My blog will be updated daily, so make sure you come back! If you would like to add or reply to a comment on one of the articles below just send me your comment and, if it's reasonably decent and not libellous or anything like that, I'll add it to the article (don't forget to include the date and title of the article).
07.11.12
The £180 car toll fine: Motorists face tough penalties if they fall foul of new pay-as-you-drive scheme
Motorists face fines of up to £180 if they fall foul of a new tolling system described as a ‘Trojan horse’ for pay-as-you-drive charging on major roads.
Ministers launched draft plans yesterday for a scheme to replace traditional toll booths with an automated system.
Toll roads will be monitored by cameras that log the number plates of all passing vehicles and fixed penalty notices will be sent automatically to the homes of drivers who fail to pay in time.
Motorists will have to pay tolls in advance – or within a set time limit – on the internet, by mobile phone or in shops.
The authorities will also have the power to confiscate vehicles for crushing if the owner has three unpaid fines.
The system will initially operate from October 2014 on the Dartford Crossing linking both halves of the M25 between Essex and Kent, but ministers acknowledge it is just the first.
The draft regulations are essentially enabling legislation for pay-as-you-drive tolling schemes.
AA president Edmund King said: ‘One suspects this is a Trojan horse for use nationally.
‘It’s an expandable system that could eventually be rolled out on other strategic roads in England.’
Details are set out in a consultation document, The Road User Charging Scheme (Enforcement) (England) Regulations, published yesterday by the Department for Transport.
It says: ‘One of the largest challenges in operating a barrier-free or “free-flow” operated road user charging scheme is gaining a high level of payment compliance when there is nothing to stop a vehicle and oblige road users to pay the charge at the booth.
‘Enforcement provisions are considered necessary in order to ensure that road users continue to pay the required road user charge under a barrier-free operation.’
Fines will start at £60 if the toll charge is paid in full within 14 days of a penalty notice being served.
This rises to £120 if it is paid in full after 14 days but before a ‘charge certificate’ has been served. The maximum £180 fine applies after the charge has been served.
But the regulations also allow authorities to ‘immobilise, remove, store or dispose of vehicles where there are three or more outstanding penalty charges’.
A registered keeper will have 28 days to appeal, but only after paying the outstanding charges.
The scheme is being put out to tender this winter. The consultation closes on January 28 and a contract awarded next autumn.
The system will be fully operational by autumn 2014.
vicious.sid: This is another legal theft by the government. They 'promised' to stop charging a toll for the bridge by March 2002 when enough money was accumulated to pay for its upkeep. But, true to form, the government renaged on their promise and had the clever idea of changing the name of the payment to a 'congestion charge' ("See, we don't have a 'toll' any more!") and selling the bridge to the French. The charge for crossing the river has risen steadily ever since. I'll bet there are a few politicians with great big smiles on their faces. Don't you just love 'em?
07.11.12
'He stole my wife!': Angry ex-husband of Cesc Fabregas girlfriend claims the footballer stole his wife as they were trying for a baby
Cesc Fabregas and his girlfriend Daniella Semaan have been flaunting their young love all summer, spotted canoodling on several idyllic holiday locations.
But now her millionaire ex-husband has come forward to say it was during one of those holidays that he found out his wife was cheating on him - just as they were trying for a third baby.
Property tycoon Elie Taktouk has spoken out about the heartache he suffered when he found out his wife was seeing the 25-year-old football star behind his back.
The business man said he only found out about his wife's affair with the former Arsenal star when he saw pictures of him on holiday with a 'mystery brunette' last June, and recognised her as his own wife.
Danielle Semaan, 38, and Elie have since divorced, as he says that as soon as he saw those images he wanted nothing more to do with her and cut off all emotions.
The ex-couple have two children together, an 11-year-old son and an 8-year-old girl.
And he reveals to the newspaper: 'We were trying for a baby when this happened.'
'He stole her from me': Her ex-husband only found out about the relationship after he spotted her picture in the newspaper while on holiday with Fabregas
Heartbroken ex: Daniella left her husband Eli last year to be with the younger football star
The businessman is now forced to watch the young footballer become a stepfather to his two children, as the romance between him and Daniella is still going strong.
'He is 25 and a fool,' he bitterly says of Fabregas.
'She went after him and she would leave him as soon as his money and fame run out. He is no David Beckham.'
vicious.sid: If I were you, mate, I'd be very happy that you were saved from this woman before another poor child is brought into this world.
07.11.12
Dramatic moment brick-throwing arsonists attack firefighters sent to tackle blaze they set as trap
This is the dramatic moment a gang of yobs lured a fire engine to a street by setting a wheelie-bin ablaze and then threw bricks through its windscreen.
Unconcerned about the safety of their community, around 12 youths ambushed firefighters responding to a 999 call in Rochdale, Greater Manchester.
Now, the fire service has released CCTV footage of the senseless attack and officers have spoken out against such thuggish behaviour.
The firefighters were called to a wheelie-bin fire, which is believed to have been started deliberately, and quickly extinguished it.
But to their horror, a gang of teenagers then rushed at them, launching a brick through their windscreen and hurling verbal abuse at officers.
Mark Lee, who was driving the engine, said: 'The fire was out very quickly but then suddenly the atmosphere changed. There was a gang of around 12 youths, who looked to be around 16, swearing at us and shouting before they started to throw bricks.
'Obviously it was intimidating, but luckily we have a very good relationship with the police and officers were on the scene straight away to disperse the group.'
The officers, based at Heywood Fire Station, were called out at 5.08pm on Sunday.
Paul O’Malley, a firefighter of six years, said: 'The brick hit the windscreen and caused a lot of damage, but luckily didn’t get through. We knew we were quite protected inside but you are always thinking that you and your colleagues all have families you want to get back to at the end of the shift.
'This engine belongs to local people and this kind of thing should not happen to people who are protecting the community.
'These teenagers should be enjoying Bonfire Night by going to an organised display, not causing trouble.'
Borough commander, Tony Lander, added: 'I am saddened when this kind of thing happens because it is not only threatening my firefighters but it is putting a fire engine out of action, which is putting the public at risk.
'We would call on parents across the county and borough to check where their children are and work with us to stop this kind of thing happening.'
The incident left the appliance out of action during the fire service’s busiest time of the year.
vicious.sid: Sick, sick people - it would be poetic justice one day if one of these morons' houses was burning down and there was no one to put it out. One question though, why is it always Manchester?
07.11.12
HMRC chief blasted for 'failing to get to grips with tax avoidance' as she admits half of UK's 770 biggest firms funnel profits overseas
Half of the biggest companies working in the UK have headquarters overseas, many in low-tax regimes, it was revealed yesterday.
Britain’s most senior tax official made the admission as she was slammed for ‘failing to get to grips with tax avoidance’ by an influential group of MPs.
It came as the Government launched a crackdown on multi-national giants that slash their tax bills by using complex legal techniques to funnel profits overseas.
Public outrage over the issue was triggered after it emerged that a long list of global giants including Starbucks, Google, Facebook, Amazon and eBay pay relatively minuscule tax bills in the UK.
Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs has a list of the 770 largest companies operating in the country, so that it can keep tabs on their tax contributions.
Probed yesterday by the Public Accounts Committee, HMRC’s chief executive Lin Homer conceded ‘around half’ had HQs outside Britain, often in low-tax regimes such as Ireland and Luxembourg, making it easier to avoid paying their fair share.
By its own admission, HMRC has a tax gap of £32.2billion of uncollected revenue.
The committee’s chairman, Labour MP Margaret Hodge, said there had been ‘hardly any progress’ since 2004, when the same gap was just over £33billion.
The committee also lambasted Mrs Homer for pursuing small and medium-sized businesses more zealously than large companies.
Labour MP Austin Mitchell said: ‘You go easy on the big boys and go harder on the companies that can’t leave and have to pay their tax here.’
Mrs Homer said: ‘All that HMRC can do is to apply the law and multinational businesses can choose where they are based and where their profits are based.’
It came as George Osborne launched an international effort to tackle tax scrimpers.
Teaming up with his German counterpart, Wolfgang Schauble, the Chancellor called for ‘concerted international co-operation’ to strengthen tax standards’.
vicious.sid: How about publishing a list of the companies that do and don't pay their fair share of taxes so we can choose to use only the decent firms.
07.11.12
Safety first! Police officers take extreme precautions by wearing protective goggles at Bonfire Night celebrations in Lewes
Most of us stick to warm winter coats, hats and gloves for our Bonfire Night attire.
So when police arrived at Lewes bonfire night wearing protective goggles, many thought it was rather an extreme precaution.
However, all visitors to this year’s event in Sussex – the UK’s largest and most famous bonfire night – were urged by police to wear such safety goggles to avoid receiving any serious eye injuries.
Sussex Police said that wearing goggles to firework displays is ‘a standard procedure if attending firework displays.’
Last year, 170 people were injured and two visitors received eye injuries that left them permanently blinded.
vicious.sid: It's a bit embarrassing! I'm off to buy shares in bubble-wrap - they'll all be wearing it next in case they bump into someone in the crowds!!! Sigh . . .
07.1.12
Novice bell-ringer, 58, in dramatic church tower rescue after becoming tangled in ropes 20ft above the belfry floor
A novice bell-ringer caused become caught in her rope – and had to be winched 20ft to safety from the belfry.
Helen Springthorpe, 58, was beginning her weekly practice session at her church when she was lifted by the rope and fell, knocking herself unconscious.
Her horrified fellow bell-ringers called an ambulance, but because the bell tower could only be reached by a steep and narrow spiral staircase, paramedics could not carry her down on a stretcher.
The solution? A team of specialist firemen more used to rescuing climbers from cliff tops and rock faces – who embarked on an elaborate mission that involved opening a trap-door in the belfry floor and winching Mrs Springthorpe to the ground 20ft below.
Mrs Springthorpe, who works as a typist, said: ‘I don’t remember very much at all, I started pulling the bells and the next thing I knew I was looking at a paramedic.
‘I have no real memory of it at all. I have no memory of being caught up. I think I hit my head on the wall and then fell over and hit it on the floor – it wasn’t that exciting. The exciting bit was being rescued by all the firemen.
‘It’s just been quite a drama I think trying to get me out – the actual accident wasn’t much, but trying to get me out of where I was was quite difficult.’
Paramedics who arrived at St Nicholas’s Church in Bathampton, near Bath, initially thought Mrs Springthorpe had broken her hip and gave her morphine – but she received a clean bill of health after a hospital examination.
Mrs Springthorpe, from Bath, has only been bell-ringing for three months and took up the hobby after a neighbour suggested she come along to the weekly group sessions.
‘I just like the church bells, I’ve always liked hearing them, so I thought I’d have a go,’ she said, adding she would ‘have to see’ whether she would be going back to the belfry any time soon.
vicious.sid: So Mr. Bean has a girlfriend then!!
07.11.12
Spot fines and cautions let thugs cheat and mean police act as judge and jury, says magistrate
John Fassenfelt says officers are now acting as 'judge and jury' with their powers to issue penalties
Serious criminals are escaping justice by being let off with spot fines and cautions, a top magistrate has warned.
The rise of out-of-court penalties meant police officers were in effect acting as judge and jury in thousands of cases, said John Fassenfelt, chairman of the Magistrates' Association.
As a result, serious crimes are being punished 'inappropriately' by summary justice.
Last year more than 420,000 offenders were given a caution or spot fine in England and Wales.
Cautions were handed to 15,100 violent criminals, 1,500 sex offenders, 3,200 burglars, 200 robbers and more than 41,000 drug offenders. Spot fines went to 33,000 shoplifters, 16,000 cannabis users and 4,500 vandals. Some 35,000 were fined for being 'drunk and disorderly'.
However, this offence rarely comes before magistrates. Instead of facing a possible jail term, they pay £80 and escape without a formal record.
Shoplifters can be fined £80, even if they steal up to £200 worth of goods. Mr Fassenfelt's comments came in an essay entitled The Magistracy And The Police published by the Police Federation in a dossier on the future of policing.
He wrote that 'more and more of what are deemed to be less serious offences have not been brought before a judicial tribunal' but instead dealt with 'according to speed and efficiency'.
The failure to take criminals to court meant a 'lack of transparency and openness in such cases', he said.
'It is unlikely that a victim would regard any offence against them as not serious, but nevertheless some offences are being dealt with outside of the judicial process,' he said.
'In some cases there is already a suspicion that this has created a lack of transparency and openness in the system and effectively means that those who are there to enforce the law are effectively put in the position of judges and sentencers.
'Undoubtedly there is merit in this for low level absolute offences such as minor driving infringements, or for some one-off offenders.
'But most are now agreed that there is much that is being dealt with inappropriately because it has not come before an independent tribunal.
'In other words, either a magistrates' court, or, for more serious offences, a judge and a jury in Crown Court, have not had the opportunity to deal with cases in a judicial forum.'
He said the use of out of court penalties was not a choice by police officers but as a result of pressures by police managers.
Since the spot fine regime was introduced in 2004, more than a million offenders have escaped court.
Half of all fines go unpaid within the 21-day limit. In many cases repeat offenders are handed multiple fines and are never properly punished.
Labour's target culture was blamed for a huge rise in the number of tickets issued, when forces were judged on the basis of the Offenders Brought to Justice target – now scrapped – which gave equal weight to crimes irrespective of their seriousness.
The number of out-of-court disposals has fallen by a third since figures peaked in 2008, when some 659,000 cautions and spot fines were handed out.
vicious.sid: At least we have SOMEONE acting like a judge!!! British magistrates certainly don't most of the time!
07.11.12
Crime? No, it was state benefits that funded my luxury life: Fraudster's wife took £72,000 from taxpayer
A WIFE accused of living a life of luxury on the proceeds of her husband’s criminal empire has insisted she paid for everything herself – with her state benefits.
Jobless mother-of-four Lisa Lowndes took at least two luxury holidays every year and drove a fleet of high-performance cars.
But the 38-year-old claimed in court that she funded it all with a generous package of state handouts.
The court heard that she received welfare payments of almost £18,000 a year over four years, adding up to some £72,000 of taxpayers’ cash.
In that time, she enjoyed ten five-star holidays, including a £3,000 break in Alicante, a £2,700 getaway to Zante and a £2,400 trip to Egypt.
While away on her trips she would cruise around in rented top-of-the-range vehicles, including a £70,000 Porsche Cayenne.
But detectives found Lowndes was actually funding her lifestyle with the ill-gotten gains of her husband’s fraud, and she was convicted of 11 offences under the Proceeds of Crime Act
Her husband Colin, 41, masterminded Britain’s biggest motoring scam, in which he charged drivers up to £400 a time to dodge speeding points. Earlier this year he was sentenced to seven years for conspiracy to pervert the course of justice and 30 charges of fraud.
In 2002, the serial conman was behind a £450,000 scam to illegally obtain goods from catalogues by rifling through bins for discarded credit card slips and then quoting the card numbers and expiry dates to place telephone orders.
In 1999, Lowndes had used the same trick to buy jewellery worth up to £250,000 from Sky Television’s QVC shopping channel.
Despite living in a terrace house on a council estate in Hattersley, Greater Manchester, Lowndes would be seen cruising around in a £120,000 Bentley Continental, a £115,000 red Ferrari Spider and a £67,000 Range Rover Sport.
At Manchester Crown Court his wife denied charges of living off the proceeds of crime, claiming her lifestyle was financed entirely by her state benefits.
vicious.sid: See what you are causing, Cameron? This is the result of the benefit culture - she actually believes that she was not doing anything wrong, to steal money from the taxpayer via benefits is her god-given right! It's only going to get worse and worse and worse . . .