Kite Runner Flies into Nottingham
A Birmingham composer has created the music for a stage version of The Kite Runner which has made its European premiere in the Midlands.
West Coast Mainline fiasco cost taxpayer £50m
A critical report by MPS has condemned the £50 million cost to the taxpayer caused by the West Coast Mainline fiasco.
Green Party Spring Conference in Nottingham
The Green Party's MP, Natalie Bennett, has arrived in Nottingham to kick start the Spring Conference weekend.
Live updates
Union: Michael Gove like a 'fanatical personal trainer'
Schools are losing their sense of humour under piles of data and spreadsheets as headteachers are forced to "wrestle with an octopus" of government initiatives and reforms, a union leader will warn today.
Heads are becoming tired of constant change to the education system, and believe it is being dismantled before their eyes, according to Bernadette Hunter, president of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT).
In a strongly-worded attack, Ms Hunter will say she believes that Education Secretary Michael Gove is not a champion of education, and liken the minister to a "fanatical personal trainer" urging headteachers to go "faster, faster, higher and higher".
TONIGHT: 11.35pm, ITV, The Lobby
Join Alison MacKenzie at 11.35pm tonight for our political programme The Lobby. Here's what's coming up on the show...
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UKIP Councillor says sorry following resignation over 'racism' on Facebook
The UKIP County Councillor at the centre of a row over racism on Facebook, has released a statement following his resignation.
Eric Kitson is to quit the Worcestershire County Council seat he won less than two weeks ago following the incident.
The 59-year-old, who represented Stourport-on-Severn, has denied being a racist.
– Eric Kitson, Former UKIP CouncillorIt is with sadness that I am announcing my resignation as a Councillor. I am extremely sorry to have let down my friends, the people in the hardworking UKIP team that got me elected, the people of Stourport on Seven who gave me the honour of electing and of course my family.
Like many people who are not professional politicians, I used my Facebook page as a general post board. That was foolish. I am no racist, but I can understand why people could think so.
Ukip councillor quits over offensive Facebook posts
A Ukip county councillor will quit and could be removed from the party after admitting to sharing offensive material about Muslims on his Facebook page.
Eric Kitson is to quit the Worcestershire County Council seat he won less than two weeks ago following the incident.
The 59-year-old, who represented Stourport-on-Severn, has denied being a racist and claims he shared cartoons and jokes to show how "disgusting" they were.
He has since apologised and said it was "stupid" for him to share the messages, which were posted last year on his Facebook.
Bill Etheridge, the Ukip chairman for Dudley and Halesowen, said an internal investigation had been launched: "Ukip does not condone hate, racism or prejudice. We totally condemn those things because it's not what the party is about. In fact it is the total opposite of what the party is about."
PCC insists he was right to suspend Chief Constable
Lincolnshire Police and Crime Commissioner Alan Hardwick told MPs he remains convinced he was right to suspend his Chief Constable
Read the full storySelect Committee Chairman to question Crime Commissioner
Keith Vaz, chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee, says he has called Lincolnshire's Police and Crime Commissioner to question him over events which have happened over the last few months.
Alan Hardwick suspended Neil Rhodes, temporary Chief Constable of Lincolnshire Police, over "potential conduct matters".
Mr Rhodes returned to work after winning a High Court ruling against his suspension.
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Crime Commissioner to go before Select Committee
Lincolnshire's Police and Crime Commissioner Alan Hardwick has been summoned to appear before the Home Affairs Select Committee today.
He will be questioned over events which have taken place since he took up the office last year. He could be questioned over his suspension of temporary Chief Constable Neil Rhodes.
Rise in people needing help to pay rent
People in Birmingham are finding it harder to afford their rent following Government welfare reforms, according to Birmingham City Council.
There were almost 2,000 applications for help to pay for housing in the first two weeks of April - immediately after the Spare Room Subsidy or "Bedroom Tax" was introduced.
Discretionary Housing Payments were introduced in 2001 so local authorities could provide short-term payments to people facing problems with their housing costs. The Council says the system is struggling to cope.
Council doubles number of top earners
The Tax Payers' Alliance has published a Town Hall Rich List, detailing which councils have the highest earners.
The report claims Birmingham City Council has doubled the number of staff who earn more than £100,000 per year in 2011-12. This increase from 12 to 24 is the biggest of any local authority.
Birmingham City Council is one of the councils hardest hit by the Government cuts and has announced 102 million pounds worth of savings. They have issued a statement.
– Birmingham City Council spokesperson“The figure includes eight schools staff in an organisation which employees over 40,000. Pay packages can include redundancy payments, therefore figures being reported do not always relate to basic pay."
“One-off redundancy payments continue to be anticipated in the coming years, as the council reduces its staffing levels as part of the effort to make savings required as part of reduced funding due to government cuts.”
Statement from Stewart Jackson MP
“IPSA’s legal proceedings are heavy handed and disproportionate and are clearly intended to bully me into submission. All British citizens are entitled to seek legal adjudication if the State’s actions are unfair or possibly illegal and so I will be forcefully resisting their precipitous litigation. The essence of the dispute is my challenge of the valuations of 2010 and 2012."
"PSA are seeking a cash sum on a so-called capital gain profit on my family home, in which I live and have not sold."
"The money which IPSA is demanding retrospectively is more than the total amount I received when I was claiming mortgage interest and the property is now valued at less than we purchased it for in 2005.
Their assumption is that the value of my property rose by almost 20% over two years whilst house prices fell by 3% in my constituency in the same period."
"At my own expense, I have paid for an accurate recent expert valuation and I have made a reasonable offer to IPSA to settle the matter and reduce the legal costs which will have to be met by the taxpayer."
"My valuation recognises the need for proper recompense to be paid to the taxpayer to reflect their support for my housing costs between 2010 and 2012, in order to fulfil my duties as both a London based legislator and a constituency MP."
IPSA have negotiated with 70 other MPs in a secretive and arbitrary manner but in respect of my case, regrettably, they have refused to negotiate.
I am merely seeking fair play and consistency and will pursue legal action to receive it.”
