BID TO FORGE ’NORTHERN POWERHOUSE’
A new high-speed rail connection and improved roads between England’s northern cities could help create an economic powerhouse to rival London, George Osborne will say today.
He will use a keynote speech to say an upgraded, high-speed link between Manchester and Leeds should be considered as part of the review of the second phase of the HS2 project.
The Chancellor will say he wants travelling through towns and cities in the northern belt to be as easy as moving around a major global metropolis as part of a plan to help them “take on the world”.
JIHADIST SON TRAITOR TO UK - FATHER
The father of two young men who travelled to Syria to join an extremist Islamic group has said that his eldest son has “betrayed” his country.
Ahmed Muthana spoke of his shock after his 20-year-old son Nasser appeared in a recruitment video for the group Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (Isis), urging UK Muslims to join insurgents in Syrian and Iraq.
Mr Muthana, from Cardiff, said he feared his sons - 20-year-old Nasser Muthana, and 17-year-old Aseel Muthana - would be killed if they stayed in the country and says he believes they were brainwashed in the UK.
PM TO SPELL OUT FEARS OVER JUNCKER
The Prime Minister will meet European Council president Herman Van Rompuy today to spell out his concerns about the prospect of Jean-Claude Juncker taking the top job in Brussels.
David Cameron’s campaign to block Mr Juncker from becoming the next European Commission president looks set to fail but he is prepared to force an unprecedented vote on the issue at a summit of EU leaders later this week.
Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith warned that it would look like the EU was “flicking two fingers” at voters if Mr Juncker, viewed by ministers as a federalist and potential roadblock to reform, is given the job.
GARDEN BODIES PAIR FACE SENTENCING
A woman and her husband are facing a life sentence today after being convicted of murdering her parents and burying them in their own back garden before stealing nearly £250,000 over the next 15 years.
The bodies of William and Patricia Wycherley lay undiscovered until police unearthed their remains last October from the rear garden of their former home in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire where they had lain since 1998.
A jury convicted the couple’s daughter, Susan Edwards, 56, and her husband Christopher, 57, of their murders on Friday following a two-week trial at Nottingham Crown Court.
MURRAY LAUNCHES WIMBLEDON CAMPAIGN
Andy Murray will begin his Wimbledon campaign today as Murray mania returns to Britain - and with England out of the World Cup the nation’s hopes are on the Scot to defend his title.
The 27-year-old will step out on Centre Court today to launch his challenge for a second title against Belgium’s David Goffin.
Murray will be hoping to clinch the two-in-a-row in SW19 following his historic victory last summer against Novak Djokovic.
KEEP POLITICS OUT OF NHS - POLL
The vast majority of the public thinks MPs play political football with the NHS, a new poll suggests, as doctors called for the Government’s controversial reforms of the NHS to be scrapped.
Almost three-quarters of people (73%) believe that political parties design health policy to win votes, not to do what is best for the health service, the survey found.
Meanwhile, the poll of 2,000 people from across Britain shows that two in three believe the NHS should manage itself without the involvement of politicians, with only one in three saying Parliament should set targets for the health service.
QUEEN IN THREE-DAY ULSTER VISIT
The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh will arrive in Northern Ireland later to begin a three-day visit to the region.
The royal couple will land at George Best Belfast City Airport before making their way to their official residence at Hillsborough Castle.
At the castle the Queen is due to meet Stormont’s First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness.
HEADTEACHER FACES ’BOY SEX’ TRIAL
An acclaimed headteacher will go on trial today accused of a string of sex offences.
Anne Lakey, 54, won national recognition as chief executive of the Durham Federation of Schools after overseeing the biggest improvement in GCSE results in the country.
She will appear at Durham Crown Court facing eight charges said to have been committed on a boy under 16 during a 12-month period in the late 1980s.
CRUCIAL WEEK OF PROSPECTIVE STRIKES
The Government is facing a crucial week over the prospect of the biggest strike since the Coalition came to office, amid growing anger over pay restraint in the public sector.
The country’s biggest trade unions are balloting hundreds of thousands of council workers in England and Wales in protest at an offer worth 1% for most staff.
Unison will announce the result of its ballot today, followed by the GMB and Unite over the next week.
CLEANING FIRM AGREES TO LIVING WAGE
The first ever cleaning company has been accredited as a Living Wage employer, agreeing to pay its staff above the statutory minimum rate.
The Living Wage Foundation praised London-based CTS Cleaning Solutions, saying it was a milestone in its campaign to persuade employers to pay at least £8.80 an hour in the capital, and £7.65 in the rest of the country, well above the minimum wage rate of £6.31.
More than 700 employers now pay the Living Wage, which the foundation says has lifted more than 10,000 families out of poverty.
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