis-sold.
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Entertainment & Arts
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"Incredible!" "Glorious!" "Magnificent!" - The hype surrounding La La Land has been difficult to miss.
In addition to all the critical praise, the film is dominating awards season - equalling the all-time record held by Titanic and All About Eve for the most Oscar nominations.
But now many moviegoers are coming forward to say - or rather whisper - that they just didn't get it.
I was one such moviegoer who was desperate to see it - but left feeling somewhat disappointed.
La La Land's posters have made much of the rave reviews
I'm keen to stress I don't think La La Land is a bad movie. Far from it - the songs are catchy and it's beautifully filmed.
But after the acres of five-star reviews, I came away feeling it had been somewhat overhyped.
Judging by our inbox after the Oscar nominations on Tuesday - there are other film fans who felt the same way.
"I could not agree more with those who criticised La La Land - absolutely dreadful film. The direction was immature and the film lacked any pace, leaving aside the fairly abysmal singing and dancing." - Leslie
"Somehow, I think the critics and the Academy members have been in La La Land. Saw it Sunday and although I didn't hate it I just can't see what all the fuss is about." - Graham
"Very weak storyline. Music and singing not on a par with any of the great musicals. Just wanted it to end! When will the critics actually be honest about a film? Five star this, five star that... it would barely get a two in my opinion." - Nigel
It's not unusual for the films which float around during awards season to be popular with critics, but less so with the general public.
Indeed, there is a school of thought popular with marketing researchers that it is actively necessary for a film to split opinion in order for it to be successful.
Oscar Wilde certainly believed that, famously stating: "There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about."
Titanic seemed to prove this theory - despite having an effect on audiences similar to Marmite, it went on to become the highest-grossing film of all time (since beaten by Avatar) and scooped the Oscar for best picture in 1997.
The last musical to win best picture was 2002's Chicago - starring Catherine Zeta-Jones and Renee Zellweger.
I distinctly remember going to see it at the cinema and being bowled over by how good it was. The acting, the editing and the songs all blended together to make an almost-perfect film.
The subsequent success of movies such as Mamma Mia and Pitch Perfect prove that audiences are more than willing to go and see musicals on the big screen.
But while those films are fairly mainstream, feel-good box office fodder, La La Land has been criticised for not quite delivering what it advertises.
In the film's ubiquitous promotional image, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are seen dancing together against a purple skyline. The vibrant colours make it look young, appealing, glamorous.
Many of the film's reviews reinforce its image as a Hollywood love story. "A gorgeously romantic modern-day musical" is how the i paper described it.
But the film is actually far from romantic - lacking the traditional happy ending which would've seen Gosling and Stone's characters end up together.
Personally I thought not being predictable is actually one of La La Land's best qualities, I was pleasantly surprised that its ending took an unexpected route.
My issue was more that it simply didn't quite live up to the months of build-up and promotion and subsequent awards success - it has already broken the record for the most Golden Globe Awards in history.
The film has been roundly praised by critics
Of course, a bit of a backlash is inevitable for any pop culture product once its success has gone stratospheric.
It is always difficult for any film, album, book or TV show to live up to expectations once it's been so highly praised.
If I had gone into the cinema with no expectations, I probably would have come away from it with a better opinion than I did having gone in with such high expectations.
When I saw Chicago, I was 15 years old and paid no attention to reviews or hype - and I enjoyed the film so much more as a result.
Some film fans have taken issue with the fact that a movie about jazz is fronted by two white actors, while others say the script is weak and that Gosling and Stone's singing talents are questionable.
The Spectator's Deborah Ross - one of the few critics to strike a slightly more dissenting note - said the songs had "lyrics I couldn't make out for the life of me" - but, as she and most other critics agree, the songs themselves are impossibly catchy.
It would be hard to argue La La Land is a bad film - it just doesn't quite do what it says on the tin.
My advice to those who haven't seen it would be to ignore the reviews, go in with a clear mind and just enjoy it as a perfectly nice but unspectacular film.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38744603
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Oscar nominations 2017: How diverse is this year's line-up? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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After the #OscarsSoWhite controversies of the last two years, 2017 promises to be a more diverse affair.
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Entertainment & Arts
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Dev Patel is nominated for Lion and Viola Davis is nominated for Fences
After the #OscarsSoWhite controversies of the last two years, 2017 promises to be a more diverse affair.
In the acting categories there are a total of seven nominees from ethnic minority backgrounds.
Denzel Washington is nominated as best actor for Fences and Ruth Negga as best actress for Loving.
Moonlight's Mahershala Ali and Lion's Dev Patel are up for best supporting actor.
The supporting actress category includes Viola Davis for Fences, Naomie Harris for Moonlight and Octavia Spencer for Hidden Figures.
Three of the nine films up for best picture - Fences, Hidden Figures and Moonlight - feature predominantly black casts.
In the directing category, Moonlight's Barry Jenkins is only the fourth black best director nominee in Oscar history.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. This year, non-white actors have received seven Oscar nominations
The first was John Singleton, nominated in 1992 for Boyz n the Hood. He was followed by Lee Daniels, for Precious in 2010, and 12 Years a Slave's Steve McQueen in 2014. McQueen's film won best picture but he lost the best director prize to Gravity's Alfonso Cuaron.
In the documentary feature category, Ava DuVernay's 13th is up against I Am Not Your Negro from Raoul Peck and Ezra Edelman's OJ: Made In America. (With a running time of seven hours and 47 minutes, OJ is the longest film ever nominated for an Academy Award.)
The two-year diversity drought in the acting categories inspired the #OscarsSoWhite backlash on social media.
Of course, most of this year's nominated films were already in production well before that furore erupted.
Moonlight's Jenkins has told the BBC his film was not a response to the #OscarsSoWhite criticism, having conceived the project "at least three-and-a-half years ago".
But the outcry did lead the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which awards the Oscars, to take steps to make its membership more diverse.
Has that made a difference this year? Hollywood Reporter's Oscars guru Scott Feinberg thinks not.
"The Academy may claim that this is the result of it flooding its organization with an unprecedented number of diverse new members this year, but I maintain that these nominees, up against the same competition, would have been nominated in either of the last two years," he writes in his Oscars analysis.
In June 2016, the Academy invited almost 700 new members to join, with a focus on women and ethnic minorities.
One of those new members is British film director Amma Asante, whose film about an interracial marriage A United Kingdom opened the London Film Festival.
She told me last year that the organisers of the Oscars needed to keep up the momentum on its actions to improve diversity.
"I don't know the change happens overnight," she said.
"I'm interested to see what will happen in two Oscars' time."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38730038
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Sir Alex Ferguson: Manchester United making progress under Jose Mourinho - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Manchester United are making progress under Jose Mourinho and are "unlucky" not to be challenging league leaders Chelsea, says Sir Alex Ferguson.
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Manchester United are making progress under Jose Mourinho and are "unlucky" not to be challenging Chelsea, says their former boss Sir Alex Ferguson.
Ferguson, 75, stepped down in 2013 but retains close ties to Old Trafford and attends most games.
"I think he has done a great job," said the Scot in an exclusive interview with BBC Sport.
Ferguson also explained why he thinks Wayne Rooney's United goalscoring record will never be broken.
'Without those draws, they'd be challenging Chelsea'
Jose Mourinho became Manchester United's third manager since Ferguson retired when he replaced Louis van Gaal in May.
Although he won his opening three games in charge, Mourinho's team collected just six points from their next seven Premier League matches.
There was a period earlier in the season when he wasn't getting the decisions and his emotions boiled over. You see him now - he is calm and in control
They have been sixth after every round of matches since the end of October and stayed in that position after the 1-1 draw at Stoke on 21 January, when Rooney scored an injury-time equaliser to become United's record goalscorer, with 250.
Nevertheless, Ferguson can see signs of progress under the Portuguese. And though Chelsea are eight points clear at the top of the Premier League - and 14 points ahead of the Old Trafford club - he believes his former side are "unlucky" not to be up there with them.
"You can see he has got to grips with the club," he said.
"The team is playing really well and he has been very unlucky. He has had six 1-1 draws and in every game he has battered the opposition.
"If they hadn't had all these draws, they would be there challenging Chelsea. That is the unfortunate part but he is going to have to live with that."
'The team is mirroring its manager'
Mourinho has been sent to the stands twice this season, against Burnley and West Ham, as his side struggled to overcome supposedly inferior opposition at Old Trafford.
The former Chelsea and Real Madrid manager seems far more relaxed now though.
United go to Hull on Thursday for the second leg of their EFL Cup semi-final unbeaten in 17 games. That run encompassed nine successive wins, including a 2-0 triumph in the first leg at Old Trafford, their longest-winning sequence since Ferguson called time on his illustrious career.
Ferguson said: "I was a little bit different from Jose in the respect that I wanted to build the football club and wanted young players to be part of that.
"Nonetheless, the first team weren't doing great and you have to find solutions to correct that. I think Jose is finding solutions now. There was a period earlier in the season when he wasn't getting the decisions and his emotions boiled over. You see him now - he is calm and in control.
"That is the obvious observation I am making of the team now. The team is mirroring its manager.
"On Saturday at Stoke, they played to the last kick of the ball. They never gave in and got their rewards to take something from the game with that great Rooney goal.
"And did you see what he did? Ran to the halfway line. No celebration. Pointed to the ball as if to say 'get it, we are going to win this'. That is exactly the spirit Jose has created."
Sir Bobby Charlton's club record of 249 Manchester United goals had stood for 44 years until Rooney went past it at the Britannia Stadium.
Charlton amassed his tally in 758 appearances for the club. Rooney, 31, has gone one better in 546 games since moving from Everton for £27m as an 18-year-old in 2004.
With the chance to score even more this season and a contract that runs to 2018 if the Liverpool-born player remains at Old Trafford until its conclusion, Rooney has set a record that is unlikely ever to be beaten, according to Ferguson.
"In the present-day game, it is difficult to see any club having players who can stay with them for 10 years.
"Jose has mentioned Marcus Rashford and there is an opportunity for that young lad, if he stays at United, and develops his potential the way that Wayne has. But it is a very big target to hit.
"Bobby Charlton's record was quite substantial. I couldn't think anybody would beat that. It is an achievement par excellence."
It is nearly four years now since Sir Alex Ferguson stepped down as manager of Manchester United, yet the ease with which he skipped from room to room to conduct interviews at a Cheshire hotel on Tuesday suggests that, at 75, he remains as enthusiastic for life as ever.
There is no longer the same hint of menace about him if the questions are not to his satisfaction, although I suspect if I had strayed off topic, I might have got a mild blast of the famous hair dryer.
But Ferguson remains engaging company. Far different to the combustible figure who dominated the touchline and harangued anyone who got in his - and United's - way.
These days a funny story usually close at hand. Today, it concerned the mother of Everton chairman Bill Kenwright, who, Ferguson recalled, pleaded with him over the phone not to take away "my boy" as negotiations over Rooney's £27m move from Everton drew to a close in 2004.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38735437
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In pictures: The Pole who works in a UK hospital - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Photographer Ed Gold spends a day in the life of a Pole working in a UK hospital.
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In Pictures
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Anna Maria Bak, 27, is Polish and works in A&E at Colchester General Hospital. Here, photographer Ed Gold takes a snapshot of her life in Britain.
"I came to the UK for the first time in 2010. I had studied English philology at university in the Polish town of Krosno. Philology is the study of language in historical literature and I learnt a lot about Great Britain. I wanted a new challenge in my life and decided to try my luck abroad.
"My friend and I rented a room for two weeks in Stratford in London. We were supposed to earn money but we lost it instead by paying for too many travel tickets.
"I moved back to Poland for another year but I'm tough. My surname Bak means bumblebee in Polish. We are fighters because we've been through hard times.
"I was lucky when I returned to England as I got a job at the Italian restaurant Carluccio's. I had a friend working there as a waiter. I learnt a lot about customer service. People are more polite in the UK than in Poland.
"I left that job as it was only part-time and I couldn't afford my Oyster card and rent. I was in debt. I then found a Polish woman on the internet who was finding jobs for people in nursing homes, but she ripped me off and took £70 from me for certificates I never needed.
"Still we have a saying in Poland, 'If you have enough oil in your head' - it means if you have enough intelligence, you will make it work.
"I found myself a job at a nursing home. I did that for two years in north London. I remember a patient asking me 'Where they could spend a penny?' and I asked them what did they want to buy?
"I wanted a more challenging job so I moved to Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, working as an admin assistant in the radiology department. Now I'm working in the A&E at Colchester General Hospital. I'm really happy to work in health as I make a difference. I go the extra mile.
"The Polish NHS is not too bad but I think the quality of care provided in the English hospitals is much higher. The staff are always friendly and helpful and patients get treated with respect and dignity. Unfortunately I can't say the same about Polish hospitals. I've been a patient in Poland and found communication between staff and patient to be very poor.
"Renting is much cheaper outside London and my quality of life is higher in Colchester. I am careful with my money and saving up so that I can buy a house one day.
"Everything costs less in the UK, even the food. I really like The Body Shop - it is mission impossible to get those cosmetics in Poland. Plus in Poland you earn a third of what you can here.
"I also love the full English breakfast - it's the best breakfast ever. Usually for Polish breakfast you'd have cottage cheese, fresh bread and butter but you wouldn't get that protein boost in the morning - a full English keeps you going for hours. I do miss the Polish food though and the snow we get in winter.
"It's hard though being miles away from my mum. I send her parcels full of goodies like food and cosmetics twice a year. Recently I've been sending hats to her because she is ill. I know how to deal with stress at work but I cry at home when I hear bad news about mum.
"I live with my flat mate Zelda, who is from Latvia. I have friends from all over the world - it's one thing I really like about living in the UK. I met Zelda at work. We like to watch movies and eat Chinese takeaways. We don't have much time to go out but we're planning to. We'd normally go out to a local pub and then find somewhere to dance. I like my flat and feel very comfortable here.
"I haven't seen things change because of Brexit and I've never suffered racism.
"No-one has the right to say to me 'You're out of the UK', because I pay my taxes, I'm not here just to make money. It really bugs me if people come here from abroad who claim benefits after three months and have access to the free health service. I think to be here from abroad you should pay taxes.
"I get on better with English people now than Polish people and I think in English. Although I was born in Poland and have a Polish passport, I've found it easier to live here than other Poles as I've adapted to British society so well.
"I will apply for citizenship in Britain but only when I get enough money. It's expensive and costs about £2,000."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-38637627
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Lego copycats fool China boss - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Lego now has a factory in China, but there are fears about copyright violation there.
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Lego - the toy loved by children around the world - now has a factory in China.
And some of them are so convincing even the boss can't tell them apart.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38729557
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What executive actions has Trump taken? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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President Trump signs a flurry of orders as he lays out his presidential agenda.
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US & Canada
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. What exactly is an executive order, and how significant are they to a president's legacy?
One of the first ways a new president is able to exercise political power is through unilateral executive orders.
While legislative efforts take time, a swipe of the pen from the White House can often enact broad changes in government policy and practice.
President Donald Trump has wasted little time in taking advantage of this privilege.
Given his predecessor's reliance on executive orders to circumvent Congress in the later days of his presidency, he has a broad range of areas in which to flex his muscle.
Here's a look at some of what Mr Trump has done so far:
Mr Trump signed the order at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) undoing a key part of the Obama administration's efforts to tackle global warming.
The order reverses the Clean Power Plan, which had required states to regulate power plants, but had been on hold while being challenged in court.
Before signing the order, a White House official told the press that Mr Trump does believe in human-caused climate change, but that the order was necessary to ensure American energy independence and jobs.
Environmental groups warn that undoing those regulations will have serious consequences at home and abroad.
"I think it is a climate destruction plan in place of a climate action plan," the Natural Resources Defense Council's David Doniger told the BBC, adding that they will fight the president in court.
Immediate impact: A coalition of 17 states filed a legal challenge against the Trump administration's decision to roll back climate change regulations. The challenge, led by New York state, argued that the administration has a legal obligation to regulate emissions of the gases believed to cause global climate change. Mars Inc, Staples and The Gap are among US corporations who are also challenging Mr Trump's reversal on climate change policy.
After an angry weekend in Florida in which he accused former-president Barack Obama of wiretapping his phones at Trump Tower, Mr Trump returned to the White House to sign a revised version of his controversial travel ban.
The executive order titled "protecting the nation from foreign terrorist entry into the United States" was signed out of the view of the White House press corps on 6 March.
The order's new language is intended to skirt the legal pitfalls that caused his first travel ban to be halted by the court system.
Immediate impact: Soon after the order was signed, it was once again blocked by a federal judge, this time in Hawaii.
Surrounded by farmers and Republican lawmakers, Mr Trump signed an order on 28 February directing the EPA and the Army Corp of Engineers to reconsider a rule issued by President Obama.
The 2015 regulation - known as the Waters of the United States rule - gave authority to the federal government over small waterways, including wetlands, headwaters and small ponds.
The rule required Clean Water Act permits for any developer that wished to alter or damage these relatively small water resources, which the president described as "puddles" in his signing remarks.
Opponents of Mr Obama's rule, including industry leaders, condemned it as a massive power grab by Washington.
Scott Pruitt, Mr Trump's pick to lead the EPA, will now begin the task of rewriting the rule, and a new draft is not expected for several years.
Immediate impact: The EPA has been ordered to rewrite, or even repeal the rule, but first it must be reviewed. Water protection laws were passed by Congress long before Mr Obama's rule was announced, so it cannot simply be undone with the stroke of a pen. Instead the EPA must re-evaluate how to interpret the 1972 Clean Water Act.
A bill the president signed on 16 February put an end to an Obama-era regulation that aimed at protecting waterways from coal mining waste.
Senator Mitch McConnell had called the rule an "attack on coal miners".
The US Interior Department, which reportedly spent years drawing up the regulation before it was issued in December, had said it would protect 6,000 miles of streams and 52,000 acres of forests.
An attempt to cut down on the burden of small businesses.
Described as a "two-out, one-in" approach, the order asked government departments that request a new regulation to specify two other regulations they will drop.
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will manage the regulations and is expected to be led by the Republican Mick Mulvaney.
Some categories of regulation will be exempt from the "two-out, one-in" clause - such as those dealing with the military and national security and "any other category of regulations exempted by the Director".
Immediate impact: Wait and see.
Probably his most controversial action, so far, taken to keep the country safe from terrorists, the president said.
The effect was felt at airports in the US and around the world as people were stopped boarding US-bound flights or held when they landed in the US.
Immediate impact: Enacted pretty much straight away. But there are battles ahead. Federal judges brought a halt to deportations, and legal rulings appear to have put an end to the travel ban - much to the president's displeasure.
A fence is already in place along much of the US-Mexico border
On Mr Trump's first day as a presidential candidate in June 2015, he made securing the border with Mexico a priority.
He pledged repeatedly at rallies to "build the wall" along the southern border, saying it would be "big, beautiful, and powerful".
Now he has signed a pair of executive orders designed to fulfil that campaign promise.
One order declares that the US will create "a contiguous, physical wall or other similarly secure, contiguous, and impassable physical barrier".
The second order pledges to hire 10,000 more immigration officers, and to revoke federal grant money from so-called "sanctuary cities" which refuse to deport undocumented immigrants.
It remains to be seen how Mr Trump will pay for the wall, although he has repeatedly insisted that it will be fully paid for by the Mexican government, despite their leaders saying otherwise.
Immediate impact: The Department of Homeland Security has a "small" amount of money available (about $100m) to use immediately, but that won't get them very far. Construction of the wall will cost billions of dollars - money that Congress will need to approve. Senator Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said the Republican-led Congress will need to come up with $12-$15bn more, and the funding fight - and any construction - will come up against issues with harsh terrain, private land owners and opposition from both Democrats and some Republicans.
The department will also need additional funds from Congress to hire more immigration officers, but the order will direct the head of the agency to start changing deportation priorities. Cities targeted by the threat to remove federal grants will likely build legal challenges, but without a court injunction, the money can be removed.
The Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group, along with Arizona Democrat Raul Graijalva, have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration.
They argue the Department of Homeland Security is required to draft a new environmental review of the impacts of the wall and other border enforcement activities as it could damage public lands.
With the stroke of a pen...
On his second full working day, the president signed two orders to advance construction of two controversial pipelines - the Keystone XL and Dakota Access.
Mr Trump told reporters the terms of both deals would be renegotiated, and using American steel was a requirement.
Keystone, a 1,179-mile (1,897km) pipeline running from Canada to US refineries in the Gulf Coast, was halted by President Barack Obama in 2015 due to concerns over the message it would send about climate change.
The second pipeline was halted last year as the Army looked at other routes, amid huge protests by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe at a North Dakota site.
Immediate impact: Mr Trump has granted a permit to TransCanada, the Keystone XL builder, to move forward with the controversial pipeline. As a result, TransCanada will drop an arbitration claim for $15bn in damages it filed under the North American Free Trade Agreement. Mr Trump made no mention of an American steel requirement. Construction will not start until the company obtains a permit from Nebraska's Public Service Commission.
The Dakota Access pipeline has since been filled with oil and the company is in the process of preparing to begin moving oil.
In one of his first actions as president, Mr Trump issued a multi-paragraph directive to the Department of Health and Human Services and other federal agencies involved in managing the nation's healthcare system.
The order states that agencies must "waive, defer, grant exemptions from, or delay" any portions of the Affordable Care Act that creates financial burden on states, individuals or healthcare providers.
Although the order technically does not authorise any powers the executive agencies do not already have, it's viewed as a clear signal that the Trump administration will be rolling back Obama-era healthcare regulations wherever possible.
Immediate impact: Republicans failed to secure an overhaul of the US healthcare system due to a lack of support for the legislation. That means Mr Trump's executive order is one of the only remaining efforts to undermine Obamacare.
Abortion activists were among the many protesters that came out against Trump's presidency one day after his inauguration
What's called the Mexico City policy, first implemented in 1984 under Republican President Ronald Reagan, prevents foreign non-governmental organisations that receive any US cash from "providing counselling or referrals for abortion or advocating for access to abortion services in their country", even if they do so with other funding.
The ban, derided as a "global gag rule" by its critics, has been the subject of a political tug-of-war ever since its inception, with every Democratic president rescinding the measure, and every Republican bringing it back.
Anti-abortion activists expected Mr Trump to act quickly on this - and he didn't disappoint them.
Immediate impact: The policy will come into force as soon as the Secretaries of State and Heath write an implementation plan and apply to both renewals and new grants. The US State Department has notified the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that US funding for United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) would be withdrawn, arguing that it supports coercive abortion or involuntary sterilisation. The agency has denied this, pointing to examples of its life-saving work in more than 150 countries and territories.
This policy will be much broader than the last time the rule was in place - the Guttmacher Institute, Kaiser Family Foundation and Population Action International believe the order, as written, will apply to all global health funding by the US, instead of only reproductive health or family planning.
The TPP pact would have affected 40% of global trade.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership, once viewed as the crown jewel of Barack Obama's international trade policy, was a regular punching bag for Mr Trump on the campaign trail (although he at times seemed uncertain about what nations were actually involved).
The deal was never approved by Congress so it had yet to go into effect in the US.
Therefore the formal "withdrawal" is more akin to a decision on the part of the US to end ongoing international negotiations and let the deal wither and die.
Immediate impact: Takes effect immediately. In the meantime, some experts are worried China will seek to replace itself in the deal or add TPP nations to its own free trade negotiations, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), excluding the US.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38695593
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Chinese man cycles 500km in wrong direction to get home - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Police paid for the man's ticket home when they realised he had been cycling off course for 30 days.
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China
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The man (not pictured) was stopped by police after cycling for 30 days
A man hoping to cycle home cross-country for Chinese New Year realised 30 days into his trip that he had been travelling in the wrong direction.
The young migrant worker from China was aiming for his home in Qiqihar, Heilongjiang province, after setting off from Rizhao - over 1,700km away.
But he was stopped by traffic police 500km off course, in the central Chinese province of Anhui.
When they found out, the police paid for a train ticket to get him home.
The man had set off from Rizhao, in Shandong province, in December.
A report from the People's Online Daily said the man had been living in internet cafes and was low on funds.
But he was determined to make it home so he chose to cycle the route.
The unnamed man could not read maps, meaning he had to rely on others for directions.
Police stopped him when he was riding on a highway, which cannot be used by cyclists.
After discovering his mistake, both police and people working at the toll station he was stopped at contributed to his ticket home.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-38748373
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Trump and truth - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Why the struggle over who defines the facts will be a central feature of the Trump administration
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US & Canada
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This is a critical moment for journalism, particularly in the United States.
More than 40 years ago, the unmasking of the Watergate break-in inspired journalists around the world.
Reporters appeared as tireless investigators holding the most powerful to account.
Now, a new president declares the fourth estate "dishonest human beings".
A global survey published last week found only 43% of people trusted the traditional media.
Journalists find themselves on the defensive having to demonstrate their integrity to a sceptical public.
Donald Trump believes he is in a "running war" with parts of the media.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Where do Donald Trump supporters get their news from?
This struggle over who defines the facts will be a central feature of his administration.
Social media enables leaders to bypass traditional media and to talk to the public directly.
Donald Trump, with his 34,000 tweets, understands the reach and the power this gives him.
He can sit in the White House and, with a single tweet, define the news agenda of the day or distract attention away from uncomfortable news.
Some of the traditional media now accept they were instrumental in the rise of Donald Trump.
He was the "candidate that kept on giving", as you would regularly hear in Washington.
Controversy surrounded the size of the crowd at Donald Trump's inauguration
But President Trump's rise to power was partly built on attacking the media.
At rally after rally, I watched Donald Trump point at the press pen and denounce journalists as "terrible" people, the "worst".
He wanted to define much of the media as part of the establishment elite who had ignored the plight of ordinary Americans.
He sowed the seed that journalists and their stories about him could not be trusted.
Painting journalists as untrustworthy gave him cover when he was accused of lying and exaggeration.
And so we inhabit the "post-truth world".
Democracy can't function without facts that are widely accepted.
It doesn't mean that facts shouldn't be disputed or their meaning argued over, but societies need a bedrock of information to inform their decisions.
If conspiracies and exaggerations are accepted as alternative realities, then it is much more difficult for a leader to be judged in the court of public opinion.
When, a few days ago, the senior White House aide Kellyanne Conway was asked why the president's press secretary had lied about the crowd size at the inauguration, she defended him by saying he was offering "alternative facts".
Kellyanne Conway used the term "alternative facts" to defend the White House press secretary
Her interviewer, Chuck Todd, of NBC, retorted that "alternative facts aren't facts, they're falsehoods".
It was an early round in the battle for the truth.
I recall an exchange I had at a Trump event where it was explained to me that the fact that a lot of people believed something gave it an element of truth.
Most Americans still get their news from TV, but more than 30% get it from the internet and particularly from Facebook.
There is now a lot of research on the role of social media in spreading false information.
In Europe, too, the reputation of the media is under fire.
Journalists have been damaged by hacking, by intrusion and the suspicion that they don't tell the whole story.
In Germany, parts of the mainstream media were accused of covering up reports of assaults on women in Cologne on New Year's Day 2016 because many of the allegations related to men believed to be migrants.
In the Edelman Trust barometer - published last week - trust in the media had fallen to an all-time low in 17 of the 28 countries polled.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer says the administration will "hold the press accountable"
In the United States, news organisations are grappling with difficult questions.
One TV executive said the biggest challenge was to avoid being seen as part of the "running war" that President Trump describes.
Some organisations in the US, the UK and Germany - including the BBC - are embracing "reality checks" as part of their coverage, but they are time consuming and difficult.
Governments, too, are looking into how to boost trust in statistics and official information.
It might mean the creation of more agencies that are truly independent of government and politicians.
The new White House press secretary has said: "We are going to hold the press accountable."
It signals a battle over who defines the truth and who defines the facts.
American journalism will face one of its severest tests.
• None The hotel developer who became president
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38731191
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My idol turned out to be my sister - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Jennifer Bricker was born without legs but still became a gymnast, after watching an Olympic champion on TV. The two had more in common than they could ever have guessed.
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Magazine
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Aerial performer Jennifer Bricker was born without legs, but she never let it stop her. By the age of 11 she was a gymnastics champion - having fallen in love with the sport after watching Dominique Moceanu win a gold medal for the US at the 1996 Olympics. And it turned out the two had a lot more in common than athletic talent.
Wrapped in a loop of red silk suspended from the ceiling Jennifer Bricker climbs and twists to the music. Her head hangs down and her strong arms let go as she balances on her back, high above the ground - a move that's all the more daring because she has no legs.
Jennifer was a few months old when she was adopted by Sharon and Gerald Bricker. She had big brown eyes, a radiant smile, and huge amounts of energy. When a doctor advised her adoptive parents to carry her around in a kind of bucket, they refused.
Jennifer soon learned to walk - and run - on her hands and bottom, and grew up fearlessly climbing trees and bouncing on the trampoline with her three older brothers. "They encouraged all of that by having me jump off everything and scare everybody half to death," she says.
At the age of three she was fitted with prosthetic legs, but she never really took to them - she moved more freely without.
At school Jennifer loved competing in ball games. "I was right there with everyone else," she says. "My parents didn't treat me differently so I didn't grasp the concept that I was different. I knew I didn't have legs but that wasn't stopping me from doing the things I wanted to do."
The Brickers had always been open with her about her adoption. "I knew that I was Romanian and that probably a good reason why I was given up for adoption was because I didn't have legs," says Jennifer.
Sharon and Gerald even encouraged her to understand her birth parents - Romanian immigrants to the US who had given her up on the day she was born. "You didn't walk in their shoes so you really don't know what was going on in their life. They were from a different country. They had a different mindset," they would explain.
At the same time, they made sure she felt loved and wanted, telling her she was the answer to their prayers.
Jennifer grew up in a tiny community in Illinois. The first time she saw a fellow Romanian was on TV. It was 1996 and the Olympic Games were taking place in Atlanta. Jennifer loved to watch the women's gymnastics team, but there was one member of the team she especially idolised - 14-year-old Dominique Moceanu. She was only six years older, and, as Jennifer puts it, "very small" like her.
"I was drawn to her because we looked alike and that was so important to me," says Jennifer. "No-one looked like me growing up. I didn't know any other Romanian people. I just saw myself in her in so many ways and that was a big deal for me."
Dominique Moceanu during the Women's Beam event in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia
Moceanu and the women's team went on to win gold, and it was at that moment Jennifer decided she was going to be a gymnast, too. She took up power tumbling, which involves performing floor exercises down a runway. But Jennifer did not want any allowances to be made for her disability. "That way when I compete, I know that it's legit," she says.
She remembers spectators being surprised when they saw her: "Wow, this girl doesn't have legs - is she competing?"
"But the love, the support when I did compete was amazing," she says. "They would always applaud and cheer because I made sure that there were no exceptions made for me - nothing."
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At the age of 10 she took part in the Junior Olympics and by age 11 she was tumbling champion for the state of Illinois.
Jennifer continued to follow the ups and downs of her idol, who was now making headlines for different reasons. In 1998, when Dominique was 17, she took her parents to court, accusing them of mis-spending $1m of her post-Olympic earnings. During the court case, stories came out about her father's harsh treatment of her. She succeeded in legally breaking free from her parents and taking control of her own finances.
Dominique Moceanu takes an oath in court with her father in the background
When Jennifer was 16 she asked her mother if there was anything they hadn't told her about her birth family. She really wasn't expecting her to say, "Yes," because her parents had always been so open. But to her surprise, her mother did have something important to tell her. She sat her down and said: "Your biological last name would have been Moceanu."
There was no doubting what that meant. "Immediately when she said that I was like, 'Wow, that means Dominique's my sister,'" says Jennifer.
The Brickers had found out purely by accident. Jennifer's was meant to have been a closed adoption, but her birth parents' names appeared on some documents. Then, during the 1996 Olympics, the TV cameras had cut to Dominique's mother Camelia and father Dumitru in the crowd. As their names flashed up on the screen, the Brickers realised they were looking at Jennifer's parents. But they decided not to tell their daughter until she was older.
When she found out, Jennifer wanted to get in touch with Dominique, but she was determined to do it properly. "I couldn't just call her and say 'Hey, I'm your sister' - I didn't want her to think I was crazy." Her uncle happened to be a private investigator so she asked him to contact her biological parents. They didn't deny putting her up for adoption, but after that first phone call they no longer responded. "It was clear they wanted to continue keeping me a secret," she says.
Four years later, Jennifer wrote her sister a letter, explaining the situation and telling her how she had inspired her to take up gymnastics.
"I almost could not believe it myself, you had been my idol my whole life, and you turned out to be my sister!" she wrote.
She included copies of all the documentation she had and lots of photographs - all from the waist up. "I instinctively made the choice not to tell her I didn't have legs because I thought it might be a little bit much," explains Jennifer. "She's already finding out she has a sister she didn't know about. I'll just wait and tell her about the no legs afterwards."
By now, Dominique was 26 years old and no longer competing professionally. It was a busy time in her life. She had married a fellow athlete and they were expecting their first child. She was trying to finish her college exams before giving birth. On 10 December 2007, after finishing a statistics exam, Dominique drove to the post office to collect a package.
She tore open the envelope when she got back to the car - the first thing she saw were some court documents with her parents' signatures. That piqued her interest. Then she shifted her attention to the photographs of a girl who looked just like her younger sister, Christina. "The resemblance was unbelievable," she says. Finally she turned to the neatly-typed letter. One sentence leapt out at her: "My biological last name is Moceanu."
"That letter was the biggest shock of my life and I'll never forget it," says Dominique.
She needed to know if it was true. Still sitting in her car, she called her mother, who lived a few time zones away, and woke her up with the words: "Did you give up a baby girl for adoption in 1987?"
"She had the wake-up call of her life - it was just so blunt," she admits.
Her mother burst into tears. She said "Yes" but could barely say anything else.
"My heart broke for her because she had to keep this a secret for all these years and she could never have had the opportunity to deal with it," says Dominique.
The next few weeks were an emotional rollercoaster. Dominique wrote back to Jennifer, asking for time to process the news and explaining that she was about to have a baby.
"I needed to answer some of my own questions and figure out how this could have happened," says Dominique.
At the time her father was very ill so it was difficult to communicate with him, but Dominique found out that he had made the decision to give Jennifer up at the hospital out of fear that they would not be able to pay her medical bills. Her mother had not had a say in it, and had never even got the chance to hold her.
Dominique's own daughter was born on Christmas Day and a few weeks later, on 14 January, she felt ready to call her sister for the first time. She was nervous and had even prepared notes, but the conversation soon flowed.
Then Jennifer bit the bullet. "By the way, you know I don't have legs right?" she said.
Dominique was stunned into silence. How did this fit with what she knew?
"She told me that I was the reason she started gymnastics, and I thought that was a beautiful thing," says Dominique. "I never imagined she would do all of these sports without having legs."
That spring, Dominique, Jennifer and their younger sister Christina met for the first time in Ohio, where Dominique lived.
"On one hand it was surreal and a bit like a dream," says Jennifer. "But on the other hand it was very natural. The DNA was very clear at that point. When I met my younger sister it was like looking in a mirror."
The sisters marvelled at all the things they had in common - the way they laughed, even certain hand gestures - but when they spoke about their upbringing, their stories could not have been more different.
"They did not have the love and support that I had. They had some abuse and turmoil and secrets so it was not an easy childhood for them," says Jennifer.
The Moceanus, themselves former gymnasts, had come to the US in 1981, after fleeing the Ceausescu regime in Romania. Dominique was born shortly after they arrived, and they dreamed she would be the next Nadia Comaneci.
When she was six months old they hung her on the washing line to test her strength - she held on until the line broke. "That was a sign to them I'd be a great gymnast," says Dominique. It was a story her father loved to tell - unfortunately the training methods he and the coaches espoused were a hangover from the communist era.
Dominique says she was constantly humiliated and berated about her weight and any shortcomings in her performance. "People thought these measures were the way you had to succeed," she says. "But those kinds of things are really damaging to the self-esteem when you're a young, growing, pre-pubescent child." There was also the threat of physical punishment from her father if her performance was not up to scratch. He was an authoritarian figure who dominated the household.
"We all agree that it would not have been a great childhood environment for me to grow up in," says Jennifer.
"My parents had never been around many children with disabilities," says Dominique.
Their father died before Jennifer could meet him, but in January 2010, at the age of 22, she met her biological mother, Camelia, for the first time.
"I remember it in slow motion," says Jennifer.
"She was wearing a fur hat - it was such a stereotypical Eastern European thing.
"She couldn't believe how much I looked like my sisters and so she was instinctively speaking in Romanian." Dominique had to translate for her mother, who was too stunned to switch to English.
The women hugged, and Jennifer showed her videos of her performances, including a trampoline act she had performed on tour with Britney Spears. "She was so amazed and she knew that she could have never given me that life," she says.
Jennifer felt no anger towards her. She credits her adoptive parents for this. "They gave me the freedom not to be bitter," she says.
Jennifer with her parents, Sharon and Gerald Bricker
In fact, she says her heart went out to her mother.
"You know, my biological mother was very much a victim of an abusive marriage," she says. "She did not have an easy life - and that's not me making an excuse for her, that's just the truth."
The sisters live in separate states but try to see each other when they can, making up for lost time. Jennifer now travels the world as an inspirational speaker and performs as an aerial acrobat.
"She's wonderful, she's up there in the air and you can see her passion," says Dominique. "I'm proud of her as an older sister - she's really living her dreams."
Listen to Dominique and Jennifer speak to Outlook on the BBC World Service
Images of Jennifer Bricker taken from Everything is Possible by Jen Bricker with Sheryl Berk. Baker Books, © 2016. Used by permission
Dominique Moceanu has also written a book about her life, Off Balance
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-38697627
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Dylan Hartley: England captain feared for international career following ban - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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England captain Dylan Hartley says he feared that his latest ban would cost him his international career.
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Last updated on .From the section Rugby Union
Northampton hooker Dylan Hartley says he feared that his latest ban would cost him his international career.
The 30-year-old has been confirmed as England's captain for the Six Nations by coach Eddie Jones - two days after his six-week suspension for hitting Leinster's Sean O'Brien ended.
Hartley will not have played for nine weeks before England's opening game against France on 4 February.
"I did think that maybe that was it," Hartley told BBC Sport.
"But again, a conversation with Eddie - a very clear and direct conversation - and I know where I stand," he added.
Hartley, who led England to the Grand Slam last year, was banned in December after he caught the Irish flanker with a swinging arm during Northampton's 37-10 Champions Cup loss. It was the third red card of his career.
The subsequent suspension took the total number of weeks he has been unavailable during his career to 60.
"I obviously came back to Northampton and wanted to make a positive impact in a big game for the club," said Hartley. "It obviously went horribly wrong.
"Positive, dominant, hard tackle. That's what I was thinking. Obviously the outcome was different to what I intended.
"That walk off the field is never a quick moment. It seems to drag on for quite a while, but obviously gives you time to reflect and I understand I could have jeopardised a lot.
"I put myself and the team in a difficult position and since then I've had clear directives from the management of what they expect and here I am."
Hartley said that part of the directive from Jones was to improve his tackle technique.
"I've worked very hard with [England defence coach] Paul Gustard on that," added Hartley. "It's not something that just finishes now that I'm back playing. It's an ongoing thing."
Hartley was dropped from England's 2015 Rugby World Cup squad after he headbutted Saracens' Jamie George, but was recalled by the Australian after he replaced Stuart Lancaster.
The hooker went on to lead the side to a Six Nations Grand Slam as they embarked on a run of 14 consecutive Test match victories.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/38751283
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Trump's 'control-alt-delete' on climate change policy - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Are the Trump team's actions on climate and energy the opening shots in a war on knowledge?
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Science & Environment
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Amid concerns over his attitude to climate change, the new President has signed orders to push forward with two major oil pipelines
Are the recent actions taken by the Trump team on the issues of climate and energy the opening shots in a war on knowledge?
Or are they simply what you'd expect from a new administration of a different political hue?
Let's examine what we know.
Just after Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 45th president, a range of information on the White House website related to climate change was moved to an Obama online archive.
The only references to rising temperatures on the new Trump White House site are a commitment to eliminate "harmful and unnecessary policies such as the Climate Action Plan". This was President Obama's broad-based strategy to cut carbon emissions.
The brief White House document now contains a further indication of the green priorities of the new administration. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), should focus on its "essential mission of protecting our air and water".
The Twitter account of Badlands National Park has seen a number of tweets relating to climate change deleted
While the administration figures out how to achieve that re-focus, staff at the EPA have been told to freeze all grant making, and to be quiet about it. This means that no external press releases will be issued and no social media posts will be permitted. It is unclear when these restrictions will be lifted.
Reports from news agencies indicate that the roll-back will not stop there, with climate information pages hosted by the EPA expected to be shut down.
"My guess is the web pages will be taken down, but the links and information will be available," the prominent climate sceptic and adviser to the Trump transition team, Myron Ebell, told Reuters.
"If the website goes dark, years of work we have done on climate change will disappear," said an anonymous EPA staff member, according to reports.
The Trump team has also taken immediate steps to push forward with two controversial oil pipelines.
So are all these moves evidence of a malevolent mindset, determined to crush all this snowflake climate change chatter?
Definitely, according to Alden Meyer, a veteran climate campaigner with the Union of Concerned Scientists.
"President Trump and his team are pursuing what I call a 'control-alt-delete' strategy: control the scientists in the federal agencies, alter science-based policies to fit their narrow ideological agenda, and delete scientific information from government websites," told BBC News.
"This is an across-the-board strategy that we are seeing at multiple federal agencies on a range of issues, though climate denialism is clearly the point of the spear."
Not according to White House spokesman Sean Spicer.
"I don't think it's any surprise that when there's an administration turnover, that we're going to review the policy," he said.
However the disappearance of tweets of basic climate change information from the Badlands National Park Twitter account has raised serious concerns that the Trump team is not just seeking to roll back regulation, but is also taking an ideological stand against what they might see as "warmist" propaganda.
Protesters have maintained a long-term presence to stall progress on the Dakota Access Pipeline
Back in 2009, President Obama enacted rules that federal agencies should have scientific integrity policies, that guaranteed the rights of free speech of employees, following on from the gagging of some researchers and the altering of reports under the Bush administration.
While the current steps being taken by the Trump team may turn out to be less restrictive than feared, on this side of the pond there's a great deal of concern.
Scientists see the forthcoming visit of UK prime minister Theresa May to Washington as an opportunity to press the President to rein in his approach.
"We are beginning to see our fears realised less than a week after President Trump has taken office," said Bob Ward, from the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment.
"I hope that the Prime Minister will challenge President Trump about this censorship and political interference in the process of gaining and sharing knowledge about climate change during their meeting on Friday."
Climate scientists in the US are also rallying to fight back.
A march on Washington by scientists is being proposed, Facebook pages and Twitter accounts have been created based on the the idea that "an American government that ignores science to pursue ideological agendas endangers the world".
Meanwhile, another national park - Golden Gate NPS - has started tweeting climate facts.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-38746608
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RAF Typhoons escort Russian ships - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Three RAF Typhoons and a British warship escort a Russian aircraft carrier and other ships up the English Channel.
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Three RAF Typhoons and a British warship escort a Russian aircraft carrier and other ships up the English Channel.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-38750696
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Australian Open 2017: Serena Williams beats Johanna Konta, Mirjana Lucic-Baroni wins - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Six-time champion Serena Williams outplays Britain's Johanna Konta to reach the Australian Open semi-finals.
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Last updated on .From the section Tennis
Coverage: Daily live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra; live text on selected matches on the BBC Sport website; TV highlights on BBC Two and online from 21 January.
The American, 35, won 6-2 6-3 and will next play unseeded Croat Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, who beat fifth-seeded Czech Karolina Pliskova 6-4 3-6 6-4.
Konta, seeded ninth, went into the quarter-final on a nine-match and 18-set winning streak but came up short in her first meeting with Williams.
Williams is now two wins from claiming an Open-era record 23rd major title.
• None Watch day 10 highlights on BBC Two from 16:45 GMT on Wednesday
"Johanna Konta has been playing so well," said the second seed.
"I was in the locker room watching her clean up her matches. She is a future champion here for sure, so I am pleased to get through this.
"I got a little frustrated with my serve, but I told myself 'don't get Babyrena' [Williams' angry alter-ego] and focused on enjoying myself out here. Today I felt I can do this, it is such a great opportunity for me."
Konta described facing Williams as the "best experience of my life".
In a match of big hitting and small margins, it was Williams who established an early control she would not relinquish.
The American's usually dominant first serve faltered as she made just 45%, but she returned brilliantly to break the Konta serve - the best on tour this season going into the match - four times.
Konta had the first chance but went long with a backhand on break point at 1-1, then found her second serve under greater pressure than at any stage of the tournament so far.
Williams looked razor sharp on return, with two thumping forehand winners setting the American on the way to a 3-1 lead.
More heavy blows brought a second break, and with it the set, in game eight to end a run of 18 straight sets for Konta stretching back to her warm-up win in Sydney.
Konta showed why she had been seen as a real threat by recovering from 0-40 early in the second set and then breaking to lead 3-1, but a loose game handed the advantage back and Williams raced through five straight games to victory.
No matter how many times you have watched Serena Williams play, it is perhaps just not possible to appreciate how hard she hits the ball - and how quickly it arrives on your racquet - until you have shared a court with her.
Johanna Konta had her first experience of that today and was not able to maintain the standards she had set earlier in the fortnight when faced with such persistent pressure.
But a run to the quarter-finals means she could well retain her position in the world's top 10.
After a few days' rest, Konta is planning to play Fed Cup for Great Britain in Estonia and then rejoin the tour in Doha and Dubai. She has a packed schedule ahead, although may play one or two fewer tournaments if she keeps winning matches at the same rate.
Lucic-Baroni 'in shock' at return to semis
World number 79 Lucic-Baroni upset Pliskova to reach the semi-finals in Melbourne - 18 years after she reached the same stage at Wimbledon.
The 34-year-old hardly played in the early years of the century because of a series of personal issues.
"I can't believe this, this is crazy," said Lucic-Baroni.
"The only thing I can say is God is good. I can't believe I'm in the semi-finals again. I feel a little bit in shock right now.
"I know this means a lot to every player but to me this is overwhelming, this has truly made my life and everything bad that has happened OK."
Lucic-Baroni was a tennis prodigy, winning junior titles at the Australian and US Opens, and winning the Australian Open doubles with Martina Hingis in 1998.
She went on to reach the semi-finals at Wimbledon the following year, losing to Steffi Graf.
Lucic-Baroni and Williams will meet for the first time since Wimbledon 1998 in Thursday's semi-final, which begins at 03:00 GMT.
"It is really happening for the mid-30s," said Williams.
"Mirjana - it is so good to see her back out and inspiring to see her in the semi-finals. Whatever happens there will be someone in the final in their mid-thirties."
Serena's sister Venus takes on fellow American Coco Vandeweghe in the other semi-final.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/38740755
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Robert Snodgrass: Hull accept bid in the region of £10m from Burnley - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Hull City accept a bid in the region of £10m from Burnley for Scottish midfielder Robert Snodgrass.
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Last updated on .From the section Football
Hull City have accepted a bid in the region of £10m from Burnley for top scorer Robert Snodgrass.
The Tigers, who are 19th in the Premier League, rejected a bid from West Ham earlier this month for the 29-year-old midfielder.
The Scotland international, who joined Hull from Norwich in 2014, has scored seven Premier League goals this season.
The Tigers say the move is now down to the player and he has not yet gone for a medical at Burnley.
Hull have so far rejected offers of up to £6m from West Ham for Snodgrass, who missed Sunday's 2-0 defeat at Chelsea with what manager Marco Silva described as "a small injury in the knee".
West Ham remain interested but Silva is reluctant to part with Snodgrass having already sold midfielder Jake Livermore to West Brom for an undisclosed fee, believed to be £10m.
Any deal for Snodgrass would have to be for about the same price.
Snodgrass has been linked with a move away from the KC Stadium since December, before Hull triggered a one-year contract extension, tying him to the club until the end of the 2017-18 season.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page or visit our Premier League tracker here.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38744778
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Why Brexit ruling is a relief for the government - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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The government lost its Supreme Court appeal, but ministers will still be relieved at the ruling.
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UK Politics
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. The BBC's Laura Kuenssberg sets out three key points from the ruling
Certainly, the prime minister did not want to find herself in the position of having to ask MPs for permission to start our divorce from the European Union.
Today's verdict from the justices doesn't take away from the reality that having to go to Parliament before triggering Article 50 is a political inconvenience Theresa May very much wanted to avoid.
Nor does it change the sentiment among opposition MPs, some of whom are determined to try to amend whatever legislation the government puts forward to include guarantees of this or that, to try to force a vote on staying in the single market, or to push for final binding votes on the process when negotiations are complete.
However, the sighs of relief are real in Whitehall this morning for two reasons.
Nicola Sturgeon wanted the Scottish government to be consulted before Article 50 was triggered
The justices held back from insisting that the devolved administrations would have a vote or a say on the process. That was, as described by a member of Team May, the "nightmare scenario".
The Scottish National Party has said it would not try to veto Brexit, but there is no question that having a vote on Article 50 in the Holyrood Parliament could have been politically troublesome for the government. After the judgement it seems like an unexploded bomb.
And second, the Supreme Court also held back from telling the government explicitly what it has to do next. The judgement is clear that it was not for the courts but for politicians to decide how to proceed next.
That means, possibly as early as tomorrow, ministers will put forward what is expected to be an extremely short piece of legislation in the hope of getting MPs to approve it, perhaps within a fortnight.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Attorney General Jeremy Wright: "The government will comply with the judgement of the court"
Nightmare number two for the government would have been explicit instructions from the court about the kind of legislation they had to introduce.
That wouldn't just have made ministers' lives very difficult when they want, above all else, to produce something that gives their opponents minimal room for manoeuvre.
But it would have raised spiky questions about the power of the courts versus our politicians and parliaments - a fight few had the appetite to have.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-38730907
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James Ellington: British sprinter has surgery in UK after motorbike crash - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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British sprinter James Ellington has surgery in a London hospital, a week after suffering career-threatening injuries in a motorbike crash in Spain.
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Last updated on .From the section Athletics
Sprinter James Ellington has had surgery at a London hospital, a week after suffering career-threatening injuries in a motorbike crash in Spain.
Ellington, 31, and fellow sprinter Nigel Levine, 27, both sustained a suspected broken pelvis with Ellington also suffering a facial fracture and a broken leg in two places.
"Out of surgery, all went well," Ellington tweeted on Wednesday.
"Feel like I have done 200 rounds with Tyson and 50 marathons."
Both athletes were hit by a car on 17 January and will miss the 2017 season, which includes the World Championships in London in August.
A British Athletics statement read: "James Ellington and Nigel Levine have safely returned to the UK via air ambulance, following a road accident in Tenerife last week.
"Both athletes have been admitted to hospitals in London where they are receiving specialist medical treatment for their injuries, under the supervision of the British Athletics' medical team.
"Both James and Nigel have been overwhelmed by the support they have received since the accident last week."
The pair had been in Tenerife as part of a British Athletics group taking part in a warm-weather training camp when the accident happened.
Any pelvic injuries to sprinters are career-threatening and both athletes will need significant rehabilitation.
Ellington is a 100m and 200m specialist and a two-time Olympian who was part of the gold medal-winning 4x100m relay teams at the 2014 and 2016 European Championships.
Levine is a 400m runner who was born in Trinidad and raised in Northamptonshire.
He won a European outdoor relay gold in 2014 and an indoor relay gold in 2013.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/athletics/38729992
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'Help me find my birth family' - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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How a 19-year-old Swiss man's appeal for information on his birth family led to a huge response.
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Europe
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Marco has this image of his mother, who has been missing since 2000
For one young Swiss man looking for his birth family, official channels had turned up nothing. So Marco Hauenstein, 19, turned to Facebook to try to find out more - not anticipating how widely his post would be shared.
Marco did not have an easy start in life, as the very few facts he knows about his birth mother indicate.
Gina Barbara Hauenstein was a drug addict, and during the 1990s spent time, Marco believes, in Zurich's then notorious Platzspitz open drugs scene, where addicts bought heroin in a city centre park, and injected it openly.
When Marco was born in 1997, he was already addicted too, and had to spend the first months of his life in hospital withdrawing and recovering.
Although his mother visited him from time to time, he never lived with her. About his father, he knows nothing: on his birth certificate, the space for the father's name has been left blank.
In 2000, Gina Hauenstein disappeared. Despite a police search both within Switzerland and across Europe, no trace of her has ever been found, and she remains listed as a missing person.
Marco meanwhile lived with a foster family. He describes his childhood as happy, but he admits questions about his birth family were "always on my mind".
When he turned 16, Marco left his foster family. There had been disagreements, not unusual between parents and teenagers, but Marco says his relationship with his foster family is good, and has improved since he began to live independently.
At the same time, he started to look for his birth family, and in particular for his mother. "I really wanted to know, for myself, who was my family, who I belonged to," he explained.
"So, when I was 16, I started to call town record offices, and I contacted the police. But without success."
Marco Hauenstein's search has drawn in many social media users, including journalists
Talking to Marco, it is not entirely clear why this more traditional search for family members was unsuccessful. Switzerland is a small country, Marco was never adopted, he knew his birth name, his mother's name and, it seems, the town she came from, where her parents (his grandparents) still apparently lived.
Perhaps the idea of a Facebook appeal seemed the most logical, or the fastest, way to reach out. And posting messages on social media might understandably be easier for a teenager than cold-calling official figures in local government or the police.
But the simple message which appeared on Facebook just three weeks ago has had consequences Marco - who uses the name Marco Julius Schelling on Facebook - did not expect. His message was shared and re-shared across Switzerland and Germany many thousands of times, and soon the media took an interest in his story too.
My name is Marco Hauenstein, and I was born on 17.06.1997 in the Aargau/Zurich region. After going through drug withdrawal as a newborn for 3-6 months I grew up with the Jung family, and later with the Schelling family.
After searching for many years without success, I'm turning to you. I'm looking for my birth parents / grandparents!
When I meet him in Zurich, he seems rather overwhelmed by the attention. He is accompanied by a camera crew from a local television station, and during our conversation he fields calls from a German channel, and a Swiss newspaper. At the same time new responses to his Facebook appeal are appearing on his phone every couple of minutes.
"I've had thousands and thousands of messages," he says. "I really didn't expect this."
Marco Hauenstein as a baby, with his birth mother
But his Facebook search has had some initial success. An aunt, a half-sister of his mother, has reached out to him, he says, and he has talked to her by phone.
"It was very emotional, we didn't talk much, it was just, 'Hello, so good to talk to you after all these years'." The plan is "that we will meet tomorrow… I think we will meet tomorrow".
Marco has also received information relating to his grandmother, an uncle, and even, he says, some hints about the identity of his father. But he seems reluctant to share too much detail. When our interview finishes, he is met by yet another television crew.
Messages for Marco keep pouring in
The next day, I get a message from Marco. The planned meeting with his aunt has not taken place, he says, because "I could not reach her".
It is clear the social media attention, and then the interest shown by the mainstream media, have caused problems.
Adopted or foster children hoping to meet their birth families, or birth parents looking for their children, are generally advised to proceed using an intermediary, to communicate in confidence, and to arrange a face-to-face meeting only when all sides are really ready for it.
The advent of sites like Facebook has changed that. Social services report growing numbers of cases in which adopted or fostered children, or parents who have given their children up or had them taken into care, have been tracked down and contacted out of the blue. The brutal reality is that these contacts are not always welcome: not everyone wants a reunion.
Tracing relatives is difficult for Marco despite the power of social media
But for Marco, the hopes for a happy ending seem at least partially fulfilled. One day after the failed meeting with his aunt, another short post appears on his Facebook page: "On Friday I was able to meet my grandmother and my uncle," he writes. "It was a very moving moment, at last I have got a part of my family back!"
His aunt, he continues, "needs more time" before agreeing to meet him.
Time will tell if the reunion brings Marco the sense of completeness he feels he needs. His mother remains the key person he wants to find. But there has been no trace of her for 17 years. No one, not the police, the local authorities, nor Marco's new-found relatives, has any clue where she might be.
Marco is not deterred. His search, via Facebook, continues.
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-38717880
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A trip through an underwater museum - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Exhibits about climate change and migration are just two of 12 installations in Museo Atlantico, an underwater museum off the coast of Lanzarote.
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Exhibits about climate change and migration are just two of 12 installations in Museo Atlantico, an underwater museum off the coast of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands.
Jason deCaires Taylor describes the museum and how the installations have changed just one year after being placed underwater.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-38733683
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Celtic 1-0 St Johnstone - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Celtic equal the Lisbon Lions' run of 26 games without defeat after a slender win over St Johnstone.
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Last updated on .From the section Football
Celtic equalled the Lisbon Lions' run of 26 domestic games unbeaten with a slender win over St Johnstone to move 22 points clear in the Premiership.
Saints threatened with Danny Swanson hitting a post and Craig Gordon having to deny Steven Anderson's looping shot.
Celtic took a firm grip on the game, only for Scott Sinclair to miss one of several chances as Saints held firm.
But their resistance was finally broken when Dedryck Boyata headed past Saints goalkeeper Zander Clark.
Boyata had previously lacked confidence and assurance and his displays were often hapless. But he has become a player reborn.
There was little pressure on him defensively, since flurries of attacking intent from St Johnstone in the first half petered out after the break. But he was calm at the back and passed the ball in assured form.
This game, though, called for a decisive figure and while Celtic players cursed missed opportunities, it was Boyata who eventually provided the clinical touch.
He had already seen a first-half header cleared off the goalline by David Wotherspoon, before then racing back into his own penalty area to execute a perfect sliding tackle on St Johnstone striker Chris Kane.
There was less demand to be swashbuckling after the break, but he saw another header pushed away before rising to bullet a header past the St Johnstone goalkeeper Clark.
Celtic captain Scott Brown has delivered more eye-catching displays in previous games, but perhaps a strong-willed, unbending performance was fitting in his 400th match.
He was everywhere on the pitch and cleared from a St Johnstone corner kick in the second half. He barely flinched.
He watched in frustration as Stuart Armstrong saw several curling shots saved or fly wide. Moussa Dembele, too, was off the pace, and failed to convert two Sinclair crosses.
In the midst of Celtic's dominant second-half possession, there were two moments of typical Brown play. One was a driving run into the penalty area that carried him past three St Johnstone players and earned a corner. Minutes later, he clipped a shot from the edge of the area that Clark saved.
If there was an emblematic moment, it was Brown's dogged clearing from his own penalty area late on, defiant and strong.
There is never any doubt that a fixture against St Johnstone will be combative. They are well-drilled and organised. It was not unusual to see Chris Millar bravely stand up to Dembele and rob the striker of the ball.
Paul Paton, too, was relentless. Challenges tended to be physical, uncompromising, and no quarter was given. Runs were blocked, tackles were fierce, there were occasional tussles, and in Kane there was a willing runner up front.
St Johnstone were entirely subdued after the break, but in the first-half there were moments of attacking hope, mostly at set-pieces. Anderson saw one header drift wide and then the centre-back's lob was pushed over the bar by Celtic goalkeeper Gordon.
When Celtic failed to clear a corner, the ball bounced in front of Swanson and his carefully executed volley sent the ball off the upright.
The visitors were adamant they should have been awarded a penalty just after Boyata's goal, when Brown appeared to push Anderson over inside the area. Referee Andrew Dallas was unmoved, though.
For all their effort and resistance, St Johnstone could not hold Brendan Rodgers' side at bay.
• None Tam Scobbie (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick on the right wing.
• None Attempt missed. Scott Brown (Celtic) left footed shot from outside the box is just a bit too high.
• None Attempt blocked. Nir Bitton (Celtic) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Navigate to the next page Navigate to the last page
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38659687
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Ross Brawn eyes Formula 1 changes to make sport 'purer & simpler' - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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The new racing boss of F1, Ross Brawn, says he wants to make changes that will make the sport "purer & simpler".
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Formula 1's new racing boss Ross Brawn says he wants to develop a purer, simpler sport in which more teams and drivers can win.
The ex-Mercedes team boss, who has been appointed managing director of racing by F1's new owner, was critical of some rule changes of recent years.
Brawn said he wanted to "narrow the gap between the top and bottom" of the field and give F1 a broader appeal.
"I have ideas we should study and perhaps use in 2018 or 19," he said.
Brawn pointed to the example of football's Premier League, where Leicester City were able to transform themselves from relegation candidates to champions in the space of 12 months and on a limited budget.
The 62-year-old said: "We all know the analogy of Leicester City - that would be the ideal in F1, when a good team on a great year with a great driver could really mount a challenge. But at the moment that's not really possible."
Brawn is a member of a new senior management team appointed following the removal of Bernie Ecclestone from his position as chief executive.
American media executive Chase Carey, who was appointed president when new owner Liberty Media began its takeover in September, has now also taken on Ecclestone's former title.
Brawn is heading up the sporting and technical side of Liberty's business and former ESPN sales and marketing chief Sean Bratches is to run the commercial side.
What needs to change?
Carey has outlined plans to better promote the sport, by making more of grands prix as events in their host country and with a much wider use of digital media.
Brawn's job is to hone the on-track show to make it more appealing after criticism it has become predictable and has lost some of its edge in recent years.
He was critical of decisions made by Ecclestone, such as the adoption of a double-points finale in 2014 and a short-lived attempt to change the format of qualifying at the start of last season.
He told BBC Sport: "These have been short-term, knee-jerk reactions and that is exactly what we mustn't do.
"We need to stabilise the small teams and get them on a better financial footing.
"We need to reduce the scope of the technology because there is too big a gap between the bigger and smaller teams."
He also hinted he wanted to remove the controversial drag reduction system, an overtaking aid that drivers can use at the press of a button to give them a boost in straight-line speed.
"We need to make sure there is no artificial solutions," Brawn said. "The drag reduction system; everyone knows it's artificial. We need to find purer solutions.
"We need to think through the solutions. I have ideas - I can't share them all with you because I want to share them with the teams first - but I have ideas of things we should start to study and perhaps use in '18 or '19."
Will the technology have to change?
Brawn said the high-technology aspect of F1 was a crucial part of its appeal but added: "You must balance the technology with the sporting side."
He indicated he would be open to trying to change the turbo hybrid engines introduced in 2014, which have seen revolutionary steps forward in terms of fuel efficiency but which have been criticised for being too expensive and sounding dull.
"That is something we need to discuss with the teams," Brawn said. "They have made a huge investment in these engines so you can't just discard them and say: 'We are going to change the engines.'
"But how do we get from where we are today to where we want to be in two or three years' time with a great racing engine that everyone admires and enjoys?"
Could a driver at a smaller team win the F1 title?
Part of the reason for the lack of competitiveness is the huge spread of budgets between the front and back of the grid.
Brawn said: "The level of resource the top teams are using has made an enormous gap. My nirvana would be you get slightly odd circumstances and suddenly a team from the back wins. But at the moment you have two or three teams who can win and we need to spread that."
He said a budget cap was a "delicate" issue, but added: "It has never really been tried, it was never fully adopted by Formula 1, and I think we should at least discuss it again and see if there's potential."
But he said there were other ways of closing up the field.
"We have to see if we can develop the rules to reward innovation less," Brawn said. "Because as it is now innovation is heavily rewarded and if you can afford it, the slope is still quite steep - more money, faster cars. If we can flatten that off with the regulations that would go in the right direction."
He also said he would like to try to establish a 'draft' system for promoting drivers from junior categories so the drivers who make it into F1 were there "purely on merit".
Historically, some drivers at the back of the grid have paid for their seats in F1.
"What I'd love to see is a proper progression of talent into F1 where you could even introduce a draft system where the guys who win the GP2 or Formula 2 are available for the lower teams to use in their first year or two in Formula 1."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/38734708
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Brexit ruling: Gina Miller attacks 'despicable' politicians - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Brexit victor says no government is above the law and some politicians are still "twisting the truth".
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UK Politics
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Gina Miller was the lead claimant against the government in the Supreme Court
The woman who brought the successful legal challenge against the government over Brexit has accused prominent politicians of behaving "despicably".
Gina Miller told the BBC they had "exacerbated" worries during and after the EU vote and failed to defend her and others with "legitimate concerns" about the process in the face of abuse.
She insists she did not bring her case to thwart the UK's exit from the EU.
But she said some politicians were in "la la land" about what lay in store.
The investment manager was speaking to the BBC's political editor Laura Kuenssberg after the Supreme Court upheld her challenge to the government's approach.
By a margin of eight to three, the justices ruled that Parliament must give its consent before Theresa May can start official talks on the terms of the UK's exit.
Ministers say it was right for the court to decide and they will comply with the ruling.
Mrs Miller, who voted to remain in the EU, said she felt vindicated but that her goal all along had been to give a voice to the millions of people with a stake in the process and help deliver "the best Brexit we can get".
"This is about right and wrong, it's wrong that a government think they are above the law. It's right that I can bring this case," she said.
The 51-year old, who was born in Guyana but educated in Britain, suggested the EU referendum had created a climate of fear in which anyone asking questions about Brexit was seen as unpatriotic and "branded as traitors".
"There's this sense that if you ask a question about Brexit then you're not representing Britain," she said. "Asking questions about Brexit is the most patriotic thing you can do."
She added: "People voted because of legitimate concerns. Politicians have behaved despicably because they have exacerbated those anxieties."
Asked if Theresa May and her ministers had behaved "despicably", Ms Miller said it was "wrong of them not to stand up earlier when the judges were being vilified".
"I think it was wrong of them to not actually speak up sooner about abuse for not just myself but for other people who live in the UK."
Mrs Miller, who says she has been subjected to constant abuse including death threats, said she felt her "family and safety have been put in jeopardy".
"The idea that as a woman I had no right to speak out and I'm not bright enough to speak out. And as an ethnic woman I have no place in society. That's worrying."
She said she was still concerned that politicians were "twisting the truth" when it came to the UK's future outside the EU and Mrs May and her ministers needed to "be honest" with the public about what was achievable from the negotiations.
"Even now, some of the things I hear about what is possible, as we progress Brexit, it's as though they are living in some sort of la la land because it's pure fantasy."
She added: "There are 27 other member states on the other side of the table who are not just going to give us what we want. They are not going to give us cherry picking".
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-38737964
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Usain Bolt loses one Olympic gold medal as Nesta Carter tests positive - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Usain Bolt has to hand back one of his nine Olympic gold medals after Jamaican team-mate Nesta Carter tests positive for a banned substance.
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Last updated on .From the section Athletics
Usain Bolt will have to hand back one of his nine Olympic gold medals after Jamaican team-mate Nesta Carter tested positive for a banned substance.
Carter was part of the Jamaican quartet that won the 4x100m in Beijing in 2008.
His was one of 454 selected doping samples retested by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) last year, and has been found to contain the banned stimulant methylhexaneamine.
Bolt, 30, completed an unprecedented 'triple triple' in Rio last summer.
He won gold in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay to add to his successes in the same events in 2008 and 2012.
Carter, 31, was also part of the squad that won the event in London five years ago and helped Jamaica win at the World Championships in 2011, 2013 and 2015.
He ran the first leg for Jamaica's 4x100m relay team in Beijing, which also included Michael Frater, Asafa Powell and Bolt.
• None An Olympic career in 325 seconds - Bolt in numbers
• None Usain Bolt having to return Olympic Gold 'is disgusting' - Darren Campbell
The team won in a then-world record of 37.10 seconds, ahead of Trinidad and Tobago and Japan, who could have their medals upgraded. Brazil would then receive bronze.
The head of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association, Dr Warren Blake, said he did not expect the whole team to be penalised: "I didn't rule out he'd be found guilty but my personal opinion is that I'm surprised they'd go that route."
Carter's lawyer has confirmed that the sprinter will lodge an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The test and what happened next?
Carter was tested on the evening of the Beijing final in 2008 but that was found at the time to contain no "adverse analytical finding".
More than 4,500 tests were carried out at those Games, with nine athletes caught cheating.
An anomaly was discovered in Carter's submission following the IOC's decision to retest 454 samples from Beijing using the latest scientific analysis methods.
Carter and the Jamaican National Olympic Committee were told of the adverse finding in May - before the Rio Games - and told his B sample would be tested.
It was reported by Reuters in June that Carter's A sample had been found to contain methylhexanamine, which has been on the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) prohibited list since 2004.
It was reclassified in 2011 as a "specified substance", meaning one that is more susceptible to a "credible, non-doping explanation".
Sold as a nasal decongestant in the United States until 1983, methylhexanamine has been used more recently as an ingredient in dietary supplements.
Speaking in June, Bolt said the prospect of having to return the gold was "heartbreaking".
He told the Jamaica Gleaner: "For years you've worked hard to accumulate gold medals and you work hard to be a champion, but it's one of those things.
"I'm more concerned about the athlete and I hope he gets through it."
Analysis - 'It takes the shine off Bolt's achievement'
It takes the shine off Bolt's achievement. Eight doesn't have the same ring - 'double treble, plus two'.
It will be really frustrating for him. You can only account for yourself, you cannot account for your team-mates.
We know it has nothing to do with Usain Bolt - it will not damage his reputation - but it will affect it, take shine off it and he won't be a happy man.
When I hear stories like this, a part of me does celebrate. If athletes think they have got away with it, then with retrospective testing they can never sleep peacefully.
It has to be the strongest deterrent the sport now has. Even when athletes retire they can still have their medals taken away.
Marlon Devonish, 40, was part of the British 4x100m relay team which lost the silver medal at the World Championships in 2003 following Dwain Chambers' failed drugs test. He went on to win Olympic relay gold with Britain at Athens 2004.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 live, he said: "With relays you work together, you build a relationship, but you never know what goes on behind closed doors and clearly Carter was taking drugs.
"Carter has tarnished the team. It's a massively selfish act and I'm sure Bolt and the rest of the team are bitterly disappointed.
"The relationship between me and Dwain, we get on, we are cool. He apologised to me I and accepted it. Dwain has to live with it for the rest of his life, it was a sincere apology.
"I was devastated when I found out, but you have to move on."
Russia's Tatyana Lebedeva has also been stripped of her Beijing long jump and triple jump silver medals after dehydrochlormethyltestosterone was found in one of her samples.
The 40-year-old has told Russian news agency Tass that she plans to appeal against the decision to strip her of her medals, adding that she "will always fight to the end".
Lebedeva has resigned from the executive committee of the World Olympians Association (WOA), the umbrella organisation that represents 148 national associations of former Olympic athletes.
Now a Russian senator, she won gold in the long jump at the 2004 Athens Games and has two other Olympic medals, won in Sydney and Athens. She retired from competition in 2013.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/athletics/38744846
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Rubbish including a bathtub and toilet strewn in Houghton Conquest road - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Fly-tippers have left a Bedfordshire road littered with rubbish, including a toilet, a bathtub and a fridge.
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A road was left blocked with fly-tipped rubbish including a toilet, bathtub and pool table.
Police say the person responsible for the fly-tip along London Lane in Houghton Conquest, Bedfordshire, may have struck locally before.
Cyclist Martin Galpin, who came across the debris, described it as "obscene".
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-38735164
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London pollution: 'Very high' air pollution warning alert - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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A "very high" air pollution warning has been issued for London for the first time under a new alert system.
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Pollution alert warnings are being issued to the public at bus stops, tube stations and on roadside signs, under the new system set up by London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
Many Londoners, however, are going about their daily business undeterred.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-38737820
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Australian Open 2017: Johanna Konta 'prepared' for Serena Williams quarter-final - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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British number one Johanna Konta believes she has done everything she can to be ready for her first meeting with Serena Williams.
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Last updated on .From the section Tennis
Williams v Konta coverage: Wednesday, 02:00 GMT: Live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live; live text commentary on the BBC Sport website. Wednesday, 16:45 GMT: TV highlights on BBC Two.
British number one Johanna Konta believes she has done everything she can to be ready for her first meeting with 22-time Grand Slam winner Serena Williams at the Australian Open.
Konta, 25, will face second seed Williams in the quarter-finals at around 02:00 GMT on Wednesday.
"I've played quite a few Grand Slam champions and former world number ones," said world number nine Konta.
"So I've prepared myself as much as possible for a competitor like Serena."
• None Confident Konta 'can improve in every aspect'
Konta beat Russian 30th seed Ekaterina Makarova 6-1 6-4 to reach the last eight without dropping a set.
She has a 2-1 winning record over Serena's sister Venus - a seven-time Grand Slam winner and former world number one - including a first-round victory at last year's Australian Open.
It will be Konta's second quarter-final at a Grand Slam, after reaching the semi-final in Melbourne last year, compared to 35-year-old Serena's 47th.
"I've been fortunate enough that I've played her sister a few times and I think she's just as incredible," said Konta.
"I was thinking I'd love the opportunity to be on court with her before she retires. But I doubt she's talking retirement.
"She will be playing until the very last ball she can physically hit. Hopefully it won't be the last time I play her before she retires."
Serena, in pursuit of her seventh Australian Open title, had only played two matches between the end of the US Open in August and her first-round victory in Melbourne.
Konta, meanwhile, remained busy on tour and took her world ranking from 49 at the end of 2015 to a career-high of nine.
"I watch her game a lot. She's been doing really, really well, She has a very attacking game and I look forward to it," said Serena.
"I have absolutely nothing to lose in this tournament. Everything here is a bonus for me. Obviously I am here to win, and hopefully I can play better."
"The game is there for Konta. It's all about the head now.
Find out how to get into tennis in our special guide.
"It's a big ask when you've never played Serena Williams to beat her at a Grand Slam quarter-final but you never know. She's got the game to beat anyone.
"She needs to follow her game plan, believe in it and commit on every shot. If you have doubts then Serena eats you alive."
"I think Serena's looked great. There can't be any of these second-gear starts she had a few years ago.
"The match against Konta is another level. It will help Konta that she hasn't played her - there is no scar tissue.
"Serena wins her matches often in the first 15 seconds she strolls on to the court, but that's not going to happen with Jo."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/38716313
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Australian baby Brian Junior weighs in at 6.06kg - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Brian Junior was born in Melbourne and weighed in at 6.06kg (13.5lb) and was 57cm long.
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Brian Junior was born in Melbourne and weighed in at 6.06kg (13.5lb) and was 57cm long.
His mum, who always wanted "a little fat baby" says she was shocked to find out he was twice the size of an average baby.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-38743296
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Bernie Ecclestone: Why F1's titanic leader was loved and loathed - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Bye, bye, Bernie. F1's revolutionary, roguish leader has finally vacated the throne he created - so how will he be remembered?
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Bernie Ecclestone stands a little under 5ft 3in tall but for 40 years has wielded a giant influence in Formula 1 with canniness, wit and not a little menace.
At times, Ecclestone has had close to absolute power. So the end of his reign following the takeover of the sport by US giant Liberty Media represents a seismic change.
Ecclestone, now 86, is a tactician of remarkable skill, and a deal-maker extraordinaire who used chutzpah and brinksmanship to turn F1 into one of the world's biggest sports, form relationships with world leaders such as Russian president Vladimir Putin and make himself and many of F1's participants multi-millionaires.
In a remarkable four decades, Ecclestone revolutionised the sport:
• None He bought the Brabham team and won two world titles, including a historic first with a turbo engine in 1983.
• None Turned F1 into the biggest annual sporting event in the world, outstripped only by the Olympics and the World Cup.
• None Controversially took the commercial rights away from the teams and made himself a billionaire.
• None Fought off a criminal prosecution for blackmail that arose from a complicated series of sales of those rights.
• None Carved a notorious reputation for making controversial statements, including saying Adolf Hitler was "able to get things done" and likening women to "domestic appliances".
But what made him mind-bendingly - some would say obscenely - rich is what brought him down in the end.
Selling on the commercial rights to F1 is the source of Ecclestone's vast wealth. But it was never about the money, per se - it was about the deal. And now the deal has done him in.
Restructuring the finances of the sport in the first years of this decade, Ecclestone also reorganised its decision-making process.
He did it to increase his power, but the structure he set up inadvertently neutered him and gave the big teams - particularly Mercedes and Ferrari - power to block him. This has led to log-jam.
The latest company to buy the sport - USA's Liberty Media - has looked at this, at a skewed prize-money structure, at a policy that is threatening to price out much-loved historic races in favour of characterless new ones in countries with questionable regimes, at a refusal to engage with digital media, and several other issues, and decided to ease him out.
Ecclestone is held in genuinely high regard within F1 for everything he has achieved but, outside a handful of acolytes, few will be genuinely sorry to see him go.
There has been a feeling for some years that he is a man out of time, that the sport needed to move on. In truth, this has contributed to the stalemate in F1 - people were simply waiting him out.
Many believe his departure will be good for the sport. However, it will certainly make F1 less colourful, and it is hard to imagine seeing the like of him again.
Where did he come from?
Ecclestone's involvement in F1 started in the late 1950s. After a brief driving career in lower categories, he emerged as a manager for the British F1 driver Stuart Lewis-Evans but then disappeared from racing when Lewis-Evans was killed in a fiery crash at the 1958 Moroccan Grand Prix.
He appeared again in the late 1960s, again as a manager, this time to the Austrian Jochen Rindt. He was already very rich.
What had the fortune come from? "Property," Ecclestone says. All manner of rumours have abounded, including that he was involved in organising the Great Train Robbery, when £2.6m was stolen from a Royal Mail train in Buckinghamshire in 1963.
"Nah," Ecclestone once said. "There wasn't enough money on that train. I could have done something better than that."
Rindt became F1's first and so far only posthumous world champion after he was killed at the 1970 Italian Grand Prix. But this time Ecclestone did not retreat.
Within a couple of years, he bought Brabham from its founder, the three-time world champion Sir Jack Brabham, and began establishing his power base.
How did he become omnipotent?
Back then, circuit deals and television rights were operated on a somewhat haphazard, piecemeal basis. Ecclestone offered to look after them on the teams' behalf and wasted little time in building his influence.
He persuaded television companies to buy F1 as a package, rather than pay for individual races. That guaranteed vastly increased exposure, and the sport's popularity grew increasingly quickly.
The vast growth of F1 from what it was then to what it is today arguably started in earnest after the 1976 season, when a championship battle between the playboy Englishman James Hunt and the ascetic Austrian Niki Lauda caught the public's imagination.
By the 1980s, F1 was becoming a global sport, more and more races were being shown live, and a generation of charismatic stars enhanced its appeal - Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell, Nelson Piquet and, most of all, Ayrton Senna.
Ironically, Senna's death in 1994 only increased its reach and shortly after that the sport started on the route that has led to Ecclestone's departure.
The beginning of the end
Controversially, in the mid-1990s, Ecclestone struck a deal with his long-time friend and ally Max Mosley, who was then the president of governing body the FIA. It saw his own company become the rights holder of F1, taking over from the teams' collective body that Ecclestone previously ran.
This led to a furious row with some of the teams - particularly McLaren, Williams and Tyrrell - who claimed what Ecclestone was doing was illegal and that he was effectively robbing them.
But the complainants were eventually bought off. Ecclestone then set about monetising his new asset.
In 2000, Mosley granted Ecclestone the commercial rights to F1 until the end of 2110 for a one-off fee of $360m. Even then, many were shocked by the relatively paltry amount of money that changed hands to secure such a lucrative and lengthy deal.
This led to a dizzying series of sales as the rights transferred through various institutions. A German cable TV company bought them, and then collapsed, which led to its creditors - banks - taking its assets. In 2006, the German bank BayernLB sold its 47.2% stake in F1 to an investment company called CVC Capital Partners.
CVC ran the sport for 10 years, employing Ecclestone as chief executive and empowering him to carry on as before, before selling to Liberty last September, in the deal completed on Monday.
But the sale from BayernLB to CVC is what ultimately led to the court cases on bribery charges that Ecclestone fought and survived a couple of years ago - and which he ended by paying the German courts $100m to end the case, without a presumption of guilt or innocence.
It did not escape notice that a man charged with bribery had paid - perfectly legally under German law - to end a criminal trial.
What is he like?
Despite his diminutive stature, Ecclestone is a forbidding character. Stories abound in F1 of real and threatened menace.
A conversation with him is akin to juggling sand - he ducks and dodges and avoids questions with obfuscation, distraction and quick wit, a dizzying mix of truths, half-truths and fallacies.
He is approachable but apart, engaging but unknowable. After a verbal sparring match, he will sometimes reach up and chillingly pat you on the cheek, not unlike a mafia don in the movies.
For years, the more unsavoury aspects of Ecclestone's stewardship were glossed over or laughed off - largely because he was making those he was working for so much money.
But in recent years, the tone in F1 has changed as more and more people began to feel he was past his sell-by date.
He was a reluctant embracer of the internet age, and rejected entreaties to try to use it to extend F1's reach.
His argument was that he saw no way to make money out of it; others argued that his modus operandi of pursuing only the deal, the bottom line, and disregarding its potential longer-term effects was doing more harm than good.
His simple model - sell television rights and races to the highest bidder no matter who it was; squeeze the highest price possible out of continuing partners - created an annual global revenue in the region of $1.5bn (£1.2bn).
Yet he became increasingly haphazard and intransigent in his decision-making, coming up with unpopular ideas such as a double-points finale in 2014 or the fiasco over the change to the qualifying format at the start of 2016 - to try to spice up the sport.
He was responding to declining audiences, but seemed to ignore the fact they were dropping largely because of his switch away from free-to-air towards pay television in key markets, and the questionable effect on the racing of gimmicks such as the DRS overtaking aid and tyres on which drivers could not push flat out.
The declining audiences have led to a crisis of confidence within the sport, the response to which is a new set of rules for 2017 that mean faster, more dramatic-looking cars. But already there are concerns that these may not have the desired effect.
But while the problems are real, the fact remains that F1 has just changed hands in a deal that values it at $8bn (£6.4bn).
And that is almost entirely down to Ecclestone and what he has built with his remarkable personality, vision and drive.
Controversial he certainly was; past his best he may have been. But for all his faults, Bernie Ecclestone is a unique and titanic figure who turned what was essentially a niche activity into a glittering global enterprise that to many represents an intoxicating mix of glamour, danger and raw, unmatched drama.
Gone from power he may be, but he will never be forgotten.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/38721123
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Will Donald Trump mean the end of global trade? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Global trade flows are already falling, but could Donald Trump prove to be their final death knell?
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Business
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Mr Trump insisted leaving the TPP was good for American workers
Free trade and globalisation had a bad 2016, but it looks like 2017 could be even worse.
For decades there has been a consensus that globalisation brought more jobs, higher wages and lower prices - not just for richer countries but also for developing and poorer nations.
But there is now a growing movement of anger as people see jobs being taken by machines, old industries disappearing and waves of migration disturbing the established order.
Global trade flows are falling and trade deals are being ripped up.
The new US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose tariffs of up to 45% on Chinese goods, accusing the country of economically "raping" the US.
One of China's fiercest critics, Peter Navarro, has been appointed as a top trade advisor.
A Japanese factory's Donald Trump masks are in demand, but the US exit from the TPP agreement will hit trade between the two countries
An executive order pulling out of the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement aimed at deepening economic ties between the twelve countries that border the Pacific Ocean was one of Mr Trump's first acts on moving into the White House.
The future of free trade is looking very gloomy.
But what's behind the anger that threatens decades of relative global consensus on globalisation?
The sense of grievance in the US is clear: the manufacturing sector in the country has seen six million jobs disappear between 1999 and 2011, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Studies have shown that the decline in the US has been mirrored by gains in China.
Automation has helped drive the decline in US manufacturing jobs
But Chinese imports only explain 44% of the decline in employment in manufacturing in the US between 1990 and 2007, according to a report by the Institute for the Study of Labor in Bonn.
Part of the decline has been down to the outsourcing of jobs to other countries but automation and more efficient processes have also taken their toll.
"All countries end up with losers from technological development - whether it is telephone operators or bank tellers," says Gary Hufbauer, a trade expert from the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
"The problem in the US is that we don't do much to help those people who lose out through social security support or job retraining," says Mr Hufbauer.
The anger that flows from this has found a home in the protectionist rhetoric of politicians like Mr Trump.
"There has been no growth in household income during the last decade in Europe, the US and Japan. People are not happy and if you have to blame someone, it is easy to blame foreigners,"' says Mr Hufbauer.
The rise of political opposition to globalisation has coincided with - and contributed to - a period of declining world trade growth since the financial crisis of 2008.
Between 1986 and 2008 world trade grew at an average of 6.5%, according to the World Trade Organization.
Between 2012 and 2015 that rate has slowed to an average of 3.2% and is predicted to expand by just 1.7% in 2016.
That slowdown would make it the longest period of relative trade stagnation since the Second World War.
Since the financial crisis the slowing of the Chinese economy and political and economic stagnation in the eurozone have contributed to this flat-lining of world trade.
At the same time, in an attempt to insulate companies and industries at home, politicians have turned to tariffs and restrictions on imports from other countries.
"Governments worldwide have almost doubled their resort to trade distortions in the last two years," says Prof Simon Evenett, a trade expert at St Gallen University.
"The recent surge in 'beggar-thy-neighbour' activity predates Trump and Brexit, suggesting that populist pressures are likely to exacerbate protectionism," he says.
The flat lining of economic growth has increased pressure on politicians.
"Governments across the world are enacting protectionist policies often masquerading as 'industrial policy," according to Prof Evenett.
He says this often involves offering government subsidies to local companies, introducing import barriers and new '"local" standards for products from abroad.
Yet while protectionism may seem appealing to politicians assailed by angry workers, they often only end up raising prices for consumers.
For example, there was an outcry in 2012 when cheap Chinese tyres flooded into the US market, putting the viability of the domestic producers in question.
President Obama responded with punitive tariffs to get China "to play by the rules".
The protectionist measures were well received in the US, but a study by the Peterson Institute established that the tariffs meant US consumers paid $1.1bn more for their tyres in 2011.
Each job that was saved effectively cost $900,000 with very little of that reaching the pockets of the workers.
With the economic and social benefits of free trade coming increasingly under attack, proponents of globalisation have tried to launch a counterattack.
For example, The World Bank recently published a study of developing countries showing that average incomes for people living in the bottom 40% increased between 2008 and 2013, despite the impact of the financial crisis.
"There is a realisation in rich countries and among rich elites that there are problems with globalisation," says Branko Milanovic, an economist whose work on income inequality has driven much of the debate.
"They realise that for their own political self-preservation they have to tackle them."
But the solutions are not obvious, nor easy to implement.
"Most of the benefits of globalisation have been enjoyed by a relatively small group within each country.
"The question is not whether there are benefits to globalisation - there clearly are. But the question is about who is enjoying those benefits," says Andrew Lang from the London School of Economics.
Part of the anger might dissipate if economic growth was to stop its stubborn flat-lining trajectory, lifting incomes around the world.
Many in the US, Europe and Japan have seen no increase in their household income in the past 10 years
"To help solve these problems you need to get the world economy revved up. Governments need to commit to fiscal stimulus to get their economies going again," says Gary Hufbauer.
Branko Milanovic points to the success of previous politicians in turning round seemingly intractably weak economies.
"It's not impossible for politicians to address these issues.
"Thatcher and Reagan managed to effect change in relatively short periods of time - a presidential term of four years should be enough to start making a difference," he says.
But Prof Evenett is pessimistic: "I expect the global plateau in world trade to continue in 2017 and that is before Donald Trump enacts any of the protectionist measures he has threatened."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38731812
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Skiing World Cup: Robby Kelley hikes back up slope after slalom fall - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Robby Kelley of the USA climbs back up the slope to finish his run to the delight of the Schladming crowd after crashing during the men's Night Slalom at the Alpine Skiing World Cup.
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Robby Kelley of the USA climbs back up the slope to finish his run to the delight of the Schladming crowd after crashing during the men's Night Slalom at the Alpine Skiing World Cup.
Available to UK users only.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/winter-sports/38744632
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Living rough: 'People walk past you like you're scum' - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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As the latest statistics on rough sleeping in England are due to be released, BBC News investigates the problem of homelessness in Birmingham.
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As the latest statistics on rough sleeping in England are released, BBC News investigates the problem of homelessness in Birmingham.
The city is among the top 10 English areas with the most rough sleepers, according to data from the Department for Communities and Local Government.
A film crew spent a night on the streets of the city with homeless charity worker Paul Atkin.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-38734054
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Nicole Cooke 'sceptical' of Team Sky and Sir Bradley Wiggins - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Ex-Olympic champion Nicole Cooke says she is "sceptical" of Team Sky's drug-free credentials and Sir Bradley Wiggins' therapeutic use exemptions.
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Last updated on .From the section Cycling
Ex-Olympic champion Nicole Cooke says she is "sceptical" of Team Sky's drug-free credentials and Sir Bradley Wiggins' therapeutic use exemptions.
Wiggins was granted three TUEs to take anti-inflammatory drug triamcinolone before the 2011 and 2012 Tour de France and the 2013 Giro d'Italia.
"Taking TUEs just before major events raises questions for me," Cooke said.
Cooke also told MPs British Cycling is run "by men for men" and its attempts to stop doping are "ineffective".
Wiggins' TUEs were approved by British authorities and cycling's world governing body the UCI, and there is no suggestion either the 36-year-old or his former employers Team Sky have broken any rules.
Cooke, 33, made the claims in evidence submitted to a Culture, Media and Sport select committee on Tuesday.
The committee is examining doping in sport and Tuesday's session was held to discuss issues raised at a previous hearing involving British Cycling and Team Sky in December.
In a wide-ranging testimony, Cooke provided examples of sexism she had encountered in her 13-year career, stating British Cycling shows "discrimination and favouritism" because it is "answerable to itself".
The Welsh former world and Commonwealth cycling champion added that the fight against doping is "the wrong people fighting the wrong war, in the wrong way, with the wrong tools".
"While there is still a way to go, British Cycling is absolutely committed to resolving the historic gender imbalance in our sport," said the governing body in a statement.
British Cycling is the subject of an investigation by UK Anti-Doping into allegations of wrongdoing in the sport and is also awaiting the findings of an independent review into an alleged bullying culture.
Five-time Olympic champion Wiggins was granted a TUE to treat asthma and allergies, which was revealed when hacking group Fancy Bears released athletes' medical files stolen from the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada).
Cooke compared her use of the steroid triamcinolone with that of Wiggins, stating she was granted a TUE for injections of the drug to treat a career-threatening knee injury as an alternative to surgery.
She said she did not race again until "long after the performance-enhancing effects had worn off", and she added that Wiggins appeared to use the "same steroid before his main goals of the season".
Cooke added she found the chronology of Wiggins' TUEs "disturbing" and that it made her "sceptical" of what Team Sky have done.
The team was launched in 2010 with a zero-tolerance approach towards doping in cycling.
Cooke on the package delivered to Wiggins
An inquiry by Ukad was launched following a Daily Mail allegation that a medical package was delivered to Wiggins on the final day of the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine.
Team Sky boss Sir Dave Brailsford told MPs in December that the package contained legal decongestant Fluimucil, but MP Damian Collins, chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, says British Cycling have been unable to provide paperwork to prove the contents of the medical package.
"I find the stance of being the cleanest team, yet Dave Brailsford not being able to say what a rider took, definitely makes it hard to back up that claim," Cooke added.
She also raised concerns as to why Simon Cope, who was British Cycling women's coach at the time, was chosen to courier the package to Team Sky doctor Richard Freeman in France.
"I do find it very surprising that Simon Cope transported something internationally without knowing what was in it," Cooke told MPs.
She also alleged that Cope, a former team-mate of Wiggins at the Linda McCartney professional team, "spent some weeks riding a moped in front of Wiggins as part of a training regimen" as an example of how resources were "stripped out of the women's program to augment the men's program".
'They did nothing for women'
When asked by MPs if sexism was culturally embedded in British Cycling, Cooke said: "Yes I do".
She claimed that during her career, the governing body showed only "transient" support for female road riders.
As part of her written evidence and appearance via video-link from Paris, Cooke cited numerous examples of "discrimination and favouritism" shown by British Cycling.
She said the prize for the women's 2006 British Championships was a "tiny fraction" of the men's race, despite Cooke having just won the Grande Boucle Feminine Internationale - the women's equivalent of the Tour de France.
The 2008 road race world champion added she had to take her own skin suit to the event in Italy after British Cycling had forgotten to organise one, having to then sew a Team Sky logo onto it at the behest of Brailsford.
"The facts are they did nothing for the women," said Cooke.
An independent review into the culture of British Cycling began after its former technical director Shane Sutton was accused of using offensive and discriminatory language towards cyclist Jess Varnish.
Despite being cleared of eight of the nine charges against him, the Australian was found guilty of using sexist language in October but denies any wrongdoing and said he would appeal the ruling.
What has the response been?
In her written evidence, Cooke said she had "no faith in the actions in support of investigations conducted by Ukad or the testing they conduct, both completed at significant expense to the public purse".
In response, Ukad said: "There should be no doubt about the determination of this organisation to protect clean sport; our staff passionately believe in protecting everyone's right to clean, fair and honest competition.
Regarding Cooke's accusations of sexism, British Cycling said in a statement: "There is always more that can be done and we strive to make continual improvements to ensure that cycling is reaching out to women and girls of all ages and abilities."
Meanwhile, UK Sport has launched an independent review to investigate some of the issues raised by Cooke.
"UK Sport takes its responsibilities as an investor of public funds and a champion of equality in sport very seriously," said a spokesman.
"On matters raised relating to the governance of the national governing body, UK Sport and Sport England have recently published a new code for sports governance which raises the bar for the requirements around governance that all sports bodies who receive public funding will need to address and comply to."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/38728410
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Is hotel art a waste of time? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Chinese hotels are using art to try and stand out from their competitors, but does it make business sense?
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Business
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Does using art to sell hotels make good business sense?
If you visit the Emperor Qianmen hotel, near the Forbidden City in Beijing, be sure to bring an umbrella - otherwise you may get drenched. That's because it sometimes rains inside the lobby.
This is not due to a leaking roof. The "rain" comes from an installation by the Canadian artist Dan Euser, whose other pieces at the Emperor include an astonishingly realistic "waterfall" in the hotel's spa.
The Emperor is a "water hotel", explains the Chinese artist Bingyi, another member of the team behind the establishment's design. It is built on the site of an old bath house, and it was this, Bingyi adds, that gave the hotel's architect, Adam Sokol, the idea for an aquatic theme for the project.
At the Emperor Hotel in Beijing an art installation creates rain inside the lobby
Art can be found almost everywhere at the Emperor. Bingyi's work on display includes Cave in Heaven, a vast ink and paper mural covering 400 square metres, over the entire walls of a large space.
Bingyi believes that China today is a fruitful place for collaborations between artists and hotels, like the one at the Emperor.
"Cultural significance is very important to Chinese.
"We take the greatest pride in our cultural heritage… we write calligraphy, we write poetry, we have this kind of particular passion to turn every little craft into this magnificent habit of living, and we're just obsessed with it," she says.
The lobby of luxury hotel Nuo displays huge vases made from Chinese porcelain
The Emperor is far from the only hotel in Beijing to place an emphasis on the role of art.
Enter the lobby of the Nuo, a new luxury hotel, and you could be forgiven for thinking you had stepped into a museum. Throughout the vast space a series of giant vases are arrayed, each one more than two metres tall. They were made in Jingdezhen, home of fine Chinese porcelain for thousands of years.
The blue and white vases echo the Ming Dynasty theme that pervades much of the hotel's design.
But they are only the beginning, says Adrian Rudin, the hotel's general manager:
"Wherever you go, from the lobby lounge to the bar, there are different art pieces, some sculptures, some paintings, from different young and upcoming artists." He estimates the value of artworks at the hotel at around $50m [£40m; 46m euros]."
Beijing hotel managers say that art is one way for luxury lodgings to set themselves apart from rivals
Why so much - or indeed, any - art?
"It is a selling point in terms of consumers who are interested in fine art and culture," says Mr Rudin. But, he adds, there are other reasons too.
The hotel is the starting point of a new venture with the aim of creating an "international luxury Chinese brand" Mr Rudin explains.
In this context, he believes that art has a key role to play in helping the new enterprise to find a distinctive voice.
Other luxury groups also see merit in this kind of approach.
The Rosewood Hotel says its aim is to create a space that feels like a "luxury private home"
One of the troubles of the modern international hotel scene, says Marc Brugger, is that it is an "ocean of sameness". Mr Brugger is managing director of the Rosewood hotel, another recently-launched luxury property in Beijing.
He believes that art can play a valuable role for luxury lodgings seeking to find new ways to set themselves apart. However, for this to be successful, time and careful thought are required.
When the hotel was being conceived, Mr Brugger recalls, the idea of creating somewhere that felt like a "luxury private home" emerged. In such an establishment, art would have its natural place.
This meant departing from the usual hotel design process.
Chinese artist Bingyi's work for the Emperor Hotel includes Cave in Heaven, a vast ink and paper mural covering 400 square metres
According to Mr Brugger, what often happens is that plans will be drawn up and some blank spaces will be left for "art" to be added later.
"That method is much faster" he says, than the "holistic" approach taken in designing the Rosewood, where most of the art was specially commissioned and integrated into the design.
The design team searched for up-and-coming artists who could create work that would fit well into the scheme, rather than existing pieces from established names which might overpower or destabilise the overall look.
It took a long time to find the right artists, says Mr Brugger, but he feels that the results were well worth it.
Do collaborations between artists and hotels like these make good commercial and creative sense? Up to a point, say experts.
"There is a rationale for doing this, in a crowded hotel market" says Peter York, who has been an adviser to many large luxury enterprises. Companies need to find ways "to stand out from the ordinariness of luxury now, because luxury has become very ordinary".
But he says there can be risks, both for the hotels, and more particularly for the artists: "It's a sensitive balance between what you do to make a lot of money, and to pump your brand, and the verdict of history - and you don't want the verdict of history to come in too fast", he warns.
Still, Chinese hotel operators, and the artists they work with, remain optimistic about the future and the benefits that can flow from working together.
"We're really re-imagining what is luxury" says Bingyi. "We just all need to be reminded every single day how beautiful things can be."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38719405
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Driving standing up conviction for tall Newcastle man - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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A 6ft 7in (2m) Newcastle man admits driving standing up but later claims he was "just tall".
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Tyne & Wear
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Adam Elliott had photographs taken to show his height in relation to the size of his car
A tall man has been convicted of driving while standing up after admitting dangerous driving.
Adam Elliott was accused of showing off to other motorists with his head poking out of the roof of a convertible Ford Ka.
The 26-year-old from Newcastle, who is 6ft 7in (2m) tall, pleaded guilty at Newcastle Crown Court but later blamed his height.
Speaking after the hearing, he said: "I was not stood up, I am just tall."
Judge Robert Adams said it was "pretty obvious" Elliott had been "showing off, demonstrating your height to people in an open top small car".
"It was a dangerous thing to do," he said.
Adam Elliott pleaded guilty to dangerous driving but later insisted he was just tall and not standing up in the car
Mr Elliott, a car dealer, was seen in Gateshead and on the Tyne Bridge driving the car with the top down in January last year.
He had been delivering the vehicle to a customer, he said.
"I pleaded guilty to this because I was advised to, but I still insist I was not standing up," he said.
"It's just because of my height.
"I'm an excellent driver but I was advised to plead guilty to get it over with."
The court heard Elliott had 12 previous convictions for driving while disqualified.
He was given an interim driving ban of 12 months and will be sentenced next month.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-38730051
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Oscars 2017: Best actress nominees - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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A look at the best actress nominees for the 89th Academy Awards on 26 February 2017.
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Entertainment & Arts
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Find out more about the nominees for the 89th Academy Awards, which will take place on 26 February 2017.
The character: Michele Leblanc, the head of a video game company, who is raped in her home.
The critics said: "Huppert gives a performance of imperious fury, holding the audience at bay, almost goading us to disown her. Audaciously, Elle presents her not so much as a victim but as the casualty of a world she is very much a part of; maybe (still more troublingly) an accessory to." [The Guardian]
The character: Mildred Loving, whose interracial marriage to Richard Loving (Joel Edgerton), led to the couple's arrest and banishment from the US state of Virginia in the 1950s.
The critics said: "When her expressive eyes, usually downcast, rise up to confront a world that needs changing, it's impossible not to be moved. The stabbing simplicity of Negga's acting is breathtaking." [Rolling Stone]
The character: Jackie Kennedy, whose husband President John F Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.
Oscar record: Portman won best actress for Black Swan in 2011 and was nominated for best supporting actress for Closer in 2005.
The critics said: "Portman's intricate performance... may just trump her Oscar-winning turn in Black Swan as the most high-wire feat she's ever pulled off." [Variety]
The character: Mia Dolan, an aspiring actress working in a Los Angeles coffee shop.
Oscar record: Nominated for best supporting actress for Birdman in 2015.
The critics said: "This is a career-best moment for Stone, who is grounded and spunky as the scrappy aspiring actress, then graceful and poised as Mia continues her journey." [Cinema Blend]
The character: Streep plays Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York heiress who dreamed of becoming an opera singer, despite having an awful singing voice.
Oscar record: Streep has 19 previous Oscar nominations and has won three times - twice as best actress, for The Iron Lady (2012) and Sophie's Choice (1983), and once as best supporting actress, in Kramer vs Kramer (1980).
The critics said: "Ms Streep is a delight, hilarious when she's singing and convincingly on edge at all times." New York Times
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38536718
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What will Trump do about Afghanistan? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Will the US cut its losses and bring America's longest war to an end?
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Asia
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There are still 13,000 Nato military personnel in Afghanistan, mostly American
As Donald Trump settles into his new home in the White House, one of the most pressing issues in his in-tray is Afghanistan.
America's longest war isn't something that he has said much about, and - as with so many issues - what he has said is contradictory.
In the past, he has described America's involvement in Afghanistan as a "disaster", and has talked about pulling out US troops.
But when he spoke to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on 2 December, he reportedly told him that America would not waver in its commitment to Afghanistan.
Then, however, he failed to invite Mr Ghani to his inauguration, deepening worries in Afghanistan that it simply was not a priority for the new president.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani praised the US for its commitment to Afghanistan, during his first official visit to Washington in 2015
The Taliban pitched in earlier this week, calling on President Trump to withdraw American forces from what they described as the "quagmire" of Afghanistan.
"Nothing has been achieved," said the insurgent group, "except the staining of innocent Afghans in their blood, and the destruction of villages and gardens."
The official American assessment of progress is not much more upbeat.
Mr Trump's challenge was summarised with shocking clarity earlier this month by the US watchdog overseeing the reconstruction process in Afghanistan, the special inspector general for Afghanistan, John F Sopko.
Mr Sopko says the US has spent more in real terms in Afghanistan than America spent on the reconstruction of Europe after World War Two, yet only 63% of the country is currently controlled by the Afghan government, opium production is at record highs and corruption is still rife.
"After 15 years," he says, "Afghanistan still cannot support itself financially or functionally.
"Long-term financial assistance is required if the country is to survive."
Just how vulnerable parts of the country are became very apparent when an Afghan colleague was given rare access to the battle against the Taliban in Helmand a few weeks ago.
Aziz Ahmad Shafee flew into the provincial capital, Lashkargah, with soldiers from the Afghan National Army's 215th Corps.
A convoy of Humvees drove the troops a few kilometres to the outskirts of the city: that is where the front line is now.
Afghan soldiers told the BBC they lacked even the most basic supplies
The Taliban now control more than 80% of Helmand.
A province, let us not forget, where most of the 456 British military personnel killed in the Afghan conflict lost their lives.
And - despite a complete restructuring of the command of the 215th Corps overseen by American forces - it seems it still is not combat effective.
Afghan troops complain they lack even the most basic supplies.
"For a month we've been saying we are running out of ammunition but we don't get any new supplies," Sgt class 1 Hyatullah told the BBC.
"Our enemy is firing at us, but we don't have enough bullets to take them on."
His commander urged America's new president not to falter in his commitment to the Afghan government.
"As a soldier of Afghanistan, I ask his excellency Donald Trump to continue the fight here", said Brig Gen Mohammad Wali Ahmadzai, the commander of the 215th Corps in Helmand.
"If he can give us more support, we can wipe the terrorists out."
Most of the foreign troops in Afghanistan were withdrawn at the end of 2014, but when I visited the headquarters of Resolute Support, the Nato mission in Afghanistan, it was busy, with helicopters flying in and out every few minutes.
There are still 13,000 Nato military personnel in Afghanistan, mostly American.
Most US military personnel have left Afghanistan - there is little appetite for more losses among the US public
Brig Gen Charlie Cleveland, the spokesman for the Resolute Support mission, believes America still has a clear strategic interest in Afghanistan.
He says the US troops now have two tasks:
Resolute Support's work with the Afghan army has, says the brigadier general, been instrumental in ensuring it has managed to hold the ground it does.
"In the winter of 2015-16, the government of Afghanistan changed their strategy," Brig Gen Cleveland tells me.
"They realised they couldn't defend everywhere, and so what they really started focusing their efforts on was the major population centres.
"As we look at the security situation right now, the government controls - secures - really about two-thirds of the population.
"About 10% of the population is controlled by the Taliban, and the remaining difference is really what's contested."
He says while this situation is not ideal, the Afghan army has managed to reverse what was a deteriorating situation in 2015 and establish an "equilibrium" in favour of the government.
Nevertheless, there is much work to be done.
Some 5,000 Afghan military personnel were killed last year, losses both the Afghan government and Resolute Support agree are unsustainable in the long term.
Afghan security forces have launched operations against both Taliban and IS militants
And, amid the uncertainty about American policy, other powers have been flexing their muscles in Afghanistan.
Last month, Russia hosted a meeting in Moscow about the country's future, with senior officials from China and Pakistan, and it makes no secret of the fact it has been talking to the Taliban.
So the big question is what will President Trump do?
Two of his key cabinet picks may provide a clue.
President Trump's Defence Secretary, Gen James Mattis, is a former commander of forces here.
He has spoken in the past about the need to urge Pakistan to take further action against the Taliban and the Sunni Islamist militant Haqqani network.
Soviet troops pulled out of Afghanistan in 1988, but Russia is talking to the Taliban
The new president's national security adviser, Lt Gen Michael Flynn, has also talked about the need for Pakistan to take tougher action against Taliban fighters who shelter there.
And President Trump has been very consistent about his desire to take a tougher line against the so-called Islamic State group.
Pulling out of Afghanistan would make that more difficult, given the toe-hold it has established in eastern Afghanistan over the past couple of years.
So it seems unlikely that - in his effort to extricate America from foreign entanglements - President Trump will simply declare that it has no strategic interest in Afghanistan and withdraw his troops.
He and his advisers will certainly not want to be responsible for America's longest war ending in what many people would regard as a clear defeat.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-38730061
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Oscar nominations 2017: Seven non-white actors recognised - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Diversity in the 2017 Oscar nominations and how it compares to last year's crop.
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The last two Oscars suffered a backlash due to the lack of non-white nominations.
This year's nominations in the acting categories are more diverse.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38737641
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Tomorrow's Cities: What can be done to improve air quality? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Daytime in the city: Will we still work in offices in future and how damaging is urban air to our health?
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Technology
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Cities are at their busiest during the day - and their most polluted
Part two of our series "A day in the life of a city" looks at the ways in which offices are changing and how cities are coping with the ever-growing problem of pollution.
The morning rush hour is over and, if you live in a city in the developed world, you are likely to be settling down at your desk for the next eight or so hours.
However, the office block and skyscraper, which have been part of our urban landscape since the end of the 19th Century, may also soon become surplus to requirements.
Should we rethink our office space?
Urban architect Anthony Townsend thinks cities need more creative approaches to how we work and is keen to reclaim the streets by creating pop-up workspaces in the parks and plazas of the financial district in New York.
"Before the New York Stock Exchange, traders met under a tree on Wall Street to buy and sell shares. It is only in the last 50 years that we have taken that creative energy and sucked it up into office buildings and separated it from public space," he said.
An atrium filled with natural light and the smell of fresh coffee greets workers at Deloitte's Edge headquarters in Amsterdam, which also uses an underwater aquifer to provide ambient temperature all year round and a sensor network to monitor the use of lights - providing a better working environment while saving money.
The Edge has been dubbed one of the world's greenest offices and now many are following suit - installing sensors to monitor light, electricity and water usage, planting urban gardens and offering employees access to bike or car-sharing schemes.
When you pop out to buy your lunchtime sandwich though, it is a different matter.
Cities are huge polluters - responsible for 70% of the world's carbon emissions, according to the United Nations.
In Singapore huge man-made super-trees house a variety of flora and fauna
And, according to the World Health Organization, more than 80% of people living in urban areas that monitor air pollution are exposed to air quality levels that exceed WHO limits. While all regions of the world are affected, populations in low income cities are the most impacted.
Cities are literally getting greener - with foliage-covered walls popping up in many
To counteract this, cities are rushing out a whole series of green initiatives - from electric buses (being trialled in many cities including Perth, London and Paris), to bike-sharing schemes, such as those in Montreal, Barcelona and Amsterdam.
Some are committing to "urban greening" - London is considering a garden bridge - while in Paris, 20,000 residents have backed plans via a citizen engagement app 'Madam Mayor, I have an idea' for a 2m euro ($2.2m, £1.7m) investment in vertical gardens across the city.
Officials have found 40 potential sites and are now calling on gardeners, landscape designers, urban farmers and architects to bid for projects.
Horticulturist and designer Patrick Blanc has been creating vertical gardens since 2001 in city hotels, malls and tower blocks around the world.
The benefits are many-fold, he said. As well as acting as a natural biofilter and providing a habitat for birds and bugs, it also feeds humans' natural sense of well-being in nature, a phenomenon known as biophilia.
China is turning to machine learning to predict smog levels
In China, it will take more than planting trees to combat pollution. The city authorities in smog-ridden Bejiing are working closely with IBM to use machine learning techniques to analyse weather and emissions data to predict how bad air will be over the next 10 days.
According to Jonathan Batty, an IBM executive who helped set up the system, it has allowed the authorities to take short-term preventative measures.
"That might mean closing factories for a couple of days or reducing urban traffic or stopping construction work," he said.
The government also uses the data to provide a traffic light warning system for citizens - red means air pollution is high so spend the minimum time outside, while green indicates safe levels.
London provides a similar system on its city dashboard which is available to Londoners on the web.
Prof Andy Hudson-Smith, who heads up University College London's Centre for Advance Spatial Analysis, came up with the idea to share data with the wider public.
"Cities now do have vast amount of information on air pollution and the data from London is all bad but it seems that citizens haven't woken up to how bad the air is," he said.
"I'm surprised that people haven't kicked off. This stuff is life-threatening - if you live on a main road, it can take five years off your life."
Would you take an internet-connected gnome seriously?
The problem with the current way of collecting air pollution data is that often people do not understand what the readings mean, he thinks.
So he has a cunning plan to "humanise IoT" (the internet of things).
He is putting around 100 internet-connected gnomes in the Olympic Park in East London.
The gnomes will talk back to people as they go around the park and among other things will tell them how bad the air pollution is.
Unlike more complex data sets, they will be more plain speaking, said Prof Hudson-Smith.
"They will probably just tell you to go home."
Jakarta launched its smart city programme in 2014 and rather than spend vast sums of money on platforms provided by firms such as IBM and Schneider Electric, it decided its smart city approach would be much more citizen-based.
It has an app - Qlue - that allows citizens to report issues, upload photos of potholes and abandoned cars they come across around the city.
Floods are a major issue there and citizens can also access PetaJakarta, a joint project between the University of Wollongong in Australia and the Jakartan government. It uses tweets about floods to create a real-time map of the city.
Jakarta tweets more than any other city in the world and also faces some of the worst congestion, so a Twitter account offering lift-shares - dubbed Nebenger - has attracted some 93,000 residents
In another congestion-busting initiative, the city is now partnering with Google-owned navigation app Waze to share data about traffic conditions around the city.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-37372119
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Lovelorn red panda escapes from Virginia Zoo - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The racoon-like creature may have become agitated because this is breeding season, officials say.
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US & Canada
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Sunny, a 19-month-old red panda, has been missing since Monday
Zoo officials say that a female red panda named Sunny has been missing from its enclosure since Monday afternoon.
Norfolk police are helping workers at the Virginia Zoo using a "geothermal camera" to search the grounds for her, officials said on Wednesday.
People living near the zoo have been asked to keep an eye out for the reddish-brown mammal.
Zoo director Greg Bockheim told the Virginian-Pilot newspaper love may have driven 19-month-old Sunny to run away.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Red pandas have a natural love for snow and cold weather
"This is panda breeding season, so the animals become a bit more agitated," Mr Bockheim said.
"We're super hopeful we'll find her today," he added.
Officials are hopeful that she may still be on zoo grounds.
"Red pandas are generally not considered aggressive animals, but like any wild animal its behavior can be unpredictable and you should not try to touch, feed, or capture Sunny yourself," zoo officials said in a statement.
The zoo asks that the public call their hotline if they spot Sunny.
One neighbour told local news that she plans to follow that advice.
"The panda's probably scared himself," Lazara Jorrin told CBS News. "This is new to him, so we don't know how he'll react."
Red pandas - which are native to China and the Himalayas - have been known to escape zoo enclosures in the past.
Rusty the red panda escaped from the Smithsonian's National Zoo in Washington DC in 2013 and was later found roaming the streets.
In 2007, the same Virginia Zoo lost sight of another red panda named Yin before discovering it in a nearby tree.
And in 2009 a red panda escaped from the London Zoo and was discovered on a park bench in Regent's Park in the early hours.
In 2013, an escaped Red Panda was rescued when Twitter users spotted him roaming the streets of Washington DC
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38749925
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Lantern festivals light up China - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Lanterns shows are being held to celebrate Chinese New Year.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-38741118
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Brighton & Hove Albion 1-0 Cardiff City - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Brighton went back to the top of the Championship thanks to Tomer Hemed's winner against a determined Cardiff.
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Last updated on .From the section Football
Brighton went back to the top of the Championship thanks to Tomer Hemed's winner against a determined Cardiff.
Chris Hughton's side were dominant in the second half but had to wait until the 73rd minute when Oliver Norwood found Hemed who fired home.
The visiting Bluebirds had threatened in the first period, but David Stockdale denied Kenneth Zohore.
The match had been rearranged after the scheduled meeting on 30 December was postponed because of fog.
Cardiff remain 16th in the Championship while Brighton hold a two-point advantage over Newcastle.
The Seagulls made a fast start and could have led after four minutes, but winger Jamie Murphy could not quite connect with a cross.
Joe Ralls went close with Cardiff's first effort and Zohore spurned a good opportunity when he raced clear on 23 minutes before firing straight at David Stockdale.
The visitors again went close through Sean Morrison who headed firmly at goal from Ralls' free-kick, but Stockdale tipped the ball over the bar.
The goalkeeper was again called into action when Junior Hoilett cut inside and fired at goal, but Stockdale produced a fingertip stop to turn the ball wide.
Brighton did test Allan McGregor just before the break when Solly March broke clear, but his effort was held by the on-loan goalkeeper.
However, if Cardiff shaded the first period, the promotion-chasing hosts were dominant after the restart.
Hughton's men wasted one of the best opportunities of the match when Israel international Hemed missed from close range after March's cross.
The longer the game stayed level the more Cardiff attempted to frustrate, but Brighton got their breakthrough when substitute Norwood found Hemed, who turned past defender Sol Bamba and smashed the ball into the net.
Murphy almost made it two only a minute later after Connor Goldson's cut-back, but McGregor denied him. Anthony Knockaert also missed a late chance to increase the advantage.
Brighton held on despite a late effort from substitute Craig Noone that was blocked.
The defeat for Neil Warnock's side was the first time Cardiff have lost a league game away at Brighton since January 2002, when Bobby Zamora netted the winner for the Seagulls.
Brighton boss Chris Hughton told BBC Sussex: "They've got good players in their team and we had to be patient and look for the opportunities.
"I think you've got to give them credit, but it was going to be that one bit of brilliance or one bit of really good play that was going to break the deadlock, and I always felt it was going to be us rather than them.
"The league is too tough to be able to expect anything different than what we expect, and that's everybody behind us in the table really pushing."
Cardiff City boss Neil Warnock told BBC Radio Wales: "I asked the players to show how far we have come and I thought we more than matched them at times.
"It shows me what we are looking for and what we need to succeed.
"I think Brighton will be glad that they don't play us again. We had good chances and their goalkeeper has made three good saves."
• None Attempt missed. Tomer Hemed (Brighton and Hove Albion) left footed shot from more than 35 yards is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Oliver Norwood.
• None Anthony Knockaert (Brighton and Hove Albion) is shown the yellow card.
• None Attempt missed. Anthony Knockaert (Brighton and Hove Albion) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses the top left corner. Assisted by Steve Sidwell.
• None Offside, Cardiff City. Sol Bamba tries a through ball, but Craig Noone is caught offside.
• None Attempt missed. Aron Gunnarsson (Cardiff City) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Craig Noone following a corner.
• None Attempt blocked. Craig Noone (Cardiff City) left footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Kadeem Harris.
• None Attempt missed. Lewis Dunk (Brighton and Hove Albion) header from very close range is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by Anthony Knockaert with a cross following a corner.
• None Attempt saved. Jamie Murphy (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Connor Goldson. Navigate to the next page Navigate to the last page
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38642752
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Reality Check: Is North of England getting a big boost? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Is the government announcing a fresh cash boost for the North of England?
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Business
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The claim: The government is announcing a cash boost for the North of England.
Reality Check verdict: The money has already been announced twice.
Prime Minister Theresa May is to continue former chancellor George Osborne's plans to create a Northern Powerhouse.
On Monday, she held a cabinet meeting in Daresbury in Cheshire, where she unveiled her new, more interventionist industrial strategy.
Details on where exactly the Northern Powerhouse cash will be spent are new, but the £556m total is not.
Last March, George Osborne said a total of £1.8bn would be awarded in a round of "growth deal" funding to Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) across England.
LEPs combine businesses, councils and other bodies to decide regional spending priorities, on things like city centre regeneration projects and innovation funds for businesses.
It is part of a wider scheme aimed at boosting the post-Brexit UK economy and creating jobs, with a particular focus on investment in science, research and innovation.
Mr Osborne's replacement, Philip Hammond, announced in November that £556m of this pot would go to the North of England. It was announced again in the Autumn Statement later that month.
As well as the North's share, Mr Hammond allocated £492m to London and the South East, £392m to the Midlands, and smaller amounts to other regions.
Northern leaders say their cities are stuck with weak economies because of underinvestment, while the South East takes the lion's share of public cash.
The government says the Northern Powerhouse will go some way to rectifying the imbalance. In this case the North of England is getting 13% more than London and the South East.
But other areas of government spending favour London over the North.
The capital will receive six times more money on transport spending per person over the next five years, according to research by the Institute for Public Policy Research.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38723772
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Newspaper headlines: MPs' 'new plot to thwart Brexit' - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The Supreme Court's ruling that Parliament must vote on whether the government can start the Brexit process dominates Wednesday's front pages.
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The Papers
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Most of the papers lead on the fall-out from the government's Brexit court defeat
The Brexit Supreme Court ruling makes the lead for nearly all the papers, but one of the most eye-catching headlines can be found in the inside pages of the Daily Mail.
"Champions of the People", it proclaims, praising the three justices who found themselves in the minority as they sided with the government in the case.
The Mail attracted controversy in November when it branded three High Court judges "enemies of the people" for ruling Parliament had to be consulted over Brexit.
The Mail thinks it is not good for democracy that this decision has been now backed by the Supreme Court, arguing this, in effect, turns the EU referendum into a "mere opinion poll".
The Guardian is pleased with the Supreme Court judgement, saying it upheld a major constitutional principle in the face of what it describes as "shameful attacks" by the Brexit press.
It think the government should now publish a formal White Paper on its goals for Brexit.
But the Financial Times warns MPs against trying to micro-manage the negotiations.
The Daily Telegraph says Parliament has a duty to act responsibly and not seek a re-run of the referendum campaign.
"What's not to like when British judges in Britain's Supreme Court rule that British law makes the British Parliament sovereign," is the Daily Mirror take on Tuesday's Brexit ruling.
But it is not an opinion that is shared by all the leader writers.
The Times warns the Lords against trying to frustrate Brexit.
It would do so at its peril, says the paper, adding: "Showdowns between the two houses rarely end well for the Lords and the country does not need yet another constitutional headache."
The Daily Telegraph says that ministers are privately warning the government is prepared to flood the Lords with hundreds of Conservative peers if it obstructs the process of leaving the EU.
The Daily Mail believes new recruits are being discouraged from joining the Army because of historical inquiries into soldiers who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan.
It says the Army remains 4% below its required strength, the nearly 7,000 cadets who signed up in the past year being about 3,000 short of the target.
A group campaigning to end the investigations tells the Mail that the figures are no surprise, asking why anyone would want to join the forces when they could be hounded for years.
The Financial Times thinks the world ought to start taking seriously US President Donald Trump's threat to impose trade tariffs in order to protect American goods.
In an editorial it argues that many still assume he is bluffing in order to win better deals.
But, it says, the first few days of his presidency have shown that he is not posturing and he thinks protectionism will make America richer.
The FT wonders how far he will get before he and his country both discover just how wrong he is.
The reported Trident missile failure may have made the headlines in recent days, but the Times reminds us that problems involving nuclear submarines are not new.
It reports on a CIA document which has revealed that a Soviet submarine and an American one, which was carrying a 160 nuclear warheads, crashed into each other in 1974 near Holy Loch, about 30 miles from Glasgow.
One expert says the crash was so serious there was a danger that the crews could have tried to defend themselves - believing they were under attack - leading to the possibility of war.
The growing number of homes with wood-burning stoves is partly being blamed for worsening air pollution levels in London, according to the Daily Telegraph.
Air quality readings in some parts of the capital were worse this week than in Beijing.
The weather and traffic pollution have led to the alert but, according to experts at King's College, wood fires were also responsible with more than a million homes now having the stoves.
David Cameron explains in the Times why he is becoming the president of Alzheimer's Research UK
On its front page, the Daily Mirror again has photos of drivers clutching their mobiles while out on the road.
Four months after the paper began its campaign to change public attitudes, it asks, "When will we ever learn?"
A traffic officer tells the paper he has heard every excuse in the book from the drivers he has pulled over.
He says one builder tried to throw his phone out the window when he was caught, while another woman insisted she did not own one, until it went off under the seat where she had hidden it.
The Mirror says cars and vans are deadly weapons in the hands of what it calls "mobile phone morons" and calls for more of them to be banned.
In the Times, David Cameron explains why he is becoming the president of Alzheimer's Research UK.
He says there needs to be a deeper understanding of the disease so that dementia is not accepted as inevitable in later life.
The paper says the article represents his "first important political intervention since leaving Downing Street".
It thinks Mr Cameron is concerned that Theresa May could downgrade funding for dementia research which for him was a "personal priority."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-the-papers-38739900
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One protester's story: Paying the price for seeking freedom in Egypt - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Six years since the outbreak of the revolution in Egypt, human rights campaigners says the situation in the country is far worse, Orla Guerin reports.
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Middle East
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Mahmoud Hussein says he needs a crutch because of abuse and medical neglect in prison
It is six years since the outbreak of the 18-day revolution in Egypt which swept the autocrat, Hosni Mubarak, from power. But human rights campaigners say the situation in the country is now far worse than before the uprising, as Orla Guerin reports from Cairo.
With every step he takes, Mahmoud Mohammed Hussein is reminded of the price he paid for wanting freedom and democracy in Egypt.
The 21-year-old has a pronounced limp and relies on a crutch - a legacy, he says, of beatings during almost 800 days in a series of prisons. Ten months have passed since his release, but he still appears frail.
Mahmoud is one of thousands who have been detained in recent years under Egypt's latest strongman, President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi.
As army chief he led the military overthrow of Egypt's first democratically-elected president, Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, in 2013.
Since then Mr Sisi has presided over a sweeping crackdown on dissent - ensnaring Islamists, liberals, journalists, aid workers, and icons of the revolution of 2011.
People took to the streets of Cairo on 25 January 2011 to demand Hosni Mubarak resign
Mahmoud joined the throngs behind bars back in 2014, when he was just 18.
His ordeal began on 25 January, the anniversary of the outbreak of the revolution. His fate was sealed by his T-shirt which read: "A nation without torture."
"It was a day of celebration for me," said Mahmoud, who has dark curly hair and a ready smile.
"I wasn't part of the revolution, but I believed in it and its goals. It made me feel like a human being, with rights and duties.
"Nowadays, people see the anniversary as a black day, they worry when it comes. For me the mood was one of celebration."
Supporters of Abdul Fattah al-Sisi were allowed to take to the streets on 25 January 2014
But then - as now - the streets were reserved for President Sisi's supporters. They could gather freely, unlike his critics. Protests are virtually banned here.
We witnessed police opening fire that day - with live rounds - on unarmed demonstrators.
Mahmoud said he was not involved in any of the protests, but that he was detained as he headed for home.
"The officer who arrested me told me, 'You have my picture on your T-shirt'," he said.
"The T-shirt was inspired by the revolution. I saw it as a beautiful thing, not a crime. A country without torture is a dream that everyone wishes for."
Dozens died in clashes with security forces at anti-government protests three years ago
That dream was apparently not shared by the police he encountered that day. Mahmoud said they soon employed the torture skills for which human rights groups have long condemned the Egyptian police.
"I was abused at the checkpoint where I was arrested," he told us.
"Then they transferred me to the police station. I was electrocuted on my private parts. They kicked me with their military boots, and hit me with sticks.
"Everyone knew I was there because of the T-shirt. They believed this was a personal insult to them, so they beat me."
The aim, he said, was to get him to sign a false confession.
Mahmoud Hussein (centre) was photographed with the T-shirt reading "A nation without torture"
"A senior officer beat me and kicked me and then asked junior police officers to do the job," he said.
"They wanted me to sign a report saying I was against the police. I refused. The juniors have their own ways - if beating doesn't work, then electrocution might do the job.
"I was stripped naked, without even boxer shorts, and I was beaten just to admit to certain charges".
Mahmoud asked the officers to spare his leg, which was injured in the past.
"They insisted on kicking me and beating me on that leg," he said.
"Because of all the abuse and the medical neglect in prison I now need my friend, the crutch, and two surgeries."
His account is consistent with testimony from others who have been detained in recent years. We asked the Egyptian government for a response to the allegation that detainees have been beaten and tortured in custody. There was no reply.
In the past the authorities have denied there is systematic torture, but said there may be individual cases.
Mahmoud described both physical and psychological abuse.
He told us he spent 14 months in one overcrowded cell where he could barely move, and could not see daylight.
There were about 150 other prisoners, including Islamists and men held for rape and murder.
"I always had this element of fear," he said, "All the time, because prison is like a tomb. It's a place that takes away your soul, and kills everything beautiful in you."
Tens of thousands of people have been jailed in a sweeping crackdown on dissent since 2013
Mahmoud was released from detention last March - following campaigns at home and abroad.
While he is back home with his family in Cairo, he is not completely free.
He still faces charges including joining an unauthorized protest, possession of explosives and joining a banned terrorist group - all of which he denies.
"I could go back to prison at any time," he said. "They could just pick me walking on the street.
"Since my release that has happened twice. I was held for a few hours and then they let me go."
Public criticism and peaceful opposition are effectively banned in Egypt, rights activists say
Mahmoud has also been receiving threatening phone calls.
"One told me I would not have time to come back to prison," he said, "meaning that someone could stab me or kill me. I didn't reply. I just hung up."
In spite of all the dangers, including the risk that he could be put on trial, Mahmoud refuses to be silenced.
"In Egypt my rights and the rights of thousands of others like me are violated, just for dreaming or hoping for freedom," he said.
"Their destiny is prison, or death. That's not going to stop me from speaking out, or caring for thousands like me. "
Officials here would not give us a comment on allegations that all dissent is being crushed.
President Sisi said in September that "there can be no return to dictatorship"
President Sisi has said in the past that stability is more important than freedom, but he maintains that dictatorship cannot return to Egypt. Critics believe in some key respects it never left.
When asked if the revolution is now dead, Mahmoud gave a swift response.
"No, not at all," he insisted. "25 January is a dream that will never die. The revolution lives in the hearts of people like me, of everyone who believes in it.
"The current regime is trying desperately to erase it from memory."
As for the T- shirt that cost him his freedom, he has no regrets.
"I always say that if I could go back, in spite of all the abuses I suffered, I would wear the T-shirt again," he said.
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-38730565
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Euro 'could fail', says man tipped as US ambassador to EU - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The man tipped to be Donald Trump's ambassador to the EU has told the BBC the single currency "could collapse" in the next 18 months.
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Business
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Professor Ted Malloch is gloomy about the euro's future
The man tipped to be Donald Trump's ambassador to the European Union has told the BBC the single currency "could collapse" in the next 18 months.
Professor Ted Malloch said he would "short the euro" - taking a market position which bets on the value of the currency falling.
He also said Britain could agree a "mutually beneficial" free trade deal with America in as little as 90 days.
And that it was best for the US if Britain executed a "clean" Brexit.
Once outside the single market and the customs union, the UK could bypass "the bureaucrats in Brussels" and forge a free trade deal, he said.
Mr Malloch added that any attempt by the EU to block Britain beginning negotiations with the US would be "absurd" and like a husband "trying to stop his wife having an affair".
Theresa May will be the first foreign leader to meet the new president when she arrives in Washington at the end of the week.
The possibility of an early trade deal with America, once the UK has left the EU, will be on the agenda.
"I remind people that the largest merger and acquisition deals in history are often done in about that time frame [90 days]," Mr Malloch, a professor at Henley Business School, said.
"Some of us who have worked on Wall Street or in the City know that if you get the right people in the right room with the right data and the right energy, and Trump is certainly high energy, you can get things done.
"I think this will cut out the bureaucrats in effect and it won't take two years, it won't take seven years to actually come to an agreement."
He added: "Obviously there are things to iron out, certainly there are differences and compromises to make, but it can be done.
"So, there won't be a deal signed in the White House on Friday, but there could be an agreement for a framework going forward where people are empowered to have that kind of conversation behind closed doors and it could take as little as 90 days.
"That is very positive and it sends a signal that the United States is behind Great Britain in its hour of need."
Although not yet confirmed, Mr Malloch has been widely reported as being the president's choice for the Brussels role.
The economist and former deputy executive secretary to the United Nations in Geneva went for an interview with the president's team at Trump Tower earlier this month.
If successful, he will be officially nominated by the Secretary of State elect, Rex Tillerson.
The EU has made it clear that Britain cannot enter substantive free trade talks with countries outside the union until it has left the EU, a position Mr Malloch - a supporter of Mr Trump and the Brexit campaign - dismissed.
If successful, Mr Malloch will be officially nominated by the Secretary of State elect, Rex Tillerson
"I think it is an absurd proposition and may be a legalism," he said.
"There are going to be all kinds of things happening behind closed doors and you can call them what you like.
"The fact is that when your wife is having an affair with someone else, you tell her to stop it, but oftentimes that doesn't stop the relationship."
Many trade experts say the "90-day" proposition will be impossible to execute, as there will need to be detailed negotiations on controversial areas such as food imports between the UK and the US, as well as financial services and pharmaceuticals.
"Non-tariff" barriers such as health and safety regulations and the recognition of professional qualifications will also have to be hammered out.
There could also be a need for some form of immigration agreement.
Furthermore, Britain is not yet an autonomous member of the World Trade Organisation, which oversees the rules on free trade deals.
It negotiates as part of the EU's agreement with the global trade regulator.
Government sources insist that transferring full rights to the UK alone will be straightforward.
Mr Malloch said despite the obstacles, Britain would gain a free trade deal well ahead of the rest of the EU and the elections in the Netherlands, France and Germany could lead to a fundamental shake-up of the union.
"I personally am not certain that there will be a European Union with which to have [free trade] negotiations," he said.
"Will there be potentially numerous bilateral agreements with various countries?
"I think the prospect, in a changed political reality, is greater for that.
"I think Donald Trump is very opposed to supranational organisations, he believes in nation states, in bilateral relations and I think that he thinks the EU has overshot its mark.
"It seems to me as well that Trump believes that the European Union has in recent decades been tilted strongly and most favourably towards Germany."
Mr Malloch said that the present free trade negotiation between the US and the EU - called the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership - was "dead".
He also questioned the future of the single currency.
"The one thing I would do in 2017 is short the euro," Mr Malloch said.
"I think it is a currency that is not only in demise but has a real problem and could in fact collapse in the coming year, year and a half.
"I am not the only person or economist of that point of view.
"Someone as acclaimed as Joseph Stiglitz - the famous World Bank economist - has written an entire book on this subject."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38749884
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Australian Open 2017: Mirjana Lucic-Baroni reaches semi-finals - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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BBC Sport charts the return to form of 34-year-old Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, who is into the last four of the Australian Open 18 years after her last Grand Slam semi-final appearance.
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BBC Sport charts the return to form of 34-year-old Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, who will face Serena Williams in the last four of the Australian Open, 18 years after her last Grand Slam semi-final appearance.
READ MORE: Lucic-Baroni 'in shock' at return to semis
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/38751600
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In Pictures: National Television Awards 2017 - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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A look at the stars on the red carpet at this year's National Television Awards in London.
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Entertainment & Arts
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Cheeky chaps Ant & Dec went into the ceremony with three nominations - best entertainment programme, best TV presenter and best challenge show for I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! - and collected all three awards.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/38749226
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Dundee boy's balloon flies 370 miles to Banbury - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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A boy's balloon released in Dundee has been found 370 miles (595km) away.
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Oxford
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A boy's balloon released in Dundee as part of a telescope experiment has been found 370 miles (595km) away.
Lucas Muir, aged four, had signed the McDonald's-branded balloon with his name, age and hometown.
A week later it was found in Banbury, north Oxfordshire. It is now being sent back to Lucas.
Bryan Tomlin, who found the balloon on Sunday morning, put a picture of it on Facebook which was shared 6,000 times.
Mr Tomlin said: "I noticed the writing on there with the little kid's name on it and thought I'll put it on Facebook as it would be nice to see if we could reunite him with it.
"I did that and it absolutely snowballed from there, it went absolutely mad".
Lucas Muir released the McDonald's balloon to see if he could see it with his telescope
Lucas released the balloon to see if he could see it with his telescope
His father Andy Muir said: "I saw the picture on Facebook and there was Lucas' name, his age and his hometown.
"He's only four years old so he doesn't realise what an impact it has had."
The balloon travelled 370 miles from Dundee in Scotland, to Banbury near Oxford
He added that he was amazed the McDonald's balloon had travelled so far.
He said: "It's quite a thing for their balloon to be a world traveller."
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-38722432
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Philippe Coutinho: Liverpool forward signs new five-year contract - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Liverpool forward Philippe Coutinho signs a new five-year contract worth about £150,000 a week, making him the club's highest-paid player.
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Last updated on .From the section Football
Liverpool forward Philippe Coutinho has signed a new five-year contract worth about £150,000 a week, making him the highest-paid player at the club.
The 24-year-old Brazil international joined the Reds from Inter Milan for £8.5m in January 2013, and his new deal will take him through to 2022.
Coutinho has scored 34 goals in 163 appearances for Liverpool.
"It is a club that I am very grateful to and this shows my happiness here," he told the club's website.
There is no release clause in Coutinho's new contract, the terms of which come into effect from 1 July.
Coutinho, who had been linked with a move to Spanish champions Barcelona, added: "I signed this new contract to stay here for a few more years because it's a great honour for me.
"It gives me great happiness because I was welcomed here with open arms by everyone at the club and the supporters right from my first day."
Coutinho was brought to Anfield by former manager Brendan Rodgers, with Southampton also interested in signing him at the time.
He has established himself as one of the Reds' key players during his four years at Anfield.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes his decision to sign a new long-term contract sends out a "big statement".
"This is wonderful news," said Klopp, whose side are fourth in the Premier League, 10 points behind leaders Chelsea.
"He is truly world class - in that very top bracket. He knows he can fulfil his dreams and ambitions here at Liverpool."
Coutinho has recently returned from an ankle injury, prior to which he had scored six goals in 14 appearances this season.
Coutinho's ability to create and score goals has not only brought him adulation at Anfield and more recognition at international level with Brazil, it also brought him to the attention of the likes of Barcelona.
Liverpool's move to secure Coutinho is not only a coup for Klopp and the club, but is also a contract without an exit clause, which is a vital component of the deal.
It is a strategy designed to avoid the sort of scenario they faced in 2014 when Luis Suarez signed a new deal at Liverpool in December 2013 that was ultimately only security for when he made a £75m move to Barcelona that summer.
Coutinho has expressed his complete satisfaction at Liverpool and is accompanied by none of the controversies that made Suarez even more likely to leave Liverpool and the Premier League.
Liverpool believe this is one deal that has been signed by a player who is in it for the long haul at Anfield.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38741844
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Egypt activist 'tortured for his T-shirt' - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Mahmoud Hussein, 21, describes how he came to be arrested in Egypt, and what happened to him in detention.
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It is six years since the outbreak of the 18-day revolution in Egypt which swept its leader, Hosni Mubarak, from power.
Human rights campaigners say the situation in the country is now far worse than before the uprising, and Mahmoud Hussein, 21, is one of thousands who have been detained in recent years under Egypt's latest strongman, President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi.
He told the BBC's Orla Guerin how his ordeal began.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-38742237
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Six Nations: Dylan Hartley confirmed as England captain for 2017 - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Dylan Hartley is confirmed as England's captain for the Six Nations - two days after his six-week suspension for striking ends.
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Last updated on .From the section Rugby Union
Northampton hooker Dylan Hartley has been confirmed as England's captain for the Six Nations - two days after his six-week suspension for striking ended.
Coach Eddie Jones announced at the launch of the championship that the 30-year-old will continue in the role.
"I haven't actually told him... shall I say now? I'd like to announce Dylan's the captain," Jones said.
Hartley, who led England to the Grand Slam last year, was banned for hitting Leinster's Sean O'Brien in December.
He caught the Irish flanker high with a swinging arm during Northampton's 37-10 Champions Cup loss and was shown the third red card of his career.
The subsequent suspension took the total number of weeks he has been unavailable during his career to 60.
Hartley will not have played for nine weeks before England's opening game against France on 4 February at Twickenham.
When the captain was asked if he had changed his game in response to his latest sanction, Jones interrupted: "He's had 60 weeks off mate, he's a world expert."
The Australian added: "I think he's ready. He trained well on Tuesday and has still got a couple of days to go. We're pleased to have him back. It's the continuity of the job."
Hartley, when asked about his suitability for the role, said: "We did this last year, talking about me. I'm confident, I feel fresh, I feel fit, and focused.
"I'm here on behalf of the team. The challenge is to use this week as best we can to get the preparation right for a huge first game."
Hartley was dropped from England's 2015 Rugby World Cup squad after he headbutted Saracens' Jamie George, but was recalled by Jones after he replaced Stuart Lancaster.
The hooker went on to lead the side to a Six Nations Grand Slam as they embarked on a run of 14 consecutive Test match victories.
British and Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland has refused to be drawn on whether Hartley's disciplinary record will affect his chances of leading this summer's tour to New Zealand.
'I slipped in the hotel this morning'
Jones attended the launch with a dressing on his face and a black eye, caused by a fall in the bathroom of his hotel.
However, the Australian did initially suggest he suffered the injury while attempting the combat sports England players have been practising since October.
"First we had judo and then we had MMA, so we're just going through all the martial arts sports to see what effect they have on the body," Jones said.
"My mother always told me I've got to shave and I forgot, so I walked out of the shower to get the shaver and this is what happened."
Back row James Haskell has been given the all-clear to link up with the squad after recovering from a foot injury that kept him out for six months.
The 31-year-old was a key part of England's Grand Slam and unbeaten tour of Australia in 2016.
But, having missed the autumn internationals, he faces a battle to oust Tom Wood, who was this week singled out for praise by Jones.
Jones said people would "have to wait and see" if Haskell would feature against France in 11 days' time.
"He has not had much rugby," he added. "He's played around 60 minutes against Zebre and 36 seconds against the opposition the previous week."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/38742427
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Japan gets first sumo champion in 19 years - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The deeply traditional Japanese sport has been dominated by foreign wrestlers in recent years.
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Asia
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Kisenosato posed for photos with a red sea bream, a traditional way to mark victory
Japan has formally named its first home-grown sumo grand champion in almost two decades, in a boost to the traditional wrestling sport.
Kisenosato, 30, was promoted to the top-most yokozuna rank after his win in the first tournament of the year.
He is the first Japanese-born wrestler to make it since Wakanohana in 1998. Five wrestlers from American Samoa and Mongolia have made it in the interim.
Foreign wrestlers have come to dominate sumo, amid a lack of local recruits.
Kisenosato, who comes from Ibaraki to the north of Tokyo and weighs 178kg (392 pounds), has been an ozeki - the second-highest rank - since 2012.
After being runner-up on multiple occasions, he finally clinched his first tournament victory - and thereby his promotion to yokozuna - in the first competition of 2017.
"I accept with all humility," Kisenosato said in a press conference after the Japan Sumo Association formally approved him.
"I will devote myself to the role and try not to disgrace the title of yokozuna."
Wakanohana (R), seen here fighting Hawaiian Akebono, was the last Japanese wrestler to be promoted to yokozuna
Many Japanese fans will be pleased to see a local wrestler back at the top of a sport regarded as a cultural icon.
As yokuzuna, Kisenosato, whose real name is Yutaka Hagiwara, joins three other wrestlers in sumo's ultimate rank - Hakuho, Harumafuji and Kakuryu.
The trio all come from Mongolia, following a path forged by sumo bad-boy Asashoryu, who was Mongolia's first yokozuna in 2003.
The last Japanese-born wrestlers to reach the top were brothers Takanohana and Wakanohana, who made it to yokozuna in 1994 and 1998 respectively.
In recent years, sumo has been hit by falling numbers of Japanese recruits, partly because it is seen as a tough, highly regimented life.
Young sumo wrestlers train in tightly-knit "stables" where they eat, sleep and practise together and are sometimes subjected to harsh treatment in the belief that it will toughen them up.
In 2009, a leading coach was jailed for six years for ordering wrestlers to beat a young trainee who later died, in a case that shocked the nation.
Those at the top of the sport are also expected to be role models, showing honour and humility - and can be criticised if they get it wrong.
Mongolian wrestler Asashoryu led the sport for many years, but sumo elders were troubled by some of his behaviour
Sumo must also compete with the rising popularity of football and baseball, which have vibrant leagues that draw crowds of young Japanese fans.
But the sport is attractive to wrestlers from other nations, who can earn a good living. Wrestlers have come from Estonia, Bulgaria, Georgia, China, Hawaii and Egypt, as well as Mongolia and American Samoa.
As a child, Kisenosato was a pitcher in his school's baseball club before he chose to train as a wrestler at a stable in Tokyo.
He made his debut in 2002 and, reported Japan's Mainichi newspaper, the 73 tournaments he took to become a yokozuna are the most by any wrestler since 1926.
Speaking to reporters after the tournament victory on Monday that sealed his elevation, Kisenosato said he was pleased to be holding the Emperor's Cup trophy at last.
"I've finally got my hands on it and the sense of pleasure hasn't changed," he said. "It's hard to put into words but it has a nice weight to it."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-38721106
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Liverpool 0-1 Southampton (Agg: 0-2) - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Southampton reach a first major final since 2003 with a determined display to beat Liverpool in the EFL Cup at Anfield.
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Last updated on .From the section Football
Southampton reached the EFL Cup final at Wembley with a fully deserved victory over two legs against Liverpool - crowned by Shane Long's late winner at Anfield.
Claude Puel's side, defending a 1-0 lead from the first leg, should have put the tie out of Liverpool's reach inside the first 45 minutes but Dusan Tadic's close-range shot was blocked by keeper Loris Karius and captain Steve Davis blazed another great chance wildly over.
Liverpool raised the tempo in front of the Kop in the second half but Daniel Sturridge wasted their two best chances, Fraser Forster acrobatically hooked an Emre Can shot off the line and the hosts also had a late penalty appeal turned down when substitute Divock Origi tumbled under Jack Stephens' challenge.
But Southampton broke clear in the closing moments and Long finished convincingly from Josh Sims' pass to send them into the their first final in this competition since 1979, where they will meet either Manchester United or Hull City - a feat achieved without conceding a goal.
Southampton's date at Wembley on 26 February is a rich tribute to this brilliantly run club and their understated French manager Claude Puel.
Saints were vastly superior over two legs against Liverpool and, despite the home side's complaints about that late penalty claim, no-one could seriously begrudge them their victory.
And it was all done without their talisman and key defender Virgil van Dijk, out through injury. Southampton were dangerous on the break in the first half and then, when they needed to be, were superbly organised, disciplined and determined defensively before breaking for Republic of Ireland international Long to strike the killer blow.
Southampton have once more demonstrated their ability, as a club, to take the blows of key departures and still achieve.
They lost manager Ronald Koeman to Everton in the summer - as well as important components such as Victor Wanyama and Sadio Mane to Spurs and Liverpool respectively - and have carried on undisturbed with a Wembley appearance as their reward.
Liverpool lose their way - one win in seven matches
Liverpool's laboured performance was in stark contrast to the all-action attacking displays that briefly took them to the top of the Premier League earlier this season.
Jurgen Klopp's side looked jaded and have lost their way, with only one win in seven games this year, a third-round FA Cup replay victory at League Two Plymouth Argyle.
Liverpool look shorn of threat without £34m summer signing Mane, away at the Africa Cup of Nations with Senegal, and lacking an alternative plan when teams as disciplined as Swansea and Southampton have been in inflicting two successive home defeats.
Sturridge felt the frustration of Liverpool's supporters for a poor performance and two missed chances, while substitute Origi looks short of confidence.
Klopp's decision to play Can and Jordan Henderson together in midfield backfired badly and his decision to leave out Georginio Wijnaldum was questionable.
Southampton's players enjoyed every second of their celebrations with their fans in the Anfield Road end as they looked forward to the chance to win their second major trophy, following an FA Cup triumph over Manchester United at Wembley in 1976.
Saints had several anxious moments in the second half, especially when goalkeeper Forster dropped Can's shot behind him then recovered miraculously to claw it off the line as Sturridge closed in.
They also survived two penalty appeals - for handball against Long and that fall from Origi - but this was a glory night for Southampton and one they fully deserved.
BBC Radio 5 live pundit Mark Lawrenson: "Absolutely, totally and utterly deserved. They always, always carried that goal threat. They played with so much pace, so much directness. Over the two legs they have totally outplayed Liverpool. They thoroughly deserve the Wembley appearance."
A first for Klopp - the stats you need...
• None This is the first time Jurgen Klopp has lost a semi-final as a manager, progressing from the previous six.
• None Southampton have reached the final without conceding a single goal.
• None Liverpool have failed to score in all three games v Southampton this season in all competitions.
• None Claude Puel is unbeaten in six games against Liverpool as a manager (W3 D3).
• None This is just the second time Liverpool have been eliminated in six League Cup semi-finals (the other v Chelsea in 2014-15).
• None The last time Liverpool failed to score in either leg of a semi-final was in the 1970-71 Fairs Cup v Leeds.
'Seven good chances' - what the managers said
Southampton manager Claude Puel: "It is fantastic for all the squad and a good reward for their hard work. It was difficult to find this opportunity to play a final at Wembley. In the two legs we deserved the win. We were fantastic in the first leg at home and tonight we had chances in the first half.
"In the second half it was difficult but now we go to Wembley, not just to participate but to win this cup. I have been there once, just to watch France beat England."
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp: "They won both games, they deserved it. We did really well. We cannot create more chances than we did in the second half - we were dominant. It is difficult because you have to take risks but too many risks plays to their strengths.
"We had seven good chances. You have to score, and we didn't do, so we lost. I'm fine with the performance but not the result."
Liverpool host Championship side Wolves in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday at 12:30 GMT, while Southampton travel to Arsenal in the same competition at 17:30.
• None Goal! Liverpool 0, Southampton 1. Shane Long (Southampton) right footed shot from the right side of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Josh Sims following a fast break.
• None Attempt blocked. Roberto Firmino (Liverpool) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
• None Attempt missed. Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Adam Lallana.
• None Attempt blocked. Roberto Firmino (Liverpool) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Emre Can.
• None Attempt blocked. Pierre-Emile Højbjerg (Southampton) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Nathan Redmond. Navigate to the next page Navigate to the last page
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38659708
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North Korean defector's family heartbreak - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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Thae Yong-ho is one of the highest ranking North Korean officials ever to defect. He's been talking to the BBC's Steve Evans about the regime.
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Thae Yong-ho is one of the highest ranking North Koreans officials ever to defect. He's been talking to the BBC's Steve Evans about the regime and how he feels about his family back at home.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-38742230
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Ryan Mason: Jake Livermore 'feared the worst' after head injury - BBC Sport
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2017-01-25
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Former Hull midfielder Jake Livermore says he feared the worst when Ryan Mason fractured his skull against Chelsea.
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Last updated on .From the section Football
Ex-Hull midfielder Jake Livermore says he feared the worst when former team-mate Ryan Mason fractured his skull.
The England midfielder, 25, clashed heads with Chelsea defender Gary Cahill during Hull's defeat at Stamford Bridge but is making 'excellent progress'.
Livermore - who joined West Brom on Friday and has been in touch with Mason - said: "It's never nice to see any fellow professional seriously injured.
Livermore played with Mason at both Tottenham and Hull, with Mason becoming the Tigers' record signing when he left White Hart Lane last summer.
Mason will continue to be closely monitored by staff at St Mary's Hospital in London.
"I only spoke to him a couple of days ago and he wished me well at West Brom," Livermore said. "You fear the worst when something like that happens.
"I know his family very well. Everyone wishes him all the best, fingers crossed he'll be fine.
"He's a strong character anyway. I've played with him for a long time growing up and I've no doubts he'll be fine."
Hull fans are being encouraged to show support for Mason by taking part in a minute's applause during Thursday's EFL Cup semi-final against Manchester United at the KCOM Stadium.
The club wants fans to applaud in the 25th minute to represent the number of Mason's shirt.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38736602
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Reality Check: Did millions vote illegally in the US? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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President Trump claims that he would have won the popular vote had it not been for fraud. Is he right?
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US & Canada
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The claim: Donald Trump would have won the popular vote in last year's US presidential election had it not been for people voting illegally.
Reality Check verdict: There is no evidence to support the assertion that at least 2.86 million people voted illegally.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer confirmed on Tuesday that President Donald Trump stands by his concerns about illegal voting.
The disclosure came after the president was reported to have claimed in a closed meeting on Monday that between three and five million unauthorised immigrants had voted for Hillary Clinton.
At the end of November, Mr Trump tweeted: "I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally."
While the president won the election via the electoral college, he actually received 2.86 million fewer votes than his rival.
So his suggestion is that at least 2% of the people who voted did so illegally, assuming that they all voted for Mrs Clinton.
Non-citizens of the United States, including permanent legal residents, do not have the right to vote in presidential elections. Voter registration requires applicants to declare their citizenship status, and they could face criminal punishment if they falsely claim citizenship rights.
In addition to being registered voters, in two-thirds of states, voters are required to bring identification to the polls in order to be allowed to vote. In all states, first-time voters who register to vote by post must provide valid identification before voting.
Donald Trump and his team have referred to two studies they say show the threat posed by unauthorised voting; both have been challenged.
A 2014 study published in Electoral Studies found evidence that suggested non-citizens do vote and "can change the outcome of close races". Donald Trump referred to this study on the campaign trail in Wisconsin on 17 October.
The research has been roundly criticised by political scientists who said it misinterpreted the data. The team behind the research used data collected by the Cooperative Congressional Election Study (CCES), which is a national survey taken before and after elections. The CCES published a newsletter that disputed the findings and said "the likely percent of non-citizen voters in recent US elections is 0".
During the campaign, Mr Trump also referred to a 2012 Pew Center on the States study that found 1.8 million dead Americans were still registered. The deceased, alleged Mr Trump, were still voting. The report, however, does not make any statements about this claim.
Although it is not impossible for non-citizens to break voting laws, there is no evidence that millions of immigrants without the right to vote influenced the outcome of the popular vote.
Election officials, including those from the Republican Party, have said there was no evidence of mass electoral fraud and senior Republicans such as House Speaker Paul Ryan have distanced themselves from the claim.
But President Trump tweeted from his personal account on Wednesday to say that he would be asking for a major investigation into voter fraud.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38744612
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Sean Spicer: Who is President Trump's spin doctor? - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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New White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has warned that the media will be held "accountable".
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US & Canada
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In a 2014 lecture to students at his former high school, Sean Spicer outlined a set of 17 "rules for life" that they would be wise to follow.
Rule number 16, he told the students at Portsmouth Abbey in Rhode Island: "Follow your mom's advice: It's not what you say, but how you say it. The tone and tenor of your words count."
The now White House press secretary also told students that they should be true to themselves. Rule number eight, was relevant here, he said. "Trust your gut. If it does not feel right, use caution."
With that guidance in mind, Mr Spicer's bellicose press conference with the White House press corps on Saturday suggests that the new presidential spokesman will not sugar-coat his words over the next four years.
While the press secretary-journalist relationship is naturally an adversarial one, Mr Spicer has, in his first few days in the role, already cast himself as being in open conflict with much of the mainstream media, pledging to "hold the press accountable".
This, it appears, is the frontline of a strategy that White House Chief of Staff Reince Preibus described as a will to "fight back tooth and nail every day" at supposed media efforts to "delegitimise" the president.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Sean Spicer, White House press secretary said "no-one had numbers" for the inauguration
Mr Spicer, 45, is not a new hand at managing negative press coverage.
He previously served as spokesman and chief strategist for the Republican National Committee (RNC) and has long criticised coverage of his party and Mr Trump.
He took the post of communications director at the RNC in 2011, a time when it "was deep in debt and had a badly tarnished brand", according to the Republican Party website.
He is said to have helped turn around its fortunes by boosting the social media team, leading rapid response efforts to combat attacks, setting up an in-house video and production team and expanding the use of surrogates - people who can publicly appear on behalf of candidates, defend them and boost their appeal.
Mr Spicer has not shied away from criticising Mr Trump in the past. In July 2015, speaking on behalf of the RNC after Mr Trump questioned Republican Senator John McCain's status as a war hero, he said that there was "no place in our party or our country for comments that disparage those who have served honourably".
Mr Spicer claimed President Trump's inauguration was the "largest inaugural crowd ever"
He also described Mr Trump's June 2015 comments about Mexican immigrants being rapists and criminals as not being "helpful to the cause".
Before joining the RNC, he worked as Assistant US Trade Representative for Media and Public Affairs in the George W. Bush administration: a role that involved promoting the kind of free trade that his boss now fiercely criticises as being unfair for the American worker.
Still, Mr Spicer was loyal to Mr Trump on the campaign trail even as the path-breaking candidate split the party and many Republican luminaries distanced themselves from him.
The broad-shouldered, compulsively gum-chewing Republican ("Two and a half packs by noon," he told the Washington Post) is a long-time member of the US Navy Reserve.
He received a Masters degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College in Newport in 2012 and is known to be fierce, and deeply competitive.
One editor who has been blasted many times by Mr Spicer told the Post that her young child recognises his voice on the phone and bursts into tears.
His wife Rebecca is the chief of communications at the National Beer Wholesalers Association and previously worked in the Bush White House after a career in television news.
As press secretary, Mr Spicer will serve as President Trump's most visible spokesman, and is expected to hold daily televised media briefings, though he has spoken of his desire to shake up the way White House media is managed.
While he has said that Mr Trump will do press conferences, he also wants to utilise technology to "have a conversation with the American people and not just limit it through the filter of the mainstream media".
He has also described White House press briefings as having become "somewhat of a spectacle". Many would use that word to describe the first under the Trump administration.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38711850
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Donald Trump: 'Waterboarding absolutely works' - BBC News
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2017-01-25
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US President Donald Trump backs waterboarding and says "we must fight fire with fire".
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In Donald Trump's first broadcast interview as US president, he defended his call to resume using waterboarding - a torture technique - to interrogate terror suspects.
"When Isis [so-called Islamic State] is doing things that nobody has ever heard of since medieval times, would I feel strongly about waterboarding? As far as I'm concerned, we have to fight fire with fire," he told ABC News.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38751516
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What would you do for your best friend? - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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From being "best woman" at his wedding to donating a kidney - what one woman is doing for her best friend.
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Liverpool
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"It takes a special kind of person" to donate their kidney, Andy said of his friend Helen
About 3,000 people have kidney transplants each year in the UK and about a third of these are from living donors. Helen Crowther has given one of her kidneys to her best friend Andy Clewes. He has suffered with chronic kidney disease since birth and has recently started to need dialysis treatment.
When Helen first offered Andy her kidney he laughed along, thinking it was a joke.
"But she really meant it and as I got worse she became more insistent until about 12 months ago she said 'right, I definitely want to do it'," he said.
Helen's kidney was removed at the Royal Liverpool Hospital on Tuesday morning.
Helen said it "feels like a privilege" to be able to give her kidney to her best friend
It was then "whisked down the M62" to Andy in the Manchester Royal Infirmary.
"The last 12 months have gone so slowly and to finally get to this end point is fantastic," the 46-year-old said.
"I was just on the cusp of dialysis, feeling exhausted all the time and unable to concentrate in work - now I can't wait to get my life back. I'm really excited."
Andy, a radio DJ in Macclesfield, said: "I'm incredibly lucky and grateful. It's hard to put into words such a massive thing... it takes a special kind of person to do this."
The pair are hoping to encourage others to sign up to the organ donor register
Born a week apart, the pair struck up their friendship in 2006 after meeting at a charity fundraising event. Last year Helen, 46, was Andy's "best woman" at his wedding.
Helen, a charity worker from Runcorn, said she thought donating a kidney was "the obvious thing to do".
"I do appreciate it's a huge thing. I just didn't want to see Andy poorly. I was aware you can live well with one kidney so couldn't see why you wouldn't do it."
Helen's kidney was removed at the Royal Liverpool Hospital
When Andy's mum met Helen for the first time at his wedding and thanked her, she "was in tears".
"It's a bit embarrassing when people are saying you're so brave," she said. "His family were so lovely at the wedding and I was overwhelmed really. I was just doing it as Andy needed to get well. I had the ability to help him.
"It feels like a privilege. I am just so grateful I can do it."
For Andy, he is planning on getting back to a normal life.
"I've been restricted physically up to now but the doctors say I'll get a burst of energy.
"I'm going to want to go off on holiday... to do everything. I think I'm going to be quite annoying."
He said it had made him very aware that others "aren't so fortunate and rely on the kindness of strangers" so he hopes his experience will encourage people to become organ donors as they "really will be changing lives".
Kidneys filter waste products from the blood and convert them to urine.
These waste products can build up in people whose kidneys fail, which is potentially life-threatening and the reason a transplant is needed.
Kidneys are the most common organ donated by a living person and a healthy person can lead a normal life with one working kidney.
Before 2006, living kidney donation was limited to exchanges between family members and friends but since the UK allowed "non-directed altruistic donation" by strangers, more than 500 people have gone ahead with the operation.
There were 1,035 living kidney donor transplants performed in the UK in 2015/2016 - but as of September 2016, there are 5,338 people waiting for a kidney.
You can find more information on the NHS Organ Donation website.
Andy said the friends were "always there for each other"
"Nobody wants to see anyone they love on dialysis," said Helen. "This should improve his quality of life. He'll be healthier and that's all I want."
"It's just a couple of months out of my life when I'll feel a bit tired and sore, but for Andy it will be a whole new life."
Andy said: "It's a totally selfless act and she's got a friend for life whether she wants it or not."
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-38682073
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Rock, paper scissors and the fierce world of Japanese pop - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The Japanese pop dreams behind the world's most intense Rock Paper Scissors contest.
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Asia
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. 'Rock, paper, scissors' like you've never seen it before
What if it all depended on a rock, paper, scissors contest? Everything you had ever worked for your entire life, decided by a split-second choice. Rock. Paper. Scissors. For 24-year-old Miku Tanabe, that is exactly what happened.
When gripping footage emerged last month of what appeared to be the most intense and melodramatic response to victory in any rock, paper, scissors contest in the history of mankind, the internet was beside itself with bewilderment.
The crowd roared, she doubled over, wept with joy, the frenzy rose - and finally, she just looked at her hand, her bare hand, the true hero of this historic win.
Despite being in AKB48 for years, Ms Tanabe never had a prominent role in the band
What most people did not know was this was a contest that decided which member of wildly popular Japanese girl group AKB48 would get to front the band.
"For the last decade, I didn't get to do much TV work or didn't stand in the front row of our performance at the AKB theatre," Tanabe told the BBC.
Suddenly her hysteria made much more sense. What lies behind the almost comic melodrama is actually a story of personal ambition, disappointment and an insight into Japan's unique music industry.
Competition for roles at the top of the sprawling band empire is fierce
Since 2005, the AKB48 group has sold more than 40 million singles and it has become little short of a phenomenon in the time it has been active.
There are some 130 girls, not 48, in AKB48, and not all of them get to be part of their songs or TV appearances. They gained popularity as "idols you can go and meet" because members hold a daily performance at the AKB theatre in Akihabara.
They are usually selected by producer Yasushi Akimoto based on their popularity. And in what's known as the "AKB48 general election", the members of not only AKB48 but also its sister groups have been ranked by their fans annually since 2009.
Ms Tanabe did not even stand in AKB48's election for the last two years, which in 2014 was won by Mayu Watanabe
The competition between them can be intense and despite making it to one of the most sought-after pop music outfits in the country, it is easy to feel like you have failed.
While Tanabe is a 10-year veteran of the band, it's safe to say she hasn't really enjoyed the spotlight. Her best performance was when she came 71st out of 296 girls in 2014 in the popularity contest.
At that time it seemed to be the best outcome she could hope for so for the last two years, she didn't even stand in the AKB general election.
She appeared to have given up becoming identified as a successful member of the group.
AKB48's election even has Japanese political candidate-style posters for band members standing
But seven years ago the selection took an unusual twist when the management began holding an annual competition of rock, paper, scissors, or scissor, paper, stone, as it is otherwise known.
"This competition gives an opportunity to any members, so when I first heard that I could grab an opportunity to be selected by winning at rock, paper, scissors, I was excited and was very motivated," she told the BBC.
For six years, she didn't come close to winning this game of chance. In 2010, she came 12th in the rock, paper, scissors competition. Then it got to October 2016.
"When I got to the final match, when I realised I might actually win, I was actually more scared than being thrilled," she recalled.
AKB48 is essentially a franchise, with sister "48" acts around Japan and Asia
As the winner, Tanabe got to be the lead singer of a seven-member unit for their newly released song "Sakasa zaka".
"I felt that all my hard work for the last decade has paid off," she told the BBC.
Four months before she won the rock, paper, scissors competition, she wrote in her blog that "I am probably approaching the end-of-life as an idol but I want to do what I can."
So the victory came as a surprise and reassured her that she was right not to have given up and felt justified in persevering despite the setbacks.
"I was selected because I continued being part of AKB48," she said.
"It was purely based on luck and the result was something I've long been wanting for."
"Janken", or rock-paper-scissors, is widely used to settle trivial disputes in Japan
The competition is not without controversy.
Some viewers complained in 2012 - when Japan's territorial dispute with China was at its recent peak - to ask why a TV station dropped a news programme to broadcast a mere rock, paper, scissors competition.
When an already popular member won the competition in 2013, others asked if it was staged.
And despite the brief attention that Tanabe enjoyed, her song hasn't been performing too well.
This is a brutally competitive industry which is difficult to get into and even harder to maintain any hard-earned popularity and certainly comes with the dark side.
AKB48 as a group has so far survived its ups and downs, partly thanks to the reality TV elements of these competitions.
And Tanabe is well aware the spotlight won't be on her forever.
On the day of her CD sale, she had a poignant tweet: "I doubt I'd ever take centre stage again in my life," and urged her fans to buy it for memory's sake.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-38413206
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Texas tornado lifts woman in bath outside - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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A woman describes her lucky escape after a tornado ripped through 12 homes in Madison County, Texas.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38765376
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Menai the rare Olive Ridley turtle's scan is 'good news' - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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A rare sea turtle discovered washed up on an Anglesey beach is closer to full health after scans reveal why she found it difficult to dive.
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A rare sea turtle discovered washed up on an Anglesey beach is closer to full health after scans revealed why she found it difficult to dive.
The turtle, nicknamed Menai, was taken to Hertfordshire's Royal Veterinary College amid concerns she might be unable to return to sea.
Scans discovered Menai has gas on her lungs and is suffering lung damage.
But Anglesey Sea Zoo, who are caring for Menai, called the results "good news" and said the scans were "part of her journey" back to full health.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-38762154
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What is going wrong with the prison system? - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Levels of violence are up, staff numbers are down, and complaints about overcrowding are widespread. Why are prisons under pressure?
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UK
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Levels of violence are up, staff numbers are down and complaints about overcrowding are widespread. Why are prisons in England and Wales under pressure?
"There's an incident at height - the prison's in lockdown."
I was in the gate-lodge at High Down Prison in Surrey when a message came through from the governor.
The Ministry of Justice - which controls prisons in England and Wales - had, unusually, granted permission for me to visit a jail for a radio documentary about prison violence.
They had chosen High Down, a prison built on the site of an old mental hospital and now home to 1,100 male inmates.
I waited in the visitors centre worried my visit might be cancelled, but half an hour later the incident had been resolved.
Ian Bickers, the High Down governor at the time of my visit in December 2014, brushed aside what had happened. A prisoner had clambered on to the safety netting under a landing because he was unhappy with the regime and wanted to move to another jail.
Mr Bickers explained that prisoner protests were a common occurrence, but required adept handling.
At that stage, High Down was on the edge of instability. Since then, a number of jails in England and Wales have fallen over the edge.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. The footage is understood to have been filmed by inmates of HMP Birmingham
The recent disturbances at Lewes, Bedford, Birmingham and Swaleside prisons; the fatal stabbing of an inmate at Pentonville, followed by the escape of two of its prisoners; and the record number of prisoner suicides and assaults on staff all provide concrete evidence of the turmoil behind bars.
In 2015, in his last annual report as Chief Inspector of Prisons, Nick Hardwick said jails were in their worst state for a decade.
Last year, David Cameron, in one of his final domestic policy speeches as prime minister, said reoffending rates and levels of prison violence, drug-taking and self-harm "should shame us all".
Even Liz Truss, who as justice secretary has overall responsibility for prisons, acknowledges that they're "not working" and are under "serious and sustained pressure".
There have always been problems. For many years, internal reports painted a picture of daily outbreaks of violence, cell fires and self-harm across the prisons estate.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. The aftermath of the 1990 Strangeways Prison riot
The worst disorder in the history of the prison service came in 1990 when two people died and hundreds were injured during rioting at Strangeways, in Manchester. It evolved into a 25-day protest against the squalid conditions and was followed by disturbances at eight other prisons.
The report into Strangeways was meant to be a watershed. It did lead to some improvements, including the beginning of the end of the practice of slopping out, where prisoners used chamber pots in their cells, but it did not herald an end to prison overcrowding.
The principal reason is numbers. England and Wales went from almost 45,000 prisoners in 1991 to 85,000 two decades later - an increase of nearly 90%.
Justice and policing are devolved matters for Scotland and Northern Ireland. There has been nothing like the same rise in the jail population in Scotland, where the latest figure, around 7,200, is the lowest it has been for a decade. In Northern Ireland, there are some 1,500 people in custody, about 300 fewer than in the mid-1990s.
So why did numbers rise so steeply in England and Wales? Some lobby groups and criminologists point to a "moral panic" following the murder in 1993 of the toddler James Bulger.
Experts describe a sentencing "arms race" between political parties vying to be the strongest on law and order. Former Conservative leader Michael Howard's "prison works" versus former Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair's "tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime".
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Whatever the reasons, average sentence lengths have crept up, more offenders have been jailed for life or indeterminate terms and growing numbers of released prisoners have had to return to custody for breaching their licence conditions.
New jails have been built, but have not kept up with demand. The Prison Reform Trust (PRT) calculates that an average of 20,000 prisoners, almost a quarter of the total, are held in overcrowded conditions. Many share cells designed for one.
At times, when Labour was in power, there was so little spare capacity that cells at police stations and in court buildings were used to hold inmates. To ease the pressure, a scheme was introduced to let prisoners out up to 18 days before their standard release date, halfway through their sentence. Eighty-thousand inmates were freed under the scheme - in addition to those released early under an existing programme which required them to wear electronic tags.
Overcrowding has a corrosive effect. It is, in the words of Strangeways report author Lord Woolf, "a cancer eating at the ability of the prison service" to deliver effective education, tackle offending behaviour and prepare prisoners for life on the outside.
When the Coalition Government came to power in 2010 it began to look for savings, as part of its effort to reduce overall public spending. Five years later the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), which is responsible for prisons in England and Wales, had reduced its budget by nearly a quarter.
Wandsworth Prison is one of the country's most overcrowded
Old jails that were expensive to operate were shut - 18 have closed since 2011.
But the other tactic in the efficiency drive has been a programme of "benchmarking".
Publicly run jails are required to peg their costs to the same level as the most efficient prisons, including those in the private sector.
Fourteen jails in England and Wales, and two out of 15 prisons in Scotland, are operated by private firms - G4S, Serco and Sodexo. And benchmarking has certainly led to savings. The Ministry of Justice estimates that the average annual cost of a prison place fell by 20% between 2009-10 and 2015-16 to about £35,000.
Benchmarking has involved major changes to the regime in prisons and cuts to staffing. A standardised "core day" has been introduced in some jails, with the aim of making the most of prisoners' time out of their cells and giving them certainty about what activities they are doing.
But the Chief Inspector of Prisons, Peter Clarke, said jails which had brought in the new core days had not increased the amount of prisoners' time spent unlocked. Under half of jails were assessed as delivering "good" or "reasonably good" purposeful activities compared with more than two-thirds in 2009-10.
With the benchmarking programme and other cost-cutting, there was a dramatic reduction in staff numbers. Posts were cut in the Northern Ireland Prison Service as well, but in Scotland staff numbers have risen.
The overall number of staff employed across the public sector prison estate in England and Wales has fallen from 45,000 in 2010 to just under 31,000 in September 2016. Although a small part of the reduction has been because of employees switching to jails transferred to the private sector, the decline is substantial by any measure, with the number of prison officers working in key front-line roles down by more than 6,000.
The jobs market in areas such as London and south-east England has been so competitive that prisons have found it hard to attract and retain replacements on a £20,500 starting salary. Many experienced prison officers have taken voluntary redundancy - with their know-how and jail-craft sorely missed. About 200 staff each month are brought in from other jails to work at prisons where vacancies cannot be filled.
Last November, members of the Prison Officers Association took part in a 24-hour walkout in protest at what they said were the "chronic staff shortages and impoverished regimes" in jails which they claimed had resulted in staff no longer being safe.
As thousands of prison staff departed, a seemingly intractable drugs problem began to arrive in jails - "legal highs", also known as new psychoactive substances (NPS). Sold under names such as Spice and Black Mamba, by 2013 the synthetic cannabis compounds had become a major problem. In contrast, Scottish prisons have had no record of any seizures of the drug.
Synthetic drugs are becoming an increasing problem in England's prisons
The health dangers, bizarre behaviour and violence associated with NPS led to them being banned in the UK last year. In prisons, they have proved to be an unpredictable, and occasionally lethal, alternative to cannabis. Between June 2013 and April 2016, the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman identified 64 deaths in jail where the prisoner was known or strongly suspected to have used or possessed NPS before they died.
Despite the dangers, these synthetic drugs are popular because they are hard to detect using conventional drug testing methods and they provide a diversion to the boredom and frustration of prison life. The drugs are a source of income for criminal gangs whose illicit use of phones and drones, combined with the help of a number of corrupt staff, has helped the trade thrive behind bars.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Watch a drone deliver drugs and mobile phones to London prisoners in April 2016
The destabilising impact of synthetic drugs, together with the loss of so many staff in such a short space of time, against a backdrop of overcrowding, has proved to be a dangerous cocktail for our prisons.
The government's policy document, entitled Prison Safety and Reform, published in November, acknowledges the scale of the challenge. An extra 2,500 prison officers are being recruited, there will be financial incentives for staff to stay in their jobs, while sniffer dogs and new methods of drug testing are being deployed.
Labour said the announcement was "too little, too late", saying earlier staff cuts had created a "crisis in safety".
And there are calls for far more radical measures.
Nick Clegg, deputy prime minister in the Coalition, together with the former Home Secretaries Jacqui Smith and Ken Clarke, said prisoner numbers must be steadily cut back to the levels of the early 90s, a reduction of some 40,000 inmates. "We believe that an escalating prison population has gone well beyond what is safe or sustainable," they wrote in a letter to the Times.
There are no signs, however, that Liz Truss, the justice secretary, has any intention of arbitrarily cutting the jail population. Sentencing changes and early release schemes are simply not on her agenda.
Justice Secretary Liz Truss wants to cut prisoner numbers by reducing reoffending
Michael Spurr, the chief executive of NOMS, has even gone as far as to say that he cannot see an end to prison overcrowding until at least after the next parliament - 2025, at the earliest.
Instead, Ms Truss believes that any drop in prisoner numbers should come through a reduction in reoffending - fewer people going through the revolving door of the criminal justice system.
She is hoping that extra staff and security improvements will steady the ship while longer-term changes to the management of prisons take effect. Governors will have greater autonomy, there will be closer monitoring of prison performance and education and investment in modern facilities.
HMP Berwyn in north Wales will be the UK's biggest prison
A new jail, HMP Berwyn, opens in north Wales next month. It has cost £250m to build and will house more than 2,000 male prisoners - making it the biggest prison in the UK.
The extra places will help relieve some of the pressure on a system that still relies heavily on jails constructed in the Victorian era. But more important, Berwyn sends a clear message that in spite of all the recent trouble, tensions and turmoil within prison walls, the government remains committed to the concept of imprisonment itself.
UPDATE: The graphs in this piece were updated on 2 August to reflect new figures published
• None How dangerous are our prisons?
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-38596034
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Brexit white paper: Climbdown or goodwill gesture - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Giving MPs a white paper is a clear concession by Theresa May but one that is unlikely to affect her Brexit timetable or damage her authority.
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UK Politics
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It was only yesterday that the Brexit Secretary, David Davis, told MPs it just might all be a bit tricky to have a White Paper, a formal document outlining the government's plans for Brexit, and stick to the timetable they want to pursue.
Rebel Remainers though were "delighted", that, stealing Jeremy Corbyn's thunder, a planted question from a loyal Tory MP at PMQs today produced in fact a promise from the Prime Minister that, after all, there will be a White Paper.
It is a climbdown, no question, a last-minute change of heart.
Late last night Brexiteers were being assured there would be no bending, no delay to the government's plans and no giving in to the Remainers.
Even early this morning, government sources were privately suggesting that they were quite happy to have the white paper option up their sleeve, but there were no immediate plans to make that promise.
Then voila, at 1205 GMT, the pledge of a white paper suddenly emerged. As one senior Tory joked, "welcome to the vacillation of the next two years".
It may be being described as a "massive, unplanned" concession but it doesn't seriously hurt the government.
First off, it shows goodwill to the rebel Tory Remainers, many of whom feel their Eurosceptic rivals have had the upper hand of late. Schmoozing matters round these parts.
It takes one of the potential arguments that could have gathered pace off the table, before the Article 50 bill is even published. And, rightly or wrongly, no one expects a white paper will contain anything new that the prime minister has not yet already said.
It's largely a victory for the Remainers about process, rather than substance.
For her critics this is evidence of weakness, that's she has been pushed into changing her mind.
But it doesn't need to change the government's timetable, and today's embarrassment of a climbdown might be worth the goodwill that Number 10 will get in return.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-38747976
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Chichester Roman houses found under Priory Park - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Ground-penetrating scans of a Chichester park reveal three near-complete Roman buildings.
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Sussex
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A small dig carried out after the scan confirmed the findings
Ground-penetrating scans of a park have revealed three near-complete Roman buildings in Chichester.
Archaeologists, who were left stunned by the degree of preservation, have said the only reason they survived was because Priory Park was never built on.
Two houses and a third building were found. Moving images from a scan show the shapes of two buildings emerge.
It is thought the houses in Noviomagus Reginorum - the Roman name for the town - were owned by people of importance.
Local geophysics specialist David Staveley, who had set out to identify all the city's Roman roads, was given permission to scan the parks because some might have survived there.
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Following his scans, a small dig was carried out in Priory Park.
It is thought the houses were originally on a street but the road did not survive.
James Kenny, an archaeologist at Chichester District Council, said the scans showed a townhouse with rooms and a freestanding building in the corner.
"It's difficult to say what it might have been, but the walls did survive. It might have been part of a bathhouse, or a cellar, or a winter dining room with under-floor heating," he said.
Mr Kenny admitted there was "nothing exceptional" about a Roman house in a Roman town.
But he said: "What's exceptional is in a Roman town like Chichester, most of the archaeology has been interrupted by all sorts of house building."
Added to that, the city had no sewers until the 1880s and people had to dig holes in the ground, he said.
"An awful lot of archaeology was lost."
However, Priory Park, originally home to a monastery, had not been developed, and the buildings buried 0.5m below the surface showed a "remarkable degree of preservation", Mr Kenny said.
Further exploration will take place this year and there may also be a larger investigation in the future.
Scans also revealed another Roman street under the park, but this will not be uncovered.
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Donald Trump and Theresa May - Do opposites attract? - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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The prime minister has joked that 'opposites attract', but how will she get on with Donald Trump?
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UK Politics
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As she made her way across the Atlantic, Theresa May joked with the press pack on her flight that "sometimes opposites attract".
A wisecracking way of trying to cover the question about how she and Donald Trump can work together - the reality TV star billionaire and the self-described hard working vicar's daughter.
Voters will decide for themselves how funny they find it.
But Number 10 has already invested a lot in the early days of this relationship.
Perhaps, that is in part due to the early embarrassment of former UKIP leader Nigel Farage's adventures in Manhattan. However, it is also certainly due to her conviction that whoever the US president is, a British leader needs to, and should, cultivate their friendship.
Downing Street sources say they have had more contact with the Trump team since its victory than any other country has - and the conversations between the two leaders have focused on how to develop their personal relationship and the bond between the two countries.
But even before the two politicians meet tomorrow in the Oval Office, Mrs May is trying to put forward serious arguments about Britain and America's relationship as the world changes at warp speed around the two countries - making a major foreign policy speech at a gathering of the Republican Party in Philadelphia just hours after she touches down.
It is plain to see that while she is deadly serious about creating an extremely close relationship with the new president, she will continue to disagree with him on some issues.
When repeatedly questioned about his view that torture works, the prime minister told us: "We condemn torture, I have been very clear, I'm not going to change my position whether I'm talking to you or talking to the president."
And crucially, she said guidance stating that UK security services cannot share intelligence if it is obtained through torture will not change, telling me: "Our guidance is very clear about the position that the UK takes, and our position has not changed."
Despite President Trump's very public doubts about Nato, she says he has already assured her on the phone that he is committed to the alliance.
A public restatement of that in the next 24 hours would no doubt be a political boon for her.
While the prime minister is plainly uncomfortable with some of Mr Trump's positions, she also wants to emphasise some of the areas where they do agree - the "shared values" of looking out for "ordinary working class families".
In her speech to senators and congressmen tonight she will also emphasise how, in her view, Conservative values are Republican values.
The Republicans - the Tories' sister political party - are now in charge at all levels on Capitol Hill, as well as inside the White House. For the GOP and Mrs May's Conservative Party, patriotism, flag and family are not values to shy away from.
And despite the squeamishness, even in Tory ranks, about her eagerness to be seen alongside the president, the prime minister is unapologetic about her friendly stance.
When asked about appearing to be too close to the controversial new president, she said: "Donald Trump was elected president of the United States of America.
"The UK and the US have shared challenges, shared interests, that we can work together to deal with. We have a special relationship, it's long standing, it's existed through many different prime ministers and presidents."
A more different prime minister and president are hard to conceive. What they make of each other, and the relationship between our two countries, will affect us all.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-38760718
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Newspaper headlines: UK and US 'can lead together again' - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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Prime Minister Theresa May's visit to the US to meet President Donald Trump features on most of the front pages.
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The Papers
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Many of the papers lead on Theresa May's visit to meet Donald Trump
There is widespread coverage of Prime Minister Theresa May's trip to the US on the front pages of many of the newspapers.
The i predicts it will be a "tricky visit" amid transatlantic tension about Mr Trump's comments on using torture.
The Guardian thinks Mrs May will shrug off concerns about Mr Trump's presidency - and pledge to rekindle the special relationship between the two countries.
The Daily Express says she will begin her two-day visit with an optimistic and heartfelt call for the renewal of the relationship.
The papers also report on Mrs May's decision to publish a White Paper policy document on the government's plans to leave the EU.
For the Daily Mirror the decision is a U-turn, but the Daily Telegraph sees it as a sensible and straightforward move.
The paper challenges the prime minister's opponents on the issue to explain their European policy to voters.
The Sun sees the political logic of the White Paper, but worries that her Labour opponents and Tory rebels will not hesitate to push for more.
The i acknowledges that Mrs May's pledge to publish the document was an olive branch to pro-EU Tories, but it thinks it will probably amount to her 12-point plan being cut and pasted into an official-looking paper.
The Guardian feels the document will be a fairly minimalist statement of the government's Brexit aims.
It urges Mrs May to say in the White Paper how she wants to consult and take the devolved governments into account.
The Financial Times believes Labour Party divisions over Europe are likely to dominate debate in the coming weeks, with a sizeable minority of pro-EU Labour MPs expected to vote against triggering Article 50.
The political sketch writers seize on Jeremy Corbyn's performance after Mrs May made her announcement about the White Paper at Prime Minister's Questions.
Patrick Kidd in the Times describes how he was caught off balance by her decision - and when he needed to think on his feet he was as twinkle-toed as a rhinoceros.
Quentin Letts in the Daily Mail is scathing, saying he made a right Horlicks of it.
Mr Corbyn, says the Guardian's John Crace, achieved the near impossible by making the prime minister look more like a decisive world leader than a badly-programmed robot.
The financial pages consider the reasons for the Dow Jones Index in the US breaking through the 20,000 barrier for the first time.
The Guardian feels investors have shown their approval for Mr Trump's growth agenda.
The Daily Mail suggests the rally has been ignited by some of his executive orders restoring the primacy of home-grown energy industries over environmental concerns.
Many of the papers lead on Theresa May's visit to meet Donald Trump
However, the i suspects it has more to do with the forthcoming fiscal boost than the impact of Mr Trump's trade policies.
The Financial Times attempts to put the rise into context, pointing out that just five of the 30 companies in the index account for half of the Dow's rise since election day.
The Times, Daily Telegraph and the Mail all report that the Department for Transport is considering taking direct control of Southern rail, whose services have been disrupted by delays and months of strikes.
The Mail thinks an internal investigation will decide whether Southern's performance is so poor that it has breached the terms of its contract.
The Times says the company could be sacked within weeks.
The Telegraph believes such a decision would be politically sensitive because it would be claimed as a victory by the unions and the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn.
The Times believes plans which would allow some GPs in England to charge patients for out-of hours appointments and minor surgical procedures are controversial but deserve a fair hearing.
It suggests it would be a simple way to offer more appointments as well as raising money that would help to pay for new doctors.
However, the paper insists that safeguards would be needed to ensure that a sick person is always seen, regardless of their bank balance.
The author and former Royal Marine, Neal Ascherson, reveals in the Times how he shot two badly-wounded men in Malaya 65 years ago to - as he described it - "put them out of their misery".
Mr Ascherson tells the paper that he has spoken for the first time about what he had done to lend his support to the campaign to quash the conviction and sentence of a marine, Alexander Blackman, for murdering an injured Taliban fighter.
He says the conviction of Blackman is a "piteous miscarriage of justice".
A number of papers showed Mary Berry punching the air after being named best television judge at the National TV Awards
The Sun expresses concern about a 15% rise in the number of people sleeping on the streets in England.
It says it is too easy to point the finger at Tory cuts, but it acknowledges that Labour is partly right to blame the government's housing strategy.
Far too many people spend freezing winter nights on our streets, concludes the paper.
In short, it says, the government has to get to grips with this.
Mary Berry is known for her calm and genteel manner on the Great British Bake Off, but the Daily Telegraph is among a number of papers that show her punching the air with delight after being named best television judge at the National TV Awards.
Miss Berry will not be on the programme when it moves to Channel Four.
And according to the Mail she has ruled out an appearance on Strictly Come Dancing - saying her husband would leave her, and her children would chuck her out.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-the-papers-38753170
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BBC iPlayer - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10318089
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Trump 'will handle US-UK trade talks' - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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President Trump says he will handle UK trade talks himself, as he waits for Senate to approve his commerce secretary.
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US President Donald Trump has said he will handle trade discussions with the UK himself, ahead of a meeting with the British prime minister.
The president said he would have to deal with the talks because his chosen commerce secretary, Wilbur Ross, has yet to be officially confirmed by the Senate.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-38763689
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Mrs May goes to Washington - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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Five things on the UK prime minister's agenda as she meets Donald Trump
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UK Politics
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There are frequent and regular meetings between British prime ministers and American presidents, but few will have been as significant as the visit to Washington this week by Theresa May.
It is not just an occasion for old allies to renew vows of friendship. These two new, uncertain leaders need concrete achievements and not just gestures.
The two could not be more different. Mrs May is serious-minded, steely, attentive to her briefing books, insular, dependent on a tightly-wound inner circle.
Donald Trump is brash, abrasive, instinctive, revelling in his newly won power to change America.
One of them is a vicar's daughter; the other a star of reality TV. Both of them are in office because of a people's revolt.
So what will be on Mrs May's agenda as she becomes the first foreign leader to meet the new president?
British leaders tend to attach more importance to the special relationship than the US. But with Britain about to divorce from the European Union, the long-standing link with Washington has assumed more importance. It is an anchor in a less certain era.
Mrs May will stress that the relationship between the two countries helped forge the "modern world" and, by implication, can do so again. The White House has indicated that it would welcome the closeness of the Thatcher/Reagan years.
Mrs May will emphasise her belief in the continuing importance of the special relationship
President Trump needs to demonstrate that he has the seriousness to be the leader of the West and that he has command of the issues. The American audience will be watching.
Theresa May needs to tread carefully. There is much she needs from America, not least a trade agreement, but many in the UK would question deepening a "special" relationship with a president they intensely distrust.
The prime minister has promised to be "frank" in her discussions, but Britain outside the EU needs a close ally in Washington and Donald Trump is likely to get his invitation to visit Britain and stay in Buckingham Palace and risk the demonstrations such a visit may spark.
For the UK, trade is the centrepiece of the visit.
With the UK leaving the EU and its single market, Britain will need new trading relationships. Already trade between Britain and the US is worth £150bn ($188bn). What the prime minister is looking for is a "bold and ambitious free-trade agreement" with the US.
Such a trade deal cannot be concluded while the UK remains part of the EU but preparatory work can begin so that a trade agreement can be in place shortly after the UK leaves the EU in 2019.
The prime minister is a strong advocate of free trade versus protectionism
There will be discussions about reducing existing tariffs and making it easier for American and British citizens to work in each other's countries.
Progress surely will be made but there are deep underlying differences. The president's core policy is "America First". Theresa May's slogan is "Global Britain". Donald Trump has spent this week signalling he is pulling out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement and bent on re-negotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
Britain outside the EU, on the other hand, needs an open global trading system. Theresa May has to be an advocate for free trade in the house of a leader determined to protect first and trade second.
Downing Street will also know that a deal with the US will strengthen its hand in its negotiations with Brussels.
During the election campaign Donald Trump caused consternation in Europe and in the foreign policy establishment in Washington when he declared Nato "obsolete".
On one level it was an expression of American frustration that its European allies refused to share the burden of defence. Theresa May will surely support the president in calling on Europe to spend 2% of GDP on its military.
There are calls for more Nato countries to share the alliance's financial burden
But May will be looking for much more. She wants to hear the President commit to Nato's Article Five, that an attack on one member will be treated as an attack on all.
For her, Nato is part of the post-war international order. Britain outside the EU needs Nato more than ever. In the future it will be Nato that will be the UK's link to its European neighbours.
One of the ironies of the visit is that Theresa May will fight for the EU. It will be a case of a divorcee speaking up for a former partner.
Europe has been shocked by Donald Trump's comments about Europe breaking up, about the EU being a "vehicle for Germany". For the first time since the Treaty of Rome was signed 50 years ago, Europe does not have a friend in the White House who shares the mission and belief in European integration.
So Theresa May has an opportunity to win friends in Europe's capitals by standing up for the EU. It is not in Britain's interest, as she has said, for the European Union to unravel. "It remains overwhelmingly and compellingly in Britain's national interest that the EU should succeed," she believes.
Despite Brexit, Mrs May could speak up for the European Union
A global Britain needs a strong international order and part of that is Nato, the EU, and open trade. In the past it has been the US underpinning this global order. Theresa May will need to be the great persuader.
The UK views Moscow and Putin differently from the new administration in Washington. Donald Trump has signalled that he can open a new era with Russia.
The UK remains deeply suspicious of the Kremlin. It is not just a question as to whether sanctions should be retained against Russia for its military actions in Crimea and Ukraine.
The UK and US have the strongest intelligence-sharing relationship in the world. The UK will want reassurance that any tilt towards Russia does not compromise its intelligence assets.
Regarding the Middle East, Donald Trump has made it clear that Israel will have his full support. Already, Israel has taken heart from its new friend in the White House by announcing the building of new settlements in the West Bank. Donald Trump has suggested he may move the US embassy to Jerusalem.
Theresa May's words will be scrutinised closely. In seeking a close relationship with Donald Trump, will there be any change in emphasis in supporting a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians?
Downing Street will seek reassurance over the effects of closer ties between the US and Russia
The British prime minister will also want to talk about energy and her commitment to the Paris agreement on reducing global warming.
In the end it is in both Britain and America's interest to forge a close relationship. Theresa May has spoken of "renewing our nation's ties".
Outside the EU, the UK needs the American embrace. The Trump administration brings opportunities. Donald Trump remains an enthusiast for Brexit. He wants Brexit to succeed and has promised to give his backing to a trade deal.
But many of his policies are opposed by Theresa May and many British voters. She cannot risk getting too close to a man despised by many in the UK.
Her priority will be trade but what she wants from the 45th president is a commitment to supporting the post-war international order without pulling away at the threads that bind it.
On a personal level they are unlikely allies, but self-interest may yet rekindle the Reagan-Thatcher alliance.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-38757528
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Drone shows Poland pile-up aftermath - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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Five people have been seriously injured on the A1 highway near Lodz in central Poland.
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Five people have been seriously injured on the A1 highway near Lodz in central Poland.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-38764352
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First meetings: US presidents and UK prime ministers - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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From Churchill to Barack Obama, a look back at some first encounters between new US presidents and UK prime ministers.
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UK Politics
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Theresa May is preparing to meet new US President Donald Trump. Here's a look back at some first encounters of UK prime ministers and new US presidents:
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Gordon Brown's first meeting with Barack Obama came amid a global economic crisis
The election of Barack Obama came at the tail end of the Labour government.
Embroiled in both economic and political crisis, Gordon Brown spotted President Obama's election as an opportunity to be touched by the gold dust of the newly elected president.
In March 2009, Downing Street proudly boasted that Mr Brown was the first European leader President Obama had met.
The first meeting was dominated by the global financial crisis and the upcoming G20 summit in London.
However, there was some embarrassment when President Obama gifted a box of US films to Brown - on DVDs that did not work on UK players.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. The two leaders went on to form a close bond
Tony Blair and George W Bush's first summit came at a snowy Camp David - the US president's official retreat - seven months before the 9/11 attacks that would come to define their relationship.
The two leaders would eventually form a tight bond, with both countries going to war in Iraq despite the opposition of some European allies.
But the Camp David summit is remembered for something rather more trivial.
Upon being asked what the two leaders had in common, President Bush replied: "Well, we both use Colgate toothpaste."
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. There were trade tensions between Europe and the US when the two leaders met
The first encounter between John Major and Bill Clinton was just a month after the president's inauguration.
There was a certain degree of nervousness before the meeting.
Mr Major had been a ferocious backer of George H W Bush in the 1992 presidential election.
And between 1993 and 1997, the relationship between Mr Major and Mr Clinton never really blossomed.
They fell out over the US issuing a visa to Sinn Fein's Gerry Adams and the brewing conflict in the Balkans.
There are shades of the present-day debate in the BBC's Martin Sixmith's report, as he says trade tensions between the European Community and the USA, and accusations of protectionism, are a "cloud" over Mr Major's visit.
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Margaret Thatcher and president-elect George H W Bush's first official visit took place during her trip to Washington DC in November 1988.
The visit was planned before the election to say goodbye to her ally Ronald Reagan, and the BBC report at the time wondered whether her relationship with President Bush could be "as special".
She spent some time with the incoming president to discuss the end of the Cold War and the tensions in the Gulf.
A year after she left Downing Street, President Bush invited Thatcher back to the White House to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award of the United States.
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When Margaret Thatcher met President Reagan just a month into his presidency, they weren't strangers - their first meeting took place in 1975, when he was the former governor of California and she was leader of the UK opposition.
In 1981, the British economy was entering its sixth quarter of recession, and her government seemed on course for electoral defeat.
At her lowest point, no-one placed themselves by her side as much as the incoming president of the United States, who made her his administration's first visitor and treated her with a warm welcome, in stark contrast to the frugality of his predecessor, Jimmy Carter.
Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan became political soulmates and good friends.
"Your problems," said the British prime minister, "will be our problems, and when you look for friends, we shall be there."
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. James Callaghan flew to Washington to meet new US president Jimmy Carter
James Callaghan's arrival in Washington - on Concorde - came amid an ongoing siege nearby, which led to the cancellation of the traditional 19-gun salute in case it alarmed the gunman.
But there was still "a very relaxed feeling" about the ceremony, the BBC reported.
President Jimmy Carter hailed the special relationship between the two nations, while James Callaghan said "concerted intergovernmental action" was needed for the global economy to emerge from recession.
He promised a "very warm welcome" when the US president visited London.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Harold Wilson meets new US President Richard Nixon in 1969
The Labour prime minister and the Republican president were poles apart, both politically and in their approach.
Richard Nixon recoiled from Harold Wilson's suggestion, made at their first meeting in London in February 1969, that the two men use each other's first names.
Another incident had ratcheted up the tension.
Before the 1968 election, when Mr Nixon was expected to lose to vice-president Hubert Humphrey, Mr Wilson appointed his old ally John Freeman as ambassador in Washington.
Unfortunately, Mr Freeman had once described Mr Nixon as a "man of no principle", and the president was not best pleased.
Mr Freeman offered to resign, but Mr Wilson said he should stay.
Fortunately, at a banquet on his visit to Britain, Mr Nixon greeted the ambassador with generosity.
Mr Wilson wrote the president a note thanking him for "one of the kindest and most generous acts I have known in a quarter of a century in politics".
On his trip to Britain, Mr Nixon also visited ministers in Downing Street and came for one-on-one talks at Chequers.
The president enjoyed his visit, and was soon writing notes to "Dear Harold" and signing them off "Dick Nixon".
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After their first meeting, in April 1961 Prime Minister Harold Macmillan and President John F Kennedy were close allies, despite the stark contrast between the ageing British patrician and the glamorous president 23 years his junior.
Harold Macmillan was said to have a very real and lasting affection for a man who was of the same generation as his own son, Maurice.
According to his biographer, Macmillan watched JFK on the national stage with "a combination of nervousness and pride an accomplished actor might feel for a mercurial young protege stepping up to take his first starring role in public".
Winston Churchill and Dwight Eisenhower, seen together in Bermuda in 1953
Winston Churchill arrived in New York to a rapturous reception.
He met President-elect Dwight Eisenhower at the apartment of Bernard Baruch, a wealthy businessman, on two separate occasions in the weeks before the inauguration.
They came from different backgrounds, Mr Eisenhower, a Kansas boy, born in a shack beside the railroad tracks in rural Texas, and Mr Churchill, a British aristocrat, born in Blenheim Palace.
Yet they had a friendship that was forged in the darkest periods of World War Two and lasted until Churchill's death in 1965.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-38720850
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Mary Poppins remake: Will Dick Van Dyke reprise his Cockney accent? - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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Dick Van Dyke said he worked with an entire cast of "Brits" and not one told him to work on his Cockney accent
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Dick Van Dyke, best known for his role in Mary Poppins as Bert, a Cockney jack-of-all-trades, says he "never got" the Cockney accent.
He told Radio 4's Today programme that despite being in a whole cast of "Brits", not one had ever told him the accent needed some work.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38754730
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Chinese man cycles 500km in wrong direction to get home - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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Police paid for the man's ticket home when they realised he had been cycling off course for 30 days.
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China
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The man (not pictured) was stopped by police after cycling for 30 days
A man hoping to cycle home cross-country for Chinese New Year realised 30 days into his trip that he had been travelling in the wrong direction.
The young migrant worker from China was aiming for his home in Qiqihar, Heilongjiang province, after setting off from Rizhao - over 1,700km away.
But he was stopped by traffic police 500km off course, in the central Chinese province of Anhui.
When they found out, the police paid for a train ticket to get him home.
The man had set off from Rizhao, in Shandong province, in December.
A report from the People's Online Daily said the man had been living in internet cafes and was low on funds.
But he was determined to make it home so he chose to cycle the route.
The unnamed man could not read maps, meaning he had to rely on others for directions.
Police stopped him when he was riding on a highway, which cannot be used by cyclists.
After discovering his mistake, both police and people working at the toll station he was stopped at contributed to his ticket home.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-38748373
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Obituary: Tam Dalyell - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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Veteran Labour MP who first articulated the West Lothian Question.
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UK Politics
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Tam Dalyell was a political contradiction, an aristocratic Old Etonian who became a socialist politician.
It was he who articulated what became known as the West Lothian Question, which festered at the heart of Scotland's relationship with Westminster.
A former Conservative activist, he became a thorn in the side of the Thatcher government.
But he won admiration from across the political spectrum as an honourable and principled member of parliament.
Thomas Dalyell Loch was born in Edinburgh on 9 August 1932.
His father Gordon Loch, a civil servant, adopted his wife Nora's maiden name in 1938.
It was through his mother that Dalyell later inherited the Dalyell baronetcy, although he never used the title.
The Suez crisis made him an opponent of British military intervention
He went to Eton before doing his National Service as a trooper with the Royal Scots Greys, having failed his officer training.
After he was demobbed, he went to Cambridge where he was chairman of the University Conservative Association.
It was while working as a teacher that he experienced a political conversion, brought about by the Suez Crisis in 1956.
The debacle, in which Britain, together with Israel and France, unsuccessfully attempted to gain control of the Suez Canal, made a deep impression on him
Not only did he join the Labour Party, but the aborted invasion made him a committed opponent of future British military involvement overseas.
In 1962, he won the seat of West Lothian in a by-election, fighting off a strong challenge from a future SNP leader, William Wolfe.
Less than two years after he entered parliament, Dalyell was appointed parliamentary private secretary to Dick Crossman, then Minister for Local Government.
Dalyell (r) arrived at Westminster in 1962 as the newly elected member for West Lothian
The position of PPS was seen as the first step to a ministerial career, but Dalyell's independent stance on issues irritated the party establishment.
That irritation turned to anger in 1967 when he was heavily censured for leaking minutes of a select committee meeting about the Porton Down biological and chemical warfare establishment to the Observer newspaper.
Dalyell claimed he thought the minutes were in the public domain but he did not escape a public dressing-down by the Speaker.
In a parliamentary debate on devolution in 1977, Dalyell first proposed what would become known as the West Lothian Question.
A vocal opponent of Scottish devolution, Dalyell contrasted the town of Blackburn in his own constituency, and Blackburn in Lancashire.
"For how long," he asked, "will English constituencies and English Honourable Members tolerate at least 119 Honourable Members from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland exercising an important and often decisive effect on English politics?"
It was Enoch Powell who coined the term West Lothian Question, in his response to Dalyell's speech.
He fought to uncover the truth about the Lockerbie bombing
When Margaret Thatcher came to power in 1979 she found Dalyell a persistent critic of her policies.
He supported the Troops Out movement in Northern Ireland and attacked the prime minister's proposed boycott of the Moscow Olympics.
But it was the Falklands War that raised his public profile. He described the conflict as "like two bald men fighting over a comb," quoting the Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges.
He strongly condemned the decision to sink the Argentine cruiser, General Belgrano, insisting the vessel had been steering away from the conflict when torpedoed by a British submarine.
His political opponents called him Daft Tam, ignoring the methodical and painstaking preparation he put into sourcing the facts to back up his arguments.
He was no slave to parliamentary protocol and was suspended from the House on numerous occasions, twice for calling Mrs Thatcher "a liar" over the Falklands campaign.
"She is a bounder, a liar, a deceiver, a cheat, a crook and a disgrace to the House of Commons," was one notable contribution during a 1987 debate.
However, some felt that his intemperate language did nothing to win him support.
Former Conservative MP and later political commentator, Matthew Parris said that "this element of personal vendetta seriously weakens his case".
Dalyell was persistent in trying to uncover the truth about the Lockerbie bombing and consistently said he did not believe Libyan leader Colonel Gadaffi was responsible for the outrage.
He was, predictably, bitterly opposed to the Gulf War, "Kuwait is the 19th bloody state of Iraq," and went to Baghdad in 1994 to negotiate with Iraqi foreign minister Tariq Aziz.
The election of a Labour government under Tony Blair in 1997 failed to deter Dalyell from speaking his mind.
In 1999, he decided that he would no longer vote at Westminster on purely English issues, defying a number of three-line whips.
He was one of 25 MPs who opposed military action in Kosovo. "I am one of a dwindling number of MPs who have actually worn the Queen's uniform," he said.
He continued to live in the ancestral home
"Perhaps we are a bit less relaxed about unleashing war than those who have never been in a military situation."
He had little time for the New Labour project, describing Tony Blair as the worst of the eight prime ministers who had held power while he was a parliamentarian.
In 2001, he became Father of the House, the longest continuous serving MP, using his position to attack the US led invasion of Iraq.
"These are the thought processes of fantasist Americans who want to control the world," he said. "I am appalled that a British Labour prime minister should have got into bed with a crew which has this moral standing."
Dalyell stood down from the House of Commons in 2005, after serving 43 years as an MP, first for West Lothian, then, from 1983, the redrawn constituency of Linlithgow.
Behind Tam Dalyell's somewhat shambling and eccentric demeanour was a keen analytical brain and a passion for meticulous research.
Unrepentant about his dogged approach, he claimed that "you must not be afraid to be thought a bore".
He was that rare thing among politicians, a man who stuck to his principles, regardless of how unpopular it made him.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-29367988
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CCTV catches Asda delivery driver ramming car in Oldbury - BBC News
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2017-01-26
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An Asda delivery van driver is caught on camera ramming a parked car out of its way and driving off.
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Birmingham & Black Country
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Asda has apologised after a delivery driver was caught on a security camera ramming a parked car out of the way and driving off.
The van pulled alongside a parked Renault Megane in the footage before reversing and moving it out of the way.
The crash happened in Oldbury, West Midlands, the Express & Star reported.
The supermarket chain said it was "very sorry" for the "unacceptable incident" and the car had been repaired and returned.
Car owner Ian Peacock was visiting his uncle on 20 December and heard a "loud bang and a car alarm going off" before realising it was his car that had been hit.
Mr Peacock said the crash had "snapped in half his bumper support bar, the lights and smashed to pieces the casing holding the exhaust and the stuff on bottom of the car together".
After speaking to the Express & Star about the crash, Mr Peacock said he had a call from the supermarket's head office who would be sending him a "goodwill gesture".
"I'm not bothered about the goodwill gesture but they must have sent it by carrier pigeon anyway as that was last Thursday," Mr Peacock said.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-38743945
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