Metropolitan police anti-corruption unit investigated over payments
22.05.2012, 18:16:43
Detectives from Scotland Yard's anti-corruption unit have allegedly received payments from a firm of private investigators Scotland Yard is investigating allegations that detectives working for its anti-corruption unit have been paid thousands of pounds by a firm of private investigators. A parliamentary inquiry was told today that invoices, also seen by the Guardian, purport to show how a firm of private investigators made payments in return for information about the Metropolitan police investigation into James Ibori, a notorious Nigerian fraudster. On Tuesday, the Commons home affairs select committee was told by a lawyer involved in the case that invoices showed about £20,000 of potential payments to police officers in what amounted to an undetected case of "apparent corruption right at the heart of Scotland Yard". In recent weeks, as the Guardian investigated the allegations, the Met has sought to discourage the paper from publishing details about the case. But , after MPs heard the evidence, the Met dropped its previous insistence that there was "evidence that casts doubt on the credibility" of the allegations. A police source with knowledge of the investigation, which has been ongoing since October, said developments over the last 24 hours had now led police to take the allegations more seriously. The case revolves around a private investigation firm called RISC Management. Five years ago the firm was hired to work for Ibori, a former Nigerian state governor, after he discovered he was being investigated by the Met for serious fraud. Ibori recently pleaded guilty to money laundering and was jailed in the UK, after the conclusion of a major investigation into his financial affairs. The allegation now being investigated by police is that some detectives on the Met's Proceeds of Corruption Unit, which investigated Ibori, were receiving payments in exchange for information about the ongoing investigation. Invoices and other documents appearing to support the allegations have been anonymously posted to the Met and Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC). The documents have also been seen by the Guardian and separately sent to the home affairs committee, which is conducting an inquiry in whether private investigators should be subject to statutory regulation. Keith Vaz, the chair of the committee, has said there is growing concern in the wake of the phone-hacking scandal that some private investigators are operating in "the shadows" of the law. The Commons inquiry has been scrutinising the nexus between private investigators - many of whom are retired police officers - and their former colleagues who are still serving. On Tuesday morning, Mike Schwarz, a lawyer who represents one of Ibori's co-accused, told the inquiry about what he understood to be the significance of the material. He said it indicated possible corruption at the heart of the police investigation into the Nigerian politician's money laundering activities. The invoices are alleged to be from RISC Management to Speechly Bircham, a top firm of lawyers hired by Ibori to prepare his defence. Schwarz told MPs the invoices "perhaps" documented "payments made by RISC Management to sources, presumably police officers or those close to the investigation". He added: "The records, which I think the committee have, show about half-a-dozen payments totalling about £20,000 over a period of eight or nine months [...] it appears to be inappropriate if not corrupt." Schwarz told the committee that he believed RISC Management had been hired to "extract" information from the police investigation into Ibori. He said he had also seen emails - which he believed had also been forwarded to the committee - which confirmed "contact" between detectives investigating Ibori and the private investigators. Schwarz, from Bindmans solicitors, represents Bhadresh Gohil, a London-based solicitor jailed along with Ibori for orchestrating his money laundering scam. Gohil is now considering an appeal. Gohil is understood to have been sent the invoices, anonymously, while in Wandsworth Prison last summer. In a statement, the Met said: "The [force] is investigating an allegation that illegal payments were made to police officers for information by a private investigation agency. The Directorate of Professional Standards (DPS) referred the matter to the Independent Police Complaints Commission in October 2011 which agreed to supervise a DPS investigation into the allegations." Following Schwarz's evidence to parliament, the Met said it had dropped its previous claim to have recently "uncovered evidence" casting doubt on the allegations. Previously, the force had suggested an active line of inquiry was the theory that Gohil or his associates had fabricated the allegations to undermine the prosecution. In a previous statement, provided on Friday, the force said: "As a result of inquiries police have uncovered evidence that casts doubt on the credibility of these allegations. Warrants have been executed at two addresses in London and a quantity of paperwork and computer equipment recovered." Two weeks ago, following raids on properties, one of which was the Gohil's family home in Kent, the force said: "Officers believe that they have identified the originator of the information and a line of enquiry suggests that there may have been an attempt to pervert the course of justice." However, sources at the Yard said previous statements no longer fully represented their position. A source with knowledge of the Met inquiry said the change of stance was unrelated to Schwarz's parliamentary evidence. The source said that, instead, there had been developments in the investigation over the last 24 hours. Schwarz named three serving Met police officers in his testimony to parliament as being potential "culprits": detective inspector Gary Walters, detective constables named as John MacDonald and "Clark". All three officers declined an opportunity to respond to the allegations when contacted by the Guardian last week. However, RISC Management indicated Walters would deny "any and all allegations". RISC Management denied all the allegations about the company, saying it was not aware of the Scotland Yard investigation and had no knowledge of the alleged financial records. The firm confirmed it had been hired by Ibori's lawyers but denied making corrupt payments, saying it "has never paid a serving police officer for information and would never approve such payments". Keith Hunter, chief executive of the company, said: "RISC management does not need to pay serving police officers for confidential information as we pride ourselves on our ability to provide positive solutions and accurate information legitimately. RISC Management has a highly respected reputation for conducting professional investigations". He added that his company was "proud to have a network of highly professional consultants, contacts and resources. These individuals are hired precisely because of their unique skill set and expertise". He accused Schwarz of "grandstanding" in front of the Commons committee, instead of taking the "correct course of reporting the matter to the police". He said Schwarz had not produced any evidence to support his claims and acted for a convicted solicitor, Gohil, who was jailed for seven years for money laundering. Speechly Bircham denied any knowledge of wrongdoing and said it would be willing to assist with any police inquiries. The law firm stressed Schwarz did not suggest in his evidence to parliament that Speechly Bircham was "party to illegal or corrupt payments" and said any such allegation would be false and defamatory. Ian Timlin, the former Speechly Bircham lawyer who was at the time representing Ibori, said neither he nor the firm had "any knowledge of any payments to police officers for information." He added: "At no time, did RISC ever inform me who or what was the source/s they were paying." Metropolitan police Police Rob Evans Paul Lewis guardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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Iran nuclear talks in Baghdad begin
23.05.2012, 05:19:00
Six world powers to make 'confidence-building' proposal for Tehran to scale down its enrichment programme World powers will test Iran's readiness under pressure of sanctions to scale back its nuclear programme at talks in Baghdad aimed at easing the decade-old standoff. The meeting between Iran and six nations - the US, Russia, China, Germany, France and Britain - is the second since diplomacy resumed in mid-April in Istanbul after a tense 15-month hiatus. Around 15,000 Iraqi police and troops will protect the venue inside the capital's heavily fortified Green Zone on Wednesday. Tehran's suggestion of a meeting in Iraq, whose leadership is friendly to Iran, was seen by some diplomats as it testing western commitment to seeking a deal. Formal talks are expected to start around noon. "Istanbul was important because for us it was a test of the Iranians' willingness to engage. Baghdad should focus on concrete substance," a European diplomat said. "The ball is in their court. It is they who must make the first step." One senior western official said the six, led by the EU foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, would make Iran "a detailed proposal that will include confidence-building measures". No details were available on what these would be. The main goal of the six powers - known as the P5+1, for the five permanent UN security council members plus Germany - is expected to be an Iranian agreement to shut down higher-grade uranium enrichment, which it launched in 2010 and has since expanded in an underground plant at Fordow. Much to Israeli alarm, the plant would be largely impervious to attack from the air. Producing such highly enriched material in larger quantities has shortened the time Iran would need to build an atomic bomb. Iran says its nuclear programme is a peaceful bid to generate electricity and has repeatedly ruled out suspending all its enrichment of uranium, an activity that can have both civil and military purposes. But it has indicated possible flexibility on the higher-grade enrichment of uranium to a fissile concentration of 20%, the part of Iran's work that most worries the west. In a possible sign of a new Iranian willingness to address concerns, the UN nuclear supervisor said on Tuesday he expected to sign a deal soon to unblock an investigation into suspected work on nuclear bombs. But western diplomats will be wary of past failures to carry out extra inspection deals between the International Atomic Energy Agency and Iran. They want Iran to cease work at the Fordow site and export its stockpile of higher-grade uranium - demands that analysts say Tehran would be unlikely to accept while sanctions remain. Iran maintains that it needs uranium refined to a fissile concentration of 20% for its medical isotope reactor. Enrichment to 5% of fissile purity is suitable for power plant fuel, while 90% constitutes fuel for bombs. Ashton has said she hopes the Baghdad talks will form the basis for Tehran to eventually abandon its suspected nuclear weapons programme. Iran has suggested it will try to leverage its reported improved relations with the IAEA into a deal in Baghdad to relax sanctions inflicting increasing damage to its economy, including a European Union oil embargo due to take effect in July. Western officials ruled out such a big concession so soon, even though their call for a "step-by-step" negotiating process is widely seen as a tacit admission that sanctions will have to be eased at some point. Iran Nuclear weapons European Union US foreign policy guardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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Vince Cable accused of being a socialist by Tory donor
23.05.2012, 00:34:35
Adrian Beecroft, a venture capitalist, calls business secretary 'a socialist who found a home in the Lib Dems' Vince Cable is a "socialist" who has blocked action to liberalise employment laws that could give a £50bn boost to the economy, according to a Tory donor who wrote a controversial report on cutting red tape. In a sign of some Tories' deep frustrations with the coalition, Adrian Beecroft also accused the Liberal Democrat leader and deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, of blocking reforms by issuing a "hollow threat" to "go nuclear" and bring down the government. Beecroft, a venture capitalist, who also comes close to accusing the prime minister of withdrawing support for his departing policy guru Steve Hilton, hit out in interviews with the Daily Mail and Daily Telegraph. His intervention came after Clegg said he had never supported Beecroft's proposal to allow no-fault dismissals, to boost business. Government sources indicated that David Cameron would quietly shelve the plans which Beecroft said would promote economic growth by encouraging companies to hire more staff. Beecroft claimed that Cable, the business secretary, who described Beecroft's plans as "bonkers", objected to his proposals on "ideological not economic" grounds. He told the Telegraph: "I think he is a socialist who found a home in the Lib Dems, so he's one of the left. I think people find it very odd that he's in charge of business and yet appears to do very little to support business." Clegg said on Tuesday that he had always opposed no-fault dismissals because it would be wrong to create "industrial-level insecurity". "Nick Clegg is always threatening to go nuclear and dissolve the whole thing if he doesn't get his way with this, that and the other," Beecroft said. "Which you'd think actually must be a hollow threat. Therefore, why can't the government be more robust? I don't know what the answer is. But it is disappointing." Beecroft criticised Cameron for having "given up" on his proposals after senior Tory sources indicated that the prime minister hoped to shelve the plans quietly. "I do think it is disappointing that they appear to have given up on unfair dismissal," he told the Daily Mail. He told the Mail employers experience "endless frustration" in dealing with underperforming employees, and indicated that Cameron has let down his policy guru who is embarking on a year long sabbatical to the US. He said some Tories have been very supportive of his plans. Beecroft, who said a failure to introduce his plans could hold back economic growth by £50bn, told the Telegraph: "I'm talking about Steve Hilton, that group and they assured me that David Cameron wanted to do the whole thing. Whether that's right or not I'm not sure but that was the strong impression I got. I've been in meetings with Oliver Letwin and Ed Davey, where Oliver Letwin was all for and Ed Davey was totally against." He added that his plans prompted a row at the highest levels of the coalition. "There was a large argument which I'm told ended up in the 'quad' [the group composed of Cameron, George Osborne, Nick Clegg and Danny Alexander] when they're sort of trading off one policy against the other." Clegg also found himself accused of being leftwing when public school headteacher Tim Hands accused him of adopting "old-style communist" tactics in his drive to improve social mobility. Tim Hands, master of the private Magdalen College School in Oxford and chair elect of the Headmasters and Headmistresses's Conference, which represents elite private schools, accused the deputy prime minister of an "old-style communist creation of a closed market, to try to deal with the problem after the event". Vince Cable Party funding Liberal-Conservative coalition Conservatives Liberal Democrats Nicholas Watt Juliette Jowit guardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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IMF backs tax and interest rate cuts to dig UK out of recession
22.05.2012, 20:49:00
International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde says, 'bolster demand before low growth becomes entrenched' The IMF has urged George Osborne to start preparing an emergency package of tax cuts and spending increases as it called for further interest rate cuts and more electronic money creation from the Bank of England to lift Britain out of its double-dip recession. Expressing concern about weak growth and high levels of youth unemployment, the IMF said the UK needed swift action from the Bank's governor, Sir Mervyn King, but that the chancellor should be ready with a plan B for the economy. Such a plan could include temporary cuts to VAT and national insurance, the IMF said. Labour seized on the findings of the IMF's latest health check on the UK as evidence that two years of government austerity had killed off Britain's recovery from the deepest recession since the second world war. Speaking with Osborne at a news conference in London, Christine Lagarde, the IMF's managing director, said: "Growth is too slow and unemployment, including youth unemployment, is too high. Policies to bolster demand before low growth becomes entrenched are needed." She added: "If the economy turns out to be significantly weaker than forecast, fiscal easing should be considered." Ed Balls, Labour's shadow chancellor, who has urged the chancellor to adopt a five-point recovery plan that includes temporary tax cuts, said: "If we fail to act, and we see years of slow growth and high unemployment being entrenched, Britain will pay a heavy long-term price." In its report, the IMF called on the Bank to take the lead with an immediate cut in interest rates and an acceleration of its £325bn programme of printing electronic money, known as quantitative easing. The case for more QE was strengthened today by a decline in inflation to 3% in April from 3.5% in the previous month. The fall could provide the Bank with scope to inject more funds into the banking system and the wider economy. However, the IMF and Lagarde were careful to praise Osborne's approach to cutting the UK's budget deficit. The report said that deficit reduction was "essential" in the medium term and paid tribute to the "substantial progress" towards a sustainable budget delivered by the government's austerity programme. "When I think back to May 2010, when the UK deficit was at 11%, and I try to imagine what the situation would be like today if no such fiscal consolidation programme had been decided, I shiver," said Lagarde. Osborne said: "The IMF couldn't be clearer today. Britain has to deal with its debts and the government's fiscal policy is the appropriate one and an essential part of our road to recovery." Lagarde also praised Osborne for relenting on some cuts in his autumn statement last November, but said this fiscal easing may no longer be enough. The IMF said there was scope for the government to boost growth through higher spending on infrastructure projects, which would increase employment and demand within the economy and could be funded within existing budgets by imposing further public-sector wage restraint or reforming property taxes. An OECD report also praised Osborne for sticking to his debt reduction plans, but echoed the IMF warning that the economy would struggle to pick up momentum this year. The Paris-based thinktank, which is funded by the world's most powerful countries, saved most of its criticism for the 17-member eurozone and its lacklustre response to the Greek crisis. It urged the UK to prepare for the worst as Greece remained on the brink of leaving the euro and the single currency's protective firewalls to prevent contagion appeared weak. The IMF, which is supporting financial rescue plans in Ireland, Portugal and Greece, also warned the UK to prepare for an escalation of the eurozone crisis that would deliver a "substantial contractionary shock" to the economy. Its report identified uncertainty over the future of the euro as the main danger to recovery and warned: "Risks are large and tilted clearly to the downside." The UK's central bank has resisted adopting the European Central Bank's programme of cheap three-year loans to banks, which has boosted the European banking sector and made borrowing cheaper. It has also been unwilling to buy corporate bonds, which amounts to direct lending to businesses. Lagarde praised the monetary policy committee's (MPC) £325bn QE scheme, which she said had proved a key support for the UK economy, but urged it to go further and consider further base rate cuts, more QE and a wider range of credit schemes to boost direct lending. King could make the first move next month if the nine members of the MPC agree to cut interest rates and boost quantitative easing. Lagarde said policies designed to stimulate growth obviously came with risks, but added: "These risks need to be weighted against the risk of lost years of growth. To this end, further monetary easing is required." Osborne said both reports showed that the government was on the right track. "Britain has got to deal with its debts and the government's fiscal policy is the appropriate one and an essential part of our road to recovery," he said. The Treasury is developing schemes to use its historically low borrowing costs to support a wide range of commercial projects, mainly in infrastructure. Government spending on infrastructure was down by a quarter in the last year and the Treasury is under pressure to devise plans that will increase spending without adding to the UK's debts. Osborne said schemes to support infrastructure projects and lending to small businesses would be ready over the next few months. IMF Bank of England Christine Lagarde Economic policy Interest rates Eurozone crisis Economics Quantitative easing George Osborne Phillip Inman guardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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Health agency says hospital staff must be trained to combat pneumonia
23.05.2012, 05:00:01
All hospitals recommended to publish their data on the use of antibiotic and anti-fungal medicines so as to cut unecessary use Hospitals in England have been warned they must sharpen their training of ward staff on reducing pneumonia and lower respiratory tract infections in patients. Less sedation, more physiotherapy, more careful use of antacids and appropriate mouth hygiene should be encouraged to minimise the risks of the infection in severely ill patients, including those intubated for fluids or air, says the government's Health Protection Agency. Many are in intensive care units. The agency also recommend all hospitals should publish data on their use of antibiotic and antifungal medicines, an attempt to ensure that moves to cut their unnecessary use are not forgotten as the incidence of MRSA and C difficile infections tumble. The prevalence of MRSA soared until recently because of the development of antibiotic resistance. Similar problems emerged with C difficile, which can also develop because antibiotics have destroyed too many 'good' bacteria. Antacids used to prevent or treat mouth ulcers can also have the same effect, meaning 'bad' bacteria are more likely to transfer from the gut , via the stomach, to the respiratory system. Experts warn that it is important to target infections with the right antibiotics, rather than using so-called 'broad spectrum' drugs. Staff should remove catheters to drain or administer fluids as soon as possible since they too are liable to cause infections. The key messages, which Department of Health policy advisers will now consider how to take further, emerge from a 2011 snapshot survey of infections linked to people's healthcare before and during hospital and covering almost 52,500 patients. Although direct comparisons cannot be made with previous surveys, such infections dropped from 8.2% in 2006 to 6.4%. More than one in five (22.8%) were respiratory, with urinary tract infections (17.1%) and on parts of the body where there has been surgery (15.7%) the next most prevalent. Since the 2006 check, there has been an 18-fold reduction in MRSA bloodstream infections (1.3% to less than 0.1%) and a five-fold reduction in C difficile(2% to 0.4%). Professor Anthony Kessel, director of public health strategy and medical director at the HPA, said: "There have been great results achieved in reducing the levels of MRSA and C difficile over the last five years in the NHS and these can be seen in the figures reported today. These have been accomplished through national policies and guidelines and changes to infection control. There are now new challenges to meet and I am sure that hospitals will be equally as vigilant in addressing these." Hygiene Infectious diseases Health policy James Meikle guardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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GCSEs not fit for purpose, says CBI
23.05.2012, 05:00:01
Leading business organisation warns qualification sat by pupils at 16 is not delivering key skills needed in the workplace GCSEs encourage "teaching to the test" and may be past their sell-by date, according to Britain's leading business organisation. The Confederation of British Industry warns that the qualification is stopping teachers delivering an "inspirational classroom experience" and should be replaced as a measure in school league tables by the A-level. John Cridland, the CBI director general, said industry faced a shortage of key skills, particularly in science and maths. The CBI, which represents more than 240,000 companies, is also concerned about the 40% of young people who fail to achieve the benchmark of five good GCSE passes including English and maths. The proportion of pupils who reach this standard is the main measure of school success. Speaking at the launch of a CBI inquiry into education, Cridland argued that abandoning GCSEs could help deliver a more rounded education. "There's something about this GCSE funnel which produces a prescribed form of learning which seems to be teaching for the test. "It frustrates teachers because it stops them delivering that inspirational classroom experience, and you see young people being switched off." The CBI head suggested that raising the school leaving age to 18 - a change that comes into effect in 2015 - is an opportunity to reform the system. "It seems to me that we've raised the participation age to 18 and we're left with an education system that focuses on 16," said Cridland. "If you say to employers at the moment 'what's the gold standard, what's the thing you measure more than anything?', I think there's more faith in A-levels than there is in GCSEs. If everybody is heading for that attainment at 18, then 16 is a hurdle that gets in the way. "What would happen if you took that hurdle out - would you get speedier races to the tape?" More than 600,000 children in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are due to take GCSEs this summer. Many other countries do without a public exam at 16. Finland, the highest performing school system in Europe according to the OECD's rankings, has just one public exam, at 18, though children are regularly tested at younger ages. The CBI education inquiry, which will report back at the organisation's annual conference in November, will also look at early years education. It is vital to tackle gaps in the system earlier, Cridland said, citing figures that showed just 6.5% of children who start secondary school behind for their age go on to achieve five good GCSEs including English and maths. The inquiry will look at whether heads and teachers can be given greater freedom. Cridland said: "We need to give school leaders more freedom to motivate, to recognise, to reward high performance, and deal with poor performance, and I would go further, we need to give teachers more freedom to teach. If you have an inspirational teacher why don't we do what we do in business, back the guy or girl that you trust to deliver excellence rather than tell them how to do it." A Department for Education spokesman said: "We want to create an education system that ranks with the best in the world. This will ensure all pupils are equipped with the skills they need for work or university. "Our reforms of GCSEs will break the constant treadmill of exams and retakes throughout students' GCSE courses - school shouldn't be a dreary trudge from one test to the next. We want students to achieve a real, lasting understanding and love of a subject." Schools GCSEs Confederation of British Industry (CBI) Mathematics Science Jeevan Vasagar guardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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News International executives should face possibility of jail, says MP
22.05.2012, 19:42:03
Labour frontbencher Chris Bryant makes call as Les Hinton, Tom Crone and Colin Myler referred to standards watchdog Parliament should be prepared to jail a series of former News International executives for some of the most "flagrant" examples of contempt of parliament, the Labour frontbencher Chris Bryant said on Tuesday. As MPs agreed to refer the executives to the Commons standards watchdog, Bryant said the House of Commons should consider whether to jail or fine the executives. Bryant, who has played a leading role in exposing illegal practices at News International, was speaking as MPs debated the recent report by the House of Commons culture select committee which accused three News International executives of giving misleading evidence. MPs decided without a vote and after a short debate to refer the committee report to the commons standards and privileges committee. Last month's report said: o Les Hinton, the former chief executive of News International chief executive, "misled the committee in 2009 in not telling the truth about payments to [the jailed former News of the World royal editor] Clive Goodman and his role in authorising them, including the payment of his legal fee". o Tom Crone, the company's former legal affairs manager, "misled the committee in 2009 by giving a counter-impression of the significance of confidentiality in the [Professional Footballers' Association chief executive] Gordon Taylor settlement ... and sought to mislead the committee about the commissioning of surveillance". o Crone and the former NoW editor Colin Myler "misled the committee by answering questions falsely about their knowledge of evidence that other News of the World employees had been involved in phone-hacking and other wrongdoing". o The News of the World and News International "corporately ... misled the committee about the true nature and extent of the internal investigations they professed to have carried out in relation to phone hacking". John Whittingdale, the Conservative chairman of the committee, told MPs on Tuesday: "We are under no illusion: these are serious matters. The conclusions we have reached bear profound consequences. I am not entirely clear what those consequences are, but there is no question but that these are very serious matters. "It was also brought to our attention that those individuals should have a right to rebut the charges and to respond to them. We respected that, and we therefore felt that the right procedure was to refer the matter to the standards and privileges committee, so that it had an opportunity to consider the evidence that led to our findings and to consider the responses that have already been given by two of the individuals named. On that basis, I ask the house to refer the committee's report and the evidence we received to the standards and privileges committee." Bryant believed the case would be seen as "one of the most flagrant examples of a contempt of parliament in parliament's history". He told MPs: "It is not just that it was one person at one time, it was not just that it was one organisation for a brief period of time, it's that a whole series of people systematically, repeatedly lied so as to protect themselves, to protect their commercial interests and to try and make sure they didn't end up going to prison - that they did fully knowing that they were telling lies to parliament. That, I believe, is a fundamental contempt." But many MPs have complained that rules governing parliamentary privileges are unclear. There have been suggestions that the Commons may not be able to impose sanctions if the standards and privileges committee endorse the findings of the culture secretary. Bryant said the sanctions should be clear. He said: "I believe that this house and the committee itself should consider in turn, firstly whether or not the three individuals mentioned, and corporately News International should be summoned to this house. I believe that it must still be an important power for this house. "Secondly, they should consider whether individuals should be fined, not least because there have been considerable expenses incurred by parliament and the prosecuting authorities by the process of lying to parliament, and thirdly, it has to be right whether or not to imprison. "If this had happened in the Scottish parliament, it would have gone on to imprisonment, if it had been a contempt of court it would have led to imprisonment, if it had been perjury of a court, it would have led to imprisonment." News International Newspapers & magazines National newspapers Newspapers Phone hacking News of the World Les Hinton Colin Myler Tom Crone Chris Bryant Labour House of Commons Nicholas Watt guardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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Syrian kidnapping of Lebanese pilgrims raises fears conflict will cross border
22.05.2012, 17:58:48
Rebels in Aleppo province of Syria abducted 11 Shia Muslims and their driver on their way home from Iran, according to unnamed security officials Syrian rebels kidnapped 11 Lebanese Shias and their Syrian driver in northern Syria on Tuesday, adding to fears that Lebanon is being drawn into the chaos next door, Syria's state-run Sana news agency reported last night. The victims were on their way home from a religious pilgrimage in Iran when rebels intercepted their vehicles in Syria's Aleppo province. Women travelling in the group were released. As the news of the kidnappings spread, residents of the southern suburbs of Beirut, a Shiite area, took to the streets and burned tyres and blocked roads in protest. The leader of Hezbollah, a strong ally of the Syrian regime, appealed for calm and warned his followers against revenge attacks targeting Syrians. "Blocking roads or carrying out any act of violence or individual action will not help this case at all," said Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah in a statement broadcast on Lebanese TV. Within hours, the Syrian government began moving into Azaz in Aleppo province, where the abductions took place, activists said. The kidnappings come at a time of high tension in Lebanon over the 15-month-old conflict in Syria. Lebanon navigates a fragile faultline over Syria, which had troops on the ground in Lebanon for nearly 30 years until 2005 and still has strong ties to Lebanon's security services. The countries share a complex web of political and sectarian ties and rivalries, which can quickly turn violent. On Sunday, an anti-Syrian cleric was killed in northern Lebanon, setting off a night of deadly street battles in Beirut. It was some of the worst fighting seen in the Lebanese capital in four years. At least two people were killed and 15 wounded. Sunnis form the backbone of the Syrian uprising, which has unleashed seething sectarian tensions. Syria Lebanon Middle East and North Africa guardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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