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MPs back election reform referendum

A referendum on changing the way MPs are elected will be held by October next year under Government plans passed by the Commons.

Army 'ill-equipped for new tasks'

Seven years of fighting on two fronts in Iraq and Afghanistan have left the armed forces ill-prepared to take on any new tasks, MPs warned.

Pc Blakelock, a father of three, was murdered by a machete-wielding gang 20 years ago during riots in Tottenham, north London

Broadwater Farm murder: man held

A man has been arrested over the murder of Pc Keith Blakelock during the 1985 Broadwater Farm riots.

MPs urged to back tax on banks

Politicians have been urged to back a "Robin Hood tax" on banks' financial transactions to raise billions of pounds to fight poverty, protect public services and fight climate change.

Around 8,500 Toyota Prius cars are to be recalled

8,500 Toyota cars in brakes recall

Beleaguered Japanese motor company Toyota suffered further embarrassment when it ordered a recall of 8,500 cars in the UK due to a brake problem.

Kraft reverses Cadbury factory vow

Food giant Kraft has signalled the loss of up to 400 jobs by announcing the closure of a Cadbury factory - despite earlier promises to keep it open.

Ambitious plans were unveiled for a giant leap into space that would create a UK industry worth �40 billion a year and 100,000 new jobs

UK space industry plans unveiled

Ambitious plans have been unveiled for a giant leap into space that would create a UK industry worth £40 billion a year and 100,000 new jobs.

Rise in illness among UK troops

Defence chiefs must do more to tackle a sharp rise in the number of British troops in Afghanistan suffering from illness and minor injuries, the National Audit Office has said.

Private Sean McDonald who was killed in Afghanistan alongside Corporal John Moore

Afghanistan deaths soldiers named

Two soldiers killed in Afghanistan as Britain's death toll in the conflict matched that of the Falklands War have been hailed for their bravery.

BBC stars paid �54m, figures show

The BBC spends £54 million on its top-earning stars, according to new figures.

Anger as BBC hides pay of its �229m stars

BBC accused of having a 'culture of secrecy' after it refused to reveal how much it pays its top presenters and stars Comments

Ali Dizaei stripped of his �90,000 Met salary as he begins jail term

Disgraced police chief Ali Dizaei was stripped of his �90,000 salary as he starts a four-year prison term on a wing for vulnerable prisoners at Wandsworth jail Comments

ES Comment: Ali Dizaei and the damage to the Met

Fhazio Mulwinda, Earl Webb, Reece Gray, Katakyie Addae-Kodua, Dimitri Kasongo and Dwayne Mattison

Jail for Tube and bus gang who terrorised commuters

Eight teenagers in a gang called the 'Smooth Money Makers' have been sentenced to between two and four years each for attacking and robbing terrified Tube and bus passengers Comments

Drunk train guard ignored red light and refused to let passengers off

Drunken train guard signalled his driver to go through a red light and refused to open doors to let passengers on or off during a terrifying journey between Waterloo and Kingston Comments

Tories break �smell test� pledge to repay hundreds in expenses

David Cameron�s pledge to 'smell test' the expenses of Tory MPs is undermined today by the disclosure that some have yet to make repayments that were announced seven months ago Comments

Heavy snow to hit London as Britain braces for freezing temperatures

London warned to expect snow showers tonight and tomorrow with up to four inches forecast for Kent Comments

Repairs: Snow and big freeze leaves London with �100m bill

Lover �battered garden expert to death after sex in woods�

Gardening expert at the centre of a love triangle was killed with a rock after one of her partners found out about the other, the Old Bailey hears

Latest UK news

Brown takes firm stand on voting reform

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Pensioner killed after bus mounts pavement

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Five British soldiers held over Lanzarote brawl

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Labour breaches rules on privacy with phone call campaign

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Teenage pedestrian killed in BMW smash

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Katie Price hits out

Glamour model angered by rumours her week-old marriage to Alex Reid is already in trouble

ES Film Awards

A star-studded ceremony celebrated the best in British film at the Evening Standard Film Awards

Pollution is �taking 10 years off the lives of Londoners'

Londoners are having up to 10 years wiped off their lives by poor air quality, a leading academic warns Comments

25 years on Scotland Yard make 'significant' arrest over Pc Blakelock murder

40-year-old man arrested in connection with murder of Pc Keith Blakelock in Broadwater Farm riots 25 years ago

David Cameron�s A-lister Twitters against party �dinosaurs�

Tory party scrambling to rescue career of one of David Cameron�s favourite women candidates after her campaign for a key London seat descended into chaos Comments

John Terry: Chelsea fans support has been 'incredible'

Embattled Chelsea captain praises the backing he has received from the club's fans Comments

Hero Heathrow pilot tells of crash as report into incident reveals fuel flow fault

Hero BA pilot who averted disaster when his plane crash-landed at Heathrow airport tells of his fear that all 152 people on board were going to die Comments

Scratched photo costs schoolgirl �360 Oyster card

An 11-year-old girl faces a one-year free travel ban after she was stripped of her Oyster card because it was 'scratched' Comments

World News

Nuclear threat? US calls for sanctions on Iran

International Headlines

Swags and nags: Car thieves leave interesting invitation

Archbishop Desmond Tutu's touching tale

Steady on Garth, I don't care about Terry's balls

Border Agency under fire as hundreds of immigration errors highlighted

Britain's immigration system is not operating effectively and faces a damaging loss of public support, a report warns Comments

Paul Gascoigne arrested twice in two days

Former England football star Paul Gascoigne is held by police again, just after being bailed for another arrest

Arrest: Gazza bailed after 'takeaway disturbance'

Boys, 10, accused of raping eight-year-old

Two 10-year-old boys appear in court in their school uniforms accused of raping an eight-year-old girl

Restaurant boss testifies over worker�s river death

Restaurateur tells the Old Bailey of the night an employee plunged to his death in the Thames after a fancy dress party

FSA chief Hector Sants steps down

The City�s top regulator, Hector Sants, is quitting as chief executive of the Financial Services Authority Comments

Harriet Harman attacks BBC over 'disappearing older women'

BBC needs to 'wake up' to the dearth of older females on its programmes, Women and Equality Minister Harriet Harman said Comments

BBC chief: We will walk away from pay talks with stars

10-metre-high projection on the Bank of England

'Robin Hood' tax on banks could raise �250bn a year to fight poverty

Charities launched a campaign calling for a 'Robin Hood Tax' on banks to raise �250 billion a year to tackle poverty. Comments

Rugby player set fire to clubhouse after disabled mother died

Rugby player who burned down Feltham Rugby Football Club's clubhouse is spared jail after a judge hears his disabled mother died in his arms Comments

Gordon Brown urged to concentrate on spending

Gordon Brown should forget about reducing the budget deficit and continue spending to speed up recovery from credit crunch, leading economist says Comments

Rio Ferdinand stars in National Portrait Gallery's latest pitch to public

England football captain Rio Ferdinand is the new face of the National Portrait Gallery � in a campaign which has coincided with his rise to the role after John Terry�s fall from grace Comments

Hundreds of car owners flood Toyota phones amid Prius recall

Toyota is overwhelmed with more calls from worried drivers after it recalled 8,500 Prius cars over brake problems Comments

Oldest swingers in town: �40,000 playground for pensioners in Hyde Park

London is to get its first 'pensioners' playground' in the heart of Hyde Park after approval was given for an outdoor gym for the over-sixties Comments

Arshile Gorky�s The Artist And His Mother, and his photo

Tate displays Arshile Gorky art remembering his mother

Two haunting paintings of artist Arshile Gorky and his mother can be seen together for the first time at the Tate Comments

Chelsea fans to get free health checks on matchdays

Chelsea fans are being offered health checks before weekend home matches in a mobile screening unit at the ground Comments

Barclays bank chief: Barack Obama may harm global recovery

Barclays chief executive John Varley warns that Barack Obama�s plans to cut the size and limit risk-taking by banks could damage the global economic revival Comments

Man pulled alive from rubble 27 days after Haiti earthquake

Man pulled alive from a collapsed building in Haiti�s capital 27 days after the earthquake struck and 18 days after the government gave up looking for survivors Comments

Londoner held in Iraq on terrorism charges for more than a year speaks of ordeal

London businessman locked up in Iraq for more than a year on terrorism charges has spoken of his ordeal for the first time after being reunited with his family Comments

Lawyers seize Abu Hamza�s home to pay bills

Hate preacher Abu Hamza�s west London house has been seized and will be sold to pay his �300,000 legal aid bill Comments

BNP to contest borough mayoral elections

Politicians show their anger at the British National Party's decision to field candidates for the May mayoral elections in three London boroughs Comments

Quick Reads

Woman's mobility scooter death fall

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One-armed bandit steals single cufflink

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London Dungeon's new scent of history: burning flesh

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Alexander Litvinenko and Boris Berezovsky

�It�s outrageous to say I murdered my friend Alexander Litvinenko,� says oligarch

Oligarch Boris Berezovsky tells the High Court it is 'outrageous' to claim he was responsible for the death of his friend Alexander Litvinenko by radioactive poisoning Comments

Paul Nash show reveals artist's 'missing' landscapes

Curator spends five years tracking down missing works by the artist Paul Nash for the first major exhibition of his paintings in London for 35 years Comments

Tony Blair: Britain is obsessed with Iraq conspiracy theories

Tony Blair tells American TV viewers that Britain is fixated by 'conspiracy' theories over the Iraq war Comments

Pub bars grandmother for wearing beret

Bayswater gastro pub refuses to serve 77-year-old after she refuses to take off her purple beret Comments

�12,000 for Korea trip but BBC boss gives free camera to charity

BBC executives spent more than �12,000 of taxpayers' money on a trip to Korea, according to the latest figures on staff expenses revealed today. Comments

Miserable millionaire raffles his lifestyle for charity

An Austrian who is giving away his �3million fortune because it makes him unhappy has launched an online raffle for his Alpine villa Comments

Michael Jackson's doctor pleads not guilty to manslaughter

Michael Jackson's doctor pleads not guilty to involuntary manslaughter over the death of the King of Pop Comments

UK's trade deficit widens to hit recovery hopes

Hopes of a strong, export-led recovery in the UK are dashed after the trade deficit unexpectedly swelled to its widest level in almost a year Comments

Pound dives: Fears over debt crisis for Britain

London graduates face salary and job cuts as employers freeze recruitment, warns report

Graduates in London are facing a struggle for jobs as leading firms cut salaries and freeze recruitment Comments

French accuse Tony Blair of �Soviet-style' propaganda in run-up to Iraq war

Tony Blair was accused by the French government of 'Soviet-style' black propaganda in the run-up to the Iraq war, secret memos obtained by the Iraq inquiry have found Comments