UK News from Times Online

David Frost honoured for his career at International Emmys

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 05:56:55 GMT

Political broadcaster Sir David Frost led the charge of British winners at the International Emmy awards in New York overnight.

Flood bill for Cumbria could hit £200m... and more rain is due

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

Rebuilding bridges and repairing roads damaged by the floods will cost Cumbria County Council between £50 million and £100 million. The Government has pledged £2 million so far to cope with the impact.

New London comedy festival will rival Edinburgh next summer

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

For 60 years the Edinburgh Festival Fringe has reigned supreme as the home of new comedy, experimental theatre and bizarre street performers.

‘Self-serving’ Ofsted accused of feeding the public’s fears over child protection

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

Ofsted has been attacked by council leaders for “feeding people’s fears” over child safety. Town hall chiefs accused the inspection body of being too concerned with protecting its reputation and focusing on procedures and process rather than the welfare of children.

How the song in Susan’s heart is bringing Bathgate back to life

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

It's early morning in Bathgate’s main street, and there is an unaccustomed buzz of excitement. The small queue outside WH Smith disappeared as soon as the shop opened, yet half-an-hour later there is still a steady stream of people struggling upstairs to its music department to purchase their copy of I Dreamed a Dream, the debut album by Susan Boyle.

‘Lady Jane’ — the builder’s daughter who aimed for the Sloane set

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

To the family and friends of Tommy Cressman, it was as if Jane Andrews were killing him again when she gave evidence at the Old Bailey. In a desperate attempt to avoid going to jail, she portrayed him as a man capable of heinous crimes against women, insisting that she had stabbed him in self-defence.

Technology is vital, but it must carry the public's support

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

The suggestion that some police officers are choosing to arrest a suspect rather than issue a summons so that they can increase the number of DNA profiles on the national database is yet another twist in a heated debate. If true, it is an ill-advised tactic and will increase the levels of opposition and cast doubt on the professionalism of the police.

Q&A: DNA database

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

Remind me what I have forgotten about the DNA database In the mid-Eighties Professor Alec Jeffreys discovered how to take a sample of someone’s DNA and convert it into a unique genetic fingerprint. The database, set up in 1995 and overseen by The National Policing Improvement Agency — the government quango for police technology — contains the DNA of 4.8 million people. It is the largest in the world per head of population. About 30,000 profiles are added each month

The startling Human Genetics Commission figures that don’t add up

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

It is a startling assertion: the DNA profiles of more than three quarters of young black men between the ages of 18 and 35 are on the national database.

Glowering Gordon gives way to dancing Dave at the CBI conference

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

Dave bounded on to the stage at the CBI looking completely at home. The business leaders had already endured a bombastic lecture from a glowering Gordon Brown. Then came Nick Clegg, who talked of paradigms and cloud formations. But now, finally, they could relax. Here was Dave — sleek, smooth, their kind of chap. You could almost hear the room purr with happiness.

From schoolboy squabble to DNA database in one easy step - if you're black

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

A missing Pokémon set was a big deal to a young boy in the Nineties. The cards were treasured and traded, and children who could not join in the swapping huddles would feel left out.

France aims for key Commission job as Brown criticised for Ashton appointment

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

British diplomats are fighting a rearguard action to prevent France from taking the key financial job in Brussels after Baroness Ashton of Upholland’s appointment as foreign affairs chief.

Tories part the clouds for blue-sky vision of a green and pleasant land

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

The Tory leadership will step up efforts today to lighten the party’s economic message with an offer of cash incentives for recycling and public investment in green technology.

UN confirms remains found in Lebanon are of journalist Alex Collett

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

The UN confirmed yesterday that remains unearthed by British investigators in Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa Valley are those of Alec Collett, a British journalist kidnapped in 1985 and killed a year later.

You cannot put a price on football's emotional investment

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

Anyone who has suffered and shivered on a wet Wednesday in Grimbsy know football is often ugly, painful and deeply unhappy The enduring myth of football is that it is a beautiful game.

English Heritage seeks missing link as Darwin documents go online

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

A nationwide search has begun to find the jottings and sketches by Charles Darwin in his Galapagos notebook.

Conservatives promise to scrap Hips if they win general election

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

The Conservative Party would scrap home information packs (Hips) “in a matter of weeks” after coming to power, the Shadow Housing Minister said yesterday.

Wild and eccentric but Susan Boyle lets her voice do the talking

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

Even critics ill-disposed to the glutinous hype that has preceded Susan Boyle’s debut album, and its “oddball kitsch” (Bob Stanley, in this paper), concede that there is something special about her voice.

New London comedy festival will rival Edinburgh next summer

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

For 60 years the Edinburgh Festival Fringe has reigned supreme as the home of new comedy, experimental theatre and bizarre street performers.

The fastest driver in the world on breaking the sound barrier

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

I start off by checking everything is running correctly. the computer, the jet engine. I make sure the fuel is flowing smoothly.

MI5 doubles strength in Ulster as elite forces thwart police murder

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

MI5’s commitment to countering Irish terrorism has more than doubled in the past nine months, with hundreds more officers now in Northern Ireland, The Times has learnt.

‘The Edinburgh Fringe just can’t be beaten’

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

It has been the nagging fear for the organisers of Edinburgh’s festival for as long as I can remember. How long can this thing last? Have we priced ourselves out of the market? What if someone else started doing it, and what if they did it better?

It’s back to business for stoic residents of deluged Cockermouth

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

A bedraggled army of refugees from the Cumbria floods returned to their homes and businesses yesterday to see for the first time the devastation left behind by the deluge.

How to give the public a louder voice

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:01:00 GMT

We need our MPs to be not only honest but also effective in raising our concerns and scrutinising the Government. The former has obviously got the most attention with the expenses row. But the latter is crucial if confidence in Parliament is to be revived. That is why this morning’s report, “Rebuilding the House” from a special Commons reform committee, chaired by Tony Wright, matters.

Gordon Brown accused of bowing to unions by freezing private companies out of NHS

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:00:55 GMT

Gordon Brown is facing a damaging rift with his party after slowing the pace of reform in the NHS, The Times has learnt.