Former Speaker dies, aged 86
Lord Weatherill, the Speaker who oversaw the introduction of television
cameras to the Commons, has died at the age of 86 after a short illness
(Philip Webster writes).
Bernard Weatherill, who served as Conservative MP for Croydon NorthEast from
1964 to 1992, gained international fame for the wit with which he handled
difficult exchanges in the chamber after footage began being broadcast
routinely in 1989.
Lord Weatherill, who was elected Speaker in 1983, is survived by his wife,
Lyn, three children and seven grandchildren. He was a high-class tailor by
profession and carried around with him a thimble to remind him of his humble
background.
Lord Tebbit, the Tory peer and former party chairman, said: “He was one of
life’s gentlemen.”
Parcels charges
A man who allegedly sent suspicious packages through the post has been charged
under the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act. Steven Robinson, 42, of
Manchester, is to appear before Westminster magistrates today, accused of
sending the parcels to a councillor and a journalist.
Arthritis at work
Almost a third of people with rheumatoid arthritis lose their jobs after
developing the disease, a report claims today. The National Rheumatoid
Arthritis Society is calling for urgent government action to help sufferers
to stay in work and to ensure that they are fully aware of their legal
rights and treatment entitlements.
Parachutist dies
A parachutist has died after suffering critical injuries at a public display.
The 28-year-old, who has not been named, was hurt as he landed at a falconry
event in Newport, Shropshire. West Mercia police are appealing for people
who have video or photographic evidence of the incident to come forward.
Canine payouts
Police dogs sinking their teeth into the wrong people led to compensation
payments of more than £100,000 last year. Payments went from £40 to £42,500.
Thirteen of the 36 claims, settled by 17 forces, were made by officers,
according to figures released under the Freedom of Information Act.
MPs ‘not trusted’
Politicians are the least trusted people, with more people placing their faith
in car salesmen, a study by Readers’ Digest suggests. Fifteen
per cent of its readers trusted politicians in 2002. Now 7 per cent trust
them, with 8 per cent trusting car salesmen. Firefighters and pharmacists
top the list.
Shore film hit
The soundtrack to the first instalment of The Lord of the Rings
trilogy, composed by the Canadian Howard Shore, has topped a poll of
favourite film music by Classic FM listeners. John Williams was the most
popular composer with ten scores in the Top 50, including Schindler’s List.
Hans Zimmer’s Gladiator was second.
Hospitals suffer ‘serious’ IT failures
The Government’s £12.4 billion programme to upgrade IT systems in the NHS
experienced more than 200 breakdowns in four months, potentially putting
patients at risk (David Rose writes). The problems, affecting dozens of
hospitals in England between October and January, were serious enough to be
described as “major incidents”, Computer Weekly magazine
reported. Some involved programs that allow doctors to view X-rays; others
affected the registers that hold details of bookings and treatments.
Connecting for Health, which runs the IT project, said that the figures were
misleading.
Student misgivings
Arts students have lower career expectations and are less likely to apply to
graduate recruitment schemes than those doing vocational subjects, research
suggests. Most believe, wrongly, that recruiters would value their degree
less highly than one in a job-related discipline, the market research
company High Flyers found.
Abortion go-ahead
The Irish Attorney-General’s department said there was nothing preventing a
teenager wanting to travel to Britain for an abortion from doing so. Health
chiefs had sparked a High Court battle to stop the 17-year-old girl from
going. Her unborn child is due to be so disabled that it could only survive
a few days after birth.
Pricing crackdown
A crackdown on the “rip-off” extras tour operators charge is due to come into
force tomorrow. Holiday companies that advertise low prices without
including the full compulsory costs will face disciplinary proceedings by
the Association of British Travel Agents, which could lead to fines of up to
£50,000.
Campbell’s model
A diary kept by Naomi Campbell, the model, during her community service
sentence for hitting her maid with a phone reveals that she found “solace in
sweeping”. Ms Campbell, 36, spent five days sweeping and cleaning lavatories
in Manhattan. Extracts were published in the New York Post yesterday.
£5.5m to protect special landscapes
The Heritage Lottery Fund is allocating £5.5 million to restore and preserve
three precious British landscapes.
Under the Landscape Partnership programme, £2.2 million will be used to
restore fragments of four medieval forests on the Weald Forest Ridge in East
Sussex, including Winnie-the-Pooh’s Ashdown Forest.
The Iron Age, agricultural and industrial past have all helped to shape the
distinctive Sandstone Ridge in Cheshire, which will get £1.4 million, and
the Wyre Forest on the Worcestershire-Shropshire border, one of the largest
surviving areas of ancient semi-natural woodland left in England, gets £1.86
million.
Carole Souter, the fund’s director, said: “What is so wonderful about this
scheme is how it brings local groups together to make a huge difference to
these important landscapes.”
Iraq soldier named
A soldier who died from injuries suffered in Iraq has been named as Private
Kevin Thompson, 21, of the Royal Logistics Corp. He was wounded on Thursday
when a convoy to resupply the Basra Palace military base was hit by an
improvised explosive device. He was flown back to Britain, but died on
Sunday.
Murder charge
A 20-year-old man has been charged with the murder of a marine biology student
who was found dead in her halls of residence at the University of Hull.
Jason Webster will appear before Beverley Magistrates’ Court today charged
with the murder of Rebecca Love, 26, from Rotherham, South Yorkshire.
Body discovered
Police searching for a man who fell more than 60ft (18m) from the top of a
waterfall discovered a body yesterday. The unnamed victim, who is believed
to be in his 30s and from the Jarrow area of South Tyneside, was found close
to High Force waterfall, at Forest-in-Teesdale, Co Durham.
Doherty arrested
Pete Doherty has been arrested on suspicion of possessing a Class A drug. The
musician was stopped in a car by police in Central London on Saturday night.
Last month Doherty, 28, was praised by a judge for “more than cooperating”
in his struggle to beat his addiction. He has been bailed until next month.
It’s only rock ’n’ rolls
Michael Eavis, the organiser of next month’s Glastonbury Festival at Pilton,
Somerset, has appealed to revellers to leave the lavatory roll at home. Fans
will be given free rolls of recycled paper in a new green initiative.
Tickets for the event, from June 22 to June 24, sold out yesterday in a
record-breaking 90 minutes.
