Co-op To Axe More Than 1,000 Banking Jobs

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

The Co-operative Group is to axe more than 1,000 jobs at its troubled banking arm as part of a complete overhaul of its business and finances.

Sky News understands that the job cuts, which could be detailed as soon as Monday, will account for well over 10% of the Co-operative Bank's workforce.

The redundancies will underline the human toll of the lender's mismanagement in recent years as it finalises a plan to fill a £1.5bn hole in its balance sheet.

As expected, the deal, which will have the approval of the Bank of England, will involve Britain's biggest mutually-owned organisation relinquishing ownership of the Co-op Bank.

Insiders said a decision had yet to be taken about whether the scale of the jobs cull would be made public on Monday by Euan Sutherland, the Co-op Group chief executive.

"It's unlikely he'll want to go public with it at this stage," said one.

The final number was still being decided this weekend but sources said that well over 1,000 of the roughly 9,000 people who work for the mutual's banking arm were expected to lose their jobs.

The axe will fall principally on those working in the Co-op Bank's corporate lending business, with a revised strategy focused on retail and small business customers.

Senior managers, led by Niall Booker, the Bank's chief executive, had also been examining a relaunch of Smile, its internet brand, one insider said.

Retail bondholders are likely to receive a better deal than one presented as a fait accompli by Mr Sutherland until last week.

People close to the deal said that ordinary investors would probably be handed a combination of bonds and a new instrument guaranteeing income.

The biggest institutional bondholders - two US hedge funds - fought to overturn the original deal and will emerge as big shareholders when the bank's shares are listed on the stock exchange next year.

The news that the Co-op Bank will no longer be majority-owned by the mutual has sparked fury among many customers, prompting the bondholder group to praise the lender's ethos.

"The Co-Operative Bank is unique for its ethics, mission and heritage which are an essential component of the Bank's differentiated approach," LT2 said in a statement last week.

"It is important to us that the Bank will maintain its unique characteristics and ethos.

"The Co-operative Group Ltd. will remain the Bank's largest shareholder by far and the Bank will benefit by this connection to the Co-operative movement."

00.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

LA Airport Attack: 'Gunman Sent Suicide Text'

A man suspected of carrying out a deadly attack at Los Angeles International Airport sent a suicidal text message to his sibling, police have said.

The alleged gunman shot his way past a screening checkpoint, killing a security officer and wounding three other people before being injured in a shoot-out and taken into custody, authorities said.

The suspect has been identified as 23-year-old Paul Ciancia, who police have said appeared to have a grudge against security services.

His father, who has the same name, called his local police chief around the time of the shooting to report his son had sent the text and he needed to find him, police said.

The elder Paul Ciancia, from Pennsville, New Jersey, telephoned Allen Cummings, telling him one of his children had received the message from the younger Ciancia "in reference to him taking his own life".

At the time, the 23-year-old man was carrying out his shooting using a semi-automatic rifle, authorities said.

The attack caused major disruption to travellers

A motive was not clear, but Ciancia was wearing military fatigues and carrying a bag containing a handwritten note that said he "wanted to kill TSA (Transport Security Administration) and pigs," according to a law enforcement official.

The official said the rant referred to how Ciancia believed his constitutional rights were being violated by TSA searches and that he was upset at former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.

Ciancia, who managed to enter the secure area of Terminal 3, was reportedly shot in the mouth and leg by two airport police officers.

After getting the call from the suspect's father, Mr Cummings contacted LA police, who sent a patrol car to Ciancia's apartment.

He said: "Basically, there were two roommates there. They said, 'We saw him yesterday and he was fine.'"

A police officer at Los Angeles airport

Mr Cummings said his police department had never had dealings with the younger Ciancia.

Neighbour Josh Pagan, 17, said: "He was never weird toward me. He never gave me any weird vibes."

He added that in the 10 years he has lived across the street from the Ciancia family "they've been nothing but nice to us."

The airport attack disrupted more than 700 flights across the US. One witness at LAX, Brian Keech, said he heard "about a dozen gunshots" from inside the security gate.

Travellers described a chaotic scene as security staff evacuated terminals and rushed them outside to the tarmac.

The man who died was named as 39-year-old Gerardo I. Hernandez - the first TSA officer killed in the line of duty in the 12-year history of the agency, founded in the aftermath of 9/11.

Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti praised the response of officers and said: "There were more than 100 more rounds that could have literally killed everybody in that terminal today. Were it not for their actions, it could have been a lot more damage."

Officials said LAX Terminal 3 may reopen late on Saturday.

00.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Pizza Delivery Driver Murder: Two In Court

By Nick Martin, North of England Correspondent

Two people have appeared in court charged with the murder of a pizza delivery driver in Sheffield.

Thavisha Lakindu Peiris had been delivering his last ever pizza when he was stabbed to death in his car in the Southey area of the city on October 27.

Shamraze Khan, 25, of Southey Crescent, Sheffield, and a 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, who are accused of killing Mr Peiris both appeared at Sheffield Magistrates' Court.

The pair were remanded in custody until the next hearing at Sheffield Crown Court on November 15.

Mr Peiris was on his final shift before starting his dream job as an IT consultant.

The 25-year-old was found dead in a silver Toyota Yaris car in Southey Crescent at about 10.30pm by fellow Domino's workers who had gone looking for him after he failed to deliver his order.

His family described him as the "most caring and loving son a parent could have".

Speaking from their family home in Sri Lanka, his father Sarath Mahinda Peiris and mother Sudarma Narangoda said: "We sent our son to the UK to study so he can have a better life. Now we are left with only a broken heart.

"We were devastated and shocked to hear of our son's tragic end and we are still unable to comprehend that he is actually gone.

"Thavisha was one of the most caring and loving sons a parent could have. He was full of life and always had a smile on his face. Anyone who met him immediately liked him."

Mr Peiris came to the UK to finish an IT degree and graduated from Sheffield Hallam University in 2011.

His colleagues and police said he had been feeling unwell during his last shift and was going to go home early but agreed to deliver one last order.

Domino's Pizza has said it was funding the cost of flying his family to the UK in the coming days.

00.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Dagenham Blaze: Fire Strike Row Over Recall

The president of the Chief Fire Officers Association has described the actions of striking firefighters who walked away from a major blaze in east London as "shameful".

Paul Fuller on Saturday urged them to "reflect" on their behaviour and the impact of their actions on their relations with the public.

"Yesterday I said that I didn't agree with strike action in the fire service, but last evening, firefighters all over this country exercised their right to do that with professionalism and dignity, which is the same dedication and courage they use in support of our communities every day," he told Sky News.

"What we saw a few firefighters do at Dagenham last night when they walked away from an incident in progress I think was shameful, and they should be ashamed of that."

He continued: "I think it just goes against my instincts to have firefighters walking away from an incident in progress.

"I understand their right to strike. All over the country firefighters were on strike, and in London as well, and behaved impeccably and professionally.

There are around 1,500 tonnes of metal alight. Picture: fishycol1/Twitter

"What I did not want to see was firefighters on the television walking away from an incident, and I don't think the fire service would want to associate itself with that sort of behaviour."

All on-duty firefighters due to strike in London on Friday night were recalled to their stations by the London Fire Brigade (LBF) under an agreed and voluntary procedure in the event of a major incident.

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) and the London Fire Brigade clashed over the blaze.

The brigade said it expected striking firefighters to remain at the scene because of the seriousness of the incident, but the union said it was not life-threatening.

London Fire Commissioner Ron Dobson said: "There is no reference to risk of life in the agreed protocols to implement a major incident."

Mr Dobson said a major incident could trigger a recall and the agreement was implemented because of the size of the blaze and the resources needed to deal with it.

By not responding to the recall, he said it was the FBU that was in breach of the agreement.

But FBU London Secretary Paul Embery said the recall was not agreed.

Smoke can be seen from miles around. Picture: JSinghLon/Twitter

The London Fire Brigade received 124 emergency 999 calls during the strike, with replacement crews attending 17 incidents in the capital, including the one at Dagenham. 

Black smoke from the site could be seen from miles around, and residents were advised to keep their doors and windows closed.

Police officers and ambulance crews also attended the scene. There are no reported injuries, but several local roads were closed and motorists advised to avoid the area if possible.

London Mayor Boris Johnson said he supported the decision to recall all striking FBU staff.

It came as firefighters in the rest of England and Wales went ahead with the strike in their dispute with the Government over pensions, on what was expected to be one of the busiest days of the year for the service ahead of Bonfire Night and Diwali celebrations.

Members of the FBU walked out at 6.30pm, mounting picket lines outside fire stations until the stoppage ended at 11pm.

A further two-hour strike will be held from 6am on Monday, the day before Bonfire Night.

Fire brigades across the country have urged members of the public to put off any firework displays in their own gardens and to switch it to Saturday, or go to an organised event.

The union held a four-hour stoppage last month but called off another strike after it appeared a deal was in sight, but officials said the Government and fire employers had failed to offer any firm guarantees on jobs or pensions as a result of changing the pension age from 55 to 60.

The union fears firefighters will be made redundant if they fail fitness tests, and are unable to find other work in the fire service.

00.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Bin Laden: US Businessman Seeks $25m Reward

A businessman who claims he tipped-off the FBI about the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden's secret compound is seeking a reward of $25m (£15.6m).

Tom Lee claims he knew where bin Laden was hiding (pic: Mlive)

Gem dealer Tom Lee, 63, claims that in 2003 a Pakistani intelligence agent, from a family he had known for decades, told him bin Laden was in Peshawar in Pakistan, not Afghanistan.

The man allegedly described how he had been sent on a mission by Pakistani intelligence services to relocate bin Laden and his family to a small compound in Bilal, Abbottabad.

A letter sent by Mr Lee's lawyers to FBI director James Comey in August claims Mr Lee subsequently shared this information with FBI agents.

But despite "numerous attempts" to claim his reward after bin Laden's death in 2011 he received no response.

"Mr Lee precisely identified the whereabouts of the most notorious terrorist of our era," said the letter.

"A man responsible for the World Trade Center attacks, the most devastating act of terror committed on American soil, and numerous other assaults on Americans."

US Navy Seals during the raid on bin Laden's hideout in 2011

Mr Lee told The Grand Rapids Press in an email on Friday that he did not understand why the government waited to act for eight years.

"It disturbs me, and it should disturb every American, that I told them exactly where bin Laden was in 2003, and they let him live another eight years," he said in the email.

Mr Lee, who became Lord of Stanbury Manor in England in 1997 after purchasing the title, claims to have provided the FBI with intelligence before, and said the lack of action surprised him.

Mr Lee allegedly told the FBI about the compound in 2003

"For 20 years I was used to the government acting immediately on my intelligence," he said.

During their hunt for bin Laden, US authorities offered the reward to anyone who supplied information that led to bin Laden's capture or conviction.

The FBI has so far refused to comment.

00.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Water Bills: Crackdown On Costs Expected

Water bills may be "rolled back" after the Government vowed to get tough on the rising cost of living.

David Cameron's spokesman indicated that an announcement on water bills would be made next week.

The spokesman said the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) would be making the announcement.

He said: "There will be some action next week from Defra with the intention of looking at water bills.

David Cameron says he wants to see household costs cut

"The Prime Minister takes household bills across the piece seriously and wants energy prices to be rolled back and wants various things done, whether it's council tax being frozen, the flex on rail fares being brought down, MoT costs being frozen, these sorts of measures to protect household bills."

He added: "The Prime Minister wants to see household costs across the piece being reduced as low as possible. The intention is to try to reduce the burdens on hard-pressed families."

Mr Cameron "wants regulators to look at the industry they regulate and make sure that they are robust and delivering what they need to deliver for consumers", the spokesman added.

Concerns have been raised that consumers are being ripped off

The move comes after Labour leader Ed Miliband said the market needed to be scrutinised to ensure it was working for consumers.

The soaring cost of living has rocketed up the political agenda since Mr Miliband's pledge to freeze energy prices if his party wins the 2015 General Election.

Mr Cameron, seeking to win back the political initiative on energy policy from Labour, said last week he wanted to "roll back" environmental taxes that bump up energy bills, promising more details in Chancellor George Osborne's Autumn Statement on December 4.

Speaking on Friday at an event for regional newspaper journalists, Mr Miliband said: "I think we should be looking at all markets to make sure they are working properly - and that includes the water industry."

The Western Morning News quoted the Labour leader as saying: "Some people will say this is an anti-business agenda. I think it is a pro-business agenda that you have got to reform markets that are not working properly.

"I think the water industry is something that should be scrutinised to make sure it is working properly, and make sure it is working properly for the benefit of consumers, because I know concerns have been raised.

"I'm proud Labour is championing this agenda and I think it is consistent with believing what a market economy can do, and water is part of that."

Labour's environment secretary Maria Eagle said the party would look to amend existing draft legislation, review the need for tougher regulation, and push for new ways to help reduce bills for low-income households.

MPs are set to consider the reform and infrastructure of the water industry on Tuesday next week after Tory Robert Buckland secured a backbench debate.

00.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Garden Murders: Daughter, Son-In-Law In Court

The daughter and son-in-law of an elderly couple who went missing from Mansfield have appeared in court charged with their murder.

It follows the discovery of the remains of a man and woman who were found buried in the back garden of a house in Blenheim Close, Forest Town, on October 9 this year.

Police have not yet formally identified the pair, but believe they are William and Patricia Wycherley, who lived at the house in the 1990s.

The couple's daughter, Susan Patricia Edwards, 55, and her husband Christopher John Edwards, 57, appeared at Nottingham Magistrates' Court this morning.

The pair, of no fixed address, but who are believed to have been living outside the UK,  were charged with the murders of Mr and Mrs Wycherley between May 1, 1998 and May 31 of the same year.

They were remanded in custody until a hearing at Nottingham Crown Court on November 4.

Police arrested the pair at St Pancras International railway station in London on Wednesday evening.

Post-mortem examinations on the remains of Mr and Mrs Wycherley revealed that they had died as a result of being shot.

The elderly couple moved to the address in 1987 and, according to neighbours, disappeared in 1998.

Officers said Mrs Wycherley is believed to have been born in Fulham, west London, and would now have been 79. Her husband would have been 100.

Police said bone analysis had shed further light on the remains.

00.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Donald Trump Gives 'Hero Bus Driver' $10,000

A bus driver who stopped to help a woman who looked like she was about to jump off a bridge has been given a reward by billionaire Donald Trump.

Mr Trump was so impressed by the actions of Darnell Barton in New York he handed him a $10,000 (£6,280) gift.

Mr Trump said: "I thought that was so beautiful to see. I think he is a great guy with an amazing heart and I said that man should be rewarded.

"Frankly, I'm very honoured to help him out ... The way he handled it was brilliant."

Mr Barton, 37, gained worldwide fame after on-board CCTV footage showed him stopping the bus on a freeway overpass on October 18.

The footage showed Mr Barton approach a woman who was standing on the wrong side of the bridge's guardrail.

The woman, believed to be a student in her 20s, looked at Mr Barton before staring down at the road beneath the bridge.

"That's when I went and put my arms around her," father-of-two Mr Barton said after the dramatic rescue.

"I felt like if she looked down at that traffic one more time it might be it."

Quick-thinking Mr Barton placed the woman in a bear hug and helped her return to the safe side of the barrier.

The video showed the two sit down on the concrete walkway.

"Whatever was on her mind, it had her. It really, really had her," the bus driver said.

A female prison officer stopped her car behind and came to the woman's assistance while a police patrol and ambulance were sent to the scene.

Afterwards, Mr Barton returned to his bus where he got a standing ovation from the passengers.

Mr Barton then finished his usual bus route, wrote up a report on the incident and went home.

00.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Mandela Movie Star Idris Elba In Hospital

The star of the new Nelson Mandela movie is recovering in hospital after suffering an asthma attack on his way to the film's South African premiere.

Idris Elba, who plays the former president in Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom, fell ill on a plane but was taken off the aircraft before it left the UK.

The 41-year-old British actor missed a news conference in Johannesburg but producers hope he will recover in time for a planned red carpet appearance on Sunday.

Elba, who is best known for his role as a detective chief inspector in the hit TV series Luther, stars alongside Skyfall actress Naomie Harris in the forthcoming film.

She plays Mr Mandela's wife Winnie in the movie, which follows the anti-apartheid leader's journey from childhood, through to his imprisonment on Robben Island and his subsequent release and inauguration as South Africa's first democratically-elected leader.

The biopic had its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in September, at which Elba won praise for his portrayal of Mr Mandela.

Speaking at the festival, the actor said: "I moved to South Africa for about three months prior to shooting, just so that I could understand what South Africa was like ... and to understand the tribes, especially Mr Mandela's.

"The challenges were massive but we embraced them. He had a very difficult life, so we weren't expecting to make an easy film."

Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom is released in the UK on January 3, 2014.

00.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

New Pakistan Taliban Leader After Drone Strike

The Pakistani Taliban's number two commander has been promoted to leader after its previous chief Hakimullah Mehsud was killed in a US drone strike.

Khan Said, also known as Sajna, now heads the militant group following a meeting of the supreme ruling council, according to security officials.

However, some commanders were reportedly unhappy with the choice and wanted more talks.

The move comes as the fallout from the strike continues to grow, with Pakistan summoning the American ambassador to register a protest.

Pakistan's interior minister Chaudhry Nisar accused the US of "scuttling" attempts to get the Taliban to take part in peace talks.

He said "every aspect" of co-operation with Washington would be reviewed in the wake of the attack.

"The murder of Hakimullah is the murder of all efforts at peace," said interior minister Chaudhry Nisar. "Americans said they support our efforts at peace. Is this support?"

Hakimullah Mehsud (c) seen with other Taliban militants in a video in 2009

Khan Said is believed to have masterminded an attack on a jail in northwest Pakistan in 2012 that freed nearly 400 prisoners, as well as an assault on a Pakistani air force base in the same year.

Previous leader Mehsud had a $5m (£3.1m) US government bounty on his head and was one of Pakistan's most wanted men.

He has been buried after being killed on Friday along with four associates when a drone targeted his car in a compound in the country's North Waziristan tribal district.

The Pakistani Taliban has vowed revenge for the killing, with spokesman Azam Tariq saying: "Every drop of Hakimullah's blood will turn into a suicide bomber.

"America and their friends shouldn't be happy because we will take revenge for our martyr's blood."

The death comes at a politically sensitive time and follows months of debate over potential peace talks between the Taliban and the new government of Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who swept to a landslide victory in May elections.

Pakistan's government has been trying to cut a peace deal with the militants to end years of fighting that has killed thousands of Pakistani civilians and security forces.

The government reacted angrily to Mehsud's killing, with information minister Pervez Rashid saying: "The US has tried to attack the peace talks with this drone but we will not let them fail."

A Pakistani Taliban fighter said Mehsud's body was "damaged but recognisable". His bodyguard and driver were also killed.

The US offered the $5m bounty after he appeared in a video with a Jordanian suicide bomber who killed seven CIA employees at a base in Afghanistan in 2009.

Mehsud, said to be aged in his mid-30s, was also believed to be behind a failed car bombing in New York's Times Square in 2010, as well as brazen attacks inside Pakistan.

His killing is the latest in a series of setbacks for the militant group.

A drone strike in May killed Mehsud's number two, Waliur Rehman, and one of his most trusted lieutenants was captured in Afghanistan last month.

The group, known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), is an umbrella organisation founded in December 2007 following a deadly military raid on the radical Red Mosque in Islamabad.

The TTP officially swears allegiance to Mullah Omar, the leader of the Afghan Taliban, who ruled Kabul from 1996-2001, but the two groups are separate, with independent command structures.

00.57 | 0 komentar | Read More