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'Restorative justice' in community sentence guidelines
Restorative justice, where the criminal meets and apologises to the victim in person, are to be included in new guidelines for community sentencing, the Government has announced.
This means of punishment was found to reduce the reoffending rate by 14%.
The tougher guidelines will include:
- Deferred sentence so a restorative justice activity can take place.
- The £5,000 limit on compensation limits will be lifted so magistrates can set the level they see fit.
Kabul Airport 'shaken by insurgent attack'
A large explosion has shaken Kabul's international airport a Reuters witness has said, with police saying initial reports suggested it was an insurgent attack.
"Based on our information there was a explosion near KAIA," said deputy Kabul police chief Sayed Ghafar Sayedzada, referring to Kabul International Airport.
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Report: Blast heard near Kabul International Airport
A large blast has been heard near Kabul's International Airport, Reuters is reporting.
Stars in video appeal for Syrian children
A video featuring a host of film stars and musicians has been released to highlight the plight of children caught up in the Syria conflict.
Read the full storyGovt: Tougher guidelines for community sentences
Community sentencing will be toughened up and include specific punishments like curfews and unpaid work, the Ministry of Justices (MoJ) is expected to announce later today.
Around 40,000 offenders are given a community service every year and the Government says taxpayers expect them to be "punished accordingly".
However, campaigners say community sentences are meant to be flexible so magistrates and judges can take the defendants motivation into account.
Frances Crook, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said:"The reason community sentences work so much better than short-term prison sentences is that they can be tailored to the reasons why someone is committing crime.
"Ministers are wrong to force magistrates and judges to impose something punitive even in cases where measures such as drug treatment is more appropriate."
Hundreds of police storm Ukranian protest camp in Kiev
Hundreds of police have stormed a protest camp in the Ukrainian capital, clashing with protesters as they tried to dismantle barricades.
Protesters shouted "Shame!" and "We will stand!" and sang the Ukrainian national anthem.
The storming of the camp at Independence Square came despite a visit by two senior Western diplomats to try to defuse a week-long stand-off between the opposition and president Viktor Yanukovych.
The police tried to dismantle barricades surrounding the camp but then moved back after resistance from protesters.The police took up positions on the perimeters of the camp, then began clashing with demonstrators and trying again to dismantle the barricades.
The confrontation at the protest camp unfolded as EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and US assistant secretary of state Victoria Nuland were in the city to try to talk to the government and the opposition and work out a solution.
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Government dementia pledge 'sets good example'
Industry experts praised David Cameron's plans to double funding into dementia research, with one charity hoping it would "set a good example" across the international community.
Chief executive of Alzheimer's Research UK, Hilary Evans
– Chief Executive of Alzheimer's Research UK, Hilary EvansWe boast some of the world's leading scientists in dementia, and these announcements are a clear backing of their crucial work - this support must continue.
We hope this package of announcements will set a good example to other G8 nations to galvanise international research efforts.
RSPCA's anti-badger cull advert is banned
An RSPCA advert suggesting that badgers in cull areas would be "exterminated" has been banned following 119 complaints.
The ad featured an image of a syringe and bullet at the top of the page with a headline reading "Vaccinate or exterminate?" before text continued: "The UK government wants to shoot England's badgers. We want to vaccinate them - and save their lives."
Conservative MP Simon Hart, the Farmers' Union of Wales, Welsh Conservative AM Antoinette Sandbach and 116 members of the public complained about the ad, with most saying the term "exterminate" was inaccurate and alarmist.
The RSPCA said the word "exterminate" was used carefully and deliberately, saying it had "a literal meaning of total eradication and a common use meaning of killing on a massive scale".
The Advertising Standards Agency said: "...Consumers were likely to interpret the claim, along with the text 'The UK government wants to shoot England's badgers', to mean that all badgers would be eradicated in the cull areas. On that basis, we concluded the claim was likely to mislead."
It ruled that the ad must not appear again in its current form.
'Small percentage' of Comic Relief cash in arms trade
Comic Relief chief executive Kevin Cahill, speaking on BBC Radio 4's World At One, accepted that Comic Relief had a "small percentage" of cash in areas such as tobacco and arms firms through managed funds.
"There's no more than 5 percent of our funds in those particular areas," he said.
After being told ethical funds had outperformed FTSE 100 companies index over recent periods, he said: "Our trustees were acting in good faith in what they were doing.
"It's very good to hear that, in fact, the potential exists within ethical funds to match the return because Comic Relief would clearly choose to be in those if the return was equal or better to where we currently are so it's a no brainer for us to be in those funds."
Funding details expected in Cameron's G8 speech
The Prime Minister is expected to announce plans to double Government funding of dementia research in his keynote speech at the first G8 dementia summit later today.
David Cameron also wants to see a similar level of investment from the private and charitable sectors.
- Government investment will double from £66 million to £122 million in 2025.
- A newly established UK Dementia Platform will allow different research teams across the country to share data in order to increase the scale and scope of their work.
- The Medical Research Council is channelling £50 million into dementia research over the next five years.
