7 May 2015
Week in Brief: UK NEWS
ELECTION NEWS: As election day dawns, the polls still show the parties neck and neck with the Conservatives ahead by a whisker. It seems likely that tactical voting will save Mr Clegg at Sheffield Hallam but on the broader stage it may well be that no party will obtain an overall majority; the air is thick with rumours and counter-rumours of possible coalitions. Senior Liberal Democrats have indicated their distaste for continuing the coalition with the Tories although Mr Clegg has said that he will begin by talking to the party with the most seats. Mr Miliband has said that he would not go into a coalition with the Scots Nationalists but is preparing to seek the support of his trade union backers for the formation of a minority government. Nicola Spurgeon hopes to prevent a Labour minority government renewing Trident by withholding her support on this issue – apparently oblivious of the possibility that the Conservatives would probably provide the necessary votes. Ed Miliband has had six pledges engraved on a large stone which he proposes to erect in the garden of 10 Downing Street. It is understood that there may be difficulties over planning permission.
PRINCESS: The Duchess of Cambridge gave birth to a daughter, to be called Charlotte Elizabeth Diana, on Saturday May 2. She is fourth in line to the throne and following the enactment of Succession to the Crown Act in 2013 will rank ahead of any younger brothers. She would, of course, have ranked above her uncle, Prince Harry, whether the rules had been changed or not.
JANNER ENQUIRY: Justice Lowell Goddard, the New Zealand judge charged with leading the child abuse enquiry in England and Wales, has promised a further investigation into allegations against Lord Janner, the former Labour politician, including a review of the medical evidence. The decision by the Director of Public Prosecutions not to press charges on the grounds of Lord Janner’s dementia has outraged his alleged victims.
THE SUN: In a remarkable display of editorial independence, the Scottish Sun is backing the Scottish Nationalist Party in the general election; the Sun itself endorses the Conservatives in order to prevent the Nationalists getting too much influence in Westminster.
TAX: according to reports in The Times, Margaret Hodge received a substantial shareholding in Stemcor, a company founded by her father, from a Lichtenstein foundation in 2011. Mrs Hodge who, as chairman of the Public Accounts Committee has been a leading critic of tax avoidance and evasion, claims to have paid her taxes in full. As announced last year, Air Passenger Duty has now been abolished for children under twelve years old, which will reduce the cost of taking them on holiday.
AGE: research published in the Lancet suggests that by 2030 the average life expectancy for women will have risen to 87.6. In 2012 it was 83.3. The corresponding figures for men are 85.7 and 79.5. The reduction in the gap between the sexes may reflect the decrease in manual labour among men and a change in the relative levels of smoking and drinking . The general increase in life expectancy will make it more difficult to provide pensions unless people work longer. Research at the King Faisal hospital in Jeddah indicates that the more wives a man has the more likely he is to suffer from cardiac problems.
SHOOTING: Gerard “Jock” Davison, a former commander of the Provisional IRA was shot dead in Belfast on Tuesday morning.
THEFT: £1,700 stolen from a 100-year-old American tourist by someone helping him to get up after a fall has been returned by the thief.
DETECTIVE FICTION: Ruth Rendall, the crime writer and creator of Chief Inspector Wexford, has died at the age of 85. Her most recent novel was published last year.
FIRE: Clanden Park, the grade 1 palladian mansion owned by the National Trust, has been destroyed by fire. The house, which dates from the early 18th century, was built for the Onslow family, owners of large sugar plantations in Jamaica.
STATISTICS: according to figures released by the Ministry of Justice 17% of prisoners were sentenced for sex offences. That compares with 10% in 2000. There were 517,113 children at independent schools at the start of 2015, reflecting a steady increase in pupil numbers. About 14% of sixth formers now attend independent schools.
COMMEMORATION: the VE day celebrations will begin with a two minute silence at 3pm on Friday 8th May. The Queen will light the first of a nationwide chain of beacons at 9.30 that evening and will attend the Service of Thanksgiving at the Abbey on Sunday.
WINE: Marks and Spencer have begun to stock Welsh wine for the first time, acquiring 480 bottles of 2013 Bacchus from Parva Farm Vineyards near Monmouth.
SPORT: Alex Dowsett, who suffers from haemophilia, set a new world cycling record of 52.937km in one hour at the Manchester velodrome. Sir Bradley Wiggins will try to break that record on 7 June. The West Indies beat England by five wickets at the Kensington Oval in Barbados to draw the series. Chelsea have won the Premier League. The legendary England and Tottenham striker Jimmy Greaves is seriously ill following a stroke.
