The Birmingham Post (England) back issues from May 2008:
Top city firm launches internal financial probe.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: By John Cranage Business Staff An investigation has been launched into alleged "financial irregularities" at a subsidiary of longestablished Birmingham accountants Wenham Major, the firm has announced. The practice revealed it is conducting an inquiry into its ...
Firemen sacked over 'spoof' interview get their jobs back.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Two West Midlands firemen sacked after conducting a "spoof" interview with a colleague were given their jobs back yesterday. West Midlands Fire Service said Mark Smith and Lee Evans had been re-employed after talks with the Fire Brigades Union prior to an employment tribunal in ...
House prices see first annual fall.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... House prices suffered their first annual fall for 12 years as the market continued to be hit by the fallout from the credit crunch, figures showed yesterday. According to the Nationwide Building Society, the average UK home is worth pounds 178,555- pounds 1,759 less than 12 ...
Inquest opens into dead disabled man; COURTS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... An inquest into the death of a severely disabled man whose decomposed remains were found in a suitcase at his family home was opened yesterday. The body of James Arran Hughes, 22, was found hidden among other items in the garden of his mother and stepfather's house in Redditch, ...
Chemistry lesson ends in explosion; SCHOOLS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Seven A-level students were rushed to a Birmingham hospital after an explosion during a chemistry lesson yesterday. Pupils at Queen Elizabeth's Mercian School, in Tamworth, Staffordshire, were about to begin an experiment when a bottle of silicone tetrachloride exploded as two ...
Crash closes M42; ACCIDENT.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Motorists faced delays on one of region's busiest motorways after a lorry overturned and crashed into a barrier yesterday. The middle and fast lanes on the eastbound M42, between junctions 1 and 2 near Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, were closed at 10pm to allow ...
Father pays tribute to a 'special' daughter.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: By Katie Dawson The father of a 21-year-old Midland woman who died while taking part in an extreme sport in New Zealand paid tribute yesterday to his "special" daughter. Emily Jordan, from Worcestershire, became trapped between rocks and drowned while ...
Contractor jailed for imaginary staff scam.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... A crooked company boss nicknamed "Mr Generosity" was jailed for three-and-a-half years yesterday for milking nearly pounds 500,000 from the Ministry of Defence. James McLaughlan, 58, regularly handed over "silence money" and doled out free cars, accommodation and weekend breaks ...
Birmingham Pride parade called off after time dispute.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... The largest gay and lesbian event in the country, organised by Birmingham Pride, will be without its crowd-pulling party piece this year - the famous parade that winds round the city centre and ends in the gay village. A series of disagreements over the start time of the annual ...
Business in a coma? Well, Morrissey has the answer . . .(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: By Tom Scotney Steven Patrick Morrissey has always been an idol for socially maladjusted teenage boys pining in darkened bedrooms. But now posters of the miserable crooner, frontman of one of the most critically acclaimed bands in the 1980s, The Smiths, could ...
30 pupils test positive for tuberculosis at girls school.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Public health officials are investigating an outbreak of tuberculosis at a Birmingham school, after 30 pupils tested positive for the infectious disease. All pupils at Birchfield Independent School for Girls, in Beacon Hill, Aston, were screened after a girl and one of her ...
Campbell brother steps into Ali's UB40 shoes.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Duncan Campbell is to replace his brother Ali as UB40's vocalist, it was announced yesterday. The singer confirmed he was leaving after 30 years in January, citing management problems. Duncan Campbell will be performing vocals alongside brother Robin, on the band's ...
Biker revenge threat could halt blues music festival.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Police are opposing a licence application for a festival because they fear people could use the event to exact revenge for the death of Hells Angel Gerard Tobin. Derbyshire Police believe the Rock and Blues Custom Show would present the most "significant opportunity for ...
Growing costs of growing up . . .(News)
May 01, 2008 ... The typical family spends nearly pounds 5,000 a year keeping their children entertained, a survey showed yesterday. Children are taken on an average of 72 outings a year, with excursions including trips to local attractions, the cinema, swimming pool and fast food outlets, as ...
Protectionism is not the answer to crunch - Brown; POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: By Gavin Cordon and Alan Jones Gordon Brown issued a warning yesterday that the world must not relapse into trade protectionism in the face of the global economic slowdown. Addressing the Institute of Directors in London, the Prime Minister said it was ...
Cameron seeks deal with business community; POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... David Cameron last night pledged to cut taxes and regulation for business, but warned that in return it must help tackle social problems. The Tory leader delivered an appeal for firms to join him in "changing" Britain for the better, by addressing issues such as crime, drugs and ...
Theatres need support, says Spacey; POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey yesterday complained that theatres and other artistic groups had to jump through an increasing number of hoops to obtain funding from the Government. He told an audience of business leaders that arts organisations were having to spend more and more ...
'Chancellor must stop firms quitting the country' POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... The Chancellor must act to prevent businesses quitting the UK because of an uncompetitive tax system, Conservatives have claimed. Andrew Mitchell (Con Sutton Coldfield) issued the warning after Shire, the UK's thirdlargest pharmaceutical company, and United Business media, the ...
Energy bill sees huge backbench Labour revolt; POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Gordon Brown last night suffered the joint worst backbench revolt since he became Prime Minister - just 24 hours ahead of the local elections. Thirty five Labour MPs voted against the Government in a bid to force it to introduce a feed-in tariff scheme within a year to boost ...
Livingstone's broadside at 'joke' Boris; POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... London Mayor Ken Livingstone yesterday launched his most direct attack so far on Boris Johnson. On the eve of polling, the Mayor branded his Tory challenger "a joke" and warned voters they were not voting for the winner of Celebrity Mayor. Unveiling a campaign poster ...
Income tax cut wanted by a third of Britons; POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Just under a third of Britons said a further reduction in the rate of income tax they pay was their top priority, a survey showed today. About 31 per cent said if they could send a message to Chancellor Alistair Darling they would ask for income tax rates to be cut, according to ...
Score draw pleases Labour ranks; POLITICS Political Editor Jonathan Walker witnessed the last Prime Minister's Questions before the nation goes to the polls today.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: Jonathan Walker With local elections today, one might have expected a good knockabout fight during Prime Minister's Questions yesterday. But hidden beneath the Punch and Judy show was a pretty good debate about an important issue - the right way to protect the ...
MPs calls for inquiry into phone firm 'cartels' POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Competition watchdogs should investigate the mobile telephone networks to discover whether they are operating a "cartel", a Birmingham MP said. Roger Godsiff (Lab Sparkbrook & Small Heath) demanded an inquiry as he raised his suspicions in a Commons motion. The MP ...
PM admits mistakes over 10p tax abolishment; POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Gordon Brown conceded yesterday he made "mistakes" in the way he abolished the 10p income tax rate in his final budget as Chancellor. The Government was forced last week to promise urgent changes to the system in the face of a large-scale rebellion by angry Labour backbenchers ....
City council elections will be broadcast live; POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... All of the action from the count at today's city council elections can be followed as it unfolds on The Birmingham Post website. Results will be available as soon as they are announced on www.birminghampost.net The first of the 40 seats being contested is expected to declare at ...
Constituents terrified to open letters from tax man; POLITICS.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... The complicated tax credits system has left the public so worried about demands they are scared to open letters from the taxman, an MP warned. Daniel Kawczynski (Con Shrewsbury and Atcham) said he suspected ministers were happy because it meant MPs were busy helping the public ...
Robo-cam lollipop ladies fighting abuse on streets.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: By Ed Chatterton Lollipop ladies are being given Robocop-style head cameras after reporting a rise in the number of attacks on them. The cameras are designed to capture motorists hurling abuse at the school crossing patrollers. Evidence collected ...
Madeleine's parents open up about night she disappeared.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Madeleine McCann's parents yesterday spoke more vividly than ever before of the night she went missing. In a documentary, Kate and Gerry McCann told how they kept vigil all night on May 3, 2007, before embarking on a desperate dawn search through a deserted Praia da Luz. ...
Arson suspected at holiday hotels; CRIME.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... A teenager was arrested in connection with a fire at a seaside hotel which caused the evacuation of more than 30 guests and staff early yesterday. The blaze broke out in an upstairs storeroom and spread to a roof space and two other rooms at the Marine Hotel in Cliff Road, ...
Drink-drive charge for rugby's Tindall; CELEBRITY.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... England rugby international Mike Tindall was yesterday charged with drink-driving. Tindall, who also plays centre for Gloucester, was stopped by police on the M4 the day after attending a party at the Cheltenham Racing Festival with his girlfriend, Zara Phillips. He ...
Ambulance attack; CRIME.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... An ambulance driver has been attacked and robbed while driving through Manchester, police said yesterday. He heard a bang on the side of his vehicle and pulled up believing he had struck a wing mirror. After getting out to check his vehicle the 39-year-old was struck on the back ...
Grouse initiative; WILDLIFE.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... A plan to expand the population of rare black grouse across the countryside has been launched. The species - once common in the UK - has been under threat for a number of years, owing to loss of habitat and predators. But thanks to a successful restoration ...
Bin Laden's son denied entry.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... One of Osama bin Laden's sons is planning a legal challenge in the UK after being refused entry to live with his British wife, a former parish councillor, she said yesterday. Omar Ossama bin Ladin was told his visa application had been turned down at the British Embassy in Cairo ...
Jail term for hoax train bomber.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... A drunk top civil servant, who had to be protected from angry Tube passengers after telling them he was a Muslim and had a bomb, was jailed for 12 months yesterday. Ministry of Justice official George McFaul, a survivor of an IRA bombing in his native Ulster, warned commuters ...
Captain's court case halted.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... The Princess Royal's former husband was in court yesterday to hear a judge halt a prosecution against his eventing company. Captain Mark Phillips' firm, Equiland, and two of its directors - Timothy Clayton and Timothy Henson - were previously charged with failing to discharge a ...
Fire drills are commonplace across most businesses, schools and places of work.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Fire drills are commonplace across most businesses, schools and places of work. Being a tower crane operator would normally mean that you miss out on this activity - but at The Cube, in Birmingham's city centre, where the crane ...
Police sergeant denies spanking colleague.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... A police sergeant told a female colleague her bottom was "perky" before slapping it when she bent over, a court heard yesterday. Mark Downing, 39, a Thames Valley force officer, is said to have done it while drunk at a barbecue in Slough, Berkshire, last summer. He ...
Wind turbine 'flicker' could cause seizures.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Wind turbines which rotate quickly could cause seizures, a new study said yesterday. Blades should not spin more than 60 times a minute, according to researchers at the Universities of Essex and Aston. They said people who were photosensitive could be in danger if ...
Drivers get off more lightly in the south east.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: By Emma Brady Motorists in the West Midlands are most likely to be prosecuted by the police if they are caught breaking the law, according to new Government figures released yesterday. Nearly six out of 10 drivers (56 per cent) were prosecuted by West ...
Owners of older cars could be in line for surprise tax hike.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Thousands of families are facing a surprise tax hike after the Government confirmed that cars up to seven-years-old would be subject to new road duties. It was widely believed that older vehicles would be exempted from the shake-up, which is designed to penalise high emissions. ...
Selling alcohol 24 hours a day 'is asking for trouble'.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: By Paul Dale Public Affairs Editor A move by Sainsbury's to sell alcohol 24-hours a day at a Birmingham city centre store would add to problems of drunkenness and rowdy behaviour in the Broad Street entertainment zone, police have warned. The supermarket ...
Supermarkets need competition test, says report.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Campaigners yesterday dismissed a report into supermarket dominance of the grocery sector as a "failure", saying it will do little to protect consumers or independent retailers. The Competition Commission unveiled a planning shake-up in a bid to boost competition in the pounds ...
'Dad cards' packed with parenting info for fathers.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... An information service for new fathers was launched yesterday. Wallet-sized "Dad Cards", with tips on subjects from paternity leave to sex during pregnancy, will be available from hundreds of maternity units. Employers including Lloyds TSB and BT, local authorities ...
Child maintenance pay tops pounds 1bn benchmark.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Child maintenance payments collected or arranged by the Child Support Agency (CSA) topped pounds 1 billion for the first time in 12 months, according to statistics today. The figures were hailed "really good news" by Work and Pensions Secretary James Purnell, who said they ...
National Trust 5p charge for bags; ENVIRONMENT.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... The National Trust is introducing a 5p charge on plastic bags in its shops and plant centres from yesterday. The move follows a newspaper campaign against the plastic bag, which green groups say damages the environment, and a Government pledge to introduce legislation if ...
South Pole trek attempt; EXPLORATION.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... A Briton is preparing become the first person to trek solo and unsupported to the South Pole - and back. Financial consultant John Wilton-Davies, 46, will face a race against time when he sets off on his 1,400- mile ice marathon in November. When he begins skiing ...
Sisters stabbed; CRIME.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... A woman accused of stabbing her two teenage daughters to death yesterday appeared in court. Rekha Kumari-Baker appeared before Cambridge Crown Court after being charged with murdering her daughters Davina 16, and Jasmine ...
Welsh soul diva Duffy is up for Mojo recognition.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Newcomer Duffy has received three nominations in this year's Mojo Honours List, more than any other artist. Alex Turner's band the Arctic Monkeys have two - and his project The Last Shadow Puppets have received two nominations. Welsh soul singer Duffy has been ...
Villa ace's brother gets six years for drugs offences.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: By James Savage The brother of Aston Villa star Zat Knight has been jailed for six years for dealing Class A drugs. Carlos Knight, 26, was arrested with his brother on the same day Zat sealed a dream transfer to the club. The central defender, who ...
Archaeologists discover 91 Roman skeletons in mass grave.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... The uncovering of a Roman mass grave was hailed by a research team yesterday as an "almost unparalleled" discovery in British archaeology. Research published by Oxford Archaeology revealed the 91 skeletons found in the Gloucester grave could have fallen victim to a smallpox ...
The Duke of Gloucester yesterday visited the Midlands to launch a project.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... The Duke of Gloucester yesterday visited the Midlands to launch a project aimed at conserving Lichfield Cathedral. The Duke, patron of the Lichfield Inspires project, was accompanied by James Hawley, Lord-Lieutenant of Staffordshire, and was greeted by hundreds of school ...
What a difference those ten years made; AGENDA.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: SHAHID NAQVI "Dad, what's a scab?" my ten-year-old son asked. It was an insult in the brilliant new British film Son of Rambow we had just watched. I explained the political situation of the 1980s and the miners' strikes when the word came into popular ...
Better than '68 but Labour will still get a battering; AGENDA Today is local elections day and despite Labour's tribulations, it will still fare better at the polls than it did 40 years ago, says Chris Game.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: Chris Game The Birmingham Post reported a YouGov opinion poll last week showing the Conservatives (44 per cent) 18 per cent ahead of Labour (26 per cent), the largest such lead for over 20 years. If anything the news for Labour was even worse, for the higher ...
Being British: is this really the best we can do? AGENDA.(Features)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: Dr CHRIS ALLEN Being comfortable with both my Britishness and my Englishness - at the same time being proud of my Irish and Scottish ancestry - I have to admit that I'm more than a little uncomfortable with the whole St George's Day thing. Avoiding the ...
Are you sitting comfortably? AGENDA.(Features)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: CHRIS UPTON Atale from Norse mythology, translated from the Elder Edda (or possibly made up) by Dr Chris Upton ... There is a tale told of Laeti, who was an artist. Once upon a time there was an argument among the gods as to who was the greatest ...
Letter: A balanced look at the water table.(Letters)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: ADRIAN COLLINGS Dear Editor, Re: Rising groundwater under Birmingham. The headline story of April 28, which suggests that developers should not be designing basements and underground car parking in Birmingham due to a rising water table, needs to ...
Letter: The problems of 'social dumping'.(Letters)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: JAMES BENTON Dear Editor, The Post editorial on April 19 ("We're in Europe so who are the immigrants now") made important reading and raises some very important issues. "The United State of Europe must be a political reality, or it cannot be an economic one" ...
Letter: A nationwide tea party to help needy pets.(Letters)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: JOANNA LUMLEY Dear Editor, I am writing as a supporter of Britain's pet charity, The Blue Cross, to invite you pop the kettle on and take part in a nationwide tea party to help needy pets. On Friday May 16 animal lovers everywhere will be hosting Blue Cross ...
Letter: Capital punishment is cost-effective.(Letters)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: DOUGLAS J WATHEN Dear Editor, Sometimes it is better to be cruel, to be kind. Three 'youths' described as animals by the judge, 'hyenas' in fact, have been sentenced to a minimum of 20 years each for the horrendous attack and murder of a married man who caught ...
Letter: Is it really an all English final?(Letters)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: ADAM WYETH Dear Editor, So we're about to witness the biggest club game of football in our history with the Champion's League final set to host two English teams. Not really. The final is set in Moscow for a start. Secondly, has anybody bothered to ...
THE BIRMINGHAM POST: Why bother to vote with this election system?(Leaders)
May 01, 2008 ... The screening of Birmingham City Council election results live on the internet tonight and tomorrow morning is, sadly, likely to have a very limited audience appeal. Council chief executive Stephen Hughes believes the webcast will be watched by those who have taken the time to vote, but ...
THE BIRMINGHAM POST: Store's bad idea.(Leaders)
May 01, 2008 ... It is difficult to see the application by Sainsbury's for a 24-hour alcohol licence at its Brindleyplace store as anything other than a hostile challenge to the recent successes enjoyed by businesses, the police and Birmingham City Council in reducing incidents of drunkenness in Broad ...
THE BIRMINGHAM POST: Thinking is misery.(Leaders)
May 01, 2008 ... The songs of Morrisey, morose frontman of The Smiths, are not what you'd call cheerful ditties. Clever and thoughtprovoking, certainly. So it takes some dedication to analyse them to the degree that Birmingham academic Dr Sheena Leek and her colleagues have done. Their ...
Police look again at 22-year-old rape and murder link.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Byline: by Helen Freer Police in Austria are examining links between the murder of a young woman and the man who has confessed to holding his daughter captive for 24 years and fathering her seven children. The body of Martina Posch was found 22 years ago near a lake ...
Prince William flies back with victim.(News)
May 01, 2008 ... Prince William flew back from his brief visit to Afghanistan with the body of a soldier killed in action, it was revealed yesterday. Once in the UK he privately met members of the family of Trooper Robert Pearson, who died on April 21 when his vehicle hit a mine. ...