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North Korea 'circumventing' UN sanctions
North Korea has developed sophisticated countermeasures to circumvent UN sanctions, including the suspected use of its embassies to facilitate the illegal trade in weapons, according to a United Nations report.
North Korean embassies in Cuba and Singapore were suspected by the eight member UN panel of experts of facilitating the country's banned arms trade, including a shipment of fighter jets and missile parts that were seized in Panama last July.
The report also pointed to the use of more developed financial countermeasures used to mask the purchase of both banned and permitted goods.
International Space Station crew return to earth
A capsule carrying a US-Russian crew back to Earth after nearly six months on the International Space Station has landed safely on the steppes of Kazakhstan.
Nasa said that the Soyuz capsule carrying American Mike Hopkins and Russians Oleg Kotov and Sergey Ryazanskiy touched down as scheduled, south east of the town of Dzhezkazgan. They spent 166 days in orbit on the space station.
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Warning over children's salt consumption
More than a third of children's salt consumption is from breads and cereals, researchers have found.
Analysis of young people's diets found that they eat an "unhealthy amount of salt on a daily basis". 36% of this salt comes from cereal and bread-based products, according to the new research.
The study, published in the American Heart Association journal Hypertension, found that many children are exceeding the recommended intake of salt on a daily basis.
Search area 'extended beyond flightpath of missing jet
Malaysia Airlines have confirmed via social media that the search area for missing flight MH370 has been extended beyond the flight path.
[#MASalert] As we enter into Day 4, the aircraft is yet to be found. SAR teams now expanded scope beyond flight path http://t.co/xGT1P7SsHM
In a statement, Malaysia Airlines said:
"The search and rescue teams have expanded the scope beyond the flight path. The focus now is on the West Peninsular of Malaysia at the Straits of Malacca.
The authorities are looking at a possibility of an attempt made by MH370 to turn back to Subang. All angles are being looked at. We are not ruling out any possibilities."
Councils are 'tackling the biggest cuts in living memory'
Local authorities are "tackling the biggest cuts in living memory" and urged the Government to give them the full amount of funding needed to provide adequate council tax support for vulnerable residents.
Chair of the Local Government Association's Finance Panel, Sharon Taylor hit out at Government cuts after the Public Accounts Committee published a scathing report into measures taken by local authorities in the wake of cuts.
– Sharon TaylorThe shortfall between the money councils receive to fund council tax support and the money we would need to protect those on low incomes is getting bigger and is likely to reach £1 billion by 2016.
At the same time, councils are tackling the biggest cuts in living memory and cannot afford to make up the difference.
The Public Accounts Committee's call for Government to review the scheme echoes concerns raised by councils.
Government should consider giving local authorities the full amount of funding needed to provide council tax support.
'Largest ever' Chinese rescue fleet to join search
The largest rescue flotilla in Chinese naval history - four warships and five civilian and commercial vessels- is to join the search operation to locate the missing Malaysia Airlines flight, the South China Morning Post is reporting.
More: Investigators widening search for missing Malaysia plane
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Govt accuses Labour of 'irresponsible scaremongering'
Labour's attempts to block clause 119 of the care bill, which would give ministers greater power to close down hospitals, is "irresponsible scaremongering of the worst kind".
A Conservative Party spokesman said:
– A Conservative Party spokesmanThese claims from Andy Burnham are irresponsible scaremongering of the worst kind - changes to the special administrator regime will simply ensure that patients get safe care, and these powers have only ever been used in extremis twice since 2009, when Labour introduced them in the first place.
This Government is determined to turn round failing hospitals, unlike the Opposition, which didn't confront the sort of under performance and failure we tragically saw at Mid Staffs.
Students in china pray for missing passengers
College students light candles in China to pray for passengers aboard missing Boeing 777 jet http://t.co/DwJsS6GTKt
More: Investigators widening search for missing Malaysia plane
'230 authorities' require minimum council tax payment
Almost three quarters of local authorities (71%) required all working-age claimants to pay at least the minimum contribution towards their council tax bill, according to the Public Accounts Committee.
They also found:
- There were only 133 authorities which provided exemptions only for pensioners and war pensioners, whom the Government insisted must be protected.
- Some 19 local authorities, representing 225,000 working-age claimants in England, increased the "taper rate" at which support is reduced as income rises from 20% under the old system - some 14 of them increasing it to 25% and four to 30%.
- Taper rate increases combined with the loss of housing benefit and increase to income tax and national insurance, would mean claimants taking on additional work they would lose 93p of every £1 they yearend on a 25% rate of 97p on a 30% rate
Libyan forces 'seize' North Korean oil tanker
Libyan government forces have seized a tanker that had loaded crude at a port under the control of rebels who plan to sell oil independently of the Tripoli government.
The North Korea-flagged shipped was being escorted to western Libya, a spokesman for the state-owned National Oil Corp Mohammed El-Harari told Reuters, confirming Libyan media reports.
Another Libyan official, Abdelwahab al-Qaim told Reuters: "The ship has been seized by government forces. There are no damages to the ship."
A rebel spokesman had earlier denied they had lost control of the ship.
