Phone Hacking: Parlour Worker 'Warned Rooney'

Wayne Rooney was told to "pull his hat down" and leave a massage parlour to avoid ruining his career, jurors in the phone-hacking trial have heard.

Details of the footballer's alleged visits to the Liverpool parlour emerged as the Old Bailey was shown newspaper reports about his "suggested use of prostitutes" in 2004.

Notes made by private investigator Glenn Mulcaire, who has admitted phone hacking for the News Of The World, showed the England international was among the celebrities he targeted, the court was told.

Kate Middleton, Delia Smith and Angelina Jolie featured in Mulcaire's notes

The Duchess of Cambridge appeared on Mulcaire's "target evaluation" list, while the personal details of actress Angelina Jolie, chef Delia Smith and model Abi Titmuss featured in his notebooks, prosecutors said.

The jury heard that pages from the notebooks contained information about Rooney's mother and a beauty consultant at Harrods called Laura Rooney, who is not related to the footballer.

Patricia Tierney, a receptionist at the massage parlour who was wrongly reported as having taken money for sex with Rooney, told the court that the Manchester United star had visited the property "with a number of other males".

Mulcaire has admitted phone-hacking charges

When he returned on his own, she said, she "pushed him into a room" and told him to "pull his hat down and get out before he was destroyed and his career was over".

The story about Rooney first appeared in the Daily Mirror and was later chased by The Sun.

Former News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks, 45, of Churchill, Oxfordshire, and ex-News Of The World editor and spin doctor Andy Coulson, also 45, from Charing, Kent, are among those on trial at the Old Bailey.

Andy Coulson and Rebekah Brooks are among those on trial

They both deny conspiring with others to hack phones between October 3, 2000, and August 9, 2006.

The trial continues.

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Trump Battles Scottish Windfarm In Court

Lawyers acting for US billionaire Donald Trump have challenged the legality of a decision to approve an offshore windfarm within view of his golf resort on the Aberdeenshire coast.

The cart was put before the horse in granting consent without a licence to generate electricity, his legal team argued at the Court of Session in Edinburgh.

The US property tycoon opposes the 11-turbine European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre (EOWDC), claiming it will spoil the view from his nearby golf course.

His case, argued by Gordon Steele QC, also calls into question whether the scheme's backer, Vattenfall Wind Power, would be a suitable licence-holder because it has suffered financial losses and pared back investment.

Donald Trump's own plans for Scotland development are controversial

Addressing the way consent was granted, Mr Steele said: "It is obvious that what is to be favoured is one that puts the horse before the cart in the right order. Licences should be granted first. The purpose of this generation is to supply tens of thousands of homes.

"The logical and practical position is this: what is the purpose of looking at and formulating proposals if, at the end of the day, the applicant is not to be a suitable licence holder? That's in nobody's interests. The logical way forward is to have the person checked out to see if they're suitable or not."

Donald Trump junior leaving the court in Edinburgh

Mr Steele drew attention to majority shareholder Vattenfall's announcement in May that it is pairing back investment in the scheme and calling on potential investors to realise the £230m cost. At the time, the firm had invested around £5m.

"What happens if the applicant is found not to be suitable? A brief examination of a forensic accounts report discloses that the applicant has made a loss in several financial years," he said.

Referring to the applicant as a shell company, he said: "This is not a company that has actually done anything."

The Trump Organisation's plans have been prejudiced by the process, Mr Steele argued.

"If this is not competent, that should be an end to the matter. The resolution is terribly simple. A new application, proceeded of course by a licence being applied for and being consented," he said.

Mr Trump's legal action is against the Scottish Government's approval of the windfarm, granted on March 26.

The hearing, known as a petition for judicial review, is expected to last four days.

Mr Trump has said he will pull the plug on his own controversial plans to finish his proposed luxury resort with a large hotel, holiday homes and a residential village if the windfarm goes ahead.

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Cyberattack Exercise: Banks Test Defences

By Ursula Errington, Business Reporter

Hundreds of staff from the UK's financial institutions will take part in a simulated cyberattack today.

The exercise, the details of which have been kept top secret, will be overseen by officials from the Bank of England, Treasury and Financial Conduct Authority, and will be monitored by the Government's cyber agencies.

It will concentrate on how investment banks would cope with a sustained attack on essential shared and company-specific systems, such as clearing and risk management tools.

The cyber war game, called Waking Shark II, will be led by a team from Credit Suisse, who have designed a scenario to be released to the participants in stages, as if the situation is unfolding in real time.

The test will take place in one room, with various companies and organisations sitting on different tables interacting as the situation gathers momentum. 

The aim is to help in-house IT security experts and fall-back operations planners to practise making swift decisions and communicate effectively with the regulator and industry partners to contain the problems thrown at them.

The last time such an extensive exercise was undertaken was in 2011, when institutions rehearsed how they would cope with a cyberattack during the busiest period of the London Olympics.

From that, it became apparent that an investment banking-focused exercise would be useful to lay out communication protocols between banking institutions and governing bodies, and to establish who would take the lead to co-ordinate a response in the event of such an attack.

According to David Emm, senior security researcher at internet security firm Kaspersky Lab, the right communication is vital in the aftermath of a cyberattack.

He told Sky News: "Businesses must have a plan of action which includes all relevant stakeholders from both internal and external parties.

"Communication across other sectors can be important as the effects on one company can have far reaching consequences for many others.

"The UK Government is keen to pursue a joined-up approach to dealing with cyberattacks - which is good news, but more work still needs to be done to help all businesses adopt a more secure mindset, and exercises like this help contribute to this."

Results and recommendations from the exercise will be published by early next year.

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Terror Suspects To Be Stripped Of UK Passports

British terror suspects would be stripped of their passports and made "stateless", under plans backed by the Home Secretary.

Theresa May wants to amend a clause which means the Government is banned from removing a UK passport if it would effectively leave a person stateless.

She wants the power to take away the passport of a person if they have acted in a way that is "seriously prejudicial to the interests of the UK".

It follows a Supreme Court ruling which ordered Mrs May to return a UK passport to an Iraqi terror suspect accused of plotting to blow up soldiers.

Judges said it was unlawful to remove the passport of Hilal al Jedda because it would have left him stateless.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "The government will take all necessary steps to protect the public, including pursuing deprivation of citizenship, where appropriate."

Yvette Cooper wants terror suspects to be relocated across the country

The proposals come after terror suspect Mohammed Ahmed Mohamed, who was subject to a terrorism prevention and investigation measure (Tpim), fled a London mosque in a burka.

Mrs May said at the time his passport had been seized but was later forced to admit she had made a mistake and that police did not have his passport.

The shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, has urged that powers to relocate terror suspects to other parts of the country must be revived in the wake of his disappearance.

Ms Cooper has written to Mrs May saying the powers to forcibly move suspects across the country, which were available under the previous control orders, should be reinstated.

Mohamed was relocated to Ipswich, in Suffolk, when he was subject to a control order but returned to London when the restriction was lifted.

Mohamed fled the London mosque dressed in a burka

Ms Cooper's letter has been published ahead of a Home Affairs Select Committee session with the independent reviewer of terror legislation David Anderson QC and Charles Farr, director general of the Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism within the Home Office.

In her letter, the shadow home secretary said: "No terror suspect under a relocation order ever managed to abscond.

"Now two terror suspects who were previously relocated and then returned because of your decision have absconded.

"Your decision, against advice and warnings, to end relocations has made it much easier for two dangerous men to disappear."

Ms Cooper asks the Home Secretary to agree to re-introduce the power to relocate terror suspects and pledges "cross party" support.

Ministers are reportedly reviewing the Tpims and are considering whether to stop suspects from visiting mosques suspected of preaching hardline religious views.

Last week, it emerged Mohamed had been twice remanded in custody for allegedly breaching controls imposed on him.

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Gas Bills 'Could Rise' Due To Low Reserves

By Thomas Moore, Health and Science Correspondent

Gas prices could soar this winter if the national supply runs short during another cold snap, an energy expert has warned.

Industry analyst Peter Hughes told Sky News that a "perfect storm" last March of extreme weather and the shutdown of two major pipelines caused prices to double.

And that could happen again because the Government has refused to support the storage of more gas.

"It foreshadows things to come," he said.

"The situation in terms of the risks will only get worse as North Sea production runs down and demand rises.

"That's the double whammy. And if you don't have more storage that translates into real vulnerability."

Britain currently stores enough gas for 13 days of supply. But Germany has reserves to last 69 days, in case there is a problem with the supply from countries such as Russia.

Storage companies buy up cheap gas in the summer, then release it over winter. The effect is to stop prices soaring.

A report by the Redpoint energy consultancy, commissioned by the Government, showed subsidies to encourage investment in more storage could save consumers almost £1bn over 10 years.

It examined four scenarios, three of which showed a net reduction in gas bills.

The UK stores gas in huge tanks - but Germany has five times more

But Energy Minister Michael Fallon rejected subsidies based on the one scenario to show an increase in costs. He also ignored long-term savings, making the costs look worse.

Speaking to Sky News, he was unrepentant, saying. "The money would ... be put on consumers' bills now.

"I would have had to be persuaded that this was a subsidy worth paying. I don't think it is worth it."

Three projects to increase storage capacity have been shelved in the wake of the decision.

Stag Energy had planned to pump gas into caverns under the Irish Sea, but said the scheme was now too expensive. Company boss George Grant said the Government had been shortsighted.

He said: "We view gas storage as an insurance policy for consumers.

"The Redpoint analysis shows there is a net benefit to consumers, but that's a point the Government glossed over."

:: Watch a day of special coverage on energy costs all day on Sky News - on Sky 501, Virgin Media 602, Freesat 202, Freeview 82, Skynews.com and Sky News for iPad.

There will also be a special programme on the energy industry on Jeff Randall Live this evening at 7pm.

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Breastfeeding: New Mums To Get Shop Vouchers

Vouchers for Matalan, John Lewis, Mothercare or supermarkets are to be dished out to new mothers if they feed their babies with breast milk.

Researchers from the University of Sheffield are examining ways to boost low rates of breastfeeding in parts of the UK.

Mothers will be given shopping vouchers worth up to £120 if their babies receive breast milk until they are six weeks old, and a further £80 if their babies are still breastfed at six months.

If the "feasibility" project is successful, the authors will conduct a national research project into the scheme.

But midwives have warned that financial reward should not be the main motivation for women to breastfeed.

The Department of Health has admitted it is funding the project, however, Health Minister Dr Dan Poulter stressed that he did not believe "financial incentives" were the best way of encouraging mothers to breast feed.

He said: "Breastfeeding has huge health benefits, and it helps to promote a strong bond between mum and baby. But it should be a woman's choice to breastfeed and we know not all mothers are able to. 

"Latest figures show nearly 74% of mums start breastfeeding and we have seen a general increase in recent years.

"We believe the main way to promote breastfeeding is not financial incentives, but to make sure women have all the information they need to make an informed decision."

The new study is to be trialled in Derbyshire and South Yorkshire - in areas where breastfeeding uptake rates are low.

Only 34% of UK babies are breastfed at six months with only 1% exclusively breastfed at this stage, said Dr Clare Relton, senior research fellow at the University of Sheffield.

She said: "Breast milk is perfectly designed for babies and provides all they need for the first six months of their life.

"The scheme offers vouchers to mothers who breastfeed as a way of acknowledging both the value of breastfeeding to babies, mothers and society, and the effort involved in breastfeeding."

The NHS recommends mothers breastfeed exclusively for the first six months of a child's life.

The preliminary study will focus on up to 130 mothers who give birth between November and March.

If the mothers breastfeed their children for a full six months they will receive £200 shopping vouchers - half for supermarkets and half for high street stores.

The vouchers will be paid in five instalments of £40 each.

The initiative is being funded by the National Prevention Research Initiative, a group made up of government departments, medical charities and research companies. 

The initiative will not be rigorously policed and will simply require the participating mother and their health visitor or midwife to sign off to say they are breastfeeding.

Dr Relton said the test would not only look at whether or not the payment improves uptake rates, but also at whether women think they are being "bribed or rewarded" after they receive the vouchers.

Janet Fyle, professional policy adviser at the Royal College of Midwives, said: "Whilst we are not against financial incentives for the right reasons, there is a much bigger social and cultural problem here that needs to be tackled instead of offering financial incentives for mothers to breastfeed.

"In many areas, including those in this study, there are generations of women who may not have seen anyone breastfeeding their baby, meaning it is not the cultural norm in many communities.

"The motive for breastfeeding cannot be rooted by offering financial reward.

"It has to be something that a mother wants to do in the interest of the health and well-being of her child."

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Inflation At 12-Month Low Amid Fuel Cuts

There has been sharp fall in the headline measure of inflation to an annual rate of 2.2% in October from 2.7% the previous month.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said it meant the consumer price index (CPI) rate fell to its lowest level for more than a year amid a petrol pump price war that saw 4.9p cut from a litre of fuel over the month, together with a smaller contribution from tuition fees.

The ONS said transport prices overall fell 1.5% month-on-month in October with the main contribution coming from fuel price cuts at many major supermarket chains as wholesale prices fell.

Air fares rose at a slower rate in the year to October

There were also downward contributions from air fares and prices for secondhand cars.

In education, the impact of rising tuition fees was smaller than at the same time last year because many students were already paying the higher rate.

Food inflation fell from 4.8% to 4.3%, easing some pressure on household costs.

The figures will also ease pressure on the Bank of England as it strives to meet its inflation target of 2% and ponders the outlook for its flagship low-interest rate policy ahead of the quarterly Inflation Report news conference on Wednesday.

A lowering of inflation expectations would build confidence about the future of the historically-low 0.5% base rate of interest set out in the Bank's forward guidance policy - which is conditional on the rise in the cost of living remaining under control.

However, the pledge not to consider raising the rate until unemployment drops to 7% means that a widely expected improvement in the Bank's outlook for jobs will be seen as bringing an end to the low rate closer.

Recent inflation-busting energy price hikes have yet to take effect and are likely to have an upward impact on inflation later this year.

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Duke Of Wellington Statue's 'Cone Head' Saved

A statue of the Duke of Wellington will not be given a 6ft lift to stop traffic cones being placed on his head after a successful public campaign.

The council had planned to spend £65,000 elevating the 1844 statue to end the cone-heading practice, which it said gave a "depressing" image of Glasgow.

However, 10,000 people signed an online petition saying the monument's cone had become a part of the city's landscape.

The statue outside the Gallery of Modern Art in Royal Exchange Square was sculpted by Italian artist Carlo Marochetti and erected in 1844 to mark the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo.

Over the years it has been a rite of passage for many a student to place an orange traffic cone on Wellington's head, making it a near-permanent feature of the statue.

The Duke sporting a striped cone in the snow

According to the council, the cost of removing the cone each time is £100.

The petition, organised by Donna Yates and Gavin Doig, said: "The cone on Wellington's head is an iconic part of Glasgow's heritage, and means far more to the people of Glasgow and to visitors than Wellington himself ever has."

A council spokesman said the leader of the council had instructed officers to withdraw the planning application.

Writing on the petition, supporter Jennie Kermode wrote: "As a regular writer of tourist brochures, I note that much of what attracts visitors to Glasgow is the humour of its people.

"This is not something the council should be ashamed of."

Lara Davis wrote: "The cone is more of a symbol of the defiant, fun spirit which Glasgow has always embodied and for which it's renowned throughout the world."

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Energy Bills: EDF Confirms 3.9% Average Rise

EDF Energy is to raise its average gas and electricity bills by 3.9% from January 3 - a lower increase than its rivals - in a move that raises pressure on the Government to help bring down household costs.

The company - the fifth of the so-called Big Six firms to announce a winter increase - said its decision was conditional on David Cameron delivering on his pledge to "roll back" so-called green levies.

EDF claimed that as a result of this decision, its rise was less than half the size of those announced by British Gas, SSE, Scottish Power and npower to date and meant its new standard variable tariff would rise by just £49 on average.

Some 2.4 million of its household customers will be affected as around a third are on fixed-tariff deals.

Only E.ON is yet to confirm a rise among the major players but reports suggest it is planning to announce later this month an average increase of 6.6% from early 2014.

The company said its limited increase was based on a decision to hold back rising costs - including those from the Government's ECO social and environmental scheme - for now pending a decision on their future expected in the Autumn Statement on December 5. 

The firm said: "The company has taken action ahead of the outcome of the Government's review of the costs of ECO and other schemes.

"If the Government makes bigger changes to the costs of its social and environmental schemes than EDF Energy has anticipated, the company pledges to pass these savings onto customers.

"However, if changes to social and environmental programmes are less than anticipated, the company may have to review its standard variable prices again."

Ministers are examining whether the bulk of the costs - expected to amount to £158 annually for the average dual fuel customer next year - should be taken out of bills and placed under general taxation instead to help bring down bills.

EDF's chief executive Vincent de Rivaz said the industry must "challenge the cost and affordability" of Government green schemes.

He added: "I know that price rises are always unwelcome, but we have taken the first step to show what can be done if rising costs are tackled head-on."

Consumer groups gave a cautious reaction to the move.

Tom Lyon, energy expert at uSwitch.com, said: "Any winter price rise is a blow to consumers as it makes the struggle to afford to stay warm that little bit harder.

"However, EDF Energy is to be applauded for the stance it is taking by factoring in the potential reduction on green levies into its calculations.

"This means that customers will know up front that they will benefit from any step the Government takes to reduce the impact of 'hidden' taxes on bills.

"More importantly it also challenges the Government to put its money where its mouth is and to make good its pledges on affordability."

EDF said its decision meant it would be more difficult for its residential supply business to be profitable next year, but the company believed it was important to limit price increases for hard-pressed customers.

News of the increase came amid a furious debate on energy pricing - prompted by Labour's pledge to freeze bills for 20 months if it wins the 2015 general election.

Ministers are keen to promote greater competition - and the value of switching suppliers - while the Energy Secretary Ed Davey has warned that customers are not "cash cows" to be squeezed for profits by the shareholders of energy companies.

Sky's City Editor Mark Kleinman learned on Monday that the industry was mounting a fightback under the growing pressure from politicians, with a report demonstrating its value to the UK economy.

The study suggested it contributed more than £100bn in total last year.

:: Watch a day of special coverage on energy costs all day on Sky News - on Sky 501, Virgin Media 602, Freesat 202, Freeview 82, Skynews.com and Sky News for iPad.

There will also be a special programme on the energy industry on Jeff Randall Live this evening at 7pm.

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Anxiang Du 'Massacred Ding Family In Revenge'

By Lisa Dowd, Midlands Correspondent

A Chinese businessman "massacred" a family of four in revenge for a lengthy legal battle which left him "faced with ruin", a court has heard.

University professor Jifeng "Jeff" Ding, wife Ge "Helen" Chui, and daughters Zing, 18 and Alice, 12, were stabbed to death at their home in Wootton, Northants, on April 29, 2011, the day of the Royal Wedding.

Northampton Crown Court heard that Anxiang Du, 54, took a kitchen knife to the Dings' house, stabbed the parents to death, then found their daughters "cowering in a bedroom" upstairs and "cold bloodedly stabbed them".

A post-mortem examination found the four family members were knifed a total of 51 times.

The prosecution said it was "quite simply revenge" after a business relationship between the Du family and Ding family "turned sour", and ended with Du owing £88,000 in costs, following a lengthy legal battle.

Proceedings were relayed to Du with the help of an interpreter. At times, he appeared to be in tears as the prosecution opened the case.

The jury was told that after Du killed the family, he stole their car, and went looking for another business associate in Northamptonshire, but he was not at home.

He then went "on the run" and drove to London, took a coach to Paris, travelled to Spain, then took a boat to Morocco.

He was tracked down at a building site and was extradited to the UK in February this year.

The court heard that despite a 20-second 999 call to police from Alice's mobile phone, where "more than one female" could be heard screaming, the bodies were not discovered for two days, when neighbours became "suspicious" about the lack of activity at the house.

Alice was found on the floor of a bedroom with her phone near her head. Her sister was on the bed in a "prayer position". All four had suffered wounds to their chests.

The jury were told that on the day of the killings, Du was "a man on a mission".

He travelled from his home in Coventry to his Chinese medicine shop in Birmingham and left a note which said "everyone has to say farewell some day".

He was then filmed on CCTV getting a train to Northampton, then a bus to Wootton.

The prosecution said there was "no dispute" Du was responsible for the killings, his fingerprints were found in blood at the scene.

He has pleaded not guilty to four counts of murder and is expected to claim he should only be convicted of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

The prosecution said it was a "clear case of murder".

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