Hospital Inspector To Name Failing NHS Trusts

A new Chief Inspector of Hospitals will name and shame failing NHS trusts in a shake-up sparked by the Mid Staffordshire scandal.

The new Chief Inspector will give hospitals Ofsted-style rankings for their performance and act as "whistleblower-in-chief".

If trusts fail to deliver, they could be put into a "failure regime" - the equivalent of special measures - and could end up in administration.

Failing NHS bosses will also be put on a blacklist to ensure they cannot just move to a different part of the organisation and keep working.

And NHS providers will have a new "statutory duty of candour" to ensure patients are fully informed if anything goes wrong with their care.

Trusts that fiddle mortality data figures could also face legal sanctions at a corporate level.

In further moves to restore a culture of compassion, student nurses will spend up to a year performing basic frontline work.

Hundreds of people may have died needlessly at Stafford Hospital

Initially under a pilot scheme, they will have to do a placement as a support worker or healthcare assistant in order to receive funding for their studies.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt unveiled the changes as he delivered the Government's initial response to the Francis report into Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust.

Robert Francis QC made 290 sweeping recommendations for healthcare regulators, providers and the Government.

As many as 1,200 patients may have died needlessly after they were "routinely neglected" at the hospital.

Many were left lying in their own urine and excrement for days, forced to drink water from vases or given the wrong medication.

The Health Secretary said the scandal was "a betrayal of the worse kind" and admitted it was "the NHS' darkest hour".

But he demanded that it become "not a byword for failure but a catalyst for change" as he set out a string of new measures.

He told MPs they would help embed a "culture of zero harm and compassionate care" with patients at its heart.

It is unclear how many of the 290 recommendations were taken up by the Government but a number of key measures were noticeably absent.

Mr Francis had called for a regulation system for healthcare assistants but Mr Hunt only announced a code of practice and minimum training standards.

He claimed a regulatory system would create a "bureaucratic quagmire".

The QC also wanted staff to be criminally liable as individuals if they harmed or killed patients but the Health Secretary is waiting on a further report before making a decision.

And instead of creating specialist registered nurses to look after elderly patients, Mr Hunt strengthened nurse training in the field.

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Mobile Phone 'Steaming' Thieves Are Jailed

A gang of youths who stole mobile phones and tablets worth £150,000 by "steaming" high street stores in broad daylight have been jailed.

The group of males, aged 15 to 22-years-old, raided 42 Carphone Warehouse stores in London and surrounding areas over a six-month period.

Jahreau Shepherd, Perry Hedges (top) and Emmanuel Kakala and Ugo Wilson

CCTV footage showed shoppers and members of staff being caught in the violence as gang members wrenched stock from display stands.

In one clip a frightened mother is shown rushing to pick up her son before he is caught up in the gang's dash for the exit.

The youths caused over £50,000 worth of damage between July and December last year.

They typically operated in a large group, travelling together to the shop they planned to steal from.

They were sentenced at Southwark Crown Court after admitting conspiracy to commit burglary.

Detective Inspector Mark Loving, from the National Mobile Phone Crime Unit (NMPCU), said: "This case should act as a warning to anyone involved in this type of activity that the Met and NMPCU will robustly and swiftly deal with those who use intimidation to fulfil their greed."

A woman reaches for a child, right, as the gang smashes up one shop

Jahreau Shepherd, 22, of Orsett Street, Lambeth and 21-year-old Ugo Wilson, of Aviation Drive, Barnet, were jailed for four years and 27 months respectively.

Perry Hedges, 18, of Howard Road, Kingston, was sentenced to 26 months' detention in a young offenders' institution.

Emmanuel Kakala, 18, of Cargreen Road, Croydon was given a suspended 18-month prison sentence and ordered to do 80 hours of community service, while 20-year-old Samuel Warnes, of Egleston Road, Merton, received a suspended 12-month prison sentence and one year's supervision.

Three boys, aged 15, 16 and 17, were all sentenced to detention and training for 10, 18 and 12 months respectively.

Steaming is a slang word for a robbery performed on a train but also refers to large groups of thieves who target shops at once.

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Snow: RAF Helicopter Sent To Aid Families

Costs Rise As Lambs Brought Indoors

Updated: 11:46pm UK, Monday 25 March 2013

By Frazer Maude, North of England Correspondent

The Dean family have been farming in the Yorkshire Dales village of Threshfield since 1236.

Toft House Farm will have seen some harsh winters through the centuries, but weather like this in late March won't have happened too often.

Angus Dean runs the farm with his brother, and during lambing season his day starts at around 5.30am. It doesn't end until past midnight.

With almost 1,000 sheep to care for, this is one of the toughest, but most rewarding, times of year.

The rewards are plain to see. He's gentle with his animals, and still can't hide the smile on his face as he delivers triplets to one sheep in its straw lined barn.

Ordinarily though, these lambs would enter the world in a field, not a barn. Their mother would be eating fresh grass, not expensive feed (called cake).

Drifting snow, biting winds, and sub-zero temperatures, mean the three new arrivals would struggle to last even a few hours outside.

"Even in the fields which aren't totally covered in snow aren't usable at the moment," explains Mr Dean.

"Because the sheep need the shelter provided by the dry stone walls. Only there isn't any shelter, because the walls are where the drifts have collected."

That means all but 70 of the flock have been brought indoors to lamb. Those that are still outside are ewes that are only going to have a single lamb, and so won't be giving birth for another couple of weeks.

If the weather doesn't break before then, they'll be brought inside too.

"Having the sheep inside might seem easier," said Mr Dean.

"But it can lead to confusion between the sheep over whose lambs are whose. So we have to move them around into different pens to keep them separated. And of course the feed costs are massively increased."

But even though his sheep are costing much more to feed than if they were eating grass (the cake costs around £250 per tonne), at least Toft House Farm is accessible at the moment to have the feed brought in.

Others aren't so lucky. Rachael Gillbanks from the NFU says: "I've spoken to some farmers in the Dales who are worried that their feed stocks are running dangerously low, and they can't get any more delivered because the farm roads aren't accessible for the delivery trucks. Several are almost running out of cake and hay."

The good news for Angus is that this has been a good year for the lambs. The quantity and quality of the offspring from his mixed flock of Texels, Mules, Swaledales and Leicester Blues has been high, and prices at the moment are reasonably good.

But with hundreds of sheep yet to give birth, and with space in the sheep sheds at a premium, for Angus, and his neighbours, the thaw can't come soon enough.

But like all Dalesfolk, Mr Dean and his brother are nothing if not resilient. And tough though it is at the moment, a farm that could bounce back after losing the entire flock to the devastation of foot and mouth, will surely survive this

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Virgin 'To Bid For' East Coast Rail Line

The Department for Transport has invited companies to bid for the East Coast rail franchise, which is expected to be privatised in less than two years.

Virgin is expected to be among the parties interested in taking over the key line, which runs between London and Scotland, according to Sky sources.

The route has been run in the public sector since 2009 when the recession caused National Express to pull out.

Now Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin has unveiled plans to put it back in private hands by February 2015.

Mr McLoughlin announced a new approach to rail franchising following last year's botched West Coast deal - which was scrapped after flaws were found in the process.

The 13-year franchise was initially awarded to FirstGroup, which won a bidding war with the incumbent company Virgin Trains.

Sir Richard Branson's Virgin will run the West Coast line until April 2017

But a string of mistakes by Department for Transport staff saw the deal cancelled and led to two independent reviews into the rail franchising process.

Virgin will continue to run the West Coast service - which it has controlled since 1997 - until the new franchise date, which has been pushed back from November next year to April 2017.

Mr McLoughlin said the new franchise process will deliver improvements to services and bring long-term certainty to the market.

"Above all, in future franchise competitions we are placing passengers in the driving seat by ensuring that their views and satisfaction levels are taken into account when deciding which companies run our railway services," he said.

"Franchising has been a force for good in the story of Britain's railways, transforming an industry that was in decline into one that today carries record numbers of passengers."

But rail unions - angry at plans to privatise the East Coast line again - stressed that the private sector had twice given up the franchise.

RMT's general secretary Bob Crow said hundreds of millions of pounds of taxpayers' money had been wasted on the "franchising circus".

"Instead of learning the lessons of the privatisation disasters on the East and West Coast main lines and across the rest of the network, the Government has this morning given the green light to a whole new wave of profiteering that will have the train companies laughing all the way to the bank," he said.

"The proposed reprivatisation of the East Coast, after the public sector rescued the service following two private failures, proves conclusively that the political class have learnt absolutely nothing when it comes to our railways."

Manuel Cortes, leader of the TSSA rail union, added: "The £50m West Coast line fiasco revealed that private franchises are a shambles.

"So they go and privatise the only successful publicly-owned franchise, the East Coast line."

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Summly: Yahoo! Buys Nick D'Aloisio's App

The teenage founder of news app Summly has said he is "more motivated" to develop other services despite already becoming a millionaire.

Nick D'Aloisio, 17, this week sold his app to web giant Yahoo! in a multimillion-pound deal. The exact value has not been disclosed.

The teenager's creation will end in its current form and instead be integrated into Yahoo!'s products.

"Longer term this whole journey has given me an appetite for starting companies, so I'd love to do it again," he told Sky News.

Summly pulls in news articles from online sources and uses an algorithm to identify key points, turning them into 400-character bite-sized summaries which can easily be read on mobile phones.

For now though, the London teenager says he's looking forward to becoming Yahoo!'s youngest employee - part of this week's deal sees Nick join the company.

"There's so much opportunity with what they're trying to do in the mobile ecosystem and what we were doing with Summly," he said.

Nick developed the app when he was 15 and it received investment from Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka Shing's Horizons Ventures, as well as some celebrity backing.

Summly's functions will now be moved over to Yahoo! products

Stephen Fry, Yoko Ono and Ashton Kutcher all contributed to an investment of more than £1m.

"I thought of the idea after I revised for my history GCSE," said Nick. "There's so much information on the web (and) the question is can you do it algorithmically without a human."

The iPhone app launched in December 2012 and Summly worked with around 250 online publishers to make sure it worked smoothly with their content.

It has been downloaded nearly a million times.

The Wimbledon teenager said he taught himself basic programming at the age of 12 after he saw the chance to develop for the newly-released App Store.

He told Sky News that aspiring technology millionaires should stay determined if they have a concept they believe in.

"The real goal is to get it out there because if it's a great idea and you persevere it will get discovered.

"Investors are looking for new companies," says Nick.

And, despite becoming rich, he does not have any extravagant purchases planned.

"We (my family) will probably go out to dinner or something like that," he said.

"I'm getting maybe a new pair of trainers I think - I'll get something small like that as a memento."

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Royal Prank Call Inquest: Anonymity For Nurse

By Ian Woods, Senior Correspondent

A nurse who took a prank call at the hospital where the Duchess of Cambridge was being treated will be given anonymity at the inquest into the death of one of her colleagues.

Jacintha Saldanha was found hanged in her flat days after answering a call by two DJs pretending to be the Queen and Prince Charles.

Radio presenters Mel Greig and Michael Christian, from Sydney's 2Day FM, were able to speak to a second nurse about the Duchess, who had been admitted with acute morning sickness in the early stages of her pregnancy.

At a pre-inquest review, the coroner granted anonymity to the second nurse. She will give evidence in open court without being hidden behind a screen, but the media will not be allowed to publish her name.

Clare Barton, representing King Edward VII's hospital in London, said the case "cried out for anonymity" to prevent "intrusive media interest".

Mel Greig and Michael Christian apologised after Ms Saldanha's death

The Australian DJs were taken off the air and although Mr Christian has since resumed work, Ms Greig has not.

Lawyer Maya Sikand, acting on behalf of Southern Cross Media, the owners of 2Day FM, spoke of the public anger against the DJs and the radio station in the wake of Ms Saldanha's death, and what she called the "totally unintended consequences" of the hoax call.

Westminster coroner Fiona Wilcox granted the media group participation status, giving them access to evidence and the right to question witnesses.

It means they will be given copies of the police and post-mortem examination reports, as well as copies of three notes written by Ms Saldanha which were found at the scene.

John Cooper QC, representing Ms Saldanha, asked to be given a copy of her contract of employment.

Her family wants to find out why she was acting as a receptionist in addition to her duties as a nurse.

The full inquest is scheduled to be held on May 2 and 3, although it is expected to last only one day.

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Choirmaster And Ex-Wife Jailed For Sex Abuse

By Nick Martin, News Correspondent

A choirmaster who sexually assaulted a pupil at a music school more than 30 years ago has been jailed for six years.

Michael Brewer, a former National Youth Choir music director, and his ex-wife were found guilty on five counts of indecently assaulting his student Frances Andrade more than 30 years ago.

During the trial, Ms Andrade, 48, was found dead at her home less than a week after she gave evidence against Brewer at Manchester Crown Court. She had reportedly killed herself.

The 68-year-old was convicted of sexually abusing her in his office at Chetham's School of Music in Manchester when she was aged 14 and 15.

Passing sentence, Judge Martin Rudland said: "You were, and may still be, a predatory sex offender. Of that let no-one be in any doubt.

"The extent of your breach of trust in this case cannot be overstated."

Frances Andrade gave evidence against Michael Brewer at his trial

Brewer's ex-wife, Kay Brewer, 68, was also convicted of indecently assaulting Mrs Andrade, then known as Shorney, when she was an adult at their former family home. She was sentenced to 21 months in prison.

The jury returned not guilty verdicts on charges that Brewer raped Mrs Andrade when she was aged 18 and that Mrs Brewer aided and abetted the attack.

Brewer was also cleared of one charge of indecently assaulting Mrs Andrade when she was a child in his home.

The Crown Prosecution Service decided to continue with the trial and the judge ruled that news of Mrs Andrade's death should be kept from jurors until after they reached their verdicts.

Mrs Andrade was visibly agitated on occasions as she gave her evidence over two days on January 16 and 17.

She chose to take to the witness box in full view of everyone in the courtroom, including the two defendants in the dock.

Michael Brewer was a teacher at Chetham's School of Music in Manchester

The jury heard that the police investigation was sparked by National Youth Choir teacher Jenavora Williams after Mrs Andrade, her friend, told her about her time at Chetham's.

The mother-of-four, from Guildford, Surrey, who was married to acclaimed viola player Levine Andrade, was supported from the public gallery by one of her sons.

At one point she complained about Brewer smiling as she gave her evidence, but she chose to press on without drawing a curtain to block off the dock.

The judge remarked that she was "clearly undergoing a cathartic experience, whatever the source" while giving evidence.

He said she was "combative" during cross-examination by Kate Blackwell QC, representing Brewer, adding that she had taken personal issue with some of the barrister's questions, although the judge indicated that Ms Blackwell had acted professionally.

Jurors were only told of Ms Andrade's death after reaching their verdicts

During the cross-examination, Mrs Andrade told her: "You are hugely insulting, even though it's your job."

Her son, Oliver Andrade, described his mother as "an amazing person", but appeared to criticise authorities for failing to provide more support despite two previous attempts to kill herself.

He said in a statement: "Like all people she was not impervious. Being repeatedly called a 'liar' and a 'fantasist' about a horrific part of her life in front of a court challenged her personal integrity and was more than even she could bear.

"She was forced to relive the many times Michael Brewer had sexually abused her as a child, both to the police on multiple occasions and in court to a hostile party."

Brewer went on to become the artistic director of the National Youth Choirs of Britain and has directed the World Youth Choir.

The judge told him: "The care and attention which you gave her, in so manipulative and depraved a way, were regarded by her as blessings.

"She was prepared to submit to almost anything, which clearly she did, as you pushed the boundaries further and further - treating her as your sexual plaything in the context of a false loving relationship which she readily accepted."

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UK Border Agency Back In Home Office Control

The UK Border Agency is being split in two and brought back under the control of the Home Office, Theresa May has announced.

The Home Secretary unveiled the shake-up in the Commons 24 hours after MPs published a damning report about the organisation's record.

Mrs May said the current agency was too big, not transparent enough, had failing IT systems and struggled to operate in the existing legal framework.

It will now become two separate operations, with an immigration and visa service assessing applications and an enforcement arm to trace people breaking the law.

Mrs May said: "The agency has been a troubled organisation since it was formed in 2008 and its performance is not good enough.

"In truth, the agency was not set up to absorb the level of mass immigration that we saw under the last Government.

"This meant the agency has never had the space to modernise its structures and systems and get on top of its workload."

It was a mistake to keep it at arms length from ministers because this "created a closed, secretive and defensive culture", she added.

A new board chaired by the Home Office permanent secretary Mark Sedwill will be formed to oversee every part of the immigration system.

There are also plans to modernise IT across the board to speed up case handling.

And in a move to make it easier to remove illegal immigrants, Mrs May said she intended to bring forward an immigration bill in the next parliament.

A leaked internal memo revealing staff had been told they would "still be doing the same job in the same place with the same colleagues for the same boss" risked undermining the reforms.

It is the second time the Home Secretary has had to shake up the agency in the wake of major criticism about its operations.

Last year, the Border Agency was divided from the Border Force - which handles frontline controls at ports - after it emerged hundreds of thousands of people had entered the UK without being checked against a watch list.

The latest changes follow a scathing report from the Home Affairs select committee which warned on Monday that UKBA's backlog would take 24 years to clear.

The committee also attacked the head of Britain's tax office Lin Homer for her "catastrophic leadership failure" when she ran the agency.

MPs were "astounded" that she was promoted to the £180,000-a-year role of chief executive of HM Revenue & Customs after her performance there.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper admitted the UKBA had suffered with problems for years but also claimed its record had worsened under Mrs May's watch.

"Enforcement has got worse, delays have got worse, 50% fewer people are being refused entry at ports and borders and you said the number of illegal immigrants removed does not keep up with the number here illegally - that's because you're letting rather more of them in," she said.

Ms Cooper highlighted a 34% cut in the UKBA budget and a 20% rise in the backlog of asylum cases in the last three months.

"Your reforms and your cuts is what has gone wrong throughout 2012. Why should we believe the latest round of reforms will do any better?," she asked.

Committee chairman Keith Vaz said after the shake-up: "Ministers are now on the front line.

"Proper accountability and scrutiny of our immigration system must continue, and it will need effective and strong leadership if the Home Office is serious about having a fully functional immigration system."

Lib Dem Julian Huppert added: "Lib Dems have always argued you have to have a proper enforcement agency and exit checks, and that's what the Coalition is doing.

"Building a fairer society means making sure everyone plays by the rules. That means an immigration system that works for those who should be here, and acts against those who shouldn't."

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Lib Dem MP Mike Hancock To Be Investigated

By Sophy Ridge, Political Correspondent

An investigation has been launched into the conduct of Lib Dem MP Mike Hancock.

Portsmouth City Council - where Mr Hancock is also a councillor - announced on Tuesday that a sub-committee had decided to refer a complaint against him for investigation.

The council refused to reveal the content of the complaint, but the Portsmouth South MP has been the subject of allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a woman with mental health issues.

He denies the allegations.

Solicitor Michael Lawther said: "A sub-committee of Portsmouth City Council today decided to refer a complaint against Cllr Mike Hancock for investigation.

"The governance and audit and standards committee (assessment) sub-committee, made up of three councillors, considered evidence of a breach of the council's code of conduct and decided there was a case to answer. They made no judgement as to whether or not there had been a breach.

"I will now appoint an independent lawyer to carry out an investigation. We estimate the investigation will take two or three months.

"If a breach is proved against a councillor, they can be censured for their conduct."

The news comes as another high profile Lib Dem faces investigation over his alleged behaviour.

Lord Rennard, the Lib Dems' former chief executive, is the subject of a probe by the party after allegations of sexual harassment towards women. He strongly denies the claims.

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Sky Sources: Gary Neville's Father Arrested

Neville Neville, the father of footballer Gary Neville, has been arrested on suspicion of sexual assault, say Sky sources.

His arrest follows an alleged assault in Bury in the early hours of Saturday. Greater Manchester Police said a 63-year-old man, whose identity has not been confirmed, has been bailed until May.

Neville Neville is an agent for his sons

Neville Neville, a former cricketer, is well-known for representing his Premier footballer sons Gary and Phil as an agent. Gary is a former captain of Manchester United and Phil is captain of Everton.

As director of Bury FC, he was praised for his efforts in spearheading a campaign to save the club from administration, said Sky's Mike McCarthy.

A police spokesman said: "Police are investigating a sexual assault which happened in the early hours of Saturday, March 23, 2013, in the North Manor area of Bury.

"A 63-year-old man from Bury was arrested on suspicion of indecent assault and has been bailed till May pending further inquiries."

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