April Jones: Mark Bridger Charged With Murder

 

The former lifeguard faces three charges over missing April’s disappearance, as the hunt for the schoolgirl continues.

 

Bridger Charged With April’s Murder

Mark Bridger has been charged with the murder and abduction of missing five-year-old April Jones.

The announcement was made ahead of a news conference led by Dyfed Powys Police and the Crown Prosecution Service in Aberystwyth.

Bridger, 46, has also been charged with perverting the course of justice.

The former lifeguard will be held in custody until he appears in court at Aberystwyth Justice Centre on Monday.

Iwan Jenkins of the Crown Prosecution Service said: “Having carried out a detailed review of the evidence gathered so far by Dyfed Powys Police I have come to the conclusion there is sufficient evidence to charge Mark Bridger with murder and it is in the public interest to do so.”

The decision came just an hour before detectives reached the maximum 96 hours that they could hold Bridger before charging or releasing him.

Searches are still continuing in and around the town of Machynlleth in mid Wales for the missing girl.

The primary school pupil was reported missing on Monday evening after she was seen getting into a vehicle near her home at around 7.30pm.

Ever since, the community has rallied behind the efforts to find the youngster, many insisting that until she is found they still hold out hope of April still being alive.

Wearing a pink ribbon that has come to symbolise the search, the Chief Constable of Dyfed-Powys Police, Jackie Roberts, said: “Today our thoughts are very much with April’s family, friends and those that knew her.”

She added: “To see so many people give up their free time was truly humbling to all those involved.

“It is time to let judicial process take its course and time to let the family come to terms with what has happened over the past week.”

Superintendent Ian John said 10 specialist police teams were deployed on Saturday morning to continue looking for April.

He added: “Despite today’s announcement we are maintaining the momentum of the search and we remain totally focused and committed to finding April.”

Our thoughts and prayers go out to April Jones and her family at this time from All Northwest Alliance

Abu Hamza to be extradited to US and The Asian Image in Blackburn isnt pleased all 5 muslims were put together in court today

Abu Hamza to be extradited to US

Abu Hamza’s lawyers said he was unfit to plead at trial because of bad health

Five suspected terrorists including Abu Hamza al-Masri can be extradited to the US, ending a long legal battle, UK High Court judges have decided.

The court ruled Hamza, Babar Ahmad, Syed Talha Ahsan, Adel Abdul Bary and Khaled al-Fawwaz did not show “new and compelling” reasons to stay in the UK.

Their appeal came after the European Court of Human Rights backed successive UK courts in ruling for extradition.

A police convoy has arrived at Long Lartin prison where the men are held.

Three police 4x4s, two armoured vans and a blacked-out police people carrier arrived at the Worcestershire jail at 18:15 BST.

A Home Office spokesman welcomed the decision and said it was “working to extradite these men as quickly as possible”.

The BBC understands two US civilian jets – one of which is registered to the US Department of Justice – are on the tarmac at an air base in eastern England.

Judges Sir John Thomas and Mr Justice Ousley said in their ruling that there was an “overwhelming public interest in the functioning of the extradition system” and that there was “no appeal from our decision”.

Of the long legal battle to send the men – whose extradition requests were submitted between 1998 and 2006 – to the US, Sir John told the court: “It is unacceptable that extradition proceedings should take more than a relatively short time, to be measured in months not years.

“It is not just to anyone that proceedings such as these should last between 14 and eight years.”

There was no doubt each man had, over the years, “either taken or had the opportunity to take every conceivable point to prevent his extradition to the United States”, he added.

The comments echoed those of James Eadie QC – representing the home secretary – who, during this week’s hearing, argued the men’s applications amounted to an abuse of process.

The judges’ written ruling, read out in court, concluded that “each of the claimants’ applications for permission to apply for judicial review or for a re-opening of the statutory appeals be dismissed”.

Abu Hamza’s final appeal against extradition ended in judicial fireworks in the High Court – although the judges expressed their anger in completely different terms to those used by Abu Hamza when he preached in London.

Barring an utterly unforeseen legal twist – and this case has had its fair share – the next time we’ll see Abu Hamza will be in Federal Court in New York.

The battle has seen prime ministers and US presidents come and go. Six home secretaries had his file in the ministerial red box.

But put aside the courts and the politics for one moment and remember his real impact.

He caused lasting harm and enormous community tension.

And he cast a long shadow over the lives of British Muslims who wanted to get on with life – just like the Christians and Jews Abu Hamza hated.

The judges rejected a plea by Abu Hamza to delay his extradition so he could undergo an MRI brain scan which, his lawyers said, could show he was unfit to plead because of degenerative problems.

“The sooner he is put on trial the better,” they said.

The 54-year-old, a former imam at Finsbury Park mosque, north London, was suffering from chronic sleep deprivation and depression as a result of eight years in prison, his lawyers added.

But during the hearing, Sir John observed there were “excellent medical facilities in the United States”.

The BBC’s Dominic Casciani, at the High Court, said the British government had got the result it had wanted to see for years on Abu Hamza, who the US first attempted to extradite in 2004.

His extradition was halted when the UK decided to try him on allegations relating to his sermons. He was convicted in 2006.

The judges also rejected appeals from Mr al-Fawwaz and Mr Bary, who are accused of being aides to Osama Bin Laden in London.

The US alleges they promoted violent jihad against the West and were involved in the 1998 US embassy bombings in East Africa, which killed more than 200 people.

Babar Ahmad’s father told the press his family expected the verdict

The battle to stay in the UK is also over for Babar Ahmad and Talha Ahsan, who are accused of running pro-jihad website Azzam.com – which the US says was hosted there – and of helping terrorists.

In a statement prepared in prison before the verdict, Mr Ahmad said that, “By exposing the fallacy of the UK’s extradition arrangements with the US, I leave with my head held high having won the moral victory.”

Mr Ahmad’s father, Ashfaq, said outside court he was appalled the British legal system had let him down “in a manner more befitting of a Third World country than one of the world’s oldest democracies”.

“We will never abandon our struggle for justice for Babar and the truth will eventually emerge of what will be forever remembered as a shameful chapter in the history of Britain,” he added.

US Embassy statement

And Emma Norton, legal officer for human rights group Liberty, said that, as Mr Ahmad’s alleged offences took place in the UK, “It beggars belief that he won’t be tried here.”

“Isn’t British justice – so admired around the world – capable of dealing with crimes committed in the UK by its own citizens?” she added.

In a statement released by its embassy in London, the US said it was “pleased” the men were being extradited after “a lengthy process of litigation”.

“The law enforcement relationship between the United States and United Kingdom is predicated on trust, respect, and the common goals of protecting our nations and eliminating safe havens for criminals, including terrorists,” it added.

Lord Reid, who was home secretary in 2006 and 2007, meanwhile, said that like “the vast majority of people in this country” he had a sense of satisfaction “that justice, or at least this sense of the judicial process” had been complete.

He told BBC News “The propriety, the attention, the compassion, the legal approach that has been taken on this by the British stands in marked contrast to what was meted out to the victims of some of these alleged crimes.”

But he urged the home secretary to look at the length of time the legal process took “because there is no doubt there has been a degree of frustration”.

BBC legal correspondent Clive Coleman said the judges had thrown down the gauntlet for Parliament to look at judicial reviews – which can be used to re-open issues that have already been decided.

One of the challenges was to stop suspects from storing up last-minute legal challenges that frustrated the courts and bewildered the public, he added.

 

Why was Babar Ahmad grouped together with Abu Hamza?

By Asian Image Reporter

Why was Babar Ahmad grouped together with Abu Hamza?

Lumping together the cases of five terror suspects has helped to deflect the seriousness of what has transpired today.

Reports, today have suggested how ‘radical Islamist cleric Abu Hamza and four other terror suspects’ have failed in last-ditch High Court bids to halt their extradition from the UK to the US to stand trial on terrorism charges.

But what has Abu Hamza’s suspected crimes have to do with those of Babar Ahmand and Syed Ahsan?

The judges also rejected legal challenges by Khaled Al-Fawwaz and Adel Abdul Bary.

All five cases returned to the High Court after judges at the European Court of Human Rights refused to intervene and stop the Home Secretary extraditing them.

To the wider public these cases seemed similar but could not have been more different. The case of Babar Ahmad in particular had received widespread backing by non-Muslims too.

But none of this seemed to matter as soon as he was continuously reported alongside Abu Hamza.

Sadiq Khan MP, Member of Parliament for Tooting, had ealier called on the media to report responsibly on the extradition case against his constituents Babar Ahmad and Syed Talha Ahsan.

Babar Ahmad and Syed Talha Ahsan have been held in British prisons, without charge, for 7 and 6 years respectfully.

He said, “I am calling on all parts of the British media to report responsibly on the extradition case against my constituents, Babar Ahmad and Syed Talha Ahsan.

“On too many occasions phrases like ‘Abu Hamza and five others’ have been used as a shorthand for the six men fighting extradition to the United States, which has conflated my constituents cases with the other – very different – cases, such as the one against Abu Hamza.

“The association of my constituents – who, despite 7 and 6 years in prison, are still to be charged with any crime – with a man convicted of numerous hate and terrorism-related crimes will create doubt around their reasons for their fighting against extradition.

”It is important to remember that Babar Ahmad and Syed Talha Ahsan are very willing to stand trial in the UK.

“The American authorities are accusing them of committing serious crimes whilst in the UK, backed up with evidence collected by the Metropolitan Police. They are not trying to avoid standing trial; rather they feel that they should be tried in the country where they are accused of committing the crimes – which is also the place where their family and legal representatives are.

“I am not accusing any one news organisation of misrepresenting my constituents as guilty, but it is not right to associate Babar Ahmad and Syed Talha Ahsan with others convicted of terrorist-related charges.

“There are clear differences between the cases against Babar Ahmad and Syed Talha Ahsan and the one against Abu Hamza, and this should always be emphasised to the British public.”

Missing April Jones: 2,500 Calls From Public

To make a donation to the April Jones fund, send a cheque payable to MTC-April’s Fund, Y Plas, Aberystwyth Road, Machynlleth, Powys, SY20 8ER

This fund has been set up as people who can’t get there to give support want to make donations from all over the Uk

 

Police searching for missing five-year-old April Jones have received 2,500 calls from the public.

Speaking at a news conference, Superintendent Ian John said officers from all 44 forces across the UK are filtering through the information for clues to the little girl’s disappearance.

He also spoke about the difficulties of searching through the rugged terrain surrounding April’s home town of Machynlleth in mid Wales.

“Police searches have continued in and around Machynlleth and will continue tonight, regardless of the weather,” he added.

“We are having to search through difficult terrain in urban and rural environments, in demanding weather conditions we have experienced. The forecast for tonight is not good but we will continue this.”

Earlier, April’s sister made an emotional appeal for her safe return, saying: “I just want our beautiful princess home now. It’s been too long.”

Jasmine, 16, begged for her sister to come home as the massive police hunt involving helicopters, mountain rescue teams, coastguard vessels, and marine units continued.

She wrote on her Facebook page: “Knowing someone knows something but won’t say it makes me feel even worse.”

It has also been revealed that April’s father Paul has a degenerative eye disease and is unable to take part in the searches.

Machynlleth Town Council have set up an appeal fund for April and her family.

Councillor Mike Williams told Sky News: “We’ve set up the fund as a result of all the requests we’ve had – not just from the town but all across the UK.”

Police are searching the three-bedroom cottage, outbuildings, and garden of suspect Mark Bridger, in the hamlet of Ceinws.

They are also launching a major search of the nearby Dyfi river, involving dog handlers.

Activity at Mr Bridger’s white farmhouse intensified as officers were given until 5pm on Friday to question the 46-year-old. Officers have also searched a guesthouse where Mr Bridger is understood to have worked recently.

April’s family have launched a pink ribbon campaign to support the hunt and revealed that the little girl was suffering from cerebral palsy.

She has been missing since around 7pm on Monday when she vanished while playing with friends near her home on the Bryn-y-Gog estate.

Police are appealing for anyone who saw Mr Bridger or his blue Land Rover Discovery, registration number L503 MEP, in the hours between April’s disappearance and his arrest at 3.30pm on Tuesday.

Estate agents J H Jones in Machynlleth say his farmhouse, called Mount Pleasant, was sold by them last year. It was on the market for £170,000.

Neighbour Vivian Williams Jones, 68, said it had been empty for several years before Mr Bridger rented it about a month ago.

“It was eventually sold to someone from London who bought it as a holiday home and never came down here,” he told Wales Online.

“I saw him about a month ago and he said that it was just too far for him and he was giving it the once-over before renting it out. I can’t say I’d ever seen him (Mr Bridger), apart from moving about inside.”

Meanwhile, people are being urged to fix a pink ribbon to their front doors or gates, or to a wear a pink ribbon, in support of the search. The five-year-old’s godmother Mair Raftree, 41, said pink was April’s favourite colour.

Prime Minister David Cameron joined police in urging anyone with information about the whereabouts of the “lovely girl” to speak to officers.

Anyone with information relating to the case is asked to call Child Rescue Alert Line on 0300 2000 333.

:: To make a donation to the April Jones fund, send a cheque payable to MTC-April’s Fund, Y Plas, Aberystwyth Road, Machynlleth, Powys, SY20 8ER

Anonymous Family Army Protested Today In Rochdale

Today in Rochdale Anonymous Family Army protested about the Crimes against the innocent children, who have been let down massively by the system!! A call for Rochdale council staff involved to resign from the jobs, and to inform the Public of what their Local council has covered up and allowed to go on.  This protest had nothing at all to do with EDL or any other patriot group as I stated before It was Anon Family Army fighting for childrens rights , we would like to say a massive well done to those who attended you stood up for what you believed in and put pressure in the right place .

We came.. We saw.. We protested.. We stayed..
One resigned.. We are anonymous. Expect us… We will be back…Anon Family Army

 

 

Head of Rochdale children’s services resigns after damning sex grooming scandal report

RESIGNED: Steve Garner

Rochdale council’s head of children’s services has resigned a week after a damning report into the care of victims of the town’s child sex grooming scandal.

Steve Garner, targeted services director for children, notified town hall staff of his decision this morning, we understand.

The council said he had handed in his resignation after a 29-page report by the Rochdale Borough Safeguarding Board exposed serious failings in the council’s treatment of victims who were in their care.

Nine men were jailed in May for exploiting girls as young as 13. The victims were routinely plied with drink and drugs and passed around for sex, a court heard.

Jim Taylor, Chief Executive of Rochdale Borough Council, said: “The council is undertaking a review of Senior Management and the Service Director of Targeted Services has decided that the time is now right for him to move on to a new challenge.

“The last few years have been challenging and demanding for Children’s Social Care Services. The Service Director has been considering his options for some time, and following the Safeguarding Board’s thematic Review of Multi Agency Responses to Sexual Exploitation of Children, he believes the time is right to allow someone else to continue to take forward the recommendations.

“The payment made to the service director upon his leaving is no greater than the entitled contractual payments. The post of service director for targeted services has not been disestablished and therefore the payments made did not include a redundancy payment.

“The service director has been wholly committed to the work of the council and the service to improve services to vulnerable children and families and is looking forward to a new challenge.”

 

Once again a massive well done to Anon Family Army from The Northwest Alliance

Latest Updates On Missing April Jones Arrest Made

:: April Jones was last seen getting into a grey or light-coloured van in the Bryn Y Gog estate, Machynlleth, at around 7pm on Monday.

:: The five-year-old was playing on her bike with a friend near some garages.

:: She was wearing a purple, knee-length coat with grey fur around the hood, a white polo top and black trousers.

:: Hundreds of local volunteers have joined police in the search, which covers a 30-mile radius, with some on quad bikes and off-road vehicles.

:: Dyfed-Powys Police confirmed her disappareance on Twitter at 10.40pm on Monday and they have released three pictures of April.

:: Specialist search teams with dogs have been drafted in.

:: Facebook page aimed at raising awareness about the search has been launched.

:: Cars in and out of the town have been stopped and searched on Tuesday.

:: Locals have been putting up posters around the town.

:: Volunteers urged to go to Machynlleth’s Bro Ddyfi leisure centre where search is being co-ordinated. Maps and search routes being given out on Tuesday morning.

:: Police have said April got into the driver’s side of the van seemingly without a struggle and that the vehicle may have been a Land Rover or Ford Connect.

:: Detective Superintendent Reg Bevan said officers had a “very early” initial description of the suspect, but they were not comfortable releasing it at this stage.

:: Information has been coming from young children who were playing with April when she disappeared.

:: Two helicopters have been deployed to scour the area and teams of 20 residents have been paired with a search expert to cover mountainous areas.

:: Powys County Council has suspended refuse and recycling collections so staff could help with the search.

A 46-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the disappearance of five-year-old April Jones, police said.

Police said the search is continuing for the girl who was last seen getting into a van near her home in the Bryn Y Gog estate in Machynlleth, mid Wales, at around 7pm last night.

She was last spotted by another child getting into a grey or light-coloured van – similar to a Ford Transit Connect or Land Rover-type vehicle.

 

Police said April got into the driver’s side of a van

 

Detective Superintendent Reg Bevan, of Dyfed-Powys Police, said the suspect was arrested in the last hour, and they were “actively looking for him”.

He said he is a local man and drives a vehicle similar to the one in the police appeal. He was walking by the side of the road when he was seized.

The little girl was wearing a purple knee-length coat with grey fur around the hood, a white polo top, and black trousers, when she was abducted.

 

Poster appeal for missing girl

 

A huge appeal has been launched on Twitter, with many celebrities tweeting and re-tweeting the message. Her poster is also being circulated on Facebook.

Her parents Paul and Coral were due to read a statement at a news conference at 4.30pm, but instead police gave the news of the man’s arrest.

April’s godmother Mair Raftree, 41, from Aberystwyth, told Wales Online: “She’s a quiet girl. She would never go with anybody and ask for a lift. We just want her back safely.”

During an earlier news conference, Mr Bevan said April got into the driver’s side of the van. It means she could have got in with the driver or the vehicle was a left-hand drive.

“The indications are that she got into the vehicle willingly … It’s very difficult to give an exact account of what happened. There’s nothing to suggest at this stage that there was a struggle when she got into the car,” he said.

 

Machynlleth is a small market town surrounded by countryside

 

He said they had a “very early” initial description of the suspect, but was not comfortable releasing it at this stage.

Mr Bevan said it was “every family’s worst nightmare to suffer a child go missing in this way”.

He also emphasised the difficulties of getting accurate information from the young children who were playing with April when she disappeared.

“That is delicate and time-consuming. We are trying to extract exactly what they have seen and we are very anxious to provide the most accurate information we can without misleading anyone in any way,” he added.

A massive search has been under way since April went missing.

 

April was playing on the Bryn Y Gog estate

 

Overnight, police set up roadblocks around the town and checked cars. Two helicopters have been scouring the area along with dogs.

Hundreds of residents have also joined in the search and are co-ordinating their efforts at the Machynlleth Leisure Centre.

They were divided into groups of 20 by the police and sent out into the area, including the mountains with the help of local mountaineering experts. The small town, which has a population of 2,000, sits on the southern outskirts of Snowdonia National Park.

Volunteer Anwen Morris appealed for more people to come forward and help. Many have taken time off work to look for April and have been out through the night on quad bikes and off-road vehicles.

Ms Morris told Sky News: “We need bodies down here. We need people in cars, we need people on foot to search the town. We need people up on the mountain. We need anybody that is in the area that can help.”

 

People have taken off time from work to help with the hunt

 

Powys County Council said refuse and recycling collections had been suspended in the town on Tuesday so council staff could help with the search.

Local restaurant owner Razul Islam told Sky News: “There are hundreds of people out looking for her. It is such a small town and nearly everyone is out looking for her – I’m shocked that it has happened in a town like this.”

Petrol station owner Nerys Zjalic, who knows the missing girl’s family, said she reopened her garage to help with the search.

“My friend called to ask if we would open so people can get petrol to help in the search. Locals are out in full force searching for her.”

Ms Zjalic said people had been coming from far and wide to help with the search.

“It’s unbelievable – you just don’t think that something like that would happen in a small town like Machynlleth,” she added. “Nothing will be the same again – this is a small little market town and you think children are quite safe, but this shows us it’s not the case.”

Chris Dudley, who works at the Skinners Arms pub on Penrallt Street, said all the locals were out looking for her on Monday night, including in “the cemeteries, the golf field, playing field, everywhere you can think of”.

:: Police have asked anyone with information to call them on 0300 200 0333.

 

EDL WALSALL Do These Lads Look Like They Went For Trouble

EDL Walsall Tommy talks about BNP

New year lay-offs: Army to fire 8,000 soldiers in ‘fast-track’ redundancies and sackings of over-45s

Facing redundancy: Every regiment in the army will be hit by the cuts that will see 8,000 soldiers lose their jobs

Eight thousand British soldiers – many serving on the front line in Afghanistan – will be told days after Christmas that they are to lose their jobs.

Redundancy notices will be sent to servicemen and women telling them their careers are over as part of sudden speeded-up cutbacks by the Ministry of Defence.

The Army has already been shaken by the announcement of a swathe of cuts, which included the loss of historic regiments and the prospect of a gradual reduction in personnel over the next eight years.

But now The Mail on Sunday has discovered that the MoD will make a single devastating cut of 8,000 servicemen and women, reducing the Army to 86,000 – its smallest size since the 1700s. A further 4,000 soldiers will go before 2020.

The axe will fall across every branch and regiment of the Regular Army, with only Special Forces ringfenced. Thousands of soldiers will disappear from regiments such as the Royal Welsh, the Royal Fusiliers, the Royal Engineers, the Royal Lancers and the Army Air Corps, which includes Prince Harry among its officers.

The Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers is expected to lose 600 of its most skilled personnel, while the Royal Logistics Corps will also be badly hit.

Last night serving officers, military experts and MPs condemned the drastic measure as a stab in the back for soldiers and a blow to the Army’s capability.

Former commander Tim Collins, who led the Royal Irish Regiment into Iraq in 2003, said: ‘This is meltdown. We’re still fighting in Afghanistan, the world is changing  rapidly and looks increasingly dangerous yet the Government is crippling our operational capability.

‘The sheer size of the redundancies in a single hit will devastate morale and send totally the wrong message to soldiers on the front line. In the new year they could find envelopes on their doormats with bad news inside. The job cuts across the Army cannot sit alongside Britain’s commitments to its operations against the Taliban and terrorist organisations appearing in other countries.’

In another move, British Army officers would be forced to retire at 45 – ten years earlier than at present – in a radical proposal by a Conservative member of the Defence Select Committee.

Outspoken: Former commander Lt Colonel Tim Collins, pictured in Iraq, described the cuts as ‘crippling’

Drastic: A further 4,000 soldiers will go by 2020 – leaving the Army at its smallest size since the 1700s

Julian Brazier MP wants to pare down the number of senior officers, leaving just a small cadre to fill specialist positions advising politicians. The plan, called ‘Manning The Army Of The Future’, represents the most drastic change to the structure of the Army since the Second World War.

Under his proposal, which could become policy by 2015 if it is approved by the Government, thousands of senior officers will be forced out.

Currently the Army has just over 7,000 senior officers holding the ranks of Major, Lieutenant Colonel, Colonel, Brigadier, Major General, Lieutenant General and General. Their starting salaries at these ranks range from £47,760 to £148,000.

Controversial: Conservative MP Julian Brazier, on the Defence Select Committee, has proposed that all British Army officers be forced to retire at 45

The majority of these officers are 45 or older and reducing their numbers by half would save £144 million a year.

Mr Brazier believes the top end of the Army is ‘over-commanded’ and ‘over-administered’ and wants the money saved on salaries to be used on benefits such as housing for serving officers.

But former commander of British Forces in Bosnia Bob Stewart, now a Conservative MP, said: ‘If the “Career to 45” scheme is introduced many of the most talented officers will leave in their early thirties. Why would they hang around to 45, by which time they might struggle to find really good jobs in the major industries?’

The sending out of 8,000 sacking letters after Christmas has stunned senior personnel. One major, who expects to be among those selected for redundancy, accused the Prime Minister of ‘cowardice’.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, he said: ‘The Government and the Prime Minister want the redundancies out of the way in 2013 so their disgusting treatment of frontline soldiers is forgotten about by the time of the next General Election.

‘They don’t care what this reduction in Britain’s fighting capability will do to morale or to our combat effectiveness. All they care about is what is on voters’ minds the year after. This is a most cruel example of political expediency. The redundancies and the commitment to shrink the Army to a strength of 82,000 could have been met by natural wastage, a slowing down of recruitment and cherry-picking those who are the most keen to leave.

‘Some really good people are going to be chopped, some of them who are serving in Afghanistan now – their post-operational tour holiday periods will end just in time for the Government to hand them a P45. Morale will take a skydive.’

More cuts: The news comes after Defence Secretary Philip Hammond announced the loss of 17 units back in July

In July, Defence Secretary Philip Hammond announced the total loss of 17 units. At the time no schedule for the redundancies was confirmed. Only those soldiers about to deploy to Afghanistan and those serving on the front line that month will be safe from the January cull. No redundancy notices will be posted to Camp Bastion.

The MoD said last night: ‘There are no plans to make any further reductions beyond the changes announced last year. The size and timing of any future redundancies has yet to be determined, however we aim to remove uncertainty for Army personnel and their families as soon as possible.

Difficult decisions have had to be taken to deal with the multi-billion-pound black hole in the defence budget.’

It added that it had no plans to change the retirement age for senior officers.

 

Walsall 29/9/12 The Good The Bad and The Ugly Photo Gallery

SEX GROOMING: We let down some young girls, says Rotherham Council

Rotherham Council admits some young girls were let down over sex abuse.

YOUNG Rotherham girls who were exploited for sex have been let down by the social services and the police it was admitted this week.

But Rotherham Council leader Roger Stone said lessons had been learned and claims of inactivity over the issue of grooming youngsters for sex were wrong.

Cllr Stone was speaking in the wake of reports based on leaked police and social services documents dating back to 2000 which reveal a catalogue of child sexual exploitation, mostly involving men of Pakistani heritage and white girls aged 12 to 16.

He said: “The impression given in the national media that we have not acted to tackle sexual exploitation could not be further from the truth.

“This authority has been committed to working on this problem for a long time and has had a dedicated team working with young girls for around 15 years.

“There is still more work to be done locally, regionally and nationally but our commitment in Rotherham to keeping vulnerable people safe and well is our top priority.

“We will not tolerate sexual exploitation and we will continue to work closely with police to bring people to justice for these horrible crimes against our vulnerable young people.”

This is like Rochdale they admit they let the girls down bit late in the day for that but what action is being brought against these people that let our children down ?