Confidence in the England team is high ahead of Saturday's opening World Cup match against Italy, according to a study of words relating to football.

Article: His departure comes just weeks after Microsoft launched Windows 8, the latest edition of its flagship product, seen as key to the firm's future.
Microsoft did not give any reason for Mr Sinofsky's departure.
However, one industry watcher suggested there had been talk of an internal "war" between Mr Sinofsky and chief executive Steve Ballmer.
Markets took the news badly, with Microsoft's shares ending the trading day on Tuesday 4% lower.
The company said Julie Larson-Green would be promoted to lead all Windows software and hardware engineering.
"This is shocking news. This is very surprising," said Brendan Barnicle, an analyst at Pacific Crest Securities.
He added that many observers saw Mr Sinofsky as a potential successor to Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's chief executive.
In a letter to all employees, published by Forbes, Mr Sinofsky set out to quell the rumours about his departure.
"Some might notice a bit of chatter speculating about this decision or timing. I can assure you that none could be true as this was a personal and private choice that in no way reflects any speculation or theories one might read - about me, opportunity, the company or its leadership," he said.
By Rory Cellan-JonesTechnology correspondent
Sinofsky's exit, just weeks after the launch of Windows 8, raises questions about the future direction of the business, not least because he was seen as a credible successor to Ballmer.
A 23 year veteran of the company, he was a familiar figure to anyone who attended a Microsoft launch, a polished performer explaining just why we should be excited about the latest innovations in the Windows operating system.
Read Rory's full blog
"It is impossible to count the blessings I have received over my years at Microsoft," he added.
Michael Gartenberg, an analyst with research firm Gartner, said that Mr Sinofsky's were big boots to fill.
"The reasons why he left don't matter all that much but the big question is about how Microsoft fills the void," he said.
"He did a lot more than head up a division, he had a...

Summary: Steven Sinofsky, the head of Microsoft's Windows division, has left the company with immediate effect.
###
Article: The items at Rievaulx Abbey, near Helmsley, North Yorkshire, are being displayed following a Â£1.8m redevelopment by English Heritage.
Objects on display include a half-tonne lead bar stamped with Henry's emblem which is all that remains of the abbey's roofs and windows.
Rievaulx Abbey was destroyed by royal command in 1538.
Other exhibits include medieval stone carvings, chess pieces and gold coins that tell the story of the first Cistercian abbey in the north of England.
Dr Michael Carter, for English Heritage, said: "Rievaulx Abbey is one of the most important abbeys in England and the setting one of the most beautiful.
"It was a place of huge spiritual significance for the country and one utterly transformed by dramatic upheavals under Henry VIII."
Rievaulx was founded in 1132 and at its peak in the 1160s was home to more than 600 men.
Many of the ruined buildings seen today were constructed by Aelred, abbot from 1147 to 1167, who became the most prominent religious figure of his day in England.
It was one of more than 800 monasteries closed by Henry VIII and his chief minister Thomas Cromwell following the reformation which severed the English church from Rome.

Summary: Artefacts from an abbey destroyed by Henry VIII have gone on display for the first time in nearly 500 years.
###
Article: The virtual currency reached $3,451.86 (£2,651) per coin in Monday trade, according to the Coindesk Bitcoin Price Index.
It had never crossed the $3,000 mark until the weekend. The market value of all bitcoins in existence has now surpassed $56bn (£43bn).
The surge followed the creation of a spin-off crypto-currency, Bitcoin Cash, last week.
The new asset is trading well below the peak price of $727.54 (£557) per coin it attained on 2 August.
However, Bitcoin Cash's future does appear to be more assured after Coinbase, one of the leading exchange and wallet services, promised to support it after previously refusing to give such a commitment.
"We are planning to have support for Bitcoin Cash by 1 January 2018, assuming no additional risks emerge during that time," it announced on its blog.
The value of the original Bitcoin experienced big swings in July. First there was concern that there might be a "civil war" over rival plans to speed up transactions.
That helped cause its value to dip to $1,938.94 (£1,485) on 16 July before a compromise scheme called Segwit2x gained favour.
Then a fresh plan to fork the currency emerged from a group of insiders unhappy with the Segwit2x initiative.
On 1 August, they offered investors a Bitcoin Cash token to match every original Bitcoin token they owned. The move created an incompatible version of the blockchain ledger, which keeps track of past transactions.
The initiative had the potential to undermine the original Bitcoin, particularly if many miners had jumped ship. Miners provide the computer processing power to authorise transactions, and Bitcoin Cash was designed to appeal to their interests.
However, it currently remains more profitable to mine the original Bitcoin's blockchain than that of Bitcoin Cash, and support for the new crypto-currency remains limited.
"What this has shown is that Bitcoin is much more resilient to forks than some people thought," commented Michael Parsons, a blockchain adviser.
"And it appears that there is room for more than one type of...

Summary: Bitcoin's value has jumped to a record high, following a month of turmoil.
###
Article: It's not a football match, it's not a tennis tournament... No, this weekend, the summer season finals are taking place of the UK's main eSports competition, called the ESL UK Premiership.
An eSports competition is a big computer game tournament.
In London, the UK's best teams will be battling each other to be crowned the champion of games like League of Legends and Overwatch.
But what are eSports and why have they become such a big deal?
"eSports" is the short name for electronic sports.
Just like football players play football, eSports players play computer games against each other - just like you might do in your bedroom with your friends.
The difference between you playing video games with your mates and these competitive eSports players is that many fans all over the world usually watch them play, and they might even get paid for doing it.
They are also likely to play in teams, rather than on their own.
At an eSports competition, gamers will battle against each other on a particular game, with many fans watching on enormous screens.
At the same time, others can usually watch from around the world by tuning in to follow the action online.
People playing computer games against each other is nothing new - gamers have been doing this for over 30 years.
Around the year 2000, computers became cheaper and the internet became faster, which made it much easier for more people to get involved with computer gaming.
It also became easier to connect with gamers around the world, so people could play against each other - and watch others.
Now, players have become so skilled - and gained so many millions of fans - that computer gaming has become organised, competitive and professional.
As a result, it has been given its own name - "eSports".
Not everyone agrees that computer gaming should be considered to be a sport.
Some people think that sport should involve being more physically active.
But others think that despite it may not be as physically athletic as tennis or rugby, the skill involved means it can be considered...

Summary: This weekend, there is a sporting event taking place in London that thousands of people will be watching, although you might not guess which kind of sport it is!
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Article: Cambridge University Press is analysing media coverage during Brazil 2014 and scoring 'confidence levels' out of 100.
The score rises and falls dependent on the words used to describe England.
Confidence was measured at 38 after the 2-2 draw with Ecuador on 4 June and 40 following the 0-0 draw with Honduras on 8 June but rose to 77 a day later.
England's current rating is 70, going into the game in Manaus, according to the Cambridge Confidence Index.
Researchers have analysed and assessed millions of words from a wide range of media sources over the past two weeks.
Cambridge University Press's Dr Claire Dembry said: "The breadth of sources means we're able to give a unique insight into the mood surrounding the England team.
"It's interesting to see that the nation is in confident spirits ahead of the Italy game, despite some fairly lacklustre performances against Ecuador and Honduras."
Words such as "progress",  "strong" and "joy" have increasingly been used by players, coaching staff and fans.
Midfielder Adam Lallana, 26, and 18-year-old Luke Shaw, who are both seeking to leave Southampton, have been described more positively than any other England player.
Neymar, who scored twice in Brazil's 3-1 victory over Croatia, was the most talked about player after the opening match.
"Controversial" was identified as the word of the day following the disputed penalty for Brazil's first goal and anti-World Cup protests in several host cities.
Cambridge will track positive and negative indicators throughout the tournament, in order to measure changes in the perceived confidence in the England team.

Summary:


A woman has won a gold award at national baking competition by entering a life-sized Jennifer Lawrence cake.

Article: The Tory minister was giving evidence to the Treasury select committee which is examining the Smith Commission plan.
Mr Osborne said it would be up to Scotland to decide whether to vary future tax rates and therefore spark "competition".
He added that Holyrood would bear the consequences of using its new powers.
On Thursday the draft Scotland Bill is due to be published.
That represents the next stage in a process to send more powers across the border.
During the Scottish independence referendum campaign, the Tories, Labour and Liberal Democrats vowed to give greater responsibility to Holyrood if voters said "No".
On 18 September, the electorate decided 55% to 45% against change.
Lord Smith, who headed the devolution commission, recommended that control over income tax would be shared between the UK and Scottish parliaments.
But within this framework, MSPs would have the power to freely set the rates of income tax and the thresholds of Scottish taxpayers.
Mr Osborne was asked whether that move could lead to "tax competition".
He told the committee: "Ultimately that is a decision primarily for the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish government as to whether they pursue that or not.
"I think it is quite interesting that off the back of the changes we announced at the Autumn Statement to stamp duty that then led to the Scottish government saying it would revisit its proposals on stamp duty.
"You could say that that is a bit of tax competition in action."
The committee quizzed the chancellor in detail about the Smith Commission principle that there there should be no "detriment" to either Scotland or the rest of the UK in regard to tax receipts and spending.
Mr Osborne explained to committee chairman Andrew Tyrie: "The no detriment principle is around the adjustments to the block grant connected with the loss or additional tax revenues that come from the first round effects and potentially behavioural effects.
"But I think it is important, and I think this is fundamental to what everyone is trying to establish...

Summary: Chancellor George Osborne has told MPs that new powers being handed to Scotland could result in a UK-wide competition over tax rates.
###
Article: Cycling charity CTC made the accusation after the cross-Channel service said it would be storing bikes from 1 November in what is known as a "bike box" - meaning the bike has to be dismantled.
The change would discourage cyclists from using Eurostar, the charity said.
But Eurostar said the new storage method used space more efficiently.
"The only change is that bikes will now need to be carried in a bike box, which we are happy to provide," a Eurostar spokesman said.
"When packaging bikes in this way, they take up less space which means that we can carry more bikes, or any other type of luggage."
Currently cyclists can take a bicycle on board and pay a Â£30 fee for it to be carried via a registered luggage system. The bike is hung on a storage rack by its tyres, and Eurostar estimates that at the moment they have the capacity to take around eight bikes per train.
But from 1 November cyclists will have to dismantle their bikes to put them into a box and reassemble them when they reach their destination.
Eurostar said its staff would be on hand to help cyclists getting bikes into the boxes, and it would accommodate any size bike box if cyclists wanted to bring their own.
Transport for London (TfL) allows folding bikes on all of its London Tube services but only permits non-folded bikes at some stations.
On its buses, folded bikes are allowed at the "driver's discretion".
Train companies' policies on bikes vary: Virgin Trains requires customers to reserve a space for non-folded bikes, while Southern prohibits non-folding bikes on some of its rush-hour services.
Coach companies National Express and Megabus only allow folded bikes, while Stagecoach allows non-folding bikes on a limited number of services.
Airlines tend to permit bikes but usually require them to be packaged in a box or bag and often charge a fee.
But CTC chief executive Paul Tuohy argued dismantling the bike - including taking wheels off - would be "too difficult" for some riders.
He said: "There is nothing sustainable about this policy, as it...

Summary: A planned change in the way Eurostar stores bikes for travel has led to claims it is treating cyclists like "third-class passengers".
###
Article: The company had originally said conversations within Allo would be only temporarily stored on its servers, restricting the authorities' ability to request access.
However, the Verge news site revealed that Google now holds on to the data unless users take active measures to stop it.
Google has confirmed the U-turn.
Privacy campaigners say the public must be kept informed about how their records are handled.
"It's important that citizens are given enough information about what will happen to their data for them make an informed choice about whether or not they want to use this service," said Daniel Nesbitt, research director at Big Brother Watch.
"This includes who may be able to access it and where the data will be stored".
Allo was first announced at the Google IO event in May.
At the time, it said chat records would be "transiently" stored on its servers.
This was required to provide the app's standout feature - the inclusion of the Google Assistant, a tool that provides context-relevant suggestions.
For example, if two people are discussing Italian food, the Assistant can be asked within the conversation to give details of nearby restaurants or how to prepare a dish.
Google's support documents state that a user can opt to wipe their chat history and add that it holds onto people's data to provide them with "a more personalised experience".
But when first asked, the firm was unable to clarify whether it had abandoned plans to delete chats without being prompted.
Allo itself handled privacy queries by providing a link to the Verge.
However, a spokeswoman later confirmed the change of policy.
"We've given users transparency and control over their data in Google Allo," she told the BBC.
"Our approach is simple - your chat history is saved for you until you choose to delete it. You can delete single messages or entire conversations."
Allo does offer an Incognito mode -  which encrypts the chats in a form that prevents the Assistant listening in or the authorities being able to get an unscrambled copy - but this...

Summary: Google has launched its new chat app with weaker privacy protection measures than previously promised.
###
Article: The company also said that Mr Corcoran would be replaced by Worldpay's UK chief executive Peter Jackson.
Paddy Power said its half-year results, due on Tuesday, would show a 9% rise in revenues while underlying earnings are up 21%.
Underlying earnings for 2017 as a whole are expected to be £445m-£465m.
Paddy Power Betfair was the biggest faller on the FTSE 100, but the index itself managed to produce a small gain, jumping 0.3% to close at 7,531.94.
The index was boosted by mining companies, which saw their shares rise on the back of higher prices for metals. Shares in Glencore and Rio Tinto rose 2.6%, while BHP Billiton jumped by 2.3%.
In the FTSE 250, shares in QinetiQ rose 3% after Goldman Sachs raised its rating on the defence technology company to "neutral" from "sell".
On the currency markets, the pound fell 0.15% against the dollar to $1.3017, and fell 0.3% against the euro to 1.1045 euros.

Summary: Shares in Paddy Power Betfair fell by almost 5% after the bookmaker said that chief executive Breon Corcoran was standing down.
###
Article: Lara Clarke, from Walsall, won the award at the Cake International contest with her 5ft 10in (1.7m) creation, inspired by the Hunger Games star.
Ms Clarke previously triumphed at the contest with a life-sized Johnny Depp cake, which made headlines around the world.
She said she found her second consecutive success "hugely exciting".
Ms Clarke also won silver in the large decorative exhibit section at the competition, with a cake based on her favourite Game of Thrones character Tyrion Lannister.
She spent two-and-a-half months working on the cakes ahead of the competition at Birmingham's National Exhibition Centre,
The Jennifer Lawrence sponge cake required 150 eggs, 10kg (22lb) flour and 10kg butter.
When asked what she planned to enter next  year, she said she would need a "long lie down" before she decided.
Clare Fisher, senior sales executive at Cake International, said the standard of entries was "breathtaking".

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The BBC's One You campaign is a nine-week plan, starting with a brisk walk and ending with a 5k run.

Make Your Move has caught up with BBC Radio 5 live's Anna Foster, who has completed week one of the Couch to 5k Challenge.

Article: The proposals would see more than 10,000 sq m of floor space built over the next decade at Lincoln Science and Innovation Park.
Director Tom Blount said the new Â£22m facilities would help attract larger science and technology companies.
Plans have been submitted to the City of Lincoln Council.
More on this and other local stories from across Lincolnshire
The science park, which is a partnership between Lincolnshire Co-op and the University of Lincoln, established in 2012, has already seen the creation of academic research laboratories, and other smaller high-tech businesses.
Phase one of the science park also saw the completion of the Boole Technology Centre, in February.
Mr Blount said the expansion plans (phase two) would compliment what already exists while bringing in larger firms with a focus on agricultural - advanced engineering and digital technologies.
"This site was at the heart of the Ruston Bucyrus factory until 25 years ago, with thousands of people coming here to work," he added.
"It's a great sadness that what we are left with is basically car parking and storage space."
He added that, if approved, the development would provide "huge opportunities" for technology businesses in the region, and help regenerate the area.

Summary: Plans to expand a science park could create up to 1,000 jobs and provide "huge opportunities" for high-tech firms, its director has said.
###
Article: Speaking at a Mississippi rally, he said his opponent "sees people of colour only as votes not as human beings worthy of a better future".
Mr Trump added that Mrs Clinton and the Democratic party had taken advantage of the African-American community.
Mrs Clinton fired back, saying "he is taking a hate movement mainstream".
The Democratic presidential nominee called out Mr Trump for questioning the citizenship of President Barack Obama and for failing to disavow former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke, adding that he was "peddling bigotry and prejudice and paranoia".
Mr Trump took aim at Mrs Clinton during a campaign stop in Jackson, Mississippi, on Wednesday, where he was joined by Britain's outgoing UKIP leader Nigel Farage.
Mr Farage, who is viewed as a major force behind the UK's exit from the EU, told Trump supporters to "get your walking boots on" and begin campaigning.
In recent days, Mr Trump has attempted to court African-Americans after failing to gain support among this key voting bloc.
Only about 2% of black voters say they will vote for the New York businessman, according to current polls.
It's a standard part of the American political playbook not just to try to exploit your campaign opponent's weaknesses, but also to diminish his or her perceived strengths.
George W Bush adviser Karl Rove mastered this manoeuvre, best displayed in the 2004 attacks against John Kerry, a decorated veteran, for his Vietnam military service.
So it's not exactly stunning that Donald Trump is attempting to undermine what a bedrock of Hillary Clinton's campaign - her support among minority voters, particularly blacks.
The trick, however, is there has to be some appearance of substance behind the charges for them to stick. The reason Kerry was so damaged in 2004 was because the hits came from his fellow veterans and not Mr Bush.
Mr Trump's calling Mrs Clinton a bigot in a few speeches is likely to bounce off the Democratic nominee if that's all there is. A wealthy - white - New York billionaire telling blacks how terrible...

Summary: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has accused Democratic rival Hillary Clinton of being a "bigot" in his latest appeal to minority voters.
###
Article: Planning consultants have outlined proposals to build 250 new homes on the Rugby Road site.
"We've probably got about 18 months to find a new home," Horton said.
"We need to protect the club and we may have no choice but to ground share  - and Leicester's the ideal club."
The Lions race at Beaumont Park, some 27 miles from the Bees' current home, and, although plans for an alternative multi-purpose venue that could host speedway in Rugby have been mooted, Horton says he cannot afford to wait around.
"Yes, Brandon is tired and it does need money spending on it, however it's still one of the best speedway facilities in the country," Horton told BBC Coventry and Warwickshire.
"There have been meetings and there is a site they're looking at but, from a selfish point of view, I'm only really interested in speedway.
"It would be great if they find a piece of land and build on it and we join them, but I've got to keep our options open.
"We need to be in control of our own destiny - that's what we need to strive for."
The Bees ended the 2015 Elite League season in second place in the table but lost to eventual champions Poole Pirates over two legs in the semi-final of the play-offs.

Summary: Coventry Bees could be left with "no option" but to ground share - probably with Leicester - if plans to redevelop their current Brandon home go ahead, according to team owner Mick Horton.
###
Article: The contract will see 660 "state of the art" carriages built from the Bombardier factory in Derby.
It is part of a £1.4bn boost to rail services for passengers across East Anglia, announced by the Department for Transport.
The DfT said it is one of the biggest ever orders for British-built trains.
Live reaction in East Anglia to Abellio franchise announcement
The investment will be overseen by rail operator Abellio East Anglia, which has been awarded a new franchise running from October 2016 to 2025.
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling, who announced the contract during a visit to Bombardier in Derby, said: "We are making the biggest investment in the railways since the Victorian era.
"By awarding this franchise to Abellio East Anglia we will improve journeys for people in East Anglia.
"Abellio's decision [to use Bombardier as a supplier] will ensure our train-building industry in Derby remains strong."
The franchise will see 1,043 new carriages being used, with the rest being supplied by Swiss firm Stadler Rail.
The franchise will also include:
Bombardier is the only remaining company that both designs and manufactures trains in the UK.
Its trains are used on services throughout the UK, including on the London Underground.
The £1bn contract with Abellio is expected to secure 1,000 jobs into the next decade, the government said.
Des McKeon, UK commercial director at Bombardier Transportation, said the contract was a "great endorsement" of its trains.
"We look forward to working with our customer Abellio UK, to support them in transforming rail services throughout the region and delivering an enhanced customer experience through the provision of new trains," he said.

Summary: One of the UK's last train makers has been awarded a £1bn contract as part of "the biggest investment in the railways since the Victorian era".
###
Article: Media playback is not supported on this device
Anna has started the challenge, which is a BBC Get Inspired and Public Health England's One You campaign, especially designed for people who have done little or no running.
The campaign is a nine-week plan, starting with a brisk walk and ending with a 5k run.
If you want to start your own Couch to 5K Challenge just like Anna, visit the Make Your Move website.
And you won't be on your own - choose your trainer from some familiar faces. Radio DJ Jo Whiley; comedian and actor Sanjeev Kohli; 13-time Olympic and World Championship gold medallist Michael Johnson and comedian Sarah Millican will talk you through your run and support you every step of the way.
Impress yourself. Take on the challenge.

Summary:


The first Church of England vicar to marry a same-sex partner has accused the church of being "institutionally homophobic".

Article: The Commerce Department said gross domestic product rose at an annual pace of 2.1%, not the 1.5% rate it reported last month.
Consumer spending was revised down slightly, although this was offset by growth in other economic areas.
Even with the GDP revision, growth still slowed from an annual pace of 3.9% in the second quarter.
However, in the second quarter of the year the economy was rebounding from the impact of the harsh winter weather experienced at the start of the year, which slowed the US economy to a crawl.
The better third quarter growth is still likely to fuel speculation that the US Federal Reserve is ready to raise interest rates next month.
The upward revision by the Commerce Department puts the US economy on course to grow at least 2% in the second half. It comes in the wake of strong jobs growth in October.
"Domestic demand in the US economy remains very solid, something that will surely give comfort to the Fed as it ponders its next move," said Robert Kavcic, a senior economist at BMO Capital Markets.
The main factor behind the upward revision to the growth figure was the discovery that businesses had restocked their inventories at a faster pace than first estimated.
Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of US economic activity, grew at a 3% rate, down from the 3.2% rate estimated last month.
Growth in business investment slowed to a rate of 3.4% from 5.2% in the previous quarter. That was mainly due to a sharp drop in spending on oil and gas exploration by energy firms because of the weak oil price.

Summary: US economic growth for the third quarter has been revised up, helped by stronger investment and house building.
###
Article: Lynovex, developed by Aberdeen-based bio-technology company Novabiotics, is one of a number of new drugs being worked on to tackle the condition.
Cystic fibrosis affects one in every 2,500 babies born in Britain.
Sufferers often die before they reach 40 as mucus from the disease damages their lungs, risking infection.
Lynovex controls the bacteria and fungi that causes lung infections and could help the lungs to work effectively for as long as possible.
The results of Phase II clinical trials are due to be presented today in Brussels at the annual conference of the European Cystic Fibrosis Society.
Aberdeen-based Novabiotics concentrates on developing drugs for conditions which are rare or difficult to treat.
Last month, it was announced that a new combination drug had been developed which stops the genetic disorder damaging the lungs.
However, although the new drug is suitable for a lot of patients, it is not yet a 100% cure and there remains a critical need for more effective, safe, long-term treatments.
Lynovex breaks down the sticky mucus in the lungs of patients.
The active component of the new medicine is Cysteamine, a drug used for 20 years to treat an unrelated rare condition called cystinosis.
The fact it is already approved for clinical use means it could be quickly approved for use on people with cystic fibrosis.
"We know it's safe," said Novabiotics principal scientist Dr Douglas Fraser-Pitt. "Now we just need to prove its effectiveness in this group of patients in further trials.
"It has the potential to make a big difference to care.
"It is also a re-purposed drug so there is lots of potential for this drug to reach everyone who needs it quickly."

Summary: Scottish researchers believe a new drug could ease the symptoms of people with cystic fibrosis.
###
Article: The Lynx UK Trust is launching a consultation to sample the public's reaction to bring the big cats to Norfolk, Cumbria and Aberdeenshire.
Dr Paul O'Donoghue, from the trust, said he would visit a site next week to begin working with interested parties.
But the National Farmers' Union (NFU) is concerned about the impact the move would have on forest ecosystems.
The scheme would see four to six lynx, wearing radio tracking devices at each site, each of which are rich in deer and tree cover.
One site would be at Grumack Forest in Aberdeenshire.
The other two remain undisclosed but the BBC believes one is close to Thetford Forest, on the border of Suffolk and Norfolk, while the other is in Ennerdale, in the Lake District.
Once the Lynx UK Trust's consultation is completed, it will lodge a formal application with Natural England and Scottish Natural Heritage.
Dr O'Donoghue said the story had generated great interest: "We're delighted by the overwhelmingly positive response.
"It will be done in a very controlled, scientific way and we would be sure that everyone's concerns and voices would be taken into account."
Andrew Clark, director of policy for the NFU, said: "The NFU would be concerned at the reintroduction of Lynx due to the cost involved and high risk of failure.
"With limited funding available, budgets are better focussed on retaining and developing existing biodiversity."
Peter Watson, of the Deer Initiative, a group formed to find humane ways of controlling deer, called for a feasibility study for the experimental reintroduction.
"We want to protect our native biodiversity and also reduce the number of vehicle collisions there are with deer," he said.
"We can see no reason relating to deer management not to accept or support a feasibility study into the reintroduction in suitable habitat and prey locations."

Summary: Wild lynx, extinct in Britain for more than 1,300 years, could be released on to privately-owned estates in the UK.
###
Article: Most forthright is New York's Daily News, which declares "Trump must go". "Hinting at assassination is too much, even for him," it explains.
The Wall Street Journal reports a "new flap for Trump over gun comments", saying Mr Trump has "confounded the hopes of Republicans who want him to run a more measured presidential campaign"
But the National Rifle of Association (NRA) came to his defence in a tweet, suggesting Mr Trump was "right".
The New York Times says "Trump suggests gun owners act against Clinton" and reports "alarm" at his remarks.
The paper dedicates its editorial to the row, referring to Mr Trump driving the campaign "further into the muck".
Veteran commentator Thomas Friedman writes in the New York Times that he is appalled by Mr Trump's "wink wink" to gun owners, stating baldly that this is "how Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin got assassinated".
"He is a disgusting human being," he concludes.
The conservative New York Post tabloid prefers to lead on the continuing controversy over Mrs Clinton's email accounts, but reports on its inside pages that Mr Trump has "created a new firestorm" with his remarks.
The Washington Post describes a tactic of "outrage, headlines and then denial" in Mr Trump's campaign speeches, which it says may not serve to attract undecided voters to his cause and also allows Mrs Clinton to avoid answering awkward questions.
It gives space to Joe Scarborough, a former Republican congressman and MSNBC TV host, who calls for his party to ditch Mr Trump.
"A bloody line has been crossed that cannot be ignored. At long last, Donald Trump has left the Republican Party few options but to act decisively and get this political train wreck off the tracks before something terrible happens," he writes.
USA Today says Mr Trump regards the "Second Amendment people" as his "secret weapon" in the campaign, but the Los Angeles Times concludes he is "stuck in a destructive loop of his own making, his words increasingly at odds with his needs" as the campaign  enters the final stage.
Leon...

Summary: The mainstream US press has largely reacted to Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's gun rights remarks with dismay and some anger.
###
Article: He made the comments after he was told he would not get a new parish when he leaves his existing one in London.
The Reverend Andrew Foreshew-Cain is leaving his congregation in West Hampstead as he is moving to the Peak District with his husband.
He said he felt under constant pressure being a gay man working in the Church.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 live's Stephen Nolan, he said: "The people of the Church of England, the worshipping congregations up and down the country are amazing people who worship and serve their local communities and do tremendous amounts of good in lots of places and for the most part they are welcoming and accepting of the LGBTI community.
"The problem is with the leadership of the Church which maintains and promotes policies and practices which are discriminatory against LGBTI people."
He added: "There's this constant pressure of being a gay man working for the Church of England, in an institution which is institutionally homophobic and has policies and attitudes towards the LGBT community which are harmful."
Father Foreshew-Cain has been a vicar for 27 years and is the vicar of St Mary with All Souls, Kilburn, and St James in West Hampstead.
He has told his congregation he plans to leave in July as his husband is now working 200 miles away.
He said after he married in 2014, he received a letter from his bishop saying he would not be allowed to work in another job within the Church.
"That's discrimination and in any other part of the world that would be illegal," he said.
A spokesperson for the diocese of London said: "Andrew Foreshew-Cain is currently a member of the clergy in the Diocese of London.
"We understand that he has plans to move to Manchester for personal reasons but the diocese has not received his resignation at this time."

Summary:


A study comparing the effect of e-cigarettes and tobacco cigarettes on smokers' health is being launched by Dundee University.

Article: Many birds are at risk when they stop to feed, rest or breed en route, say scientists.
They are calling for new reserves around the world to protect migratory species.
Most migratory birds have declined in past decades, from threats such as habitat loss and hunting.
Migrant birds are the endurance fliers of the bird kingdom, making remarkable journeys across land and sea.
The arctic tern, for example, flies the equivalent of the distance to the Moon and back three times in its lifetime.
And the bar-tailed godwit may fly for more than 10,000km (6,000 miles) in a single stint, the longest continuous journey that has ever been recorded for a land bird.
Dr Claire Runge, of the University of Queensland, the lead researcher of the study, said more than half of migratory bird species travelling the world's main flyways had suffered serious population declines in the past 30 years.
"This is due mainly to unequal and ineffective protection across their migratory range and the places they stop to refuel along their routes," she said.
"A typical migratory bird relies on many different geographic locations throughout its annual cycle for food, rest and breeding.
"So even if we protect most of their breeding grounds, it's still not enough - threats somewhere else can affect the entire population."
In the study, published in Science, researchers from Australia, the US and the UK looked at protected areas within the global routes of almost 1,500 types of migratory bird.
They found only 9% of species were fully protected across their range, compared with 45% for bird species that did not migrate.
"Migratory birds have a particular set of conservation needs and we found that these are not being adequately met compared with resident species," Dr Stuart Butchart, of BirdLife International, in Cambridge, told BBC News.
The research found that countries such as France and Venezuela meet targets for protected area coverage for more than 80% of migratory bird species whereas others such as China and India meet targets for less than...

Summary: More than 90% of migratory birds are poorly protected on their marathon journeys around the world, according to research.
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Article: The exchange-traded fund (ETF) is run by celebrated financier and Pimco co-founder Bill Gross, who has been interviewed by US authorities, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Pimco Total Return ETF has grown rapidly in the past couple of years.
Pimco said the investigation was a "private matter" and that its pricing procedures were "entirely appropriate".
The Californian firm confirmed it had been co-operating with the US regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), but did not elaborate on the nature of the investigation.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that the investigation had been going on for months and concerned the manner in which Pimco purchased and valued certain bonds.
The company, widely considered to be the world's biggest bond manager, was set up in 1971, and acquired by insurance giant Allianz in 2000.
Shares in Allianz have fallen slightly following news of the SEC investigation.

Summary: A fund run by investment firm Pimco is being investigated over allegations that managers inflated returns.
###
Article: Jerry Nixon, a Microsoft development executive, said in a conference speech this week that Windows 10 would be the "last version" of the dominant desktop software.
His comments were echoed by Microsoft which said it would update Windows in future in an "ongoing manner".
Instead of new stand-alone versions, Windows 10 would be improved in regular instalments, the firm said.
Mr Nixon made his comments during Microsoft's Ignite conference held in Chicago this week.
In a statement, Microsoft said Mr Nixon's comments reflected a change in the way that it made its software.
"Windows will be delivered as a service bringing new innovations and updates in an ongoing manner," it said, adding that it expected there to be a "long future" for Windows.
The company said it had yet to decide on what to call the operating system beyond Windows 10.
"There will be no Windows 11," warned Steve Kleynhans, a research vice-president at analyst firm Gartner who monitors Microsoft.
He said Microsoft had in the past deliberately avoided using the name "Windows 9" and instead chose Windows 10 as a way to signify a break with a past which involved successive stand-alone versions of the operating system.
However, he said, working in that way had created many problems for Microsoft and its customers.
"Every three years or so Microsoft would sit down and create 'the next great OS'," he said.
"The developers would be locked away and out would pop a product based on what the world wanted three years ago."
Microsoft also had to spend a huge amount of money and marketing muscle to convince people that they needed this new version, and that it was better than anything that had come before, he explained.
Moving to a situation in which Windows is a constantly updated service will break out of this cycle, and let Microsoft tinker more with the software to test new features and see how customers like them, he added.
Most of the revenue generated by Windows for Microsoft came from sales of new PCs and this was unlikely to be affected by the change,...

Summary: Windows 10 is going to be the last major revision of the operating system.
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Article: Members of Cymdeithas yr Iaith are taking the action as part of a campaign to get the powers transferred to the Welsh Assembly.
Chairwoman Heledd Gwyndaf said she was prepared to be jailed rather than pay for her licence until powers were devolved.
TV Licensing said the campaigners risked prosecution and a £1,000 fine.
"It's not an easy decision to make, we're obviously breaking the law," said Ms Gwyndaf of her refusal to pay the £147-a year licence.
"I have done this for many months now. I have a young family, I have three small children.
"I have received many letters telling me that I need to pay, telling me that a bailiff is on the way, giving me a date as to when the bailiffs will arrive."
But she said she believed devolving broadcasting was important to the Welsh language and to Wales as a nation.
"In other countries where broadcasting is already devolved, for example in Catalonia and the Basque country, they have six or eight radio stations and television stations in their mother language, or that broadcast bilingually," she said.
"There's no reason why we cannot devolve broadcasting to Wales."
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport said it could not comment because of the impending general election.
Labour's Welsh Government minister Alun Davies, who has responsibility for broadcasting, said he favoured greater accountability - but not full devolution.
"I don't think there's a groundswell of opinion across Wales for executive responsibility for broadcasting to be devolved to Wales," he said.
"But I think there is concern across Wales about what we see on our screens, and what sort of services we receive. And what I would like to see is a greater sense of accountability from broadcasters and regulators to Wales, and to the institutions of Wales."
He said he wanted to see broadcasters become more accountable to assembly members.
"We all know that we don't see enough programming made in Wales, we don't see the portrayal of Wales on our screens in a way that we deserve and should see, and I think it's...

Summary: More than 50 Welsh language campaigners are refusing to pay their TV licences until broadcasting powers are devolved.
###
Article: The project will test the effects of both types of cigarette on volunteers' blood vessel function, a key health indicator.
It will recruit 135 adult volunteers who have smoked 15 cigarettes a day for a minimum of two years.
The study is funded by the British Heart Foundation.
Participants will be split into three groups, with one continuing to smoke tobacco cigarettes.
The others will switch to electronic cigarettes containing nicotine plus flavour, or switching to electronic cigarettes containing flavour alone.
Dr Jacob George, from the university's school of medicine, said: "E-cigarettes are sold on the principle that they are a much safer alternative to traditional cigarettes because they don't contain harmful substances like tobacco and tar.
"However, many e-cigarettes contain nicotine, which may be harmful to blood vessels itself.
"We want to see whether the e-cigarettes are better for blood vessel function compared to traditional cigarettes.
"Many people seem to think that this is the case but as yet there is no hard scientific evidence to prove this."
People with a history of cardiovascular disease, women who are pregnant or breast feeding and anyone with a nut allergy cannot take part in the study.
Anyone who is interested in joining the study or finding out more should contact vesuvius@dundee.ac.uk

Summary:


The Griffin family is moving home - to ITV2.

Article: Unison opposes plans to introduce 30 "operational clusters", ending the system of one janitor per school.
The union also wants janitors to be paid extra for tasks that are dirty or involve outside work and heavy lifting.
The proposals aim to save £515,000 while creating a modern facilities management service for primary schools.
The Glasgow City Council body Cordia has refused to pay janitors Working Context and Demands Payments, which range from £500 to £1,000 per year.
Unison has said these payments would cost Cordia about £120,000 per year.
A union spokesman said Cordia had already saved about £477,000 in wages over the 62 days of strike, with about 100 janitors losing out on £77 in wages per day.
Instead, janitors have been offered a pay rise of up to just over £1,000 in return for new working conditions.
There are currently 219 janitors employed at schools across the city.
The Cordia Janitorial Reform review would cut 33 jobs and see janitors given the new job title of "facilities assistants".
Within the remaining 186 posts, there would be 30 promoted posts of "facilities co-ordinators" to manage the operational clusters.
Cordia said there would be no compulsory redundancies, with jobs lost when people left or moved to other roles within the organisation.
Unsion's Glasgow branch said the cluster model would leave schools without a janitor at certain points of the day, compromising many aspects of health, safety and security.
A Cordia spokesman said "The Cordia janitorial reform will create a modern facilities management service that places Cordia staff at the heart of local communities.
"When implemented, janitorial staff will see an increase in salary and other benefits and there will be promotion opportunities."
There had been concern that some janitors who live in a "tied house" as part of their job could lose their accommodation.
Cordia had said janitors were no longer needed 24/7 due to CCTV, alarms linked to control centres, and timers on heating systems.
However, the union said Cordia had since...

Summary: Glasgow primary school janitors have started another two-week strike in a long-running dispute over plans to re-organise the service and pay.
###
Article: "I stupidly got on my bike this morning and got the sleet right in my face," she winces.
Having dried off and freshened up, she settles down to chat. Marling has a reputation for being a shy, sometimes reluctant interviewee - but LA clearly has rubbed off on her.
She chews gum as we talk, laughing bawdily as she discusses her penchant for dating drummers. ("What do they bring to a relationship? Rhythm!")
The 27-year-old also reveals her mum keeps a "very meticulous scrapbook" of her career, and admits to cooking up her own brand of Halloumi cheese.
"I'm aiming for direct competition with Alex James," she says, referring to the cheese-making Blur bassist. "But bloody hell, what a boring thing to talk about".
So instead we circle back to that new album.
It's her sixth, and possibly best, record since she emerged at the age of 17 as part of the indie folk movement that also spawned Mumford and Sons, Lucy Rose and Noah and the Whale.
Sumptuous and sensual, Semper Femina adds a hint of West Coast sheen to her delicate, acoustic melodies. Marling generously credits her band and producer Blake Mills for the progression.
"All of the musicality of the album is down to them," she says. "I wanted to be in the middle of it, but for someone else to be painting the picture around it."
If you don't have a Latin textbook to hand, the album's title is taken from a line in Virgil's epic poem The Aeneid.
The line is "varium et mutabile semper femina", which translates as "woman is always fickle and changeable". "I thought that was very jolly," says Marling, apparently without sarcasm.
She came across the phrase years ago and had a truncated version - "Semper Femina", or "always a woman" - tattooed on her leg when she was 21.
It's a fitting title for a record that explores femininity in all its forms, from the archetypal wild teenager to the artist's muse, while reflecting on female friendships and betrayals.
Marling prompted a lot of speculation when she announced in a press release that the album was written during a...

Summary: Laura Marling's latest album was recorded in her adopted home of Los Angeles, so coming back to London to promote it in mid-February has been something of a rude awakening.
###
Article: The festival in Ullapool will mark its 13th year when it takes on a different format on 29 and 30 September.
For the first time it will be held on the town's pier after the organisers were unable to secure the continued use of the site's usual venue.
Acts include The View, Glasvegas, The Pigeon Detectives, Hunter and the Bear, The Rezillos and the Vatersay Boys.
The Wonder Stuff, Twin Atlantic and Mark Radcliffe's band Galleon Blast have previously played at Loopallu - which is Ullapool backwards.
A spokesman for the festival said: "The whole team would like to say a big thank you to all who have come over the years, your support and enthusiasm made the event what it was and what it is.
"Loopallu may come back in the future in a different guise, but for now let's have a party one last time."
He added: "Loopallu is dead. Long live Loopallu."

Summary: The Loopallu music festival is be held for the last time, its organisers have said.
###
Article: Scotia Global Energy wants to build an experimental "green energy park" at the facility near Annan.
They claim the 90 hectare (222 acres) site is "ideally positioned" for such a development.
The company has pitched its plans to the Scottish government and Dumfries and Galloway Council.
Scottish Enterprise and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) have also been briefed on the firm's proposals.
The plans include:
Its existing electricity grid connection, its proximity to the gas grid and the water abstraction facilities that are on site are an "ideal mix", the report added.
It claims a development company set up to manage the early stages of the project could initially support five jobs.
However, the report said: "As the site matures, the manufacturing supply chain operations could support several hundreds of jobs conceivably exceeding the site's historical peak of 500 jobs."
A spokesman for Dumfries and Galloway Council said it was working with Scottish Enterprise and the NDA on the regeneration of the Chapelcross site.
He added: "The partners recognise that the Chapelcross site represents a major opportunity to attract inward investment and create new jobs which will have a positive impact on the regional economy.
"The vision for the site is to develop a sustainable, mixed use approach providing opportunities for large and small scale businesses across a range of sectors.
"It is highly likely that the energy sector will play a prominent role within that mix, with opportunities for research and development, generation, and storage."
Scottish Enterprise confirmed that it is a member of the South of Scotland Alliance, which is "actively engaged" in discussions on the future of the site.
A spokesman for the NDA said they have had one "exploratory meeting" with a representative of Scotia Global Energy.
He added: "The idea for an 'integrated energy centre' seems to fit in general terms with the emerging development framework for the Chapelcross site but we would need considerably more details before giving...

Summary: More than 500 jobs could be created at the former Chapelcross nuclear plant, according to the green energy firm behind ambitious plans for the site.
###
Article: The channel's signed a deal with 20th Century Fox to show new episodes of Family Guy from later this year.
The agreement also includes other Seth MacFarlane animated comedies American Dad, The Cleveland Show and new series Bordertown.
Family Guy has been a major part of the BBC Three schedule since 2006, becoming one of the channel's highest rating shows.
But it's not the last we'll see of the Griffins on the BBC as the corporation has one more new series to show - the one currently being broadcast in the States.
The BBC also still has rights to repeat episodes from previous series - for the moment.
The BBC says Family Guy will be on the BBC for "at least the next two years".
There's been discussion over what would happen to the offbeat comedy, given plans to move BBC Three online.
More than 270,000 people have signed a petition against the move.
The BBC said: "We are incredibly proud that the BBC has successfully aired Family Guy for the past nine years and built the series into such a hit in the UK.
"However, when a show becomes so successful it often becomes a target for other broadcasters.
"We are sorry that it will not have a long term home on the BBC."
Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter, BBCNewsbeat on Instagram and Radio1Newsbeat on YouTube

Summary:


An injured dog has been found dumped in a bush with an illegally docked tail and having had her claws "forcibly" removed, the RSPCA says.

Article: A French inquiry has found that Poly Implant Prostheses - or PIPs - are filled with an unapproved gel and are missing protective barriers.
About 50,000 British women may have these implants.
The body for plastic surgeons warned against alarm, but said those with PIPs needed a check-up within six months.
If an ultrasound establishes that the implant is weakened or ruptured, then both should be removed, the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) advised.
"This is certainly an unusual situation but so far there is no serious cause for alarm - whilst further tests are conducted into the substance, we recommend that women who've undergone breast augmentation contact their surgeons to find out what type of implant was used," said its president Nigel Mercer
"If it's PIP they should have an ultrasound in the next six months to establish whether there is any weakening or rupture.  At present removal is recommended in these cases, but if there is one ruptured implant, the contralateral one should be taken out as well, as a preventative measure."
In March, The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said no more PIPs should be implanted and that any remaining should be returned to the manufacturer.
The French company which produced PIPs has gone into administration. All the devices were recalled in France earlier this year.
The inquiry by the French association of plastic surgeons reported that the company had from 2005 dispensed with the protective barrier and was also using a gel with a composition different from that approved.
To determine how the altered version might react with the human body, BAAPs says French colleagues contacted the gel manufacturers for any studies. There were none, as they had understood the substance to be intended for use in mattresses.
Nigel Mercer added that surgeons who had fitted PIPs should not be held accountable for doing so.
"There was no way of knowing the gel was untested or that the protective envelope, which adds strength and restricts the...

Summary: Women with breast enlargements are being advised to contact their surgeon amid concerns about the safety of a certain type of implant.
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Article: Cambridgeshire Police investigated Benjamin Morris, 32, after he was accused of travelling to the USA to assault a 14-year-old girl.
At Cambridge Crown Court, Morris, of Bourn Road, Cambridge, pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting the two boys when they were aged under 13-years-old.
He was also found guilty of assaulting the teenage girl in Vermont, USA.
Cambridgeshire Police said its investigation discovered Morris had befriended the boys in 2004, when they were aged eight and nine and attending an after school club.
He began to babysit them and assaulted them over a six year period, officers said.
Morris pleaded guilty to two counts of engaging in penetrative sex with the boys when they were under 13 and a further two counts of the same charge when they were under 16.
He was also found guilty of two counts of sexual activity with a girl aged between 13 and 15.
Det Con Jo Nicholson said: "Morris abused his position of trust and showed no remorse for his actions, blaming the victims for what happened.
"I hope this sentence will provide some form of closure for the victims and allow them to move on with the rest of their lives."
Once he has served the prison sentence he will be on an extended licence for four years.
Morris was also placed on the sex offenders register for life and made subject of a sexual harm prevention order for life.

Summary: A man who sexually assaulted two boys he befriended at an after school club has been jailed for 16 years.
###
Article: Homosexuality among men was illegal in Scotland until 1980.
Same-sex contact between women had never been targeted in law and was not illegal. Scottish society just chose to believe lassies did not do that kind of thing.
When the Sexual Offences Act was granted royal assent on 27 July 1967 it applied to England and Wales only, Scotland, along with Northern Ireland, was excluded.
England and Wales can now mark 50 years since the historic reforms which partially decriminalised homosexuality between two consenting men in private over 21 years of age.
But Scotland took 13 years to adopt the same legislation into Scots Law.
Why did it take so long and what effect did it have on the men who lived through that period?
Nick Mitchell and Phil Duffy converted their civil partnership to marriage on the first day it was allowed by law, 16 December 2014. So they believe they are the longest-married gay couple in Scotland.
Nick, 71, grew up in England and moved to Scotland to be with his partner Phil, 64, in the early 2000s. Both men were secondary school teachers and struggled to reconcile their public and private lives.
"In the 90s and in the 80s, I could be quite aggressive, quite angry, quite frustrated," recalls Phil.
"I think I suffered a kind of trauma. Even though the law changed in Scotland in 1980, I was getting messages 'you're wrong, you're diseased, you're this, you're that'.
"So I shut my mouth. And suppressing all that, natural urges and so on, does have an effect on you."
Phil adds: "Making a law that says that something is legal doesn't necessarily change attitudes.
"So when the law changed in 1967 in England and Wales, and in 1980 in Scotland that didn't necessarily make it any different.
"I don't think it actually came into my conscious mind that the law made it legal to be gay or homosexual.
"And when I eventually came out, when I met Nick, and I had to tell family and friends, I was amazed with the reaction.
"'It's about time you told us', 'What were you worrying about?'
"If I had been told that...

Summary: Scotland prides itself on being one of the most progressive countries in Europe on issues of sexuality and gender identity but for gay men it was not always such an open-minded place.
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Article: Politics has long been a part of Marcus Brigstocke's comedy routine.
He's used to people not always agreeing with what he says, but this year it's been different.
The subject was Brexit and the reaction in some places was unlike anything he'd experienced before.
We met in Llandudno at the Craft of Comedy Festival. It's been described as the party conference of comedy - an annual get together to discuss the life and business of people making a living from making other people laugh.
I spoke to him at the end of a session on politics and comedy.
He explains that, as a result of his jokes, "a lot of the people I think of as 'my audience' post-Brexit will not be back... they were that angry."
Brigstocke is furious about the decision to leave the EU. The topic touches him more deeply than almost any other but he has doubts about this political passion.
"Anger's not great for comedy, it's been good for me but you still have to have nuance. You have to find the line and I've struggled with that."
"People are more upset about this than anything else I have experienced."
Gareth Gwynn is one of Britain's most prolific topical gag writers.  He's worked on Have I Got News For You, the Now Show and the News Quiz on BBC Radio 4.
He has a different concern about Brexit.
"Since June 2016 almost every time you walk in to that writers' room and it's tail it's Trump, heads it's Brexit," he says.
"It's so big we can't avoid it and the problem is trying to come up with new angles. It's both potentially trying for both the writers and the audience."
The passions aroused by Brexit are, it appears, challenging for satire. Britain is deeply divided and that poses problems.
Josh Buckingham is a commissioner for Channel 4. It is legally obliged to be politically impartial and while it can delight in taking pot shots at politicians it can't do it from just one perspective.
He feels some viewers who spend a lot of time watching online content may not be so open to this.
"Audiences expect you to have a view and when they encounter you...

Summary: Comedy and current affairs have always had a close relationship - but Brexit and Donald Trump's presidency have posed new challenges for comics.
###
Article: The one-year-old spaniel bitch was found on the A20 in Harrietsham, near Ashford, on Tuesday.
She had some "really nasty wounds" on her feet and legs which were "covered in pressure sores and urine scald", an RSPCA spokesman said.
The dog, which has now been named Flick, has already been offered a home.
She had no form of identification and was not microchipped, the RSPCA said.
Live: More on this story and other news from Kent
A spokesman for the charity said: "She has a docked tail and some really nasty wounds on her feet and her legs. Vets believe she has had her claws forcibly and traumatically removed, while her legs are covered in pressure sores and urine scald."
Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, owners are only allowed to dock the tails of dogs who were certified working dogs under five days old, or for medical reasons as recommended by a vet.
"To forcibly remove a dog's claws is an abhorrent act and is illegal under animal welfare law in this country," the spokesman added.
"And to simply abandon her by the side of the road like rubbish when she is clearly injured and in need of veterinary treatment is unbelievably shocking."

Summary:


(Open): The UK market opened lower, but a well-received trading update from Dixons Carphone sent shares in the retailer higher.

Article: The law limits protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people.
Businesses, entertainers and sports teams have boycotted North Carolina over the controversial bill.
But state legislators were unable to reach agreement after late additions were made to the proposed deal.
The law, known as HB2, was introduced in response to an ordinance from the city of Charlotte, which would have afforded extensive protections to LGBT people.
HB2 placed limits on this, particularly by requiring transgender people to use toilets that correspond to the sex listed on their birth certificates.
A compromise deal was announced several days ago, when Charlotte agreed to repeal its ordinance and the Republican-dominated senate agreed to repeal HB2 - effectively a "reset" of the entire controversy.
The city of Charlotte went ahead and voted to reverse its ordinance. The senate's repeal of HB2, however, never materialised.
Republicans added a provision on Wednesday which included a ban for several months on cities passing any similar ordinances to grant protections to the LGBT community.
"This wasn't the deal," said Senator Jeff Jackson, a Charlotte Democrat. "This bill breaks this deal. Charlotte would have not repealed its ordinance if this was the deal."
North Carolina's legislature is deeply divided. Last week, the Republican-controlled legislature took unprecedented steps to strip powers from the Democrat governor-elect following his election victory.
"The legislature had a chance to do the right thing for North Carolina, and they failed,'' Governor-elect Roy Cooper said. "This was our best chance. It cannot be our last chance."
The political fallout from HB2 was enormous, costing the state millions of dollars.
The National Basketball Association (NBA) moved its all-star game to another state, Bruce Springsteen and others cancelled concerts there, and PayPal dropped expansion plans, costing the state 400 jobs. The US Justice Department has taken legal action against North Carolina over the bill.
The controversy...

Summary: A deal to repeal North Carolina's so-called "bathroom bill" collapsed on Wednesday, as each side accused the other of broken promises.
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Article: The process assumes GM plants pose greater risks than conventional plants, which is not backed by scientific evidence, the parliamentary Science and Technology Committee report says.
It calls for GM crops to be regulated on the basis of their characteristics not the method used to produce them.
Opponents say GM may have an impact on wildlife and needs careful scrutiny.
EU countries recently agreed to give individual nations more power to decide whether or not to allow GM crops to be grown on their territory.
But the committee said there was a need for more radical reform to meet the challenge of feeding a growing population, using fewer resources, under a changing climate.
In their report, Advanced genetic techniques for crop improvement: regulation, risk and precaution, MPs say agricultural innovations could be hindered, or even halted, by inappropriate regulation.
The committee's chairman, Andrew Miller, said: "Opposition to genetically modified crops in many European countries is based on values and politics, not science.
"The scientific evidence is clear that crops developed using genetic modification pose no more risk to humans, animals or the environment than equivalent crops developed using more 'conventional' techniques.
"Unfortunately, the way the EU's regulatory system works means that countries opposed to genetically modified crops can block their growth in other countries.
"This has driven research activity out of the EU and put at risk the UK's ability to be a global player in advancing agricultural technology."
But organic food and farming group the Soil Association said research had shown that GM crops could have a negative impact on wildlife.
Policy director Peter Melchett said: "In our evidence to the committee, the Soil Association reminded them that the UK government had spent millions of pounds of public money over five years, researching whether GM crops would be beneficial or damaging for British wildlife.
"This research found that, overall, GM crops would have a negative impact on...

Summary: Europe's approval system for genetically modified (GM) crops is "fundamentally flawed", say MPs.
###
Article: It also argues the bulk of committee convenors and the presiding officer should come from opposition parties.
The proposed ban on second jobs would include paid directorships and consultancies.
An SNP spokesman said it would try to find agreement but it was up to parliament to decide its rules in a "consensual, democratic way".
Scottish Labour's democracy spokeswoman Claire Baker said the changes would improve parliamentary scrutiny.
Speaking ahead of MSPs returning to the parliament on Monday, she said: "Our manifesto contained many proposals for reforming the Scottish Parliament that received backing from all opposition parties.
"We will work with other parties to make them a reality.
"As a start, the presiding officer and the majority of committee convenerships should not come from the governing party.
"We saw in the last term that SNP-dominated committees did not provide anywhere near the level of scrutiny that the government's work required. We will work to change that - but we must go further.
"People require confidence that the politicians they elect to serve are giving them the full attention they deserve.
"Being a member of the Scottish Parliament is an immense privilege and it should be the only job that MSPs do. That is why we will push for a ban on MSPs holding second jobs, including paid directorships and consultancies."
The Scottish Conservatives - now the main opposition party after returning 31 MSPs in the Scottish Parliament election -  have also called for improved parliamentary scrutiny.
The Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson also argues that Holyrood committees should have opposition MSPs as their convenors.
An SNP spokesman said: "Parliament will decide all of these issues in a consensual, democratic way, as it always has done.
"The shape of Holyrood's committees is determined by the strength of parties in the parliament - again in line with democratic principles.
"And it isn't for any single MSP or party - certainly not those who lost the election by a country mile - to try and dictate...

Summary: MSPs would be banned from holding second jobs under a package of Holyrood reforms proposed by Scottish Labour.
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Article: The large rodents travel around bogs, lochs and moors in order to join, or establish, new colonies.
Although the findings were based on a species adapted to a "patchy" environment, the work could help biologists understand how habitat fragmentation may affect other animals.
The research was presented at the British Science Festival in Aberdeen.
Water voles living in the north-west of Scotland live in small family groups of five to 10 individuals separated from other small populations by kilometres.
By studying the behaviour of the mammals, Prof Xavier Lambin and his colleagues from the University of Aberdeen discovered that far from remaining isolated, young members of the family groups wandered huge distances away from their "home" territory.
"We were astounded," Prof Lambin told the BBC.
"Those animals typically have a home range of a few hundred square meters, and we found them moving two to three kilometres, a few even moving 15 kilometres between [the site of] their birth and their first reproduction."
The vast journeys are extremely hazardous for the voles, during which they are exposed to predation away from the safety of their burrows.
The dispersal strategy appears to be very effective in allowing the voles to thrive in such small numbers and at such great distances from each other.
Individuals arrive at a "patch", wait five or six days to see if a potential mate arrives, and then move on if no other voles appear.
"They will hit the road, and again face predators and take the chance, and hopefully find another patch. They can do this for seven weeks - if they're lucky," Prof Lambin said.
BBC Nature: Watch baby water voles released into the wild
He told the BBC how he and his team employed a citizen science team of interested members of the public as well as members of the university to help monitor individuals and whether they were present in appropriate habitats.
"For the last 13 years, we've had a team of volunteers that roam the hills for six weeks a year, students and researchers. We visit all...

Summary: Scottish water voles have been found to travel enormous distances, enabling them to persist in fragmented habitats.
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Article: Dixons Carphone shares were up 1% after it said full-year profits were set to be slightly higher than previously forecast.
The FTSE 100 index was down 17.61 points at 6,910.66.
Shares in WH Smith rose 2.9% after it reported flat like-for-like sales in the three months to 30 May.
Like-for-like sales at its travel business rose 4%, but fell 4% at WH Smith's High Street stores.
Shares in Royal Mail rose 0.7% to 527.50p. The company announced on Wednesday that Peter Long, joint chief executive of travel firm TUI, would be its next chairman.
On the currency markets, the pound was flat against the dollar at $1.5345 and rose 0.1% against the euro to â‚¬1.3772.

Summary:


One relationship, 10 Olympic gold medals.

Article: US researchers found those with access to dogs were less stressed as the day went on than those who had none.
The preliminary study published in theInternational Journal of Workplace Health Managementlooked at 75 staff.
The researchers suggested access to dogs boosted morale and reduced stress levels, whether people had access to their own pets or other people's.
The study was carried out by a team of researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University who looked at a manufacturing company where people are allowed to bring their pets to work.
They compared those who brought in their own pets, with those who had dogs - but left them at home - and staff who did not own pets.
Over a week, the researchers compared employees' stress levels, job satisfaction and feelings about support from and commitment to the company.
Stress hormone levels were measured using saliva samples during the day.
In the morning, there was no difference between the three groups.
But during the course of the work day, stress levels appeared to decline for employees with their dogs present and increased for non-pet owners and dog owners who did not bring their dogs to work.
The researchers also noted that stress rose significantly during the day when owners left their dogs at home compared to days they brought them to work.
Randolph Barker, lead study author and professor of management at the VCU School of Business, said dogs can make a positive difference in the workplace.
"The differences in perceived stress between days the dog was present and absent were significant. The employees as a whole had higher job satisfaction than industry norms."
Prof Barker said having dogs around the workplace may contribute to employee performance and satisfaction.
And he reported positive comments from employees such as "pets in the workplace can be a great bonus for employee morale", "having dogs here is great stress relief" and "dogs are positive; dogs increase co-worker cooperation."
Past research has shown that stress can contribute to employee...

Summary: Bringing pet dogs to work can reduce stress and make the job more satisfying for other employees, a study suggests.
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Article: The Backyard Brains company says that the device is intended to get children to be interested in neuroscience.
A spokeswoman told the BBC that the device - being formally launched on Saturday - was not a gimmick.
But critics say that the company's stance is "disingenuous".
For the "electronic backpack" to work the cockroaches have to be placed in icy water to subdue them before sandpaper is used to remove the waxy coating on the shell of the insect's head.
Source: Natural History Museum
An electrode connector and electrodes are then glued on to the insect's body and a needle is used to poke a hole in their thorax in order to insert a wire.
Their antennae are then cut and electrodes are inserted. A circuit is attached to their backs, and signals are received through a mobile phone app allowing users to control the cockroaches' movements to the left and to the right.
Animal behaviour scientist Jonathan Balcombe has been quoted on US scientific websites as saying that the insects are harmed in the process.
"If it was discovered that a teacher was having students use magnifying glasses to burn ants and then look at their tissue, how would people react?" he is quoted as saying.
Likewise Queen's University philosophy Professor Michael Allen warned that the device will "encourage amateurs to operate invasively on living organisms" and "encourage thinking of complex living organisms as mere machines or tools".
The Michigan-based company has even received emails saying the the backpack - known as Roboroach - "teaches kids to be psychopaths".
But Backyard Brains says the backpacks "allow students to do graduate level research early in life".
A company spokeswoman told the BBC that the backpack had been developed solely to encourage children to take an interest in neuroscience which, she said, needed to be better taught in American schools.
"At the moment this crucially important subject is woefully under-taught," she said, "with many schools teaching neuroscience within the biology syllabus when it should be a subject...

Summary: A US company that has developed an "electronic backpack" that fits onto a cockroach allowing its movements to be controlled by a mobile phone app has defended itself against cruelty claims.
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Article: Mobile network Verizon told Fortune magazine that it planned to divert calls made via the phones so that they reached its staff instead.
It follows dozens of reports of the devices overheating and in some cases bursting into flames.
Samsung is expected to reveal the cause of the problem on Monday.
It pulled the product from the market and cancelled further production in October after an earlier botched recall and re-release.
US operators had already released a software update intended to prevent Note 7s from being able to recharge and connect to their networks.
But Verizon said that thousands of its customers had still not returned the devices, possibly because they had managed to prevent the firmware from being installed.
"The recalled Note 7s pose a safety risk to our customers and those around them," it told Fortune.
It said it would still allow 911 calls to connect to the emergency service, but all other calls would be redirected to its employees, who would demand the return of the handsets.
Customers who refused might be billed the full retail cost of the device, it added.
"This is all about liability," commented Ben Wood from the CCS Insight tech consultancy.
"People may be willing to accept the risk now, but that could change if they experience a catastrophic incident like it burns down their house or seriously injures someone.
"Samsung and the operators have no option but to put whatever measures in place they can to try and retrieve all the remaining devices."

Summary: Galaxy Note 7 owners in the US who have ignored the global recall of Samsung's smartphone face a fresh effort to make them return their devices.
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Article: The gene makes an enzyme that lets the birds convert yellow pigments, which they eat, into red ones, which are deposited in their feathers or beaks.
Two separate teams made the discovery, by examining the DNA of birds which either gained or lost their redness.
One focussed on a finch which sometimes loses its red beak; the other on a type of canary bred to be entirely red.
Both studies are published in the journal Current Biology.
"Birds cannot synthesise these red pigments endogenously. They have to obtain them from their diet," Dr Miguel Carneiro from the Universidade do Porto, Portugal, told BBC News.
"It was known for a long time that an enzymatic conversion is needed to produce the red pigments. So many groups of geneticists and physiologists, for many decades, have tried to identify the enzyme that does this conversion."
Dr Carneiro and his colleagues began their search with the "red factor" canary - a popular pet that originated in the 1920s, when bird fanciers crossed common, yellow canaries with the vibrant South American red siskin.
"Some people consider it to be the first genetically engineered species," Dr Carneiro said.
"By a number of crosses, throughout many generations, they fixed the ability to convert yellow pigments into red pigments, in some breeds of canary.
"What we didâ€¦ is try to look at sections of the genome in red factor breeds that actually belong to the red siskin - and that's how we got to the gene."
The gene his team singled out, called CYP2J19, encodes an enzyme belonging to the "cytochrome P450" family of proteins.
It is precisely the same gene that a different group settled on, at almost exactly the same time, led by Dr Nicholas Mundy at the University of Cambridge, UK.
"There's a large family of cytochrome P450s and they're best known because they are the genes that metabolise most medicines in the body," Dr Mundy said. "Most of them are expressed in the liver."
He and his colleagues came across a small cluster of these genes on a chromosome of the zebra finch. This cluster...

Summary: A pair of scientific papers has identified the same single gene as the source of red colouring in birds.
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Article: You might forgive Laura Trott and Jason Kenny for leaving Rio rather full of themselves. Five competitions between them, five golds won. As of Tuesday night, had the couple been a country they would have sat 13th on the medal table, above Jamaica, Kenya and Brazil.
That would be to misunderstand what makes them tick. This is a couple who got engaged while on the sofa watching an episode of EastEnders.
You might think too that it would get competitive around the breakfast table in the cottage they share just outside Knutsford in Cheshire. Kenny now has six Olympic golds from three Games, more than Sir Steve Redgrave and Sir Bradley Wiggins. Trott has four, more than any other British woman, and from one fewer Olympics.
That would be to misjudge their relationship. Cycling superstars on their own, together they can be almost ordinary, almost invisible. After the gold rush, after their tearful embrace in the Rio velodrome with the world watching on, that may be about to change.
"The difference in their characters is what makes it work for them," says Trott's father Adrian.
"Until he gets to know you, Jason is a little bit shy. He's quiet and understated. Laura is bubbly, chatty, just as you see in her interviews.
"If they were both like Jason, God only knows how they'd talk about anything. And God forbid having two Lauras in a household!"
The relationship between the two began in the build-up to London 2012, with Kenny about to come out of Chris Hoy's muscled shadow at his second Olympics and Trott about to experience her first.
"I remember seeing Laura at the velodrome years ago," says Kenny's mother Lorraine.
"I said to my husband, 'Flipping heck, you need to watch this young lady.' She was in the elimination race, only a tiny thing, and she kept sprinting over the top of everyone. She was amazing.
"The first time I knew something was happening between the two of them was when Jason phoned me up and said, 'I'm bringing Trotty home for a bacon butty.'
"I said to him, 'Is she your girlfriend?' 'No, she's just a...

Summary:


The Labour Party has been accused of being "too soft on the disabled" by the government.

The judge leading the inquiry into the Grenfell Tower fire has written to the prime minister with recommendations for its terms of reference.

Article: Almost 650 ballot papers were sent out across the city in April without the names of the Labour, Green and Yorkshire First candidates.
The EC said it had assessed the officer as not meeting "performance standards" as a result of printing errors.
Hull City Council said it would prevent similar incidents in the future.
Labour's Karl Turner and the Green Party's Sarah Walpole were left off 484 postal ballot packs for the Hull East constituency in the UK parliamentary election.
While Yorkshire First's Colin Worrall, who stood in the Bransholme West Ward, was omitted from 164 ballot papers for the local election.
In its report, the EC said: "...Although the errors did not affect the outcome of the election, this could have resulted in those voters concerned not having the opportunity to vote for the candidate of their choice.
"In addition, the errors could have affected the confidence of those standing for election in the management of the process and the result."
In a statement, the authority said the ballot papers were incorrectly cut by an external printing company and the firm had now put measures in place to "prevent such an episode occurring in the future".
"The council acted immediately on both occasions when problems with the ballot papers were identified.
"We have put our own steps in place with Presiding Officers and Inspectors to identify and prevent any similar incidents occurring in future elections."

Summary: A returning officer for the 2015 general and local elections in Hull did not meet the Electoral Commission's (EC) standards, the watchdog has said.
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Article: The legislation aims to deal with the hundreds of drivers said to be misusing blue badges, by giving councils powers to confiscate and cancel them.
The Disabled Persons' Parking Badges Bill was brought forward by SNP MSP Dennis Robertson, who is blind.
He said abuse of the system was a growing problem and had become "unacceptable".
There are 245,000 legitimate blue badge holders in Scotland, and Holyrood's local government committee said misuse of the blue badge scheme was having a "major impact" on the lives of people who rely on disabled parking spaces.
In addition, research by agency Transport Scotland said 83% of legitimate badge holders had encountered misuse.
Misuse of a blue badge is already an offence, but enforcement powers currently lie with the police.
The legislation will come into force next year.

Summary: New laws to crack down on drivers who abuse disabled parking have been passed by the Scottish Parliament.
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Article: The party wants a central body to take control of the creation of money, which would require a major overhaul of the financial system.
You may be surprised to hear there is not already such a body.
There are two common misconceptions about how money currently works:
Neither of these is quite true.
The vast majority of money is created by private-sector banks - not the Bank of England.
Positive Money, a group that argues for reforming the monetary system, says 97% of money is created by banks.
Each time a bank makes a loan, it essentially creates money.
And it is basically up to banks to decide how many loans they create.
Money then disappears when the loans are paid back.
So the Bank of England actually does not have much control over how much money there is circulating around the UK economy.
Also, a bank's ability to lend is not really restricted by the amount of money held in its vaults.
Textbooks often refer to the reserve ratio, which says that for every loan a bank makes, the lender should set aside some cash, which it cannot lend out to other people.
This would require banks to actually remove money from circulation and keep it locked away in their vaults or the electronic equivalent.
But this has never really happened in the UK.
Instead, there is financial regulation governing how banks manage their balance sheets.
Banks need to maintain a buffer to cover losses arising from when borrowers default on their loans.
The size of the buffer depends partly on the riskiness of the banks' assets.
Under this system, the more profit a bank makes, the more it can afford to lend - even while maintaining a cash buffer.
These rules might restrict the amount banks lend when the economy is doing badly, but they do not affect how much banks can lend when the economy is doing well.
Advocates of reform say the fact the current system leaves it up to banks to decide how much money is in the system is problematic.
Too much money can lead to financial over-exuberance and pump up asset bubbles, while too little money can...

Summary: Buried half-way through the Green Party's manifesto is a pretty radical suggestion that could fundamentally change how money works.
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Article: Details including names, addresses and phone numbers have been emailed to other customers.
The information has come from the retailer's "contact us" form, which has then been sent on to others.
Angry customers have complained on social media. WHSmith said that no payment details had been compromised.
"We have been alerted to a systems processing bug by I-subscribe, who manage our magazine subscriptions. It is a bug not a data breach," the retailer said.
"We believe that this has impacted fewer than 22 customers who left a message on the 'contact us' page where this bug was identified, that has resulted in some customers receiving emails that have been misdirected in error."
WHSmith has not revealed how many people received the details of those customers, but it is understood to be thousands.
The BBC has seen some emails which show people using the contact form to complain about the initial problem, in an apparent vicious circle.
WHSmith added that the problematic form had been taken down and those affected were being contacted with an apology.
"We can confirm that this issue has not impacted or compromised any customer passwords or payment details," it said.
The Information Commissioner's Office, which polices data security, said: "We are aware of an incident regarding WHSmith and are making enquiries."

Summary: Thousands of magazine subscribers with WHSmith have received emails containing the details of other customers owing to a processing "bug".
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Article: Sir Martin Moore-Bick sent the letter late on Thursday following weeks of discussion with survivors.
There has been controversy over Sir Martin's suitability for the role and the areas the inquiry will cover.
The prime minister will set out the terms of reference for the process in the coming weeks.
Downing Street said: "The prime minister has received the letter and will consider it and respond shortly."
How far the inquiry can go has been a source of controversy since the Sir Martin's appointment was announced.
He angered survivors on his first day in the job by indicating the investigation would be "pretty well limited" to examining the cause of the fire, how it spread and how to prevent future incidents.
But he later vowed to consider a "broad range of evidence" which could include why residents' warnings about fire safety were allegedly ignored by authorities.
Survivors, bereaved families and other involved parties spent weeks making their case about what questions the inquiry should answer.
More than 400 submissions were received during the consultation period.
The "Justice 4 Grenfell" campaign said earlier this month it wanted an examination of local and national social housing policy and whether it "increased risks to residents".
Questions were raised in the aftermath of the disaster about the cladding used on Grenfell and other buildings. More than 100 buildings have failed the latest fire safety tests set in the wake of the fire.
Sir Martin has previously faced calls to resign from residents, while Labour MP David Lammy said he was a "white, upper-middle class man" who had "never" visited a tower block housing estate and should not have been appointed.
The inquiry is due to start in September. Sir Martin has previously said an interim report could be produced within a year.
The prime minister will set out the terms of reference for the process in the coming weeks.

Summary: