The British Film Institute has released a report on the state of the UK film industry.

A report proposing an agreement between the Church of England and the Church of Scotland has been published, ahead of a debate by the Churches' ruling bodies.

Article: A report by the CfBT Education Trust and the British Council highlights low uptakes of language GCSEs and A-levels as particular concerns.
It found that language teachers felt attracting pupils to study languages after the age of 16 was a "challenge".
The Department for Education said the number of pupils taking languages at GCSE was increasing.
This year's Language Trends Survey is the 13th annual research exercise to measure the condition of language teaching and learning in schools in England.
It is based on an online survey completed by teachers in more than 500 state secondary schools, 600 state primary schools and 120 independent secondary schools across the country.
It does find some positive developments, including the fact that almost half of primary schools are introducing pupils in Key Stage 1 to a language, even though this is not a statutory requirement, and that 99% of primary schools now offer languages.
There has been an increase in the number of pupils studying Spanish at GCSE and A-level - but this increase has not fully compensated for declines in French, German and other languages.
There has also been a "modest increase" - from a low base -  in the number of schools offering Mandarin Chinese, a language the report says is "recognised as crucial to the UK's long-term competitiveness".
The report's co-author, Teresa Tinsley, said it was encouraging to see how primary schools were "warmly embracing" statutory language teaching, making sure that "discovering the delight of new languages and cultures is firmly anchored into everything that children learn in primary schools".
"But our survey shows that secondary teachers are under increasing pressure with exams and performance measures that don't work well for languages," she said.
The report concludes that the prioritisation of maths and science is hitting languages in secondary schools.
It says that, in spite of calls for a greater knowledge of language skills from the the business sector, there is a persistent and widely held belief that...

Summary: Language teaching is facing a "difficult climate" in England's schools, researchers say.
###
Article: The BFI figures, revealed on Thursday, looked at the representation of black actors in more than 1,000 UK films over the last decade.
The study found that the number of UK films with roles for black actors had seen little change over that time.
It also showed 59 percent of UK films made in the last 10 years have featured no black actors in lead or named roles.
Kidulthood star Clarke is followed in the list by Ashley Walters, Naomie Harris and Thandie Newton.
The data was presented at the London Film Festival's Black Star Symposium, at which British actor David Oyelowo issued a plea for a more diverse industry.
"We will only get to the point when I don't have to give these talks about diversity if we actually start to do diversity," he told an audience of industry figures at BFI Southbank.
"The only way that's going to happen is if the demographic of the decision makers changes."
Other findings in the BFI research included:
"Whilst we feel from what we see on screen that most UK films do not cast black actors in them, and that black actors are playing the same types of roles over and again, we now have the data to support this," said BFI creative director Heather Stewart, who presented the research.
"The number of lead roles for black actors has not really changed over 10 years and the types of films in which they have had leading roles suggests stereotyping," she added.
"Colour-blind casting across genres does not really exist on the big screen, ultimately limiting representation.
"Diversity is one of the biggest issues facing film - audiences want to see the world in which we live reflected back at them."
British black actors with the most leading roles in UK films since 2006
The BFI research looked at 1,172 UK films made and released between January 2006 and August 2016.
Of those, 691 films - 59 percent - did not feature any black actors in either lead or named roles.
The proportion of UK films which credited at least one black actor in a lead role was 13% - 157 films in all.
According to the BFI, one of...

Summary: Noel Clarke is the most prolific black actor in UK film, according to new research by the British Film Institute.
###
Article: The Columba Declaration commits the Churches to "grow together in communion and to strengthen their partnership in mission".
Founded in two different branches of Protestantism, England's Church is Anglican and Scotland's Presbyterian.
The two Churches will be debating the report over the coming months.
The Church of England's General Synod will hold a debate in February and the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland will consider the report in May.
The Columba Declaration appears within the Growth in Communion, Partnership in Mission report, which sets out the history of partnership between the two Churches and their shared beliefs.
The report states: "The new arrangements we are proposing are modest and 'light touch' with a small contact group meeting yearly and reporting to the ecumenical bodies within each Church."
The declaration has been authored by Kirk minister the Reverend John McPake, and the Church of England's Bishop of Chester, Peter Forster.
They say the agreement will allow clergy and lay people from each Church to be welcomed into the other when they move across the border.
The pact also recognises that the two Churches have constitutional responsibilities in separate parts of the UK.
Rev Alison McDonald, convener of the Church of Scotland's ecumenical relations committee, said: "The joint report sets out clearly the shared foundations of faith of the Church of England and the Church of Scotland, which enable us to recognise one another formally for the first time.
"This provides a sound basis for our ongoing co-operation and for exploring future partnership."
The Reverend Dr Jeremy Worthern, Church of England secretary for ecumenical relations and theology, said the Church valued its "ecumenical relationship with the Church of Scotland and our relationship within the Anglican Communion with the Scottish Episcopal Church".
He added: "There are opportunities for deepening both relationships as this report continues to be discussed and received by the Churches."

Summary:


Privately contracted so-called "litter police" have been removed from service by a council after an undercover Panorama report found they were getting bonuses for issuing fines.

Article: The allegations relate to irregularities concerning third party consultants.
The France-based aircraft manufacturer said it was co-operating with the probe, which was launched last month.
In April, UK authorities froze export credit applications by Airbus.
The SFO was asked to look at documentation provided by the company about its use of overseas agents.
Export credits are used by many governments to support exporters, often by underwriting bank loans offered to overseas buyers of UK products.
Last year Airbus used export financing for 6% of its deliveries.
The main parts of Airbus commercial aircraft are made in France, Germany and the UK.
Britain usually provides export support to Airbus in partnership with the other two nations.
Germany and France joined the UK in halting export credits.

Summary: The UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has launched an investigation into allegations of "fraud, bribery and corruption" in the civil aviation business of Airbus.
###
Article: Beneath it is an Easter message: "This egg is to remind people to shop at independent retailers".
I had thought that it might be to remind people of the other message of Easter - the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, for example, which churches across the country will be marking on Sunday.
But the message of shopping appears to be the louder one, with the magazine Retail Week announcing the glad tidings that footfall at shopping centres, retail parks and high streets will surge almost 5% over the Easter weekend "as shoppers splurge their payday cash".
It's not clear whether footfall at churches across the country will also surge by the same amount, although Christmas and Easter services continue to attract higher numbers than most weeks.
Some 1.3m people in the UK attended Easter Church of England services alone in 2013 - compared to 2.5m for Christmas.
For many years now, leading church figures have bemoaned the fact that in a country that is still officially Christian, with almost 60% of people identifying themselves as such in the 2011 census (although far fewer actually attend church services, or believe in God), the religious message of Easter has been drowned out by the secular festival of chocolate and shopping being celebrated at supermarkets across the country.
This year, some large supermarket chains were accused of being positively "anti-religious", because they refused to stock chocolate Easter eggs with an overtly Christian message - on the grounds that they had not sold well enough in previous years.
One supermarket chain buyer apparently asked the company that supplies the eggs, the Meaningful Chocolate Company, what Easter had to do with the Church.
It was a story that left many church leaders deeply saddened, and agonising over how such a key time in the Christian calendar has apparently lost so much of its religious meaning.
A few years ago, the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, in his Easter Sunday sermon, expressed his regret that nearly a third of British children in one survey said they...

Summary: A large, feathery Easter egg stands in the middle of a small street in a shopping area in north London.
###
Article: Enforcement company Kingdom Services hands out on the spot fines.
Ashford Borough Council removed all its Kingdom officers from patrolling the streets, after one was filmed revealing he raked in a bonus of almost £1,000.
They will be out of action while undergoing extra training.
A spokeswoman for the council said: "In light of the recent Panorama programme we have decided to take this opportunity to give our wardens some important additional staff training exercises so they can continue operating fairly and effectively.
"We haven't suspended them but they are not patrolling currently. They should be back soon, after the training has been undertaken."
Littering is a crime, but by paying the fine you can avoid a criminal record. Another Kent-based Kingdom trainer was caught on camera saying they pretend to call the police to pressure people to pay up.
The BBC1 programme, aired on Monday, revealed people across the country were wrongly fined for tipping coffee down a drain and putting their recycling out on the wrong day.
On Tuesday Maidstone Borough Council also removed its own Kingdom officers while a review was carried out. They were back patrolling on Wednesday.
It is not the first time councils in Kent have had problems with Kingdom.
Maidstone suspended its officers last year for a two-week review after a woman was incorrectly fined for littering while feeding some ducks.
Gravesham Borough Council severed ties with Kingdom last year and now operates its litter enforcement "in-house".
A spokesman for Kingdom said: "Our service operates under some of the tightest legal guidelines which set the fixed penalty notice level and affords anybody the right to appeal to the council or/and challenge with the courts if they choose."

Summary:

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A cheese-carrying race up a famous Dorset street is due to take place later.

Article: The bureau's director James Comey said the group posted material from servers used exclusively by the North Koreans.
November's attack on the company saw the leak of sensitive documents, and film The Interview briefly shelved.
Cyber security experts have been sceptical about the FBI's assertion North Korea was to blame.
After Sony's decision to temporarily cancel the film's release was described by US President Barack Obama as "a mistake", Sony later released the film in independent cinemas and also distributed it online.
The comedy's plot revolves around a plan to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Pyongyang has denied being behind the cyber-attack, but described it as a "righteous deed".
In retaliation, the US has placed sanctions on three North Korean organisations and 10 individuals.
The sanctions are believed to be the first time the US has moved to punish any country for cyber-attacks on a US company.
Mr Comey had been addressing delegates at the International Conference on Cyber Security in New York.
He said there was evidence the hackers had used proxy servers in an attempt to disguise the attack's origins, but sometimes neglected to do so, revealing, the FBI believes, the true location.
But experts remain unconvinced that the US has proved its case.
"To be frank, director Comey has not revealed anything new," said Brian Honan, a security researcher.
"Various IP addresses have been associated with this attack, from a hotel in Taiwan to IP addresses in Japan.
"Any IP address connected to the internet can be compromised and used by attackers."

Summary: The US is confident that North Korea was behind the Sony Pictures cyber-attack last year because the hackers "got sloppy", the FBI has said.
###
Article: The permitted increase - which is taken from the Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation measure for July - will be the highest since January 2013.
Passenger groups said commuters would be worst-hit, and suggested that the RPI measure should be scrapped.
The most widely watched and used measure, the Consumer Prices Index (CPI), was unchanged at 2.6%.
The fare rises will affect "anytime" and some off-peak fares as well as season tickets in England and Wales.
In Scotland, it is mainly commuters who will be affected, with off-peak fares rising by a smaller amount. The Scottish government currently limits rises in off-peak fares to RPI minus 1%.
There are no plans for increases in Northern Ireland.
Unregulated fares, which include super off-peak travel and advance tickets, will be set in December.
Transport Focus, which represents the interests of passengers, said rail users were already fed up with getting poor value for money.
David Sidebottom, director of Transport Focus, said: "Yet again, passengers, now majority funders of the railway, face fare rises next January. Commuters do not give value for money on their railways a high satisfaction score - just one third according to our latest survey.
Transport Focus also queried the use of the RPI measure to determine fare increases: "Why is the Government not using its preferred measure of inflation: the one that is used to determine wages and pension increases, and one which is often lower than RPI? Why not use the Consumer Prices Index for rail fares too?"
The CPI measure has gradually replaced the RPI over the past few years as the benchmark for changes to most government-controlled funding.
James Tucker from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said it was not in favour of using RPI as a benchmark: "We know there will be a focus on the RPI this month, but the National Statistician has been clear it is not a good measure and we do not recommend its use."
The Department for Transport rejected the idea of using CPI, saying RPI was used across the rail industry -...

Summary: Millions of rail users in the UK will see the price of regulated rail fares rise by up to 3.6% in January.
###
Article: The Gold Hill Cheese Run sees entrants run up the cobbled Shaftesbury street with a 55lb (25kg) cheese.
The event, based on activities of cheese traders in years gone by, began in 2012 as part of the town's food festival.
Barnaby Cox, 18, who has won the race twice, has put his success down to "technique and power".
Organiser Charlie Turnbull said the event was a tribute to a millennia of cheese making in the Blackmore Vale, with "slightly mad" participants racing with the locally-made cheeses which are 35cm (14") in diameter.
"Each one takes up to 500 pints of milk - that's a lot of effort from a lot of cows. But they are not very convenient to carry up a hill."
The street was made famous when it was used in a Hovis bread television advertisement filmed by Ridley Scott in 1973.
It depicted a boy struggling to get up the street on his bicycle to deliver bread to the sounds of Antonin Dvorak's New World Symphony.

Summary:


The YPG, working with some Free Syrian Army-aligned rebels, and backed by US-led coalition air strikes, have taken control of Tal Abyad, with its ethnically mixed population, that had been held by IS since last year.
The YPG's victory in Kobane was symbolically significant, but Tal

Extra time has been granted to detectives quizzing a murder suspect over the discovery of a body in a stream.

Article: Ghostly pale and totally blind, olms - fondly known by locals as "baby dragons" - only reproduce every 5-10 years and are thought to live to 100.
This clutch of eggs started to appear in January in an aquarium in Postojna Cave, a tourist destination where the creatures have lived for millennia.
Observing baby olms develop and hatch is a rare opportunity for science.
The first of 23 developed eggs hatched on 30 May; a second baby olm (pictured below) was slowly wriggling out of its egg on Wednesday night.
"It is the end of one part of the story and the beginning of a whole new chapter: feeding and living without the egg," said Saso Weldt, who looks after and studies the olms at Postojna Cave.
He told BBC News nobody witnessed the first egg hatching, but the moment was captured thanks to an infrared camera.
"I was in the cave doing some other biological work. Since we have all the eggs on an IR camera, we saw that one was missing. Then you rewind and suddenly you realise, something has happened."
Mr Weldt and his colleagues hope to see a full count of 23 healthy hatchlings within a few weeks.
The staff at Postojna have been consulting amphibian experts to help them care for the fragile eggs, including a French team that has studied the olms in an underground mountain lab since the 1950s.
That laboratory is the only other place where these animals have ever been observed emerging from their eggs.
"In the cave, in nature, they hatch all the time - but nobody here has ever seen a hatchling younger than about two years," Mr Weldt said.
This clutch of eggs, which has captivated the Slovenian public, was laid by a single female over a period of several weeks.
"We did not do a paternity test, so we cannot know if it was a single father or not. But it was one mother," Mr Weldt said. "She's with our colony of proteus and she's doing well."
The eggs have been kept in a separate enclosure and watched very closely.
Originally there were 64, but only 23 embryos developed. The rest of the eggs were unfertilised and decayed,...

Summary: After a four-month wait, the eggs laid by a peculiar salamander in a Slovenian cave have started to hatch.
###
Article: In January, their fighters grabbed world attention when they drove IS out of Kobane, another border town further east.
Now, the YPG, working with some Free Syrian Army-aligned rebels, and backed by US-led coalition air strikes, have taken control of Tal Abyad, with its ethnically mixed population, that had been held by IS since last year.
The YPG's victory in Kobane was symbolically significant, but Tal Abyad offers far more strategic value.
Long-term control of Tal Abyad would further the YPG's goal of connecting the non-contiguous zones of territory it holds across northern Syria, which it organises into three "cantons": Afrin (north-west of Aleppo); Kobane (west of Tal Abyad); and al-Jazira (north-east Hasakeh province).
If the YPG is able to hold Tal Abyad and use it to connect Kobane to al-Jazira, it will increase its strategic value to the US-led anti-IS coalition and will empower its self-governance structures in predominately Kurdish north-eastern Syria.
Tal Abyad is important to the anti-IS coalition because the town has long served as a key IS supply route, and a crossing point for foreign fighters seeking to join IS in Raqqa, the group's de facto capital.
There are few organised, trained and willing forces in Syria that the anti-IS coalition can rely on as a ground partner in its campaign in Syria.
Moreover, Turkey has been reluctant to fully co-operate with the coalition, instead tolerating a porous border with Syria that has, in the words of one US official, created a "permissive environment" for jihadists.
While Tal Abyad has been under firm IS control, for instance, Turkey has continued to allow some supplies to cross in from the Turkish border town of Akcakale, including sacks of fertiliser that contain ammonium nitrate used by IS to build explosives.
Turkey's vacillation stems in part from its prioritisation of toppling Syrian President Bashar al-Assad over fighting IS, and in part from its fear of the YPG. It views the latter as equivalent to the Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK), which it...

Summary: The capture of the strategic northern border town of Tal Abyad from Islamic State (IS) is the latest in a string of gains by the dominant Kurdish militia in Syria, the YPG, and its political branch, the PYD, across the north of the country since 2011.
###
Article: The man, who has not yet been formally identified, was discovered in a wooded area near the Goodwyns housing estate in Dorking on Monday.
Surrey Police has been given more time to question a 21-year-old male arrested on suspicion of murder.
The force is awaiting the results of a post-mortem examination.

Summary:


The world's largest man-made gas leak has been discovered in the UK.
The gas leak was discovered in the UK on the night of 13 October.
The gas leak was discovered in the UK on the night of 13 October.
The gas leak was discovered in the UK on the night of 13 October.

A dog that mauled a four-month-old baby to death snatched the boy from his mother's arms, an inquest has heard.

Article: Their study,in the Journal of Breath Research, investigated using it to help convert stem cells from human teeth into liver cells.
The scientists claimed the gas increased the purity of the stem cells.
Small amounts of hydrogen sulphide are made by the body.
It is also produced by bacteria and is toxic in large quantities.
A group in China has already reported using the gasto enhance the survival of mesenchymal stem cellstaken from the bone marrow of rats.
Researchers at the Nippon Dental University were investigating stem cells from dental pulp - the bit in the middle of the tooth.
They said using the gas increased the proportion of stem cells which were converted to liver cells when used alongside other chemicals. The idea is that liver cells produced from stem cells could be used to repair the organ if it was damaged.
Dr Ken Yaegaki, from Nippon Dental University in Japan, said: "High purity means there are less 'wrong cells' that are being differentiated to other tissues, or remaining as stem cells."
One of the concerns with dental pulp as a source of stem cells is the number that can be harvested.
However, the study did not say how many cells were actually produced.
Prof Chris Mason, a specialist in regenerative medicine at University College London, said: "It would be interesting to see how hydrogen sulphide works with other cells types."

Summary: Hydrogen sulphide, the gas famed for generating the stench in stink bombs, flatulence and bad breath, has been harnessed by stem cell researchers in Japan.
###
Article: Thousands of stargazers came out to watch the eclipse, which only lasted for a few minutes, using special protective glasses.
This particular eclipse is called an "annular eclipse".
It happens when the moon is farther away from the earth, making it appear smaller.
This means that when it passes in front of the sun, it doesn't completely block it out like a total eclipse.
Instead you can still see the outline of the sun behind it, creating the amazing "ring of fire" effect.
This happens because the the moon does not move in a perfect circle around the earth, it is more like a squashed circle or an ellipsis.
This means that sometimes it is closer and further away from the earth.
The next eclipse is due to take place in February 2017, and can be seen from parts of South America and Africa.

Summary: Take a look at this incredible "ring of fire" eclipse which could be seen across parts of Africa.
###
Article: Archie Darby died on 13 October after being attacked by a Staffordshire bull terrier-type dog in Harwich Road, Colchester.
Essex Coroner's Court heard the infant died from severe head injuries consistent with a dog attack.
His 22-month-old brother Daniel-Jay was left with "life-changing injuries".
The boys' mother was also hurt.
Live: Read more about the hearing and other Essex news
The dog was put down with the consent of its owner - the children's aunt - who has been named in reports as 31-year-old Clare Ferdinand, a serving Essex Police officer.
Police are not treating the attack as a criminal investigation.
During a brief hearing, coroner's officer David Dinnell said: "Archie Darby was a four-month-old baby being held in his mother's arms when he was taken out of her arms by the family dog and attacked."
The inquest heard an ambulance was called and CPR was attempted but Archie was pronounced dead at the scene at 16:02 BST.
Senior Essex Coroner Caroline Beasley-Murray said: "Please let condolences be expressed to Archie's family at this very dreadful time for them."
A full hearing will take place in December.

Summary:


The Queen's reign is a time of great change for the country.
The Queen's reign is a time of great change for the country.
The Queen's reign is a time of great change for the country.
The Queen's reign is a time of great change for the country.
The Queen's reign

A new picture of the Queen to appear on coins has been unveiled.

Article: About 336 people who currently use the service could instead be made to pay for the meals themselves.
Other options being considered include increasing the price of the service or delivering frozen meals in bulk instead.
A report to councillors said the service had made a financial loss in recent years which must be addressed.
The proposals are part of the council's bid to save of £6.5m for the 2015/16 financial year.
It comes after local government minister Lesley Griffiths announced last month that authorities across Wales should prepare for funding cuts of up to 4.5% next year.
The authority said ending its Meals Direct service would result in staff redundancies or redeployments.
If that option was agreed, the council said it would investigate if cafes and pubs could take over the service - but said users would need to pay for it themselves.
Issuing frozen meals could help reduce costs because fewer deliveries would be made, but some people with greater care needs would still need help to cook the meals, the report said.
Another option being considered is charging more for the service in a move which could see prices rise from £2.60 to between £3.10 and £5.10, in line with other authorities.
Alternatively, the council could continue to provide the service, but the report warned it had lost money in the past few years and it needed to bridge the funding gap.
Meals are currently provided to residents in their own homes following a social services needs assessment.
Some people who receive them also receive extra care, including help to cook their food.
The report said seven other councils were also considering scrapping meals on wheels services.
Caerphilly council's heath social care and wellbeing committee will discuss the proposal at a meeting on Thursday.

Summary: Council-funded meals on wheels could be scrapped in Caerphilly county in a bid to save £252,000 a year.
###
Article: The Scottish Nature Omnibus Survey is carried out annually for Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).
Analysis of the results has suggested that media coverage of problems affecting the bees was likely to have raised awareness of the insects.
Red squirrels were the survey's top conservation concern.
They were followed by deer, wildcats and birds of prey.
The proportion of survey respondents concerns about bumblebees has risen from a low of 1% in 2013 to 9% this year.

Summary: Scots have become increasingly concerned about bumblebees, according to the results of a survey into public attitudes towards Scotland's wildlife.
###
Article: It's the fifth coin portrait to have been created during the Queen's reign.
It was unveiled in a special ceremony in London and coins carrying the new design will also begin being made from today.
But it may take a little while for the coins to get into your pockets - new coins tend to go to cash centres and banks first.

Summary:


The BBC has been accused of being biased in its coverage of the Moomins.
The BBC's coverage of the Moomins has been criticised by the BBC's editorial board, who have accused the BBC of being biased in its coverage of the Moomins.
The BBC's editorial board have also accused the

Walking tours led by people who have been homeless have been launched in Edinburgh.

Article: A US congressman made the claim last month after visiting Camp 7, saying it showed the inmates were "not exactly holy warriors".
Lawyer James Connell says guards this week gave a copy of the erotic novel to his client, possibly as a joke.
But 9/11 accused Ammar al-Baluchi had no interest in the book, he said.
The 35-year-old, also known as Abd al-Aziz Ali, is a senior al-Qaeda member who has been charged with war crimes.
He is also a nephew of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind behind the September 2001 attacks.
Mr Baluchi turned up in court this week at Guantanamo for pre-trial hearings, with a copy of E L James' best-seller, according to his lawyer.
"He said, 'you'll never guess what I have,'" Mr Connell told the BBC.
Mr Baluchi handed the copy of Fifty Shades of Grey to his lawyer, and said the fairly worn paperback had been a gift.
A couple of guards at Camp 7, the secretive facility where he is confined, had given him the book, Mr Baluchi said.
Mr Connell said his client has not read the book. He is an avid reader of the Economist and Wired magazine - and the novel did not interest him, said the lawyer.
"He [Mr Baluchi] knew that it was some sort of a joke," said Mr Connell. "Or some sort of disinformation campaign."
The book was passed to Mr Baluchi after reports circulated of its alleged popularity among inmates, following a US congressman's visit in July to the prison.
Journalists are not allowed to visit Camp 7, a secretive facility that opened in 2006.
But Representative Jim Moran, a Virginia Democrat, told the Huffington Post he had discovered that detainees in the facility were enjoying the trilogy of novels about sadomasochism.
"It demystifies them," Mr Moran also told the Miami Herald, following his 26 July tour of the base.
"It exposes them for who they actually are."
He said that their choice of reading material shows they are "not exactly holy warriors. Just the opposite. These people are phonies."
The claim surprised many as inmates' access to reading material is strictly...

Summary: A lawyer for a detainee at Guantanamo Bay's highest-security section has rubbished reports that Fifty Shades of Grey is a favourite read among inmates.
###
Article: But for those of you who find them a bit creepy - it's best to stay away from Helsinki in March because that's when the Finnish National Ballet is putting on the show.
This is the first time Tove Jansson's characters have been made into a dance.
"Although the body of the Moomins isn't the most flexible," the website promises they will feature in the show.
Other characters will "take care of the classical ballet part" in the production, which will tell the story of Comet Moominland.
"When everything is not well in the Moominvalley, Moomintroll and his friends heads to the Observatory on the Lonely Mountains," explains the show's synopsis.
"In the Observatory they are told that the comet will hit the Earth within a few days. Will the Moominvalley survive?"
If you can make your way to Finland, adult tickets will set you back 42 euros (Â£32.50) each.
The show is said to be suitable for children over the age of four - but even if you're a bit older than that and still find the Moomins a little scary, you might also want an adult to accompany you.
Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter, BBCNewsbeat on Instagram and Radio1Newsbeat on YouTube

Summary: If you think they're super cute, then you'd better start booking your ticket to the Moomin ballet now.
###
Article: Invisible Edinburgh said the aim was to reveal a different side to Scotland's capital city.
The tours start in the Grassmarket, Castle Terrace and Middle Meadow Walk and each has a different theme and is tailored to the guide's individual experience.
The venture has funding from the Edinburgh Airport Community Fund.
The themes are powerful women of Edinburgh, crimes and punishment, community sport and food and charity.
Zakia Moulaoui, 28, from France, set up the tours after getting the idea from a project in Greece where street vendors take people on walks.
She told the BBC Scotland news website: "We have four guides at the moment but will be training up more in September.
"There is a homeless point to all the walks, which is personal to the guide, so for example the crime and punishment tour will tell you about Burke and Hare but the guide will also tell you about his own relevant problems with the court across the road with funny stories.
"The tours are a mix of old and new.
"In the powerful women of Edinburgh you will hear about Maggie Dickson but then also about JK Rowling."
The Â£8 tours run on a Saturday and tickets must be bought online.

Summary:


The city of Edinburgh has been hit by a series of fires in recent weeks.

Energy firms will be banned from charging catch-up bills for gas and electricity used more than 12 months earlier, under the regulator's plans.

Article: The woman, 26, remains in a critical condition in hospital following the shooting in Oxfordshire.
Officers were called by ambulance crews to Thornhill Walk in Abingdon, at about 20:00 GMT on Tuesday.
Thames Valley Police said the suspect, from Ealing in west London, was arrested on Wednesday night.
One resident told BBC Radio Oxford: "We heard a loud bang and we heard a lady scream. This did not sound like a firework."
Searches and forensic examinations have been taking place in and around Northcourt Road.

Summary: A 20-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a woman was shot in the head.
###
Article: Almost one million people visited the city during the six-week festival period over Christmas and Hogmanay.
Organisers said almost 890,000 people visited the Edinburgh's Christmas events in 2014/15, contributing £199.5m to the local economy.
The three-day Hogmanay celebrations attracted more than 150,000 people, creating an economic impact of £41.8m.
Charlie Wood, Edinburgh's Christmas festival director, said: "This is great news for Edinburgh. The revenue generated does not go to the events themselves, the event organisers or to Edinburgh city council.
"This is money, which is going to the businesses of Edinburgh, be it retail, accommodation, food, drink, shopping and entertainment."

Summary: Edinburgh's winter festivals generated more than £241m for the city, according to organisers.
###
Article: Customers who pay via direct debit often receive bills based on estimated meter readings.
When an actual reading is taken, the company "back-bills" the customer for any shortfall between payments and the energy used.
Citizens Advice says that the bills hit thousands of pounds in some cases.
Its research last year showed that as many as 2.1 million consumers a year receive some sort of catch up bill, at an average of Â£206.
In 2007, energy suppliers signed a voluntary commitment promising not to back-bill domestic customers for energy used more than 12 months previously, if the supplier was at fault.
The expansion of the market has led to concerns that some are not keeping to this agreement, and regulator Ofgem wants to write it into the rules by the winter.
"We expect suppliers to put their customers first, which is why we are proposing a new enforceable rule to provide this protection," said Rachel Fletcher, senior partner at Ofgem.
Gillian Guy, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: "Shock gas and electricity bills can throw people's finances into disarray.
"We helped one person who received a bill for over Â£3,000 after their energy company stopped taking their direct debit payment but didn't tell the customer. The firm refused to apply the 12 month back-bill limit, leaving the customer to pay the full bill.
"We've long been calling on the regulator to introduce a mandatory time limit for back bills instead of relying on voluntary action, which suppliers have refused to apply in some cases."
The regulator is planning to reduce the back bill time limit when more accurate smart meters become the norm in homes. Citizens Advice is calling for this deadline to be reduced to three months.

Summary:


The Scottish Football Association (SFA) has announced it will be introducing a new "safe" age for football players.
The new age will be introduced in the next few months.
The SFA said it was "committed to ensuring that all players are fit and fit for the game".
The new age

The 400th anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare next year will be marked by a major global cultural and educational project in 140 countries.

Article: The horse - the first novice to win the Gold Cup for over 40 years - will miss the festive meetings.
Some reports have suggested the eight-year-old is out for the season.
Sara Bradstock, wife of trainer Mark, told the Racing Post, "Coneygree won't run in the King George (at Kempton on Boxing Day) having sustained a new injury."
She added: "He's being assessed by vets this morning."

Summary: Coneygree, who won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in March, has been sidelined until next year with an injury.
###
Article: Of the 15,385 coaches registered with the Scottish Youth Football Association (SYFA), 2,500 have not had Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) clearance.
The PVG checks are carried by Disclosure Scotland and search databases including criminal records.
The SYFA has now announced plans to tighten up procedures.
The organisation said any registered official who is participating in an 11-a side programme and has not submitted a current PVG application form by 28 February 2017 will be placed under an automatic precautionary suspension.
It comes amid a burgeoning child sex abuse in football scandal, which has led to the Scottish Football Association announcing it will establish an independent review of the "processes and procedures" in place both currently and historically in Scottish football.
About 4,000 PVG applications are processed every year by the SYFA, taking an average of 8-10 weeks to process at a total annual cost of between Â£25,000 to Â£30,000.
The SYFA told the BBC there were around 90 PVGs waiting to be processed, which means there are around 2,400 coaches who have not even begun the application process yet.
Any official who has not yet completed the PVG process is classed as a provisional member and is not permitted to have unrestricted access to players.
For a person to become a fully affiliated youth coach they have to undergo a series of background checks including previous clubs and reference checks.
It is the individual club's responsibility to register the coach, and have them fill out the relevant forms to be PVG cleared.
Every month the SYFA sends reminders to Scotlands 41 youth football leagues to alert them to the numbers of coaches who remain to be PVG cleared.
The SYFA said that it planned to tighten up procedures.
In a statement, it said: "We have written to all league secretaries informing them that any registered official who is participating in an 11-a side programme and has not submitted a current PVG application form by 28 February 2017 will be placed under an automatic precautionary...

Summary: About 2,500 coaches are working in youth football in Scotland without having full background checks, BBC Scotland can reveal.
###
Article: Culture Secretary John Whittingdale said the playwright was "one of our greatest literary exports".
The initiative will include working with young people without access to school in developing countries.
The British Council's Sir Ciaran Devane said the project would reflect Shakespeare's "global impact".
Speaking in the Houses of Parliament at the launch of Shakespeare Lives, Mr Whittingdale emphasised the playwright's cultural significance and international influence.
"Shakespeare is a major driver of tourism and also an important player in our export market. And the creative industries which he towers over are a huge part of our economy," said Mr Whittingdale.
"It is very hard to overstate the scale and scope of his reach."
Partners in the 400th anniversary project include the National Theatre, Royal Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare's Globe and the BBC.
There will be performances, publications, films, broadcasts, online events and festivals.
Schools in the UK and around the world will be given resources and video clips, exploring themes such as "global citizenship".
But there will also be an alliance with Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO) to use the Shakespeare events to reach those young people who are excluded from education.
Despite a millennium pledge for universal primary education, there are about 58 million children who have no access to school - mostly in sub-Saharan Africa.
There are an estimated 250 million young people around the world who are unable to read or write.
"When millions of children cannot read, they become cut off from learning those lessons that literature can offer," said Philip Goodwin, VSO chief executive.
The exercise in cultural "soft power" will include events in the United States, Bangladesh, Malaysia, New Zealand, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates.
Sir Ciaran, British Council chief executive, said the playwright was "one of the most enduring examples of cultural impact and relations".
He said the "genius" of Shakespeare's language had given "people from all walks of life...

Summary:


An alleged victim of two ex-BBC radio presenters accused of child sex crimes told a court they later rejected him as he was "probably too old".

Article: About 700 Welsh employers will be affected when the UK-wide levy is introduced on 6 April.
An assembly committee said Welsh Government engagement about the charge had been "patchy" and employers were confused.
The Welsh Government said it was helping to "minimise" its impact.
All employers with a wage bill of more than Â£3m a year will pay a 0.5% levy towards the apprenticeship scheme in England.
The UK government has said Wales will get around Â£130m a year from its share of the levy, but Welsh Ministers have disputed this.
A report published by the assembly's Economy Committee on Wednesday said the tax had "considerable implications" for devolved areas and had been introduced without the assembly being consulted.
Committee chairman Russell George said businesses still had concerns about the introduction of the levy next week and ministers "must re-double efforts" to clear things up.
"While the Welsh Government published detailed new documentation immediately prior to giving evidence to the Committee, engagement with employers over the last year has been patchy and employers still have questions about what they'll get for their money," he said.
The Conservative AM repeated calls for the UK government to ask the assembly's permission before imposing charges devolved in Wales.
The report makes 13 recommendations to the Welsh Government, including lobbying the UK government to make sure schools are not adversely affected by the change.
The Welsh Government has pledged to create at least 100,000 high quality all-age apprenticeships over the next five years.
A spokesman said the apprenticeship levy "directly conflicts with areas of devolved responsibility" and overlooked its own approach in Wales.
"To help minimise its impact on employers and learners the Welsh Government is taking a different approach to its counterparts in England - one which is better aligned to and supports the growing needs, of Wales, its people and economy," he said.
"We will consider the recommendations of this report in detail and respond...

Summary: Businesses in Wales remain "uncertain" about the impact of a new tax to fund apprenticeships, a Welsh Assembly committee has said.
###
Article: The figures point to a sharp drop in the number of new firms operating in the oil and gas sector.
That energy category, known to statisticians as "mining and quarrying", dropped from 215 to 99 start-up businesses.
The total number of start-ups, compiled by the four main banks in the Scottish market, was down 1%, to 11,669.
The Committee of Scottish Bankers reported a 2% drop in the final quarter, compared with the last three months of 2014.
By region, Aberdeen city and Aberdeenshire saw a drop in new companies from 1539 to 1382.
The east of Scotland was the only other region to report a fall, from  3139 to 2956.
Measured by council area, Edinburgh saw a fall but it was Glasgow that stood out for a significant drop compared with 2014 - down from 1468 to 1,330 new firms.
The decline of urban start-ups registered in these statistics may be partly explained by growing competition for business banking from lenders with a smaller presence in the Scottish market.
The Committee of Scottish Bankers includes Royal Bank of Scotland, Bank of Scotland, Clydesdale and TSB.  It does not include HSBC, Barclays or Nationwide.
According to the four main Scottish-based banks, most regions of Scotland saw a small increase in start-up business, except in the south of Scotland, where new firms registered by the bankers were up from 477 to 600.
One of the biggest business categories, recreation and personal services, fell from 1686 to 1382.
Adding most new firms was the real estate sector, rising from 3,186 to 3,371 start-up accounts.
There was a drop of 500 in the number of sole traders registering with banks, while the number of legally-constituted companies was on the rise.

Summary: The number of new businesses opening accounts with Scotland's major lenders last year was down on the 2014 figure.
###
Article: The man claims he had sex with Julie Wadsworth up to 15 times, between the ages of 14 and 18, including once when her husband Tony joined in.
He told the jury he sent messages to Mrs Wadsworth years after the alleged abuse when "drunk, depressed, or down".
Julie, 60, and Tony Wadsworth, 69, deny assaulting seven boys in the 1990s.
For more on this story and other Birmingham news
The Wadsworths, from Broughton Astley, Leicestershire, who have worked for BBC Radio Leicester and BBC WM, deny five counts of outraging public decency between July 1992 and June 1996.
Mrs Wadsworth has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges of indecent assault and Mr Wadsworth denies 10 counts of the same offence.
The complainant, now in his 30s, told Warwick Crown Court: "I kept going back when the abuse was happening.
"I didn't really want to do that. Afterwards I felt guilty, it was terrible."
Mrs Wadsworth's barrister David Hislop claimed the accuser became angry because the radio star "rejected" his advances when he contacted her on Facebook and by email years later.
The complainant replied: "Yeah, I was probably too old."
The man also denied the barrister's claims he had become "wholly obsessed" with Mrs Wadsworth and that he reported the couple to police only after his "heartfelt" messages were ignored.
The man replied: "I had occasionally [become obsessed] - when I was drunk, depressed, or down.
"When I looked back on it and would crave it [sex]."
"It's probably why you're meant to have sex with underage kids isn't it, because that is what it does to them."
He has told the jury he reported his allegations to police after receiving professional child protection training.
In a Facebook message he sent to Mrs Wadsworth in 2015, he said he wanted to meet her.
It read: "Been years - I still look back very fondly on fun times xx."
Another said: "I hope you don't see me as a stalker or a nuisance or anything like that - I'm a genuine guy and do really look back fondly on our time.
"I learnt a hell of a lot during our friendly chats."
The...

Summary:


The Queen is a "very good mimic" with a knack for imitating regional accents, her cousin has said.

Article: More than 200 guests attended the celebration of HMS Warspite at Plymouth's Devonport Dockyard.
The ship, launched in 1913, holds more honours than any other in British naval history and served in both World Wars.
Alan Jones from HMS Warspite Association said she was "a mighty warship of historical significance" to both Plymouth and the nation.
The "iconic" super dreadnought was launched on 26 November 1913 in the presence of the First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill, and 30,000 others.
During the Battle of Jutland in 1916, Warspite held off the German High Seas Fleet, surviving two dozen heavy shell hits, while in World War Two, she saw action in the Arctic, the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean and the English Channel.
She was taken apart after running aground in a storm off Prussia Cove in Cornwall in 1947.
The ship was the seventh Royal Navy vessel to bear the name Warspite.
The original was launched in 1596 and became Sir Walter Raleigh's flagship for an attack on the Spanish port of Cadiz.
Iain Ballantyne, associate member of the HMS Warspite Association and Plymouth naval historian and author, said the 1913 ship's "amazing" life was also the story of a navy and a nation.
"She was created and launched when Britain was at the zenith of its imperial power and last saw action when the empire was in decline," he said.
"Warspite used oil-fired boilers for her propulsion at a time when most naval vessels relied on coal, plus she carried the biggest guns ever mounted in a vessel of her kind."
Mr Ballantyne, who has documented the ship's history in his book, Warspite: From Jutland Hero to Cold War Warrior, said despite fears while she was being built, "Warspite turned out to be a tremendous success [and] a remarkable vessel".
"Churchill famously had nightmares that, with time running out in the race with Germany, Warspite would turn out to be slow and her untested guns might not work at all.
"[However] she and four sister vessels - Queen Elizabeth, Valiant, Barham and Malaya - were the deadliest...

Summary: One of Britain's "deadliest ships" has been honoured at a centenary service in the city where she was built.
###
Article: Government statisticians said the total poultry flock fell by 11% over the past year, to just over 13 million.
The broiler sector was hit hardest, with numbers falling by 27% to 5.7 million birds.
The number of broilers is now the lowest on record.
The fall was partially offset by a 7% increase in layers and a 7% rise in the number of fowls for breeding.
Last month, NFU Scotland called on the Competition and Markets Authority to intervene to save processing facilities in Scotland, claiming that the number of independent chicken producers in Scotland had fallen from 28 to 12 since December 2014.
It cited the closure of a number of company-owned farms in the Scottish Borders by Hook 2 Sisters, Scotland's dominant chicken processor.
Meanwhile, the June 2015 Agricultural Census recorded small increases in the number of cattle, sheep and pigs in Scotland.
However, it also found a 10% fall in the area used for potato growing, which shrank by 2,700 hectares to 26,000 hectares.
The area is now the smallest on record.

Summary: The number of chickens in Scotland has fallen sharply following the closure of several large poultry producers late last year, according to the latest agricultural census.
###
Article: Margaret Rhodes said the monarch, who holidays at Sandringham in Norfolk, can imitate the distinctive local brogue "beautifully".
The Queen, who turns 90 this week, is still "full of laughter", Mrs Rhodes told BBC Radio 4.
She also has a sense of humour when things go pear-shaped, and enjoys telling amusing tales, her cousin said.
"She can tell very funny stories of things that have happened to her where things might have gone just a fraction wrong," Mrs Rhodes told the PM programme.
One such tale might include the time she met a shopper in Sandringham who did not recognise her and declared that she looked just like the Queen, prompting the monarch to remark: "How very reassuring".
Ms Rhodes said the Queen's vocal talents were not confined to the East of England, and years spent at Balmoral in Aberdeenshire meant she is also able to do an impressive Scottish accent.
Follow updates on this story and other news from Norfolk
A guide to the Norfolk accent
Source: Friends of Norfolk Dialect
She will spend her birthday, on 21 April, at Windsor Castle, where she will unveil a plaque on the Queen's Walkway.
Gun salutes will be held at all saluting stations across the UK at 12:00 BST, and members of the Army cadet force will take beacons to the top of the highest peaks of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Summary:


A new report from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) says that the world's top 10 economies are in recession.
The IMF's latest report, released on Tuesday, says that the world's top 10 economies are in recession.
The report, which was released by the IMF's World Economic Outlook, says that

Actor Christopher Biggins has been removed from the Celebrity Big Brother house for making "a number of comments capable of causing great offence", the reality TV show has said.

Article: Padukone, in association with Vogue magazine, released a video on Saturday to raise awareness about women's rights in India.
"My body, my mind, my choice, to wear the clothes I like even as my spirit roams naked, my choice," these are the opening lines of the the video which features 99 women.
The video has received more than three million views.
"In my family, my father is the only male in the house, but all of us have a voice. I've always been allowed to be who I want to be. When you're not caged, when you don't succumb to expectation, that's when you're empowered," says Padukone.
But some say the video concentrates on "male bashing".
Ankur Poddar, who has made a rival video titled "my choice male version", says he respects all women, but feels that such initiatives need to look at the bigger picture.
"Women need to be respected but there has to be a pause to an anti-men campaign. Some are taking advantage of this campaign. Women and men are equal," he says.
Mr Poddar adds that "there must be an awareness over violence against women but it should not be against men".
His video has received just over 200,000 views since it was uploaded on YouTube on Monday.
"It's my choice to go the gym or have a beer belly...Thinking all men are same, is like calling white the new black," says Mr Poddar's video.
Analysts say the "rival videos" only reflect deeper divisions in the society about what exactly freedom for women means in the country.
Padukone's video has received support and criticism in equal measure in the media and on social media platforms.
"So then, what does make a truly empowered woman? Having the right to have sex whenever and with whoever? And wear whatever and return home whenever?" asks Piyasree Dasgupta in her article on the CNN-IBN website.
She adds that "the most significant choices in life have had to do with education, financial independence and the power to support our families instead of sex, clothes and staying out".
An article on the Quartz website says "Vogue and Padukone have a lot in...

Summary: A response to Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone's video on women's empowerment has fuelled debate on gender equality in India.
###
Article: Australia's world of high finance and at least a dozen global banks have recently been thrust into the spotlight because of two separate lawsuits.
Court filings allege a key Australian interest rate benchmark was manipulated for hundreds of millions of dollars in "illicit" profit between 2010 and 2012.
It is partly because of the colourful exchanges between traders over phone, email and instant messenger, all set out in these court filings, that charges have been laid.
"You dropping by the casino for Christmas day?" a senior Australian interest rates trader nicknamed "The Rat" allegedly asked another trader in one transcript.
"Which casino? BBSW?" he messaged back.
BBSW is an acronym for Australia's bank bill swap rate, the local equivalent of Libor. It essentially determines what banks charge to lend to each other.
"Lucky the rate sets are all legit and there is no manipulation within the Australian financial system," an ANZ trader wrote in a separate incident.
"Ahahah" was the reply, according to court documents.
A decade since those messages were sent, it is safe to say their employers - now being sued - definitely aren't laughing.
Australia's "Big Four" banks of National Australia Bank, ANZ, Westpac and Commonwealth Bank of Australia, as well as Macquarie, have found themselves at the centre of the US court battle.
As the country's biggest lenders, they played a pivotal role in how the BBSW benchmark was calculated.
The methodology was changed in 2013 following the international Libor scandal. The BBSW, which is used to price everything from corporate loans to mortgages, is now based off a collection of live rates from the market.
The other defendants in the US class action lawsuit are Citibank, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, BNP Paribas, Royal Bank of Scotland, UBS, Royal Bank of Canada, Credit Suisse, ICAP and Tullett Prebon.
The plaintiffs are hedge funds Sonterra Capital Master Fund, Frontpoint Financial Services (which helped inspire the film The Big Short) and an American...

Summary: If you thought the fallout from the global Libor rate-rigging scandal was over, think again.
###
Article: Programme makers did not disclose the comments made by Biggins, who had been the bookmakers' favourite to win.
But they said the Channel 5 show "does not tolerate offensive language".
Biggins, 67, had sparked controversy four days earlier over comments that bisexual people were "the worst type".
Opening Friday's live show - which saw presenter Anthea Turner's ex-husband Grant Bovey voted out of the house - presenter Emma Willis made brief reference to Biggins' removal but gave no details.
A statement posted on the Celebrity Big Brother website said the show had "taken the decision to remove Christopher Biggins".
"Since entering Big Brother, he has made a number of comments capable of causing great offence to housemates and the viewing public," it said.
"Big Brother does not tolerate offensive language capable of causing widespread offence."
During a conversation about homosexuality earlier this week, the openly gay star said: "The worst type though is, I'm afraid to say, the bisexuals... what it is is people not wanting to admit they are gay."
He was then seen agreeing with fellow contestant Renee Graziano's comment that "You have to pick a team".
The programme's producers have not said whether these comments were among those that they considered before ordering Biggins to leave the house.
Two of the other housemates have received official warnings from Big Brother over their behaviour in the show's first week.
US singer Aubrey O'Day was warned for spitting in reality TV star Stephen Bear's sandwich.
Bear himself received a warning after throwing a mug, which smashed a glass window, following a row with Heavy D from the TV show Storage Hunters.
Biggins won ITV show I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! in 2007.
The other contestants on this year's Celebrity Big Brother are: Renee Graziano of TV's Mob Wives; former X Factor contestants Chloe Khan and Katie Waissel; US actor Frankie Grande; reality TV stars Lewis Bloor and Marnie Simpson, former EastEnders actor Ricky Norwood; Loose Women presenter Saira Khan,...

Summary:


The European Commission has approved a new law that will allow companies to sell their products to the public without having to pay a licence fee.
The law, which will be introduced in the European Parliament on 1 January, will allow companies to sell their products to the public without having to pay a licence fee.
The law

Shale gas test drilling in Lancashire has been suspended following an earthquake on the Fylde coast.

Article: The RMT union described Northern's pay offer as "unacceptable" and claimed it did not meet "benchmarks for pay deals that RMT has set elsewhere in the industry".
Northern said it was "disappointed" at the ballot and had offered staff "an above inflation pay rise".
Voting will take place at the end of January.
RMT general secretary Mick Cash claimed Northern staff were being offered "a below the rate for the job pay deal".
"Industrial relations with the firm were already at a low and the latest pay offer shows continued contempt for the workers who run the service and make the company's profits," he said.
"Our members deserve to paid properly for the work that they do."
A spokesman for Northern said: "Northern has offered over 5,000 employees a guaranteed, above inflation pay rise over the next three or four years.
"The offer is a 2% increase in year one, followed by Retail Price Index (RPI) plus 0.1% in each of the following two or three years."
Northern, which is owned by Arriva Rail North Ltd, took over the franchise on 1 April 2016.
It runs services between cities and towns across the north of England.

Summary: A rail union is to hold a vote on industrial action on services in the north of England in a dispute over pay.
###
Article: The Espad report for 2015 includes most EU countries, but not Germany or the UK, and data for Spain is incomplete.
In 2015 "current smokers" accounted for 21% of those surveyed, and the highest total was in Italy (37%).
In 1995-2015 those using alcohol in the past 30 days fell from 56% to 47%. Top in cannabis use were the Czechs (37%).
That figure for Czech teenagers reporting a lifetime experience of cannabis was higher than the level in the US - 31% in comparable surveys.
The average for cannabis use in the European countries surveyed was 16%. That was lower than the comparable figure for Spain - 27%.
Cannabis was far more readily available than other drugs such as ecstasy or cocaine. The report found no correlation between anti-drugs legislation and the cannabis data.
"Trends in cannabis use indicate an increase in both lifetime and current use between 1995 and 2015, from 11% to 17% and from 4% to 7%, respectively," Espad said.
Espad is short for European School Survey Project on Alcohol and other Drugs.
The results showed large differences in cannabis use among European countries, with an upward trend in Bulgaria, Greece, Poland and Romania, among others.
The proportion of students who started daily smoking at an early age - before 13 - fell over the 20 years from 10% to 4%.
Alcohol use among European teenagers remains high, the report said. But lifetime use in 1995-2015 fell from 89% to 81%. Nordic countries - but not Denmark - were among those with the lowest alcohol consumption among teenagers.
High alcohol rates were found in Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia and Hungary.
New psychoactive substances (NPS) - not generally controlled under anti-narcotics laws - "seem to be more commonly used than amphetamine, ecstasy, cocaine or LSD," Espad says. NPS chemicals imitate the effects of illegal drugs.
Students in Estonia and Poland (both 8%) were the most likely to have experiences with NPS. The European average was 4%.

Summary: Cigarette and alcohol use among 15- and 16-year-olds is declining across Europe but the numbers using cannabis are growing, an EU survey shows.
###
Article: Cuadrilla, the firm behind the tests, said drilling had been suspended as a precaution after the 1.5 magnitude tremor - the second in two months.
It will now examine the data collected by the British Geological Survey (BGS) before deciding whether to resume.
A tremor centred on Poulton-le-Fylde on 1 April shared a "similar location and mechanism", the BSG said.
Shale gas drilling, known as "fracking", involves shattering hard shale rocks underground to release gas using either hydraulic pressure or tiny explosions.
Mark Miller, chief executive of Cuadrilla Resources, said: "We take our responsibilities very seriously and that is why we have stopped fracking operations to share information and consult with the relevant authorities and other experts.
"We expect that this analysis and subsequent consultation will take a number of weeks to conclude and we will decide on appropriate actions after that."
The process has proved controversial in the US with environmentalists alleging that shale gas leaking into their drinking supply could cause tap water to ignite.
But earlier this month the Commons energy select committee called on ministers to support the process in the UK arguing that environmental problems associated with it in the US could be overcome by tight regulation and good industry practice.
The BGS said it was also monitoring fracking as a precaution. There have been two small earthquakes in Lancashire since fracking began in the county in March, including the latest on Friday.
In an analysis of the April quake published on its website the BGS said: "Any process that injects pressurised water into rocks at depth will cause the rock to fracture and possibly produce earthquakes.
"It is well known that injection of water or other fluids during the oil extraction and geothermal engineering, such as Shale gas, processes can result in earthquake activity."
The BGS said the April tremor took place 1.2 miles (2km) away from the drilling site but said its monitoring instruments were 50 miles (80km) away.
Speaking...

Summary:


Security researchers have cancelled plans to buy potentially undetected software security vulnerabilities from a notorious group of hackers.

Article: An internal briefing document seen by the BBC says the effects of globalisation on advanced economies is "often uneven" and "may have led to rising wage inequality".
The bank, which provides loans to developing countries, also says that "adjustment costs", such as helping people who have lost their jobs, have been higher than expected.
Dr Jim Kim, the head of the World Bank, told the BBC that he understood why people were angry in advanced economies despite the fact that free trade was one of the "most powerful" drivers of growth and prosperity.
"I hear them and they are saying that my life is not better than my parents and my children's life does not look like it's going to be better than mine," he told me.
"So there is a real concern but the answer is to have more robust social security programmes, so you have a safety net. And then you need to get serious about getting the skills you need for the jobs of the future."
Dr Kim said that 20% of jobs lost in advanced economies could be linked to trade, with the rest down to automation and the need for new skills.
He said governments needed to do more to support those who had lost their jobs.
The document, written by World Bank economists, does say that "trade has played a powerful role in creating jobs and contributing to rising incomes in advanced economies", as well as in emerging economies.
But it highlights problems that have been created.
"Recent evidence for the US suggests that adjustment costs for those employed in sectors exposed to import competition from China are much higher than previously thought," the document says.
"While trade may have contributed to rising inequality in high income economies, so has technological change and the weakening of institutions that used to represent the interests of labour.
"Given overall efficiency gains, the dislocation effects of trade in advanced economies must be addressed through stronger safety nets and enhanced skills and flexible labour markets."
Dr Kim said that if developed countries start throwing up...

Summary: The World Bank has admitted the growth of global free trade has not been a success for all.
###
Article: It follows Thursday night's vote by King's Lynn and West Norfolk Council to overwhelmingly reject the deal.
The devolution plans were set to bring to the East £750m over 30 years for infrastructure and £130m for housing.
The new set-up would have given the new authority road and housing powers from central government.
A meeting of Norfolk County Council due to take place on Monday to consider devolution has been cancelled.
Analysis by Andrew Sinclair, BBC Look East Political Correspondent
I am told the Local Government Secretary Sajid Javid has decided that the deal can't go ahead in its present form.
As a result Norfolk County Council has cancelled Monday's meeting when councillors would have voted on the plan.
But Suffolk is being told to continue with its meetings next week as ministers feel Suffolk devolution on its own may work.
Norfolk County Council leader Cliff Jordan said: "The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government has been clear throughout the devolution process that for a combined authority to be set up all participating councils would need to consent to his draft order. As a result of King's Lynn and West Norfolk's decision, we understand the Secretary of State will be writing to the Norfolk and Suffolk authorities to take the current devolution deal off the table.
"I will be making clear to the Secretary of State that Norfolk County Council continues to be willing to discuss alternative proposals."
Jennie Jenkins, chair of Suffolk County Council's public sector leaders group, said she was disappointed by King's Lynn's vote.
"We will be seeking to explore the potential for a Suffolk-based devolution deal and to investigate options for establishing interim governance arrangements for any such alternative deal," she said.

Summary: Plans to devolve powers to Norfolk and Suffolk with a mayor have been scrapped by the government in their present form.
###
Article: The plan involved buying hacking tools offered by the Shadow Brokers and then protecting computers before they could be targeted by cyber-criminals.
But critics had argued that the Shadow Brokers should not benefit in this way.
One of the researchers behind the plan said the scheme was being abandoned for "legal reasons".
Some critics had warned that paying the Shadow Brokers for access to their hacking tools, even with honest intentions, could be illegal.
The Shadow Brokers previously sold access to hacking tools allegedly stolen from the US National Security Agency - but often released the vulnerabilities for free later anyway.
One of the tools was used to help spread the WannaCry malware that affected thousands of organisations worldwide, including the UK's NHS.
The hacking group currently plans to sell a new batch of security exploits, for a payment via the crypto-currency Zcash, worth about $22,000 (Â£17,000).
On Tuesday, two security researchers set up a crowd-funding campaign to buy access to the exploits, so the vulnerabilities could be fixed instead.
But the idea divided the cyber-security community.
"There's a 50-50 split on whether it is a good idea and whether it would encourage Shadow Brokers to continue their activities," said Matthew Hickey from the cyber-security firm Hacker House, who set up the crowd-funding campaign.
Others were more outspoken: "Individuals and corps funding criminals is insane," said security researcher Kevin Beaumont.
Announcing the closure of the crowd-funding campaign on 1 June, Mr Hickey said: "If you ever want to hear a lawyer shout expletives at volume down a phone, you need to call him and tell him you have created the first open source crowd-funded cyber-arms acquisition attempt.
"It transpires that should funds change hands from ours to the Shadow Brokers we would certainly be risking some form of legal complications."
Those who have donated to the campaign using Bitcoin can seek a refund, and any unclaimed funds will be donated to online rights group the...

Summary:


The UK's biggest retailer is set to face a radical change in the amount of money it pays in business rates in future, new research suggests.

French authorities are seeking €356m (£276m) in unpaid taxes from Booking.com, according to documents filed by parent company Priceline.

Article: The best savings involve taking out a "dual fuel" deal, where one provider supplies both forms of energy.
Many people have been put off switching, but Ofgem maintains the process is very simple.
Not everybody is able to switch their supplier. If you are in debt to a supplier, you might not be able to.
If you have a pre-payment meter and you owe more than £500 for gas or electricity, you might not be able to switch.
There are two main types of energy deal, a fixed-term contract, typically lasting a year or 18 months, and a standard variable tariff.
If you are one of the two-thirds of householders on a standard variable tariff, the potential for savings is larger.
However, over the past few years the gap between standard variable tariffs and fixed rates has narrowed, as can be seen from the graph below.
You will need:
The change should take no longer than 17 days. That includes a 14 day cooling-off period. Your supply will not be interrupted during that time.
If you are on a fixed-rate deal and decide to switch before it ends, you may be charged an exit fee. But if you are within 49 days of the end of the deal, you should not be charged.
You can contact your supplier directly, and ask if they can give you a better deal. But there will be a wider choice of deals through price comparison websites.
Ofgem provides this list of approved sites: Quotezone, The Energy Shop, Runpath, Simply Switch, My Utility Genius, Switch Gas and Electric, Energylinx, Unravel It, Money Supermarket, Energy Helpline and Uswitch.
These sites do not always point consumers in the direction of the cheapest deals. They tend to promote those that you can switch to straight away, and with whom the websites have made an agreement.
Better deals may be available if you are prepared to wait. However any site approved by Ofgem has to include a clickable option to see all tariffs available, not just preferred suppliers.
Such sites have a "whole of market" button, allowing you to see all the deals on offer.
Citizens Advice: Help for switching...

Summary: According to the regulator, Ofgem, it is possible to save about £300 a year if you switch your gas and electricity provider.
###
Article: Property consultant Colliers International found 76 out of the UK's main towns and shopping centres will see an increase in their rates bill.
Some parts of London will see an increase of more than 400%, it says.
The winners, mainly in the Midlands and north of England, will see business rates plummet, it adds.
Newport in south Wales could see bills fall by some 80%, the report found.
"The business rates losers are found only in London and the South East and it could turn highly profitable stores, including independent retailers, into failing businesses," said John Webber, ratings expert at Colliers International.
Business rates are a tax based on property values. They are usually revalued every five years.
The last revaluation in England and Wales was in 2010 but this year's revaluation was controversially postponed to 2017.
The Government's Valuation Office Agency is busy updating its figures but Colliers has done its own research on how the rating revaluation will affect High Street retailers, based on analysis of rental data from 2010 to 2015.
It says it found big variations across the country:
Marlow faces an increase of 58% in rateable value, followed by Guildford at 42%, and Brighton up by 18.5%.
But Rochdale in Greater Manchester, hit hard by the economic downturn,  will see a decrease of 30%. Kidderminster in the West Midlands is down by 42%.
And in London, it is Dover Street which is the biggest loser, with an increase of 415%. Brixton faces a potential 128% increase in rateable value, although Ealing will see a decrease of 46%.
Mr Webber believes some retailers are going to be in for a nasty shock when the business rates change in 2018.
"Business rates is a major cost for retailers and it's really important that they are able to budget for these once-in-a-generation changes," he adds.
The government has promised a review of the current system and will deliver its findings by next year's Budget.
Business rates are expected to raise around £28bn for the Treasury's coffers this year, more than the sum...

Summary: High Streets in the UK are set to face radical changes in the amount of money they pay in business rates in future, new research suggests.
###
Article: Documents filed with US regulator said French authorities recently completed an audit of Booking.com's accounts from 2003 to 2012.
The French government said Booking.com had a base in France and was obliged to pay income and value-added taxes.
The company said the majority of funds being sought are penalties.
"In December 2015, the French tax authorities issued Booking.com assessments for approximately €356m, the majority of which would represent penalties and interest," the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission said.
The company said believed it complied with local tax law, and would contest the ruling in court if it could not reach a settlement with the French government.
In the same filing Priceline said Italian tax authorities were examining "whether Booking.com should be subject to additional tax obligations in Italy".
Last week, Google's headquarters in Paris were searched as part of an investigation into possible tax evasion.

Summary:


An American basketball player has been banned from South Korea's domestic league for life after prosecutors said she forged her birth documents.

Article: NHS trusts in Merseyside and Cheshire face a funding gap of nearly £1bn by 2021, the health service has confirmed.
A report leaked to the Liverpool Echo included the proposal to merge the Royal Liverpool, Broadgreen, Aintree and Liverpool Women's hospitals.
Louise Shepherd, leading work on the plan, said it was in the "early days" and the public would be consulted.
All local health and care providers in England have come together into geographic areas called 'footprints' for which they must create a five-year sustainability and transformation plan (STP).
The Merseyside and Cheshire STP suggests merging the four hospitals to help meet a predicted £999m financial shortfall.
"It's a big challenge... We anticipate that we will have a £999m cumulative gap in our finances by 2021 if we do nothing", Ms Shepherd said in a statement.
The Merseyside and Cheshire STP is "the second largest in the country" with "32% of people living in the most deprived areas and more over 75s than elsewhere," she said.
"We need to close these gaps to provide the standard of care we believe the public deserves".
She said an "initial document has been pulled together" and public consultations would be undertaken "once some further work has been done".
Paul Summers, from public service union Unison, said people were "astonished and astounded" at the scale of savings needed as they had "not been anticipating such a shortfall in funding for the NHS".
"They're really worried about it, the NHS staff that I've spoken to today are concerned - they don't know what's coming.
"They understand that they operate in services that have to make cuts as they're going along - and they have done since 2010 - but after today's leaked report, they're really worried and shocked at the scale for these demands for savings," he said.
The Merseyside and Cheshire STP area covers 12 Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs):

Summary: Four hospitals in Merseyside could merge under cost-cutting plans being considered by the NHS.
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Article: Jordan Winn drove at almost 100mph in a 30mph zone during the pursuit in County Durham in October last year.
The 23-year-old, from Murray Park, Stanley, admitted dangerous driving.
But during mitigation at Durham Crown Court he claimed his Staffordshire bull terrier, Buster, had become stuck in the footwell of his Volvo.
Judge Christopher Prince described as "ludicrous" Winn's claims that the dog made the car speed by sitting on the accelerator pedal, and then moved to the brake, causing it to swerve to avoid another vehicle.
The court heard that an officer spotted Winn driving at speed in Chester-le-Street before pursuing him.
CCTV footage showed the police car travelling at 88mph in an attempt to keep up with Winn as he drove at close to 100mph.
At one point, Winn's Volvo was seen to brake hard, and turn, just missing an oncoming vehicle.
When he eventually stopped and got out of his car, the bull terrier also leaped out.
Following his arrest Winn pinned the blame for his excessive speed on Buster.
Winn claimed the car accelerated and braked "because the dog's backside was on the pedals of the vehicle", Judge Prince said.
He added: "You advanced an utterly ludicrous account on which you were to insist for over a year."
Winn was also disqualified from driving for three years.

Summary: A driver who claimed his excessive speed during a police chase was due to his dog sitting on the accelerator pedal has been jailed for 13 months.
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Article: Chelsey Lee, 26, played for Bucheon KEB Hana Bank in the Women's Korean Basketball League (WKBL), whose teams are allowed only two foreign players.
Prosecutors were asked to investigate after the Korean Olympic Committee pushed for Lee's naturalisation.
The WKBL says Lee will be suspended for life and her records annulled.
The Miami-born centre won the league's rookie of the year award in the 2015-16 season after helping her team reach the championship series.
However, Lee and her two agents are suspected of fabricating her and her father's birth certificates to show she had a South Korean grandmother.
Bucheon KEB Hana Bank issued a public apology, vowing to take legal action against Lee and her agents.
The club's owner and head coach will step down.
WKBL commissioner Shin Sun-woo said the team's records and ranking will be nullified and the league will scrap the extra quota for international players with a Korean parent or grandparent.

Summary:


Reported sightings of leatherback turtles are increasing off Wales, with the reptiles thought to be drawn by high numbers of jellyfish.

Article: It will likely lead to a large X-ray telescope being launched in 2028, and to an orbiting observatory to detect gravitational waves going up in 2034.
Together, these two ventures will cost in excess of 2bn euros (Â£1.7bn).
They join a mission already approved known as Juice, which will see a big satellite sent to observe Jupiter and its icy moons in 2022.
The path ahead was set by the Science Programme Committee (SPC) of the European Space Agency (Esa), which is meeting in Paris, France.
The committee's decision should now give clear direction and certainty to Europe's research and industrial base.
"These big missions take a long time to put together - of the order of 20 years," said Dr Fabio Favata, head of Esa's Science Planning and Community Coordination Office.
"Of course, when you fix things you trade flexibility for stability, but this gives the community the opportunity to plan. They now understand what will be the 'pillars', what will be the 'cornerstones'," he told BBC News.
The SPC gathering was asked to approve a set of scientific "themes" that will guide the selection of Esa's next Large Class mission opportunities. The agency tries to launch one of these flagship endeavours every six years.
The themes are titled the "hot and energetic Universe", and the "gravitational Universe".
And although these themes do not endorse a specific X-ray telescope or gravitational wave detection concept, their prescription is so tight that only two candidates can have real confidence of making it through the forthcoming selection process.
These are the two consortia that narrowly lost out to the Juice team in the last L-Class competition in 2012.
The X-ray telescope proposal currently goes by the name of Athena+. It would be roughly four tonnes in mass and have a 12m focal length. With a survey capability and sensitivity a hundred times better than today's best space telescopes, Athena+ would be used to study the origin of the monstrous black holes that reside at the centres of galaxies, among other objectives.
The...

Summary: Europe has fixed a broad plan for the big space science missions it will launch over the next two decades.
###
Article: Gross domestic product in the world's third-largest economy grew at an annualised pace of 1.7%.
The better-than-expected growth rate came after higher government spending helped to offset weakness in business investment and exports.
It marks a rebound from the previous quarter but is not thought to lessen the pressure for more economic reform.
Japan's economy had shrunk in the final three months of 2015, so the expansion in the first quarter meant it avoided falling into recession - usually defined as two successive quarters of contraction.
The past four quarters have been volatile, alternating between growth and contraction.
In January, the Bank of Japan introduced negative interest rates in an attempt to stimulate the economy.
"One of the lessons over the past year is that monetary policy isn't as effective as it was in the past and might have reached some limits," Martin Schulz from Fujitsu Research Institute told the BBC.
"So what we will probably see this year is that the Bank of Japan will keep buying government bonds and the government will probably start to spend even more than it did before to support the economy."
Analysts remain concerned about the outlook for consumer spending, which accounts for about 60% of economic growth.
The surprisingly strong economic growth between January to March was partly attributed to an extra day because of 2017 being a leap year.
There are fears that consumer spending could take a hit if Prime Minister Shinzo Abe moves to increase the country's sales tax to 10% from the current 8%.
Japan's Nikkei newspaper reported this week that Mr Abe plans to postpone the move and will announce his decision after the G7 meeting later this month.
The country's government has for years been desperate to boost its stagnating economy and push consumer spending.
Tokyo's reform package - dubbed Abenomics - kicked off in 2012 but has so far failed to spur economic growth in the way its supporters had hoped for.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's economic policy, which quickly became...

Summary: Japan's economy has dodged a recession after it grew faster than expected in the first three months of the year.
###
Article: Three sightings have been reported in recent days, in Laugharne, Carmarthenshire, north Pembrokeshire and Anglesey.
Dr Peter Richardson, of the Marine Conservation Society (MCS), said Wales' waters were currently "turtle heaven".
The turtles nest in the Caribbean before travelling to UK waters to feed.
Dr Richardson said there had been high numbers of jellyfish - the food source of the leatherback - reported in the Irish Sea this year.
He added: "The waters around Wales are absolutely perfect at the moment for turtles - turtle heaven."
"What we have seen in the last few weeks is a sudden increase in the number of leatherbacks reported off the coast of the UK, mostly the south west, but in the last few days we have had three reports of leatherbacks off Wales."
Describing the leatherback as a "spectacular animal," he added: "Wales boasts the largest leatherback ever recorded anywhere on the planet.
"In 1988, a dead one washed up at Harlech... and it measured just under 3m (10ft), nose to tail, and weighed just under a tonne."
In 2002 and 2005 there were about 70 sightings of leatherback turtles around the British coast, but since 2007 there have been 20 or fewer reported annually, according to the MCS.

Summary:


Further tests will be carried out on a man who died while suffering from measles after post-mortem examination results were inconclusive.

Article: Those farming the highest hills in Wales were being offered ten times less in subsidy payments than those on lower slopes and moors.
But as subsidy budgets are fixed "some redistribution" of the money is now inevitable, warned Rebecca Evans.
She said options were being drawn up for debate later in January.
The Welsh government's stance was formally quashed by the courts in December following a challenge by a Welsh farmers' campaign group, Fairness for the Uplands (FFTU).
While the farming money comes from the EU, the rules on how it is allocated in Wales were drawn up by the Welsh government.
Under the original agreement, the Welsh government ruled that land above the 400m (1,300ft) line was worth £16-a-hectare or €20 in EU subsidies to farmers, while below the line land was worth £160 or €200 a hectare.
According to FFTU, about 300 hill farmers out of 15,000 in Wales were affected by the ruling.
Ms Evans said in a statement on Monday that it was "inevitable that this revised situation will result in change to the payments that farmers might have expected in the years ahead".
Options will be presented to union leaders and countryside organisations later in January.

Summary: Some Welsh farmers could see EU cash cut after upland farmers won a legal challenge, the deputy farming minister has warned.
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Article: Steven Davenport, 18, from Chelmsford, admitted murdering Ashley Woolley in the city's Oaklands Park last December.
Mr Woolley, also 18, died in hospital after being stabbed in the neck and body.
Davenport, who is understood to have had a fantasy about murdering somebody, was jailed for life at Chelmsford Crown Court and will serve at least 18 years.
Mr Woolley's father Trevor Woolley said he would have liked to see the death penalty for people like Davenport.
Mr Woolley told how he was wrapping up presents for his children when he learned Ashley had been murdered.
"Our world stopped at that point and it has never started since," he said.
"Ashley had befriended him because he was the loner of the class and Ashley, being Ashley, said 'come on, join the party'.
"We know that his killer had a fantasy about murdering someone and Ashley, being the only one in the class that had befriended him, well he then chose him as his victim.
"We went and saw the CCTV of it and you see Ashley coming out and he runs up behind him and stabs him.
"Ashley knew nothing about what was about to happen. He stabbed him in the neck and then, on the floor, and stabbed him in the kidney and liver.
"I am still trying to get through the loss of Ash. He loved life, he was cheeky, he was funny and if he saw somebody down he would tell a joke and try and make them laugh."
Mr Woolley said he would like to see a return of the death penalty for cases such as his son's, as Davenport had shown no remorse and because of the way in which his son was lured to his death.

Summary: A loner who lured a student who had shown him friendship to his death has been jailed for life.
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Article: Gareth Colfer-Williams, 25, died last week at his home in Swansea, the city at the centre of an epidemic of the disease which has reached 942 cases.
But the examination was unable to establish whether measles was the main cause of his death.
An inquest will be opened and adjourned on Tuesday to allow further tests.
Since the outbreak began in November, 83 people have needed hospital treatment for the illness.
Mr Colfer-Williams' mother, Angela Colfer said her son had recently been treated at Swansea's Morriston Hospital for asthma.
A few days after he was discharged he became unwell and developed a rash.
Mrs Colfer said her son went to see an out-of-hours GP on 17 April with a rash "from head to foot" but not on his arms.
The following morning, Mr Colfer-Williams was found dead at his flat.
Public Health Wales said on Friday that laboratory tests confirmed a diagnosis of measles but further tests were needed to determine the cause of death.
The family said they had no idea how Mr Colfer-Williams got measles as no close family member has it, including his three-year-old daughter who has been vaccinated.

Summary:


Westinghouse, Toshiba's US nuclear unit, has filed for US bankruptcy protection.

Article: The process of beatification, or declaring the late pontiff to be "blessed", is a crucial step towards making him a saint.
John Paul II died in 2005 after a papacy of nearly 27 years.
The Vatican credits him with the miraculous cure of a nun said to have had Parkinson's Disease.
Church officials believe that the Polish pope, who himself suffered from the condition, interceded for the miraculous cure of Sister Marie Simon-Pierre, a Frenchwoman in her late forties.
She has said her illness inexplicably disappeared two months after John Paul II's death, after she and her fellow nuns had prayed to him.
Church-appointed doctors agreed that there was no medical explanation for the curing of the nun, although last year there were some doubts about the validity of the miracle.
The 'miracle' that clinched the  beatification
A Polish newspaper said that a doctor who scrutinised the nun's case had concluded that she might have been suffering not from Parkinson's, but from a nervous disorder from which temporary recovery is medically possible.
Up to a million people are expected to gather in Rome for the beatification.
Mourners at John Paul II's funeral on 8 April 2005 chanted: "Santo subito!" - or "Make him a saint right now!"
Have your say
The following month, Pope Benedict put him on a fast track to sainthood by dispensing with Church rules that normally impose a five-year waiting period after a candidate's death before the beatification procedure can start.
Work is under way in St Peter's Basilica to make space for John Paul II's tomb since, in accordance with tradition, the remains of popes who are beatified are moved up from the crypt to the nave.
"John Paul II's coffin will be moved in St Peter's Basilica from the Vatican crypt without being opened," said Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi.
His body will not be displayed but placed in a tomb under a simple marble stone reading "Beatus Ioannes Paulus II" (Blessed John Paul II).
In order for John Paul II to be canonised as a saint, a second miracle would have to be...

Summary: Pope Benedict XVI has formally approved a miracle attributed to his late predecessor, paving the way to John Paul II's beatification on 1 May.
###
Article: The AlphaBay and Hansa sites had been associated with the trade in illicit items such as drugs, weapons, malware and stolen data.
According to Europol, there were more than 250,000 listings for illegal drugs and toxic chemicals on AlphaBay.
Hansa was seized and covertly monitored for a month before being deactivated.
The agency said it believed the bust would lead to hundreds of new investigations in Europe.
"The capability of drug traffickers and other serious criminals around the world has taken a serious hit today," said Europol's executive director Rob Wainwright.
It was a "landmark" operation, according to US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) acting director Andrew McCabe.
AlphaBay has been offline since early July, fuelling suspicions among users that a law enforcement crackdown had taken place.
"We know of several Americans who were killed by drugs on AlphaBay," said US Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
"One victim was just 18 years old when in February she overdosed on a powerful synthetic opioid which she had bought on AlphaBay."
He also said a 13-year-old boy died after overdosing on a synthetic opioid bought by a high school classmate via the site.
Mr Sessions cautioned criminals from thinking that they could evade prosecution by using the dark web: "You cannot hide," he said, "We will find you."
The US Department of Justice (DoJ) said that illegal drugs listed for sale on AlphaBay included heroin and fentanyl.
It added in a court filing that $450m (Â£347m) was spent via the marketplace between May 2015 and February 2017.
Investigations were led by the FBI, the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the Dutch National Police.
Police in other countries, including the UK, France and Lithuania, also contributed.
The Dutch National Police took over the Hansa marketplace on 20 June after two men in Germany were arrested and servers in Germany, The Netherlands and Lithuania were seized.
This allowed for "the covert monitoring of criminal activities on the platform" until it was eventually shut down a...

Summary: Two of the largest dark web marketplaces have been shut down following a "landmark" international law enforcement investigation.
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Article: The US firm has struggled with hefty losses that have thrown its Japanese parent into a crisis, putting the conglomerate's future at risk.
Westinghouse has suffered huge cost overruns at two US projects in Georgia and South Carolina.
Toshiba said the bankruptcy would not affect Westinghouse's UK operation, which employs more than 1,000 workers.
However, the firm warned that the writedown of its US nuclear business could see Toshiba's total losses last year exceed 1 trillion yen ($9.1bn; £7.3bn), almost triple its previous estimate.
The Japanese government confirmed on Wednesday that it was aware of Toshiba's plans.
Toshiba President Satoshi Tsunakawa said the move was aimed at "shutting out risks from the overseas nuclear business."
"We want to make this our first step toward recovering our solid business," he said.
Toshiba initially alerted investors in December 2016 that it faced heavy losses linked to a deal done by Westinghouse.
Assets that it took on are likely to be worth less than initially thought and there is also a dispute about payments that are due.
As a consequence, Toshiba initially hoped to sell its majority stake in Westinghouse.
The Japanese company was also twice given permission to delay reporting its earnings until 11 April.
The nuclear services business brings in about one-third of the industrial giant's revenue.
Toshiba says it expects a 712.5bn-yen ($6.3bn; £5bn) writedown because some of its US nuclear assets were worth far less than estimated.
A Westinghouse bankruptcy filing should help limit future losses for Toshiba.
The difficulties at Westinghouse have sent Toshiba shares into freefall, losing more than 50% since the company first unveiled the problems in December 2016.
In February, the company's chairman stepped down and the firm delayed publishing its results over disagreements with its auditors.
The financial problems have some analysts speculating over whether the Japanese conglomerate can even survive the crisis, as it will probably be forced to sell many of its premium...

Summary: