Blair 'signed in blood' to oust Saddam

Former diplomat says plan to aim for 'regime change' may have stemmed from meeting between Bush and Blair in April 2002

Shining a light into the heart of darkest Africa

The Times begins its Christmas Charity Appeal to help three charities

BBC abandons ballet with deformed rapist Pope

The Spirit Of Diaghilev from Sadler’s Wells had been announced as one of the highlights of the Christmas schedule

Remorse keeps poppy scandal student out of jail

Philip Laing given community sentence as judge demands an end to culture of excessive drinking among university students

Schools cut back on heating to save £750m

Schools Secretary wants to cut school bills by encouraging astute purchasing decisions and installing 'smart' energy meters

7/7 bombers to share victims' inquest

Relatives react angrily to news that the London bombers' deaths will also be investigated at their loved ones' inquests

The Christmas tree that you can wipe your feet on

Poole’s shopping precinct has been decorated with a cone with no trunk or branches to meet the demands of health and safety

Clerical power has been ‘market driven’

In traditional Catholic Ireland, the priests were not only respected and accorded power, they were regarded as family

Burglars on bail ‘embarking on crime sprees’

Metropolitan Police Commissioner warned that career criminals released between charge and conviction had nothing to lose

Three men jailed over killing

Love rival of murder victim is given life sentence after body was found in a drain in Lancashire

GPs told to step up swine flu vaccinations

The number of deaths linked to the virus has risen to 242 in Britain, with 21 fatal cases in England in the past week

‘It's cash or get out and lose the house’

The financial boom in Dubai has well and truly ended, leaving some British ex-pats wondering whether to return home now

Jail sentence for drunken grope overturned

Banker convicted for sexual assault at cocktail party will be supervised for six months after ruling by Court of Appeal

Fire forces 300 people to flee their homes

It’s a miracle no one died says Harriet Harman after blaze that started in building site engulfs flats and a pub

How to be a great gatecrasher

Hats off to the Salahis: their White House blag accords them instant elevation to the pantheon of pushy partygoers

UKIP to target Islamic fundamentalism

The two front-runners in UKIP’s leadership contest say they will campaign against Islamism, alongide their anti-EU agenda

Wild boar return to the Highlands

Conservation group introduces animals to Inverness-shire 300 years after they were hunted to extinction across Britain