EDITORIAL:::TAKE STRICT ACTION AGINST RAPER ALEX HEPBURN-A SO CALLED COUNTY CRICKETER

ITS VERY IMPORTANT TO KNOW RAPER AND LAW&ENFORCMENT AUTHOURITY OF UK THAT ITS A MATTER OF PRESTIGE FOR UK  COUNTY CRICKET CLUB OF ENGLAND .UK IS FREE SEX COUNTRY WHERE A ADULT MAN AND WOMEN CAN EASYLY SEX OR LIVE TOGETHER BY EACH  OTHER OPINION AND RESPECT WITHOUT MARRIGE.UK IS NOT 3RD WORLD COUNTRY OR 2ND WORLD COUNTRY.WORLD KNOW THE BRITISH PEOPLE MAN OR WOMEN OR CHILD MOSTLY GENTEL THEN OTHER NATION ACROSS THE WORLD.  ITS A 1ST WORLD COUNTRY.WHATS THE LESSON TAKEN FROM UK THE REST OF THE WORLD??????????????WHERE RAP IS SIMPLE THING THAT PLACES ARE NOT FREE SEX COUNTRY AND DIFFICULT TO SEX OR LIVETOGETHER WITHOUT MARRIGE AS WELL PEOPLE ARE NOT GENTEL ALL MOST ARE MOTHER FUCKER LOWER CLASS.THAT 3RD WORL COUNTRIES.

WHY UK HAPPEN IS DANGER RAPING SITUATION.A FREE SEX COUNTRY,1ST WORLD COUNTRY,HONARABLE COUNTRY,VERY MUCH GENTEL COUNTRY . WHERE WITHOUT HAVING MARRIGE CAN EASILY SEX..THERE ARE NIGHT CLUB,BAR WHERE CAN ADULT MAN WOMEN MEET EASYLY.

A SO CALLED CRICKET PLAYER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OF WORCHSTERSHIRE WHAT HE DID WITH A INNOCENT WOMEN..DOES HE HAVE NO MOTHER OR SISTER?DOES HE CAN SEX WITH HIS MOTHER OR SISTER......IS HE SO OF BEACH ..HIS MOTHER MUST BE A DIRTIEST WOMEN WHOSE SON DOES NOT MINIMUM RESPECT HONARABLE WOMENS.

WE ARE VERY SOCKED AND ASK THE APPROPRIATE AUTHOURITY OF UK-HIS CRICKET CLUB&GOVT  TAKE STRICT ACTION AGINST HIM BANNED HIS CRICKET PLAYING FORLIFETIME AND TO AVOID AND STOP PERMENENTLY SUCH THIS KIND VIOLENCE AGINST WOMEN...JUST CUT PENIS OF HIM AND GIVE HIM LONG TIME PRISON REQUIRE FOR PROPER JUSTICE.

WE HOPE IT WILL HAPPEN URGENTLY REQUIRE FOR STOP VIOLENCE AND STOP RAP IN BEAUTIFUL,AND GENTEL NATION UK TO MAKE ADJECT GENDER EQUELITY  PROCESS.RESPECT ALL WOMEN PROPERLY,HONARLY.

County cricketer 'raped sleeping woman after helping set up sexual conquest game'

Pic:::Alex Hepburn, who plays for Worcestershire CCC ( PA )
Crime reporter(wp/es):

A county cricket player raped a sleeping woman after helping to set up a sexual conquest "game" with friends on WhatsApp, a court has heard.

Alex Hepburn, who plays for Worcestershire CCC, is alleged to have attacked the woman in a dark bedroom after she had consensual sex with one of his teammates.

Miranda Moore QC said the alleged victim realised she was not with the teammate, Joe Clarke, when she touched Hepburn's hair and he then spoke in an Australian accent.

Hepburn, of Portland Street, Worcester, denies two counts of rape, and claims the alleged victim was awake and that initial kissing led to consensual sexual contact.

Opening the prosecution's case, Miranda Moore QC told Worcester Crown Court a member of the public dialled 999 in the early hours after finding the complainant "distressed and crying" in the street in April 2017.

Ms Moore said the woman had sex with 23-year-old Hepburn because she believed he was "the man she fell asleep with" and was left horrified when she realised he was not Mr Clarke.

Describing the aftermath of the alleged attack to the jury, Ms Moore added: "Immediately she pulls away, she says 'Where's Joe?'.

"Hepburn says to her 'You are beautiful' and tries to encourage her to continue having sex with him but she is having absolutely none of it."

The woman, who cannot be identified, told Hepburn he was a "sick bastard" and phoned a friend to tell her about the alleged rape, the court heard.

Taking jurors through WhatsApp messages found on Hepburn's mobile, Ms Moore alleged that a "stat chat" group he took part in was set up to record details of women its members had slept with.

The court was told references had been made in the WhatsApp group to "freshies" and "re-heats", alleged to relate to women its members had or had not slept with previously.

After taking the jury through "rules" posted on the group days before the alleged rape, Ms Moore told the court: "From the prosecution point of view it may well be that what was on this defendant's phone will help you in deciding what he was up to that night.

"It detailed the game that these young men engaged in and intended to follow.

"This game had precious little to do with cricket."

Among the rules was a request for "every freshie" to be "rated out of 10" and a stipulation that the "winner" be able to gloat and enjoy a free night out paid for by other members.

At the end of her opening address to the jury, Ms Moore said of Hepburn: "The 'score' that he hoped to make may well help you in the explanation as to what he was doing to her.

"He saw that girl asleep in the bed and decided to take advantage.

"That is what this case is about, this defendant's attitude to women."

A police interview conducted with the alleged victim shortly after the offence was played to the jury during Monday's evidence.

In the video, the woman told a police officer she had assumed she was having sex with Mr Clarke, who was of a similar height and build, before "panic set in" when she saw Hepburn.

"I said you have just had sex with me whilst I was asleep," she told the interviewing officer. "I couldn't believe what had just happened."

Westminster Council's £1.2m facelift for iconic Victorian lampposts

Staff reporter,london(wp/es):

Westminster council is spending £1.2 million to refurbish the historic lamp columns lining the Victoria Embankment in the run-up to its 150th anniversary next year. 

Known as the Sturgeons because of their fish design, the cast-iron lampposts were installed along the river wall to mark its completion. 

Designed by architect George John Vulliamy, they were originally gas lamps, before being converted to electric early in the 20th century, and LED lighting seven years ago.

However, much of the original ornate detail has been obscured by coats of paint over the years. The columns are being removed for the first time to be grit-blasted back to the bare metal, before being repaired and repainted.

Tim Mitchell, Westminster City Council’s cabinet member for environment and city management, said: “The ­Victoria Embankment Sturgeons serve as an iconic reminder of our capital’s cultural heritage and we are the custodians of this important part of Westminster’s history.

“As Grade II listed assets, we have a duty to keep these lampposts in good condition for the enjoyment of people now and future generations.”

The first batch of 16 lampposts were repaired and reinstalled in the autumn, and another batch are currently being refurbished. It is hoped the project will be finished by June this year.

University a 'false promise' for too many youngsters

University reporter(wp/bbc):

Up to a quarter of students in England are doing degrees that will not give them sufficient earnings to justify the cost of their loans, a think tank says.

The centre-right group urges ministers to cut places on those courses offering little financial return and increase those in post-18 technical education.

Its study also says tax breaks of up to 50p in every pound owed should be offered to graduates repaying loans.

The government is carrying out a review of post-18 education and funding.

The Onward report acknowledges that "education has a value in its own right" and that "earning a living is not the only reason people study" but says too many young people "are being sold a false promise".

"Too many are facing hefty repayments for degrees that won't help them financially and too few are being offered quality technical and apprenticeship options instead," it says.

• Which courses boost wages the most?
• The degrees that make you rich... and the ones that don't
• Tuition fee value: 'I feel ripped off'

The study says, in 2015-16:

• between 18% and 25% of undergraduates were studying for degrees that fail to deliver a lifetime-earnings premium that justifies the average student debt, from tuition fees and maintenance loans, of £50,000
• 40% of undergraduates were enrolled in courses that led to median earnings below the student-loan repayment threshold, of £25,000, after five years
• 10% were enrolled in courses with median earnings below £25,000 10 years after graduation - representing 134,000 students every year who won't be paying back anything 10 years after graduating yet who will have accumulated significant interest
• 20% would be no better off five years after graduating than if they had chosen to take a non-university route, such as an apprenticeship.
• The Onward report urges the government to:
  • halve repayments on students loans, by introducing a tax cut for graduates worth 50p in every pound owed
  • cut the number of places on courses that offer limited value for money to students 10 years after graduation
  • increase the number in post-18 technical education, currently the "ugly duckling" of British education
  Co-author of the report and Tory MP Neil O'Brien said: "Too many students are effectively being mis-sold a university education."
  There was a "substantial minority who don't earn much but get left with big debts", he said.
  "We should steer people away from courses that don't lead to good outcomes."
  A spokeswoman for the Department for Education said: "Students rightly expect value for money from their degree, which is why the government is conducting a major review of post-18 education and funding - to ensure we have a system that is joined up, accessible to all and provides value for money for both students and taxpayers."

UK 'needs millions of homes to solve housing crisis'

Staff reporter(wp/bbc):

The UK must build three million new social homes over 20 years to solve the "housing crisis", a report says.

Housing charity Shelter says upfront costs of £11bn a year could come from housing benefit savings by moving tenants from high-cost privately rented homes to social housing.

Existing schemes such as Help-to-Buy are a less effective use of taxpayers' money, the report claims.

The government says providing "quality and fair social housing is a priority".

It plans to build 250,000 homes by 2022, including homes for social rent.

Social rent properties are currently set aside for those in most need and are let on long-term tenancies.

he report claims 1.3 million homes are needed to house those in greatest need - including homeless people and those living with a disability.

Shelter estimates 277,000 people are now homeless in England, most commonly because they have lost their privately rented homes.

An extra 1.2 million homes would be made available under the plans, the charity says, for younger families who cannot afford to buy and "face a lifetime in expensive and insecure private renting".

A lack of readily available social housing has led to a "drop in the numbers of young families moving into ownership, the rise of pensioners in insecure unaffordable private rentals, and the homelessness that scars our society", the report found.

The report was authored by 16 independent commissioners brought together by Shelter to examine housing in England, including former Labour leader Ed Miliband, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, Baroness Doreen Lawrence, TV architect George Clarke and Grenfell survivor Ed Daffarn.

Shelter said the report was partially inspired by the Grenfell Tower fire and the belief "the disaster must mark a turning point in how we talk about social housing".

Shandor's story

Shandor, 48, became homeless when an accident at work caused him to fall behind on his rent.

After six months in a homeless shelter, he and his eight-year-old son Billy moved into a permanent social home.

He said: "The night before I was evicted, I was given a place in a homeless shelter. There were people there with serious mental health issues.

"I had my son Billy every weekend and it was not a good place for him to be.

"We now have a wonderful little one-bedroom flat, which is our home. The sheer satisfaction of hanging pictures on the wall with picture hooks rather than Blu Tack is incredible.

"Billy is more settled and is starting to make new friends."

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Building 3.1 million new social homes would cost an average of £10.7bn a year, according to analysis carried by research group Capital Economics on behalf of Shelter.

But Shelter claims the government would save £60bn over 30 years if it can make renting cheaper.

The charity said the housing benefit system was being kept unnecessarily expensive because of more people renting privately at higher costs.

It said having more social housing would lower rents.

Existing schemes such as Help-to-Buy have produced a relatively small number of additional homes, the report says.

It claims the scheme has enabled people on relatively high incomes to buy expensive homes.

Former chair of the Conservative Party, Baroness Warsi, said: "Social mobility has been decimated by decades of political failure to address our worsening housing crisis.

"We simply cannot afford not to act."

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) said a further £2bn had been committed as part of a 10-year home building programme through to 2028.

"Councils have been given extra freedom to build the social homes their communities need and expect," a government spokesman added.

UK factories view border delays as a major Brexit risk - EEF

Business reporter(wp/reuters):

More than three-quarters of British manufacturers say delays at the border after Brexit would be a risk for their business, a survey from an industry body showed on Monday.

Britain is due to leave the European Union on March 29 but what will actually happen on that day remains far from clear — a problem for businesses which routinely import and export goods and materials.

The future of Prime Minister Theresa May’s deal struck with the EU hangs in the balance as a parliamentary vote looms, raising the possibility of Britain leaving the EU without a deal to smooth the economic shock.

Monday’s report from the EEF manufacturing association and insurer AIG showed 76 percent of their members thought delays at the border represented a risk to their business.

“While companies are naturally optimistic by their very nature, the spectre of Brexit is now very front of mind for manufacturers,” EEF chief executive Stephen Phipson said.

“This is bringing with it a whole host of risks from increased exchange rate volatility to rising input costs which right now are very difficult to plan for.”

The survey showed 62 percent of manufacturers were looking to stockpile goods ahead of Brexit - something that has already given a temporary boost to factory activity, according to a business survey last week. [GB/PMIM]

The EEF/AIG survey of 242 companies took place between Nov. 1 and Nov. 29.

Britain to expand drone exclusion zone after Gatwick chaos

Staff reporter(wp/reuters):

Britain will extend a drone exclusion zone five-fold and give police new powers against lawbreaking operators, the government said on Monday, after sightings last month paralysed the nation’s second busiest airport.

The changes announced in parliament by the transport minister, Chris Grayling, followed pre-Christmas disruption at Gatwick airport where drone flyovers led to 1,000 flight cancellations affecting 140,000 passengers.

The military was drafted in to help.

“The disruption caused by drones to flights at Gatwick airport last month was deliberate, irresponsible and calculated, as well as illegal,” Grayling told parliament.

The Ministry of Defence remained on standby to deal with any further problems at Gatwick or any other airport, he added.

The government said the drone exclusion zone around airports would be extended to about 5 km (3 miles) — with additional extensions at runway ends — from 1 km now.

Grayling said the government would also begin testing the use of counter-drone technology as part of its response to a consultation begun before December’s disruption.

EU looks at help for May, but will not rework Brexit deal

Political reporter(wp/reuters):
The European Union is considering ways to help Prime Minister Theresa May convince the British parliament to back the Brexit treaty she agreed with EU leaders last month but ruled out on Monday any change to the deal.
EU sources told Reuters that senior officials in Brussels are discussing whether and how to issue “reassurances” that might help May overcome resistance to the deal before lawmakers vote in London next week.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told CNBC he hoped the EU and United Kingdom could find a way to avoid “negative ramifications from a hard Brexit related not only to commerce and trade, but importantly to the national security issues that we have with the British as well as the European Union.”

Among the reassurances EU officials were considering was a request they said May put to fellow EU leaders at a summit before the Christmas break, on Dec. 14, to commit to having a new UK-EU free trade treaty in place by the end of 2021. However, the European Union shows no sign of going beyond an existing aspiration to do that, not a hard promise.

The date is important as it could allow May to assure her own party and others that the unpopular “Irish backstop” in the treaty would not be triggered after a status-quo transition period ends some time by 2022.

The backstop would bind Britain to follow EU rules to avoid a “hard” customs border across the island of Ireland unless a better way is agreed to do that by means of a new trade pact. Critics of May’s deal to smooth Britain’s passage out of the EU on March 29 say the backstop could leave Britain subject to EU rules indefinitely, long after it gives up any say over them.

EU officials familiar with the discussions said they saw little sign of any shift in the position of EU leaders last month, when they said the agreement could not be renegotiated and they would make no binding commitments that could be construed as altering it.

“We can provide reassurances,” one official said. “But whatever it might be will just reiterate the (summit) conclusions from last month.”

Among ways in which the EU could offer more detail and clarity on its agreed position, officials said, would be an exchange of legal letters with the British government setting out expectations of when a trade deal could be completed. However, EU leaders are wary of introducing legal ambiguity if the language of any statement differs from the original text.

The EU executive repeated on Monday that leaders would not renegotiate the treaty and said it was pressing on with planning for Britain to crash out of the Union without a deal.

“The deal that is on the table is the best and the only deal possible,” the European Commission’s chief spokesman Margaritis Schinas told reporters when asked about a phone conversation on Friday between May and Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.

“This deal will not be renegotiated.”

He also repeated that there were no talks planned between negotiators from the two sides as “negotiations are complete”.

Schinas said that Juncker’s conversation with May on Friday was “friendly” and that the two would speak again this week. May also spoke last week to EU summit chair Donald Tusk.