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At -10C Britain's colder than the Antarctic.. and it's going to get even COLDER tonight

Trafalgar Square

The cold snap plunging Britain into Arctic conditions is set to tighten its grip on the country as temperatures plunged to -11C last night. The mercury dipped to -11C in Aboyne in north east Scotland in the early hours of this morning with Shap in Cumbria registering a low of -11C. Even the Trafalgar Square fountain (pictured left) was frozen.

First picture of driver killed on level crossing who was due to marry in months

Moira Koune

This is the first picture of the woman who died when the car she was in was hit by a train after getting stuck on a level crossing..

Council bosses fight the credit crunch... by hiring £100k anti-recession guru

county hall - Lancashire

Cash-strapped council bosses believe they have come up with a new approach to fighting the credit crunch - by hiring a £100k anti-recession guru.

Model dubbed the new Twiggy dies of cancer at just 23

chorley

Government spends £200,000 on Cabinet away-day... to discuss Britain's financial crisis

Costly: Gordon Brown at a session with the public during a Cabinet away day to Leeds last November. The Government spent around £200,000 on the trip

The Government spent around £200,000 on taking every single member of the Cabinet out of London for one day, it emerged today.
The trip in November cost almost £140,000 in policing costs alone.

'I have to wash my hands after meeting Arabs': Lewis Hamilton's 'bully' F1 boss branded a racist at tribunal

Ron Dennis has been accused of racism

Lewis Hamilton's boss has been branded a racist and a bully during an employment tribunal.

House prices plunged 16% in 2008 in their biggest ever fall

Slump: House prices have fallen a record 15.9 per cent in a year

House prices fell by 15.9 per cent last year in their biggest annual drop on record, figures showed today. The average price of a home in the UK fell another 2.5 per cent in December.

Fury at TV advert for cold remedy Benylin which urges you 'to throw a sickie'... while website tells you how

A TV advert is encouraging cold sufferers to call in sick

Bosses are furious over a TV commercial for a cold remedy which encourages sufferers 'to throw a sickie'.

Baby P social services boss appeals against her sacking... and seeks £173,000 payout

Sharon Shoesmith

The shamed head of Haringey Council's children's services is attempting to win a six-figure payout for being sacked over her handling of the Baby P case.

Tesco faces probe over claims that it 'lured' shoppers with cut-price alcohol offers on drink it didn't have

Alcohol on the shelves at Tesco: Labour MP Rosie Cooper has reported the store to Advertising Standards after advertised offers on alcohol were not available in-store

Tesco supermarket was at the centre of a 'cut-price' alcohol row last night amid allegations they 'lured' shoppers with bargain drink offers.

Woman who didn't even know she was pregnant dies of blood loss after going into labour at home

Elizabeth Tevenan: Friends said she had carried on life as normal

A woman who did not realise she was pregnant died after haemorrhaging when she went into labour at home. Friends of Elizabeth Tevenan said she had no idea she was pregnant.

Team of 140 Blunkett bobbies solves just FIVE crimes a year

Police community support officers

A team of 140 Police Community Support Officers solved just five crimes and handed out one penalty notice in a year, it has been revealed.

'Mercy' judge gives paedophile shorter jail term... so that he can be at the birth of his second child

Addicted: Neil Porter had around 2,000 pornographic images of children on his computer but was only jailed for six months (file photo)

A paedophile who downloaded hundreds of child sex images has been given a shorter jail term so that he can be at the birth of his second child.

Vicar takes down crucifixion sculpture 'because it's a scary depiction of suffering'

christ

Two married priests who ran away together are banned from the Church

Rev James Tipp and Rev Elaine Northern

Hospital patients can now use mobiles on wards instead of expensive bedside phones

mobile

Hospital patients will be able to use mobile phones on wards to phone their loved ones, after official NHS guidelines were relaxed today.

Father who promised to buy son a toy shop if he won the Lotto, scoops £1million jackpot

Trina and Mark Myatt

A man who promised to buy his son a toy shop if he won the Lottery had to backtrack when he scooped more than £1 million.

Gaza in 'full blown' humanitarian crisis says Red Cross... as Israel and Blair hint at a way out

Israeli Army soldiers take cover as a mobile artillery piece fires towards targets in the southern Gaza Strip today

Gaza is now in a 'full blown' humanitarian crisis, the International Red Cross said today.

Le grand cycle lane: Plans for 218-mile route from London to Paris

Boris, cycle map

One of Europe's largest cycle paths is set to be created between St Paul's Cathedral and Notre Dame in Paris.

Britney Spears and Barack Obama among celebrity victims of Twitter account hackers

Barack Obama

What do President Elect Barack Obama, Britney Spears and Stephen Fry all have in common? Their accounts on the social networking site Twitter have been hacked into by scammers.

Cruel dog owner who starved German Shepherd Hobo to brink of death banned from owning pets for 25 years

Joy Battison

A cruel dog owner whose German Shepherd lost more than half his body weight and was days away from death has been banned from owning an animal for 25 years.

The one that Darwin missed: Striking new pink iguana species found on Galapagos

pink iguana

Charles Darwin would have been tickled pink by this new species of Galapagos Iguana, which the great naturalist missed during his travels.

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gaza        

British tourist plunges to his death after slipping from paragliding harness

paraglider

Luxury lessons in 'diversity' for civil servants that cost nearly £2,000 a head

The luxury facility where civil servants where sent for 'diversity' courses at a cost of nearly £2,000 a head

Civil servants are being sent to a luxury hotel for 'diversity' courses costing nearly £2,000 a head, it was revealed yesterday.

Labour's crackdown on sickness claimants 'is a sham'

Chris Grayling

Labour's latest crackdown on Britain's sicknote culture has been denounced as a sham.

Thump thy neighbour: Vicar's hedge argument gets heated

Rev Bennett

As a vicar, he must have heard of turning the other cheek. But The Reverend Stuart Bennett was apparently unable to keep his temper in check in a neighbourly argument over a hedge.

'I'm not dying - I've just got a hormone imbalance': Apple guru Steve Jobs finally admits what's wrong with him

steve jobs

Apple founder Steve Jobs today denied rumours he was seriously ill and insisted he would be staying on as the company's chief executive.

Do adjust your sets: 10 years on, the Carole and clown test card is back

test

One of the most recognisable faces on television is making a comeback. The BBC's most famous test card featuring Carole Hersee and a stuffed clown has been rescanned in high definition.

Row as council scraps pray and display plan for Christians on Sundays ... for fear of offending other religions

Tewkesbury Abbey

Council chiefs have come under fire after scrapping plans for free parking for Christians on Sundays - because it discriminates against other religions.

Introducing the iGlove: Gadget that that allows users to operate touch phones in cold weather

The iGlove

Apple have submitted designs for a glove designed to help users operate their multi-touch devices more efficiently in cold weather conditions.

Benedict Brogan
Robin Page
Peter Hitchens
Mary Ellen Synon