Developers of farms in Cornwall and Lincolnshire have rushed to beat the cut in government subsidies for large-scale solar installations A huge solar farm in Lincolnshire and another in Cornwall started generating green electricity on Thursday to become the UK’s two biggest solar installations, as developers rushed to beat an imminent cut in government subsidies. The 1MW Fen Farm solar park and the 1.4MW Wheal Jane park in Truro are two of several such large-scale projects rushing to connect to the grid. They are trying to benefit from a higher level of feed-in tariff payments before the government cuts the rates by up to 75% on 1 August. When the cuts were confirmed last month , ministers defended them on the grounds that the funding for payments needed to be protected for householders. But energy industry figures and campaigners warned that making such large projects financially unviable would “crush” the solar industry and cost the UK “major manufacturing opportunities, jobs and global competitiveness”. The developers of the Truro park on the site of a disused tin mine worked around the clock to finish the project in time to beat the tariff cuts. Solarcentury and Lightsource Renewables originally planned to finish the park by the end of August. They were forced to bring both projects forward, at significant extra cost. Although the solar park in Lincolnshire was always planned for completion before August, its developers, Ecotricity, experienced similar concerns about not completing the project in time. Founder Dale Vince, said that connecting to the grid by 1 August is an insecure business. “When you think that we’re finishing three weeks ahead of the deadline, we’re cutting it fine enough for my liking,” he said. “You’ve got a situation where the grid companies aren’t that amenable. They don’t get anything out of accommodating renewable energy on the grids so it’s never an easy thing. It’s a bureaucratic process and more often than not there will be a delay.” Not all the projects are fortunate enough to have even three weeks’ leeway. Silicon Vineyards, the developer of a solar park at Benbole Farm in Cornwall, is working right up to the deadline. Despite the cut in payments – from 30.7p per Kwh currently to 8.5p from August for field-size installations over 250Kw – some companies are pushing ahead with large-scale projects that will miss the deadline. They are hoping that the government will announce in mid-July that renewable sources of energy including solar are now eligible for a higher level of a separate subsidy scheme, Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROC). Hopes in the industry are also being pinned on the exploitation of a legal loophole in the feed-in tariff system. Ray Noble, solar specialist at the Renewable Energy Association , said companies are putting plans on hold while they seek legal advice and wait for Ofgem to indicate whether smaller solar power projects could later be increased in size and still retain the higher rates. “There’ll be some innovative ways of trying to make it work,” Noble said. “Most of the developers have kept very quiet while they lobby government to say they’re losing lots of money and that the system needs to be changed for them to make any plans.” Ecotricity’s Vince was critical of the government’s support for solar power. “Our government has got its eyes focused on big nuclear and clean coal, and solar has become an inconvenient success story. But it seems crazy to me to have a cap. We need large scale solar to make the UK more energy independent and reduce our carbon. Large-scale solar is critical if this government is serious about being the greenest ever.” Solar power Energy Renewable energy Feed-in tariffs Energy industry guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Man mauled to death after he and his wife apparently surprise female bear and its cubs A grizzly bear has killed a man who was hiking with his wife in Yellowstone national park after the couple apparently surprised the female bear and its cubs. It was the park’s first fatal grizzly mauling since 1986, but the third in the Yellowstone region in just over a year. The attack happened on Wednesday morning, two days after a peak weekend for tourism in the park, on a trail close to Canyon Village near the middle of Yellowstone. Park officials said the bear attacked to defend against a perceived threat. The wife of the 57-year-old victim called for help on her cell phone and other hikers in the area responded. A Yellowstone spokesman, Al Nash, said the couple saw the bear twice on their hike. The second time, the grizzly ran at them and the man told his wife to run. The woman told park officials she didn’t see the bear attack her husband. When it went for her she dropped to the ground, Nash said. The grizzly lifted her off the ground by the day pack she was wearing, then dropped her. The woman did not seek medical attention, Nash said. Authorities would not identify the couple until the man’s family could be notified. Park officials cleared the area of people after the attack. All trails and backcountry campsites in the area were closed and a warning sign was posted on the trailhead. “It is in the backcountry of the park, and we have access challenges and limited communication,” Nash said. Grizzlies in the Yellowstone region have caused growing problems as the number of tourists grows in an area of geysers and sweeping mountain vistas. A grizzly, which had just been released after being trapped and tranquillised for a study, killed an Illinois man hiking outside Yellowstone’s east gate in June 2010. Last July, a grizzly killed a Michigan man and injured two others in a camp ground near Cooke City, north-east of the park. Yellowstone and nearby surrounding areas are home at least 600 grizzlies. Once rarely seen, grizzlies have become an almost routine cause of curious tourists lining up at Yellowstone’s roadsides in the summer season. Tourists have been visiting Yellowstone in record numbers: 3.6 million came last year, up 10% from the record set in 2009. A spokesman for the Wyoming Travel and Tourism state agency doubted the attack would deter people from visiting Yellowstone. “What has happened here hasn’t happened for a quarter century,” Chuck Coon said. “It is very sad, though, and I’m very sorry to hear of it.” Caleb Platt, a service station manager at Canyon Village, said he had had a handful of encounters with grizzlies while hiking in the park and tourists should be vigilant. “When it’s close and you realise it does see you, it gets the heart racing,” he said. Park officials have warned park visitors to stay on designated trails, hike in groups of three or more, keep alert for bears and make a noise in places where a grizzly could be lurking out of sight. Wyoming Animals United States guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Man mauled to death after he and his wife apparently surprise female bear and its cubs A grizzly bear has killed a man who was hiking with his wife in Yellowstone national park after the couple apparently surprised the female bear and its cubs. It was the park’s first fatal grizzly mauling since 1986, but the third in the Yellowstone region in just over a year. The attack happened on Wednesday morning, two days after a peak weekend for tourism in the park, on a trail close to Canyon Village near the middle of Yellowstone. Park officials said the bear attacked to defend against a perceived threat. The wife of the 57-year-old victim called for help on her cell phone and other hikers in the area responded. A Yellowstone spokesman, Al Nash, said the couple saw the bear twice on their hike. The second time, the grizzly ran at them and the man told his wife to run. The woman told park officials she didn’t see the bear attack her husband. When it went for her she dropped to the ground, Nash said. The grizzly lifted her off the ground by the day pack she was wearing, then dropped her. The woman did not seek medical attention, Nash said. Authorities would not identify the couple until the man’s family could be notified. Park officials cleared the area of people after the attack. All trails and backcountry campsites in the area were closed and a warning sign was posted on the trailhead. “It is in the backcountry of the park, and we have access challenges and limited communication,” Nash said. Grizzlies in the Yellowstone region have caused growing problems as the number of tourists grows in an area of geysers and sweeping mountain vistas. A grizzly, which had just been released after being trapped and tranquillised for a study, killed an Illinois man hiking outside Yellowstone’s east gate in June 2010. Last July, a grizzly killed a Michigan man and injured two others in a camp ground near Cooke City, north-east of the park. Yellowstone and nearby surrounding areas are home at least 600 grizzlies. Once rarely seen, grizzlies have become an almost routine cause of curious tourists lining up at Yellowstone’s roadsides in the summer season. Tourists have been visiting Yellowstone in record numbers: 3.6 million came last year, up 10% from the record set in 2009. A spokesman for the Wyoming Travel and Tourism state agency doubted the attack would deter people from visiting Yellowstone. “What has happened here hasn’t happened for a quarter century,” Chuck Coon said. “It is very sad, though, and I’m very sorry to hear of it.” Caleb Platt, a service station manager at Canyon Village, said he had had a handful of encounters with grizzlies while hiking in the park and tourists should be vigilant. “When it’s close and you realise it does see you, it gets the heart racing,” he said. Park officials have warned park visitors to stay on designated trails, hike in groups of three or more, keep alert for bears and make a noise in places where a grizzly could be lurking out of sight. Wyoming Animals United States guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
New figures show that 15,667 patients waited more than six weeks in May, compared with 3,378 in May last year Patients’ health and treatment could suffer because NHS waiting-times for x-rays, cardiology tests and ultrasound scans are increasing sharply, doctors are warning. Longer waits to access diagnostic tests could cause anxiety for patients and mean that identification of serious illnesses such as cancer is delayed, they say. Their warning comes as new NHS figures show that 15,667 patients waited more than six weeks to undergo a diagnostic procedure in May alone – a more than fourfold increase on the same month in 2010, when 3,378 did so. The figures again call into question David Cameron’s promise to ensure that waiting times do not rise, despite the growing demand for healthcare and tough financial climate in the NHS. He made that one of his “five personal pledges” to voters on the NHS last month. The flagship 18-week target for patients to be treated after first consulting a GP is also under pressure. Quarterly data in that area, due next week, is expected to show another fall. Performance on other waiting-time markers is also slipping, such as the four-hour wait to be seen in A&E. The latest statistics covering access to diagnostic procedures, covering May 2011, showed that 2.7% of patients were left waiting for six weeks or longer for diagnosis results. A further 1,800 patients waited more than three months – an almost tenfold increase on last year’s figure of 217. Average waiting times also increased year-on-year, but to a lesser degree. The typical wait for diagnosis increased to 1.9 weeks in May 2011 versus 1.8 weeks a year before. “It is worrying that patients are having to wait longer for tests, as this could delay diagnosis and have a detrimental effect on patient care,” said a spokeswoman for the Royal College of Physicians, which represents hospital doctors. “We must not return to the days when it took three months to get an MRI or ultrasound scan done, but that is a risk,” said Dr Clare Gerada, chairman of the Royal College of GPs. “Delays in access to diagnostics can cause anxiety and uncertainty and can, in the worst case, result in failure to diagnose serious pathology early enough, such as cancer.” The British Medical Association warned that longer diagnostic waits could adversely affect treatment. “Longer waits for tests has a knock-on effect on the time taken to diagnose and treat patients,” said a spokesman. “Delivering a more efficient NHS should not come at the cost of poorer frontline patient care.” The NHS monthly diagnostic figures exclude emergency tests on hospital inpatients, and also do not cover routine screening procedures (such as smear tests), or routine check-up and follow-up scans. “These figures show that long waiting times for tests are up more than fourfold since David Cameron became prime minister,” said John Healey, Labour’s shadow health secretary. “It is clear that the government’s reckless reorganisation is beginning to impact on patient care, and that we are starting to see the NHS go backwards under the Tories.” The Department of Health acknowledged that six-week waits had increased, but stressed these represented a minority of cases. “This increase needs to be seen in context. Of the patients waiting at the end of May 2011, 97.3% had been waiting under six weeks, and the average waiting time was just 1.9 weeks,” said a spokeswoman. “Pressures on the NHS are rising all the time. Diagnostic activity in the three months to May 2011 was 3% higher than in the three months to May 2010. This increase in activity is contributing to improving quality of care but is adding to pressures. This shows why we need to modernise the NHS to protect it for future generations.” NHS Health David Cameron James Ball Denis Campbell guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Denial that former president has died unlikely to quell online and overseas speculation Reports of the death of the former president Jiang Zemin have been greatly exaggerated, the Chinese state media has insisted, amid a frenzy of online and overseas speculation. Xinhua issued a short and unusual denial that the 84-year-old statesman had passed away to quell rumours that began on Friday when Jiang failed to attend the biggest political event of the year – a 90th anniversary celebration to mark the founding of the Chinese Communist party. Asia Television of Hong Kong broadcast a report on Wednesday claiming Jiang had died of an unnamed illness. Japanese and South Korean media issued similar bulletins. Chinese journalists said they had been told to expect news on Thursday, but the only comment was a single line from Xinhua. “Recent reports of some overseas media organisations about Jiang Zemin’s death from illness are “pure rumour,” the newswire said , quoting unnamed “authoritative sources”. Despite the denial, speculation is unlikely to fully die down until Jiang is seen again in public. The last such big occasion was in October 2009 for the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic . He was also present at an event in Sichuan last year, where his car was reportedly followed by an ambulance. Jiang is said to be suffering from an illness and possibly hospitalised, though it is hard to confirm because China treats the health of its leaders as a state secret. Until today, censors have tried to quell speculation by blocking references to related words on blogs and search engines : “Jiang”, “myocardial infarction”, “hung” – a euphemism for death – and “301 Hospital” – a reference to the medical facility where he was said to be treated. Searches for “jiang”, which means river, resulted in the warning: “Search results are not shown due to relevant laws and policies.” Netizens sidestepped the prohibition by using English words and allusions. The US-based dissident news site Boxun.com said Shandong News in eastern China had its website disabled by authorities for reporting Jiang’s death, though the newspaper dismissed Boxun’s report. Boxun showed what it said was a screenshot of Shandong News with a banner headline reading “Venerable Comrade Jiang Zemin Will Never Be Forgotten” next to a photo of the former leader. A woman in the news department at Shandong News said the newspaper’s site went offline on Wednesday because their servers crashed and they were still trying to fix the problem. The woman, who would only give her surname, Wang, said the website never posted news saying Jiang had died. “That’s a rumour,” she said. “Maybe someone with ulterior motives made that screenshot.” The internet cat-and-mouse game over the possible death of a former leader underscores how secretive China’s Communist party leadership remains – and the difficulties of maintaining that secrecy in a well-wired society. Jiang Zemin rose to power in the wake of the 1989 Tiananmen Square killings, oversaw the handover of Hong Kong in 1997 and led his country until 2002, by which time it was one of the world’s most powerful economies. He was replaced by the current president Hu Jintao. China Internet Censorship Jonathan Watts guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
enlarge Phone Hacking Scandal – Bearing a strong resemblance to a Ouija Board. Click here to view this media With almost daily revelations surfacing on the News Of The World/News International/Newscorp/Rupert Murdoch scandal , there is still very little being said in our own mainstream media regarding what could very well become the potential takedown of a government. No big surprise there. As these revelations now involve the former Communications Director for Prime Minister David Cameron, Andy Coulson who was, prior to his appointment, editor of News Of The World and who has subsequently resigned his post with Cameron in January, questions continue to rise over how much Coulson knew and how far reaching actually is this scandal. It’s been said to have taken on Nixonian proportions, and that may well be true. That now it is revealed Police bribes and sand bagging have been ongoing since 2009 and earlier suggest the scandal is far more prevalent than previously thought. That this scandal is being paid scant attention here in the U.S. begs to entertain a more sinister atmosphere (not merely the breezy smokescreen that it’s the code of ethics among members of the Fourth Estate not to discuss such matters) and that this is a scandal very much about to break on our own shores involving people who have taken the lead of fact-free and loosely procured sources in the name of journalistic integrity, fairly expose the root of what has been a problem ever since our introduction to the ways of The News Of The World and the tabloid atmosphere so much a part of the Murdoch empire. So as a manner of getting you up to speed and keeping this story from being buried, I am posting three clips that have come out as of today (July 6th). First up is a piece first broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 Today program featuring interviews with Director of Corporate Affairs for News International, Simon Greenberg, Former Managing Editor of The Times Professor George Brock and BBC Business Editor Robert Preston who offers this assessment: Robert Preston (BBC Business Editor): “George Brock has said that this a hugely damaging set of revelations about a very important bit of Rupert Murdoch’s empire. What is quite striking is that the initial disclosures about the hacking into celebrity’s voice mails didn’t appear to do much damage to the News Of The World circulation or indeed its advertising. But, we’re seeing advertisers saying they’re questioning whether or not to continue advertising and it will be very interesting to see whether or not the News Of The World’s circulation starts to suffer. News Of The World are a hugely important part of this empire because of the series of disclosures that there, to quote a number of commentators, there were no depths to which some journalists would stoop in terms of invading the privacy of vulnerable people.” enlarge Credit: Associated Press Andy Coulson – new revelations. Click here to view this media Next up is a BBC Radio 4 Profile on former Communications Director Andy Coulson whose resignation from the Cameron government in January sparked further revelations over the extent of Phone Hacking at News Of The World and this reaction from David Cameron: David Cameron: “He did a very good job as Director of Communications both for the government and for the country. He ran the Downing Street Press Office in a very professional and straight forward and correct way, and I think has done some very good work. But I understand why he wants to go with the things that happened at The News Of The World, the stories about that. Obviously he resigned at the time and I’ve always felt he’s been punished for the same offense twice, but I quite understand his position and I wish him well for the future.” Suspicions are now raised, since the revelations of Police bribes, triggering a Scotland Yard investigation that perhaps David Cameron may have known more than he let on and that this new call for further investigations could be a deflection of sorts of many potential key players, not the least being Rupert Murdoch whose attempt at trying to buy a 100% stake in the Sky Channel may well be the tipping point. At the moment it would seem the attempted lid placed on the scandal has done nothing but fly off at least once a day. How far it will go would be mere speculation at this point. The last clip is an interview done earlier today with Graham Foulkes whose son David was one of the victims of the bombings in London on July 7th 2005 and whose phone was one of those hacked by News Of The World reporters. Click here to view this media The revelations don’t appear to be over by any stretch. My suspicion is it’s only a matter of time before revelations about Newscorps activities in the U.S. are discovered. My hunch, and only a hunch not based on anything other than speculation based on reports I’m hearing today, is that this may very well have the potential to bring down the Cameron Government – or at least do serious damage to credibility some weeks or months down the road. Asked if this is causing cracks in Rupert Murdoch’s empire the answer at the moment is no. But strains are appearing. It’s interesting the New York Times are being assailed as whistle blowers in all this, blaming a feud with The Wall Street Journal (another Murdoch paper) for setting off the firestorm. I guess it doesn’t occur to anyone that, when you have achieved a certain level of perceived impunity it sets up the misconception you have become bullet proof. Scandals are almost always the product of the assumption you’re above everything. Sound familiar? Stay tuned.
Continue reading …
enlarge Phone Hacking Scandal – Bearing a strong resemblance to a Ouija Board. Click here to view this media With almost daily revelations surfacing on the News Of The World/News International/Newscorp/Rupert Murdoch scandal , there is still very little being said in our own mainstream media regarding what could very well become the potential takedown of a government. No big surprise there. As these revelations now involve the former Communications Director for Prime Minister David Cameron, Andy Coulson who was, prior to his appointment, editor of News Of The World and who has subsequently resigned his post with Cameron in January, questions continue to rise over how much Coulson knew and how far reaching actually is this scandal. It’s been said to have taken on Nixonian proportions, and that may well be true. That now it is revealed Police bribes and sand bagging have been ongoing since 2009 and earlier suggest the scandal is far more prevalent than previously thought. That this scandal is being paid scant attention here in the U.S. begs to entertain a more sinister atmosphere (not merely the breezy smokescreen that it’s the code of ethics among members of the Fourth Estate not to discuss such matters) and that this is a scandal very much about to break on our own shores involving people who have taken the lead of fact-free and loosely procured sources in the name of journalistic integrity, fairly expose the root of what has been a problem ever since our introduction to the ways of The News Of The World and the tabloid atmosphere so much a part of the Murdoch empire. So as a manner of getting you up to speed and keeping this story from being buried, I am posting three clips that have come out as of today (July 6th). First up is a piece first broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 Today program featuring interviews with Director of Corporate Affairs for News International, Simon Greenberg, Former Managing Editor of The Times Professor George Brock and BBC Business Editor Robert Preston who offers this assessment: Robert Preston (BBC Business Editor): “George Brock has said that this a hugely damaging set of revelations about a very important bit of Rupert Murdoch’s empire. What is quite striking is that the initial disclosures about the hacking into celebrity’s voice mails didn’t appear to do much damage to the News Of The World circulation or indeed its advertising. But, we’re seeing advertisers saying they’re questioning whether or not to continue advertising and it will be very interesting to see whether or not the News Of The World’s circulation starts to suffer. News Of The World are a hugely important part of this empire because of the series of disclosures that there, to quote a number of commentators, there were no depths to which some journalists would stoop in terms of invading the privacy of vulnerable people.” enlarge Credit: Associated Press Andy Coulson – new revelations. Click here to view this media Next up is a BBC Radio 4 Profile on former Communications Director Andy Coulson whose resignation from the Cameron government in January sparked further revelations over the extent of Phone Hacking at News Of The World and this reaction from David Cameron: David Cameron: “He did a very good job as Director of Communications both for the government and for the country. He ran the Downing Street Press Office in a very professional and straight forward and correct way, and I think has done some very good work. But I understand why he wants to go with the things that happened at The News Of The World, the stories about that. Obviously he resigned at the time and I’ve always felt he’s been punished for the same offense twice, but I quite understand his position and I wish him well for the future.” Suspicions are now raised, since the revelations of Police bribes, triggering a Scotland Yard investigation that perhaps David Cameron may have known more than he let on and that this new call for further investigations could be a deflection of sorts of many potential key players, not the least being Rupert Murdoch whose attempt at trying to buy a 100% stake in the Sky Channel may well be the tipping point. At the moment it would seem the attempted lid placed on the scandal has done nothing but fly off at least once a day. How far it will go would be mere speculation at this point. The last clip is an interview done earlier today with Graham Foulkes whose son David was one of the victims of the bombings in London on July 7th 2005 and whose phone was one of those hacked by News Of The World reporters. Click here to view this media The revelations don’t appear to be over by any stretch. My suspicion is it’s only a matter of time before revelations about Newscorps activities in the U.S. are discovered. My hunch, and only a hunch not based on anything other than speculation based on reports I’m hearing today, is that this may very well have the potential to bring down the Cameron Government – or at least do serious damage to credibility some weeks or months down the road. Asked if this is causing cracks in Rupert Murdoch’s empire the answer at the moment is no. But strains are appearing. It’s interesting the New York Times are being assailed as whistle blowers in all this, blaming a feud with The Wall Street Journal (another Murdoch paper) for setting off the firestorm. I guess it doesn’t occur to anyone that, when you have achieved a certain level of perceived impunity it sets up the misconception you have become bullet proof. Scandals are almost always the product of the assumption you’re above everything. Sound familiar? Stay tuned.
Continue reading …
Court could sentence Major Nidal Malik Hasan – charged over the killing of 13 people in military base rampage – to death A US army psychiatrist charged over a 2009 killing rampage at a Texas military base will face a court martial where he could be sentenced to death, a military commander has ruled. Major Nidal Malik Hasan, 40, who US officials have linked to a radical Muslim cleric in Yemen, has been charged over the Fort Hood shootings in which 13 people were killed and 32 wounded. Lieutenant General Donald Campbell, Fort Hood’s commander, referred Hasan’s case to a general court martial which “is authorised to consider death as an authorised punishment”, according to a statement issued by Fort Hood. A date had not been set for the court martial, the statement said. The first likely step would be for a military judge to inform Hasan of his rights at an arraignment. According to witnesses who testified at evidentiary hearings at Fort Hood in 2010, Hasan shouted “Allahu Akbar” – Arabic for “God is Greatest” – just before opening fire on a group of soldiers undergoing health checks before being deployed to war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan. Hasan is confined to a wheelchair after he was paralysed from the chest down by bullet wounds inflicted by civilian police officers during the incident on 5 November 2009. The attack raised concerns over the threat of “homegrown” militant attacks. US officials said Hasan had exchanged emails with Anwar al-Awlaki, an anti-American al Qaida figure based in Yemen. Fort Hood is a major deployment point for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Fort Hood shootings United States US military guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Relatives of members of armed forces killed in combat told their details appear in Glenn Mulcaire’s notebooks The families of members of the armed forces killed in Afghanistan and Iraq have been told they were targeted by a private investigator who worked for the News of the World. Officers at Scotland Yard have contacted relatives to tell them their names and contact details appear in notebooks belonging to Glenn Mulcaire, who this week apologised for hacking into a huge number of mobile phones on behalf of the paper. The revelation is likely to further shock the public, who have already reacted with horror to news that the paper intercepted voicemails left on a phone belonging to murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler and targeted the phones of families of victims of the 7/7 attacks . MHP Solicitors, whose clients include Samantha Roberts, the widow of Sergeant Steven Roberts of the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment, said they had been contacted on Wednesday and told Roberts’s phone may have been hacked, along with a mobile belonging to Geraldine McCool, her lawyer. “We have been contacted this morning in connection with a possible phone-hacking on our clients, and Geraldine McCool, arising out of high profile military inquests in 2006/2007,” a statement from MPH said. “We are making efforts to verify this information.” Sergeant Roberts was one of the first Britons killed in Iraq in 2003, in a friendly fire incident. McCool said there was no evidence confidential information had been obtained, saying: “Solicitors are cautious when leaving messages due to client confidentiality and my military clients and their families come from a background that works on a ‘need to know’ basis.” However, McCool added: “I sincerely hope that any future revelations do not involve our clients and that full disclosure of the extent of this diabolical practice is now made”. The latest development in the ongoing scandal surrounding the Sunday tabloid sparked anger among relatives of dead servicemen. Graham Knight, whose son Ben was killed in the Nimrod explosion in Afghanistan in 2006, said: “It’s disgusting but it doesn’t surprise me.” The paper’s owner News International said it was contacting the Ministry of Defence to verify the claims. It said in a statement it would be “absolutely appalled and horrified” if they were true. An MoD spokesman said: “This is a matter for the Metropolitan police who are investigating these allegations. “It would be inappropriate for us to comment whilst this investigation is ongoing.” Phone hacking Military News of the World Glenn Mulcaire Newspapers & magazines National newspapers Newspapers James Robinson guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Relatives of members of armed forces killed in combat told their details appear in Glenn Mulcaire’s notebooks The families of members of the armed forces killed in Afghanistan and Iraq have been told they were targeted by a private investigator who worked for the News of the World. Officers at Scotland Yard have contacted relatives to tell them their names and contact details appear in notebooks belonging to Glenn Mulcaire, who this week apologised for hacking into a huge number of mobile phones on behalf of the paper. The revelation is likely to further shock the public, who have already reacted with horror to news that the paper intercepted voicemails left on a phone belonging to murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler and targeted the phones of families of victims of the 7/7 attacks . MHP Solicitors, whose clients include Samantha Roberts, the widow of Sergeant Steven Roberts of the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment, said they had been contacted on Wednesday and told Roberts’s phone may have been hacked, along with a mobile belonging to Geraldine McCool, her lawyer. “We have been contacted this morning in connection with a possible phone-hacking on our clients, and Geraldine McCool, arising out of high profile military inquests in 2006/2007,” a statement from MPH said. “We are making efforts to verify this information.” Sergeant Roberts was one of the first Britons killed in Iraq in 2003, in a friendly fire incident. McCool said there was no evidence confidential information had been obtained, saying: “Solicitors are cautious when leaving messages due to client confidentiality and my military clients and their families come from a background that works on a ‘need to know’ basis.” However, McCool added: “I sincerely hope that any future revelations do not involve our clients and that full disclosure of the extent of this diabolical practice is now made”. The latest development in the ongoing scandal surrounding the Sunday tabloid sparked anger among relatives of dead servicemen. Graham Knight, whose son Ben was killed in the Nimrod explosion in Afghanistan in 2006, said: “It’s disgusting but it doesn’t surprise me.” The paper’s owner News International said it was contacting the Ministry of Defence to verify the claims. It said in a statement it would be “absolutely appalled and horrified” if they were true. An MoD spokesman said: “This is a matter for the Metropolitan police who are investigating these allegations. “It would be inappropriate for us to comment whilst this investigation is ongoing.” Phone hacking Military News of the World Glenn Mulcaire Newspapers & magazines National newspapers Newspapers James Robinson guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …