RAIN, WIND AND SNOW SET TO POUND UK
Communities are facing a battering by heavy wind, rain, and even snow as Valentine’s Day storms wreak havoc across Britain.
Forecasters warn that the appalling conditions which have ravaged communities show no signs of abating, with heavy rain expected today and tomorrow.
The Met Office has warned wind, rain and snow is expected to strike in a “multi-pronged attack” with up to 40mm (1.6 ins) of rain set to fall in just six hours while gusts of up to 80mph blast through parts of the country.
CYCLISTS KILLED BY POLICE PROBE CAR
Two cyclists have died after they were struck by a car following a police incident in a flood-hit village.
Officers were called to the A329 Purley Rise in Purley on Thames, West Berkshire at 9pm yesterday when the collision occurred.
They were responding to a “fear-for-welfare” incident and became aware of a black BMW convertible related to the call-out.
FCA TO PROBE PENSION PROVIDERS
Pension providers are to be investigated over claims that Britain’s “disorderly” annuity market is depriving many pensioners of a fair retirement income.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) found that in around eight out of 10 cases where people have stuck with their existing pension provider to buy an annuity, they could have been better off financially by shopping around and switching.
It said that currently, around three-fifths (60%) of people stick with their provider, but on average the benefit of switching equates to someone having saved an extra £1,500 into their pension before they retired.
GOVERNMENT ROLE FOR FORMER M&S BOSS
The former boss of Marks & Spencer is to advise the Government on how to turn around failing hospitals, the Health Secretary has announced.
Sir Stuart Rose will work on attracting and retaining top leaders to help transform the culture in under-performing hospitals.
He will examine ways to recruit talent from inside and outside the NHS and make leaders more visible to patients and staff, Jeremy Hunt said.
WATCHDOG URGES FULL BIG SIX INQUIRY
Regulators should refer the “broken” energy market for a full competition inquiry after figures showed the Big Six companies received more than 5.5 million complaints last year, watchdog Which? has said.
The consumer group said the Office of Fair Trading and Ofgem should refer the market to the Competition and Markets Authority for investigation into whether competition was working for consumers and how it could be increased to deliver trust, transparency and fair prices.
Which? has launched a campaign calling for “six fixes” to address trust in the market after the first full year of official figures from energy companies revealed they drew 5,579,665 complaints from customers.
PARCEL BOMBS RAISE NEW TERROR FEARS
Fears of a fresh terror threat are growing after Downing Street revealed suspicious packages sent to armed forces recruitment offices bore “hallmarks of Northern Ireland-related terrorism”.
Four suspected explosive devices were discovered at army careers offices in Oxford, Brighton, Canterbury and the Queensmere shopping centre in Slough yesterday, anti-terror police said.
The shopping centre was temporarily evacuated, while cordons were placed close to all offices where packages have been found. Ministry of Defence bomb disposal units were also called.
LABOUR WINS WYTHENSHAWE BY-ELECTION
Labour won the Wythenshawe and Sale East parliamentary by-election today while the Conservatives were pushed into third place by Ukip and Lib Dem support was decimated.
Former councillor Mike Kane held the seat for the party, polling 13,261 votes.
Ukip surged from fifth place in 2010 to second despite leader Nigel Farage complaining the campaign had been “as dirty as they come”.
SALMOND: I WON’T GIVE UP ON POUND
Alex Salmond has said an independent Scotland will have a range of currency options but he will not give up on his “Plan A” of a currency union with the remainder of the UK.
The SNP’s plans for a currency union were dealt a major blow today as all three of the main UK parties insisted they would not agree to such a deal.
Mr Salmond, Scotland’s First Minister and leader of the Scottish National Party, dismissed the threat as “bluff, bluster and bullying”, insisting Chancellor George Osborne did not speak for the people or businesses of the UK and casting doubt on the independence and credentials of civil servant who said a currency union would be “fraught with difficulty”.
KATE TO VISIT ART THERAPY PROJECT
The Duchess of Cambridge will spend Valentine’s Day visiting a school to meet young people benefiting from art therapy provided by one of her charities.
Kate will join the youngsters in a specially designated room at the London school where they have the opportunity to draw and paint to help with issues like low self-esteem.
The Duchess is royal patron of the Art Room, the charity behind the project which maintains a dedicated art room in a number of schools in Oxfordshire and the capital.
PUBLIC SECTOR AREAS ’FACE 40% CUT’
The public sector outside the NHS and schools faces a “very challenging” 40% cut in its workforce over the next five years if those areas continue to be protected by Government, a new report by the Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned.
Independent forecasts released by the Office for Budget Responsibility in December predicted a 1.1 million reduction in general government employment between 2010/11 and 2018/19 as a result of austerity measures.
The IFS report found that this would be the biggest cut in the public sector workforce for more than half a century, “dwarfing” cuts of 350,000 seen in the early 1990s and “dramatically changing the nature of the UK labour market”. The increase of 600,000 in the public sector seen under the Labour governments of the first decade of this century would be more than reversed.
