North Sea Helicopter Crash Inquiry Begins

A helicopter that ditched in the North Sea with 19 people on board has been salvaged, as air crash investigators begin an inquiry into what happened.

The EC225 Super Puma was on a flight from Aberdeen to an offshore oil rig on Monday afternoon when it was forced to ditch near Fair Isle, between Orkney and Shetland.

A passing tanker helped rescue the passengers and crew, none of whom were injured.

The helicopter was flying to an offshore oil rig. Picture: RNLI/Lerwick

The helicopter was brought ashore in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, on Wednesday morning.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch will look at why the pilot had to ditch, while a Helicopter Safety Steering Group was due to discuss the incident at a meeting in Aberdeen.

A salvage operation was launched after the accident. Picture: RNLI/Lerwick

A spokesman for Eurocopter, the French company which manufactures the EC225 Super Puma, said it had launched its own investigation "with the highest priority".

Three offshore helicopter companies, including CHC which operates the aircraft involved in Monday's incident, have suspended their use of the model.

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Sky Sources: Ford To Close Southampton Plant

Ford is planning to close its Southampton factory as part of its restructuring in Europe, according to Sky sources.

The announcement is expected on Thursday, when Ford's chief executive Alan Mulally is due to hold a business briefing call, and company management meet with union representatives in Essex. 

The company said this was speculation.

Ford's Swaythling factory, which has built its iconic Transit vans since 1972, employs around 500 people.

But the future of the site has been uncertain since workers began working single shifts in 2009.

It is a relatively small part of the company's UK operation, which employs 11,400 people at factories in Dagenham, Halewood, Bridgend and Southampton.

The news comes after the company confirmed it would close its "under-utilised" factory in Genk, Belgium, resulting in 4,300 job losses.

Workers gathered outside the Belgium plant following news of its closure

"Ford announced its plans to end production at a major production plant in Genk, Belgium, by the end of 2014," the company said in a statement, adding that the closure would entail a "reduction of approximately 4,300 positions".

Ford of Europe's chief executive Stephen Odell added: "The proposed restructuring of our European manufacturing operations is a fundamental part of our plan to strengthen Ford's business in Europe."

In another development for Europe's carmaking industry, the French government offered Peugeot Citroen a 7bn euro (£5.6bn) lifeline following another drop in sales.

The Paris-based company said it was also close to agreeing a 11.5bn euro (£9.3bn) refinancing deal with creditor banks, in addition to the state guarantees, for its lending arm Banque PSA Finance.

Following the announcement, Peugeot shares fell 6.5% - hitting their lowest levels since 1986.

Car sales in Europe have slumped as consumers in the region find their budgets hit by unemployment and government austerity.

Earlier this month, industry figures revealed that the market shrank at its fastest pace for 12 months in September. 

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Terror Accused's 'Suicide Bomber Claim'

A man accused with two others of plotting a huge terror attack said they were "suicide bombers driving around ready to take on England", a court has heard.

Irfan Khalid, Irfan Naseer, and Ashik Ali were covertly recorded by police as they drove through Birmingham in September last year.

They pretended to be Formula One commentators covering a race, talking about overtaking drivers including former champions Jensen Button and Nigel Mansell, Woolwich Crown Court heard.

But in the middle of the conversation, as they drove a VW Passat through the city with Ali's brother Bahadar, Khalid said: "It's the four suicide bombers driving around ready to take on England. Oh my God ... take them out", a jury heard.

At the time, the three men on trial are alleged to have been planning and fund-raising for a series of suicide bombs in an attack that could have been bigger than the July 7, 2005 atrocities.

Brian Altman QC, prosecuting, told the jury: "There you have, in the middle of the conversation, Khalid, clearly in his mind, it's 'the four suicide bombers'."

The defendants embarked on "clear terror planning" on September 16 last year, the court heard.

They were allegedly recorded talking at a flat and in the VW about how much explosive could be carried in a rucksack, about the making of bombs and how to use poison as part of a terror attack.

They made a plan to buy a cold pack used to treat sports injuries, with a cover story of a fake injury, because they believed it contained ammonium nitrate, a potential explosive component, the jury was told.

"In the early hours of September 16 the defendants embarked on detailed discussions about how to make an IED, and about sourcing the relevant chemicals to make an explosive mixture," Mr Altman said.

"Naseer can be heard teaching Ashik Ali about bomb making. Their discussion ranged from ammonium nitrate to detonators.

"They discussed chemical formulae, quantities of chemicals, syringes to be used to create a detonator, glue and drinking straws.

"As the bomb-making discussions progressed, the probe (listening device) captured Naseer and Ali in particular talking about items such as nail polish remover, powder from match heads, electrical wiring, the use of batteries, sulphuric acid, hydrogen peroxide, ice packs and alarm clocks."

Items including a syringe and a burnt note covered in formulae and diagrams were later found by police at the flat in Birmingham, the court heard.

They also spoke about fertiliser and compared its ammonium nitrate content with the sports injury cold packs, it was alleged.

Naseer, 31, Khalid and Ali, both 27, and all from Birmingham, are accused of engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts, which they deny.

Naseer and Khalid are also accused of travelling to Pakistan for training in terrorism, and it is alleged that Naseer also helped others to travel to the country for the same purpose.

The trial continues.

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Equal Pay: Women Win Landmark Ruling

Women who earned less than men on the same pay grade when they worked for a local authority have won a battle for equal pay compensation at the UK's highest court.

The Supreme Court said more than 170 former Birmingham City Council employees could launch compensation claims in the High Court.

Lawyers say the judgment could have "huge implications".

The Supreme Court's decision follows a Court of Appeal ruling in the women's favour.

The "historic" ruling was made at Britain's highest court

Judges heard that 170 women were among female workers denied bonuses similar to those handed out to employees in traditionally male-dominated jobs such as refuse collectors, street cleaners, road workers and grave-diggers.

The court was told that, in 2007 and 2008, tens of thousands of pounds were paid to female council employees to compensate them.

More payments have also been made to women who took cases to an employment tribunal.

But only workers still employed or who had recently left were eligible to make claims in a tribunal.

Those who had left earlier were caught by the six-month deadline for launching claims.

To get around the deadline, the women started actions for damages in the High Court, which has a six-year deadline for launching claims.

The city council attempted to have those claims struck out, arguing that under equal pay legislation such claims could only be entertained by an employment tribunal.

Former care assistant Pam Saunders said she was "over the moon" with the decision, adding: "It's thousands of pounds that we've lost. Whatever we get is a bonus."

Law firm Leigh Day & Co described the ruling as "historic".

In a statement it said the judgment "effectively extends the time limit for equal pay claims from six months to six years, the biggest change to equal pay legislation since it was introduced in 1970, with huge implications for thousands of workers".

It said it is bringing claims against Birmingham City Council on behalf of 174 claimants, with another 1,000 claims pending in Birmingham alone.

The firm said that "there are also thousands more claims in other areas around the UK being handled by Leigh Day & Co awaiting this decision".

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Prisoner Votes: PM Defiant Blanket Ban Will Stay

David Cameron has flatly ruled out giving prisoners the vote after Conservative MPs reacted angrily to speculation that the coalition was planning legislation on the controversial issue.

The Prime Minister moved to clarify his position and told the Commons: "No one should be in any doubt. Prisoners are not getting the vote under this government."

However, his comments appeared to contradict those of his Attorney General, who earlier suggested that the UK would have to accept a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and fulfil its international obligations.

Dominic Grieve said the UK could ultimately decide to ignore the European court.

"Parliament is sovereign in this area. Nobody can impose a solution on Parliament," he told the Commons justice committee.

But he warned Britain's reputation would suffer if it ignored the ruling, and he insisted the UK had "a great deal of latitude" in how it complies with the judgment.

Dominic Grieve says the UK will have to accept the ECHR ruling

Ministers are preparing to launch a draft bill to comply with ruling, according to The Guardian.

This is despite Parliament voting overwhelmingly to maintain a blanket ban in February.

Mr Cameron has said the idea of giving prisoners the vote made him "physically ill".

Speaking at the weekly Prime Minister's Questions session, he signalled that he was ready to hold another vote "to put the legal position beyond doubt".

But there are reportedly concerns in the Government that it could face a huge compensation bill if it does not bring forward legislation before the ECHR's deadline of the end of November.

Publishing draft proposals, possibly giving the vote to those serving terms under four years, would give ministers time as there would be a significant period before anything would reach the statute books.

However, any move to grant the vote to any serving prisoners seems set to provoke outrage from many Conservative backbenchers.

Nick de Bois, secretary of the influential 1922 committee, posted on Twitter after the Guardian report was published.

He tweeted: "Sitting working with 5 other Cons MPs - if reports of prisoner voting rights are accurate then that's 6 MPs who won't vote for it."

Tory colleague Douglas Carswell added: "Make it 7."

David Cameron at Wormwood Scrubs this week

Richmond Park MP Zac Goldsmith wrote: "MPs almost unanimously rejected votes for prisoners. If it happens all the same, does that mean the UK Parl officially no longer matters?

"It's no longer a Q of whether prisoners should vote. It's a Q of whether or not the UK Parliament still has the authority to make decisions."

The ECHR admitted that it was up to national authorities to decide exactly who can vote from jail - but said denying voting rights to all inmates indiscriminately was illegal.

Mr Cameron's official spokesman denied the PM was at loggerheads with Mr Grieve on the issue.

"There is a single Government view on this issue, and that is that prisoners should not get the vote," he said.

"As the Attorney General said earlier, Parliament is sovereign in these matters."

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Savile: Police Files From 2009 To Be Reviewed

Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer is to review legal papers relating to abuse allegations against Jimmy Savile, David Cameron has said.

The Prime Minister said it was essential that lessons were learned from the scandal of Savile's decades of sexual abuse.

He told MPs at Prime Minister's Questions: "The Director of Public Prosecutions has confirmed that his principal legal adviser will again review the papers from the time when a case was put to the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) for prosecution.

"The Director of Public Prosecutions specifically is going to consider what more can be done to alert relevant authorities where there are concerns that a prosecution is not taken forward.

"The Government will do everything it can do, other institutions must do what they can do, to make sure that we learn the lesson of this and it can never happen again."

Mr Starmer said the papers in four cases referred to the CPS in 2009 would be reviewed "out of an abundance of caution".

Abuse claims by BBC star Savile date back decades

He insisted that the decisions not to prosecute "were the right decisions based on the information and evidence then available".

He also said he planned to discuss with the attorney general a new policy, where cases would be referred to social services where an allegation is made but not taken to court due to a lack of evidence.

It comes after charities helping victims of sexual abuse said they had been swamped with inquiries – prompted by the widening Savile controversy.

The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (Napac) has seen nearly a trebling of calls to its hotline.

Napac chief executive Pete Saunders told Sky News: "As we speak it is well over 2,500 calls we have received and is rapidly heading towards 3,000.

"It has been relentless. Normally we deal with up to 300 inquiries weekly but since Savile it is up to 800 a week."

Children's charity the NSPCC said it has received 161 calls relating to Savile, which have been passed to police, and another 105 not related to the performer.

BBC Newsnight editor Peter Rippon has "stepped down" amid an inquiry

These came from adults who wanted to discuss being abused as children following media coverage of the case, and 24 of those allegations have also been referred to the police, the charity said.

Pressure continues to mount on BBC bosses, past and present, over the halting of an investigation into sexual abuse by Savile.

Sources at current affairs programme Newsnight told The Times that director of news Helen Boaden allegedly intervened last year, insisting staff gather evidence as if the late star were still alive and able to sue.

It said Ms Boaden's approach subsequently influenced the show's editor Peter Rippon to halt the investigation - he has since "stepped aside" while the corporation undertakes a review into Savile's predatory behaviour over several decades on BBC premises.

The spreading concerns of BBC managerial responsibility have also drawn in the previous BBC boss, Mark Thompson, about how much he knew.

Mr Thompson, who recently resigned as director general, said: "I did not impede or stop the Newsnight investigation, nor have I done anything else that could be construed as untoward or unreasonable."

On Tuesday, current director general George Entwistle was urged to "get a grip" on his organisation during a hostile grilling by MPs about the broadcaster's handling of the claims.

Mr Entwistle told the committee he had ordered an internal audit of the operation of the BBC's child protection policies and would report its results to the BBC Trust in December.

He said the corporation was now investigating up to 10 "serious allegations" involving past and present employees over the "Savile period".

Lord Patten has been urged to resign by a former parliamentary colleague

Scotland Yard said 60 of the 200 people who have come forward since ITV first aired a documentary on the former DJ's sexual abuse have made claims against people other than Savile.

It is understood that the Metropolitan Police have made preparations for the first arrests in its own investigation.

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Hillsborough Police Chief Bettison Quits

Sir Norman Bettison has resigned as Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police, after being accused of a cover-up over the Hillsborough disaster.

The 56-year-old had been due to retire next March, but had been called upon to step down with immediate effect by the region's police authority. He will receive no severance pay.

Amid fears his departure could see him avoid further investigation, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) confirmed the probe into his action would continue.

Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for Merseyside Police Authority, where Sir Norman was previously chief constable, said it would be considering what implications his decision would have for his £83,000 pension.

His resignation was welcomed by relatives of the 96 Liverpool fans who were crushed to death in the 1989 tragedy at Sheffield Wednesday's Hillsborough ground.

The post on the Hillsborough Family Support Group's Twitter page simply said: "Yay! He's resigned!!"

A total of 96 fans were killed in the Hillsborough disaster

In a statement issued by West Yorkshire Police Authority, its vice chairman, Councillor Les Carter, said: "I can confirm that the Police Authority has accepted Sir Norman's resignation with immediate effect.

"The media attention and Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) investigation is proving to be a huge distraction for the force, at a time when it is trying to maintain performance and make savings of £100m.

"We therefore believe that his decision is in the best interest of the communities of West Yorkshire."

The statement also included comments from Sir Norman, who expressed sympathy for those bereaved by the disaster.

"I have never blamed the fans for causing the tragedy," he said.

He also refuted reports of a conversation it was claimed he had in the months after the tragedy.

"The suggestion that I would say to a passing acquaintance that I was deployed as part of a team tasked to 'concoct a false story of what happened', is both incredible and wrong," he said.

A Liverpool fan pays his respect at the Hillsborough Memorial at Anfield

"That isn't what I was tasked to do, and I did not say that."

He added that he would assist inquiries into the disaster itself and the subsequent cover-up - and that he had sought to remain in post to address the allegations against him.

Sir Norman was a chief inspector with South Yorkshire Police at the time of the disaster. He attended the FA Cup semi-final match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest as a spectator, and was involved in the subsequent force investigation.

He has been under growing pressure since the publication of the Hillsborough Independent Panel report which revealed an orchestrated police cover-up.

Last month's damning report by the panel, which had access to 450,000 documents, found that 164 police statements were doctored - 116 of them to remove or alter "unfavourable" comments about the policing of the match and the unfolding disaster.

A complaint was made to police watchdog the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) that Sir Norman had supplied misleading information in the wake of the disaster. The IPCC is investigating his role.

Pressure was deemed to have increased on South Yorkshire Police after calls for the Hillsborough inquiry to be extended to the so-called 'Battle of Orgreave', which involved clashes between striking miners and police in 1984.

Margaret Aspinall, chairwoman of the Hillsborough Families Support Group, who lost her 18-year-old son James in the disaster, welcomed Sir Norman's resignation and called for his pension to be frozen, pending the outcome of the probe.

"I'm absolutely delighted he's gone but as far as I am concerned he should have been sacked," she said.

Trevor Hicks, HFSG president, said: "We welcome the resignation, because Mr Bettison's position had become untenable and was growing more so with every day that passed. His was a position of trust and he had lost that trust a long time ago."

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Patient Held After Taiwan Hospital Deaths

A hospital patient has been arrested in Taiwan on suspicion of starting a fire that killed 12 people and injured 60.

The blaze began before dawn on Tuesday at Beimen nursing facility in southern Tainan city.

The hospital held 115 patients including a number in their 90s, several of whom had to escape the dense smoke-filled building on their own.

Closed-circuit TV footage taken moments after the blaze broke out showed hospital staff scrambling to put out the fire, while elderly patients struggled to escape in their wheelchairs.

The blaze began before dawn (Pic: IBTimes)

The 67-year-old man, whose surname is Lin, said he lit tissue papers and threw them into a storage room full of clothes because he was upset that he was seriously ill, explained prosecutor Tseng Chao-kai.

The alleged arsonist, who reportedly has colon and bladder cancer, was found by police several hours later in an empty house near the hospital with a lighter in his pocket.

The man, who is considered a flight risk, apparently tried to destroy evidence. The prosecutor said he could face murder and arson charges.

The nursing home is now a burnt-out shell

The cause of all the deaths was smoke inhalation, with 58 of the injured still in hospital, health authorities said.

"The interior ministry will require all medical facilities to follow fire regulations and enhance fire drills so they can learn a lesson from the Beimen hospital fire," interior minister Lee Hong-yuan said later.

Mr Lee added that insufficient staffing at the hospital was also a problem, as there were only six workers on night duty for the 70 bed-ridden patients.

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Child Benefit: New Partners May Lose Out

By Sophy Ridge, Political Correspondent

New partners of divorced parents will lose part of their salary if they earn more than £50,000 under changes to child benefits, according to accountants.

The anomaly will affect people even if the children who live in their house are not actually theirs.

HM Revenue and Customs is set to write to taxpayers who could be affected by the reforms, which come into effect in January, next week.

The changes will see gradual cuts in the handouts to families where one partner earns more than £50,000. Anyone earning more than £60,000 will lose the payout entirely.

Labour says the Government has not thought the policy through

Instead of the Government paying parents less, people will be required to return the child benefit money by filling out a self-assessment tax return.

This will mean an estimated 500,000 people will have to fill out the form for the first time.

Patricia Mock, a tax director in Deloitte's private client services division, told the Telegraph: "If you have a standard family with 2.4 children and two married parents all living together then the system is reasonably straightforward.

"But it can get really bizarre. Take that straightforward family. If the parents get divorced and the children live with the mother who has a new partner, and that partner is the higher earner, then he gets (to pay) the clawback even though they are not his children.

"Part of me thinks we are just making up really complicated scenarios for amusement's sake but it will happen."

The same will happen where a father claims the benefit for children who live with their mother but has a new partner who earns above the threshold.

A Treasury spokesman confirmed to Sky News that cohabiting couples will be treated in the same way as married couples and those in civil partnerships.

She added: "The unprecedented scale of the deficit has meant that the Government has had to make tough choices to reduce public spending; but we have always been clear that those with the broadest shoulders should carry the greatest burden.

"In a period when the Government is having to reduce welfare spending, it is very difficult to justify continuing to pay for the child benefit of the wealthiest 15% of families in society."

Cathy Jamieson, Labour's shadow Treasury minister, said: "With just a few weeks until hundreds of thousands of parents lose every penny of their child benefit, it is becoming ever clearer that David Cameron and George Osborne simply haven't thought this policy through.

"The chaotic way it is being implemented looks set to be yet another example of this Government's incompetence."

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Israel Bombarded And Militants Killed In Gaza

By Sam Kiley, Middle East Correspondent

Israel has been hit with more than 60 missiles in 24 hours in a surge in violence from the Gaza Strip.

Three militants from the armed wing of Hamas, which rules in Gaza, were killed in an Israeli counter-attack.

Hamas has been trying to suppress attacks against Israel by al Qaeda-related Jihadist groups in recent weeks.

Israel moved military personnel and equipment from a joint exercise with US forces and some of its homeland defence soldiers from a drill based on the fiction of an earthquake, in case of further attacks.

Three migrant Thai workers were seriously injured in the mortar and rocket strikes from Gaza and a family home was hit.

A mosque was reported to have been struck by the Israeli Air Force. Eight people were wounded, as well as the three who were killed.

The mother of a Hamas gunman mourns the death of her son

A statement from the Islamist movement Hamas said those killed were members of its military wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades.

An Israeli army spokesman said the air force had attacked two groups of Palestinians who were about to fire rockets into southern Israel.

The raids came after the attack on an Israeli patrol that wounded a soldier was claimed by a leftist group, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

Military officials were initially unsure what had caused the explosion, but eventually established it was "an explosive device".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu once again warned he would strike back at Gaza militants, which he said were supported by Tehran.

An Israeli mother carrying her child after an attack

"Today we engaged in exchanges against terrorist aggression that comes from our southern border in Gaza, but it actually comes from Iran and a whole terror network that is supporting these attacks," he said.

"The way to fight terror is to fight terror, and that we shall do with great force."

Defence Minister Ehud Barak noted the explosive device was rigged to a gate on the fence, and said Israel takes the attack "very seriously".

The latest incidents came as the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, made a landmark visit to Gaza where he inaugurated a multi-million dollar project to rebuild the impoverished Palestinian territory.

But Israel's military remains reluctant to get involved in a ground incursion into the region.

Its last major operation there, Cast Lead, was widely condemned internationally for causing civilian deaths and for the use of white phosphorous explosives in urban areas.

Israeli police survey the damage caused by a rocket fired by militants

Former head of Israel's National Security Council Ilan Mizrahi said: "It is a very delicate situation. We do not have a free hand like we did in the past.

"Now we have to consider our relationship with Egypt more carefully. I would expect Cairo will try to pacify the situation and we should be careful not to provoke the Egyptians.

"However, it will be impossible to allow this to continue for a long time."

The attacks follow a visit to Gaza by the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, who pledged $400m (£250m) for a 3,000-home development in what appeared to be a major boost for the reputation of Hamas, which is struggling to balance its militant elements and instincts with its responsibilities as the administration.

Hamas spokesman Fawzi Hamad said: "We are seeing a dangerous escalation of Israeli actions. They are targeting us following the recent visit of the Emir of Qatar which took place successfully.

"They are targeting us to disrupt the atmosphere of the Eid holiday and to score political points ahead of the upcoming [Israeli] elections."

Following the violence, Israel closed schools in the areas close to the Gaza Strip - the first time that has happened since Operation Cast Lead.

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