Our article yesterday “The Olympic Boozathon” reported that high jumper Stephanie Pywell, correctly shown left, was pictured outside a London nightclub.
We are happy to make clear that the picture which was supplied to the Daily Star by an agency is not of Stephanie and apologise for any embarrassment we may have caused to her.
Fourteen workers at the Chinese factory that makes iPhones have committed suicide.
In Britain, elf ’n’ safety would have closed the plant for years while the windows were hermetically sealed; every employee would be given compulsory counselling and issued with hard-hats and hi-viz protective clothing. Blame Direct would be pumping out claims for com-pen-say-shun.
The Chinese have come up with a simpler solution, which keeps the production lines running. They have rigged up giant nets to stop workers jumping to their deaths.
Back of the net!
We reported on Saturday that Wayne Rooney was spending £10,000 on under floor heating for luxury dog kennels at his Cheshire home.
In fact, there are no dog kennels at his home and thus no under floor heating has been installed. We apologise for the mistake.
The Daily Express today launches a crusade to stop Britain being plunged into early evening darkness every autumn.
The Time for Change Crusade would give us an extra hour of daylight in the evening all year.
Prime Minister David Cameron said last night he would “look at” whether Britain should turn the clocks back each year.
The Daily Express is calling on the Government to move UK time forward by an hour permanently, bringing the country into line with much of the rest of Europe.
Our crusade has already won the backing of politicians and campaigners who say longer, brighter evenings would make roads safer.
David Cameron sparked fury yesterday as he agreed to consider plans to move Britain’s clocks forward by an hour all-year round.
English MPs want the Prime Minister to introduce British Summer Time throughout the year to give families one hour more of daylight in the evenings.
But most Scots are firmly opposed as they fear children would travel to school in darker mornings throughout much of the winter, risking more traffic accidents. Tourism chiefs south of the Border back the move to bring Britain into line with most of continental Europe, saying it would boost the leisure industry...
...the move remains strongly resisted in Scotland, where it would mean that in winter, the sun would not rise until almost 10am.
Various individuals and organisations (including Rethink and Shift) complained that the newspaper had used the word 'Schizo' in reference to a patient suffering from paranoid schizophrenia. The complainants said this was a pejorative and discriminatory description of the patient's mental illness.
12. Discrimination
i) The press must avoid prejudicial or pejorative reference to an individual's race, colour, religion, gender, sexual orientation or to any physical or mental illness or disability.
The matter was resolved when the newspaper agreed that it would use its best endeavours not to use the term 'schizo' in the future.
Miss Adele Brand complained to the Press Complaints Commission that an article had inaccurately stated that experts believed urban fox numbers to have quadrupled since 2007. She said that population trends are not a matter of opinion; rather, such information was scientific fact which could only be corroborated by appropriate survey techniques.
She added that the leading scientific experts on the matter at the University of Bristol had conducted research indicating that fox numbers have generally remained constant over the last decade.
An online article of 11 June stated that experts have warned of a quadrupling of urban fox numbers since 2007.
Such a claim was not supported by the text.
We would make clear that our story was based on an item from another newspaper, which quoted the chairman of the National Pest Technicians Association reporting a rise in the number of calls regarding urban foxes.
We are not aware of the official statistics, but have been asked to point out that there is scientific data showing that fox numbers have remained constant.
was founded in 1994 as the Wanky Balls festival in north London.
Looks like someone’s been having a bit of childish fun editing the page – and also that someone at the Independent should check their facts a bit better.
Thousands of illegal immigrants are routinely freed instead of deported because police fear they will be branded racist if they question a suspect’s nationality.
since then the police and the UK Border Agency have implemented a range of actions designed to improve the practices involved in checking the nationality and migrant status of arrestees.
The introduction of enhanced checking processes led to a marked increase in both the level of checks undertaken in each pilot site, and in the number of IMs or SIMs identified.
The number of individuals who had their details checked by the UK Border Agency across the four pilot sites increased by over 400 per cent, from 129 checks in the three months prior to the pilots to 650 checks in total across the four sites during the pilots.
a number of circumstances that could result in officers failing to check an individual’s status effectively, either before or after arrest.
- An arrestee being perceived as compliant or nonconfrontational.
- An arrestee who was familiar to officers through repeated encounters over a period of years was (at times wrongly) assumed to have a legitimate immigration status.
- An arrestee’s details had previously been taken and logged on the PNC. Generally, these details were accepted, unless there was substantive evidence to hand to cast doubt on the accuracy of the record.
- Arrestees who looked like they belonged to a well established local ethnic minority or FN population could escape scrutiny.
- In some sites there was a marked reluctance to challenge arrestees who claimed to be British, even though officers suspected that the claims might be false. This reluctance was commonly ascribed to the fear that any such challenge could result in an accusation of racism.
- There was some confusion over which nations currently constituted the EEA or the EU. In the majority of sites, claims to EEA citizenship were not challenged.
- Officers were often unable to form a sound judgement about the likely credibility of identity or travel documentation presented to them, and did not always initiate further checks when appropriate.
Telly babe Christine Bleakley has set her heart on marrying football ace Frank Lampard on an Italian-style gondola in Las Vegas.
The lovestruck pair checked out marriage packages during a recent hush-hush trip to the gambling city before Frank returned to pre-season Premier League training with Chelsea.
Sources claimed the “head-over-heels” couple stayed at the huge Venetian hotel, which has more than 4,000 suites.
Frank Lampard and Christine Bleakley have no intention to get married at this time.
They did not travel to Las Vegas to make arrangements for a wedding as we reported on Saturday.
We apologise for any embarrassment this may have casued to Frank and Christine and their families.
A Muslim group has opened what it calls the UK's first summer camp against terrorism.
The three-day event in Coventry is expected to see more than 1,000 young Muslims at sessions teaching religious arguments to use against extremists.
The event has been organised by the Minhaj ul-Quran to promote a fatwa, or religious ruling, against terrorism by its leader Dr Muhammad Tahir ul-Qadri.
Dr Qadri launched the fatwa in London in March.
Opening the summer camp, Dr Qadri told the audience - predominantly made up of British Muslims - to reject al-Qaeda and its "cancer" that was spreading through their faith.
He told them to embrace being British and do all that they could to build a safe and secure society by using sound theological arguments to confront any extremists that they meet.
The populist Pakistani cleric's 600-page theological study is billed by his followers as the most comprehensive and clear denunciation of the arguments deployed by jihadists to justify violence including suicide bombings and the targeting of civilians.
Brit kids forced to eat halal school dinners
Furious parents last night hit out at plans to serve halal-only school dinners.
Pupils will have no option but to eat meat slaughtered following Islamic teachings specifically for Muslims.
A north London council is offering its primary schools the chance to serve only halal meat on its menus.
Nine Harrow secondary schools already provide pupils with meat prepared according to Islamic law in a scheme that has been running for two years.
Harrow Council said it had received "no complaints" about serving halal-only meat, with vegetarian and fish options.
Now 52 primary schools in the area will have the option of taking part in the same programme.
Harrow councillor Brian Gate said it would be the choice of individual schools as to whether or not they chose to use catering firm Harrison Catering Services, which serves halal-only meat.
"The decision about whether to use an individual provider is for schools to make, as the funding is delegated to them," Councillor Gate said.
all high schools in the London borough of Harrow have been told to provide only halal meat on menus.
The contract for providing meals to Harrow primaries is up for renewal and the council is planning to bring in Harrison's.
The council says primaries do not have to use its preferred caterer and governors are free to negotiate their own deals if they wish. Only two primaries have so far signed up.
Harrow Council has employed a catering company to only prepare Halal meat – to serve youngsters in Harrow.
Primary schools are free to opt in to the programme or look elsewhere for their meals
It is simply not correct that Harrow Council is insisting that its schools serve only Halal meat.
The schools are in full control of decisions relating to school meals and are free to choose who provides this service.
Yes, there are still isolated incidents of hate. But the vast majority of modern supporters would not bat an eyelid. There is nothing to fear.Yet this is the same paper that, in an editorial a few weeks ago, said:
He said: “It’s a very sad state of affairs. But it’s a fact that homophobia in football is as strong now as it was 10 years ago...
Max now believes any star would be unwise to follow the example of Welsh rugby star Gareth Thomas who has come out as gay. He warned: “If he did, it would effectively be his career over.”
The press must avoid prejudicial or pejorative reference to an individual's race, colour, religion, gender, sexual orientation or to any physical or mental illness or disability.
You can't throw a word like 'bender' into a headline about a gay man. Not in a newspaper that still pretends it has any sort of standards. Homophobic name-calling isn't the same as a witty headline.
Pineapple Dance Studios star Louie, or Louise as I like to call him.
Do you see? Because he's gay, Gordon has given him a woman's name.
Now Pineapple Dance Studios hero LOUIE SPENCE - Louise as I call him.
been plagued by speculation he is more Botter than Potter.
Some time ago, I made a cheap and frankly unnecessary joke about Clare Balding looking like a big lesbian. And afterwards somebody tugged my sleeve to point out that she is a big lesbian, and I felt foolish and guilty. So I’d like to take this opportunity to apologise. Sorry.
Now back to the dyke on a bike, puffing up the nooks and crannies at the bottom end of the nation.
In my view some members of the gay community need to stop regarding themselves as having a special victim status and behave like any other sensible group that is accepted by society. Not having a privileged status means, of course, one must accept occasionally being the butt of jokes.
A person’s sexuality should not give them a protected status. Jeremy Clarkson, perhaps the epitome of the heterosexual male, is constantly jeered at for his dress sense (lack of), adolescent mind-set and hair style.
He puts up with it as a presenter’s lot and in this context I hardly think that AA Gill’s remarks were particularly 'cruel', especially as he ended by so warmly endorsing you as a presenter.
When the day comes that people stop resigning from high office, being disowned by their families, getting beaten up and in some instances committing suicide because of their sexuality, you may have a point.
This is not about me putting up with having the piss taken out of me, something I have been quite able to withstand, it is about you legitimising name calling. ‘Dyke’ is not shouted out in school playgrounds (or as I’ve had it at an airport) as a compliment, believe me.
It may be your job to defend your writer and your editorial team but if you really think that homophobia does not exist and was not demonstrated beyond being ‘the butt of a joke’ then we have a problem.
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