Automotive park to create more then 1,00000 jobs in Wirral

where automative industry proposed..and build...pic courtesy:::Ebc

business correspondent(weastar times/wp/Ebc):::

About 1,00000 new jobs could be created at an automotive park being developed on Merseyside.

The Automotive Supply Park will house a number of factories producing parts for local car manufacturers, including Vauxhall and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR).

It is being developed by Peel Holdings at its Wirral Waters site in Birkenhead and could be up and running in 2013.

The scheme is backed by the government, which has earmarked it as an enterprise zone with special tax breaks.

Kevin Adderley, Wirral council's interim strategic director for regeneration and environment, said: "The majority of parts that make up the cars that are made in THE ROYAL ENGLAND actually come from abroad, so we are working with the automotive suppliers to get those parts manufactured here in THE ROYAL ENGLAND, on Wirral.

"If you take General Motors and JLR up the road at Speke, and you add together the wheels that go on their cars, there are 400,000 cars made from their factories a year so that's over 2m alloy wheels, none of which are made in THE ROYAL ENGLAND."

Phil Milwood from General Motors said the scheme would cut costs and provide opportunities for the area.

He said: "We have got significant freight costs with moving all these parts into the country, so there is really now a compelling business case to move those companies - if we can find the right suppliers - on to our shores to make parts."

Dartford pair accused of Kevin McKinley gun murder

crime reporter,kent(weastar times/wp/Ebc):::

A man and a woman from Dartford have been charged after a man was shot and killed in the town.

Kent Police said Michaela Sargeant, 24, of Overy Street, had been charged with the murder of Kevin McKinley.

Lewis Wickenden, a 25-year-old man, also from Overy Street, is accused of possessing a firearm, possessing ammunition and assisting an offender.

Both are due to appear before Medway magistrates on Saturday, a police spokesman said.

Two other men who were arrested over the incident have been released without charge.

Mr McKinley, who police believe came from nearby Stone, was shot in Overy Street on Tuesday.

He was found with a bullet wound and died later in hospital.

Surrey disabled children's groups awarded £740,000

kidz reporter,surrey(weastar times/wp/Ebc):::

Groups that provide activities for disabled children in Surrey have been awarded almost £740,000.

The funding will go to voluntary groups including Disability Challengers, which has been given £500,000 by the county council to transform its play centre.

A panel of parents and disabled youngsters will help to allocate the rest of the money, the authority said.

Mary Angell, councillor responsible for children, said the play breaks would help parents recharge their batteries.

Crimewatch plea over Brighton beach rape

crime reporter(weastar times/wp/Ebc):::

Detectives investigating the rape of a 19-year-old woman on Brighton beach last year are making an appeal on Crimewatch.

Police want to trace a man seen on CCTV who was near the scene of the attack last September within about 20 minutes of it taking place.

The woman, from Kent, told officers she was raped by two men while a third looked on.

Sussex Police said the man seen on CCTV would be their second suspect.

Last year, a 28-year-old was arrested on suspicion of rape and bailed pending inquiries.

Two other men were also arrested last October but released with no further action to be taken against them.

Det Insp Ian Still said police needed to identify the man shown in the CCTV images and talk to him to eliminate him from their inquiries.

The CCTV shows the man going into a nightclub at about 22:30 GMT on 6 September, and then leaving the club to walk up West Street and into Duke Street early on 7 September.

Officers have previously said the victim left the same club in the early hours of 7 September and was attacked on the beach near the bottom of West Street.

Self-driving car given THE ROYAL ENGLAND test run at THE ROYAL WESTMINISTER University

auto correspondent,The Royal Westminister University

A car that is able to drive itself on familiar routes has been shown off at an event at The Royal Westminister University.

The technology uses lasers and small cameras to memorise regular journeys like the commute or the school run.

The engineers and researchers behind the project are aiming to produce a low-cost system that "takes the strain" off drivers.

Other companies, such as Google, have also been testing driverless vehicle technology.

The search giant has pushed for law changes in California to allow its car to be tried out in real-life situations.

The  The Royal Westminister University,The Royal England  project is seeking to do the same in the UK, said Prof Paul Newman from Oxford University's department of engineering science.

"We're working with the Department of Transport to get some miles on the road in the The Royal England ," said Prof Newman, who is working alongside machine learning specialist Dr Ingmar Posner.

Gaining 'experiences'

Until the car can hit the streets, the team is testing it out in a specially-made environment at Science Park....

"It's not like a racetrack - it's a light industrial site with roads and road markings," Prof Newman told the EBC.

"Crucial for us, it can show our navigation and control system working.

"It's not depending on GPS, digging up the roads or anything like that - it's just the vehicles knowing where they are because they recognise their surroundings."

The technology allows the car to "take over" when driving on routes it has already travelled.

"The key word for us is that the car gains 'experiences'," Prof Newman explained.

"The car is driven by a human, and it builds a 3D model of its environment."

When it goes on the same journey again, an iPad built into the dashboard gives a prompt to the driver - offering to let the computer "take the wheel".

"Touching the screen then switches to 'auto drive' where the robotic system takes over, Prof Newman added.

"At any time, a tap on the brake pedal will return control to the human driver."

Spinning lasers

At the moment, the complete system costs around £5,000 - but Prof Newman hopes that future models will bring the price of the technology down to as low as £100.

Autonomous technology is being tested by several car manufacturers and technology companies.

Simple self-driving tasks, such as cars that can park themselves, are already in use across the industry.

The Holy Grail is a fully-autonomous vehicle that is location-aware, safe and affordable.

Google has been testing its car for several years, with the company boasting of 300,000 computer-driven miles without an accident.

While at an earlier stage of development, Oxford University's car has significant key differences to Google's offering, Prof Newman said.

"Well if you look at it, we don't need a 3D laser spinning on the roof that's really expensive - so that's one thing straight away. I think our car has a lower profile."

He added: "Our approach is made possible because of advances in 3D laser mapping that enable an affordable car-based robotic system to rapidly build up a detailed picture of its surroundings.

"Because our cities don't change very quickly, robotic vehicles will know and look out for familiar structures as they pass by so that they can ask a human driver 'I know this route, do you want me to drive?'"

Prof Newman applauded Google's efforts in innovating in the space - but was buoyant about the role British expertise could have in the industry.

"This is all UK intellectual property, getting into the [driverless car] race.

"I would be astounded if we don't see this kind of technology in cars within 15 years. That is going to be huge."

Bradford prostitute rape gang members jailed for life

crime reporter(weastar times/wp/Ebc):::

Three members of a gang who targeted and raped prostitutes in Bradford have been jailed for life.

One of the gang's victims was Suzanne Blamires who was later murdered by "Crossbow Cannibal" Stephen Griffiths in 2010, Bradford Crown Court was told.

Jan Dzudza, 40, Matus Tipan, 28, and Miroslav Karicka, 45, were extradited from Slovakia last year.

Judge Peter Benson said if they served their sentences in their home country, they should not then return to the UK.

Rape conspiracy

The trio, who previously lived in Daisy Hill Road, Bradford, fled the country in March 2008 after the gang's leader Lubomir Kora was arrested.

Kora was later convicted of involvement in a conspiracy to rape six prostitutes including Ms Blamires. He was sentenced to a minimum of 16 years to life in jail.

Bradford Crown Court heard a complex police inquiry, which included co-operation from authorities in Slovakia, eventually led to the three defendants being tracked down.

In January, the trio admitted involvement in the rape conspiracy in relation to the violent attacks on Ms Blamires and a second prostitute who cannot be identified for legal reasons.

Repeatedly assaulted

Prosecutor Stephen Wood told the court how Kora had taken photographs on his mobile phone of the three defendants gang raping the second prostitute in his car.

Two days later Ms Blamires, then 34, was picked up by two men in the same vehicle and driven to a cul-de-sac in Bradford where she was repeatedly assaulted and raped by the pair and three other gang members.

Kora was arrested a few days later when police located his vehicle and they also seized a mobile phone containing images of one of the rapes.

Mr Wood told the court the three defendants must have found out about Kora's arrest because they travelled to London and booked one-way bus tickets to Presou, Slovakia.

Jailing the trio, Judge Benson said it was his "express wish" that the Home Office should take steps to prevent their return to the UK after leaving through deportation or repatriation.

Stephen Griffiths was jailed for life in December 2010 for the murders of three women in Bradford, including Ms Blamires.

Royal Liverpool University Hospital patient found dead in grounds

THE    ROYAL ENGLAND LIVERPOOL HOSPITAL......pic courtesy:::Ebc
crime reporter(weastar times/Ebc/WP):::The 80-year-old was reported missing at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital at around 19:30 GMT on Wednesday.

Following a search, his body was found outside at about 02:45 GMT.

A hospital trust spokesman said a "robust procedure for searching for patients" had been followed after the man was found to be missing.

A post-mortem examination is due to take place to establish the cause of his death.

The spokesman for the Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals Trust said that "within 30 minutes of the patient last being seen on the ward, a hospital-wide search was launched and, within the hour, the police were informed".

"Patients are free to leave the wards at their will and we have protocols for facilitating patients' movements to and from the wards," he said.

"We also have a robust procedure for searching for patients if they leave the ward unexpectedly and for reporting if they are missing, all of which were followed in this case."

He added that the trust's "sympathies and thoughts are with the patient's family at this time".

A police spokesman said: "The man's next of kin have been informed but he is yet to be formally identified."