Stafford Inquiry: 'Nurse Count' To Boost Safety

By Thomas Moore, Health & Science Correspondent

Hospitals will have to make public the number of nurses on their wards under a series of measures to improve patient safety.

The Department of Health said the monthly reports would be mandatory from next April.

Hospitals in England will also have to disclose the percentage of shifts that meet safe staffing guidelines independently approved by the health watchdog NICE.

The staffing levels will be made public on a new patient safety website, which will also include information on the number of "never events" - those which should never happen in the health service such as a surgeon operating on the wrong part of the body.

The plans are part of the Government's response to the inquiry into the scandal at Stafford Hospital, in which up to 1,200 patients are thought to have died needlessly as a result of poor care.

NHS England will also set up a national patient safety programme to spread best practice and learn from mistakes.

Health minister Norman Lamb said: "We are determined to see the NHS become a world leader in patient safety, with a safety ethos and level of transparency that matches the airline industry.

"We need transparency on staffing levels, backed up by a strong inspection regime to get better, safer care."

Frank Robinson's son John died after misdiagnosis at Stafford Hospital

But Christina McAnea, head of health at Unison, said: "The Government has missed another opportunity to introduce fixed, safe nurse to patient ratios. There is safety in numbers when it comes to caring for patients and this one step would bring about a revolutionary change on the wards.

"Recommending a 'toolkit' to set minimum staffing levels is fine, but what will happen if these are ignored when wards are under pressure, which is almost a daily occurrence in today's NHS?"

Figures from NHS England show that hospitals expect to recruit an extra 3,700 nurses by the end of the financial year.

In February the Mid Staffordshire Inquiry by Sir Robert Francis QC made more than 200 recommendations to change the culture in the NHS and put compassion back at the heart of patient care.

The report had recommended that hospitals should have a duty of candour, a legal responsibility to tell patients if something has gone wrong in their care.

But the Department of Health has so far refused to fully introduce the policy.

Patient satisfaction at the Princess Alexandra Hospital has soared

Peter Walsh, the head of patient safety campaign group Action Against Medical Accidents, told Sky News: "The current plans are that this is limited to fatal cases and the most severe cases of permanent disability.

"That would be a disaster. In effect, it would legitimise the vast majority of serious harm caused to patients being covered up. That would take us in exactly the opposite direction from the one we need to go in."

Frank Robinson, whose son John died after he was misdiagnosed and sent home from Stafford Hospital, also urged the Government to introduce the duty of candour as soon as possible.

He told Sky News: "So many lives have been lost through cover-ups and so many people have suffered. I just don't want that to happen to anyone else and this is a golden opportunity, and if the Government miss this opportunity, that's shameful."

The Mid Staffs Inquiry had strongly criticised managers for chasing government targets, rather than treating patients with compassion.

:: Watch Sky News for the latest reaction to the health reforms.

Read the full Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Public Inquiry report here: Executive Summary, Volume 1, Volume 2, Volume 3, Key Facts and Figures

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Iranian Embassy Blasts Kill 22 In Beirut

Two explosions at the Iranian Embassy in Beirut have killed at least 22 people and injured 146, Lebanon's health minister has said.

Ali Hassan Khalil said the number of victims, which include the embassy's cultural attache, was not final and could rise further.

Lebanese officials say security footage showed a suicide bomber and car bomb were behind the blasts in the neighbourhood of Janah, in the south of the Lebanese capital.

The area is a stronghold of the militant Hizbollah group, which is a main ally of President Bashar al Assad in neighbouring Syria's civil war. It is unclear if the blasts are related to that conflict.

State television in Syria said: "The Syrian government firmly condemns the terrorist attack carried out near the Iranian embassy in Beirut."

The front of the embassy was badly damaged in the blast

Iran accused Israel of being responsible for the attacks.

The bombings were "an inhuman crime and spiteful act done by Zionists and their mercenaries," ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham said in remarks reported by the official IRNA news agency.

Al Qaeda-linked group the Abdullah Azzam Brigades has claimed responsibility for the attack.

The neighbourhood has been hit by several blasts in recent months that have killed and wounded scores.

Shi'ite Iran has been bankrolling Mr Assad's fight against the mainly Sunni rebels and has given military support.

Southern Beirut is known as a Hizbollah stronghold and has been hit by at least three other explosions this year.

Those attacks were blamed on groups linked to the rebels, believed to be in retaliation for its involvement in Syria's civil war.

Hizbollah fighters have been supporting Mr Assad's forces in several strategic battles across Syria, a move that has also increased sectarian tension in the two countries.

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Co-op Chair Quits Amid Flowers Drug Scandal

Len Wardle, chair of the Co-operative Group, has resigned after "serious questions" were raised by the scandal over its former banking chairman Paul Flowers.

Mr Wardle had announced last month that he planned to step down amid the wider financial crisis at the bank but quit on Tuesday with immediate effect.

Reverend Flowers, who has already apologised for doing things that were "stupid and wrong" - but without elaborating - has been suspended from the Methodist Church and by the Labour Party after being filmed in a newspaper sting allegedly trying to buy illegal drugs.

The substances said to be at the centre of the claims include cocaine and ketamine - a horse tranquilliser - used as a party drug. 

Len Wardle joined the Co-op's board in 2002 (image credit Co-op)

The allegations against Reverend Flowers, which are the subject of a police inquiry, exacerbated pressure on Britain's biggest mutual which is having to explain the background to the bank's financial difficulties - largely a result of its merger with Britannia in 2009.

Mr Wardle said in a statement: "The recent revelations about the behaviour of Paul Flowers, the former Chair of The Co-operative Bank, have raised a number of serious questions for both the Bank and the Group.

"I led the Board that appointed Paul Flowers to lead the Bank Board and under those circumstances I feel that it is right that I step down now, ahead of my planned retirement in May next year.

"I have already made it clear that I believe the time is right for real change in our operations and our governance and the Board recently started a detailed review of our democracy.

"I hope that the Group now takes the chance to put in place a new democratic structure so we can modernise in the interests of all our members."

The Co-op confirmed Mr Wardle would be replaced by Ursula Lidbetter, currently Group deputy chair and chief executive of the Lincolnshire Co-operative Society.

His decision was announced hours after The Co-op Group launched a fact-finding probe and a root-and-branch review of its structure after "serious and wide-ranging" allegations about Reverend Flowers, who resigned in June after three years as chair of the banking arm after a £1.5bn black hole was discovered in its finances.

The Group statement on Monday said: "Given the serious and wide-ranging nature of recent allegations, the new executive management team has started a fact-finding process to look into any inappropriate behaviour at the Co-operative Group or the Co-operative Bank and to take action as necessary.

Paul Flowers is being investigated following the Mail On Sunday's claims

"In addition, the board of the Co-operative Group has launched a root and branch review of the democratic structure of the organisation.

"We need to modernise to ensure that the interests of all our seven million members are properly and directly represented in the oversight of our business activities."

While announcing Mr Wardle's decision to quit, the Co-op said on Tuesday that Ms Lidbetter would chair the Group through the governance review, which will include consideration of how the Board is constituted and chaired.

The Co-op Bank discovered a massive gap in its finances following the purchase of Britannia Building Society in 2009 and abortive attempts to take on hundreds of Lloyds branches.

It faces a rescue which will see 50 branches close and investors including US hedge funds take control of 70% of the business, leaving the wider Co-operative Group with just 30% - described as a "tragedy" by former group chief executive Peter Marks.

The scandal surrounding Reverend Flowers has intensified the focus on the bank's troubles.

Critics have questioned how he could have been appointed given his apparent lack of experience in banking and Andrew Tyrie MP, chairman of the Treasury Select Committee, has said that it was clear he was "manifestly unsuitable".

Regulators have said he went through the appropriate process when he joined the Co-op's board as a non-executive director but did not face further scrutiny when he became its chairman.

In a separate development, Labour has come under pressure to return a £50,000 donation backed by Reverend Flowers.

The donation, made by the Co-operative Group, emerged as the party suspended his membership over the drug allegatons.

Labour's leadership has since attempted to distance itself from Mr Flowers, a former councillor, after it emerged he attended a private meeting with Ed Miliband in March.

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Russia Plane Crash: Briton Among Dead

A British woman who died in a plane crash in Russia which killed 50 people has been named by her employer as Donna Bull.

The Boeing 737-500 airliner crash-landed in the Russian city of Kazan on Sunday evening, killing everyone on board.

The Tatarstan Airlines flight from Moscow was trying to abort its landing in order to make a second approach when it struck the runway and exploded.

Forty-four passengers and six crew members on board were killed, according to emergency officials.

Ms Bull, an A-levels programme manager, was described as a "very popular and well-respected member of staff" by her employer Bellerbys College in Cambridge.

She was heading to Kazan for a 10-day marketing trip with a Moscow-based colleague, Yana Baranova, who also died.

The aircraft was making a second attempt to land at Kazan airport

The UK Foreign Office confirmed the death of a Briton in the crash and said it was providing consular assistance.

Also among the dead was the son of the leader of the Tatarstan region, Irek Minnikhanov, and the head of Russia's FSB security service in Tatarstan, Alexander Antonov.

The plane took off from Moscow's Domodedovo airport at 6.25pm local time and crashed just over an hour later.

According to eyewitnesses, the Boeing lost altitude quickly and its fuel tank exploded on impact.

There were high winds and cloudy skies over the airport in central Russia at the time of the crash.

Boeing officials at the Dubai Airshow declined to comment on the crash.

The flight was operated by the regional Tatarstan airline, according to a spokeswoman from Russia's Emergencies Ministry.

Kazan, which is 500 miles east of Moscow, is the capital of the oil-rich region of Tatarstan.

A new runway was built at the airport ahead of the World Student Games, held in the city earlier this year.

A spokesman for state aviation oversight agency Rosaviatsia said authorities would search for the flight recorders.

"The plane touched the ground and burst into flame," Sergei Izvolsky said.

"The cause of the crash as of now is unknown."

Russia and the former Soviet republics combined had one of the world's worst air traffic safety records in 2011, with a total accident rate almost three times the world average, according to the International Air Transport Association.

IATA said last year that global airline safety had improved, but accident rates had risen in Russia and the ex-Soviet Commonwealth of Independent States.

In April 2012, at least 31 people were killed when a Russian passenger plane crashed shortly after take-off in Siberia.

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Tornadoes Sweeping Across US Midwest Kill Six

At least six people have died as powerful tornadoes carved a path of destruction across the US Midwest.

Entire neighbourhoods were flattened within seconds as the twisters, triggered by a "very dangerous" and fast-moving weather system, touched down in as many as 10 states.

Forecasters said the extreme weather - which destroyed homes, uprooted trees and flipped cars upside down - could affect more than 50 million people.

The devastation left behind by a tornado in Washington, Illinois

According to the National Weather Service, more than 60 tornadoes struck, unleashing 80mph winds and hail stones up to two inches in diameter.

Illinois was struck the hardest. At least six were killed and dozens more injured, but with communications difficult and many roads impassable, it remained unclear how many people might be hurt.

At one hospital in Peoria, Illinois, doctors were treating at least 24 casualties, some of whom had head injuries and broken bones.

The storm moved toward the east coast, causing major damage in Illinois

Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan and Wisconsin were buffered by the storm, which weakened as it tracked east towards Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland and New Jersey.

Washington, a town of 16,000 in Illinois, appeared to have the most severe damage. 

Anthony Khoury, who saw a twister rip through Washington, told Sky News: "Most of my neighbourhood is completely destroyed, everything has been demolished.

"Families have lost their homes, people don't have anywhere to sleep and the electricity has gone."

Michael Perdun, a fellow Washington resident, said: "I stepped outside and I heard it coming.

Entire communities were flattened in seconds

"My daughter was already in the basement, so I ran downstairs and grabbed her, crouched in the laundry room.

"All of a sudden I could see daylight up the stairway and my house was gone."

Jeff Leeman, who was in his backyard with his son when a tornado struck Pekin, Illnois, added: "In a matter of seconds ... it was right on top of us.

"We hustled in the house and before we knew it, it was gone. It was that fast."

Two people, an 80-year-old man and his 78-year-old sister, were killed in Washington County; three were killed in Massac County, near the Kentucky border; and the sixth victim was reported in Tazewell County.

A car crushed by a fallen tree in Pekin, Illinois

The tornadoes brought down phone lines, caused thousands of power failures and left debris strewn across roads.

The severe weather also caused the cancellation of many flights, while the Baltimore Ravens' game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field was temporarily suspended in the first quarter due to lightning in the area.

Meteorologist Matt Friedlein said such powerful storms rarely occur so late in the year because the climate is usually too cold.

However, temperatures had been forecast to climb to as high as 26C (78F), he said, which is warm enough to produce severe weather when coupled with strong winter winds.

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Typhoon Haiyan: Video Shows Home Swept Away

Huge waves can be seen crashing into and washing away a house in amateur footage from one of the typhoon-hit areas of the Philippines.

Shot from the top floor of a boarding house in Hernani as a storm surge hit, the video released by an aid organisation shows the home disappear after being completely engulfed by water.

The footage emerged as the United Nations warned that some Philippine islands may have not been reached 10 days since the disaster struck, claiming more than 3,900 lives.

Millions have been displaced by the disaster

Nickson Gensis, from the Plan International development organisation, filmed the video from the building he and five others were staying in a few hundred metres from the sea.

"Five were praying and I was filming," he said.

"Three of our group were male and we all wore trunks so that we could swim if we needed to. We were so scared. But I thought, 'If I die, so be it'.

"It was like a huge tsunami but the water receded quickly afterwards."

With thousands dead and hundreds of thousands of homes destroyed, Philippine president Benigno Aquino visited the town of Palo, just south of worst-hit Tacloban city, where engineers have salvaged generators from a flooded IT park to light up the streets and town hall again.

A survivor surveys the devastation in a part of Tacloban

"One is tempted to despair, but the minute I despair, then everybody, it cascades down and everybody gets hampered in their efforts," he said.

Authorities in the country, the US military and international agencies face a mounting humanitarian crisis, with the number of people displaced by the catastrophe estimated at four million.

Bernard Kerblat, UN High Commissioner for Refugees representative for the Philippines, said the agency was still facing co-ordination problems.

"As of now, personally, I am not so sure that we've reached every single portion of the territory where people are in need of aid," he said.

"And, in fact, I wouldn't be surprised that unfortunately that there might still be, as I'm speaking to you, day 11 of this disaster, there might be still very isolated islands."

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Unions Probe: Review Into Intimidation Claims

David Cameron has set himself on a collision course with the unions by announcing an independent review into allegations of intimidation and bullying.

The move follows claims of sabotage and harassment related to the bitter industrial dispute which almost led to the closure of the Grangemouth oil refinery in Scotland.

Downing Street said the wide-ranging review, headed by Bruce Carr QC, will investigate allegations of the use of so-called "leverage" tactics by the unions as well as the impact of such disputes on the critical national infrastructure.

However, in a sign of renewed coalition tensions, the Liberal Democrat Business Secretary Vince Cable made clear he had only agreed to the inquiry on the basis that it would also examine the practices of employers.

The Unite union dismissed the review as a "Tory election stunt" and warned that no trade union would be prepared to "collaborate" with it.

The review follows claims that Unite sought to intimidate executives from Ineos, the refinery's owners, including sending "mobs" of demonstrators to protest outside their homes and premises associated with Ineos chairman, Jim Ratcliffe.

In recent weeks the Prime Minister has repeatedly attacked the union in the Commons, challenging Labour leader Ed Miliband to hold an inquiry into claims of vote-rigging in the Falkirk constituency party in an attempt to secure the selection of Unite's favoured candidate for parliament.

Unite general secretary Len McCluskey has always denied any intimidation or bullying on the part of the union, insisting that it was acting within the law.

As part of his remit, Mr Carr will consider whether existing laws are sufficient to prevent what Government sources described as "inappropriate or intimidatory actions" in trade disputes as well as the response of the police to complaints.

Unite claimed Grangemouth employees had been bullied during the dispute

More generally, the review will look at the underlying causes of industrial relations difficulties in affected industries, the potential impact on the UK's critical national infrastructure and the consequences for investor confidence in key sectors.

It will also make recommendations on the respective roles of government, employers and employee representatives in ensuring effective workforce relationships.

Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude, a Conservative, said: "Allegations about trade union industrial intimidation tactics, including attempts to sabotage businesses supply chains and harass employers' families are deeply concerning.

"That's why we need an independent review to get to the bottom of these activities, as well as to look at the role played by government, employers and employees in industrial disputes.

"This forms part of our long-term plan to ensure Britain remains competitive and to secure an economic recovery for hard-working people."

Mr Cable, in contrast emphasised that Britain had generally enjoyed good industrial relations for the past two decades while strikes were at a historically low level.

"There were clearly some very serious matters going on in Grangemouth," he said.

"That is why I have agreed to a proportionate and rational review of industrial disputes, including leverage and other tactics used by both unions and employers.

"There are rogue unions but there are also rogue employers, some of whom have in the past engaged in illegal tactics like blacklisting. This Government will tolerate neither."

A Unite spokesman said: "This review is a sorry attempt by the coalition to divert attention from the cost of living crisis.

"Vince Cable may not have noticed but the Grangemouth dispute has been settled.

"This review is nothing more than a Tory election stunt which no trade unionist will collaborate with."

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Typhoon Haiyan: HMS Daring Arrives To Help

British warship HMS Daring has arrived in the Typhoon Haiyan disaster zone, as the president of the Philippines visited devastated areas.

The Type 45 destroyer and her crew docked at the island of Cebu ready to provide humanitarian assistance, the Department for International Aid and Development said.

It has spent the last three days carrying out reconnaissance work in and around the southeast Asian nation, using a helicopter to survey 48 islands, including areas which have not yet been reached by international relief teams.

The Lynx helicopter will now be used to fly shelter kits, food and medical supplies to those remote areas.

Members of a 12-strong medical team from the UK, which arrived in the Philippines earlier this week, will also be flown to different areas to treat injured victims of the typhoon.

The typhoon hit the country on November 7

HMS Daring Commander Angus Essenhigh told Sky News: "We're very much looking forward to getting into the fight tomorrow and delivering some of the aid where it's most needed."

Sky's Defence Correspondent Alistair Bunkall, on board the warship, said: "They will no doubt be the first outsiders to reach some of these devastated areas since typhoon struck."

The typhoon - said to be the strongest ever to make landfall - slammed into the Philippines on November 7, killing thousands of people.

President Benigno Aquino, caught off guard by the scale of the disaster and criticised by some for the sometimes chaotic response, has been visiting affected areas.

Not for the first time, he sought to deflect blame for the problems onto local authorities whose preparations he said had fallen short.

Mr Aquino delivers a speech in Guiuan

In Guiuan, a hard-hit coastal town in eastern Samar province, he praised the city mayor for conducting a proper evacuation that had limited deaths to less than 100, saying that was a contrast to other towns.

"In other places, I prefer not to talk about it. As your president, I am not allowed to get angry even if I am already upset," he said.

"I'll just suffer through it with an acidic stomach."

Mr Aquino spoke of his appreciation for the volunteers, and also promised his nation that those who have been affected will receive continued support.

"Your government will not be remiss in providing everything, everything, everything that you will need," he said.

While aid packages have begun to reach more remote areas, much of it carried by helicopters brought by the USS George Washington aircraft carrier, the United Nations said people were still going hungry in some mountainous provinces.

It said information about several provinces in the west of the Visayas region remained "limited", with 60% of people in towns in the northeast part of Capiz province needing food support.

More than a week after Typhoon killed at least 3,633 people, the UN has doubled its estimate of homeless to nearly two million.

There are still 1,179 people missing, according to national figures.

A number of Britons are missing following the disaster, Foreign Secretary William Hague confirmed on Saturday.

People in a temporary shelter in Tacloban

Among those feared dead is Colin Bembridge, 61, from Grimsby, who was staying with his partner Maybelle, 35, and their three-year-old daughter Victoria near Tacloban when the storm hit.

British Prime Minister David Cameron pledged an additional £30m on Saturday for international aid agencies working in the country.

It brings the total amount pledged by the British Government to £50m, on top of £33m in donations from the public.

Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious is also being sent to replace HMS Daring.

The aid effort continues as members of the Disaster Emergencies Committee (DEC) warned leaders meeting at UN climate talks in Warsaw that the disaster offers a glimpse of the future if urgent action is not taken.

Aid agencies including Christian Aid, Cafod, Care International, Oxfam and Tearfund said ministers meeting in the Polish capital must act urgently because climate change is likely to make such extreme weather events more common in future.

Climate models forecast that typhoons could become more powerful and that weather-related events around the world will be more extreme and frequent, they warned.

Delegates from 195 countries are taking part in the annual UN climate talks, which are taking place until November 22.

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Age Of Consent: No 10 Rejects Calls To Change

Downing Street has rejected a call from a leading public health expert to consider lowering the age of consent for sex to 15.

Professor John Ashton, president of the Faculty of Public Health, said society sends "confused" signals about when sex is permitted.

But a No 10 spokesman said: "We reject the call to lower the age of consent.

"The current age is in place to protect children and there are no plans to change it."

Prof Ashton's intervention comes against a backdrop of official figures which suggest that up to a third of teenagers have sex before the present age of consent of 16.

He told Sky News: "The problem we have got is we have got this massive sexualisation and pornographication of childhood and early adolescence.

Lowering the age would make it easier for 15-year-olds to get contraception

"Huge commercial interests - pop music, fashion, internet pornography everywhere, social media.

"There doesn' seem to be any real appetite among politicians and leaders to address this.

"In the meantime, our young people are becoming sexually active at younger and younger ages.

"If we are not going to create an environment where they are not sexualised, then we need to address their needs."

He added: "What we know from other European countries that have lower ages of sexual consent, I am thinking here particuarlarly about the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark, is that very often what that leads to is where there's an atmosphere of discussion within the family, within the school, within the social environment, they actually defer putting off sex, even though the age of consents lower, and that they have lower teenage pregnancy rates.

"It also means if they are not indulging in what's illegal activity, they won't be frightened to come forward for help if they are getting involved in a dangerous situation with an older male who's grooming them or what have you.

"We have got this conundrum. Where you have got illegal activity which large numbers of people are engaging in, you are creating an environment of risk, potential abuse, potential exploitation.

"We need to do something about the sexualisation of childhood, and we need to do something about responding properly to the needs of young people who are becoming sexually active, perhaps with somebody of a similar age where it is part of a normal maturing process into adult life, but also so that we can begin to tackle this problem of girls particularly, being exploited by older males."

The Faculty of Public Health, part of the Royal Colleges of Physicians, gives advice to ministers and civil servants although it is independent of government.

David Tucker, head of policy at the NSPCC, said he would be happy to have a debate on the issue but said he would want to see the evidence for Prof Ashton's claims.

He said: "Has there really been a significant change in the amount of young people having sex over the past 20 or 30 years?

"If it has changed, then is reducing the age of consent the most sensible way to deal with it?"

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Most Wanted Criminals Hiding In Spain Revealed

By Rhiannon Mills, Sky News Reporter

An "unlucky 13" of Britain's most wanted criminals who are thought to be hiding in Spain have been unveiled, including the suspected leader of a £90m cocaine-smuggling ring.

Ian Stanton, 42, from Liverpool, is accused of being the mastermind of a gang that smuggled more than 400kg of cocaine to the UK hidden in a shipment of Argentinian beef.

The drugs were found at Tilbury docks in Essex in May, and the shipment was due to be delivered to a cold-storage company in Wigan.

He has links to Merseyside - specifically Crosby, Kirkby and Maghull - but also London, the Netherlands and Spain.

Other fugitives include Michael McCartney, 78, from Letchworth, who was convicted of abusing three boys. He groomed them by buying them expensive gifts before committing sex crimes.

He was found guilty of nine counts of indecent assault, indecency with a child and inciting sexual activity involving penetration in March 2013, and failed to attend court the following month for sentencing.

The 'unlucky 13' fugitives that police are hunting in Spain

Robert Mortby is suspected of attempted murder over an attack on a man outside a pub in Elephant and Castle, south London.

The victim was drinking at the Rose and Crown in July last year when he was hit over the head with a bottle and shot three times.

Mortby, 26, from London, is suspected of being one of his two attackers.

The full list of 13 was revealed in Madrid on Thursday by Crimestoppers, the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) and Spanish police, in the eighth appeal of its kind run under Operation Captura.

Hank Cole, from the NCA, told Sky News: "They are a mixture of serious criminals ranging from alleged sex offenders, those who've committed or attempted to commit murder, and significant drug traffickers.

"So these are the worst or most serious criminals that the National Crime Agency is looking to capture.

"Historically Spain had no extradition treaty to the UK so it was seen as a safe haven for UK criminals. Since then the law has changed and we've successfully extradited large numbers of UK criminals back to the UK."

The initiative, targeting criminals thought to have fled to Spain, was launched in 2006 and so far has seen 53 out of 63 suspects caught.

Crimestoppers founder Lord Ashcroft said: "Despite our success so far, there are still a number of dangerous criminals who see Spain as a safe haven to hide from their past. But with the support of the Spanish and UK public, we can hunt them out and bring them to justice."

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