Rolf Harris Spat At During Prison Scuffle

Disgraced entertainer Rolf Harris who is serving a jail sentence for sex abuse has been spat at in prison.

The 84-year-old was targeted during an incident at HMP Bullingdon in Oxfordshire.

A source said that there was a scuffle and the artist and musician was nearby.

"Someone did aim a spit at him, but he was not spat on, and was not physically hurt," the source added.

News of the incident came as it was announced that Harris has applied for permission to appeal against his convictions for a string of indecent assaults.

A spokesman for the Judicial Office confirmed that lawyers had lodged papers at the Court of Appeal this week.

One of Harris' victims who gave evidence against him during the trial told Sky News: "I perhaps should have expected it but it is still a shock."

The victim who cannot be named added: "It feels like such an insult and just beyond belief for him to do that."

Harris was convicted at London's Southwark Crown Court on June 30 of 12 indecent assaults and sentenced to five years and nine months in jail.

The appeal papers will go before a single judge who will decide initially whether or not Harris has grounds for appeal.

The Judicial Office confirmed to Sky News that no timescale had yet been set for the process.

If permission to appeal is granted then a full hearing at the Court of Appeal would fully assess Harris' case.

If, however, he is denied permission to appeal then he would be able to reapply.

One of the assaults was on an eight-year-old autograph hunter, two on girls in their early teens and another on a close friend of his daughter.

Earlier this week, Attorney General Jeremy Wright confirmed Harris' sentence would not be referred to the Court of Appeal on the grounds that it was too lenient, despite 150 complaints that the jail term was not tough enough.

Harris' offences took place between 1968 and 1986 against girls aged between seven or eight and 18.

He was prosecuted in line with the laws in place at the time of his crimes - when the maximum jail term for indecent assault was two years, or five years if the victim was under 13.

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High Street Revival 'Has Shown Little Impact'

By Frazer Maude, Sky News Correspondent

The self-titled "Queen of Shops" has come under fire after her Government-backed bid to revive the High Street has shown little impact.

Wolverhampton was one of 12 town centres chosen to pilot retail guru Mary Portas' High Street revival. It got a £100,000 share of the £1.2m in funding.

That helped finance the opening of five retail outlets. Three of them have been a success, one has diversified, and the fifth went under.

Nick Pitt, manager of the local shopping centre, chaired the Wolverhampton Portas Project. He sees it as a success for the town centre.

"A hundred thousand pounds is good value. And it rallied businesses around to come together in a very selfless way to help people get into business," he told Sky News.

"It was quite a humbling experience. I see people who'd never had the opportunity before to have their own shop and now they have.

"And those people are still helping us now to help other people get into business. And we're determined to do it again."

The celebrity trouble shooter was brought in by the Government two years ago to breathe new life into our struggling High Streets.

But some of her key recommendations, like a reduction in business rates and free parking, were ignored.

Some £1.2m in funding was set aside two years ago to boost business

Labour MP and chair of the Government's Business Select Committee, Adrian Bailey, is critical of the scheme, saying: "Overall, and I would emphasise it time and time again, you will not change the basic problems of the High Street just by putting in these sort of pilots.

"You've got to change the business rates and those obstacles which are deterring people from moving into the High Street in order to provide an imaginative variety of retail offers that people will want to buy into."

Mary Portas was not available for interview, but her CEO David Wood issued a statement to Sky News on her behalf.

It said: "We think there's some justified criticism of the way Government originally implemented the programme and the lack of infrastructure to support the town teams.

"There's also justified criticism of the way the majority of the recommendations were accepted but nothing was done - for example we spoke in the report about parking, business rates, landlords, town-centre-first planning approvals and the like but little was done."

Penny Maudaunt, the newly appointed High Streets Minister, says the scheme has been successful.

"There has been a huge amount of really good work that's gone on locally," she said.

"The pilots have been experiments. There have been a lot of good ideas, some ideas that may not have worked so well, but there are a number of ideas that have worked very well for particular areas and what we have to do is replicate that in other High Streets."

But many businesses say the areas that need tackling are the very ones that Ms Portas highlighted months ago, and which the Government ignored.

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Commonwealth Games Athlete Tested For Ebola

An athlete competing for Sierra Leone at the Commonwealth Games has revealed he spent four days in isolation over fears he had brought the deadly ebola disease into the UK.

Moses Sesay, who came to Scotland to compete in the cycling time trial, fell ill last week and was admitted to hospital.

"I felt tired and listless," he said. "All the doctors were in special suits to treat me. They dressed like I had ebola. I was very scared."

Tests eventually gave Sesay the all-clear and he was allowed to compete in the event, ultimately finishing last.

Medical staff treating ebola patients have to wear special protective suits

But the 32-year-old said he and his team-mates are worried about returning to their homeland once the Games are over.

More than 220 people have died in Sierra Leone after contracting the disease - more than any other country.

"All of us are scared about going back," Sesay told the Mirror.

"We have a three-month visa in our passports and, if I have the opportunity, I will stay here until this ends."

More than 700 people have died after contracting the disease in Africa

Health officials have been warned to be on the lookout for any unexplained illness in people returning from countries where ebola is present.

One union leader said British border, customs and immigration staff feel unprepared to deal with potential cases of the disease, although the Home Office said there was a "well-established plan to deal with different scenarios".

Dr Colin Ramsay, from Health Protection Scotland, said patients could be screened for ebola if they show symptoms including a fever, headache or sore throat, especially if they have travelled from an affected area within the last three weeks.

Putting such patients in isolation is a "standard precaution" and not unusual, he added.

Games organisers stressed the athletes' village has not been affected

A spokesman for Glasgow 2014 stressed there is "no ebola in the athletes' village", while Dr Ramsay said there is nothing to suggest there is any risk to sports stars competing in Glasgow.

"People have a misconception about ebola," he said.

"It is spread, primarily, through contact with bodily fluids, not casual conflict, so it wouldn't be sufficient just to share a house with someone.

"There has to have been close contact to have a substantial risk of being infected with the disease."

Meanwhile, a US doctor infected with ebola has insisted the only available dose of an experimental serum go to a fellow American patient in Liberia.

Dr Kent Brantly asked for the unit of blood to go to missionary Nancy Writebol, as the World Health Organisation announced a $100m (£59.2m) plan to tackle the outbreak.

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PM Hails £300m Project To Unlock Power Of DNA

UK scientists are to map 100,000 complete DNA code sequences in a "landmark" project that aims to revolutionise medicine, Prime Minister David Cameron has announced.

Mr Cameron said the 100,000 Genomes Project, funded by a package of deals worth £300m, will "see the UK lead the world in genetic research within years".

The project will sequence the genetic codes of about 75,000 patients with cancer and rare diseases, and those of their close relatives.

Both the healthy and the tumour cells of the cancer patients will be mapped, meaning about 100,000 will be sequenced in total.

Mr Cameron said: "I am determined to do all I can to support the health and scientific sector to unlock the power of DNA, turning an important scientific breakthrough into something that will help deliver better tests, better drugs and above all better care for patients.

"As our plan becomes a reality, I believe we will be able to transform how devastating diseases are diagnosed and treated in the NHS and across the world, while supporting our best scientists and life science businesses to discover the next wonder drug or breakthrough technology."

Scientists hope that identifying tiny changes in the genetic code that can trigger disease will allow for personalised and more effective treatments.

It is hoped more drugs like Herceptin will be designed for specific cancers

One example of such a therapy that already exists is Herceptin, a drug specifically designed for women with a type of breast cancer characterised by over-activity of the Her2 gene.

DNA samples have already been donated by a few hundred participants in a pilot, and about 10,000 are expected to have donated by the end of the year.

The project is expected to be completed by 2017.

Among the cancers due to be targeted are bowel, breast, leukaemia, lung, ovarian, prostate and leukaemia.

Charity the Wellcome Trust, the Medical Research Council and the National Health Service are contributing to the project, which will be overseen by Genomics England, set up by the Department of Health.

The Californian DNA sequencing company Illumina, which won a contract to provide the technology for the project, will also invest about £162m in the project over its lifetime.

Wellcome Trust director Jeremy Farrar said genome sequencing could transform medicine.

"Twenty years from now academics and industry will have developed therapies which will be targeted at you and specific forms of cancer," he said.

"We will look back in 20 years' time and the blockbuster chemotherapy drugs that gave you all those nasty side effects will be a thing of the past."

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Ebola: 'Precautions' Taken To Keep UK Safe

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has said "precautionary measures" have been put in place to protect Britons from ebola, although it is "most unlikely" it could spread within the UK.

Mr Hammond was speaking after a meeting of the Government's emergency committee, Cobra, to discuss what he earlier called a "new and emerging" threat.

Doctors in Britain have been put on alert to spot symptoms of the deadly disease, which has killed more than 670 people in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and Nigeria since February in what is the largest outbreak in history.

Infection results from direct contact with the blood, bodily fluids and tissues of infected animals or people.

After telling Sky News before the meeting that Prime Minister David Cameron regarded the disease as a "very serious threat", Mr Hammond afterwards sought to reassure the public that there was little threat.

"I would emphasise again, in terms of the UK, the issue is about the possibility of somebody who has contracted the disease in Africa getting sick here," Mr Hammond said.

"It is not about the disease spreading in the UK because we have frankly different standards of infection control procedure that would make that most unlikely."

UK and European flight routes to the countries affected by ebola

A person from Birmingham was tested for ebola after returning from Africa, but the tests came back negative.

He was tested earlier this week after reportedly travelling from Benin in Nigeria via Paris to the Midlands.

Another man visited Charing Cross Hospital in London fearing he had the virus, but doctors decided he did not need testing. 

Dr Brian McCloskey, director of global health at Public Health England (PHE), said the risk to British travellers and workers was low, but doctors needed to be vigilant for "unexplained illnesses" in those who have returned from the affected countries.

"The continuing increase in cases, especially in Sierra Leone, and the importation of a single case from Liberia to Nigeria is a cause for concern as it indicates the outbreak is not yet under control," he said.

Those who experience symptoms should "immediately seek medical assistance", Dr McCloskey added.

Medical staff prepare to bring food to patients in an isolation area

Former Metropolitan Police border control officer Chris Hobbs told Sky News there were concerns among border officers over how to handle potential cases of ebola.

"First of all, there's concern about handling passports and landing cards of passengers arriving from places that may be infected with ebola," he said.

"Second is where it is deemed necessary to search, body search a passenger or their luggage.

"And the third concern is these flights from certainly Nigeria are high-risk flights in respect to drugs and many couriers will have swallowed packages containing drugs.

"That will present huge problems to border force officer in dealing with those individuals because they just have to wait for the packages to emerge and all that goes with it."

Countries affected by the ebola outbreak

Meanwhile, British Airways, which flies to Sierra Leone and Nigeria, said in a statement it complies with guidance from local health authorities and will "continue to monitor the situation closely".

Cabin crew are advised to contact air traffic control if they see someone on board who they suspect could have the disease.

A Department of Health spokesman said: "We are well-prepared to identify and deal with any potential cases of ebola, though there has never been a case in this country.

"Any patients with suspected symptoms can be diagnosed within 24 hours and they would also be isolated at a dedicated unit to keep the public safe."

In 2012, a man with Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever, which is related to ebola, was flown from Glasgow Airport to London by the RAF to be treated at the Royal Free Hospital in north London.

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NHS Hospital Paid £1,800 A Day For Nurse

By Thomas Moore, Science and Health Correspondent

NHS hospitals are so short staffed on public holidays they are paying almost £150 an hour for nurses to work, a Sky News investigation has found.

On May Day Bank Holiday this year a locum agency was paid more than £1,800 to supply a nurse for a 12-hour shift, new figures show.

And one hospital paid £2,500 for a doctor to work that day.

The statistics - obtained through a Freedom of Information request - lay bare how much the NHS is relying on private locum staff on public holidays.

In one hospital, half of the doctors who worked on May 5 were locum medics.

And at another, almost one third of the nursing staff was supplied by a private agency.

Experts say that using locum staff unfamiliar with the hospitals they are working in can put patient care at risk.

With the NHS under increasing financial pressure, a nursing body wants the amount hospitals pay agencies to be reviewed.

One trust paid nearly £1,800 for a mental health nurse shift. Pic: File

Dr Peter Carter, Chief Executive of the Royal College of Nursing, said: "These figures are truly shocking.

"Many (of the nurses) will never have been to that ward before and will probably never be there again.

"It says nothing about continuity of care. Even finding your way round the ward, the geography, it makes life really difficult.

"Agency nurses do not provide good value for money … and the employers who use these extraordinary levels should be held to account for it.

"This is public money that is not being well spent. This is something that should be looked at with the utmost urgency."

Eighty of the 150 NHS trusts in England replied to a Sky News request asking how many locum staff they employed and at what rates on May 5 this year.

At the Heart of England NHS Trust in the West Midlands, half the doctors working that day were temporary locum medics, the figures show.

Experts say a large percentage of locum staff can put patient care at risk

More than three in ten nurses at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust and at Southend NHS Trust were from agencies.

Meanwhile, University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay (NHS Foundation Trust) paid an agency £2,500 for a locum doctor to work a single shift.

University Hospitals Bristol (NHS Foundation Trust) paid £1,800 for a nurse on a shift of just over 12 hours - equivalent to almost £150 an hour.

Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust paid almost as much (£1,798) for a middle grade nurse specialising in mental health - almost a month's pay for the average nurse.

Separate figures published in April suggested that the NHS has spent £2bn on agency staff since 2010/11.

A Department of Health spokesperson said: "We now have 6,700 more doctors and 6,200 more nurses directly employed by NHS organisations than in 2010.

"The figures … are not a full picture of staffing in the NHS, but we encourage all trusts to maintain a tight grip on their staff costs and we will hold poor performers to account."

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British Doctors Warned To Check For Ebola

British doctors have been told to keep an eye out for anyone displaying the symptoms of Ebola as authorities in Africa fail to contain an outbreak.

A second airline stopped its flights to Liberia and Sierra Leone on Tuesday night, hours after a highly regarded doctor died of the virus.

An American GP who has been treating Ebola patients in Liberia is also said to be in a grave condition and "terrified" he will not survive.

Two other US health workers are currently being treated for Ebola in hospital in Liberia.

It comes after a 40-year-old American man of Liberian descent died in Nigeria on Friday, that country's first case.

The Ebola outbreak is the largest in history with more than 670 deaths blamed on the disease in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, as well as Nigeria, since February.

Medical staff prepare to bring food to patients in an isolation area

Dr Brian McCloskey, director of global health at Public Health England (PHE), said there are a number of British staff working on the ground in West Africa.

He said that while PHE believed the risk to British travellers and workers was low, doctors needed to be vigilant.

Dr McCloskey said: "The continuing increase in cases, especially in Sierra Leone, and the importation of a single case from Liberia to Nigeria is a cause for concern as it indicates the outbreak is not yet under control.

"We have alerted UK medical practitioners about the situation in West Africa and requested they remain vigilant for unexplained illness in those who have visited the affected area.

Kent Brantly, a US GP who has fallen sick in Liberia, says he is terrified

"People who have returned from affected areas who have a sudden onset of symptoms such as fever, headache, sore throat and general malaise within three weeks of their return should immediately seek medical assistance."

Sierra Leone medic Dr Sheik Umar Khan was praised as a national hero for treating dozens of people with the disease in Sierra Leone, but was last night confirmed to have died.

He had been quarantined after catching the virus while helping others.

The airline ASKY, on which dead finance ministry official Patrick Sawyer travelled to Nigeria from Liberia, via Ghana and Togo, said it was temporarily halting flights to the Liberian capital Monrovia and Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Passengers at the airline's hub in Lome, Togo will also be screened by medical teams, it said. Arik Air had already cancelled flights in the area.

Patrick Sawyer's family are devastated by his death

Canada's CBC said the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention issued a Level Two travel alert, warning travellers to Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea to avoid contact with body fluids of people who might be affected.

Two missionary groups based in North Carolina ordered the evacuation of their non-essential personnel from Liberia last night as the situation worsened.

Texas-born doctor Kent Brantly, 33, who remains fighting for his life in Monrovia, told a friend in an email: "I'm praying fervently that God will help me survive this disease."

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Driverless Cars 'On UK Roads By January'

By Tom Cheshire, Technology Correspondent

The government is today announcing plans to put driverless cars on public roads as early as January 2015.

The British Army already uses autonomous vehicles, supplied by automotive design specialist MIRA, which is also developing systems for civilian use.

Researchers in Oxford have also developed an autonomous car that can be controlled using an iPad.

Tim Edwards, principal engineer at MIRA, told Sky News the UK had some "very advanced technologies and some fairly unique know-how".

Google is already testing driverless cars on roads in California

But he said: "Where we lag behind is actually getting the technology into some real field trials."

Trials on public roads have already been held in Japan, Singapore and Germany, and Sweden will soon follow suit.

In California, driverless cars are already road legal. Google's self-driving cars have already logged 700,000 miles.

In May, the web giant unveiled a new model - without pedals.

Nick Connor, Managing Director of Volvo UK, said: "We warmly welcome this initiative from the government and will be looking into the detail with keen interest.

Volvo is also testing them in Sweden

"Support of national and local government is crucial if we are to demonstrate the real, life-changing potential of this technology and encourage adoption from the public."

But the main obstacles may not be technological, but legal.

Suzie Mills, a lawyer at Ashfords, told Sky News: "That's going to be one of the areas that consumers want to know about - what does their insurance cover? Is it going to affect premiums?

"That's going to come down to clarifying exactly where responsibility sits. And that is something the government's going to need to look at and definitely insurance companies are going to want to know about."

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Kate's Got A Real Fan At Commonwealth Games

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will be hoping the home nations' gold rush continues as they return to the Commonwealth Games in Scotland where they spent a fun-packed day.

Kate and William joined Prince Harry and Prince Edward as they saw several English, Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish competitors take part in a games that is proving highly successful for the four countries.

The pair laughed, joked and grimaced - and at one point William fanned his wife with her identity pass, as she pulled a funny face. 

Host nation Scotland won its 13th gold medal, taking it way beyond the 11 golds it won in Melbourne in 2006. England has 27 golds and Wales has three.

With 31 golds up for grabs on Tuesday, the Royals will be looking forward to a standard of sport equalling what they saw on Monday when they joined the audience for gymnastics, boxing, hockey and swimming.

At the Glasgow National Hockey Centre, they met members of the Australian and English teams.

Both the Duke and Duchess fan themselves while watching swimming.

Prince Harry met two Australian players whose selfie of them and the Queen went viral last week.

Jayde Taylor was posing for a photo with team-mate Brooke Peris when the Queen moved into the background as she took the snap.

Taylor said: "We asked [William] if he would do a selfie with us so we could add it to our collection, but he said 'I hate selfies but I will definitely do a photo with you'."

Kate, William and Harry went on to join the Earl of Wessex to watch Scotland take on Wales in the women's hockey.

At one point the Duke and Duchess looked concerned as the action on the pitch reached a tense moment.

Kate played hockey as a student at St Andrews University and appeared to pay close attention to the result, which ended in victory for Scotland.

Harry is photographed with the England women's hockey team.

Later, at the Tollcross Swimming Centre, two members of the Australian team came over and passed a kangaroo mascot to William and Kate before taking some photos

Earlier, the royals had watched gymnasts from across the Commonwealth compete in the men's and women's team finals, and individual qualifying rounds.

They were seen chatting and laughing as the crowd sang and clapped along to the Proclaimers' I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles).

Kate, William and Harry then walked to the nearby SECC arena to watch boxing, where they were pictured grimacing as they saw the competitors land blows.

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House Prices Force Adults To Live With Parents

By Gerard Tubb, North Of England Correspondent

Millions of young workers have been dubbed the "clipped wing generation" because they are forced to live with their parents by rising house prices.

Housing charity Shelter has published census data showing almost two million workers aged 20-34 in England alone - a quarter of the total - are living with parents or grandparents.

A YouGov poll found 48% of them say housing costs are to blame.

At the Coast and Country Housing Association headquarters in Redcar, out of 11 people working in one office, nine were aged 20-34 and four of them were still living at home.

Laura Wood is living at the family home while she saves up for a deposit

Laura Wood, 26, moved back into the family home after graduating and has lived there ever since while she saves up for a deposit on a house.

"It's obviously difficult when you mum's still asking what time are you going to be in, where are you going what are you doing, so I don't feel like I'm 26 half of the time," she said.

Her co-worker Liz Wilson, 65, still has her 30-year-old son living at home and says the problem of unaffordable housing is forcing her to stay at work.

"I can't retire because we have to provide a larger property for him to have his own room, his own space, and as such we can't downsize," she said.

Unaffordable housing is forcing Liz Wilson, 65, to stay at work

Campbell Robb, Shelter's chief executive, accused the Government of not doing enough to help.

He said: "The 'clipped wing generation' are finding themselves with no choice but to remain living with mum and dad well into adulthood, as they struggle to find a home of their own.

"Rather than pumping more money into schemes like Help to Buy, we need bolder action that will meet the demand for affordable homes and not inflate prices further."

In a statement, Housing Minister Brandon Lewis said measures including the Help to Buy scheme were addressing the issue.

"We're determined to ensure anyone who works hard and wants to get on the property ladder has the help they need to do so," he said.

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Fracking Rules As Push For Drilling Heats Up

Fracking will be only be allowed in national parks and areas of outstanding beauty in "exceptional circumstances", ministers say, as new bidding for shale exploration licences opens.

The policy is part of new guidance published today by Government which is aiming to offer up vast swathes of Britain for fracking.

The Government has committed to going "all out for shale", claiming development of the gas and oil resource is needed to improve energy security, boost jobs and the economy.

But opponents say the high-pressure injection of water risks polluting water supplies, damaging the environment and causing minor earthquakes, and argue further fossil fuels should not be extracted due to climate change.

Business and energy minister Matthew Hancock said: "The new guidance will protect Britain's great National Parks and outstanding landscapes, building on the existing rules that ensure operational best practices are implemented and robustly enforced.

"Ultimately, done right, speeding up shale will mean more jobs and opportunities for people and help ensure long-term economic and energy security for our country."

Where an application in National Parks is refused and the developer launches an appeal, Communities Secretary Eric Pickles will consider whether to make the final decision himself to ensure the policy is being properly applied.

But Greenpeace campaigner Louise Hutchins warned: "Eric Pickles' supposed veto power over drilling in National Parks will do nothing to quell the disquiet of fracking opponents across Britain.

"Ministers waited until the parliamentary recess to make their move, no doubt aware of the political headache this will cause to MPs whose constituencies will be affected."

Friends of the Earth's energy campaigner Tony Bosworth said: "Today the risk of fracking has spread. This threat to the environment and public health could now affect millions more people.

"Those who thought that fracking would only happen in other places will now worry about it happening on their doorstep.

The shale exploration licences which can be applied for from today provide the first step to start drilling but do not give an absolute agreement to drill.

Planning permission, permits from the Environment Agency and agreement from the Health and Safety Executive will be required for further drilling.

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Domestic Abusers Get Off With 'Slap On Wrist'

By Ashish Joshi, Sky News Correspondent

The victims of domestic abuse are being failed by the Government and their abusers getting away with little more than a "slap on the wrist", claims Labour.

The Opposition claims more than 10,000 perpetrators have not faced justice because police forces are wrongly using community resolutions to deal with violence against women.

Community resolutions were introduced to deal with low level crime such as vandalism and anti-social behaviour. They are supposed to be used as an alternative to ending up in court.

Victims are asked what they would like to see happen - it could end with an apology, compensation or remedial action like cleaning up graffiti.

In the words of West Midlands Police: "Community resolutions mean children and adults with no previous convictions need not be criminalised for one stupid mistake."

But shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper claims the use of community resolutions to deal with domestic violence has more than doubled in the past five years from 1,337 in 2009 to 3,305 in 2013.

"These figures are deeply worrying. Domestic violence is an incredibly serious crime. Two women a week are killed by their partner or an ex and 750,000 children will grow up witnessing domestic violence.

Yvette Cooper says community resolutions are often used inappropriately

"For the police to simply take a violent abuser home to apologise risks making domestic violence worse, and makes it even harder for victims to escape a cycle of abuse.

"Labour has called on the Government previously to prevent the use of Community Resolutions for serious crimes, including domestic violence. Today's figures reveal that nothing has been done."

But the Home Office has rejected Labour's claim that violent partners are escaping justice.

It said: "No government has done more to tackle the abhorrent crime of domestic abuse than this government. Our groundbreaking Claire's Law will help protect women from abusive relationships, while domestic violence protection orders are cracking down on the destructive cycle of repeated abuse.

"It is not acceptable for the police to use out of court settlements for serious criminality and that is why the government is already reviewing how they are used."

But Labour says an inspectorate report "looked at 66 police cases of informal resolution, and judged that the resolution was inappropriate in 14".

Women's charities and campaigners against  domestic violence have backed Labour's claims. They are worried community resolutions trivialise violence against women.

Jane Keeper from Refuge said: "Anyone with experience in domestic violence knows that most perpetrators regularly apologise.

"It's a feature of the violence, they abuse, batter, they control, and in the middle of it every now and again they say sorry and they'll never do it again.

"To have police encouraging this with perpetrators and keeping them away from being held accountable, is just playing right into hands of those who perpetrate violence."

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Homes Evacuated Over 'Volatile Substance'

Up to 200 people were asked to leave their homes after a "potentially volatile" substance was found in a flat.

Police were working with council emergency planners last night to move families from homes within 100m of the find in Newhall, South Derbyshire, as a precaution.

Officers said it could take until this afternoon before residents are allowed to return to their homes.

A 55-year-old man was arrested after the substance was discovered during a search of the flat in Belvoir Crescent on Saturday afternoon.

Superintendent Paul Markham, who is in charge of the operation, said: "We are not looking for anyone else in connection with this matter and we are hoping that people will not be inconvenienced for too long.

"The evacuation is purely a precaution to ensure everybody's safety and residents will be allowed back home as soon as possible."

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Gatwick Passengers Suffer Baggage Delays

Hundreds of people arriving into Gatwick Airport's south terminal have faced long delays in picking up their luggage, with many being told to go home without it.

An airport spokesman said the overnight disruption was caused by "resourcing issues" involving baggage handlers Swissport.

"Due to resourcing issues with the baggage handlers Swissport there were overnight issues and delays with passengers' luggage," they said.

"Gatwick provided extra staff to help the airlines and their baggage handlers improve their service, as well as providing welfare and water for passengers waiting in the baggage areas, but we are sorry for the delays they faced.

"Baggage operations are now returning to normal."

Passengers of several airlines have been advised to go home without their luggage.

Gatwick said it provided extra staff for airlines to help reduce the delays

Officials at the airport informed passengers of British Airways flights who had waited more than an hour on their bags being returned, and those on Monarch, Thomas Cook or Thompson flights who had been waiting 90 minutes or more, that their luggage would be forwarded to their home address.

It is understood easyJet passengers have also been affected but had not been advised to leave without their baggage.

Some passengers took to social media sites to voice their frustrations over delays for up to five hours.

Julian C Adams tweeted: "Such shocking service at Gatwick airport! Waiting for the arrival of baggage for over 2 hours now! #shouldhaveflowntoheathrow.

Sophie Wood ‏tweeted: "3 hrs in #gatwick baggage handling ... Apparent Lack of staff appalling shambles #Gatwick#idiots.

Oliver Webb wrote: "‏@2 hour delays at #gatwick for baggage reclaim. #Swissport to blame apparently. No info from airport staff. Rubbish.

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