Skiing on Scotland's snow slopes looks set to continue into the summer month of June as new figures reveal the best season in 14 years.

Article: The presenter said it was "one of the best jobs on television" but felt "it was time to move on".
He will be replaced by Sandi Toksvig, who described it as her "dream job".
Show creator John Lloyd said Toksvig would be "the first female host of a mainstream comedy panel show on British television - an appointment that is well overdue".
Fry's departure would be the "end of an era", Lloyd added.
He said: "Though we are all very sad he's decided to move on, I am confident that we have found the perfect person to occupy his gigantic shoes."
Toksvig hosts Channel 4's Fifteen To One and stood down as chair of BBC Radio Four's The News Quiz earlier this year after a 10-year run.
QI was first broadcast in 2003. Fry was originally hired to be a team captain opposite Alan Davies, but he agreed to host the show as a last-minute replacement for Michael Palin "just for the pilot [episode]".
Fry said: "For 13 years I had one of the best jobs on television. Behind the camera squadrons of quite extraordinarily brilliant researchers, programme makers and uniquely curious (in both senses of the word) people making that job so much easier.
"In front of the camera generations of lively minds and above all of course the wonder of nature that is Alan Davies."
Davies will remain as resident panellist.
The show covers topics under one letter per series, and Fry said "after passing the alphabetical halfway mark I thought it time to move on, but I will never cease to be grateful to John Lloyd for devising QI and for everyone else for making it such fun".
The upcoming M series will be Fry's last.
Toksvig said QI was her "favourite television programme both to watch and to be on, so this is absolutely my dream job".
She said: "Stephen has been utterly brilliant with the first half of the alphabet. Now I look forward to picking up the baton, mixing my metaphors and sailing towards the Land of Nod (i.e. Z).
"Who knows what lies ahead?  It should all be quite interesting."
Last year, Toksvig spoke out after the BBC announced a policy of...

Summary: Stephen Fry is to step down as the host of BBC Two comedy quiz show QI after 13 years.
###
Article: Havering's councillors recently voted by 30 to 15 that the UK would be better off out of the EU.
The 10 most Eurosceptic areas are all in England, with Peterborough and Bracknell Forest second and third.
Ceredigion, Aberdeen and Stirling are the most enthusiastic about the EU, followed by two inner London boroughs, Lambeth and Camden.
Havering has seven Ukip councillors, the highest number of any London borough.
Bromley councillors also voted in favour of leaving the EU last week.
The referendum on EU membership will be held on 23 June.
Matthew Goodwin, co-author of a book about Ukip and a professor of politics at the University of Kent, said coastal towns and eastern England - which Havering borders - were more Eurosceptic than average.
"You tend to have high numbers of working class residents," he said.
"Of all indicators of Euroscepticism, education is the strongest predictor, so if you leave school at 16 you tend to be far more Eurosceptic than people who went to university."
"Euroscepticism also has strongholds in the more wealthy, Tory shires," said YouGov.
"Apart from in Scotland (all Europhile and one mixed), parts of Wales and London many of the Europhile areas are university towns with lower median ages - Liverpool, Manchester, York and Bristol."

Summary: The London borough of Havering is the most Eurosceptic in Britain, according to a YouGov survey.
###
Article: Since late November, Scotland's five mountain resorts have attracted 373,782 customers.
The ski season is estimated to have attracted £37.5m into the local economy.
With fresh snow on the slopes, CairnGorm Mountain expects skiing during the first weekend of June.
Recent figures from Ski Scotland showed that this season's figures were better than the last bumper season of 2000-2001.
Chair of Ski Scotland Heather Negus said: "All winter, we realised we were heading for a great season.
"We had hoped to match the figure for 2001, but didn't realise we had beaten it until recently, when everything was added up - and of course, CairnGorm Mountain is still operating, so we're still counting."
It is estimated that for every pound spent on the slopes another £3 is spent in the local economy with more than £28m being spent this winter in local accommodation, cafés, bars, restaurants, shops and filling stations.
Ms Negus added: "All the ski areas have been delighted to see other local businesses thriving this winter.
"Everything really came together for us - we had lots and lots of superb snow, which kept on coming, some truly amazing overhead weather giving 'bluebird' conditions, and, because there was also snow elsewhere in the UK, people realised that the Scottish Highlands did have skiing and snow boarding to rival the best and they came here to enjoy it."

Summary:


A new study has found that the brain of a baby dolphin can be activated by a sound that is similar to a human voice.

A new species of shrimp has been named after Pink Floyd thanks to a pact between prog rock-loving scientists.

Article: This position activates the right hemisphere of the brain, which is involved in functions that help in communication and bonding, they say.
The "positional bias" is not unique to humans, with their advanced brains, but is also found in animals, according to researchers in Russia.
Similar behaviour has been seen in baby mammals following their mothers.
They include kangaroos and horses on land and walruses and orcas in the sea.
Dr Yegor Malashichev of Saint Petersburg State University, said the position helped in survival and social bonding.
"If there is no eye contact, or it is wrong, there is no activation of the right hemisphere of the infant... the right hemisphere is responsible for social interactions," he told BBC News.
"All the [11] species we studied demonstrated the lateral bias.
"We suggest that this bias is even more widespread and may be a characteristic of all mammals, with few exceptions. "
It has long been known that humans and great apes tend to cradle their babies on the left, particularly during the first weeks of an infant's life.
Various explanations have been proposed, including physical contact - so an infant can hear their mother's heart beat - or practical benefits to the mother, who can keep a hand free for other tasks (if right-handed).
Alternatively, some have proposed it could be related to eye contact and its effect on the brain.
When a mother cradles her baby to the left and face-to-face, the left eyes of the mother and infant are directed towards each other, say the researchers.
Thus, the visual information goes mostly to their right hemisphere of the brain, the side involved in functions such as attention, memory, reasoning, and problem solving (all of which contribute to effective communication).
The researchers looked at humans and 10 wild animals:
The scientists found the young animals kept close to the right side of their mother.
This meant they watched her mainly with their left eye, activating the right hemisphere of the brain.
While doing this, they were less likely to...

Summary: Scientists say they have solved the mystery of why mothers tend to cradle newborn babies on the left.
###
Article: William Grant and Sons said the whisky industry currently enjoyed "substantial support" from the UK government and its worldwide embassy network.
It is understood to have given in the region of £100,000 to Better Together.
The Scottish government has argued that independence would benefit the whisky industry.
William Grant, which produces brands including Glenfiddich malt whisky, had a turnover of more than £1bn last year.  It is one of the few Scotch whisky producers to remain in family ownership.
The company is said to have also donated smaller sums of money to other groups who are campaigning for a "No" vote ahead of the independence referendum, which will be held on 18 September.
Industry trade body the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) has not formally backed either side in the independence debate.
Its chief executive, David Frost, said in April he was seeking reassurances about what he described as the potential "risks" of independence for the industry.
However, Mr Frost also said the industry would succeed regardless of the result.
And Diageo, which owns several Scotch whisky brands, has previously said the firm was "there [in Scotland] to stay" whatever the outcome of the referendum.
In a statement, William Grant and Sons Holdings Limited said: "We can confirm that the company has made these donations.
"We support the stance of the SWA over independence and would refer you to their recent statement that the Scotch whisky industry enjoys substantial support from the UK government and its worldwide embassy network and from lack of trade barriers within the EU."
A spokesman for Better Together said: "We are delighted to have received this support. More and more companies, individuals and families are saying no thanks to separation."
Scotch whisky was responsible for more than £4bn of exports last year, which the SWA said accounted for about 85% of Scottish food and drink exports and nearly a quarter of the British total.
In its White Paper on independence, the Scottish government argued that the biggest...

Summary: A major whisky distiller has donated what has been described as a "substantial sum" of money to the campaign against Scottish independence.
###
Article: The synalpheus pinkfloydi uses its large pink claw to create a noise so loud it can kill small fish.
The team behind the discovery vowed years ago if it ever found a new pink shrimp it would "honour" the rockers.
Sammy De Grave, head of research at Oxford University Museum of National History, said he has been a fan of the band since he was a teenager.
And it is not the first crustacean he's named after a rock legend, having already named a species of shrimp after Rolling Stones front man, Mick Jagger - elephantis jaggerai.
He said: "I have been listening to Floyd since The Wall was released in 1979, when I was 14 years old.
"The description of this new species of pistol shrimp was the perfect opportunity to finally give a nod to my favourite band.
"We are all Pink Floyd fans, and we always said if we would find a pink one, a new species of pink shrimp, we would name it after Pink Floyd."
The pistol, or snapping shrimp, has an ability to generate sonic energy by closing their enlarged claw at rapid speed.
It can reach 210 decibels - louder than your average rock concert - and results in one of the loudest sounds in the ocean.
The description of the species, found off the Pacific coast of Panama, has been published in the Zootaxa journal and was co-authored with the Universidade Federal de GoiÃ¡s in Brazil, and Seattle University in the US.

Summary:

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The Royal Navy has announced plans to build a new airframe for the Royal Navy's Wildcat helicopter.

Hundreds of aerospace jobs could be lost if a factory is forced to "significantly downsize" or close, it has been claimed.

Article: Ilkeston station was initially given the go-ahead in 2013 and had been expected to be in operation by now.
Great crested newts, which are protected by law, were found at the site in the winter halting work while they were moved elsewhere.
Derbyshire County Council said the station should open next year.
It said it had to seek new planning permission following advice from the Environment Agency over flooding concerns.
To keep on budget the design had to be changed. That included shortening the platforms.
Ilkeston is one of the largest towns in the UK without a railway station.
The town once had three stations but the last one closed in 1967 as a result of the Beeching Report, published in 1963.
The new facility, part-funded from the government's New Station Fund, will link Ilkeston with Nottingham, Chesterfield and Sheffield.

Summary: Work to build a railway station in Derbyshire could start in September, following delays due to flooding and the discovery of protected newts.
###
Article: Ornithologist David Lindo - who launched the campaign - said the robin was "entwined into our national psyche" as a "Christmas card pin-up".
He now plans to ask the government to officially recognise the robin as the national bird.
The red-breasted bird received 34% of votes, followed by the barn owl, which received 12%, and the blackbird, 11%.
BBC Springwatch presenter Mr Lindo began the project last year, saying Britain should have a national bird like many other countries.
More than 224,000 people voted online, at ballot boxes in schools and by post.
The robin was initially selected - along with nine other birds - from a list of 60 in a preliminary vote. A ballot for the final 10 then opened to the British public in March.
Polling closed on the day of the general election, 7 May.
Other contenders included the wren, the red kite and the kingfisher - which came 4th, 5th and 6th respectively.
The mute swan came 7th in the vote, followed by the blue tit, the hen harrier and the puffin.
If the government agrees the robin should represent the UK, it would join the ranks of these other national birds from around the world:
Mr Lindo has said he would speak to the government to ask for the winner to be officially recognised as Britain's national bird.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I think the robin is totally entwined into our national psyche - it is the Christmas card pin-up and the supposed gardeners' friend.
"So the robin's everywhere.  And I think most people would cite the robin as one of the birds that they actually could recognise."
Most voters - some 60% - were not associated with bird-watching or conservation organisations, meaning a "completely new audience" now had a "vested interest in nature", added Mr Lindo.
"It's great to reach a new audience and get people thinking about birds, so it has been a great success."
He said the blackbird had been in second place until children's votes were counted - and that they favoured the owl.

Summary: The robin has topped a poll of more than 200,000 people to choose the UK's first national bird.
###
Article: GKN Aerospace in Yeovil, Somerset, which makes airframes for Royal Navy helicopters, said the potential loss of the contact puts 230 jobs at risk.
Leonardo, which assembles the Wildcat helicopter in the town, has told GKN it plans to take production in-house.
The firm said the current arrangement was "no longer sustainable".
The union Unite said it was a "massive blow".
GKN has begun formal consultations with the unions regarding potential job losses in Yeovil.
The firm said in a statement that the move by Leonardo "puts at risk the long term viability of our Yeovil site".
GKN added: "Having completed a thorough assessment of the business, we have regrettably concluded that GKN Yeovil, as it stands today, is no longer a sustainable business and will have to be significantly downsized or fully closed.
"We will now enter a period of consultation with nominated employee representatives."
Andy Soughton of the Unite union said talk of a potential site closure was a "bit of a shock".
"We've had quite a few redundancies over the years, and work has dropped off a little bit," he said.
"So I think people were expecting something to happen. But not a closure."
More than 250 jobs were lost at GKN's car manufacturing branch in Telford in Shropshire in August.

Summary:


The Labour Party is preparing to hold a conference on the future of the party.

Four men have been arrested in the UK following a counter-terrorism operation led by Italian authorities, the North East Counter Terrorism Unit says.

Article: This debate, as well as recent differences of opinion between the leader and his shadow cabinet, have focused attention on the complex process by which policies will end up in Labour's manifesto.
Here's a guide:
Labour Party policy is the result of consultation with members, elected representatives (MPs, MEPs and councillors) and the trade unions.
The main body for shaping policy is the National Policy Forum, an elected group of over 200 people representing councillors, trade unions, socialist societies and MPs. It produces reports on the different policy areas, which are presented at annual conference and either accepted or rejected in a vote.
For manifesto policy, there is a formal consultation process which culminates in a meeting of the forum the year before the general election to agree the final details of what will form the foundation of Labour's next manifesto.
This document is then put before conference for adoption as Labour's policy programme. No proposal is included in the party programme unless it is adopted by a majority of not less than two-thirds of a conference vote.
Importantly, conference votes whether to accept or reject large policy documents as a whole - not on individual policies or line by line.
When Labour is not in government, the final say on which items make it into the manifesto is made at a meeting of Labour's ruling National Executive Committee (NEC), the shadow cabinet and key figures from both the Parliamentary Labour Party and the National Policy Forum.
Day to day policy-making on Labour's position on votes that arise in the House of Commons is slightly different. It relies on a looser and more informal process based on consultation and consent with the shadow cabinet, Labour MPs and the NEC.
The annual autumn conference is described by Labour as "the ultimate authority in the party".
Labour's Conference Arrangements Committee oversees the agenda and sets the timetable. If it accepts a motion, they are grouped into topics and conference delegates choose four topics submitted...

Summary: Jeremy Corbyn is preparing for his first annual conference as Labour leader, which will include a vote on the party's nuclear policy for the first time in over a decade.
###
Article: James Gillespie's High School said the immunisations would be carried out on 12 October.
The school told parents it had been informed "too late" to take any preventative measures.
NHS Lothian said the case at the school was part of a wider increase in measles in the area.
In a letter to parents of pupils at the school, business manager David Anderson said: "Unfortunately by the time we are informed of an infection it is too late to apply preventative measures for the current outbreak.
"However, we are trying to arrange immunisation on Wednesday, 12 October, for vulnerable staff and students to protect against future outbreaks.
"NHS Scotland will provide us with details of students who they believe have not had the full course of vaccinations and we will aim to target those students and give them further information and consent forms to take home."
A spokesman for City of Edinburgh Council said: "In line with the guidance of NHS Lothian letters have been issued to parents advising of the situation and including facts on measles vaccinations."
The MMR immunisation programme prevents against measles with the first dose given soon after a child's first birthday and the second dose before they go to school.
The NHS said some people were at greater risk of complications if they contracted measles, including pregnant women, babies under 12 months of age and people who have weakened immune systems.

Summary: An Edinburgh high school is planning to immunise "vulnerable" staff and students after a pupil contracted measles.
###
Article: The unit was assisted by officers from Humberside, Derbyshire, South Yorkshire and the West Midlands.
The arrests are part of a pre-planned operation relating to alleged terrorism offences under Italian legislation.
Police said the four men will appear before Westminster Magistrates Court but did not specify a date.
The arrests took place under European Arrest Warrants, police added. Those arrested face extradition to Italy.
Jihadist cell in Europe 'sought recruits for Iraq and Syria'
The men were part of raids in several European countries connected to a suspected "jihadist network" which was allegedly plotting to free its leader, Mullah Krekar, who is in detention in Norway.
Six suspects were detained in Italy and three in Norway. Krekar was among those arrested.
Italian police said the group was planning to seize Norwegian and British diplomats to try to secure Krekar's release.
Italy's Ansa news agency said the suspects were being accused of international terrorism association.
The men arrested in Britain are:
The terrorism unit said the men are being held at a police station in the north of England and will not be questioned by officers in the UK.
The addresses of the men are being searched, and after appearing before magistrates they will be handed over to Italian authorities.
A statement from the North East Counter Terrorism Unit said: "We understand that people may be concerned following today's arrests.
"However, we would like to reassure communities that today's activity is as a result of an ongoing investigation which is intelligence led.
"There is no evidence to suggest that communities are at risk."

Summary:


The preferred location for a town's first railway station in 50 years has been revealed.

Article: The former deputy prime minister claims an exit vote would trigger a second Scottish independence referendum.
It comes as Mr Clegg's successor as Lib Dem leader, Tim Farron, prepares to launch the party's campaign to stay in the EU in the vote expected next year.
Mr Farron is also set for a showdown with activists at his party's conference over scrapping Trident.
The Lib Dem leader will speak out against a motion calling for the party to back unilateral nuclear disarmament.
He is expected to argue that while a like-for-like replacement for Trident is too expensive, other options should be considered to maintain Britain's deterrent in an uncertain world.
Mr Clegg's return to the Lib Dem conference stage, four months after his party's crushing election defeat and his own emotional exit from frontline politics, is expected to be greeted warmly by activists.
He will say: "The stakes could not be higher: not just one, but two, unions now hang in the balance.
"If we vote to leave the EU, I have no doubt that the SNP will gleefully grab the opportunity to persuade the people of Scotland to leave the UK as well."
That would leave a "once great country now pulled apart", creating a "Little England" left isolated and lacking international influence, according to Mr Clegg.
"I have no doubt that David Cameron's referendum will be contested on the issue of jobs, economic security, the terms of any renegotiation and so on," he will say.
"But there's a big, enduring question which hangs over all of this: what kind of country do we want to be, what is our role in this globalised world of ours? Open or closed?
"Leading in our own European backyard or isolated from our nearest neighbours?
"Because let's be clear: for all the huffing and puffing we're going to hear from those who want to leave the EU, they have no answer to that fundamental strategic question."
He will also urge Labour to wholeheartedly campaign for the UK to remain in the EU after the confusion of Jeremy Corbyn's first few days at Labour's helm.
Mr Farron, who...

Summary: Nick Clegg is due to warn the Lib Dem conference that a vote to leave the EU could tear the United Kingdom apart.
###
Article: Marathon Oil's Brae Alpha platform, 155 miles north east of Aberdeen, was shut down after the Boxing Day gas leak.
"Significant damage" was caused, but no-one was injured.
The HSE said Marathon failed to remove insulation of pipework for inspection since its commissioning in 1983.
Marathon Oil's own corrosion strategy recommended it was done at least every 12 year, the report said.
The HSE said failures exposed personnel to an "unacceptable risk" of serious injury from fire and explosion.
The firm has been issued with an improvement notice.
Marathon said it was co-operating fully with the HSE and was taking immediate steps to comply with the improvement notice.
A spokesperson said: "Many of the prescribed remedial actions are already well under way. The safety and welfare of our workforce continues to be our first priority.
"Production remains shut-in on the Brae Alpha installation while we continue our investigation and will remain so until we are confident it is safe to resume operations.
"At this time, we are unable to estimate a timeline for this."

Summary: A leak on a North Sea platform was caused by a "catastrophic" failure of pipework which had not been properly inspected for more than 30 years, the Health and Safety Executive has said.
###
Article: Lancashire County Council has earmarked land on the former Glenburn Sports College and Skelmersdale College.
The sports college closed in August, while Skelmersdale College's Westbank campus, owned by Newcastle College, is also unused.
The decision follows a comparative study by Network Rail of both sites and one near the Concourse shopping centre.
Skelmersdale's original railway station closed to passengers in 1956.
The council - which owns Glenburn Sports College - said Skelmersdale could get two direct trains to Liverpool per hour under the plans it has made in partnership with Merseytravel and West Lancashire Borough Council.
County councillor John Fillis, cabinet member for highways and transport, said it was an "exciting step forward".
He said the preferred location was big enough to allow for the possibility of future expansion.
He added: "It has good highway access and good connectivity to the town and the surrounding area."
The authority confirmed it will now start the process of acquiring the relevant land.
Skelmersdale was designated a new town on 9 October 1961..
It is one of the largest towns in the north west of England not to have its own railway station.

Summary:


A Newspaper has shown a home video of the Queen when she was a young girl, raising her arm like a Nazi salute.

Article: The Liberal Democrats, Greens, UKIP, DUP and UUP have all said they'll stand aside in at least one constituency.
There won't be national deals though. Co-operation will be limited to local agreements. And it's difficult to be sure how big the impact will be.
Britain's first-past-the-post electoral system means that lots of MPs are elected on fewer than half of the votes cast in their constituencies.
At the last election, 333 out of 650 winning candidates received less than 50% of the vote.
Those MPs could have been defeated if all the people who voted against them had gone for the same alternative candidate.
Clearly, that would never happen everywhere. But parties who agree on some of the main issues potentially have a lot to gain if they can co-ordinate their supporters.
One option is to encourage tactical voting. A more direct approach is to enter some sort of alliance or pact which sees parties choosing not to put forward candidates in certain seats.
Even without an agreement, parties can try to affect the result simply by choosing not to contest some constituencies.
There's going to be more co-ordination of this kind in 2017 than we've seen at previous elections.
As a strategy, though, it does rely on voters being prepared to vote for a candidate from a party which would not have been their first choice.
One part of the country where electoral deals have been used before is Northern Ireland.
In 2015, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) agreed a pact not to stand against each other in four constituencies: Belfast North, Belfast East, Fermanagh & South Tyrone, and Newry & Armagh.
The deal was pretty successful. The unionist candidate won in three of the four seats. And the Sinn Fein majority was halved in Newry and Armagh.
This year, the UUP have said they won't put up candidates in Belfast North, Belfast West and Foyle. And the DUP won't stand in Fermanagh & South Tyrone once again.
The parties have held discussions about the possibility of extending the pact but without...

Summary: The 2017 general election looks set to see more co-operation between political parties than ever before.
###
Article: User profiles were used to send out advertisements for a weightloss site.
It's not clear how many people have been affected, but Snapchat users in several countries took to Twitter to complain about the problem.
Snapchat has suffered breaches in the past, including the leak of 4.6m usernames and phone numbers in January.
In that instance, a website called SnapchatDB released the personal data but censored the last two digits of phone numbers. Those behind it said they wanted to raise awareness of a vulnerability that Snapchat had not fixed.
In a statement, Snapchat said the latest incident was due to user credentials being found on other sites.
"We have seen evidence that hackers who have access to a trove of credentials leaked from other websites, have started using them to gain access to Snapchat accounts," the service told the BBC.
"In many instances, our defences have notified the user that their account has been compromised.
"We recommend using a unique and complex password to access your Snapchat account."
The breach takes control of a person's account to send an image to everyone in a user's contact list.
Users who log back into their accounts are then emailed by Snapchat, warning that they should change their password.
The image sent out does not appear to cause any harm to the sender or recipient, and instead promotes a website offering suspect weightloss products.
The web address is registered under the name of Stanislaw Wojciechowski - the former president of Poland.
Snapchat, which launched in 2011, has been hit by a number of security set-backs.
The app is designed to send pictures and messages that self-destruct after a short time. However, an app called Snapchat Hack allowed users to save messages permanently.
Security researcher Brian Honan said the service's track record was not encouraging - and that it could soon put users off.
"One thing that moves people off apps is if it's not cool anymore, or it's been replaced by another fantastic service. Or that people have lost confidence in...

Summary: Accounts on messaging service Snapchat have been hijacked to send spam - but the site has said it was not the victim of a hack.
###
Article: Media playback is unsupported on your device
18 July 2015 Last updated at 13:43 BST
The video which was filmed around 1933, shows the Queen playing with a dog in the private gardens at Balmoral in Scotland.
The Queen Mother raises her arm like a Nazi salute and the Queen copies her.
Buckingham Palace have said the release of the video is ''disappointing''. They said the video was filmed more than 80 years ago and was from the Queen's private family collection.
The Nazi salute was used by Adolf Hitler, who was Germany's leader at the time.
His actions during World War Two caused the deaths of millions of people.
The Sun newspaper, who released the video, have refused to say how they got the footage but said it was an "important and interesting story".

Summary:


The UK's Brexit negotiations are in full swing, with the UK's prime minister, Theresa May, and her cabinet members meeting in the Commons on Monday.

The Daily and Sunday Politics are on-air six days a week for much of the year reporting the political news from Westminster and beyond.

Article: Organisers said more than 4,000 people attended the rally, making it one of Singapore's largest ever protests.
They are angry at a recent government policy paper that predicted the population would grow by 30% to 6.9 million by 2030, with immigrants making up nearly half that figure.
Many locals blame immigration for rises in property prices and living costs.
The peaceful three-hour rally took place in heavy rain at a park venue known as Speakers' Corner, where protests are allowed without a police permit. Only a handful of uniformed officers were seen close by,
The crowds, protected from the downpours by a sea of umbrellas, came out to voice their displeasure at the ruling People's Action Party's (PAP) immigration policies, rally organisers said.
"The large crowd here shows the PAP government that they are not afraid any more, they don't want to hide behind a moniker on Facebook to show their displeasure," chief organiser Gilbert Goh, a former opposition candidate for parliament, told AFP news agency.
"They are showing their deep displeasure with the white paper."
Singapore is known for its strict social controls and intolerance of dissent.
Saturday's protest came as news emerged that Singapore's first prime minister, 89-year-old Lee Kuan Yew, has been taken to hospital with a brain-related blockage.
Mr Lee, who is the father of current Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, will remain in hospital while he recovers from a suspected transient ischaemic attack, which occurs when blood flow to the brain stops for a period of time, a statement from his son's office said.
The Singaporean government said last month that it expected its population to increase by 30% to between 6.5 million and 6.9 million by 2030, with foreigners making up 45% of that number.
It said immigration was needed to help offset a slowing birth rate and ageing population, and it needed to find a balance between the number of Singaporeans and foreigners in order to sustain its rate of economic growth.
"If we do too little to address the...

Summary: Singaporeans have staged a rare demonstration, in protest at government plans to allow more immigration.
###
Article: Guptill, 28, has not played a Test since the 2013 tour to England, but last month hit 237 against West Indies, the highest score in World Cup history.
Paceman Matt Henry gets a maiden Test call and uncapped all-rounder Mitchell Santner is in the one-day squad.
The World Cup runners-up will play two Tests, five one-dayers and a Twenty20 international from 21 May to 23 June.
"This is a stable, established Test side but there will be opportunities for contenders," said coach Mike Hesson.
Of Guptill, who averages 39 in one-day internationals but only 29 from his 31 Tests, Hesson added: "Martin's a classically styled batsman and there's really no reason why he can't be as influential in the longer game as he is in the short."
Guptill's recall may mean Derbyshire have to make an additional overseas signing, as he had originally signed to play in their first six County Championship games but will now only be available for three.
Brendon McCullum captains the 15-man squad but is one of several players who will miss the two warm-up matches ahead of the opening Test at Lord's on 21 May because of Indian Premier League commitments.
Wicketkeeper BJ Watling will take charge of those fixtures, with Santner and uncapped pace bowlers Jacob Duffy and Ben Wheeler joining the squad.
Fast bowler Adam Milne, who was ruled out of the World Cup with a heel injury and replaced by Henry before the semi-final against South Africa, has been included in the limited-overs squad, while the only World Cup squad member not involved is seamer Kyle Mills.
Test squad: Brendon McCullum (captain), Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Doug Bracewell, Mark Craig, Martin Guptill, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Luke Ronchi (wk), Hamish Rutherford, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, BJ Watling (wk), Kane Williamson.
ODI and T20 squad: Brendon McCullum (captain), Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Grant Elliott, Martin Guptill, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Mitchell McClenaghan, Nathan McCullum, Adam Milne, Luke Ronchi (wk), Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Kane...

Summary: New Zealand have recalled batsman Martin Guptill to the Test squad for their forthcoming tour of England.
###
Article: Here are some of the clips from our interviews hosted by Andrew Neil and Jo Coburn, with films from our reporting team.
Follow us on twitter or 'like' us on  Facebook where we look forward to your comments and you can hear more news about upcoming guests and films.
When Parliament is sitting, the Daily Politics is on BBC2 from 1200-1300 on weekdays, with an 1130 start on Wednesdays for PMQs, and the Sunday Politics is on BBC1 from 1100-1215, occasionally moving for live sport and news events.
Both have a repeat on BBC Parliament at midnight, and are on BBC iPlayer for 30 days.
DP and SP Facebook site with more interviews and pictures
Is the PM's EU renegotiation progressing?
How the smaller parties did in 2015
A look back at UKIP's year
A look back at Labour's year
Has 2015 been a good year for the Tories?
Who is 2015's Daily Politics Secret Santa?
Is another recession coming and are we ready?
LGA chief on local government finances
What can we learn from election-themed books?
What do the EU referendum polls say?
Peers discuss Lords reform plans
Edward Docx's pro-EU Christmas poem
John Redwood's 'Brexit fairy tale'
Jon Culshaw's review of the year
Should fracking under national parks be allowed?
Latest on UK's EU renegotiation talks
Should Prince Charles receive cabinet papers?
Panel on final PMQs of 2015
Soapbox: Should motorists over 70 be retested?
Guests discuss retesting for motorists aged over 70
Is Star Wars left or right-wing?
Should there be a Lib-Lab pact? Vince Cable and Chris Mullin discuss
Chris Mullin: 'Jeremy Corbyn should be given a chance'
What lies ahead in EU membership debate?
What action has the RAF taken in Syria?
What are the prospects for Welsh Tories?
Why has Theresa May lasted so long as home secretary?
Peter Bone and Chris Mullin on Theresa May
Cat Smith: 'I don't see Ken Livingstone playing big role'
Peter Hunt goes behind the scenes at Thatcher auction
Is David Cameron's EU renegotiation meaningless?
Craig Mackinlay and Cat Smith on votes at 16
Daniel Hannan: When you know the PM...

Summary:


Scotland head coach Vern Cotter says his team are "lining up for the arm wrestle" and are showing more "explosiveness" ahead of the World Cup.

Article: From the air, the flat, small island of Tongatapu doesn't look much like land at all, with the astonishingly blue Pacific Ocean dominating the view.
But it is home to Tonga's capital, Nuku'alofa, and to the majority of the country's population - 70,000 or so out of around 90,000.
And for Tongans - who have lived here since the 9th Century, when the first settlers arrived by boat, the issue of rising sea levels and climate change is not just one for discussion at an abstract level - it proves a threat to their very existence.
Tonga's economy is weak - based to a large extent on remittances from expatriates, and on foreign aid.
Agriculture is mainly at subsistence level, and fishing - which is done by traditional spear - has lost some popularity over the previous decades, as cheap imported off-cuts of meats have replaced much of the traditional diet.
Highly religious, and well educated, Tongans' attachment to their fragile land is something evident in their pride and discussion of traditions and culture.
Tourism is barely visible on Tongatapu, where most land is owned by the King and the nobility (33 families).
Foreign investment is not much in evidence either; though what is evident is that many people from Tonga's 150 outer islands, which scatter over hundreds of miles of sea, are relocating to the main island as their own fragile habitats face an uncertain future.
These are often in informal settlements, which can suffer from a lack of infrastructure, and some of which are in tsunami "red zones".
Yet at Fafa Island Resort, a tiny, picture-perfect island merely 20 minutes by boat from Nuku'alofa, tourists enjoy the luxury of sleeping in a traditional Polynesian hut - right by the beach. Or they do - for now.
Vincent Morrish, who manages the hotel with his wife, points out the erosion that will mean the huts will eventually have to be moved back into the centre of the island.
"We're already having to move the restaurant and bar area back," he says, pointing out at what was once the beach, but is now between...

Summary: The vulnerability of the Kingdom of Tonga to any rise in sea level is starkly evident from the moment your plane begins its descent.
###
Article: He was the political "never never" man who became Northern Ireland's first minister.
Ian Paisley ended up leading a power-sharing executive at Stormont - although he had supported the strike to bring one down 30 years earlier.
From firebrand preacher, he moved on to earn the nickname of "chuckle brother" alongside deputy first minister, Sinn FÃ©in's Martin McGuinness.
He died in September 2014.
Obituary: Ian Paisley
Last year, the Bannside Library, housing his collection of more than 50,000 books, opened in east Belfast.
And among the memorabilia on display are his letters from jail. He served three months in Crumlin Road prison, 50 years ago, for unlawful assembly.
With time on his hands, the preacher decided to write a book on the Epistle to the Romans. He wrote the pages by hand.
They are written very neatly in red, blue and black ink. He then sent them home to his wife, Eileen, for her to type up.
He also wrote letters to his family at home and that collection has now been catalogued by his daughter, Sharon.
He had a guaranteed audience of one for his book in the jail, she said.
"When Daddy sent these out of prison every week, the governor had to read them to make sure there was nothing that shouldn't coming out of prison, so he had to read the book as well," she said with a smile.
Among the memorabilia is a special handkerchief.
"There was a man in prison who was a gifted artist.
"Mum and dad would have had their tenth wedding anniversary when he was in prison. And the man took one of daddy's handkerchiefs and did the picture of mum from an electioneering poster. It is painted onto the handkerchief," she said.
The same man saw the hymn written on the fly leaf of Ian Paisley's bible and decided to copy it.
"He lifted this board from the prison yard with wet paint on the back of it and made: A Father's Prayer," said Baroness Paisley.
She said her husband never got the knack of new technology when writing his books and essays.
"He asked me one day if I would look something up in a book, and I said: 'Ian I...

Summary: A selection of letters and drawings has cast a light on former first minster and DUP leader Ian Paisley's time in prison.
###
Article: The Scots lost their final warm-up Test 19-16 to France and Cotter believes the run-out in Paris will help his side in their World Cup opener against Japan.
"It certainly went up a level and was a very physical game against a very aggressive defence," he said.
"It was a big game with some pleasing things but things we need to work on."
Scotland went in 9-6 at the interval at the Stade de France thanks to the boot of Greig Laidlaw but lost momentum on occasions with problems at the set piece and losing line-out ball.
"We didn't get ball and when we did it wasn't clean," said Cotter who was in charge of Scotland for the 16th time.
"Despite that, I thought the players defended really well. The guys put in some big hits. Sometimes in days like that if you don't have the ball then you make up for it in other ways. That means you're adapting."
Cotter had special praise for John Hardie in the week the New Zealander picked his fellow countryman for Scotland's World Cup squad despite only having played an hour of rugby for the national side.
He said: "Crikey, John added an edge. He was very effective and got through an enormous amount of work.
"This sort of thing inspires people. He's a class player. We've got some class players and there are some class players that didn't make it."
Scotland's attention now turns to the World Cup and the opening match against Japan on 23 September, followed by games against the United States, South Africa and Samoa.
And, while acknowledging more work needs to be done, Cotter says there is a determination ahead of travelling to England for the finals.
"We're getting better," he said. "We got a reminder that we need to work on our line-out. I thought our scrum was better.
"I think we're showing agility on the field - both mental and physical. We're lining up for the arm wrestle, which is good.
"We're showing a little bit more explosiveness around the contact areas but we need to develop a bit more confidence. We want to do really well in this World Cup and the players are determined."

Summary:


The world's largest curry restaurant is set to open in London.

Bradford has been named Curry Capital of Britain for a record-breaking fifth year in a row.

Article: The 46-year-old, who is currently Chelsea's assistant first-team coach, will work with England for the games against Germany and Lithuania in March.
He will leave his role with the Premier League club in the summer to join Gareth Southgate's team full-time.
"If we want to be successful then we have to employ the best people and for me, Steve is the best," said Southgate.
Holland has worked as Southgate's assistant since 2013 - first with England Under-21s and more recently with the senior squad, following Sam Allardyce's departure as boss in September.
"We have worked very closely for three years and I have upmost respect for the way that he works, his professionalism and the detail of his preparation," added Southgate, who was made permanent England manager in November.
"I'd like to thank Chelsea for allowing Steve to join up with us over the last three years.
"It's great that Steve is able to work with us on the March camp but getting him on a full-time basis is very important and I was more than prepared to wait until May for that to happen."
Holland, who managed Crewe from 2007 to 2008, joined Chelsea in 2011. He was part of the Blues' backroom team for their Champions League and FA Cup double in 2012, the Europa League win in 2013 and the Premier League and League Cup double in 2015.
Subscribe to the BBC Sport newsletter to get our pick of news, features and video sent to your inbox.

Summary: Steve Holland has been named England assistant manager on a permanent basis after an interim spell in the job.
###
Article: Scientists want these ubiquitous gadgets to be put to work helping them detect and investigate earthquakes.
The devices contain accelerometers and a team at the Berkeley Seismic Laboratory says the mechanisms are capable of monitoring tremors.
An app is being developed that will record the shaking during major events and then report the data back to a central server over the cell network.
The high numbers of smartphones now in circulation mean researchers could get very detailed information on who felt what, and where.
It is the sort of insight that is useful for future hazard assessment and risk planning, but real-time data could also eventually play an important role in California's earthquake early warning system.
This aims to give people precious seconds' advance notice that a big trembler is on its way.
"Nowadays, smartphones carry all sorts of sensors, and we can put these to use in unexpected ways," explained Qingkai Kong. "Right now, we can only detect earthquakes above about Magnitude 5.0, but with better accelerometers in future smartphones we would hope to detect smaller ones as well," he told BBC News.
The University of California, Berkeley, researcher was speaking here at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting, the world's largest annual gathering of Earth scientists.
He and colleagues were not sure at first that mobile phones would be up to the task of being pocket seismometers.  So a selection of the gadgets was put on the lab's "shake table".
This instrument can simulate various grades of tremors. It is usually employed to test the robustness of various construction techniques, to provide confidence that buildings will not collapse during an earthquake.
The results clearly demonstrated that the accelerometers - used primarily in phones as part of the mechanism to tilt the screen - could pick up the shaking.
The confounding issue, of course, is that phones are rarely left alone on a flat surface - they are moving around with their owners.
But the team believes it can solve this...

Summary: The smartphones in our pockets are about to get even smarter.
###
Article: Judges scored four restaurants selected to represent each town or city, assessing hygiene ratings and public votes.
The West Yorkshire city was praised for holding several curry-themed events, including a poppadom-eating challenge.
Glasgow finished second and Brighton came in third in the competition, which marks the end of National Curry Week.
Leicester and Birmingham finished fourth and fifth respectively.
The restaurants selected to represent Bradford were Aakash, Kiplings, Shimla Spice and Akbar's.
Patricia Tillotson, of Visit Bradford, said: "Winning the hotly-contested competition this many times in a row has never been done before.
"Our entry has created a real sense of community cohesion, which ultimately is what the Curry Capital of Britain competition is all about."
Our love affair with curry
See: BBC Food - Curry recipes
The curry capital title was first awarded in 2001. It was won by Bradford in 2004 in addition to  2011-2014.

Summary:


The Oxford University Press has published a book on the history of the Bible.
It is a collection of essays on the history of the Bible, written by scholars from around the world.
The book is a collection of essays on the history of the Bible, written by scholars from around the world.
The book is

Scholars have hit their target of raising £1.1m to secure the future of an early Biblical manuscript.

Article: The couple, who were married in England last year, have begun a court challenge to Northern Ireland's marriage laws.
It is the only part of the UK and Ireland that bans same-sex marriage.
Their barrister said they were stripped of lawful marriage at home, with their rights "returning and disappearing" as they cross state lines.
The couple have taken a case at the High Court in Belfast in an attempt to get the court to declare that their marriage remains fully constituted throughout the UK.
The men, who want full legal recognition as spouses rather than civil partners, claim that failure to recognise their marriage within the UK amounts to unlawful discrimination.
The couple cannot be named as they have been granted anonymity by the court but their legal action is being supported by the gay rights group, The Rainbow Project.
Last week, Stormont MLAs voted to support the introduction of gay marriage, but it was vetoed by the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) using a blocking mechanism known as a petition of concern.
Opening the court case on Monday, the couple's barrister said: "The petitioner and his spouse find themselves in a particularly arbitrary situation where lawful marriage is stripped from them whenever they reside in Northern Ireland, returning and disappearing as they cross state lines."
She said the petitioner "takes the view that his marriage has been demeaned, devalued and undermined by virtue of the (society) in which he lives".
She added that the couple's legal status was "perplexing and distressing" and "caused them to feel acute embarrassment and alienation".
In a sworn statement submitted as part of their case, the couple set out their future plans to adopt children, saying they believed marriage offered the most appropriate relationship and best foundation for a family.
Their barrister said most people struggle to understand why they are not married in Northern Ireland.

Summary: A gay couple's marriage has been "devalued" by the fact that it is not legally recognised when they are home in Northern Ireland, a court has heard.
###
Article: But what are they, why do people wear them, and why have they been banned?
Here's Newsround's guide to what's going on.
A burkini is a type of swimming costume that some Muslim women wear, which covers the arms, legs and hair.
To some Muslims, wearing clothes that cover these parts of the body is seen as a sign of modesty and of faith.
There are lots of different types of headscarves that Muslim women wear and some don't wear any.
A burkini is a version of these that can be used when swimming or on the beach.
It's called a burkini because it's a mix of the words 'burqa' - which is a type of Islamic clothing - and 'bikini'.
Some towns in France have banned women from wearing a burkini on public beaches or in the sea.
If they break the ban and wear one, they will have to pay a fine.
This is because in France religion is supposed to be completely separate from other parts of life in public.
This means that symbols of religion are banned in some public places.
Some politicians have now argued this should include the burkini.
Tensions have been high in France since a number of attacks by Islamist extremists and many people are arguing about the best way to respond as a country to what has happened.
Many people in France and in other countries think that it is not right to tell women what clothes they can and can't wear.
They say that it should be a choice whether to wear a burkini or not.
But others think that it is right for the burkini to be banned, as they say that it goes against the values and laws of France.
Some people also think that the burkini is a symbol of women's inequality to men in the Islamic religion.

Summary: Burkinis have been in the news because they have been banned on some French beaches.
###
Article: The Cambridge University Library has housed the Codex Zacynthius since 1984.
It was offered first refusal to buy the New Testament manuscript and had until the end of August to find the funds.
The fate of the historical text had been in doubt after the Bible Society in Swindon, which owned it for almost 200 years, decided to sell it off to raise money.
The society, which was presented with the 176-page volume in 1821, wanted to shore up funds for a new £1m visitor centre inside a deconsecrated church in North Wales.
Dr Rowan Williams, the former archbishop of Canterbury who supported the Cambridge University Library's fundraising campaign, said securing the text would allow further study.
The bible features an early seventh century script which has been partially scraped away and written over to make way for a 13th century entry.
It is regarded as an important text in studying the development of the New Testament.
"The discovery and identification of the under-text represents a fascinating detective story," Dr Williams said.
"By securing the manuscript, we hope that multispectral imaging techniques will enable scholars to recover fully the hidden text."

Summary:


The Scottish Greens have announced they will contest the Glasgow Kelvin constituency in next May's poll.

A man has been left scarred for life in an unprovoked attack in a Glasgow pub.

Article: Kris Sale, from Sale Appliances in Westcliff-on-Sea, came up with the idea because he had a soft "baby Henry" toy and said he enjoyed making "quirky" window displays.
The five cleaners represent the kings, Mary and Joseph.
"Kids love it," said Mr Sale who has also built a stable, topped with a star, to house the vacuum cleaners.
Mr Sale has a reputation for his window displays. In the past he has turned a washing machine into a fish tank, and put a dummy repair man inside a cooker to make it look as though the appliance was being mended.
He said: "We're planning to change the nativity for New Year's Eve. The Henrys are going to have a party. It'll be one heck of a bash."

Summary: A nativity scene using Henry vacuum cleaners has been created in the window of an electrical goods shop in Essex.
###
Article: Mr Harvie will contest the Glasgow Kelvin constituency in next May's poll.
He has been a Green MSP for the Glasgow region since 2003, elected under the proportional "list" system.
Mr Harvie will remain top of his party's list for the election, but said the "time is right" for him to contest the constituency seat.
The voting system for Holyrood means MSPs for the Scottish Parliament can be elected in one of two ways: under a constituency first-past the post system like that at Westminster, or in a second vote where parties are allocated additional members on a proportional basis.
Mr Harvie was elected under the latter method.
He said he was "delighted" to be standing for the Kelvin constituency, which is currently help by the SNP's Sandra White.
He added: "It's been an honour to represent the city in the Scottish Parliament for the past 12 years and I believe the time is right to contest the constituency vote.
"We have a strong team in Glasgow, with four Green councillors who have made a huge impact in their communities.
"With that track record, we are campaigning to win Kelvin in 2016."
The Greens said polling put them on about 10% on the regional vote for next year's election, suggesting they could get eight to 12 MSPs, with at least one in each of the eight regions.

Summary: Patrick Harvie, the co-convener of the Scottish Greens, has announced he will stand in a first-past-the-post seat at next year's Holyrood election.
###
Article: Police said the 33-year-old victim was playing on a fruit machine in the Rosevale Tavern in Partick at about 18:00 on Saturday when a stranger assaulted him.
The attacker fled via a side entrance and CCTV showed him heading down Dumbarton Road towards the city centre.
The victim was taken to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital for treatment to a serious facial injury.
Det Con Jen Adams, of Police Scotland, said: "This was a completely unprovoked attack which will leave the victim scarred for life.
"Officers have been conducting extensive enquiries including examining CCTV and speaking to people who were within the pub at the time of the incident."
The attacker is described as being aged in his mid 20s with brown hair which was longer at the top and shaved at the bottom.
He was wearing a black quilted waist-length jacket, dark blue jeans and dark trainers.

Summary:


The European Commission has set out a plan to improve the quality of life for people with vision loss.
The plan will include a new vision-related quality of life assessment tool, a new vision-related quality of life assessment tool for people with vision loss, and a new vision-related quality of life assessment tool for

Fans of the Twilight film series have been warned that they could be putting their sight at risk by sharing cosmetic contact lenses bought online.

Article: John Fleming believes the challenges facing referees are greater than ever but insists a good relationship exists between managers and top officials.
Fleming was speaking exclusively to BBC Scotland at the referees' winter training camp in Spain.
"There's many occasions in the six years I have been in here when referees have been really down," said Fleming.
"They have been down because they feel as if the criticism they are getting is way over the top, and I would agree with that."
Without naming individuals, Fleming says he is sometimes angered by comments made by pundits when it comes to refereeing decisions.
"I will never be obstructive to working with the media, but there is a line that can be crossed and it has been crossed several times," he said.
"It is very frustrating. Sometimes I get angry, especially if the comments made are not technically sound. Especially if they are personalised, which they have been recently.
"That becomes very frustrating when the individual making the comments has not had the common courtesy to perhaps contact me prior to it just to find out if what they are saying is factually correct.
"My door is always open, the phone line is always open."
Although Fleming has issues with recent media comments he says his relationship with managers is more positive.
"I have a good relationship with the SPFL Managers and coaches and other managers and coaches in Scotland, and I want to protect that," he added.
"The only way I can do it is to speak to them. Speak to them after matches, and accept the decision was wrong. Accept it was a big error. It was a clear important mistake as we phrase it in refereeing.
"And on the other hand I will tell them if the referee is right.
"It is up to me to coach the managers and the players to say [in this example] the referee is correct, and here is the reason why he is correct. So you either adopt the practice to combat that, or the referee will be correct and penalise you going forward."

Summary: Scotland's head of referees has been angered by what he calls "over the top" criticism of match officials.
###
Article: Speaking on German TV, she called for "more Europe", including a budgetary union, saying "we need a political union first and foremost".
"Step by step we must from now on give up more competences to Europe, and allow Europe more powers of control."
However, she has resisted calls for the joint issuing of eurozone debt.
She will hold talks on Thursday with UK Prime Minister David Cameron, who has urged the 17-nation eurozone to speed up measures to build a budgetary union to shore up the embattled monetary union.
Ms Merkel's insistence on economic austerity and budget discipline has alienated many Europeans who say the policy is strangling growth and piling more debts on the struggling "periphery" countries like Greece and Spain.
Spain has to find at least 80bn euros (Â£65bn) to shore up its banks, which are struggling because of bad property loans.
Spain's finance minister has said the credit markets are "effectively shut" to his country, but so far Madrid has avoided asking the EU for a bailout.
On Wednesday the European Commission set out
          plans for a eurozone "bank union",
 which could make it easier for troubled eurozone banks to access EU credit.
In her TV interview Ms Merkel reiterated that "budget consolidation and growth are two sides of the same coin".
"Without solid finances, there is no growth, but solid finances alone are not enough; there are other points - above all, questions of competitiveness," she said.
Ms Merkel remains very cautious about the idea of pooling eurozone debts in "eurobonds", despite growing calls - including from the European Commission - for the eurozone to launch them.
Germany, as the strongest EU economy, wants to avoid a situation where it would end up shouldering the debt burden of weaker EU countries.
Direct bailouts of eurozone economies by the European Central Bank are banned under the "no bailout" clause in the Maastricht Treaty, which launched the single currency.
But next month the eurozone will have a new 500bn-euro rescue fund, the European Stability...

Summary: German Chancellor Angela Merkel says the EU needs a political union even if it means some countries integrating faster than others.
###
Article: Cosmetic lenses are available to buy on the internet, in novelty stores or at market stalls, close to Hallowe'en.
Trading standards officers said the law stated that lenses should be sold with an optician or medic present.
Youngsters buying the lenses may wish to recreate the look of the Twilight films and Vampire Diaries TV show.
Cosmetic lenses are used to change the colour of the eye, and are also known as plano or zero-powered lenses.
Trading standards officers and health experts say young people are known to share them, leading to an increased risk of corneal ulcers and infections.
Alistair Bridge, director of strategy at the General Optical Council said: "Opticians make sure that contact lenses fit properly and that wearers receive expert advice on how to wear and store them safely.
"They will also offer important advice such as not to sleep in contact lenses and to never share or swap lenses, which can spread eye disease."
Leon Livermore, Chartered Trading Standards Institute chief executive, said: "Cosmetic contact lenses are often made and distributed on a one size fits all basis and not tailored to the wearer's needs which can increase the risk of eye health issues."
"We would advise against buying products like these online or from retailers as without professional supervision there are more likely to be health concerns for the individual."

Summary:


The government has announced a new tax on the sale of goods and services.
The tax will be introduced in the Budget in the Budget for the Budget 2018-19.
The tax will be introduced in the Budget for the Budget 2018-19.
The tax will be introduced in the Budget for the Budget 2018-

Highland Council has said it remains committed to giving more schoolchildren access to technology.

Article: Where once low-wage workers churned out clothes for export, today a new company has taken up residence that is riding the wave of China's consumer spending boom.
In fact Mr Wedding - a small business employing 16 people - is part of an industry that has been booming like few others anywhere in history.
According to state media, China's marriage market - the money spent on ceremonies, catering, honeymoons and hospitality - has grown from almost nothing a couple of decades ago to a whopping annual 800bn yuan ($130bn; £78bn).
And Mr Wedding, from its old factory base, is trying to carve out a little slice of that economy by offering Shanghai's brides-and-grooms-to-be a familiar service with a twist.
"People can do a lot of almost impossible postures under water," the founder and owner, Tina Liu, tells me.
"The sense of losing gravity creates the beauty of floating."
Underwater wedding: In pictures
Two of her customers Lin Enxiao and He Huan introduce themselves by their English names - Lamea and YY.
They're not getting married until next year, but like many Chinese couples they've decided to get the wedding photographs out of the way early.
"Most of our friends did their photo shoot on dry land," YY tells me. "We wanted something different."
"When people think about wedding photos it's always grassland, white walls and doves," Lamea agrees.
"It feels good to change that picture."
China did not invent the underwater wedding shoot but it has embraced it like nowhere else.
There are dozens of studios offering the service in Shanghai alone, and it is a crowded, competitive market.
"Some talented people have a good concept and good creativity but they don't make it because they lack persistency," Tina says.
Each individual photo shoot is a painstaking, time-consuming process.
Mr Wedding's team of stylists gives Lamea and YY a full makeover, spending a couple of hours on their hair and make-up.
"We suggest that for underwater wedding pictures brides should wear a white wedding dress with a long trail," Tina says.
"And...

Summary: In a suburb of Shanghai, a shabby old textile mill serves as a model of the wider economic transformation China is trying to achieve.
###
Article: Chancellor Philip Hammond announced in the Budget that the rate for Class 4 NICS would rise from 9% to 10% in April 2018, and to 11% in 2019.
That compares to 12% currently paid by employees.
"The difference in National Insurance Contributions is no longer justified," Mr Hammond said.
Self-employed people have traditionally paid lower NICS than employees, as they receive fewer state benefits.
But the chancellor said the self-employed now had equal access to the new state pension. He also said that the government would consult on parental benefits, some of which self-employed people cannot claim.
The chancellor said all self-employed people who earned less than £16,250 would be better off.
Around half of the 4.8 million workers registered as self-employed earn less than £13,000, according to the think tank the Resolution Foundation.
As a result it said most such workers - such as low-paid hairdressers - will be better off by 2019/20.
source: Resolution Foundation
But the rise, which will cost those affected an average of 60p a week, was criticised by entrepreneurs.
"Increasing National Insurance rates for the self-employed could be a further step by the government to penalise those who are taking risks and starting a business," said Lucy-Rose Walker, the chief executive of Entrepreneurial Spark.
Others said it was unfair that the self-employed would have to pay more, when they do not receive the same level of state benefits.
"Self-employees are subject to a lower national insurance contribution because they do not receive the same entitlements and benefits as their employed counterparts - such as holiday and sick leave," said Chas Roy-Chowdhury, head of tax at the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
Those paid less than £16,250 will be better off because of a planned abolition of a different class of NICS - Class 2 - in April 2018.
Under Class 2 NICS, self-employed workers pay 2% on qualifying earnings between £5,965 and £8060, amounting to £2.80 a week.
The increase in the NICS rate will raise...

Summary: Rises in National Insurance Contributions (NICS) for self-employed workers have been criticised as "penalising entrepreneurs".
###
Article: It was responding to a global study that suggested investing heavily in computers and classroom technology does not improve pupils' performance.
Highland Council has a plan to give every P6 to S6 students access to a tablet computer.
The local authority said the study also suggested that good teaching coupled with technology could benefit pupils.
The study of schoolchildren in more than 70 countries was carried out for the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
The think tank said frequent use of computers in schools was more likely to be associated with lower results.
The OECD's education director Andreas Schleicher said school technology had raised "too many false hopes".
But he added that the findings of the report should not be used as an "excuse" not to use technology, but as a spur to finding a more effective approach.
A spokesperson for Highland Council said: "Highland Council is committed to providing technology rich environments in schools, this includes appropriate access to technology for learning purposes.
"We are also committed to reducing inequalities where pupils do not feel excluded due to not having access to appropriate technology for their learning.
"We welcome the OECD report which demonstrates that when good teaching is coupled with appropriate technology it leads to improved outcomes for children and young people."
Highland Council plans to increase the availability of the devices for P1 to 5 pupils to share and give every P6 to S6 student their own tablet.
The proposal is also expected to help the council save money.
The project could form part of the local authority's new IT contract.
The aspiration was first discussed at a meeting of Highland Council's education, children and adult services committee in February.
Councillors heard that the use of tablets at Alness Academy and other schools had led to pupils producing better work.

Summary:


The Scottish government has said it will not be taking any action to stop the spread of coronavirus.

An inquest into an IRA massacre of 10 Protestant workers has been delayed because there is no coroner to hear it.

Article: But the Fraser of Allander Institute said the Scottish economy would  be "cushioned" from the likely impact compared with the rest of the UK.
A report suggested that Brexit could lead to more migration to Scotland from other parts of the UK.
Prime Minister Theresa May has insisted Scotland and the UK could "get a better deal abroad" after leaving the EU.
Holyrood's Europe committee convener Joan McAlpine said the outlook was "grim", and warned there could be a "huge constitutional crisis" if Holyrood was not consulted about the "Great Repeal Bill", which severs ties between the EU and the UK.
The report from the Fraser of Allander Institute examines a series of potential post-Brexit scenarios. These range from an "optimistic" model similar to Norway's relationship with the EU to a "pessimistic" one based on a so-called "hard Brexit" outside the single market, based on World Trade Organisation rules.
The group said the most optimistic outlook would see Scottish GDP drop by 2% within 10 years, causing the loss of 30,000 jobs. The most pessimistic model would see GDP 5% lower within a decade, with 80,000 fewer jobs in the economy.
Prof Graeme Roy, director of the Strathclyde University institute, said the "detailed assessment" had found Brexit was likely to have "a significant negative impact on the Scottish economy".
However, the report noted that "throughout all scenarios, the estimated negative impact of Brexit on the rest of the UK is greater than it is on Scotland, in terms of GDP, employment and other measures".
This is because the rest of the UK's economy has greater exposure to EU trade than Scotland's, while the financial relationship between Scotland and the rest of the UK dampens certain effects.
The report notes that "to a degree this acts to cushion the impacts on the Scottish economy", adding the "shock" of Brexit could "induce net migration into Scotland from the rest of the UK".
The prime minister has insisted Brexit will "enhance" Scotland's standing in the world rather than diminish it.
Mrs May...

Summary: Scotland could lose between 30,000 and 80,000 jobs as a result of Brexit, according to an economic analysis.
###
Article: The scheme was first considered in February 2015 by then-Prime Minister David Cameron.
But an independent review published on Monday warned it would not help people get back into work.
A Downing Street spokesman said "withdrawing benefits from obese people is not under consideration, no."
Before the last election, Mr Cameron said too many people were stuck on sickness benefits because of issues that could be addressed but were not.
"Some have drug or alcohol problems, but refuse treatment," he said.
"In other cases, people have problems with their weight that could be addressed, but instead a life on benefits rather than work becomes the choice.
"It is not fair to ask hardworking taxpayers to fund the benefits of people who refuse to accept the support and treatment that could help them get back to a life of work."
However, an independent review from Dame Carol Black has come to the conclusion the proposals would not work.
The report said: "We are clear that benefit claimants with addictions should, like all other claimants, do all they can to re-enter work.
"However... we doubt whether mandating addiction treatment - one of the possibilities mentioned in our terms of reference - should be the first response to the evidence problems for the cohorts under discussion."
The review also said making people have treatment could lead to more people hiding their problems rather than seeking help.
"We also heard from health professionals serious concerns about the legal and ethical implications of mandating treatment and whether this would be a cost-effective approach," it said.
The review also did not find evidence that obesity was a causal factor for unemployment or that weight-loss achieved through non-surgical treatment led to employment.

Summary: Controversial proposals to withdraw benefits from people who refuse treatment for obesity or addiction have been dropped.
###
Article: Republicans ambushed a mini-bus carrying the men at Kingsmill in County Armagh in 1976 and murdered them after checking what religion they were.
Senior coroner John Leckey is retiring this year and told a preliminary hearing of the inquest in Belfast that no replacement has been appointed.
His retirement could leave only one coroner in Northern Ireland.
Kingsmill is among dozens of inquests dating from the early days of the Troubles that face delay because not enough money is available to investigate or there is nobody to oversee fresh hearings.
Mr Leckey said: "I feel for the bereaved families, not exclusively Kingsmill but for other inquests I am involved in.
"It is a disappointment that is widespread."
A lawyer for some of the Kingsmill victims' families said they would be pressing Stormont's justice department for more resources to allow an inquest to go ahead.
Karen Armstrong, a sister of one of the murdered men, said the lack of resources was "a political problem".
"We are not going to lie down and accept it," she said.
"We will fight until we get another date and they have to make sure there are enough coroners in Northern Ireland to deal with our and many other cases."
Ulster Unionist MLA Danny Kennedy said he would be asking Justice Minister David Ford to ensure the matter was referred to the relevant authorities so that "action can be taken as soon as possible".
"Justice has been denied for almost 40 years and it is totally unacceptable that this inquest should be delayed further due to the unavailability of a coroner," he said.
"This was one of the most shocking and cruel events of the Troubles and the inquest must be treated with the seriousness this crime merits."
A Department of Justice spokesman said: "Officials are actively working to ensure that all necessary resources are provided for the conduct of inquests in Northern Ireland.
"There are currently three full-time coroners in Northern Ireland. In addition, one High Court judge and one County Court judge have also been appointed as coroners."

Summary:


The US President Barack Obama has said he will not seek to "impose" sanctions on Iran, but he has said he will seek to "impose" sanctions on the country.

Pope Francis has condemned the "complicit silence" about the killing of Christians during a Good Friday service in Rome.

Article: Mr Obama, the first black US president, said ensuring economic opportunity was "our great unfinished business".
He also linked his own rise to the White House with the efforts of the civil rights protesters decades ago.
Members of Martin Luther King's family and veterans of the march also spoke.
Mr Obama gave his address at the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall in Washington DC almost 50 years to the minute after Martin Luther King Jr culminated the march with his celebrated I Have a Dream speech
The time - 15:00 local time (19:00 GMT) - was marked by ringing bells.
Mr Obama began by honouring King, as well as the many African-American and white marchers who descended on Washington to protest for equal rights for black citizens 50 years ago.
"They assembled here, in our nation's capital, under the shadow of the great emancipator, to offer testimony of injustice, to petition their government for redress and to awaken America's long-slumbering conscience," Mr Obama said.
"Because they marched, city councils changed and state legislators changed and Congress changed, and yes, eventually the White House changed," Mr Obama said to great cheers. "Because they marched, America became more free and fair."
He praised "those maids, those labourers, those porters, those secretaries" who had transformed the US into the nation "our children now take for granted", in which individuals of different races mix freely in public and private life.
"To dismiss the magnitude of this progress," he said, "to suggest, as some sometimes do, that little has changed - that dishonours the courage and the sacrifice of those who paid the price to march in those years."
But Mr Obama argued "the very significance of these victories may have obscured a second goal of the march" - jobs and the promise of equal economic opportunity.
"They were there seeking jobs as well as justice," he said.
"We must remind ourselves that the measure of progress for those who marched 50 years ago was not merely how many blacks had joined the ranks of...

Summary: US President Barack Obama has linked the ongoing struggle for economic equality in America with the goals of the 1963 March on Washington, in a speech marking its 50th anniversary.
###
Article: Daithí McKay said DFP has not co-operated with the committee regarding the inquiry since July.
The committee is investigating the sale of property loans by the National Assets Management Agency (Nama).
The inquiry was set up after claims a politician was set to profit.
The claim was initially made in the Irish Parliament in July, where an independent member, Mick Wallace, alleged a politician in Northern Ireland was in line to gain from the deal, via a £7m bank account in the Isle of Man.
Politicians, Nama officials, businessmen and companies involved in the deal have all denied any wrongdoing.
Nama: The key figures and background you need to know
Timeline of Nama's NI property deal
The inquiry chairman told MLAs that the DFP has not responded to the committee's requests for information, nor has its permanent secretary returned to appear before its members to answer questions.
"I think its position, in regard to the Nama review, is totally untenable," Mr McKay said.
"The department is remarkably shy about issuing papers. If the department has nothing to hide they need to bring these papers forward," the Sinn Féin MLA added.
"The public will come to their own conclusions, whether they are right or wrong, the more the department continue to pull down the shutters in regard to our review."
The Stormont inquiry is one of five international investigations into the loan sale, known as Project Eagle.

Summary: The relationship between Stormont's Department of Finance (DFP) and its scrutiny committee is at "rock bottom" in relation to the Nama inquiry, the committee's chairman has said.
###
Article: Tens of thousands of pilgrims joined him for the Way of the Cross ceremony, recalling Jesus' crucifixion.
Among the cross bearers were Syrian and Iraqi refugees, and Nigerians who had escaped Boko Haram persecution.
The service came a day after almost 150 people were killed in an al-Shabab attack on a Kenyan university.
"We still see today our persecuted brothers, decapitated and crucified for their faith in you [Jesus], before our eyes and often with our complicit silence," Pope Francis said, presiding over the ceremony at the Colosseum.
Earlier, he condemned the attack in Kenya, where Christians were singled out and shot, as an act of "senseless brutality".
In another Good Friday ceremony, Pope Francis listened as the Vatican's official preacher Raniero Cantalamessa denounced the "disturbing indifference of world institutions in the face of all this killing of Christians".
He too mentioned the Kenya attack, as well as the beheading of 22 Egyptian Coptic Christians by Islamic State (IS) militants in Libya in February.
Pope Francis has spoken out against the persecution of Christians before, saying that the world would be justified using military force to combat the "unjust aggression" by IS.

Summary:


The US economy is in a recession, with the unemployment rate at its lowest level in more than a decade.

The percentage of Americans living in poverty is statistically unchanged from 2010's record high, even as household income fell, a US Census report says.

Article: Russian warplanes have now been seen carrying air-to-air missiles and a Russian warship - the Moskva - was moved closer to the Syrian coast, to enable its air defence missiles to provide additional cover over the Russian air base near Latakia.
But the most significant reinforcement has been the deployment of a sophisticated S-400 air defence system. Its large tubular launchers and associated radar and command vehicles are now in position at the Russian base.
The S-400 is one of Russia's most modern air defence systems with an extraordinary reach. From the airbase near Latakia the S-400's surface-to-air missiles could strike targets in an arc that takes in much of Israel; the eastern Mediterranean (including Cyprus where British jets are based); and northwards to cover a large part of Turkey beyond the Syrian border.
Russia's powerful radars - that reach even further than its missiles - enable it to have a detailed picture of the wider "aerial landscape".
For example, they can see developing coalition air operations and can keep a close track on what the Israeli Air Force is doing.
Manufacturer: Almaz-Antey arms firm; Deployment: Hmeimim airbase near Latakia - entered service in Russia in 2007; Range: 400km (248 miles); Speed: up to 4.8km (3 miles) per second; Max target height: 30km - can track hundreds of targets simultaneously; Types of target: aircraft, cruise missiles, medium-range missiles, drones, other airborne surveillance systems. (Sources: RIA Novosti, Russian 1TV.ru)
There is of course no suggestion that Russia intends to disrupt coalition air operations. Moscow is making a point by deploying the S-400. It sends a robust signal, not just to Turkey, but to public opinion at home that Russia intends to protect its air assets in Syria by whatever means necessary.
However it is very hard to imagine the S-400 actually engaging a Western warplane. Given the number of aircraft operating over Syria it would be difficult, for example, to specifically pick out a Turkish jet. But the presence of the missile...

Summary: The shooting down of a Russian Su-24 warplane by Turkish fighters has prompted Moscow to reinforce its contingent in Syria.
###
Article: Five days of military exercises were scheduled to take place across the island this month, said the state-run newspaper, Granma, as Cuba's armed forces readied themselves for "a range of enemy actions".
In reality, those exercises take place every few years and, by the end of the day, President Raul Castro had sent his formal congratulations to Mr Trump, who will take office in the wake of last year's re-establishment of ties between Havana and Washington.
Even that brief congratulatory message represents an important break with the past.
Quite what the 85-year-old communist leader makes of the former reality TV star isn't clear. He has seen 10 US presidents come and go since he and his brother, Fidel, took power in 1959, some of them vehemently opposed to the Castro government and intent on forcing them from office.
Raul Castro is unlikely to have dealt with a US political figure quite like Donald J Trump.
The extraordinary mixture of braggadocio and brash populism is more often compared with a very different Latin American leader: the late Venezuelan President, Hugo Chavez.
Beyond their personal differences, though, it is Mr Trump's position on the much-vaunted process of thaw that is most under scrutiny in Cuba at this stage. Early in his campaign he said he was "fine" with the Obama administration's policy of rapprochement.
"Fifty years is enough time, folks," he said during a CNN televised debate.
However, by the end of the arduous campaign, he was in Little Havana in Miami, drinking coffee with Cuban-American opponents of the thaw in the well-known Cafe Versailles.
He promised anti-Castro Republicans that he would roll back on Mr Obama's detente, would keep the decades-long US economic embargo on the island firmly in place and would even close the recently reopened US embassy in Havana.
"I want to believe that this was last-minute election opportunism, a kind of old-style form of it and one which I don't think benefited him that much," says Mike Bustamante, an assistant professor in Latin American...

Summary: The headline greeting Cubans the morning after Donald Trump won the US election sounded alarming.
###
Article: The poverty rate was 15% in 2011, meaning 46.2 million Americans were in poverty, staying flat after three previous years of increases.
Real median income of households in the country dropped by 1.5%.
The average poverty threshold for a family of four in 2011 was $23,021 (Â£14,300).
Income inequality, as measured by the Gini index, increased by 1.6% in 2011, the first time there has been an annual rise in the index since 1993.
The percentage of Americans lacking health insurance fell to 15.7% from 16.3%, the report also said.
Poverty in the US reached a record high in 2010, at 15.1%.

Summary:


Scientists are trying to find out if bees make different sounds depending on where in Wales they are.

Article: The Weeping Window was first seen at the Tower of London and commemorated those who died in World War One.
The exhibition has been at The Silk Mill, Derby, since 9 June and has had about 200,000 visitors.
Derby City Council culture spokesman Peter Ireson said he hoped people had been "inspired" by the installation.
Artist Paul Cummins and designer Tom Piper's poppy installation, named Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red, saw more than five million people visit the Tower of London in 2014.
The Weeping Window, a cascade of sculptured poppies, has been on tour across the UK and ends in Derby on Sunday.
Mr Ireson said: "[The exhibition] has been massive culturally in terms of numbers of people who have engaged with this wonderful exhibition, but also in terms of the local economy."
Ashley Lewis, spokesman for the Cathedral Quarter Business Improvement District, said: "It certainly has put Derby on the map nationally and we have had visitors from all around the world and all over the UK.  It's been a really positive thing to have here."
Derby businessman Steve Owens, who runs Jack Rabbits Kitchen, said: "It has pretty much doubled our take. To have something this iconic come to Derby has really increased salesâ€¦ and it is brilliant," he said.
Mr Ireson added: "This proves that â€¦ a fantastic piece of art can inspire people and have an economic  knock-on effect for the rest of the city."

Summary: An exhibition featuring thousands of handmade ceramic poppies has had a "massive" cultural and economical impact on Derby, the city council says.
###
Article: Hundreds of fast food workers and supporters converged in front of McDonald's corporate headquarters on Thursday morning before the company's annual shareholder meeting.
They demanded the fast food giant raise wages to $15 per hour, from $9.
Separately, investors voted to change how board members are elected.
They are unhappy with the firm's slumping sales.
McDonald's - the once invincible-seeming US corporate food giant whose arches are seen across the globe - is struggling, as health-conscious consumers eschew its food in the US and workers stage day-long protests against the company.
That has made this shareholder meeting - the first since British-born chief executive Steve Easterbrook took over the firm in January - a crucial focus of both worker angst and investor frustration.
McDonald's banned media from attending the event, and has sought to dismiss both worker complaints and investor efforts to change the management of the firm.
On a chilly morning outside the company's headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois, hundreds of protestors chanted slogans such as "supersize my wages" as shareholders arrived at the meeting.
A dozen police prevented the protestors from interacting with the attendees, who were required to show their shareholder ballots emblazoned with a large red 2015 stamp to a security guard before being allowed in.
Some protestors carried oversize checks with the weekly wages of "actual McDonald's workers" - $62.18 and $34.07.
Many had travelled from across the country - New York City, Tampa, and Philadelphia - to hand in a petition of a million signatures demanding McDonald's raise the minimum wage it pays workers.
They said they were energised by the Los Angeles' city council's announcement on Tuesday that it had voted to increase the minimum wage in the city to $15 per hour by 2020.
Since 2012, the group - known as the Fast for 15 coalition - has been putting pressure on corporations to increase wages from the current US federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour to a "living wage" of $15.
Many...

Summary: Fast food giant McDonald's is facing pressure from both workers and investors, who are increasingly unhappy with the firm's business strategy.
###
Article: A team from Cardiff University has appealed to more than 3,000 beekeepers to send them photos, videos and audio files from hives over the summer.
The noises will be analysed at the School of Pharmacy.
The research will also help them learn where the bees find their feed by mapping the exact locations they were pictured or recorded.
"The Africanised honey bee makes different sound to the European bees," said microbiology professor Les Bailie.
"The bees we have on the roof of the school here are Italian. Do the bees in Cardiff make the same sound as those in Aberystwyth or Wrexham?"
Prof Bailie said bees could make up to 10 different noises depending on their mood, including angry, calm or ill.
Analysing the "known noises" can help determine where bees are from, but could also be used to play to bees to help their mood.
"A happy bee is a productive bee. If you can make the bee happy by playing them the right sound they can produce more honey," Prof Bailie said.
"Plotting these differences could ultimately help us in our bid to find out which plants help bees the most.
"Gathering photos, video and sound files will help us understand where gaps lie and will help put plants in the right places to make bees more productive."
If enough beekeepers respond, and investigators detect initial differences, the project could be rolled out to include more than 40,000 beekeepers across the UK.

Summary:


A man accused of kidnapping his partner allegedly drove at a police officer who tried to save her, a court has heard.

Article: A man has been arrested on suspicion of arson in connection with the fires.
Patients were "dragged outside" Royal Stoke University Hospital when fire broke out in the main building at about 18:00 BST on Wednesday.
An hour earlier, there was a blaze in toilets at Staffordshire University.
On Thursday, Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service said the hospital fire was started deliberately, with Staffordshire Police later saying it was linking that incident to the university fire.
See more stories from across Stoke and Staffordshire
A force spokesperson said a 39-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life.
Disrupted hospital patients were returned to wards by 23:15 BST on Wednesday, according to University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust which runs the site.
The A&E unit reopened on Thursday.
Deputy chief fire officer Rob Berber said: "The fact that this fire was deemed to be deliberate is very concerning and we are working closely with Staffordshire Police to aid in their investigation into this incident."
He said one man was treated for smoke inhalation at the scene.
No one was injured, police said, in the university fire which happened at about 16:45 BST on Wednesday in the Beacon building on College Road, Stoke-on-Trent.
The hospital trust said people should continue to attend outpatient appointments unless contacted directly.
On Wednesday, eyewitness Paul Bradbury, who had gone to the hospital to visit his mother, said people were "dragged outside in their beds and on mattresses" and "it was quite surreal to see".

Summary: A fire which forced patients to be evacuated from hospital while still in their beds is being treated as arson - and linked by police to a university blaze on the same day.
###
Article: Mothers treated with valproate for epilepsy were up to four times likelier to give birth to a malformed child, the preliminary study found.
Introduced in France in 1967, valproate is prescribed widely worldwide.
Doctors in France are now advised not to give it to girls, women of childbearing age and pregnant women.
The drug's manufacturer, Sanofi, responded in a statement that it had been "totally transparent with health authorities".
"We are aware of the painful situation confronting the families of children showing difficulties that may have a link with the anti-epileptic treatment of their mother during pregnancy," it said.
Some of those affected say France and the company were too slow to warn of side-effects.
The risk of birth defects associated with valproate, marketed as Epilim, Depakine, Depakote and Stavzor among other names, has been known since the 1980s, especially for spina bifida.
In the UK, the National Health Service (NHS) issued an alert earlier this month saying valproate should only be given to girls and women of childbearing age under specialist supervision and only when other medications had been found not to work.
Valproate - prescribed in France, the UK and many other countries - now carries a clear warning : serious risk of birth defects.
In France, it turns out that it took far too long for this danger to become apparent. The drug was first introduced here in 1967. By the early 1980s, there were fears that the drug might be a factor in birth defects, including spina bifida, but prescription rules were only finally tightened in 2014.
France is now working out the damage caused during this long period. Families of children with birth defects want to know why it took so long for this country's authorities to identify the serious risks associated with taking the drug during pregnancy.
According to the new report (in French) by France's National Agency for the Safety of Medicines (ANSM), between 2,150 and 4,100 children suffered severe malformations linked to the drug.
"The study confirms...

Summary: A drug given to pregnant women for epilepsy and bipolar disorder caused "serious malformations" in up to 4,100 children, a French study suggests.
###
Article: Matthew Gillard, of Connsbrook Avenue in east Belfast, pleaded not guilty to charges including kidnapping and false imprisonment.
The defendant, 25, also denied charges of common assault, assaulting a police officer and driving dangerously.
The charges relate to incidents in east Belfast and Comber on Saturday 4 April.
Newtownards Magistrates Court heard that the defendant and the woman were in his car in east Belfast when he began questioning her about who she was seeing.
A detective giving evidence in court said the woman tried to get out of the Seat Toledo car but the defendant allegedly drove off at speed, through a red light on Bloomfield Avenue.
When the car stopped on the Belfast Road in Comber, the woman escaped along a lane but was carried back to the car by the defendant, the court heard.
An off-duty police sergeant saw this and went to help the woman.
When the sergeant tried to intervene, the defendant allegedly drove his car at the officer, forcing him to get out of the way.
The sergeant was able to pull the keys from the ignition through the car's open window, but the defendant wrenched them from his grasp.
He then drove to the Grand Parade area of east Belfast where the woman was released.
He is also alleged to have sent the woman a message threatening that if she went to police about the incident he would "ruin her life in every possible way".
The court heard that the defendant handed himself over to police on Wednesday, despite being aware since Saturday that he was wanted by the PSNI.
But during police interviews he refused to answer questions put to him.
An application for bail was made but this was refused.
Mr Gillard will appear again in court on 1 May.

Summary: