'Bedroom Tax' Leaves Disabled Fearing Eviction

By Jason Farrell, Sky News Correspondent

Thousands of disabled people are cutting back on food and heating to pay for the so-called "bedroom tax", according to a group of leading charities.

The chief executives of leading groups including Disability Rights UK, Scope, Carers UK, The Royal National Institute of Blind People and the Council For Disabled Children say the policy is having a "devastating impact" on people with disabilities.

More than 50 organisations have signed a letter to Iain Duncan Smith calling for immediate action to exempt disabled people from the Spare Room Subsidy.

They claim that it is harder for people in adapted housing to move and that "it is hitting disabled people who need an extra room for essential home adaptations or equipment which enable them to live independently".

The letter to the Department of Work and Pensions states: "We have been deeply frustrated at reports that disabled people and their families are protected from this policy.

The introduction of the "bedroom tax" has proved controversial

"The stark evidence since the policy was implemented in April clearly shows they are not.

"None of these groups are exempt and our organisations are seeing the devastating impact it is having on those who now face a shortfall in their rent as a result of the changes."

The Government does offer help with extra discretionary housing payments (DHPs) for disabled social housing tenants.

However, the letter points to research conducted by the Papworth Trust which showed that one in three disabled people applying for DHPs are refused, the same number as non-disabled people, and that 90% of disabled people refused a DHP are already cutting back on food, drink, household bills and medication or therapies.

Charities have written to Iain Duncan Smith about the bedroom tax

The letter claims that carers and families of disabled children are "being forced deeper and deeper into debt and falling behind on their rent, putting them at risk of eviction".

Sky News spoke to 47-year-old Heather Simpson from Battersea who suffers from a degenerative disease and needs an adapted property with wheelchair access and a stair-lift.

She has been told by her local housing association that it is unable to find her an appropriate smaller home. 

Come December she is worried she may have to find an additional £80 a month to cover her spare room.

She told Sky News: "I'm stuck basically, there's nowhere for me to go.

"I understand there's overcrowding, but there's nowhere for me to go. So I'll just get into debt."

Council tenants judged to have extra bedrooms now receive less benefit

In a letter sent to Heather last week, her Housing Association, Peabody, said it had 1,600 applicants for rehousing and only 145 places.

In a statement, Peabody told Sky News: "The Government's under-occupancy charge has a significant impact on vulnerable people, and we are working with other housing associations and councils to try and increase the options for people needing to move …

"We would like to see the Government take action to mitigate the impact of this policy particularly for the most vulnerable residents in our homes."  

A Department of Work and Pensions spokesperson told Sky News: "We are determined to support those who might need extra help through these necessary reforms.

"That is why we set aside £190m this year to do precisely this, with £25m specifically for disabled people living in specially adapted properties.

"The courts have ruled we are meeting our equality duties to disabled people who are affected by the policy.

"The removal of the spare room subsidy means we still pay the majority of most claimants' rent, but the taxpayer can no longer afford to pay the £500m cost of claimants' extra bedrooms."

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Berlusconi Expelled From Italian Parliament

Italy's former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi has been expelled from parliament following his criminal conviction for tax fraud.

The Senate voted to strip him of his seat, hours after he gave a defiant speech to supporters outside his palazzo in Rome.

He denounced the day of the vote as one "of mourning for democracy" and told the crowd of hundreds: "In these past 20 years, if there's one thing I can't complain about it's your closeness (and) your affection."

Supporters wore masks and waved flags as they gathered for a rally in Rome

Mr Berlusconi was convicted in August of manipulating tax bills for his television empire Mediaset.

A court heard he was behind a scheme to purchase the rights to broadcast US movies on his TV networks through a series of offshore companies, and had falsely declared the payments to avoid taxes.

The billionaire was sentenced to four years in jail, which was reduced to one year and will likely be served as community service, and banned from holding public office for two years.

Hundreds of supporters gathered outside Mr Berlusconi's palazzo

He claimed he did not receive a fair trial and that judges were trying to "eliminate" him from public office.

The loss of his seat will deprive Mr Berlusconi, who is fighting a conviction for paying for sex with a minor among other legal cases, of his parliamentary immunity from arrest.

In June, the three-time prime minister was found guilty of paying for sex with underage prostitute Karima El Mahroug, also known as Ruby the Heart Stealer.

Dancer Karima El Mahroug, known as Ruby the Heart Stealer

During his trial, the court in Milan heard dozens of young women, including Miss El Mahroug, who was 17 at the time, were paid with cash and cars to attend his so-called "bunga bunga" parties and dance semi-naked for him.

His lawyers said it was "completely unrealistic" he will be arrested over the case.

Although Mr Berlusconi will not hold a seat in parliament, he is expected to remain influential in Italian politics.

He pulled his party out of Mr Letta's ruling coalition earlier this year, accusing opponents of a "coup d'etat" to get rid of him.

He has relaunched his Forza Italia movement and some analysts suggest he still commands millions of supporters.

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Louis Vuitton Moscow Trunk Stunt Backfires

French luxury brand Louis Vuitton has been ordered to remove a giant trunk put up as a publicity stunt in Moscow's Red Square after it triggered outrage among Russians.

The boxy brown suitcase-shaped pavilion, covered with the brand's signature stencilling, was erected 10 days ago just outside GUM, a 19th century upmarket department store.

It lies across from the Kremlin that faces the square, and many tourists and Russians complained it was blocking views of most landmark sites.

The once omnipotent Communist Party was outraged by its proximity to Lenin's tomb, and preservationists stressed that Red Square is a Unesco World Heritage Site.

On Wednesday, following several days of furious media commentary, the GUM store said it had asked Louis Vuitton to take down the pavilion.

It was never entirely clear who had granted permission as the square is under official jurisdiction of the Kremlin.

But a Kremlin source told Russian news agencies that the structure was "not agreed with the presidential administration".

The giant pavilion was erected last week

The Kremlin's Office of Presidential Affairs, which oversees Red Square, also said it had nothing to do with the trunk.

Spokesman Viktor Khrekov said: "The GUM (store) dealt with the permission issues. We had nothing to do with it."

GUM said on its website: "Considering the view of some of the public, and the fact that the pavilion's size has surpassed the agreed parameters, we told Louis Vuitton about the need to immediately dismantle the pavilion."

Red Square, the formal street address of both the Lenin Mausoleum and the Christ the Saviour Cathedral, is by far the most heavily policed spot in Russia.

The two-storey trunk, measuring 30ft-high by 100ft-long, had been bathed in the same dramatic lighting at night as the nearby cathedral.

It was designed to house an exhibit about travellers who had used the brand's luggage in the past.

After its planned opening on December 2, the exhibit's proceeds were to go to the Naked Hearts children's foundation of Russian supermodel Natalia Vodianova, who invited everyone to attend the "unique event" in a promotional video.

Some have viewed the trunk as a symbol of modern Russia where corruption has made anything possible - even putting up giant luxury advertisements on the symbolic square without asking Muscovites - and nobody would be held responsible.

But a Louis Vuitton spokesman in Paris said "we haven't received any official orders to take down" the trunk.

Late on Wednesday workers were putting up posters on the fence around the trunk, warning people about the beginning of dismantling works.

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Lostprophets Ian Watkins: Appeal For 'Victims'

Police have appealed for possible further victims of Ian Watkins to come forward after the ex-Lostprophets singer admitted a string of sex offences.

The charges included attempting to rape a woman's baby in a case the lead officer called "the most shocking and harrowing child abuse evidence I have ever seen".

Detectives are continuing their investigation into the Welsh rock singer, 36, amid speculation there could be more victims in the UK and overseas.

Officers from South Wales, where he lived, have been working with agencies including Interpol, the NSPCC and the Department for Homeland Security in the US.

Watkins also confessed to aiding and abetting another woman to sexually abuse her own child.

And he pleaded guilty to possessing and making indecent photographs of children as well as having extreme pornographic material involving bestiality on his computer hard drive.

He had faced 24 sex offence charges but admitted 11 at the last minute as his trial was due to begin at Cardiff Crown Court alongside the two women, who pleaded guilty to 13 offences in total between them.

Watkins is due to be sentenced in December

Lead investigator Detective Chief Inspector Peter Doyle said: "There is no doubt in my mind that Ian Watkins exploited his celebrity status in order to abuse young children."

He added Tuesday's "outcome does not mark the end of our investigations and we will work tirelessly to identify any other victims or witnesses and seek the justice they deserve".

He went on: "Above all this investigation has been focussed on the protection of children and my thoughts today are with those victims.

Police are urging people who discuss the case on social media websites to be careful about using information that may identify the victims involved.

DCI Doyle said: "Clearly there is strong public feeling about this case and many people are using social media outlets to talk about the issues involved.

"However, there is a very real danger that some of the detail being posted will lead to the identification of victims which will cause a great deal of distress to them and their families."

Meanwhile, a child expert has warned the sex abuse of young children is increasing in number and severity as the age of defenceless victims continues to go down.

Des Mannion, NSPCC Wales national head of service, spoke of his "horror" as the extent of Watkins' secret abuse was made public.

"The desire to sexually abuse small babies is something most of us find too horrific to comprehend," he said.

"However within the significant rise in the number of child abuse images being distributed online over the past year, agencies have noted both an increase in their severity and a significant decline in the ages of the children involved."

:: Anyone who has been affected by the Watkins case can contact South Wales Police on 02920 634184 or the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000.

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Ding Family Murders: Anxiang Du Guilty

Du Got Away After 'Missed' 999 Call

Updated: 3:08pm UK, Wednesday 27 November 2013

The killer who massacred the Ding family was able to flee the country after police mishandled a 999 call from one of the victims, leading to a manhunt lasting more than a year.

Anxiang Du was on the run for 14 months after he stabbed Manchester Metropolitan University lecturer Jifeng "Jeff"' Ding, his wife, Ge "Helen" Chui, and their two daughters, Xing "Nancy", 18, and Alice, 12, on April 29 2011.

Their bodies lay undiscovered for two days in a four-bedroom detached house in Northamptonshire, despite a frantic 999 call being made from Alice Ding's mobile as Du carried out the killings.

Northamptonshire Police have admitted they will "never know what may have happened" if they had responded correctly to the call, made at 3.32pm, in which both girls could be heard screaming before the line went dead.

The call was found to have been "badly mishandled" by the force, resulting in officers being sent to the wrong address and the emergency call closed when nothing untoward was found at that location.

An investigation by the police watchdog, the Independent Police Complaints Commission, later said: "Had police used more detailed checks and a mapping system available to them, the need for a subscriber check would have been established.

"The correct address in Pioneer Close would have been identified and in all likelihood attended by officers within minutes."

Northamptonshire Police have said it was "unlikely" the Ding family could have been saved, but admitted it was possible that Du could have still been at the address if officers had been dispatched to the right location.

The trial heard from pathologist Guy Rutty, who told jurors the family would have died of their stab wounds shortly after they were inflicted due to the blood loss.

However, jurors also heard that Du remained in the Northamptonshire area until late evening.

Du told a psychiatrist after his arrest that he lay down and slept in the Dings' house after carrying out the murders, before leaving under the cover of darkness, taking the family's car.

The silver Vauxhall Corsa was captured on camera at Northampton services off the M1 just before 10pm on April 29.

From there, Du drove to London and the next morning boarded the 8am coach from London Victoria to Paris Gallieni, before travelling on through Spain to Morocco.

The bodies of the Ding family were not discovered until two days later, on the evening of May 1.

Neighbour Jason Horsley reported that he had seen a body lying on the floor through the back window of the Dings' home.

It came hours after officers from Northamptonshire Police visited the property, unaware of what was inside.

They had been asked to visit the Dings by West Midlands Police, who were looking for information in their search for Du, who had been reported missing.

Du's wife had contacted them after he failed to return from work. She told the force of a civil dispute between the two families but not of any threat.

As a result, officers visited the Dings' house at 8.10am on May 1 to ask whether they had seen or heard from Du.

When there was no reply, they simply posted a card through the letterbox and left.

Hours later, Northamptonshire Police received the call from Mr Horsley and the grim discovery was made, sparking a manhunt that would last for 14 months.

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Simon Gittany Guilty Of High-Rise Murder

A man has been found guilty of throwing his fiancee off the balcony of their high-rise apartment in central Sydney.

Ms Harnum was planning to leave Gittany

Simon Gittany was accused of hurling Lisa Harnum from their 15th floor home in a fit of "apoplectic" rage in July 2011 after discovering she planned to leave him and return to her native Canada.

Gittany, 40, who was supported in court by his new girlfriend Rachelle Louise, had maintained throughout the trial that Ms Harnum, 30, had slipped and fallen after climbing over a railing.

He said he had tried to save Ms Harnum, a former ballerina.

But Justice Lucy McCallum said the lack of Ms Harnum's fingerprints on the glass barrier made his claim implausible.

"At many times in his evidence, the accused struck me as being a person playing a role, telling a story which fitted with the objective evidence, but which did no more than that," she said.

Gittany barely reacted in court as the verdict was read out.

Gittany with his new girlfriend, Rachelle Louise, who screamed at the judge

His current girlfriend screamed at the judge "You're wrong", and stormed out of the packed courtroom. Ms Louise's outburst continued after she left the court.

Delivering the verdict in the judge-only trial, Justice McCallum said witness Josh Rathmell, who had been walking past the apartment building on his way to work when he saw Ms Harnum fall, gave a compelling account.

At the time, Mr Rathmell thought he had seen Gittany "unload" a piece of luggage or rubbish and continued on his way. It was only later he realised it was a body and contacted the police.

Justice McCallum said while Gittany and Ms Harnum had loved each other, there was no doubt the accused was "controlling, dominating and at times abusive".

"I am satisfied by the end of July 2011, those tensions had reached a point of crisis," she said.

Gittany and Ms Harnum's apartment was in central Sydney

The New South Wales Supreme Court heard that Gittany had secretly monitored Ms Harnum's phone and had installed CCTV cameras inside and outside their apartment.

One of the cameras showed Gittany restraining Ms Harnum outside the flat and then dragging her back inside on the night she died. Ms Harnum was heard yelling: "Please help me, help me, God help me."

Ms Harnum's mother said there were no winners in the case. Her only hope was that her daughter's death would be a powerful wake-up call to other young women.

"Young women who are caught up in situations like my daughter found herself in need a voice," Joan Harnum said.

Gittany, who was held in custody for the final weeks of the trial, will be sentenced in February.

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Nigella Lawson Called 'Habitual Criminal'

TV cook Nigella Lawson has been described in court as a "habitual criminal", a day after her ex-husband Charles Saatchi accused her of taking drugs.

The latest claim was made as lawyers argued over whether the trial should go ahead of two of their former employees charged with fraud.

Francesca Grillo, 35, and Elisabetta Grillo, 41, are accused of using a company credit card to buy goods and services for themselves worth some £300,000 while working as their personal assistants.

The Grillo sisters deny the charges and claim Ms Lawson was aware of this expenditure all along.

Elisabetta and Francesca Grillo

But the defendants' lawyers argued the case should not go ahead due to the "manipulation of the court process" by Ms Lawson and Mr Saatchi, who had a high-profile divorce earlier this year.

Isleworth Crown Court earlier heard Mr Saatchi allege Ms Lawson was so high on drugs she was unaware what she had permitted the Italian sisters to spend money on.

Anthony Metzer QC, for Elisabetta Grillo, argued the case should be dropped as the women would not be able to receive a fair trial as Ms Lawson and Mr Saatchi were at "loggerheads" and the alleged drug use damaged the celebrity cook's "credibility as an honest witness".

He said if the trial did go ahead "it's a convenient forum for Mr Saatchi and Ms Lawson to rehearse disputed issues between them ... in the criminal courts where, of course, the possibility of libel is not possible".

Mr Saatchi alleged Ms Lawson had a cocaine habit

Referring to allegations of drug use by Ms Lawson, Mr Metzer said: "If Mr Saatchi is telling the truth, then Ms Lawson is a habitual criminal."

He added: "The defendants' case is that Nigella Lawson lied to her ex-husband about her drug use and about the expenditure that was incurred by the defendants, both expressly and implicitly, because she was fearful of Mr Saatchi's reaction if he knew about the extent of the expenditure and drug use.

"There was a culture of secrecy within Nigella Lawson's marriage."

Prosecutor Jane Carpenter, who argued against dropping the case, said: "The suggestion that these defendants are sacrificial lambs in order to discredit Ms Lawson I do not accept at all."

After hearing submissions, Judge Robin Johnson ruled the trial should go ahead.

Ms Lawson reached out to her fans by posting a recipe for "Holiday Hotcake" on Twitter, which she described as "the perfect recipe to show thanks for all your support & to those who hashtag #teamNigella".

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Npower 'To Axe 1,400 Jobs' In Cost-Cutting Drive

Energy giant npower is set to announce plans to move 1,400 jobs to India and transfer hundreds of others to another company.

The supplier is expected to confirm on Thursday it will outsource frontline call centre operations to a third party in the UK, with back-office work moved to India.

Employees in the Midlands and in the North of England are expected to be the worst affected. 

The development emerged just a day after npower axed plans for a £4bn wind farm off the coast of Devon, also on cost grounds.

Its German owner RWE had warned earlier this month that 6,750 jobs would be cut across Europe.

An npower spokesman said: "As we announced a couple of months ago, npower has been undertaking a major review of sites, operations and people across the UK.

"We've been doing this to improve our customer service and keep our costs down, at a time of external pressures on customers' bills.

"As we've always said, we'll tell our people first and then inform the media."

The Unison union attacked the expected decision as a "Christmas nightmare for staff and customers" and warned the company it would backfire badly by damaging its reputation further among UK customers.

National officer Matthew Lay said: "npower have consistently let their customers and staff down by not investing enough in the workforce, technology or in the latest customer service techniques.

"This has led to a huge number of complaints which the company seems to think they can deal with by shifting the responsibility to somewhere else, including to India.

"If the company goes ahead with this disastrous plan, it will backfire badly, damaging their already tarnished reputation for customer service.

"At a time when unemployment is high, what commitment does it show to the UK by shipping these much-needed jobs abroad? And what does this say about their commitment to staff when npower have kept them on tenterhooks, waiting for the axe to fall, for weeks?"

The move is likely to spark renewed anger from politicians over the state of the energy market, and soaring energy bills faced by consumers.

Npower recently topped a customer complaints list, leading an energy watchdog Consumer Futures to describe its performance as "unacceptable".

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Carole Waugh Murder: Man Found Guilty

A man who took more than £200,000 from a wealthy businesswoman in the four months after her death has been found guilty of her murder.

Rakesh Bhayani was convicted by a jury at the Old Bailey of killing 50-year-old Carole Waugh, who was stabbed to death at her flat in Marylebone, central London, last April.

His co-accused, Nicholas Kutner, 48, was found not guilty of murder but convicted of perverting the course of justice.

Ms Waugh's body was found in a rented garage in New Malden, southwest London, nearly four months after she disappeared.

During that time, Bhayani withdrew money from Ms Waugh's accounts and on one occasion pretended to be her brother in an attempt to sell her £600,000 home.

He also hired a number of women to impersonate her and buy expensive handbags from Chanel and Selfridges.

Ms Waugh's body was found at this lock-up in New Malden, southwest London

The 41-year-old claimed in court that he only found out about Ms Waugh's death seven days after she was killed.

He said he did not contact police because he was involved in a fraud with Kutner and Ms Waugh and feared he would be linked to her murder.

Bhayani, of Wembley, northwest London, told the court that he went with Kutner to Ms Waugh's flat to remove her body from under a bed.

He said he put the corpse into a bag which was carried to a blue Volkswagen Golf that was initially left in a central London car park before being driven to the lock-up.

Bhayani admitted perverting the course of justice by concealing Ms Waugh's death and also conspiracy to defraud.

Kutner, of Kentish Town, northwest London, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud.

A third man, 40-year-old Elie Khoury, of Paddington, central London, was cleared of conspiracy to defraud.

Bhayani and Kutner are due to be sentenced on Thursday.

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World Cup Stadium Collapse: Three Killed

Three people have been killed in a partial collapse at the stadium due to host the World Cup opener in Brazil next year.

Part of the grandstand was destroyed when a metal structure buckled at the top of the Arena Corinthians venue in Sao Paulo.

Local media reported that the accident was caused by a crane collapse.

The collapse could delay the delivery of the stadium in time for Fifa's December deadline. The stadium was almost complete.

The venue was almost complete at the time of the accident

Brazil has struggled to deliver stadiums, public transportation improvements and other World Cup-related projects within the timelines specified by Fifa.

Some construction sites, such as a new terminal at Sao Paulo's international airport, are being built around the clock seven days a week to try to finish them before the Cup.

The stadium - officially called Arena Corinthians, but known locally as Itaquerao - is being built by Brazilian industrial conglomerate Odebrecht SA.

Brazil has struggled to complete some World Cup-related projects

The venue is due to host the World Cup opener, and five other matches.

A spokeswoman for Odebrecht declined to comment on the accident when contacted by the Reuters news agency.

The stadium owner, Sport Club Corinthians, has released a statement on the collapse.

"The board of Sport Club Corinthians Paulista hereby deeply regret the accident earlier in Corinthians Arena. No other information at this time."

More follows...

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