Dozens injured at Beijing zoo station after escalator suddenly changes direction, throwing passengers down stairway A teenage boy has been killed and dozens of people were injured when they were thrown off an escalator that suddenly changed direction in a busy Beijing subway station. The accident happened on Tuesday on one of the capital’s newest lines, prompting concerns that China’s recent rush to build public transport networks may have led to declining safety standards. The 13-year-old boy who died was on his way to Beijing zoo when the up escalator suddenly went into reverse, according to domestic media reports. Witnesses described a strange grinding noise from the shifting gears and then a tumult in which riders at the top of the escalator fell to the bottom in less than two seconds. The boy and the other riders were thrown down the metal stairs and into a heap at the bottom. Twenty-eight people were taken to hospital, including the dead boy’s father and sister. Two were described as being in a serious condition. Station staff declined to comment, but the railway operator put out a brief online statement: “Beijing MTR Corporation expresses our deep mourning to the dead passenger in this accident and relatives, as well as apology and sympathy to injured passengers and relatives.” It said an investigation was under way into the cause of the breakdown at Beijing zoo station. The government has ordered checks on elevators at other stations. The capital’s subway system opened in 1969 and has expanded rapidly in the past few years to become one of the five longest networks in the world with more than 170 stations and 250 miles of track. Line 4 is one of the most modern. Completed in 2009, it connects the university district to the south of the city. Commuters were horrified at the safety failure. “This is unbelievable. This is the most basic thing and they can’t even do it well. I am very disappointed by Beijing’s public transportation system,” said Olivia Li, a student at Renmin University who often takes Line 4. Additional reporting by Cheng Han China Rail transport Jonathan Watts guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Dozens injured at Beijing zoo station after escalator suddenly changes direction, throwing passengers down stairway A teenage boy has been killed and dozens of people were injured when they were thrown off an escalator that suddenly changed direction in a busy Beijing subway station. The accident happened on Tuesday on one of the capital’s newest lines, prompting concerns that China’s recent rush to build public transport networks may have led to declining safety standards. The 13-year-old boy who died was on his way to Beijing zoo when the up escalator suddenly went into reverse, according to domestic media reports. Witnesses described a strange grinding noise from the shifting gears and then a tumult in which riders at the top of the escalator fell to the bottom in less than two seconds. The boy and the other riders were thrown down the metal stairs and into a heap at the bottom. Twenty-eight people were taken to hospital, including the dead boy’s father and sister. Two were described as being in a serious condition. Station staff declined to comment, but the railway operator put out a brief online statement: “Beijing MTR Corporation expresses our deep mourning to the dead passenger in this accident and relatives, as well as apology and sympathy to injured passengers and relatives.” It said an investigation was under way into the cause of the breakdown at Beijing zoo station. The government has ordered checks on elevators at other stations. The capital’s subway system opened in 1969 and has expanded rapidly in the past few years to become one of the five longest networks in the world with more than 170 stations and 250 miles of track. Line 4 is one of the most modern. Completed in 2009, it connects the university district to the south of the city. Commuters were horrified at the safety failure. “This is unbelievable. This is the most basic thing and they can’t even do it well. I am very disappointed by Beijing’s public transportation system,” said Olivia Li, a student at Renmin University who often takes Line 4. Additional reporting by Cheng Han China Rail transport Jonathan Watts guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Prison guards in Mexico stopped a nervous-looking woman leaving a conjugal visit wheeling a bulky suitcase, and found her boyfriend inside. Inmate Juan Ramirez Tijerina, who is serving a 20-year sentence for illegal weapons possession, was curled up in a fetal position inside, AP reports. The girlfriend was arrested and…
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European Green MEPs’ carbon emissions ambitions downgraded as Conservatives dilute proposals The European parliament on Tuesday rejected a key report that would have toughened the EU stance on greenhouse gas emissions, after political wrangling that wrecked hopes of a compromise. A rebellion by the UK’s Tory MEPs helped to swing the vote against a tougher target on how much carbon emissions should be cut by 2020, but was not decisive, according to insiders. The vote does not put an end to green campaigners’ hopes of a more ambitious emissions reduction target – a higher cut of 30% by 2020 on 1990 levels rather than 20% – as the issue will continue to be debated, but is a setback. The political wrangling involved a series of amendments, proposed by Conservative groupings of MEPs, that would have weakened the resulting resolution to an extent that was not acceptable to the Green MEP grouping. Greens in the parliament will now try to push for the tougher target in future votes, and through the involvement of member states and the European commission. Nick Stern, the former Treasury economist and now chair of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, said of the vote result: “It’s a missed opportunity and the EU risks falling behind in the economic growth story of the future.” When the vote was originally scheduled to take place, on 23 June, a survey of Tory MEPs by the Guardian found that the leader of the Conservative party in the European parliament, Martin Callanan, was advising his colleagues to vote against the higher target, and several were planning to comply. Only one of those contacted in advance of the vote said she would definitely vote for the higher target. The revelation prompted a parliamentary question to the prime minister, who vowed that he would persuade the MEPs. But a follow-up survey by the Guardian and Friends of the Earth has found that the prime minister has failed to convince them to vote for lower carbon emissions. At least eight MEPs out of the grouping of 23 said they would vote against the measure, while most of the remainder did not respond to emails and calls. Only two MEPs said they would definitely vote in favour, and a handful were undecided. Several MEPs echoed Martin Callanan, who told the Guardian: “Conservative MEPs have always been sceptical of the EU unilaterally increasing its target to 30% without a worldwide agreement. I am in favour of increasing the EU target to 30%, or even higher, in the context of a global agreement where our competitor countries take similar action. Increasing our own targets while the rest of the world does nothing will have virtually no measurable effect on global emissions, because it will force large EU emitters to relocate to other countries outside the EU where they will continue to emit at a much lower cost.” “We are also concerned that the higher carbon emission costs resulting from an increased target will feed through into energy price increases for domestic consumers,” he said. Their decision was attacked by the party’s Liberal Democrat coalition partners, and by green campaigners. Andy Atkins, executive director of Friends of the Earth, said: “As well as snubbing David Cameron, Tory MEPs are defying the latest scientific advice and playing fast and loose with our future. Preventing the necessary action on climate change also goes against EU economic interests – scores of Europe’s leading companies back a 30% cut in emissions because it will create new jobs and business opportunities. “David Cameron came to power with an intelligent approach to tackling climate change, but he must act fast to prevent his promise to lead the greenest government ever from unravelling. The prime minister must redouble his efforts to show his entire party the enormous benefits of building a cleaner, safer future,” he added. Carbon emissions Climate change Conservatives Conservative and Liberal Democrat cabinet Liberal Democrats Liberal-Conservative coalition Green politics David Cameron European Union Europe Fiona Harvey guardian.co.uk
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Eurosceptics argue bailouts are contrary to German constitution’s protection of property Germany’s constitutional court has begun hearing a case that will decide whether Angela Merkel’s government was right to agree to last year’s multimillion-euro bailout of Greece and the accompanying rescue package for other faltering EU countries. In the unlikely event that the complainants win, the payments will be blocked, an outcome experts say would shake the foundations of the European Union. “If the court were to restrict the government’s leeway to act, the consequences for the EU and the financial markets could be extremely serious,” said Commerzbank analyst Eckart Tuchtfeld. Plaintiffs include MP Peter Gauweiler, a renegade member of Chancellor Merkel’s conservative bloc. He has a history of challenging European Union initiatives and in 2009 he brought a complaint against the integration measures dictated by the Treaty of Lisbon, with limited success. Gauweiler, along with a group of professors, argues the measures violate EU no-bailout provisions and German constitutional clauses protecting property and democracy. They have the support of the majority of ordinary Germans, who were fiercely opposed to “their money” being used to bail out less prudent countries. The case is so crucial that Merkel dispatched her finance minister, Wolfgang Schäuble, to give evidence at Tuesday’s hearing in Karlsruhe. Inside the court, he defended the rescue packages for Greece and other eurozone countries, arguing that “the stability of the euro is of paramount significance”. He pointed to the risk of financial instability across Europe and beyond at the time when the government signed on to the initial Greek rescue of May 2010 and also the wider eurozone fund created shortly afterward. Those plans foresee Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, guaranteeing loans up to €22.4bn for Greece and €147.6bn (£20.1bn) for other countries. The constitutional court’s president Andreas Vosskuhle said the court did not want to hear a debate on the measures’ economic merits, and that the right economic strategy was a matter for politicians and not judges. But, he said, his court “has to consider the limits that the constitution sets for politicians.” Eurosceptic law professor Karl Albrecht Schachtschneider insisted that “what is economically wrong can’t be legally right”. He argued that the rescue measures violated a no-bailout provision in the European Union’s Lisbon treaty without sufficient justification. He also contended that they violated German constitutional clauses protecting property and democracy, the latter by restricting the German parliament’s control over its own budget. “A union of liability and debt favouring other states has been created,” he said. Gauweiler’s representative, Prof Dietrich Murswiek, pointed to current efforts to set up a second Greek rescue package, arguing that loans would sink into a “bottomless pit”. “It’s like trying to repair water damage by blowing up the house,” he said. Murswiek contended: “The rescue fund serves in reality to take risks away from certain big banks,” which would be unconstitutional. Schäuble said the government was on solid legal ground, and argued that “we Germans benefit even more than other Europeans from the currency union”. A ruling is expected this year. Most analysts expect the court to rule the bailouts were legal but to attach strings to the deals. Last month, Vosskuhle, the chief judge hearing the case, seemed to hint at this, when said there were instances in which the European Union could violate the core of Germany’s constitutional identity. Such a “sensitive constellation” was indeed conceivable, he said, adding that he believed that this would “not necessarily happen in the near future”. European debt crisis European banks Germany Europe Greece European Union Financial crisis Global recession Helen Pidd guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …A badly decomposed body found in a creek may be that of a missing Indiana University student, reports AP . Police are comparing any identifying characteristics and awaiting test results of today’s autopsy, officials tell the Bloomington Herald Times. Bloomington student Lauren Spierer, 20, was last seen by friends walking to…
Continue reading …The Secret Service is investigating yesterday’s President Obama assassination hoax by hackers on Fox News’ political Twitter account, reports the Los Angeles Times . The agency plans to look into the postings that claimed the president had been shot at a restaurant in Iowa, and “conduct the appropriate follow-up.” A representative…
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• Hit F5 for the latest or select the auto-refresh button below • Watch all the video highlights of this year’s race so far • Interactive: check out the stage four route and analysis • Email your thoughts to barry.glendenning@guardian.co.uk 1.37pm: Asked for his thoughts on today’s finish at the Mûr-de-Bretagne, Eurosport analyst and Irish cycling legend Sean Kelly declares that “it will be horrible today”. He says the slippery conditions coupled with every single rider’s determination to get up near the front as the peloton enters the town means the potential for carnage is high. He goes on to describe the three ramps that make up the wall, stressing that it’s vital that anyone with serious notions of doing well in this year’s Tour is near the front of the bunch when the peloton hits town. “There’s a lot of little small drags which are energy-sapping in the final stages,” he says. “When you see the wall stretching out in front of you it’s a very impressive sight. There’s no three-kilometre rule today so it’s vital that the main contenders get up the front. Philippe Gilbert is going to have go for this one on the steep section, so calculation is going to be very important.” 1.32pm: “Don’t know if you remember that last year there was a Google maps thingymajig that tracked the live progress of Cav and his team?” writes Kim H. “It occasionally had a strop and refused to display particular riders, but was quite a fun way of following Le Tour and understanding the terrain/distances etc. I haven’t seen any mention of anything similar this year and was wondering whether it has been abandoned?” I do remember the gizmo you speak of, Kim, but don’t know if they’re using it again this year. If they are, you’ll almost certainly find it here ; unfortunately I don’t have time to look for it at the moment. 1.27pm: According to the official Tour website, Jurgen van de Walle from the Omega Paharma-Lotto team has abandoned the race, leaving 197 riders in the race. 1.25pm: After 51km in driving rain, the five-man breakaway are 3min 06sec clear of the peloton, although that gap might close a bit shortly, as one of the escapees has just shooed away the motorcycle camera man in a manner that suggests he’d like some privacy because he needs to take a pee. 1:20pm: “Today’s intermediate sprint is massive for Cavendish,” writes Shriram Jambunathan. “Jose Joaquin Rojas can attempt to get some points at the end of the stage today as well while Farrar and Cavendish shouldn’t get anything. Rojas, if he sprints like yesterday needn’t even win a single stage to be challenging the top favourites for the Green Jersey. Great to see Rojas doing well, Movistar have unfortunately had a traumatic year. The climb resembles a flatter version Mur de Huy, so we should see Gilbert, Evans and Cunego do well. The final 800 metres are pretty flat (I think at 2%).” Weather report: Eurosport’s coverage of today’s stage has just begun, although they’re broadcasting the pre-stage niceties and have yet to cut to my podcasting chum James Richardson, who is once again anchoring their coverage. His chin was decidedly unshaven yesterday – I’m very concerned that he’s letting himself go during the Football Weekly off-season. But I digress … the weather – it’s a horrible day on the Tour, with rain sleeting downwhen the riders set off this morning, rendering the roads so greasy that several riders came a cropper in the neutral zone even before race director Christian Prudhomme had waved the white flag to declare the start of racing. All were able to remount and continue and less than 10km into the stage, Frenchman Jeremy Roy launched his second breakaway of this year’s Tour before the 10-kilometre mark, jumping off the front with Gorka Izagirre Insausti (Euskatel), Imanol Erviti (Movistar), Johnny Hoogerland (Vacansoleil) and Blel Kadri (AG2R). After 45km, they lead the pack by 3min 05sec. Erviti is the virtual race-leader on the road, having started the day less than three minutes down on yellow jersey wearer Thor Hushovd. An email: “Can we all be nice to one another today?” pleads David Moore. “The emails on yesterday’s pedal-by-pedal coverage got so unfriendly I felt like a domestique in the 2009 Astana team.” I must confess that I haven’t read yesterday’s report, so I don’t know what unpleasantness you’re alluding to, David. But rest assured that the spirit of this afternoon’s equivalent will be ultra-jovial … for a while at least. Standings Yellow jersey: Thor Hushovd (Team Garmin-Cervelo) Green jersey: Jose Joaquin Rojas (Movistar Team) Polka dot jersey: Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma-Lotto) White jersey: Geraint Thomas (Sky Procycling) Click this link to see the full overall standings Today’s stage favourite With Tyler Farrar having won yesterday’s stage for Uncle Sam on Independence Day, today’s uphill finish means stage one winner and Omega Pharma-Lotto rider Philippe Gilbert is the odds-on favourite to win his second stage of the Tour, which would be a very nice present for him today on his 29th birthday. According to the good people at Infostrada Sports , the last rider to celebrate his birthday with a stage win in Le Tour was Erik Zabel, on 7 July 1995. “Since the start of this Tour I’ve worn almost all the jerseys and tomorrow I’ll race with the polka-dot jersey,” said Gilbert yesterday. “It’s a rather beautiful collection. The stage to the Mûr-de-Bretagne is one that I’ve waited a long time for because I think it’s a great stage for me. I hope to win again. It’s likely to be different to the day to Mont des Alouettes because the situation has changed since then … Alberto Contador, for example, has lost some time and he could attempt to make up for that in stage four. He can be an ally for me and it’s possible that I could follow his wheel for a while.” Good afternoon everybody and welcome to our rolling report of Stage 4 of this year’s Tour, in which the riders will themselves roll the 172.5km from Lorient to Mur de Bretagne. According to the indispensable pocket race guide that accompanies the current issue of Cycling Weekly , we can “expect fireworks” on a stage that boasts a stiff uphill finish on the third-category Mur de Bretagne (Breton Wall). “Another uphill finish, but harder than day one,” writes our own William Fotheringham in the Guardian’s marvellous interactive guide to this year’s Tour . “The ‘Wall’ is brutal, one mile long and dead straight. The overall contenders will have to show their strength to ensure they don’t lose seconds that could prove vital in the long term. The fight to hit the climb at the front of the bunch will be hectic and dangerous and a crash or two is inevitable.” You can click on this link to read Will’s report on Stage Three , which was won by Garmin’s American sprinter Tyler Farrar on a day that ended badly for Mark Cavendish – the Manx Missile was stripped of the points he won in the intermediate sprint after clashing with his rival Thor Hushovd in the lead-out. “Just heard that Thor’s offered to take the punishment solely,” Cavendish tweeted yesterday afternoon. “What a true gentleman. I reckon it won’t change fuck-all though. But thank you.” Tour de France 2011 Tour de France Barry Glendenning guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Hugo Chavez has made a triumphant return to Venezuela after nearly a month in Cuba being treated for cancer. The leader, who is recovering after having a cancerous tumor removed , addressed thousands of cheering supporters from the balcony of the presidential palace, reports the BBC . “The return has begun,” he…
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Justices refuse to suspend ruling that triggered crisis over use of police bail, pointing to emergency legislation before parliament The supreme court has dismissed an application from the police to suspend a ruling that triggered a bail crisis, leaving the legal position of 85,000 suspects in doubt. The justices said the situation was unusual and they were not even sure that they had the power to suspend the ruling but they felt the decision by ministers to bring forward emergency legislation meant they should refuse the application. “This application is unusual and it is questionable whether it would be open to the court to grant this relief,” said the supreme court statement. “In any event, however, the judgment was given on 19 May and an application for permission to appeal was made on 21 June. The government has announced its intention to introduce emergency legislation this Thursday, 7 July. In these circumstances, the court has decided that the application should be dismissed.” MPs are expected to approve the emergency legislation then and peers early next week to become law on 12 July. The bill will make clear that time spent on bail will not count towards the 96-hour time limit on pre-charge detention. The Metropolitan police said on Tuesday morning that it had 14,029 people on bail including 5,024 with conditions it could no longer enforce by detaining them. Police House of Commons Alan Travis guardian.co.uk
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