The Birmingham Post (England) back issues from February 2009:
Auto Summit rolls into town.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... More than 200 delegates are expected at tomorrow's West Midlands Auto Industry Summit to discuss the challenges still facing the industry despite the launch of the "Mandelson Plan" last week. Industrialists, union leaders, politicians and academics will hear contributions from ...
BIRMINGHAM POST COMMENT: Auto industry can still drive our economy.(Leaders)
Feb 02, 2009 ... On the day before the West Midlands Auto Industry summit, it gives this newspaper great pleasure to report some good news for the sector and its supply chain. Birmingham engineering company Sorion has bucked the downturn by winning an order worth more than pounds 400,000 against ...
Wrong-headed business rates regulations should be scrapped.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... When a tax-raising and tax-collecting body starts complaining about the iniquity of the very charges it levies, you know something's seriously wrong. Birmingham City Council has to collect rates from businesses. Unlike domestic rates - which go directly to a local authority - ...
pounds 400,000 success story for engineering firm; ENGINEERING.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: JOHN CRANAGE Industrial Editor Birmingham engineering company Sorion has bucked the automotive industry downturn by winning an order worth more than pounds 400,000 against competition from Germany. The Ladywood company, which supplies diagnostic products and ...
Stop dithering over car package says city MP; UPDATE.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Birmingham MP and Tory front bench spokesman Andrew Mitchell has accused the government of dithering over its support package for the UK car industry. On the eve of the West Midlands Auto Industry Summit in Birmingham, Mr Mitchell said the 'Mandelson Plan', a pounds 2.3 billion ...
Food for thought from buoyant supermarkets; RETAIL As a steady stream of job losses plagues the rest of the retail sector, supermarkets have spread rare cheer in recent weeks with the creation of about 30,000 jobs. Anna Blackaby looks at why the sector is so upbeat.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Anna Blackaby Supermarket chain Asda said last week that it would create 7,000 jobs this year with the opening of 14 new stores, including a new site at Chelmsley Wood. Despite its slowing sales figures, Tesco has also announced that it will add up to 10,000 ...
Recession claims another victim as car parts firm goes bust with loss of 90 jobs; AUTOMOTIVE.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... A major West Midland supplier to the car sector has gone bust after 75 years - leading to another 90 job losses in the deepening recession. Administrators PKF have been called in at Redditch-based Metal Pressings Group in the latest body blow to the region's manufacturing base. ...
New ruling on rates is costing city council an extra pounds 800,000.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Mike Whitby Birmingham City Council is facing an additional pounds 800,000 tax bill for all of its empty properties after it was revealed that taxpayers nationally are footing a pounds 690m bill for empty property rates. The Business Centre Association(BCA) ...
Will Obama go protectionist? city view.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: JOHN CRANAGE It's funny how quickly economic "isms" and "isations" can be transformed from accepted wisdom to heterodoxy once the cold waves of recession come rolling in. With the first decade of the 21st century rapidly - or so it seems - dissolving into ...
City honours a son who took to the world stage; ENTERPRISE.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: TOM SCOTNEY Business Staff Birmingham was famous in the Victorian era as the birthplace of industrialists like Matthew Boulton and Josiah Mason. But in recent years, few sons of the city have gone on to more success than MA Alagappan, who went from a management degree at ...
Hiatt rescued by Indian firm; MANUFACTURING.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... More than 20 jobs have been saved with the sale of a hardware fittings firm which collapsed into administration after more than 20 years' trading. Indian group Mascot Metal Manufacturers has moved in to snap up Birmingham-based Hiatt Hardware Ltd, which went bust following a ...
Modular falls - 35 jobs are lost; MANUFACTURING.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Modular Automation International, a Birmingham-based manufacturer of bespoke production-line machinery, has fallen prey to the recession. Tim Ball and Steve Wood of Mazars have been appointed joint administrators of the Small Heath business, which was established in 1965. ...
Beachcroft just love making biggest trade; THE GREAT TRADE UP.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: ANNA BLACKABY Business Staff The contenders for the latest initiative to raise money for the new renal unit at Birmingham Children's Hospital have upped their game this week with a Valentine's-themed trade up topping the leader board. Beachcroft LLP made the ...
Midlands software firm logs on to new contract with Nationwide; COMPUTERS.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Midlands based software company EG Solutions has won a new contract with the Nationwide Building Society. The firm is to supply software and services to Nationwide's Cheshire and Derbyshire Regional Brand businesses. Elizabeth Gooch, CEO at EG Solutions, said: "This ...
Anne likes life in 'the village' pen portrait.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Name: Anne O'Meara Job title: Partner, Hammonds (Head of Regeneration) and chair, RegenCo West Bromwich Best thing about Birmingham/West Midlands? Birmingham is my home, I've never left the city.We have the world class orchestra in the CBSO, the benefit of three ...
... the tough get going.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... More than 6,000 competitors battled sub-zero temperatures, fire, barbed wire and unwise costumes during Perton's legendary ToughGuy challenge. Cuts, bruises and broken bones are par for the eight-mile course in what's been billed as the world's toughest endurance battle. ...
Lottery grant helps city to get in tune with its history.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: HARRIET ALEXANDER From Ozzy Osbourne to Duran Duran, and not forgetting UB40, Birmingham is Britain's very own music hit factory. Now, in news that will be music to the ears of fans of the city's bands, the National Lottery has awarded a pounds 50,000 grant ...
Dead businessman 'faced huge tax bill'.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: CHRISTINA SAVVAS Staff Reporter Relatives of a millionaire businessman found shot dead have paid tribute to him amid reports that he had killed himself because of a looming tax bill. Lord Howard Worthington, aged 52, was found dead in a field bordering his ...
Council told to put social services house in order.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Birmingham City Council has been ordered to make "robust and sustained" Improvements to its children's social care services following the deaths of 15 youngsters from abuse and neglect. Officials confirmed that the government had notified the authority's leader that ...
City's pounds 67m budget for consultants and advisers; Leaders to slash costs and take advice in-house.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: NEIL ELKES local Government Correspondent Birmingham city council bosses have ordered a clampdown on the use of outside consultants after it emerged that pounds 67million of taxpayers cash is being spent on outside help this year. The charges, which range from ...
Hemming wants new 'clean-up' punishment for graffiti vandals.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Removing graffiti from the streets of Birmingham could be the key to cutting crime and anti-social behaviour, according to a city MP. John Hemming (Lib Dem Yardley) is calling for a government crackdown on spray-painted slogans on walls and doorways. And he has won ...
On the wings of true record-setter; Christina Savvas talks to a high-flying record breaker who has a long way to go yet.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Christina Savvas Businessman Attila Balogh has always set his heights high but in2008 he reached record levels and this year hopes to go even further. The 44-year-old, who lives in Sutton Coldfield and is about to embark on a new role as chief executive of a ...
MEP calls mass response to eco-town plans.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... The battle against a planned 6,000- home new town in the Warwickshire countryside can still be won, a West Midlands MEP has insisted. Liz Lynne (Lib Dem West Midlands) said a renewed drive to flood planning officials with thousands of individual objections would boost the ...
Snow falls forecast to become heavier.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... The West Midlands will today be hit by heavy snow showers with forecasters predicting up to 2in in the region this afternoon. The heaviest showers are expected to hit Birmingham, plunging the temperatures to minus 2degC. Motorists are being urged to make provisions ...
Prisoners have to move out of Winson Green.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Prisoners at Winson Green are being moved north to make way for inmates from the South East of England, according to a new report. The report by the Independent Monitoring Board expressed concern at the "disruptive" practice of moving Midlands inmates to ease overcrowding in ...
Bungling speech therapist struck off after a series of blunders.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: ALISON DAYANI A Midland speech therapist has been struck off for incompetence after a catalogue of failures, including a blunder that left a schoolchild unable to eat and drink for the whole day. Sarah Dugdale-Pointon, who was employed by Dudley Group of ...
Thousands celebrate Year of the Ox.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... A taste of the Orient came to Birmingham as part of celebrations to welcome in the Chinese New Year of the Ox. Dragon dances, Chinese opera and children's songs from Birmingham Chinese School enveloped thousands of people in festivities at the Arcadian Centre, in ...
Roof sliced off double-decker bus.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Passengers were forced to dive for cover when a double-decker bus ploughed into a bridge and sliced off the roof. Ambulance staff were astonished that the 21 passengers were not more seriously injured after the Travel West Midlands bus collided with the 13ft bridge in ...
Free places funded by old boys.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: TONY COLLINS Education Correspondent Former pupils of one of the country's leading independent schools are dipping into their pockets so less affluent Midlands children can benefit from the same prized education. Half a dozen people who themselves benefited ...
Jobs ban for the speeding glazier; POLICE NATIONAL.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... A glazier has been banned from working on police stations because of a speeding offence. Until last year, Paul Kerfoot from Mans field, had clearance to repair windows but after the 55-year-old was hit with his third set of ...
House demolished after crash; DEATHS NATIONAL.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... A family home had to be demolished after a car ploughed into the property, killing the driver and two passengers. The men aged 19, 27 and 35 died when their Ford Mondeo careered into the two-storey detached home in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, on Saturday. The ...
Nurse faces sack for offering to pray; SOCIAL NATIONAL.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... A section of the M5 near West Brom wich was closed after a man died from multiple injuries on the southbound carriageway. Paramedics arrived shortly after 10.30pm on Saturday to find the man being cared ...
Wild-cat strikes poised to widen; NATIONAL.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Wildcat strikes are expected to spread today in an escalation of the row over foreign labour ahead of frantic moves to try to resolve the increasingly bitter dispute. Hundreds of contract workers at the Sellafield nuclear site in Cumbria will hold an early morning mass meeting ...
Vorderman to join Tories' drive for improved maths; NATIONAL.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Former Countdown host Carol Vorderman is to head up a maths task force for David Cameron. Ms Vorderman will look at teaching methods, how to address people's "fear" of the subject, and whether tests have got easier. The move is part of a package of ...
Film maker's family accept settlement for army shooting; NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... The family of a film maker shot by the Israeli army have confirmed they have accepted a settlement fromthe country's government, thought to be pounds 1.5 million. James Miller, 34, from Braunton, north Devon, died in May 2003 while working on a documentary for theAmerican HBO ...
Israelis warn of harsh retaliation; NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Israeli's Prime Minister threatened "harshanddisproportionate" retaliation after Gaza militants fired rockets and mortar shells into southern Israel, wounding three people and raising the risk of further violence, just days ahead of elections. All three candidates to replace ...
Divers claim to have found Victory wreck; NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Deep-sea explorers who struck it rich two years ago say they have made another big find - the wreck of a legendary Britishwarship. Odyssey Marine Exploration is still looking for the 100,000 gold coins believed to be aboard theHMSVictory - the forerunner to Nelson's flagship of ...
Protesters clash with police as Premier arrives; NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Pro-Tibetan protesters scuffled with police yesterday as Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao arrived at the Chinese Embassy in London. Protesters said that a small number of their group were trying to take the Free Tibet flag to the doors of the Embassy but five were arrested for public ...
No solutions to recession and no firm strategy after five days of talking in Davos; NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... The world's foremost gathering of the bestand brightest failed to comeup with any newplanto stem,muchless reverse, the global financial meltdown after five days of debate. The World Economic Forum in the Swiss alpine resort ofDavoswrapped up in the same atmosphere of doom and ...
Simply privatisation; Richard Hatcher, of the Alliance Against Birmingham Academies, spells out why this approach to education should be scrapped.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Richard Hatcher Parentswant their children to have a good education. Teachers want the best for their pupils. In Birmingham we have seen a steady rise in attainment. Of course there is room for improvement, especially in schools serving the poorer ...
Punctuation is all the rage.(Features)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: sarah evans It's not difficult to teach the use of the apostrophe. As grammar rules go, it's relatively simple. In punctuation terms, it is easier than full stops and commas that rely largely on an instinctive feel now that few are taught the clause analysis necessary to ...
Former Mayor must be turning in his grave at waste of money.(Letters)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Ian Payne Dear Editor, My great-great uncle was the first May or of West Bromwich in the 1880s - his name was Reuben Farley and he had parks and even a shopping centre named after him. He was very friendly with the then Lord Dartmouth who he persuaded to give land to the ...
Letter: Harmony between thought and reality3.(Letters)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Mark Whitehouse Dear Editor, Spookily, the day Birmingham City Council decided to do away with apostrophes (report - January 29) was the same day that I ran a short training session with members of our staff on the importance of using grammar correctly. With ...
Letter: The words football and sanity.(Letters)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Nadir Imamoglu Dear Editor, Last week saw a modicum of sanity return to our national game, if I am allowed to mention the words football and sanity in the same sentence. No, I am not talking about the collapse of Kaka transfer. I am talking about the FA Cup. ...
Women counting the cost; LIFESTYLE With the recession biting, Jo Ind reveals how the downturn is having a bigger impact on women than men.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Jo Ind As the recession bites, different groups make their case for being more in need of support from the Government than others. Bankers havemade their case.Those in themotor industry have been making theirs. Now it is the turn of women to claimthey are in particular ...
Perahia's interprets the giants with perfection; Murray Perahia Symphony Hall *****.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Norman Stinchcombe This recital celebrated the musical tradition binding together four great composers while also revealing their ability for innovation. Murray Perahia demonstrated the imagination and technique to embrace their individual styles. In Bach's ...
Mixed results as Hunt & Co seek an acoustic vibe; Shared Birmingham Town Hall ***.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Diane Parkes The line of guitarsat the rear of the stage gave a hint of what to expect from this evening of acoustic sets from a range of musicians. Organised by former Wonder Stuff frontmanMilesHunt, the premise of the evening, he explained, was for each ...
Nelsons adds some romantic warmth to master Wagner; CBsO/Nelsons Symphony Hall, Birmingham ****.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Christopher Morley After his heartwarming La Boheme with the CBSO last October, Andris Nelsons further affirmed his operatic credentials with ameatyWagnermenu on Wednesday, delivered to a packed auditorium where you could have heard a pin drop. Though it is ...
Majestic Thompson raids the centuries to find a triumph; Richard Thompson Birmingham Town Hall ****.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Steve Johnson Singer-songwriter RichardThompson may be approaching his 60th birthday but he is still pushing the musical envelope in the most amazing way. Setting aside for once his lyrical notebook, the folk/rock legend brought his critically acclaimed One ...
Vintage Don's still well ahead; jazz diary.(News)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Peter Bacon Those of a nostalgic frame of mind might claim that the jazz of yesteryear had more larger than life characters among its players and that those players had much more character in the sound they made. One important figure in modern British jazz who ...
CULTURE: For 50 years, we've been on our own; Buddy Holly is remembered by Terry Grimley, half-a-century after the singer's death.(Features)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: by Terry Grimley On January 31 1959 a teenager named Robert Zimmermanwent to seeBuddy Holly perform on his illfated Winter Dance Party tour at the National Guard Armory in Duluth, Minnesota. It was just three days before Holly died in a plane crash. ...
AUTOMOTIVE: Toyota stuns industry with even worse loss.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: JOHN CRANAGE Industrial Editor Fresh shock waves raced through the global car industry after Toyota warned unprecedented financial losses this year will be worse than predicted. Problems at the world's biggest (and until now most profitable) carmaker are ...
AUTOMOTIVE: Nissan chief is new leader of industry's PR association.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Gabi Whitfield, communications director of Nissan in Britain, has moved into the driving seat as chairman of the Motor Industry Public Affairs Association (MIPPA). She is joined by new fellow directors, John Rawlings (press & PR manager, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles) and ...
AUTOMOTIVE: Van 'cheaper than in 1995'.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Ford claims a Transit van now costs less new than it did in 1995. The 1995 base model, short wheelbase Transit with a 900kg payload started out at pounds 12,270 - equivalent to pounds 17,001 in today's money. A similar 2009 Transit model costs pounds 14,920. Also, to ...
Taxi cab credit is still available.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Would-be car buyersmay be finding it hard to raise loans as the banks continue the credit squeeze, but taxi drivers are finding it easier to replace their traditional black cabs. Black Horse Taxi Finance, the financial arm of Coventry manufacturer London Taxis International ...
Swedish firm offering a glimpse of Land Rover.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: JOHN CRANAGE Industrial Editor A Swedish components supplier has lifted the veil on Land Rover's closelyguarded future model plans. Haldex posted a press release on a motor industry website saying it had receivedanorder fromLandRover foran all-wheel-drive ...
Suppliers affect carmaker fate.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: eric wallbank The global economic downturn has sent ripples across the automotive industry, with falling car sales and production volumes being cut. However, it is not only the vehicle manufacturers who are suffering in these difficult trading conditions. ...
City has designs on a capital idea; CREATIVE Birmingham's fashion talent needs more opportunities.(Features)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: ANNA BLACKABY Creative Industries Editor More needs to be done to stop Birmingham's home-grown fashion talent heading for the "bright lights" of London, according to the city's acclaimed designers. Birmingham-based designer Jacob Kimmie, whose collections are ...
It's a lot more relaxed here, says student Amy.(Features)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: VICTORIA ELMORE Originally from Essex, Amy Edgar is studying fashion at Birmingham City University. She pointed to several reasons why she moved to Birmingham rather than London to study. "I loved the city and it is a lot more relaxed than London. The London ...
Globetrotting correspondent Dame Ann at the Press Club.(Features)
Feb 02, 2009 ... One of Fleet Street's top journalists has been lined up by Birmingham Press Club for a celebrity dinner event In May. Ann Leslie, made a Dame In the 2007 newyear's honours, will visit the Midlands to talk about her career as a reporter for the Daily Mail. Dame Ann ...
FQR is new identity from Thresher's rebranding.(Features)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Worcestershire-based Severn Communications has recently completed the successful rebranding of Thresher Group to First Quench Retailing. The agency was selected to develop the new brand Identity having worked extensively with the drinks retailer across a range of projects for ...
Kerrang! bangs drum for Midlands stations; Latest listening figures sound good note for local radio.(Features)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: ANNA BLACKABY Creative Industries Editor Birmingham-based Kerrang! 105.2 is celebrating its double whammy of overtakingBRMBfor the first timelocally, as well as making it into the top 10 UK stations for its nationwide DAB broadcast. However, 100.7HeartFMstill ...
Keeping our young talent is essential.(Features)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: ollie purdom I was recently contacted by a final year PR student asking if I could recommend any recruiters in London for when he finished his degree. Why was he looking to move out of Birmingham? Well apparently it was because there aren't any ...
Weaker pound should benefit SSL's growth; CAPITALISATION In association with www.kleinwortbenson.com SHARE TIPS.(Business)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Sunday Telegraph Condomsto-footwear group SSL produced a very strong update thisweek.The company trades on a high earnings multiple buthas defensive qualitiesand good growth potential. The DurexandSchollparent raised pounds 90 million to fund overseas investment last week and the market ...
CULTURE: Steve finds sea legs at The Civic; Seasick Steve Civic Hall, Wolverhampton *****.(Features)
Feb 02, 2009 ... Byline: Maggie Cotton Seasick Steve is the complete antidote to the glossy, commercial, over-hyped world of popular music. He is popular simply because he is a talented, charming man out of time. Looking like a character who has strolled from the pages of a Steinbeck ...