Three teens arrested after mass brawl breaks out between up to 70 youths outside Clarks shoe store

Crime reporter,London(wp/es):

Three teenagers have been arrested after a mass brawl involving up to 70 youths broke out outside a Clarks shoe store in a town centre in west London.

Police were forced to set up a “dispersal zone” in Uxbridge after a fight between a swarm of schoolchildren erupted on Monday. The order means that anyone who refuses to leave the area or returns after being moved on can be arrested. 

Video footage of the fight shows several teenagers girls punching and kicking each other, with one ending up on the floor.

It also appears to show adults attempting to break up the brawl as punches are thrown. Many of the youngsters in the video are wearing their school uniform. 

A security guard was eventually able to detain one of the teenage girls who appeared to be involved from the beginning of the fight.

Met Police said on Saturday that three people had been arrested in connection with the disorder.

A 17-year-old boy has been detained on suspicion of GBH, affray and handling stolen goods, while another boy, aged 14, was arrested for affray.

A 16-year-old girl was arrested for affray and ABH. Police said enquiries were ongoing. 

Police were called to the scene at about 5.30pm on Monday.

Riding rollercoasters an effective way of removing kidney stones, research finds

Pic:Roller coasters are an effective way of removing kidney stones, research has found ( PA )
Health reporter(wp/es):

Taking a ride on certain types of rollercoasters can successfully remove kidney stones, new research has found. 

Scientists who suggested rollercoasters could be used to remove kidney stones are among those to be recognised with a coveted Ig Nobel prize.

The spoof awards, held at Harvard University and organised by US magazine Annals of Improbable Research, celebrate unusual, funny but practical scientific work.

Inspiration behind the work came from a patient of Professor David Wartinger at Michigan State University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine who had visited Florida’s Disney World. 

After returning, the man said a ride on the Big Thunder Mountain rollercoaster had managed to dislodge one of his kidney stones.

He went on the rollercoaster again to see if it was the ride which helped remove the stone or whether it was just a coincidence, only for another one to dislodge shortly after.  

Big Thunder Mountain was particularly effective in comparison to other adrenaline-filled rides such as Space Mountain because of the way it moves the rider around, Professor Wartinger found.

The research is one of 10 awards given out at the Ig Nobels ceremony this year, which commemorate scientific discoveries and research deemed funny or unusual. 

Other prizes won this year include the biology award which was taken by Swedish researchers who demonstrated that, by using their sense of smell, wine experts can reliably identify a fly in a glass of wine. 

A researcher from Britain took home the Nutrition Prize for establishing that pound per pound it is not worth consuming human flesh in comparison with other meats.

PM admits she gets 'irritated' by debate over her leadership

Pic:Theresa May admit she gets "irritated" by the debate over her leadership (PA)
Political reporter(wp/es):

Theresa May has slapped down Boris Johnson’s “suicide vest” Brexit remarks and admitted she gets “irritated” by the debate over her leadership.

The Prime Minister insisted she was focused on the country's future rather than her own, in a BBC interview to mark the six-month countdown to Brexit.

Mrs May criticised Mr Johnson for using "completely inappropriate" language when he described her Brexit strategy as putting the UK in a "suicide vest".

Around 50 Brexiteers met to war-game ways to oust the Prime Minister on Tuesday evening and Mr Johnson is widely-expected to vie to replace Mrs May.

Asked if she would reassure the Conservative party she was not determined to go on and on, the PM told BBC Panorama's Inside No 10: Deal or No Deal?: "I get a little bit irritated but this debate is not about my future, this debate is about the future of the people of the UK and the future of the United Kingdom.

"That's what I'm focused on and that's what we should all be focused on.

"It's ensuring that we get that good deal from the European Union which is good for people in the UK, wherever they live in the UK, that's what's important for us ... It's the future of people in the UK that matters."

Mr Johnson faced a Tory backlash after comparing Mrs May's Brexit plan to a "suicide vest" and his former communications director, Guto Harri, said on Saturday that his ex-boss was "digging his political grave".

Mrs May said the former foreign secretary's comments were "not right".

"I have to say that that choice of language is completely inappropriate," she said.

"I was home secretary for six years, and as Prime Minister for two years now I think using language like that was not right and it's not language I would have used."

The PM was once described as "bloody difficult woman" by former Cabinet minister Ken Clarke, and later claimed the description as a badge of honour.

She told the programme that person is "still there", but "there's a difference between those who think you can only be bloody difficult in public, and those who think actually you bide your time, and you're bloody difficult when the time is right - and when it really matters."
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Computers learn to pinpoint deadly tumours

Health reporter,London(wp/es):

Patients with an increasingly deadly cancer could receive quicker and more effective treatment after a “potentially game-changing” breakthrough using computers to pinpoint the location of tumours.

Experts at University College London Hospitals and Google’sartificial intelligence firm DeepMind Health have taught the machines to analyse CT scans of head and neck cancers.

Early results suggest the computers can read the scans as accurately as human radiographers and oncologists — but in a fraction of the time.

This could allow UCLH — a specialist cancer centre for north and east London and Essex — to treat more patients.

It might also mean patients could receive “adaptive” radiotherapy, where the treatment is repeatedly retargeted as the tumour changes shape or shrinks.

There are over 12,000 diagnoses of head and neck cancers a year in the UK, and 4,000 deaths. 

It is twice as common in men than women and can be hard to treat as tumours may be close to the eyes or other organs. Mortality rates have risen 14 per cent in the past decade.

Today’s breakthrough is expected to lead to the launch of clinical trials by the end of the year.

It follows a DeepMind success at Moorfields Eye Hospital, where computers were found to be as effective as humans at analysing scans for signs of eye disease.

Kevin Sullivan, UCLH’s head of cancer services, said: “It is very early days but the findings so far are really exciting. Having an automated system which could reduce part of radiotherapy planning from hours to minutes is potentially game-changing.

“It could enable us to treat patients more quickly and effectively, with the ultimate goal of improving the outlook for people with head and neck cancer.”

It normally takes clinicians up to four hours to mark up cancerous and healthy tissue on CT scans before radiotherapy, a process called “segmentation”.

Scans can be taken seven to 14 days before treatment, leaving a chance they could be out of date, resulting in the therapy not being as precise as possible.

Researchers used more than 800 scans from 500 UCLH patients to create an algorithm that “directs” the computer’s hunt for cancer. The system was double-checked against scans from the US.

Mr Sullivan said: “This will not replace clinicians. We will need radiographers and doctors to review results of the al-gorithm, and physicists will continue to develop radiotherapy treatment plans. But the algorithm will save time.”

Moped gang seals off entire road to launch £100,000 raid on jewellers in Wimbledon Village

Crime reporter,London(wp/es):

A moped gang armed with knives  and acid set up a roadblock in one of London’s most upmarket shopping streets to mount a £100,000 ramraid on an exclusive jewellers.

Terrified staff locked themselves in a storeroom as the gang of four, on two motorcycles, crashed through the front of Michael Platt in the heart of Wimbledon Village.

The robbers, clad in black with black helmets, threatened bystanders with a knife and spray bottles believed to contain acid. They dragged a “Road Closed” sign left behind from works and left it in the middle of Church Road. 

Passers-by leapt into shops and cafes for safety as the raid, which lasted just minutes, unfolded at about 12.45pm yesterday. The gang fled with bags full of bespoke items from the business, which is owned by Wayne and Elayne Myers. Mr Myers said: “They grabbed the sign and put it in the road to divert traffic away. Then they drove straight into the door and flattened it. The staff were terrified.

“While they were raiding the shop the guys on the other bike were stopping traffic on the road. As one woman tried to video them he threatened to spray what we think was acid at her. They were also waving a knife. This was very violent, but no one was injured.”

Today, just 24 hours after the raid, he defiantly reopened the store, saying: “It’s business as usual, we will not let these thugs beat us.

 “We will not cower against these brazen people who need to be stopped. We are a small independent business and they are one-off items but we will not be beaten.” Among the jewellery stolen was an 18 carat platinum ring, pendants and bracelets.

Mrs Myers said: “These people are the slime of society. But they will not get the better of us. It’s hard enough for small businesses without this. But we will show our grit and carry on. These people need to be caught.”

The couple said that one of the mopeds used in the raid had been found dumped only a couple of miles away on the A3.

Another witness said: “They were shouting and stopping the traffic. They had a spray they were using as a weapon.We thought it was acid.

“A lot of people ran into a cafe. It  was bizarre that this was happening in leafy Wimbledon in the middle of the day.”

Scotland Yard appealed for witnesses to the raid to come forward. There have been no arrests.

Hundreds of empty London railway arches to be reopened after £1.5bn sale

Pic:Network Rail has agreed to sell its commercial property portfolio ( AFP)
Business reporter(wp/es);

The new owner of Network Rail’s £1.5 billion commercial property portfolio has revealed plans to invest in reopening up to 430 empty arches in London.

Property investors Blackstone and Telereal Trillium, which yesterday won the bid to buy 5200 properties, including over 4000 railway arches, today outlined the proposals and tried to calm tenants’ fears over rental hikes.

Telereal Trillium’s managing director Adam Dakin told the Standard there are 930 vacant arches across England and Wales, and he wants to look at reopening swathes of the 430 that are located in London. They are spread throughout the capital, from Stratford to Herne Hill, to Battersea and Camden.

Dakin said his firm wants to support existing trader tenants in London, including breweries, gyms and hairdressers, who number more than a thousand.

Dakin said: “We want to keep the quirky and independent nature of the tenant mix.”

He added that the landlord is prepared to put money aside to help small businesses if they are struggling.

The buyers beat rival bidders including Kildare Partners and Guy Hands’ Terra Firma. Network Rail hired Rothschild to put the portfolio up for sale last year.

Will Brett of the New Economics Foundation think-tank, which is supporting the Guardians of the Arches campaign group, said many tenants had already been forced out by “eye-watering” rents.

“Any new owner is going to have to work very hard to prove they are genuinely on the side of small businesses based in arches.”

Sammy Forway, who runs The Underdog gallery at the Crucifix Lane Arch, London Bridge, said: “My message to the new owner is please work with and nurture the existing businesses, and promote new ventures to keep a loyal and long-term tenancy.”

Network Rail said it will reinvest the proceeds of the sale. 

Pregnant mothers warned: eat a child’s leftovers and you could make baby deaf

Health reporter(wp/es):

Pregnant women were today advised not to kiss their children on the lips or finish their uneaten fish fingers to avoid contracting a “stealth virus” that could seriously harm their unborn child.

Experts at St George’s, University of London have launched a trial to raise awareness of the dangers of the common but little-known disease CMV (cytomegalovirus), which is a major cause of childhood disability.

It can be passed by children via saliva on part-eaten food, blood, urine and other bodily fluids — but is eradicated with only soap and water. 

Hand hygiene after nappy changing is crucial, while other common parenting habits such as licking clean a baby’s dropped dummy are discouraged.

Everyone should know ... this virus changed my life

 

Soon after their second son Toby was born, Gayle and Alex Book were told he was profoundly deaf. 

Nine months later, a full diagnosis revealed he had multiple disabilities due to CMV, which she had contracted while pregnant. 

“It has changed my life,” said Mrs Book, 40, from Greenwich, who has given up her job in finance to care for Toby. 

The couple have another son Joshua, seven. Toby, now four, is enrolled at a special needs school. 

He has cochlear hearing implants to help him communicate, but he is unable to speak or eat unaided and has mobility and development issues. 

Mrs Book said it was “insane” awareness of CMV was so low.

Project leader Dr Chrissie Jones, of St George’s and Southampton universities, told the Evening Standard: “The most important message is not to come into contact with the saliva of a young child. 

"We would discourage women from sharing food. It’s quite common for parents to finish uneaten meals, such as fish fingers. Don’t kiss your children directly on the lips, kiss them on the forehead.”

CMV affects about 1,000 babies born in the UK each year, of which 200 suffer problems such as cerebral palsy, deafness, mobility problems, small head size, epilepsy and developmental delay. 

It can also cause miscarriage and stillbirth. Babies born with the infection but who do not display symptoms immediately remain at risk of hearing loss later in life. 

There is no NHS screening due to the difficulty of establishing which infections are likely to cause harm, nor is there a vaccine.

The trial aims to recruit 400 mothers with a child under three who are planning another pregnancy. Researchers want to see whether showing the women a video with advice on improved hand hygiene can reduce the spread of the virus.

The researchers do not want to cause unnecessary alarm: CMV is common in adults and children and unlikely to cause harm in the majority of cases. 

Dr Jones added: “For pregnant women, the most common way [to catch it] would be from a young child who is shedding the virus in urine and saliva. It’s those children who are going to nursery or playgroup who are most likely to pick up CMV from another child, where they are playing with toys that have been in another child’s mouth. 

"The virus is transmitted from the mother to the baby in the womb. The pregnant woman may think they have had a heavy cold or feel a bit under the weather.”

Dr Anna Calvert, research fellow at St George’s, said: “One of the frustrations that families have is that they didn’t know anything about this virus. Their passion for raising awareness has really motivated us to undertake this study."