Pregnant women should visit countries with a risk of malaria only if their trip is essential, experts are warning.

Article: The Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT) recorded its highest ever number of young whales in its latest survey of marine life. The surveys began in 2003.
Twenty-eight juveniles were counted this year, three times the average compared with previous years.
Whales coming in from other areas has also been suggested as a reason.
Survey team members documented 28 juvenile minke whales and 30 adults. HWDT said it was an "unusually high proportion" of young compared to adults.
The survey had an encounter rate of one juvenile minke per 177 miles (286 km).
It also recorded the highest annual number of common dolphin sightings since the charity's expeditions began, with 723 individuals observed over 63 encounters.
The species was once uncommon in the Hebrides, but the trust's encounter rate with the species has more than doubled over the past 12 years.
Kerry Froud, HWDT biodiversity officer, said: "These intriguing changes in Scotland's marine life highlight the importance of long-term monitoring of cetaceans - so that we can better understand what is happening in our waters, and then make management recommendations to better protect this world-class area of marine biodiversity."
The surveys are carried out between May to October by scientists and volunteers on board Silurian, the trust's dedicated research yacht.

Summary: Conservationists have suggested a "baby boom" as a possible reason behind increased sightings of juvenile minke whales off western Scotland this year.
###
Article: Theresa May said the "sick and depraved" attack in Westminster, in which five people died, would not stop people going to work as normal or Parliament from sitting on Thursday.
Values of freedom of speech, liberty and democracy would prevail, she said.
She praised the "exceptional bravery" of the police officer who died.
Speaking outside No 10, Mrs May - who earlier chaired a meeting of the emergency response committee Cobra - said her thoughts were with the officer's relatives and those others who had been killed and injured in the "appalling incident".
"Our thoughts and prayers go out to all who have been affected - to the victims themselves, and their family and friends who waved their loved ones off, but will not now be welcoming them home," she said.
"For those of us who were in Parliament at the time of this attack, these events provide a particular reminder of the exceptional bravery of our police and security services who risk their lives to keep us safe.
"Once again today, these exceptional men and women ran towards the danger even as they encouraged others to move the other way."
While the details of the incident - in which a single alleged assailant in a car struck a number of pedestrians on Westminster Bridge before stabbing a police officer at the gates of the Palace of Westminster - were still emerging, she said, the UK would not be cowed.
Confirming that the terror threat level would remain at severe, she said it was no accident that Parliament had been targeted in the incident.
"These streets of Westminster - home to the world's oldest Parliament - are ingrained with a spirit of freedom that echoes in some of the furthest corners of the globe," she said.
"And the values our Parliament represents - democracy, freedom, human rights, the rule of law - command the admiration and respect of free people everywhere. That is why it is a target for those who reject those values.
"But let me make it clear today, as I have had cause to do before, any attempt to defeat those values through violence and...

Summary: The terror attack in Westminster will not stop Britons from going about their lives and such attacks are ultimately "doomed to failure", the PM has said.
###
Article: Non-EU citizens settling in the UK for longer than six months are also being required to pay a "health surcharge" as part of their visa applications.
The new rules from the Department of Health came into force on 6 April.
Primary care and A&E care continues to remain free.
Permanent residents of 32 European countries qualify for NHS treatment, which is then billed to their country of residence, but this new ruling applies to foreign migrants or visitors based in other countries, mainly those outside the EU.
These patients can be treated in an NHS hospital but are expected to repay the cost of most procedures afterwards.
But up to now, the DoH has only sought to reclaim the actual costs, without adding any extra charges.
The DoH hopes the changes will help it recoup up to £500m a year by 2017-18.
The new guidelines do not require patients on trolleys in hospitals to produce passports before getting access to urgent care.  Nor do they apply to accident and emergency or a visit to a GP.
What is covered is ongoing treatment on the NHS after an initial diagnosis or referral - for example an outpatient appointment.
The Department of Health is incentivising hospitals to be more vigilant in checking patient credentials by allowing them to charge more for treatment of people "not ordinarily resident" in the UK.
The department can recoup those costs from the patient's member state if they are from the European Economic Area.
In the paperwork filled in by the patient before the appointment they will be asked for proof they are "ordinarily resident".
This could be a utility bill, national insurance number or passport details.  Some hospitals were doing this already but many were not.
The guidelines are designed to increase the chances that the treatment costs for a non-UK resident can be recovered.  Critics may ask why it has taken so long for the initiative to be launched.
The charges are based on the standard tariff for a range of procedures, ranging from about £1,860 for cataract surgery to about £8,570 for a hip...

Summary: Visitors from outside the EU who receive treatment in NHS hospitals in England are now being charged 150% of the cost under changes brought in to discourage "health tourism".
###
Article: The rare medals badge of honour, which includes four grand crosses, belonged to Lieutenant-General Rowland Hill.
The commander of the British Army fought with the Duke of Wellington in 1815 and served in the Napoleonic Wars.
Auctioneers said the historical brooch, which was discovered in its original box in Derbyshire, "honoured and recognised his many acts of bravery".
More stories from the East Midlands
The medals include the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath, the Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic Order, the Grand Cross of the Order of the Tower and the Sword and the Peninsular Cross.
Charles Hanson, of Hanson's Auctioneers, said the badge was one of the "richest historical" military finds he has ever come across and was "worthy of a place in a museum".
"I am delighted to see this important historical item honouring a war hero and great leader of men sell for well above its estimate of £1,000 to £2,000," he said.
Mr Hanson added that General Hill was an "extraordinary man".
"He led armies of up to 30,000 men in some of the most important battles of the 1800s in Egypt, Spain, Portugal and France," he said.
"He inevitably had brushes with death. At the Battle of Waterloo, where Hill commanded the II Corps, he was lost in the melee and feared dead but escaped unscathed."
Source: Hanson's Auctioneers

Summary: A military bar brooch featuring medals awarded to a Battle of Waterloo soldier has been sold for £7,800 at auction.
###
Article: Mothers-to-be are more likely to get malaria as their immunity is lowered, says the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG).
Malaria carries serious risks for mother and baby including miscarriage, stillbirth and premature labour.
The tropical disease is transmitted by mosquitoes and causes a fever, flu-like symptoms, vomiting and diarrhoea.
There have been no malaria-related deaths in pregnant or recently pregnant women in the UK in the past decade but the RCOG says it has been receiving inquires from worried women.
In the UK, about 1,500 cases of malaria are reported each year and about 10 people will die, said the RCOG.
It says all non-essential trips to areas with a high risk of malaria should be avoided.
Risk areas include large areas of Africa, Asia including China and India, Central and South America, parts of the Middle East and some Pacific Islands.
If the trip is unavoidable, the college advises women to seek advice from a centre with expertise in malaria which will provide information on ways to reduce the risk of infection.
Women should make sure they are aware of the risk, take out measures such as mosquito nets for bite prevention and take anti-malarial medication.
Philippa Marsden, who chairs the RCOG's patient information committee, said although the risks were still relatively small it was important that women were well-informed.
Cath Broderick of the RCOG women's network said: "If women are worried about symptoms after returning from a high-risk country and think they may have malaria, they should see a doctor immediately and inform them of their recent travels."
Symptoms can take a week or more to develop after being bitten.

Summary:


teach Muslim women in the UK to speak English.
The scheme will be run by the British Council and will be funded by the government.
The Home Office said the scheme would be run in partnership with the British Council and would be funded by the government.
The scheme

Red-faced officials at the Home Office have been forced to correct a spelling error in a press release about new English language tests for migrants.

Article: In the year to March 2015, there were 41,176 such crimes recorded, compared with 29,466 during the previous year.
Overall crime in Greater Manchester was up 10% during the same 12-month period.
Chief Constable Sir Peter Fahy said: "This increase in recorded violent crime is showing some worrying trends and placing huge demand and risk on a reducing number of staff."
His force has lost more than 1,100 officers since 2010.
Greater Manchester's Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd called on Prime Minister David Cameron to "stop chipping away at the police service" and "invest in the safety of our local communities."
There were a total of 200,432 crimes recorded by Greater Manchester Police - a 10% rise, compared to 3% nationally.
Mr Lloyd said while police numbers were being cut, demands on police were increasing as they deal with more complex issues "such as child sexual exploitation and domestic abuse."
Reported sexual offences increased by 55% to 4,970 in 2014-15 while there was a 33.4 % rise in domestic violence in the region, with 19,621 recorded crimes.
Sir Peter added: "Many of these incidents are complex with vulnerable victims to be protected and dangerous offenders to be brought under control. We are bringing many more cases to court but keeping on top of this is getting more and more challenging."
On an average day, GMP deals with 532 crimes, including 51 daily victims of domestic abuse, 12 sexual assaults and 10 hate crimes.
National figures showed an increase in knife crime in England and Wales for the first time in four years.

Summary: Violent crime in Greater Manchester rose by 40% in the last year, according to the Office for National Statistics.
###
Article: The Nigerian novelist was well known in literary circles but gained a far wider audience after Beyonce used an extract of her speech called called We Should all be Feminists in her 2014 track Flawless.
Now her words are being used again in a Boots advert released this week: "For a while I stopped wearing make-up and hid my high heels. And I became a false version of myself. But then I woke up and I saw in full colour, full confidence again."
As a feminist, she is aware that she has to explain her relationship with make-up.
In her talk at TedxEuston she said that the word feminist was "so heavy with baggage, negative baggage. You hate men, you hate bras, you hate African culture."
Instead, she said, she wanted to be identified as a "happy African feminist who does not hate men and who likes lip gloss and who wears high heels for herself but not for men".
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie:
"Sadly, women have learnt to be ashamed and apologetic about pursuits that are seen as traditionally female, such as fashion and make-up"
While this highly specific definition of a feminist was tongue-in-cheek, she still felt the need to defend wearing make-up earlier this month.
In a 9,000-word Facebook post she wrote a guide to how to bring up a feminist daughter.
"If she likes make-up let her wear it; if she likes fashion let her dress up. But if she doesn't like either let her be."
She advised that raising a feminist didn't mean forcing her to reject femininity: "Feminism and femininity are not mutually exclusive. It is misogynistic to suggest that they are.
"Sadly, women have learnt to be ashamed and apologetic about pursuits that are seen as traditionally female, such as fashion and make-up."
This comes from personal experience.
In her TedxEuston talk, she revealed that when she was getting ready to teach her first writing class she felt a pressure to avoid looking feminine: "I really wanted to wear my shiny lip gloss and my girly skirt but I decided not to.
"Instead I wore a very serious, very manly, and very ugly suit. Because...

Summary: One of the world's leading feminists is not the obvious choice to be the face of a make-up brand, but Boots has just made Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie the face of No7.
###
Article: The points have been removed from the club's total with immediate effect, meaning they drop outside the Super League play-off positions.
Bradford now sit in ninth position, two points below Hull KR, who occupy the final play-off berth.
A consortium submitted a conditional bid for the Bulls last week and this was passed to the RFL on Tuesday.
The six-point penalty is two points more than Wakefield and Crusaders were given when they went into administration and is the largest the RFL could have handed out.
Bulls interim chief executive Gary Tasker said: "We expected a deduction of points by the RFL and we of course accept that penalty. We are not yet in a position to be able to offer any recompense to our creditors and as such a six-point deduction was what we expected.
"We are still in the competition and a place in the top eight - and with it the ability to make the play-offs - is still within our grasp and we will be travelling to Warrington on Sunday in a confident and determined mood."
Centre Chev Walker responded to the news of the points deduction by tweeting: "6 points of hard work on the field taken because of sloppy work off it!! Play-offs are still in reach long as we get our heads down."
Administrator Brendan Guilfoyle revealed last week that the bid put forward by the consortium would be conditional on the Bulls being allowed to continue in Super League and lease back Odsal, which is owned by the RFL.
"The best the RFL will get is a conditional bid," he told BBC Look North.
"The consortium I'm dealing with won't move forward with the club in the second tier. It would be a totally different business model.
"If this bid isn't accepted by them then this club will cease to exist and I will have failed."
Bradford Bulls entered administration on 26 June after attempts to raise £1m to keep the club running were unsuccessful.

Summary: Bradford Bulls have been handed a six-point deduction by the Rugby Football League for entering administration.
###
Article: The committee will hear from seven head teachers on Friday.
Figures in October showed 2.8% of grammar pupils are eligible for free school meals compared with 13.4% in non-selective schools.
Councillors are also examining grammar schools' admission criteria and their outreach work to support poorer pupils.
Liberal Democrat councillor Martin Vye said the statistics were "appallingly low" and the gap was still too wide.
He said he believed more could be done in primary schools to bring children from poor households to a level where they could face the Kent Test - the county's selective 11-plus - "with confidence".
Conservative councillor Jenny Whittle said figures were improving with grammar pupils eligible for free school meals now over 3%.
Adding that she would like the figure to double, she said: "Clearly we need to do more."
Both councillors are on the Kent County Council committee set up to tackle social mobility in the county's grammars. The committee is chaired by Ms Whittle.

Summary: Head teachers are giving evidence to a committee set up to tackle social mobility in Kent grammar schools as councillors admit more should be done.
###
Article: Language was spelled "langauge" in the original release, put out on Thursday.
But it was corrected by officials after Twitter users ridiculed the error.
BBC Radio 4 presenter Anita Anand said it was "beyond parody" that the Home Office could not spell language in a note to migrants who have been told to learn English.
A Home Office spokesman said: "This was a regrettable typographical error that has now been corrected."
On Monday, Prime Minister David Cameron announced a Â£20m fund to teach Muslim women in the UK to speak English, claiming it would help tackle segregation and help them resist the lure of extremism.
But some Muslims have accused him of wrongly conflating the two issues.
Mr Cameron said all those who entered the UK on the five-year spousal settlement programme - not just Muslim women - would have to sit language tests after two and a half years.
Thursday's press release said the new requirement would not be implemented before October 2016, with the precise timing and further details to be confirmed by the Home Office "in the next few weeks".

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A man has been charged with using drones to smuggle cannabis, steroids and mobile phones into prison.

Article: Searching for "did the Holocaust happen?" returned a top result that claimed it did not, as Guardian journalist Carole Cadwalladr reported.
Now, the ranking has changed for US users.
The page - from white supremacist site Stormfront - remains top in the UK.
"This is a really challenging problem, and something we're thinking deeply about in terms of how we can do a better job," said a Google spokesman.
"Search is a reflection of the content that exists on the web.
"The fact that hate sites may appear in search results in no way means that Google endorses these views."
Regarding the recent change in rankings on the Holocaust query, editor of news site Search Engine Land Danny Sullivan, believes this was due to external parties' attempts to influence the ordering of results.
Mr Sullivan met Google executives and engineers last week to discuss the issue of questionable result ranking, which also affects other queries about, for example, ethnic minorities.
"I'm as horrified and disappointed by the results as many people are," he told the BBC.
However, he said Google - which processes five billion searches a day - was keen to come up with a solution that was broadly applicable across all searches, rather than just those that have been noticed by users.
"It's very easy to take a search here and there and demand Google change something," explained Mr Sullivan, "and then the next day you find a different search and say, 'why didn't you fix that?' "
Ms Cadwalladr has accused Google of disseminating "hate speech".
Other result rankings that she questioned include those for "are women evil?" and "are muslims bad?".
The BBC has also found that some additional queries, including ones without negative terms, also produce controversial answers.
For example, searching for "are black people smart?" in the UK returns a "featured snippet" at the top of the results that claims "black people are significantly less intelligent than all other races".
Mr Sullivan added that it was far more common for users to search for simple terms,...

Summary: Google has said it is "thinking deeply" about ways to improve search, after criticism over how some results - including ones discussing the Holocaust - were ranked.
###
Article: The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) carried out an "extraordinary review" of the system in July.
It followed moves by Bangor University to withdraw midwifery students from Glan Clwyd Hospital, and concerns flagged by Health Inspectorate Wales.
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board said it had developed an action plan.
Prof Angela Hopkins, executive director of nursing and midwifery at the health board, said: "Most of the recommendations made in the NMC reports have already been addressed."
The review by the NMC examined how closely rules on supervising midwives across north Wales were being followed.
But the investigators found on two measures the midwife services were falling short:
Jackie Smith, NMC chief executive and registrar, said: "The reports from our extraordinary review show that there are serious concerns around the nursing and midwifery education programmes.
"We need to be assured that our standards for education and for the supervision of midwives are being met, and that the public's safety is protected.
"It is essential that all the relevant organisations collaborate to address the issues raised by the review. We will work closely with Bangor University, Health Inspectorate Wales and other stakeholders to improve the situation and strengthen public protection."
Prof Hopkins said: "We would like to reassure our patients regarding the quality and standard of education for student nurses and midwives in north Wales, and to advise that issues raised regarding the supervision of midwives have been fully addressed."
The investigation was prompted by escalating concerns at the health board about how maternity services might be reorganised.
Officials wanted to remove consultant-led care from Glan Clwyd Hospital at Bodelwyddan in Denbighshire - but that faced being overturned by a judicial review.
It led Health Inspectorate Wales to flag the issue to the NMC in June, just weeks before the entire health board was put into special measures by the Welsh government.
At the same time, according to the...

Summary: "Serious concerns" have been raised over the education and supervision of midwives in north Wales following a review.
###
Article: Ryanair  and IAG shares were up almost 3%, while Aer Lingus was up 1.8%.
The formal acceptance paves the way for the €1.3bn (£940m) bid by BA and Iberia owner IAG for Aer Lingus to go ahead.
It is subject to backing by competition authorities. European Union approval is now the last remaining hurdle to the tie-up.
IAG's plans include building a new transatlantic hub at Dublin airport.
Ryanair's chief executive Michael O'Leary said in a statement: "We believe the IAG offer for Aer Lingus is a reasonable one in the current market and we plan to accept it, in the best interests of Ryanair shareholders.
"The price means that Ryanair will make a small profit on its investment in Aer Lingus over the past nine years."
Ryanair has attempted to buy Aer Lingus three times. Its takeover quest began in 2006, just after Aer Lingus was floated on the stock market by the Irish government.
Ryanair's initial bid illustrates the wild swings in Aer Lingus's value since then. Its first offer was €2.80 a share. The second, two years later, was half that and its most recent offer in 2012 was €1.30 a share.
The Irish government, which sold its 25% stake in Aer Lingus to IAG in May, recommended that Ryanair accept IAG's offer.
The deal values Aer Lingus shares at around €2.50 (£1.87) per share.
Aer Lingus is Heathrow Airport's fourth busiest operator, behind BA, Lufthansa and Virgin Atlantic.
If the deal is approved, IAG would gain more take-off and landing slots at Heathrow Airport, allowing it to operate more flights.
Ryanair said it had planned to use Aer Lingus to gain slots at mainstream airports.
Travellers have been surprised in the past by the distance of some of Ryanair's airports from the city they thought they were flying to.
Michael O'Leary said Ryanair did not need Aer Lingus now: "Our original strategy for Aer Lingus (to use it as a mid-priced brand to offer competition to flag carriers at primary airports) has been overtaken by the successful rollout - since Sept 2013 - of Ryanair's "Always Getting Better" strategy,...

Summary: Shares in airlines have jumped after Ryanair voted to accept International Airlines Group's (IAG) offer for its 29.8% stake in Aer Lingus.
###
Article: It suggests that lion populations in unprotected areas could be cut in half over the next two decades.
The paper's authors say lions should now be upgraded to an endangered species in Central and West Africa.
The loss of habitat, hunting, and a demand for traditional medicine have all contributed to population decline.
Lions are currently considered "vulnerable" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, but endangered status means they would be considered at "a very high risk of extinction in the wild".
The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, says "many lion populations are either now gone or expected to disappear within the next few decades".
African lion populations are declining everywhere on the continent, with the exception of Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, which are having success with what the paper calls "small, fenced, intensively managed, and funded reserves".
There is a 67% chance that lions in West and Central Africa will decline by half within 20 years, while East African populations have a 37% chance of being halved in the same time.
Those predictions are based on trends in 47 lion populations, containing more than 8,200 animals.
The decline could lead to a reversal of previous trends, making the protected, managed populations of southern Africa more viable than the East African savannah.
A reduction in lion numbers could also change the local ecosystems, "with the lion no longer playing a pivotal role as apex predator", the study says.
The authors also warned that the African lion could come to rely on the small, managed reserves, "and may no longer be a flagship species of the once vast natural ecosystems across the rest of the continent."

Summary: The number of lions in Africa is rapidly dropping, except in highly-managed areas in the south of the continent, a study has found.
###
Article: Michael Tovey, 27, formerly of Lakes Road, Erdington, Birmingham is accused of using two drones to fly contraband into HMP Birmingham last year.
In the first charges of their type brought by West Midlands Police, Mr Tovey faces 13 counts of conveying banned items into a prison.
He is set to appear at Birmingham Magistrates' Court on 7 June.
Read more news for Birmingham and the Black Country
Mr Tovey is accused of using two drones to drop contraband into the prison's exercise yard on 29 October and 6 November.
He attempted to drop a consignment near N and P wings containing four phones, SIM cards, Black Mamba, steroids and cannabis, it is alleged.
It is claimed he was also responsible for a drone that crashed into the same yard eight days later, carrying two phones and further quantities of the same banned drugs.

Summary:


The third Astute Class submarine to be built at a Cumbrian shipyard has been named.

Article: "France paid al-Qaeda 25m euros for four hostages," read a headline in the Times newspaper this week.
The French government has categorically denied that any public money was used to secure the release of the four French nationals kidnapped in 2010 at a uranium plant in Niger and held by jihadist bandits linked to the regional franchise of al-Qaeda in the Land of the Islamic Maghreb (Aqim).
"We don't play that game," said the French foreign minister when asked if his government had paid for their release.
Niger's President Mohamadou Issoufou was more evasive when asked the same question directly.
He replied simply: "I think that what we must be rejoicing about is that the hostages who went through difficult ordeals, who were isolated for many months from their families, are free."
But since there was no military assault involved in the hostages' release, it is almost inconceivable that their captors would simply give up their prisoners for no reward.
Privately, some British officials are furious, as the concept of giving in to terrorist ransom demands runs directly contrary to the commitment undertaken by all the G8 leaders at the Loch Earn summit in Northern Ireland in June.
Whether it was the French government, the Niger government, the hostages' employer Areva, or any other party that may or may not have paid a ransom, the indications are that a group of ruthless and dangerous men with guns is now roaming around the Sahara with a lot more money at their disposal.
So how much money is involved in Saharan kidnaps and where does it go?
The Texas-based US strategic analysis company Stratfor estimates that with the latest payments, Aqim has earned itself about $116m (Â£72m) in ransoms since 2003.
"We have seen ransom payments by the governments of Spain, Italy, France, Canada and Austria to see their citizens released from captivity," said Stratfor Vice President of Africa Analysis Mark Schroeder.
This year a leaked Nigerian government report revealed that a ransom of $3.15m (Â£1.9m) was paid to the Nigerian...

Summary: The rumours are hard to dismiss.
###
Article: Astronomers predict it could be possible to see up to 200 meteors per hour in clear skies.
The best time to view it will be from 23:00 until 04:00 in north Aberdeenshire and Galloway.
Dark, countryside skies away from street lights offer the best possibility of a sighting.
BBC Scotland weather presenter Kawser Quamer said the skies will be mainly cloudy but there is a chance of clearer spells.
She said: "Tonight and early tomorrow is the peak of this year's season, which runs until 24 August.
"The best time to view it is from 23:00 until 04:00 if you look towards the north-eastern sky.
"But it's all dependent on the weather forecast and I'm afraid for tonight it will be rather cloudy.
"In the north east and south of the country there will be drier moments and the possibility of some clearer spells.
"So if you are heading out with a camera, the favoured spots for some clearer spells will likely be across Aberdeenshire, maybe northern Moray and across Angus.
"For Galloway, quite often a favoured spot for stargazers is heading towards Loch Trool."
Perseids are shooting stars or space debris from the Swift-Tuttle comet.
Every year, the Earth passes through this field of debris and it is normally possible to see 100 meteors or shooting stars per hour during the peak.
This year, that could double as experts predict a rare meteor "outburst", according to Armagh Observatory.

Summary: Stargazers in the north east and south of Scotland are expected to get the best view of the Perseid meteor shower when it reaches its peak overnight.
###
Article: Councillor Bob Badham resigned on Wednesday, soon after Helen Smith, Director of Children's Services, following the release of the report.
Ofsted inspectors found the department to be "inadequate" and failing vulnerable children in the area.
Councillor Simon Hackett has taken over from Mr Badham and said he was determined to improve the service.
"I see it as a challenge and something we can turn around. Like everyone else, a few days ago I read the report and frankly it was awful," he said.
During an inspection in February Ofsted found families of vulnerable children were insufficiently supported by the council and in some cases were at risk of "significant harm".
The local authority said it was aware of failings in the department and was taking action to improve performance.
It said 70 extra social workers had been taken on last year and it was improving relations between staff and the police.
The council said it had also started to work with a private sector partner, iMPOWER to improve services.
Mr Hackett said he was planning to spend time in each part of the department, looking at it from the perspective of a child or young person.
It is not the first time the council has been criticised by Ofsted over the service.
Sandwell Children's Services was judged to be "inadequate" in 2009, but following an inspection in January 2012 it was found to have improved and was rated "adequate".

Summary: A new head of children's services has been appointed at Sandwell Council following a damning report from Ofsted.
###
Article: While a free version acts as a brief demo, access to all three modes of the game costs $9.99 in the App Store in the US, and £7.99 in the UK.
But as players start to download the app, social media reaction is not just about game play - but whether the price of the full game is worth it.
Nintendo's big hit of 2016 was Pokemon Go - an app that was free to play up front (though the creators made their  money through in-game purchases).
So perhaps it's no surprise some people believe the price is too high.
"$10 is absurdly expensive for a cheap Mario game. Rather get new super Mario bros Ds for the same price," said one Twitter user.
Another said: "At 6 levels it feels extremely short at that price. I was expecting more content."
But others have been quick to jump to Nintendo's defence, saying the price is fair.
Twitter user titowrestling said: "Wow...  People are actually complaining... Have we become so addicted to free-to-play?  Not expensive."
And games designer Teddy Dief, who said he was enjoying the game so far, told the BBC that all entertainment creators deserved to be paid for their work - "the product of their passion, effort, and time".
"Whether a game is premium, or free to play, the developers are hoping to be paid for their creation. How they choose to monetise is up to them, whether through ads, micro transactions, or simply asking to be paid upfront."
"A game like this isn't cheap to make. In my opinion, there's $10 worth of experience in Super Mario Run. But of course, the exact worth of a piece of entertainment is hard to pinpoint," Mr Dief said.
"If a player is worried it's not worth their $10, that's their choice to make, and Nintendo has given them free trial content to enable them to make that choice in an educated way," he said.
IHS Technology consultant Piers Harding-Rolls said that while "quite big", the payment was a "one-off". "I don't think people will think Nintendo is trying to rinse their audience," he said.
And TheXbone wrote: "Millions scream at their $700 phone that the $10...

Summary: After the sort of anticipation you'd expect for the return of the world's most famous plumber, Nintendo has rolled out Super Mario Run to iPhones and iPads.
###
Article: Thousands of people were at the ceremony at BAE Systems' Devonshire Dock Hall in Barrow to mark the end of the build process for Artful.
Another four of the nuclear-powered submarines are being built at the yard.
The ceremony was carried out by Amanda Lady Zambellas, wife of the Royal Navy's First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir George Zambellas.
BAE Systems Maritime - Submarines managing director John Hudson said: "The design and build of a nuclear-powered submarine is as challenging as it is complex, so today represents a significant milestone in Artful's programme.
"It requires real skill and innovation to deliver submarines as sophisticated as Artful and this would not have been possible without the valued contribution of our employees and the collaborative efforts of the whole submarine enterprise."
Artful will remain at the Barrow yard while commissioning activities are carried out and is due to be launched early next year for further tests.
HMS Astute and HMS Ambush have already been launched. The other vessels are at various stages in the design and build process and will be called Audacious, Anson, Agamemnon and Ajax.
The Barrow yard has been working on the Astute programme since 2001.
The Ministry of Defence said the Astute class of submarines have greater firepower, state-of-the-art communications equipment and advanced stealth technology, making them quiet and harder to detect.

Summary:


man was arrested on suspicion of "gathering, transmitting or losing defence information

Singapore is putting pressure on major retailers in Singapore to not use or sell materials produced by firms linked to fires in Indonesia.

Article: Mr Zuma was responding to allegations that he had "unduly benefitted" from an upgrade to his private home in Nkandla which cost taxpayers about $23m (Â£14m).
MPs from the new Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) were not satisfied with his explanation and started chanting: "Pay back the money."
Parliament was suspended and security called to oust the EFF group.
Police entered parliament in Cape Town carrying riot shields, tear gas and batons but then aborted their plans to forcibly remove the EFF MPs.
The governing African National Congress (ANC) said it was "appalled" by the behaviour of the EFF parliamentarians.
The Democratic Alliance, the largest opposition party, said the EFF's "theatrics" meant South Africans "did not get answers from the president, to which they were rightfully entitled".
South Africans may be divided over the behaviour of the EFF in parliament but its leader Julius Malema posed questions many here still want answered.
Nkandla remains a sore point for many citizens and the president has been accused of failing to account to the public that elected him into power.
So while they may not support the chanting and disruption to a formal sitting, many are quietly applauding their stand.
Mr Malema has never been one to shy away from confrontation; it was with tough talking that he defended President Jacob Zuma before their fall-out.
However uncomfortable to watch, many see this as South Africa's democracy at work.
It is not clear when the session will resume - possibly on Friday.
Many MPs were waiting to question the president when the session was suspended.
After being pressed by Mr Malema on when he would repay the Nkandla money, Mr Zuma said he had "responded appropriately to parliament" and said it was now in the hands of the government.
The EFF has 25 MPs in the 400-member parliament after gaining 6% of the national vote in May's election.
It was the first election contested by the EFF, led by controversial former youth leader Julius Malema.
He formed the EFF last year following his expulsion...

Summary: An address to parliament by South Africa's President Jacob Zuma has been halted by opposition MPs.
###
Article: Could it be a topic that persuades undecided voters on polling day?
Always an emotive issue, religious slaughter has become an unexpected political battleground as the general election approaches.
Animal rights campaigners have long called for a ban on halal or shechita slaughter, which amongst other requirements specify slitting an animal's throat quickly with a sharp knife while it is still conscious.
The British Veterinary Association, the RSPCA, Compassion in World Farming and the National Secular Society all want to see an end to the religious slaughter of animals or to slaughter without pre-stunning.
However, in the run-up to the general election, opposition to those methods of slaughter would also seem to have become dog whistle politics: shorthand for targeting a specific religious minority - Muslims - without saying as much.
UKIP last week said it would ban all slaughter methods that didn't involve pre-stunning - causing controversy amongst British Muslims and Jews, some of whom warned that any such ban would in effect drive those who observe religious dietary laws out of the UK.
For many of the UK's almost three million Muslims, halal slaughter is a strict religious requirement, as is eating kosher for many of the UK's 300,000 Jews.
According to the Halal Authority Board, there is a strong strand of religious opinion that livestock should not be stunned before slaughter, but others feel that light stunning is permissible.
Its standards permit both types of slaughter, and dictate a number of requirements regarding animal welfare for both.
"If followed properly, both unstunned and stunned are extremely humane forms of slaughter and the evidence to suggest otherwise is completely wrong," according to its head of certification, Shaykh Tauqir Ishaq.
"Being cruel to animals is a sin in Islam, and we do not permit any form of cruelty in abattoirs certified by us.
"The discomfort and pain experienced by any animal should be absolutely minimised if not eliminated, and our standards reflect such...

Summary: It's a passionate conflict - animal welfare campaigners opposing the slaughter practices of religious minorities.
###
Article: Nick Weller, executive principal of Dixons Academies Trust, Bradford, was honoured in the Queen's birthday list.
Mr Weller said he was "humbled by the honour" and the schools' recognition.
After a teacher was stabbed at Dixons Kings Academy police arrested a 14-year-old boy on suspicion of attempted murder on Thursday.
Mr Weller said: "My main thoughts at the moment are with a colleague who is continuing to make steady progress in hospital and with a school which is also recovering from the event.
"Our academies and partnerships play a significant role in meeting the demand for new places in Bradford and improving schools in challenging circumstances."
The school where the stabbing occurred, formerly called the King's Science Academy, opened in 2011 and has since become part of the Dixons academy group. It has about 700 pupils.

Summary: The head of a schools group, including one where a teacher was stabbed by a pupil, has been awarded a knighthood for services to education.
###
Article: Reality Leigh Winner, 25, allegedly removed classified material from a federal site in the state of Georgia.
The charges were announced shortly after news website The Intercept published a National Security Agency briefing about alleged Russian meddling in last year's election.
The Trump administration has been seeking to fight leaks to the media.
Ms Winner was arrested on 3 June, the justice department said.
She is a contractor with Pluribus International Corporation and had been employed at an NSA facility in Georgia since February.
The accused faces a count of "gathering, transmitting or losing defence information".
Ms Winner was vocal in her opposition to President Trump on social media, using the hashtag #NeverMyPresident in one post and an expletive in reference to his plans for a border wall.
The Intercept's leaked document alleges that Moscow's military intelligence services attempted cyber-attacks on at least one US voting software supplier days before last November's US presidential election.
It also accuses the Russians of sending spear-phishing emails to more than 100 local election officials.
However, there is no suggestion in the document that the hackers were successful.
Ms Winner, who graduated from basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio in 2011, was caught after investigators noticed that the leaked document appeared to have been folded or creased.
That suggested it had been "printed and then carried out of a secured space", according to an FBI affidavit in support of the arrest warrant.
Investigators determined that Ms Winner was one of only six people to have printed the document.
Examination of her email on her desk computer further revealed that she had exchanged emails with the news outlet, the indictment said.
When confronted, Ms Winner admitted printing the report despite not possessing a "need-to-know" about its content and said she was aware that the information "could be used to the injury of the US and to the advantage of a foreign nation", the affidavit...

Summary: A US government contractor has been arrested on suspicion of leaking top-secret information to a news outlet.
###
Article: Seven firms, including major supermarkets such as NTUC FairPrice and IKEA, have been asked declare they are not doing so within a week.
The forest fires in Indonesia have deteriorated Singapore's air quality, causing a blanket of haze in the city.
FairPrice has said it removing products from one Indonesian firm.
The state-owned supermarket giant said that it was removing all paper products sourced from Asia Pulp and Paper Group (APP), following the notification from the government.
APP has been named by Singapore authorities as one of the companies suspected of contributing to the haze.
What is behind the South East Asia haze?
In a joint statement, the Singapore Environment Council (SEC) and Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) said they had asked the retailers to declare that they have "not procured or used wood, paper and/or pulp materials" from firms accused of contributing to the fires.
The SEC said retailers were "a good starting point" for firms to show their commitment to sustainable procurement processes and "for consumers to show their support for brands that have environmentally friendly practices"
The haze has caused hazardous air quality across the region. It has led to the cancellation of public events and schools closure over the past month, in Singapore as well as in Malaysia and Indonesia.
Anger has been rising in the region, with increasing pressure on the Indonesian government to control the annual burning of forests to clear land for palm oil and rubber plantations.

Summary:


There will not be a referendum on an additional council tax rise in Liverpool after the results of an online poll, the city's mayor has said.

Article: If it passes, the country will be the largest developed nation to end marijuana prohibition.
The law was tabled on Thursday, and would allow adults over 18 to possess up to 30g of dried marijuana.
The proposed legislation would allow the federal government to license producers, but provinces would be in charge of regulating consumer sale.
Other issues, such as pricing, taxation and packaging must still be worked out.
"This is a very important day, I've spent most of my adult life keeping children and communities safe," said MP Bill Blair during a press conference shortly after the legislation was presented to parliament.
The former police chief had chaired the government's cannabis task force, which laid out a blueprint for legal recreational pot in Canada.
The government is pitching the legislation as a way to keep pot out of the hands of minors and undercut organised crime.
The law would increase penalties for those who sell to children, and revamp impaired driving laws to make it easier to prosecute people who drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
It would allow police to test people's saliva if they think a driver has been using marijuana.
The current legal prohibitions have been an "abject failure" at keeping the children from getting a hold of marijuana, says Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale.
Canada has some of the highest marijuana use in the world, according to the task force, especially amongst young people. About 30% of people aged 20-24 use cannabis.
The new framework would make it illegal to market marijuana products to children, or sell to anyone under 18. Provinces could raise the minimum age of consumption if they choose, the government says.
New laws would also increase the penalty for people who sell to the under-aged, as well as create a new offence for people "exploiting children in the trafficking of cannabis".
Trafficking cannabis outside the government's new legal framework would remain illegal.
Initially, only fresh and dried cannabis, cannabis oils, seeds and plants would...

Summary: Canada has laid out its plan to legalise the sale of recreational marijuana by June 2018.
###
Article: Philip Morant School and College in Colchester has told pupils and parents that they will no longer set homework and will instead select their own "appropriate" tasks.
The new scheme is optional but there will be rewards for completed tasks.
It said it believes the new approach will give pupils "greater responsibility for their own learning".
The school has called the new approach 'Prove It+' at Key Stage 3 & 4 and Independent Study Tasks at Stage 5.
In a letter, it explained how tasks will be uploaded onto the school's website and pupils can select what they want to do based on guidance from teachers, as well as their own targets and interests.
Some of the tasks "support community and charity awareness" to help "develop the whole child", the letter said.
Principal Catherine Hutley told the Daily Gazette that teachers will use the time previously spent on setting and marking home on planning lessons more precisely.
She said the move away from traditional homework had been discussed for about a year.
Parents have been involved in a consultation period which has included 30-minute workshops.

Summary: A high school has scrapped traditional homework in favour of a more "independent" approach to learning.
###
Article: The letter to the prime minister has been signed by the heads of every state school in West Sussex, who argue they need £20m in emergency funding.
They say the "distraction" of grammar schools cannot be a priority ahead of basic funding and staffing.
The government has promised a complete overhaul of school funding in England.
But the plans for a national funding formula, which would address inequalities in school funding, have been postponed.
The head teachers, from more than 250 primary, secondary, special schools, academies and local authority schools in West Sussex, say that without £20m emergency transitional funding, ahead of the funding formula, they will have to make cuts.
A group of pupils and head teachers will go to Downing Street on Tuesday to deliver the letter, which is also being sent to more than 100,000 West Sussex parents.
The lack of progress on funding, they say, has meant "a crippling effect on our already dire financial position".
The head teachers have told the prime minister that without extra funds there will be cuts to schools from next spring.
This could include reducing school hours, bigger class sizes, not replacing staff and making teachers redundant.
The head teachers have told the prime minister that schools have "no more fat to trim".
"Schools are struggling to function adequately on a day to day basis, and, in addition, we are severely hampered in our ability to recruit and retain staff, work with reasonable teacher-pupil ratios and to buy basic equipment," says the letter.
Jules White, head of Tanbridge House School in Horsham, said heads were not "sabre-rattling" and these were not empty threats.
"We will look at every option to avoid such drastic steps," he said, but school finances were so stretched they would have to take such difficult decisions.
Mr White said head teachers wanted the government to focus on the practical necessities before being "distracted" by policies such as expanding grammar schools.
"There are fundamentals - finance and the supply of teachers....

Summary: Head teachers have written to Theresa May to warn that a funding crisis could make schools reduce hours, lay off staff or stop teaching some subjects.
###
Article: In December 2011 the regions - Cardiff Blues, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets - imposed a salary cap of £3.5m a year when all four were posting losses.
The rise reflects improved finances, with extra money from Europe and a new deal with the Welsh Rugby Union.
Pro Rugby Wales declined to comment, but it is understood the decision was mutually agreed after a review.
It is hoped the extra cash will help the regions retain star players and potentially bring more "Welsh exiles" home.
Leigh Halfpenny, Jonathan Davies, George North and Luke Charteris are thought to be considering returning to Wales next season.
The Ospreys are hoping Dan Biggar and Alun Wyn Jones will agree to extend their current National Dual Contracts.
However, the regions - represented by Pro Rugby Wales - are expected to make building squad depth a priority, and not necessarily spend big figures on marquee signings.
The new ceiling - which is self-imposed - is still some way below that of England's Aviva Premiership.
Premiership Rugby Limited - the umbrella body that governs England's Premiership clubs - announced in October they would be raising their cap next season from £5.1m to £6.5m, and to £7m the season after that.
These figures exclude the salaries of two so-called "marquee signings" that remain outside the cap.

Summary: The four Welsh rugby regions have raised the amount they can spend on players' wages by £1m to £4.5m.
###
Article: Liverpool City Council used a online budget simulator to ask residents about a proposed council tax rise of 5%, plus a further 6% to pay for social care.
Joe Anderson said the plan would not go ahead after 57% of respondents said no.
He also revealed plans for a Liverpool lottery in his New Year message on his Liverpool Express blog.
He said following the "feedback... I will not be proposing to hold a referendum on any additional increase beyond the 4.99% limit set by government".
Work was continuing on the full details of the authority's budget, he said, which would then undergo consultation in 2017.
He added that he was "surprised and proud that so many, 43%, said yes".
"It's a truly heart-warming reminder of how caring our city really is," he said.
Green party leader Councillor Tom Crone said the consultation was a "sham exercise".
"The weak consultation was never going to secure support for a tax rise," he said.
He said the mayor's decision not to hold a referendum meant there would be "tens of millions of pounds more cuts to services in the coming years".
Liberal Democrat leader Councillor Richard Kemp, said: "The public were never going to buy it over concern about the waste of existing council tax income."
Mr Anderson said the Liverpool lottery card would help local causes, adding that more details of it would be revealed in the coming months.
"Liverpool people are amongst the most generous in the country and I believe will support the initiative to help us cope with the growing numbers of people dependent on us," he said.
Councillor Kemp said his party would oppose the lottery idea.
He said: "The overwhelming evidence is that existing lottery users are already from the most deprived parts of the community.
"A new Liverpool lottery will be a tax on the poor to pay for services to the poor."

Summary:


Kenyans have been voting in a key election - the first since the disputed contest of December 2007 that triggered weeks of bloodshed.

Article: The lender said the move was a "one-off depreciation" of 1.9% in a move to make the exchange rate more market-oriented.
It comes in the wake of a string of weak economic data from the world's second largest economy.
At the weekend, China reported a sharp fall in exports and a slide in producer prices to a near six-year low in July.
Exports fell by 8.3% in July, far worse than expected and the producer price index was down 5.4% from a year earlier.
The midpoint for the yuan is now set at 6.2298 to $1, up from 6.1162 yuan on Monday.
The People's Bank of China (POBC) manages the rate through the official midpoint, from which trade can rise or fall 2% on any given day.
Until now, it had been determined solely by the central bank itself.
Making the rate more market-based will mean the midpoint will now be based on overnight global market developments and how the currency finished the previous trading day.
The POBC's move comes amid speculation that China is preparing to widen the trading band for the currency from the current two percent range.
China has long kept tight control of the yuan value on concerns over financial volatility and losing its policy control.
Yet it is also under pressure to reform its currency policy as it pushes to become one of the International Monetary Fund's "special drawing rights" (SDR) reserve currencies.
These are currencies which IMF members can use to make payments between themselves or to the Fund.
Analysts ask, though, whether this really is a one-time move from China.
"The question on everyone's mind is whether this is the awakening of the dragon - ushering in a new global currency war?" Angus Nicholson, market analyst with trading firm IG wrote in a note.
"If this move ushers in a new era where the CNY [Chinese yuan] fixing is increasingly reflective of the spot market, it could be positive for its prospects being included in the IMF's special drawing rights basket of currencies this year."
Asian equities outside of China slipped on the news as investors weighed the...

Summary: China's central bank has devalued the national currency, the yuan, to its lowest rate against the US dollar in almost three years.
###
Article: The security protocol is used to encrypt Voice Over Internet Protocol (Voip) calls.
In a blog, University College London researcher Steven Murdoch described vulnerabilities in how such conversations were encrypted.
GCHQ said it did not recognise the findings.
Dr Murdoch did not say that the vulnerability would give direct access to conversations, but that it would make it possible to undermine the system's security.
The network operator could listen in to calls, or authorise someone else to, and anyone who hacked the system would be able to eavesdrop, he said.
One of Dr Murdoch's chief concerns was that the security standard has "key escrow" by design - meaning, for example, that a third party has access to data sent between two people in a conversation.
This, he said, is an example of a backdoor.
In this case, it could allow an intelligence agency, or the organisation which is using the standard, to intercept phone calls, Dr Murdoch said.
"I think this comes from a conflict of interest within GCHQ in that they are there to prevent spying but they are also there to spy - so they facilitate spying," he told the BBC.
Dr Murdoch added that he was aware of two products which use the standard, both of which are government certified.
"They could be in use inside government," he said.
The protocol in question is known as Mikey-Sakke (Sakai-Kasahara key encryption in multimedia internet keying).
It works by generating encryption keys that are used to encrypt and decrypt voice conversations.
Although it is technically possible to create these keys on two separate computers and only share part of those keys publicly, the Mikey-Sakke protocol does not do this.
Instead, keys are distributed by a third party to the conversation participants - the process known as key escrow - meaning that they are much more vulnerable to interception.
There are cases in which this would be desirable, commented Prof Nigel Smart, a cryptography expert at the University of Bristol.
"It could make sense to have a form of key escrow where...

Summary: A security researcher has said software developed by the UK intelligence agency GCHQ contains weaknesses making it possible to eavesdrop on phone calls.
###
Article: The findings catch evolution in the act of making this adjustment - as none of the critters have eyes, but some of them still have stumpy eye-stalks.
Three different species were studied, each representing a different subgroup within the same class of crustaceans.
The research is published in the journal BMC Neuroscience.
The class  of "malocostracans" also includes much better-known animals like lobsters, shrimps and wood lice, but this study focussed on three tiny and obscure examples that were only discovered in the 20th Century. It is the first investigation of these mysterious animals' brains.
"We studied three species. All of them live in caves, and all of them are very rare or hardly accessible," said lead author Dr Martin Stegner, from the University of Rostock in Germany.
Specifically, his colleagues retrieved the specimens from the coast of Bermuda, from Table Mountain in South Africa, and from Monte Argentario in Italy.
The animals were preserved rather than living, so the team could not observe their tiny brains in action. But by looking at the physical shape of the brain, and making comparisons with what we know about how the brain works in their evolutionary relatives, the researchers were able to assign jobs to the various lobes, lumps and spindly structures they could see under the microscope.
They were also able to infer what the brain of the creatures' most recent shared ancestor might have looked like.
"What I've done is looked at the structure, and interpreted it in an evolutionary context," Dr Stegner told the BBC.
Interestingly, while the areas devoted to touch and to smell had remained the same or even expanded in the 200 million years or so since the animals' ancestry diverged, the bits of the brain devoted to seeing had shrunk.
It is perhaps not a huge surprise that animals living in total darkness might start to shed, over many generations, the parts of their brain devoted to seeing. But this vanishing act had never been confirmed for these species - and the rate of the change was...

Summary: A study of blind crustaceans living in deep, dark caves has revealed that evolution is rapidly withering the visual parts of their brain.
###
Article: Only children whose parents can afford coaching can pass the toughest exams, says the report for the Cabinet Office.
Such schools "may owe their neighbourhood" more help for poorer children, suggests author David Boyle.
Grammar school heads said their schools were less socially selective than leading comprehensives.
The report, The Barriers to Choice in Public Services, looked at "whether inward-looking admissions criteria, for example by faith and super-selective schools, ought to be balanced by a broad duty to promote a social balance inside the school".
It suggests that "state-funded schools which do not adopt some responsibility for the wider well-being of their neighbourhood may not be fulfilling the social contract that people might reasonably expect of them".
"If schools narrow their intake to those who can afford the coaching to pass entrance exams, then they may owe their neighbourhood some route whereby less advantaged local people can aspire to get their children up to that standard."
Author David Boyle, of the New Economics Foundation, told BBC News that he was not suggesting that all children should be coached to pass entrance exams into "super-selective" schools, but that the need for coaching to pass some of the tests was "a clear barrier" to some families.
A duty along these lines would not undermine the academic focus of super-selective schools, argues the study.
Barry Sindall, chief executive of the Grammar School Heads Association, quoted from a 2008 Sutton Trust study which suggested that the social make-up of grammar schools was often more diverse than that of the top 100 comprehensives where entrance is decided on proximity to the school, pushing up house prices and excluding poorer families.
Mr Sindall said that many grammar schools already offered "test familiarisation" sessions so that children from poorer families did not turn up at the entrance exam never having encountered those type of questions before.
"We want to make sure they are entering for the tests on a level playing...

Summary: Some highly selective state schools should do more to help poorer children pass their entrance exams, suggests a government-funded study.
###
Article: This time the poll was held under a new constitution, designed to prevent a repeat of that violence when more than 1,000 people died when supporters of rival candidates clashed.
They have been choosing a president, members of parliament and senators, the new posts of county governors and members of county assemblies. The presidential contest is seen as a two-horse race between Prime Minister Raila Odinga against Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta.
BBC correspondents around the country sum up how the voting went.
The queues in some places stretched for more than a kilometre, as voters in Kibera stood patiently in line.
The neighbourhood is one of Nairobi's largest slums. It is the constituency of Raila Odinga, one of the favourites for the presidential contest and the scene of some of the worst violence following the last election in 2007.
Today, many had arrived before dawn, waiting patiently in line, sometimes for hours.
Voters cast their ballots into colour-coded boxes - six each - for a variety of different representatives, local and national.
The memories of five years ago are still fresh and, as the campaign drew to a close, a sense of apprehension was palpable.
Police talked of conspiracies to cause chaos and warned that violence would be met in kind.
But, in Kibera at least, as the sun grew hotter and the umbrellas came out, the mood was up-beat.
"Peace, peace," one crowd shouted as a truck of paramilitary police trundled past.
We came across a man with dreadlocks and a pot of white paint. His message, "Peace wanted alive", can be seen daubed on walls and roads around the neighbourhood.
The real test of peace, though, is likely to come once all the ballots have been cast, and the results start coming in.
As the sun begins to set, the heat is easing and some polling stations are still open after the official closing time of 17:00, with queues of people determined to cast their vote.
Tensions have been running high in this insecure and arid region near the Somali border and there has been a heavy...

Summary:


The Association of British Drivers (ABD) has called for the introduction of a new £100 fine for drivers who are caught exceeding the speed limit.
The ABD has called for the introduction of a new £100 fine for drivers who are caught exceeding the speed limit.
The Association of British Drivers (ABD

A plan to increase the cost of speed awareness courses has been criticised as a "self-funding merry-go-round".

Article: Researchers in New Hampshire suggest the 180km-wide Chicxulub crater in Mexico was carved out by a smaller object than previously thought.
Many scientists consider a large and relatively slow moving asteroid to have been the likely culprit.
Details were outlined at the 44th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.
But other researchers were more cautious about the results.
"The overall aim of our project is to better characterise the impactor that produced the crater in the Yucatan peninsula [in Mexico]," Jason Moore, from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, told BBC News.
The space rock gave rise to a global layer of sediments enriched in the chemical element iridium, in concentrations much higher than naturally occurs; it must have come from outer space.
However, in the first part of their work, the team suggests that frequently quoted iridium values are incorrect. Using a comparison with another extraterrestrial element deposited in the impact - osmium - they were able to deduce that the collision deposited less debris than has previously been supposed.
The recalculated iridium value suggests a smaller body hit the Earth. So for the second part of their work, the researchers took the new figure and attempted to reconcile it with the known physical properties of the Chicxulub impact.
For this smaller space rock to have produced a 180km-wide crater, it must have been travelling relatively quickly. The team found that a long-period comet fitted the bill much better than other possible candidates.
"You'd need an asteroid of about 5km diameter to contribute that much iridium and osmium. But an asteroid that size would not make a 200km-diameter crater," said Dr Moore.
"So we said: how do we get something that has enough energy to generate that size of crater, but has much less rocky material? That brings us to comets."
Dr Moore's colleague Prof Mukul Sharma, also from Dartmouth College, told BBC News: "You would need some special pleading for an asteroid moving very rapidly - although it is possible. But of the...

Summary: The space rock that hit Earth 65m years ago and is widely implicated in the end of the dinosaurs was probably a speeding comet, US scientists say.
###
Article: The Mill O' Mains Community Pavilion is being demolished following Sunday's blaze, which is suspected of being started deliberately.
The volunteer-run pavilion was used for youth group and community activities, including providing meals for children.
The petition calls on Dundee City Council to build a replacement for the centre.
The council said it was left with "no other viable option" but to demolish the building.
The petition states: "The pavilion was a hub to the local community and a place for children from different backgrounds to have a place to play and relax.
"We would love to see it rebuilt for the community."
Dundee City Council leader John Alexander told the petitioners: "I'm currently working with officers to identify what led to the fire, what could have been done to prevent it and where we go from here.
"The bottom line is that we will absolutely be working with the community and local councillors.
"Local community officers have been working with key community activists and there will hopefully be some more detail and clarity in the coming days."
Police Scotland said the cause of the fire was still under investigation.
A Dundee City Council spokesman said: "Following the fire at the Mill o' Mains Community Pavilion we are left with no other viable option than to demolish the site.
"The building suffered extreme structural damage, having entirely lost its roof and most of its internal fabric during the fire.
"Work is currently underway to demolish the remnants of the building.
"At this stage our main focus is to clear the site and remove the danger."

Summary: A petition to rebuild a Dundee community centre destroyed in a fire has been signed by over 700 people.
###
Article: Widow Una Crown was found in her Magazine Lane home in Wisbech on 13 January. She had been stabbed and her body was burned.
A 58-year-old man was arrested in Wisbech earlier this week on suspicion of murder.
He has been released on bail pending further inquiries.
Mrs Crown was last seen alive on the morning of 11 January, but had spoken to a friend by telephone on the afternoon of the following day.

Summary: A man arrested on suspicion of murdering an 86-year-old woman found stabbed to death in her Cambridgeshire home has been released on bail.
###
Article: Ludgershall Town Council bestowed the honour to mark the friendship with 26 Engineer Regiment since it re-formed in the town in 2000.
Outside the town's Memorial Hall the regiment based at Perham Down, saluted civic dignitaries and senior officers.
The march with colours flying and fixed bayonets was led by the Band of the Corps of Royal Engineers.
During a ceremonial lunch held after the parade, the freedom citation was formally accepted on behalf of the Regiment by Lt Col Fossey.
Part of that citation read: "26 Engineer Regiment, Corps of Royal Engineers, has achieved for itself honour and renown everywhere not only for the valour of its officers and men but also by their pioneering exploits and achievements at home and overseas."
The tradition of granting the freedom of a town, or city, dates from when settlements were guarded from outlaws and feudal lords.
Bodies of armed men were refused entry into a town unless the citizens were confident that they meant no harm.
The granting became a mark of trust and confidence in how that body was held by the citizens of the town.
Other guests at the ceremony included Devizes MP Clare Perry, the High Sheriff of Wiltshire, Lady Gooch JP and Jane Scott, leader of Wiltshire Council.

Summary: More than 200 soldiers have marched through a Wiltshire town to accept the freedom of Ludgershall.
###
Article: Avon and Somerset Police wants to raise the cost of the course from £80 to £95 to help pay for its road policing unit.
The Alliance of British Drivers said the police should not be funded by people "who hadn't done much wrong".
Police and Crime Commissioner Sue Mountstevens said she would not comment on the proposal, which would be discussed later on Monday.
Alliance spokesman Bob Bull described the courses as "not about safety", "more about making money" and a "self-funding merry-go-round.
He said people who were driving at "marginally over" the speed limit should not be penalised and that the police should be concentrating on catching drivers travelling at well over the limit.
In the report, the panel said it hoped the price rise would protect the unit from further cutbacks.
The course is offered to drivers who are caught travelling at 10% above the speed limit plus two mph, but not more than 10% plus nine mph.
At the new price the course would be £5 short of the £100 fixed penalty, but without drivers getting points on their licences.
A motorist who has attended one of the courses within the past three years is not eligible to have the option of attending again.
RAC head of external affairs Pete Williams described the increased cost as "an unwelcome surprise for drivers".
Mr Williams said with more than one million motorists attending the courses each year "there is big money to be made, either by the police or those running the courses".
Staffordshire £80
North Wales £85
Gloucestershire £90
Surrey £95
City of London & Metropolitan £97
Wiltshire Not offered
Source: National Association of Driver Intervention Providers

Summary:


Supermarket plant sales are reducing customers' choice, says Gardeners' World presenter Monty Don.

Article: The announcement came as the Edinburgh-based challenger bank saw underlying profit rise by nearly 5%, to £65m.
Total income was up more than 5% to £274m in the year to 12 March.
Sainsbury's said it performed strongly in the personal loans market, with 15% year-on-year growth in the number of advances to new customers.
The bank's portfolio of insurance products also continued to perform well, resulting in new business growth of more than 10% year-on-year.
Sales of new home insurance policies increased by more than 25%.
In an interim results statement, Sainsbury's said: "Given the bank's strong trading performance and the trust people have in the Sainsbury's brand, we have decided to launch new mortgage products in 2017.
"We believe these products will complement our existing financial services portfolio and we expect customers to respond well."
Sainsbury's also reported that it was "making good progress" in moving towards "a new, more flexible" banking IT platform.
It forecasts total transition costs to be "at the top of the £340m to £380m range".
Meanwhile, Edinburgh-based Virgin Money has reported a sharp rise in gross mortgage lending.
It said lending climbed by year-on-year by 30% in the first quarter to a record £2.1bn, giving the bank a market share of 3.4%.
The bank added that residential gross mortgage lending increased by 35%, while buy-to-let lending was up by 17%.
Credit card balances surpassed £1.8bn at the end of the quarter, up from £1.6bn as at 31 December.
Virgin Money said it was looking towards an "accelerated target" of £3bn of credit card "outstandings" by the end of 2017.
Chief executive Jayne-Anne Gadhia said: "I am delighted to report it has been another excellent quarter for Virgin Money.
"We had a record start to the year for mortgages and our savings franchise continues to flourish with a strong inflow of cash ISAs.
"I am particularly pleased with the performance of the credit card business which continues to exceed expectations one year on since launching to the public."

Summary: Sainsbury's Bank is set to launch new mortgage products in 2017 after reporting a strong trading performance in the last financial year.
###
Article: The devices will not be capable of displaying videos from the site thanks to changes made by YouTube to the way it handles uploads.
As a result, the app for YouTube will be removed from Bravia TVs by the end of this month, Sony said.
Sony has released a list of the 50 models across the range of TV sets that will be affected by the change.
In a statement posted to its customer support site, Sony said the television sets were not losing access because of a "failure" of the set.
Instead, it said, recent changes made to YouTube "exceed the capability of the TV's hardware".
This is believed to refer to Google's recent decision to start encrypting all connections to its video-sharing site. Encrypting and decrypting data can be a computationally intensive task that the processors in Bravia sets that handle net-connected functions cannot cope with.
Some owners of affected TV sets have already been reporting seeing error messages or video streams freezing during playback.
The TV sets affected span the range of Bravia devices from smaller sets only 20in (50cm) across to those that span 89in (2.2m) and cost Â£25,000.
James O'Malley, writing on the Gizmodo gadget site, said the change proved there was just one rule when it came to buying a smart TV.
"Buy a dumb screen, and plug something smart into it," he said.
It was far better to use a Chromecast, Firestick or Apple TV box for smart TV services rather than rely on the in-built capabilities of a TV that are likely to be outpaced by changes in technology in a few years, he said.
In March this year, many smart TV sets lost the ability to use Skype as Microsoft ended support for the app.

Summary: Sony Bravia smart TV sets made in 2012 will no longer be able to show YouTube videos after 30 September.
###
Article: Less than four weeks from the assembly election, the parties are promising reforms to the current system.
People can currently keep £24,000 of their assets before having to pay to go into a care home.
Labour want to increase that figure to £50,000, while the Conservatives want a £100,000 limit.
Labour said it was estimated about a fifth of people in residential care in Wales were paying for it themselves, and 28% of those in nursing homes.
Health Minister Mark Drakeford said his party was "committed to giving people extra help in their old age, giving a fairer deal to people who have played fair and paid in".
"There are more than 15,000 people, aged over 65, living in either care or nursing homes across Wales," he said.
"People regularly raise with me the amount of this care they have to self-fund.
"By more than doubling the capital limit to £50,000, thousands of people in Wales will be able to keep £26,000 more of their hard earned savings to help them meet their needs in later life."
In March, the Conservatives announced they would raise the limit to £100,000.
Leader Andrew RT Davies said he would lead "a government that delivers dignity and security in old age".
Plaid Cymru want to scrap social care charges altogether, at a cost of £226m over two assembly terms.

Summary: Allowing people to keep more of their savings instead of paying for care in old age is a "fairer deal" for "people who have played fair", Labour has said.
###
Article: On Tuesday ministers said a Welsh bid was not feasible after a study revealed costs of between £1.3bn and £1.5bn.
On Wednesday Plaid said ministers' estimates appeared to be "deliberately skewed" to appear more expensive.
Labour's Ken Skates said the figures were "based on a robust assessment".
The Commonwealth Games Federation had earlier said it was "surprised" by the figures provided by the Welsh Government.
In a letter to Economy Secretary Ken Skates, Shadow Sports Secretary Neil McEvoy said: "Given that the Commonwealth Games Federation has issued a statement seriously questioning your government's costing of £1.3bn to host the games, could you please issue your methodology and assumptions which underpin the feasibility study?
"The Glasgow games came in £32m under budget at £543m. Why would it cost more than double that figure to host the games in Wales?"
Speaking about the letter, Mr McEvoy called ministers' estimates "ambiguous at best" that seemed to have been "deliberately skewed to appear more expensive".
"That's why I want to see the detailed methodology behind these costs and proposals so that we can make an informed judgement of whether they are accurate - or whether we are being deliberately misled," he said.
But Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Infrastructure Ken Skates said Plaid Cymru was not "comparing like with like", saying the figures were "based on a robust assessment of the total cost of delivery".
"They include the construction of necessary sporting facilities and additional infrastructure, the Games legacy, the delivery of all Wales benefits and the recommended contingency.
"Our understanding is that the Glasgow figure focuses solely on the operational delivery of the two week event."
The minister argued that a more accurate comparison would be the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, which he said had been widely quoted as being expected to cost more than $2bn in Australian dollars (£1.13bn).
Those games, he said, were "very much in line with our own projections".
Mr Skates added:...

Summary: Plaid Cymru has demanded that the Welsh Government explain why it believes that holding the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Wales would cost twice as much as the 2014 event in Glasgow.
###
Article: Nurseries increasingly focus on plants that can be mass produced so the big stores can sell them cheaply, he says.
"You have these vast wholesale nurseries now supplying supermarkets - and that's a diminution of choice," he told Radio 4's You and Yours.
However, the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) says supermarket sales actually help grow the market.
According to Kantar World Panel, nearly 40% of gardeners get their plants, bulbs and seeds from supermarkets.
"That's bad," says Don. "It's rather like the vast suppliers supplying food - you get lots and lots of the same thing mass produced to be as cheap as possible."
The UK garden market is worth around Â£5bn, with some Â£1.4bn spent on garden plants by UK consumers in 2013, according to the HTA, the industry body.
The Gardeners' World presenter believes consumers should shop around.
"I'm a huge fan of independent nurseries. That is where you get the expertise, it's where you will find people who have devoted their life to growing something.
"They will grow geraniums or trees and they will really know about it, so when you contact them, they can give you great help and assistance."
Martin Simmons, HTA director of operations, said: "People often make impulse purchases of plants in supermarkets and if this then encourages them to buy more plants then this is good for the industry and helps to grow the market.
"Buying a plant in a supermarket may be the first step for some consumers, particularly younger ones. If this grabs their interest they will naturally seek out garden centres and retail nurseries."
Waitrose told the BBC it took quality seriously, and that its plants were supplied by two reputable nurseries who supply only garden centres - not other supermarkets.
Inviting Monty Don for a visit to talk to buyers, Asda said it works with a network of expert growers to ensure it offered quality.
Sainsbury's said it had a longstanding relationship with suppliers, many of whom were family businesses. It added that it always worked to give customers choice...

Summary:


The Football Associations of England and Scotland say they will ignore a ban on players wearing poppies in their upcoming match on 11 November.

Article: Worker output per hour in the UK fell 1.2% during the last three months of 2015 compared with the previous quarter, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Output per hour in manufacturing fell by 2% from the previous quarter, while in the service sector it dropped 0.7%.
Poor rates of productivity in the UK have been a concern to policymakers.
In last month's Budget, the Office for Budget Responsibility cut its growth forecasts for the UK economy after it lowered its predictions for productivity.
The fall in productivity in the fourth quarter of the year followed a 0.6% rise in the third quarter.
Over 2015 as a whole, output per hour rose by 1%, which the ONS said was the strongest increase since 2011.
The ONS said that labour productivity overall - covering output per hour, output per worker and output per job - was about 0.5% higher in the fourth quarter of 2015 than in the same period a year earlier.
"How productivity develops going forward is critical to the economy's growth potential," according to Howard Archer, an economist at IHS Global Insight.
"The crucial question for the UK economy is, does the fourth quarter of 2015 mark a temporary relapse in productivity. Or is it evidence that the UK has an ongoing serious productivity problem."
Suren Thiru, head of economics at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: "There are deep-rooted structural problems in our economy that have dampened productivity - from skills shortages, to infrastructure bottlenecks and limited growth finance.
"Delivering solutions to these critical issues would go a long way to achieving the productivity gains we need."

Summary: Productivity among UK workers at the end of last year fell at the fastest pace since 2008, official figures show.
###
Article: The Times quoted the mother of three as saying having children meant she had "a very real stake" in Britain's future.
She later said she was "disgusted" with the interview's presentation.
Times journalist Rachel Sylvester defended her article, saying she was "baffled" by Mrs Leadsom's reaction.
Mrs May, who has no children, has launched a "clean campaign" pledge and invited Mrs Leadsom "to join me in signing it". Her campaign team has declined to comment on the Times's story.
David Cameron also refused to comment on the row saying he was "playing no part" in the election and would say "absolutely nothing".
The Times headlined its front-page lead story: "Being a mother gives me edge on May - Leadsom."
It quoted the energy minister as saying Mrs May "possibly has nieces, nephews, lots of people.
"But I have children who are going to have children who will directly be part of what happens next".
Speaking outside her home in Northamptonshire, Mrs Leadsom said she was "disgusted about how this has been presented".
"In the course of a lengthy interview yesterday, I was repeatedly asked about my children and I repeatedly made it clear that I did not want this in any way a feature of the campaign," she added.
"I want to be crystal clear that everyone has an equal state in our society and in the future of our country.
"That is what I believe and it is what I have always believed... this campaign must at all times be principled and honourable."
In an earlier statement, she said the reporting had been "beneath contempt".
By BBC political correspondent Eleanor Garnier
We won't know the true impact of this row until the result of the leadership race is announced in September.
It is the Conservative Party membership that votes on who should be leader and there may well be some who would like their next leader and prime minister to be a mother.
But many others will say it doesn't matter at all and it shouldn't be used in any way to try to get ahead in the campaign.
That is why there has been such a huge reaction to Andrea...

Summary: A row has erupted after Conservative leadership candidate Andrea Leadsom was accused of suggesting that having children made her a better choice to be prime minister.
###
Article: Steven McIvor, 32, was one of two knife-wielding thieves who robbed the Letterbox Bistro in Balerno Main Street.
They stole Â£2,000 and 5,300 euros on 26 February 2016.
McIvor, from Edinburgh, had denied taking part in the robbery during a trial at the High Court in the city but was found guilty.
His co-accused Eddie Moffat, 27, was acquitted of the robbery charge on a not proven verdict, and admonished for a dangerous driving offence he admitted after spending almost 11 months in prison on remand. He was banned from driving for three years.
The owner of the post office/bistro business Steven Carlyle, 55, said he had been talking to his son when he became aware of two men entering the premises.
He told the court: "Then the language got worse and they demanded money. They were demanding all the money from the till and the euros."
The thieves had scarves over their mouths and each was armed with a knife.
Mr Carlyle said he pressed an alarm that was supposedly inaudible but turned out to be audible. He said: "That's when they started getting very agitated."
One of the intruders became very aggressive and a knife was thrust through a gap in a Perspex screen.
Mr Carlyle said: "They were swearing all the time, telling us to 'hurry up, get the money, get the cash'."
The trial judge, Lord Kinclaven, deferred sentence on unemployed McIvor, who has previous convictions for theft, for the preparation of a background report. He was remanded in custody.

Summary: A an has been convicted of taking part in an armed raid on a post office on the outskirts of Edinburgh.
###
Article: The ad triggered the devices to read out information about the burgers from online encyclopaedia Wikipedia.
However, somebody edited Wikipedia to describe the Whopper as the "worst hamburger product" and another added cyanide to the list of ingredients.
The BBC understands the ad was blocked.
Google did not publicly confirm this, saying only that it had "no involvement" in the campaign.
But Burger King confirmed to the BBC that after the first iteration of the ad was blocked, it ran a tweaked version on US TV.
According to a Burger King spokeswoman, the new ad was revoiced using a "different intonation" that bypassed the ban.
In the 15-second advert, a Burger King employee asks "OK, Google. What is the Whopper burger?"
The stunt has put Wikipedia in the spotlight after reports that Burger King's own marketing team edited the Whopper page shortly before the ad campaign.
The history of the page shows that changes were made on 4 April by Burger King Corporation. It edited the description of the product to include the lines "America's favourite burger" and "100% beef with no preservatives".
This change was quickly re-edited back to the original version.
Wikipedia has not responded to requests for comment.
Whether Burger King expected users to go on to make their own, less flattering edits is unclear but Emily Tan, technology editor at marketing news website Campaign, thinks it might have been aware such a reaction was likely.
"Burger King has a reputation as quite a provocative brand and the idea that users are hijacking a brand can charm and amuse people. There is a chance that Burger King expected this to happen," she said.
However, she thought it was less likely they expected the backlash from users about the intrusive nature of such adverts.
"People didn't like this invading their living rooms. Studies suggest that people feel quite close to these smart speaker devices, they become a personality, and when something you regard as your friend pipes up with information that you didn't ask for, that creeps people...

Summary: A Burger King TV advert which was designed to activate Google Home smart speakers and some Android phones to describe its Whopper burgers has been hijacked by members of the public.
###
Article: The two nations meet in a 2018 World Cup qualifier on Armistice Day, also known as Remembrance Day, when the United Kingdom remembers those who have lost their lives in war.
But Fifa, who are in charge of world football, say they do not allow any nations to have any political, religious or commercial messages on shirts.
They had turned down a request to allow England and Scotland's players to wear armbands with poppies on.
The FAs have now said that they will let their players wear the armbands anyway and will accept any punishment.
Poppies are worn by millions as a symbol to remember those who have lost their lives in war or been injured.
British Prime Minister, Theresa May, has said Fifa's refusal of players being allowed to wear poppies is "outrageous".
Speaking at Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday, she said: "Our football players want to recognise and respect those who have given their lives for our safety and security - I think it is absolutely right they should be able to do so."
The Football Association of Wales has also written to Fifa requesting permission to wear poppies on armbands during their game against Serbia in Cardiff on 12 November but has not yet said if it will ignore the ban.

Summary: