Wednesday, August 6, 2014

BBC News asks whether Gaza hospitals and schools are legitimate targets


A BBC News website page has asked whether hospitals and schools (in Gaza) can be legitimate targets during a war, a question that rightly is normally not open to debate during conflicts. The article opens with an endorsement for such war crimes from an Israeli student who “explains why she thinks hospitals and UN shelters are legitimate targets for Israeli rockets”



Update: (5/8/14 10:30): BBC News appear to have changed the headline for this page to “Gaza conflict: Contrasting views on targeting”. The updated headline can be seen on the article’s page.

Excerpt:


Headline: Israel-Gaza conflict: Are hospitals and schools a legitimate target?


Introduction: Sophie Tal, 23, is a history student at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She has two brothers and a boyfriend serving in the Israeli army and explains why she thinks hospitals and UN shelters are legitimate targets for Israeli rockets.


Quote: “In this case targeting those buildings is the moral and right thing to do.”



Renovated Transporter Bridge gondola starting to take shape



A major revamp of the Tees Transporter Bridge’s distinctive gondola is taking shape.


The facelift forms part of the ongoing £2.6m Tees Transporter Bridge Visitor Experience Project.


The new design will allow users of the renovated gondola to enjoy majestic views up and down the Tees from the landmark bridge, which is the only one of its kind in England and the largest in the world.


The glass panel sidings – in keeping with the original design from 1911 - will allow views up and down the river for the first time in decades.


As well as the extensive renovations to the Bridge’s gondola, the Heritage Lottery Fund-supported improvement works also include the addition of a new glass viewing lift, allowing visitors to enjoy panoramic views of the Tees Valley 160ft above the River Tees, including wheelchair users and children who have previously not been able to climb the steps to the upper walkway.


The final stage of renovation works will see the Transporter Bridge Visitor Centre updated to enhance the visitor experience and provide additional resources for education groups including new exhibits, heritage trails and interactive activities.


A new state-of-the-art Tees Transporter Trail, drawing on research by a number of experts on Teesside’s industrial and social history, will also be launched, while a Winding House Viewing Area and motor lighting system has already been erected on site providing enhanced views of the Bridge’s motors.


Tees Transporter Bridge education, learning and events officer Tosh Warwick said: “The renovation works will greatly enhance the Tees Transporter Bridge as a heritage attraction and ensure that the landmark serves the people of Teesside for decades to come.


“While the current renovations are on-going we continue to work with local community groups, education partners, businesses and historical organisations on projects celebrating the industrial heritage of both the Bridge and the wider area.”


• A free replacement bus service continues to operate between Middlesbrough and Port Clarence during the renovation works, with the landmark now scheduled to reopen in autumn. The replacement bus timetable can be found at the Bridge’s dedicated website http://ift.tt/1svDSvX



Firms and directors fined after Billingham workers put at risk of exposure to asbestos


A firm and two of its directors have been fined along with a second company after redundant steel work was removed, putting workers at risk of exposure to asbestos.


Baxketh Ltd, a metal-recycling business, agreed to remove the steel work from the premises of UK Tankcleaning Services Ltd in New Road, Billingham, taking the scrap metal as payment for the work.


However, the steel included several pipe work systems covered in lagging containing potentially-dangerous asbestos fibres, which were removed by workers without the firm putting any measures in place to prevent the spread of asbestos fibres.


The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) today told Teesside Magistrates’ Court how inspectors visited the site on February 22, last year following a complaint from a worker at a neighbouring premises.


Inspectors saw Baxketh Ltd directors Michael Almond Senior and Michael Almond Junior on the site, with a significant amount of pipe work and damaged insulation scattered on the ground.


Almond Jnr was operating a mechanical excavator with a grab to move steel work from the ground into a skip.


A Prohibition Notice was served on Baxketh Ltd to prevent further work. An Improvement Notice was also served on UK Tankcleaning Services Ltd to carry out an asbestos survey and develop a system to ensure the results were shared with those likely to disturb any asbestos.


Tests carried out by HSE later confirmed that the insulation debris found lying on the ground did contain asbestos.


The court was told that Michael Almond Senior had negotiated the arrangement to remove the steel work with the site manager.


The court heard that UK Tankcleaning Services Ltd failed to ensure information about location and condition of asbestos materials was provided to those liable to disturb it.


Baxketh Ltd had conducted the work without carrying out the necessary assessment to determine whether asbestos was present and had failed to take any measures to prevent the spread of asbestos fibres. The personal involvement of both directors meant they too had been prosecuted as individuals.


The work carried out by Baxketh Ltd meant asbestos debris was scattered over the working area, which exposed workers there and on neighbouring sites to a potential risk to their health. UK Tankcleaning Services Ltd had to have the site environmentally cleaned.


Baxketh Ltd, of Burn Road, Hartlepool, was fined a total of £12,000 and ordered to pay £3,804.20 in costs after admitting breaching regulations under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012.


UK Tankcleaning Services Ltd, of Lodge Lane, Doncaster, was fined £10,000 with £2,243.40 costs after admitting breaching the same legislation.


Michael Joseph Almond Snr, 73, of Westbourne Road, Hartlepool was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay £204.80 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching the legislation while Michael Vincent Almond Jnr, 47, of Plymouth Walk, Hartlepool was fined £650 for breaching the legislation. There was no order for costs against Mr Almond Jnr.


Speaking after the case HSE Inspector Julian Nettleton said: “Asbestos is the single greatest cause of work-related deaths in the UK and there is a lot of industry in the Teesside area that still uses, or occupies premises that have old chemical processing plant dating back to the 60’s. Almost all of it was lagged with asbestos in those days.


“Site operators and contractors working at these sites should always assume that old pipework is lagged with asbestos unless there is reliable evidence that says otherwise.”



Tata Steel ramping up activity at the £8.5m 'benchmark' Teesside Service Centre


Tata Steel is ramping up activity at one of its key Teesside facilities.


The £8.5m Teesside Service Centre, built in 2012, is the global steel producers’ UK structural steel distribution site and sets an industry “benchmark” according to the company.


Bosses want the facility, which is next to the Teesside Beam Mill, to surpass its 170,000 tonnes a year capacity after installing the last of the new processing equipment due on site.


Increasing customer demand has led to the upgrades at the centre, which is the only steel sections processing facility in the UK that is backed up by production capability next door.


Products made at the centre serve building and infrastructure projects from new schools, hospitals, sports complexes and large-scale distribution depots to the iconic buildings that have transformed London’s skyline in recent years.


Indian-based Tata Steel employs about 1,500 staff at its Teesside sites in Redcar, Hartlepool and Skinningrove,


The company’s European operations recorded profits of £360m for 2013-14, on the back of major losses the previous year.


The Teesside Service Centre, which is based around an existing warehouse on the Redcar plant site, was specially designed for Tata Steel’s UK sections distribution activities.


The breadth and depth of the stock range now available ensures that Tata Steel is better placed to service customer inquiries.


The latest developments have involved opening up another warehouse, and installing a high-specification shot-blaster and new heavy sections sawing capacity to reduce handling time and costs.


Ian Beveridge, Tata Steel’s director of construction structures, said: “We have established Teesside Service Centre to be able to offer customers a uniquely flexible service.


“The location at the end of a mill production line gives customers the option of buying ex-rolling or ex-stock.


“Furthermore, the investments we’ve made in logistics, new handling and processing equipment mean we’re able to offer a product and delivery service with unrivalled speed and efficiency.


“That all adds up to Teesside Service Centre being the leading distribution facility in the UK and the benchmark in our industry.”


The centre employs 94 people and is also responsible for managing and distributing steel from the Teesside Beam Mill, as well as Tata Steel’s sections mill in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, and the company’s tubes mills in Corby, Northamptonshire.



Date for Middlesbrough Railway Station car park full reopening expected this month


A number of parking spaces will reopen at Middlesbrough railway station from September.


Network Rail and First TransPennine have apologised for disruption caused by the “essential closure” of the car park, saying the arches underneath need to be strengthened before it can fully reopen.


A Network Rail spokesperson said: “From September, some spaces - including for those passengers who need disabled parking bays - and a drop-off point will reopen.


"We will be putting information posters up at the station over the next week.


“A date for the car park to fully re-open will be provided once the results of a detailed survey are known. This is expected in August.


"Alternative parking is available at Wood Street, which has a path leading to platform one.”


The station car park and main entrance has been out of use for several months and Middlesbrough MP Andy McDonald has been in talks to get the situation resolved.


He said TransPennine has come up with a short-term solution to re-open the main gates at Zetland Road and the front entrance doors.


“I will be keeping in close contact with all the relevant players to make sure they make this project a priority,” he said.



New Marske Dragons hoping you will defend them with your tokens


A Japanese martial arts group in Teesside is hoping for token success in this year’s Wish Sport campaign.


Based at the Gleneagles Centre, New Marske Dragons is a friendly group which teaches Aikido, boxing, kickboxing and modern self defence skills in a progressive style as the group is always looking for new ways to improve.


The club has around 40 students, aged between five and 74 who are taught by one lead instructor who is a 2nd Dan in Aikido as well as five assistant instructors who each have a range of knowledge and experience in martial arts.


They meet every Monday from 6pm until 9pm to enhance personal development in a cooperative manner.


Lead Sensei, Richard Glass said: “We have entered previously and the money raised went towards training mats for the club.


“This year we aim to use any money raised to purchase training equipment such as head guards, boxing gloves, gum sheilds and head and body protection when sparring.”


The Gazette has teamed up with Middlesbrough and Teesside Philanthropic Foundation, which is providing £30,000 to share between groups across Teesside.


Tokens are being printed in the Gazette every day for groups to collect. The more collected, the greater the share of the prize pot.


This year the tokens collected will be worth a share of £25,000, with the remaining £5,000 up for grabs during two online bonus days.


All groups will be in with a chance during the bonus days to win a share of the additional money pot – the four that receive the most votes on http://ift.tt/1md60Qe will get the cash.


Karl Pemberton of Stockton-based Active Chartered Financial Planners, patrons of the Philanthropic Foundation, said: “Our local sports clubs are vital to Teesside and I’m pleased the Foundation can help them by joining forces with the Gazette to support the Wish Sport campaign.


“It’s these grassroots clubs that inspire the Ben Gibsons, Chris Tomlinsons and Aimee Willmotts of tomorrow.”


To help New Marske Dragons, send your tokens to: 74 Gleneagles Centre, Gleneagles Road, New Marske, Cleveland, TS11 8DS.



Holgate Wall: Only surviving structure from Ayresome Park under threat due to vandalism



An iconic piece of Boro heritage is under threat because of vandalism.


The Holgate Wall is the only surviving structure from Middlesbrough’s former Ayresome Park ground.


Original plans for the area had the historic wall earmarked for demolition but it was saved after Middlesbrough Council donated £11,800 and builders Barratt Homes £12,500 for repair work to be carried out.


But now, residents including John McCullow, 51, who lives on The Holgate, Middlesbrough, say youths are knocking pieces out of the wall and that the structure is being damaged as a result.


Mr McCullow said: “The bricks are being removed and it’s becoming dangerous. It started with two or three bricks. Then it was 10 maybe 15 leaving a hollow about three to four foot wide - eventually it’s just going to collapse.”


Dad-of-three John, who works as a chef at Teesside Hospice, added that he didn’t feel the council was taking residents’ concerns seriously.


He said: “The council have been down and had a look but that’s as far as it’s gone. They say it’s ‘in hand’ but they don’t want to know.


“The kids are always standing on the wall. If it collapses, then there’ll be a major problem. It will only be ‘in hand’ when something bad happens.”


Former Middlesbrough councillor Jackie Elder, who was instrumental in the original campaign to preserve the wall, said: “Nothing has been done and it’s now six weeks since I reported it and even longer that the residents have done so.


“I am worried that the whole incident will merely be swept under the carpet, nothing done and the thefts, damage and resultant dangers will continue unabated.


“The message is put across strongly that there must be no more pinching bricks at all whatever the promises, if any, issuing forth from the Council.”


A Middlesbrough Council spokesman said: “We have inspected the damage, and while it is not causing structural problems, it is a concern due to the historic significance of the Holgate Wall.


“We will be carrying out repairs to the damaged areas in the next two weeks, and we will also explore further measures to discourage or prevent similar damage in the future.”


A spokeswoman for Cleveland Police told The Gazette that they had not received any reports of vandalism at the site but that officers had on occasion moved people on from the area.


Rob Nichols, editor of Boro Fanzine Fly Me to The Moon, said: “It’s important to the history of Middlesbrough. It pre-dates the football ground from the Victorian era when it was part of the structure of a workhouse.


“The bricks are worthless when they’re taken out of the wall. I would appeal to the younger people to respect it - it’s part of their heritage.”



Morning news headlines: Daily aspirin 'can ward off cancer', MPs urge PM action over Gaza curbs


DAILY ASPIRIN 'CAN WARD OFF CANCER'


Healthy people should be encouraged to take a daily dose of aspirin to ward off cancer, according to the leader of a new study highlighting the drug's benefits.


The research shows that long-term use of aspirin significantly reduces the risk of developing major cancers, mostly affecting the digestive tract, and dying from them.


If everyone in the UK aged 50 to 64 took aspirin for 10 years an estimated 130,357 cancer deaths could be avoided over two decades, the study found. A further 9,473 fatal heart attacks would also be prevented.


MPS URGE PM ACTION OVER GAZA CURBS


David Cameron has come under renewed pressure over his policy on Gaza with a call from MPs to do more to persuade Israel to lift unjustified restrictions on the movements of Palestinians.


The Commons International Development Committee said some controls on the movements of Gazans - who are rarely allowed to leave the territory - were not "proportionate" and in some cases ran counter to international law.


It urged the Government to do what it could to persuade the Israelis to improve the supply of water and electricity which are frequently cut off.


DARLING 'MAY HAVE EDGED TV DEBATE'


Former chancellor Alistair Darling may have scored a narrow victory over First Minister Alex Salmond in the first live TV debate of the Scottish independence referendum campaign, a poll has suggested.


With just over six weeks to go till voters in Scotland decide if the country should remain in the UK or not, the two rival politicians took part in a sometimes heated and noisy debate over the nation's future.


A Guardian/ICM poll conducted immediately afterwards indicated Labour MP Mr Darling, the leader of the pro-UK Better Together campaign, had won the debate by 56% to 44%.


'DO NOT FEAR EU EXIT' SAYS JOHNSON


Life outside the "sclerotic" European Union is an "attractive" option for Britain, Boris Johnson will say today.


In his hardest-line comments on the issue so far, the London mayor is to insist that the UK should not fear leaving the group if it cannot secure necessary reforms.


Although he will stress remaining in a streamlined EU is the best option, Mr Johnson will suggest a looser association could boost trade with the rest of the world and add 1.1% to GDP.


UN RESOLUTION ON GAZA CIRCULATED


Jordan has circulated a revised UN resolution calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and condemning "all violence and hostilities against civilians".


Its new UN Ambassador Dina Kawar said the draft resolution, backed by the Palestinians and Arab nations, was submitted to the Security Council in a form that could be put to a vote.


She said Jordan is "very happy" with the 72-hour ceasefire announced late on Monday and its main purpose in the resolution is to make the cessation of hostilities permanent and have it lead to a resumption of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations and reconstruction of Gaza.


CHINA QUAKE DEATH TOLL RISES TO 589


The death toll in southern China's earthquake has risen to 589 as search and rescue teams work to clear isolated mountain communities in Yunnan province.


The provincial government says more than 2,400 people were injured in Sunday's 6.1 magnitude quake in the rural Yunnan county of Ludian.


Thousands of troops and hundreds of volunteers have rushed to the site to dig out possible survivors from the debris, but landslides and rains have complicated rescue efforts.


'NAME RETAILERS' OVER CHICKEN BUG


A consumer organisation has called on food chiefs to name and shame retailers after a survey found that almost three fifths of fresh shop-bought chickens tested positive for campylobacter.


The food poisoning bug was present in 59% of birds tested, and in 4% of samples it was identified on the outside of the packaging, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) said.


Richard Lloyd, executive director of Which? said: "The FSA's survey reveals unacceptably high levels of campylobacter and they must now publish the names of the retailers so consumers are aware of the best and worst performing shops.


OSBORNE EXPLORES BITCOIN POTENTIAL


Exploring the potential for the use of digital currencies such as Bitcoin and better access to finance for small businesses were among measures announced by the Chancellor today.


The regulation of virtual and digital currencies, and the risks associated with them, will be explored in a bid to boost the UK's Financial Technology (FinTech) sector, George Osborne said.


The Government is set to publish a strategy document later this year setting out how the UK can become the "global centre of financial innovation", the Treasury said.


POWER PRICE CHEATS COULD FACE JAIL


People found guilty of rigging wholesale gas and electricity prices could face up to two years in prison under plans unveiled by the Government.


Under the new laws it would be a criminal offence to fix energy prices at an artificial level or use insider information to buy or sell energy on the wholesale market, the Department of Energy (Decc) said.


It would also become an offence to make misleading claims or conceal facts about wholesale energy prices in order to manipulate the market - especially if such an act could affect competition in the marketplace, Decc said.


BECKHAM'S CLOTHES SOLD FOR CHARITY


She has worn some memorable outfits over the years, and now fashion designer Victoria Beckham is putting more than 600 items from her extensive wardrobe up for sale to raise money for a charity to help mothers living with HIV.


The former Spice Girl, who has four children, said a trip to meet some of the women involved in the work of Mentor Mothers - educating women with HIV about access to treatment and fighting the stigma of the diagnosis in Africa - inspired her to take action.


Beckham said she has kept some important and sentimental pieces from her wardrobe for her three-year-old daughter Harper, but added that she was more focused on fundraising.



Boro will decide whether to loan out young players once transfer window closes


Aitor Karanka will decide his young players’ destiny for the coming season when the transfer window closes.


Several of Boro’s talented young footballers, including Bryn Morris, Bradley Fewster and Andre Bennett, are on the fringes of the first team squad.


However, if Karanka recruits the players on his summer wish list, they are unlikely to feature in the Championship.


The Boro head coach says he’ll sit down with Academy director David Parnaby and discuss the issue when the transfer window closes (click here for an explanation of how the system works).


“The most important thing is to finish the first team squad and then we will know who our players will be,” he said.


“We will have a meeting to decide what is the best thing for our players, whether to play in the first team squad or the development squad or to go on loan.”


Boro were beaten 3-2 by Leeds in an under-21 friendly at Thorp Arch yesterday.


Ryan Brobbel and Charlie Wyke scored for the visitors.