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Man Jailed For Murder Of Mum In Front Of Child

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 10 April 2015 | 18.25

A drug dealer who murdered Leighann Duffy in front of a young child has been jailed for a minimum of 26 years and six months.

Lloyd Byfield, 48, pursued a relationship with the 26-year-old before arming himself with a claw hammer and a knife and smashing his way into her flat in Walthamstow, London, last September.

After pleading guilty to murder at the Old Bailey, he was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 26-and-a-half years by Judge Nicholas Cooke - who told him he may never be released.

He told Byfield he must have had a "heart of stone" to have killed Ms Duffy in front of a young girl who was herself attacked when she tried to intervene.

Judge Cooke also expressed his "unhappiness" at the failure of authorities to deport Byfield to his home country of Jamaica after he attacked another woman with a chisel and was jailed for 30 weeks for burglary in 2005.

He said the murder could have been prevented if he had been sent back then.

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Boost For Miliband And Labour In New Polls

Labour is enjoying the lead in three new polls, with one indicating voters believe Ed Miliband is performing better than David Cameron.

A Survation poll for the Daily Mirror has Labour climbing to a four-point lead over the Tories.

It put Labour on 35%, two points up on last week, while the Conservatives were on 31%, dropping by one point.

Panelbase has Labour up four points to 37% and the Tories falling two to 31%, while a TNS Omnibus survey shows Labour up one point to 33% and the Conservatives down three to 30%.

But ComRes research for ITV and the Daily Mail suggested the race was too close to call, putting the Tories on 34% and Labour on 33%.

However, that compared to a four-point deficit for Labour at the start of the campaign.

:: For full coverage of the General Election click here

The Survation poll also put Mr Miliband's approval rating higher than the Prime Minister for the first time in Survation's polling history.

The gap between those saying Mr Miliband was doing a good and bad job was +3.2 points to Mr Cameron's +2.3.

But the Labour leader still trails the Prime Minister in the ratings for who would be best to lead the country after the General Election - Mr Miliband is on 25% to Mr Cameron's 37%.

:: Track how the major parties are faring in the latest opinion polls with the Sky News poll of polls, which averages all the latest polls to get the overall picture

The survey also found Labour's pledge to abolish the non-dom tax status has received broad approval, with 59% in favour and 16% against.

The poll found the policy even had support from Tory voters.

Sky's Political Editor Faisal Islam said: "It does seem that the nom-dom policy has had a marked impact on the polls."

He added: "It is worth noting that we've now had a run of polls showing Labour ahead by between one and six points.

"Labour seem to be creeping ahead."

The ComRes research also had some good news for the Lib Dems - they gained three points to draw level with UKIP on 12%.

Greens were down a point at 4%, according to the survey.

But the Greens were up two points to 4% in the Survation poll.

It found UKIP's support dropped three points to 15%, and the Lib Dems and SNP were unchanged on 9% and 5% respectively.

Panelbase also had UKIP down, dropping one point to 16%. The Lib Dems were up one on 8% and the Greens dropped one to 4%.

In the TNS Omnibus survey, UKIP went up three to 19%, the Lib Dems were unchanged on 8%, the Greens down one on 4% and others at 7%.

:: Survation interviewed 1,111 adults on April 7 and 8.

:: TNS interviewed online a representative sample of 1,207 adults between 2 and 7 April.

:: ComRes interviewed 1,013 adults by telephone between 7 and 8 April.

:: Panelbase interviewed 1,013 people between 7 and 9 April.


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Miliband Attacks SNP's '£7.6bn Black Hole'

By Sophy Ridge, Political Correspondent

Ed Miliband is in Scotland for the first time in his election campaign - claiming SNP policy would cause a £7.6bn black hole.

Sharing a platform with Scottish Labour leader Jim Murphy and Ed Balls, he attacked SNP plans for full fiscal autonomy for Scotland.

He said SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon's announcement this week that she would vote for autonomy within a year, if given the chance, was "one of the most significant" events of the campaign.

Labour are under pressure north of the border thanks to growing support for the SNP, which could cost them dozens of seats and even deprive them of a majority.

Almost half (46%) of voters north of the border would back the SNP at the General Election, according to Sky's latest poll of Scottish polls.

:: Ed Miliband Profile: The Picture Imperfect Leader

Mr Miliband said full fiscal autonomy would mean a £7.6bn hole in Scotland's finances that "would need to be filled with more taxes on working people or more borrowing".

"This strikes to the very heart of what I believe in. I will never sell Scotland short by signing up to the SNP's plans," he said.

He challenged the SNP to say where cuts would be made to service the funding gap.

"Which services will be cut? Which taxes will be raised? And what cuts will it mean for pensioners in Scotland when they are taken out of the UK pensions system?" he said.

"The SNP claim in this campaign to be proposing no reductions in spending, but in fact they are planning dramatic reductions in spending. They must now come clean."

Mr Miliband also attacked the Conservatives, saying their campaign is descending into "desperation and panic" after David Cameron unveiled plans to freeze commuter rail fares and offer workers three paid days off for volunteering.

He accused the Tories of deploying personal abuse and "unfunded and unbelievable promises" in their efforts to keep Mr Cameron in 10 Downing Street.

Mr Murphy has previously been careful to put distance between himself and Labour's Westminster leadership, saying: "I'm my own man".

It was the first time the two men have shared a platform since the start of the campaign.

Mr Murphy began the speeches, saying his party are "determined to end this Tory austerity".

He said the SNP's plans for fiscal autonomy had not been thought through and were a "slogan in search of a policy".

:: Full Coverage Of General Election 2015

Earlier, Ms Sturgeon denied Labour's "desperate" claim that there are billions of pounds of cuts on the horizon under her autonomy plan.

"This is desperation on the part of the Labour Party," she said while campaigning on the streets of Stirling.

"Instead of putting forward a positive case of their own, they are resorting to the same fears and smears that they resorted to during the referendum.

"The truth is the only cuts on the horizon for Scotland are the ones that the Tories are proposing and Labour are backing."


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Miliband Says Fallon Has 'Demeaned Himself'

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 09 April 2015 | 18.25

Ed Miliband has hit back at the Defence Secretary for a personal attack in which Michael Fallon accused the Labour leader of being a "backstabber".

The Labour leader said Mr Fallon was a "decent man" but he had "demeaned himself and he has demeaned his office" with his comments over Mr Miliband's relationship with his brother.

The Defence Secretary had warned in an article he wrote for The Times that Mr Miliband would do a deal with the SNP over the Trident nuclear deterrent because he could not be trusted.

He said Mr Miliband had "stabbed his own brother in the back" to become Labour leader and would be willing to "stab the United Kingdom in the back" to become prime minister.

:: Full Coverage Of General Election 2015

The two men were speaking at separate events in London.

Mr Miliband said: "Michael Fallon is a decent man but today I think he has demeaned himself and he has demeaned his office and national security is too important to play politics with.

"I will never compromise our national security, I will never negotiate away our national security and you know what, the Conservative Party can throw what they like at me but I am going to carry on concentrating on the issues that matter to the British people."

Mr Fallon made his comments ahead of today's event in which he pledged the Tories would maintain a continuous at-sea nuclear deterrent by building a fleet of four Successor Ballistic Missile Submarines if they win on 7 May.

:: General Election Live Blog

He warned that Mr Miliband must not be allowed to trade away Britain's nuclear deterrent for a deal with the SNP that would put him in power.

Challenged on Sky News over his attack on Mr Miliband, Mr Fallon said: "We're not slinging mud. This is an issue of trust and character.

"We've made it clear we are going to renew those submarines. If you vote Labour you could end up, because of the SNP position, with a coalition where Ed Miliband does some grubby deal behind the scenes with Nicola Sturgeon of the SNP.

"We need to get that out into the open so people know, in four weeks' time, exactly what they are voting for."

UKIP economic spokesman Patrick O'Flynn criticised Mr Fallon and said: "We think it is a bit odd that Michael Fallon should be trying to link defence of the realm to the way in which Ed Miliband became Labour Party leader.

"That personal attack, to me, speaks of a Defence Secretary who is trying to distract from the fact that Conservatives are not pledging to fully resource our armed forces, they are not meeting the Nato 2% commitment. We would commit totally to upgrading Trident. We can afford to do so."

Asked if he supported Mr Fallon's comments, David Cameron said: "Of course. Michael Fallon is making a very important point which is first of all only the Conservatives are absolutely guaranteeing a full replacement of Trident with four submarines and continuous at sea deterrence.

"It is important that in a dangerous insecure world we have that ultimate insurance policy."

The Labour leader spoke of how his relationship with his brother had become "strained" after the Labour leadership battle and had been very hard for the family after being questioned on the Sky News/Channel 4 Battle For Number 10 programme.

:: Ed Miliband Profile: The Picture Imperfect Leader

With the polls suggesting the SNP could be the third largest party in another hung parliament, Ms Sturgeon has made clear that the price of their support for Labour after the election would include scrapping Trident.

Speaking in her second televised debate in 24 hours on Wednesday night, Ms Sturgeon said the SNP would never vote in the Commons to renew Trident nuclear weapons.

Mr Fallon said that Britain has kept a ballistic missile submarine at sea to deter a nuclear attack for 46 years.

He added that, with as many as 17,000 nuclear weapons around the world and concerning moves from Russia and North Korea, renewing Trident is "the only responsible choice".


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Judge And Lawyer Shot Dead In Court

A man has been arrested after a judge and lawyer were shot dead in a court in Milan, the Italian Interior Minister says.

The man was found by police in the town of Vimercate, 25km from Milan, after fleeing on a motorbike, Angelino Alfano said.

He was named as Claudio Giardiello, a defendant in a bankruptcy case at the Palace of Justice building.

Mr Alfano added that the suspect was being held in a military police barracks.

The area around the court was cordoned off after the shooting and people were initially told to remain inside.

A person speaking from inside the president's office at the court told Sky News shortly after the shooting that they had been locked in a room and instructed not to leave.

Women were later seen leaving the building first followed by men, after having their identification checked.

The gunman fired "at least three or four shots", according to lawyer Marcello Ilia.

"We tried to find out what was going on. There were suddenly lots of police officers who told us not to leave the room, they shut us in," he said.

"After a few minutes we came out. They told us someone in a suit and tie was armed and at large in the court."

It was unclear how the armed man gained access to the building as visitors must pass through metal detectors.

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Oil Find Near Gatwick May Be 'World Class'

The estimated size of an oil find near Gatwick Airport has been upgraded to 100 billion barrels.

UK Oil & Gas Investments (UKOG) said the Horse Hill-1 well in the Weald Basin was now thought to hold 158 million barrels per square mile.

In May 2014, the British Geological Survey estimated the Weald Basin to hold around 4.4 billion barrels of shale oil.

UKOG described the find as a possible "world class" resource with the potential for "significant daily oil production."

The company's chairman David Lenigas, said it would create "many thousands of jobs" but cautioned that it would take a long time to begin production. 

He said: "You've got to work through government process and to work with the local community. Everybody expects you to snap your fingers and all of a sudden the magic panacea is there. The key thing is there is a potential resource of significance here - but the fast track or slow track nature is really going to be determined by Westminster".

The US-based firm which studied the reservoir estimated that recovery of the oil would be limited at between 3% and 15% of the total.

It also insisted there was no need to use the controversial extraction process, known as fracking, to get access to the oil.

Mr Lenigas said:  "Horse Hill is a conventional well, with conventional testing and we've got permission from the government authorities for a conventional programme. There will be no fracking at Horse Hill."

But local campaigners believe fracking will be necessary at some point in the future.

Anti-fracking campaigner Charles Metcalfe said: "South East England is the most densely populated corner of England. To start drilling holes all over the place will completely change the nature of our countryside forever. And if the result is that you're not getting very much oil out of it, then that's awful".

Environmental group Greenpeace urged people to focus on clean technologies.

Greenpeace's chief scientist Dr Doug Parr said : "To gleefully rub your hands at a new fossil fuel discovery you need to turn the clock back to the 19th century and ignore everything we have learnt about climate change since. We already have more than enough coal, oil, and gas reserves to fry the planet".

The UK currently produces 770,000 barrels of oil per day, compared to 11.1 million in the United States and 11.7 million in Saudi Arabia.

The announcement helped shares in UKOG rise more than 300% during trading on Thursday. 

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Everything You Need To Know About Non-Doms

Written By Unknown on Rabu, 08 April 2015 | 18.25

Who are the non-doms, what tax do they avoid and who introduced these rules anyway? Here is all you need to know.

:: What is non-dom status?

Non-domiciled status can be claimed where you are living in the UK but your father or grandfather was resident in another country when you were born. (Grandfather because non-dom status can be inherited).

It means you do not have to pay UK tax on money earned outside the UK.

:: What if my mother or grandmother were resident outside the UK when I was born?

Tough luck, you do not qualify. The rules are a bit sexist like that.

:: Rules or law?

Actually non-dom status is a tax rule. It was introduced by William Pitt the Younger in 1799 - along with income tax.

The caveat was included as an allowance for ships bringing goods back from the colonies.

:: How many non-doms are there?

Around 116,000. They tend to be very rich.

Among them are HSBC boss Stuart Gulliver and steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal.

Conservative peer Lord Ashcroft gave up his non-dom status in 2010 so he could remain in the House of Lords.

:: And does it effectively turn the UK into a tax haven for the rich as Labour is claiming?

Yes, and no. People may still have to pay tax in the country where they are earning cash.

That said, leaked files earlier this year showed some were paying no tax anywhere in the world by using Swiss bank accounts at the suggestion of HSBC.

:: So do non-doms get away without paying anything in the UK?

They did - but now they only do for seven years. In 2008 Labour tightened the rules.

Those who have lived in the UK for seven years had to pay an annual fee of £30,000 if they wanted to keep their non-dom status.

George Osborne tightened it further still in the Autumn Statement - increasing the fee for those living in the UK for 17 years to £90,000.

:: For really rich people that annual fee still seems a pretty good deal

It has been said. One non-dom told Sky's Political Editor Faisal Islam that the Chancellor could raise the annual fee to £250,000 and it would still be worth him staying in the UK.

:: And Labour is going to abolish non-dom status?

That is what Ed Miliband has said. It's part of his "broadest shoulders bearing the heaviest burden" approach.

However, the Conservatives point out that technically it is more small adjustments on how long people can be non-dom.

The full details of Labour's plans are as yet unclear, but it will allow only "real temporary residents" to take advantage of the tax benefits.

:: If non-doms had to pay UK tax how much would the country get?

Hundreds of millions according to Labour.

:: Then what are the drawbacks?

The UK could lose hundreds of millions, according to the Tories.

There is a fear if the very rich had to pay tax at the same level the rest of the population do then there would be a "flight of cash and talent", ie they would leave the UK and take the investment, fees they do pay, money they donate to the arts and charities with them.

This could be more costly in the long run. In the 13 years it was in power Labour did review non-dom status and decided not to scrap it.

:: Would the rich really move out lock, stock and barrel?

Just as a number of people cry flight, many also point out that London as a financial capital is a significant draw to the very wealthy and the attractions of that would not be wiped out by paying tax - although it is broadly accepted there would be some departures.

The Financial Times has spoken in support of scrapping the status.

Dragon's Den star Duncan Bannatyne, who last week signed up to a letter supporting the Tories on corporation tax, is in favour of the move.

:: Any other issues?

As Sky's Economics Editor Ed Conway points out: "If Labour do scrap non-dom status & bring in a mansion tax, one can only imagine the scale of collapse of the prime London property market."

:: And are all party members on the same page with this?

There is some confusion.

Tory Education Secretary Nicky Morgan said in interview that the Tories wanted those based in the UK to pay tax on all their earnings - even those from abroad. Although this has not been the Conservative standpoint.

Meanwhile, an interview with shadow chancellor Ed Balls has been unearthed in which he says the UK could not afford to scrap non-dom status.

:: What do other countries do?

The UK deal is very generous but others, including Belgium and the Netherlands, have similar rules.


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Labour Would Abolish 'Non-Dom' Tax Status

By Jason Farrell, Senior Political Correspondent

Labour leader Ed Miliband has said he will abolish "non-domiciled" status if he wins the General Election.

"Non-dom" residency allows around 116,000 individuals to exempt their offshore income from UK tax for an annual charge.

In a speech in Warwickshire, Mr Miliband said the rich should not be allowed to "operate under different rules".

:: Full Coverage Of General Election 2015

"The next Labour government will abolish the non-dom rule. And we will replace it with a clear principle - anyone permanently resident in the UK will pay tax in the same way," he said.

The party expects the move to raise "hundreds of millions of pounds" which will be used to reduce the deficit.

There are an estimated 116,000 non-doms living in the UK who only have to pay UK taxes on money they bring into the country.

Their income from overseas investments does not have to be declared.

The 200-year-old rule has been criticised for being open to exploitation by a jet-set elite looking to minimise their tax liabilities.

However, it is argued that the tax law encourages skilled workers and large investors from abroad to locate here and contribute to the UK economy.

Mr Miliband said: "The problem is it isn't true. It is a recipe that doesn't work for most working people, doesn't work for business and doesn't work for Britain.

"It works against every business and working person in this country who has to pay more as a result, everybody who relies on public services like the NHS, everybody who believes in Britain and a fair and modern country.

"The United States doesn't do it. No other major country in the developed world does it. No one would propose doing it now if didn't already exist. One rule for some and another for others? It is unjust, it does not work, it holds Britain back and we will stop it."

In 2008, Labour announced plans to charge non-doms £30,000 a year if they had been resident in the UK for seven of the previous 10 years.

George Osborne increased this to £90,000 for those who have lived here for 17 out of the past 20 years.

But a spokesman for Ed Miliband said: "UK citizens should pay tax on all gains, anywhere in the world."

He added: "There should be no different rules between rich and poor."

Famous "non-doms" include some of Britain's richest individuals, such as Indian steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal.


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Jewellery Heist: Gems 'Already Out Of Country'

Gems stolen in one of the largest and most daring jewellery heists ever will already be out of the country, a former Flying Squad chief believes.

Jewellery and precious stones, which could be worth millions of pounds, were snatched by thieves from a vault in Hatton Garden, London, over the weekend.

The audacious villains are believed to have broken into the building through the roof and abseiled down a lift shaft to access the vault.

A statement from the Metropolitan Police said heavy cutting equipment was then used get into a vault at the premises, where 60/70 safe boxes were raided.

The vault is believed to be reinforced with thick metal and concrete protection doors, up to 2ft thick.

Speaking to Sky News, former Flying Squad chief Barry Phillips described the heist as "sophisticated" and "highly organised".

He said the robbery will have been carried out by a "professional team".

"This has all the hallmarks of a TV or Hollywood film production," Mr Phillips said.

"It was a highly organised, sophisticated crime.

"It's highly likely that any gems or jewellery will have already been sourced and out of the country.

"If past jobs of this nature are taken into account, the thieves will have placed all of the jewellery prior to the robbery.

"That takes a high degree of organisation on behalf of the villains."

Police have not put a value on the goods stolen, but estimates vary widely from hundreds of thousands of pounds to £200m.

One victim of the heist, a jeweller from the area, has spoken of his "extreme shock".

He said he feared that a £5,000 watch he bought for his son on the day he was born might have been stolen.

Michael Miller told Sky News he "felt sick" at the prospect of losing up to £50,000 of jewellery and watches during the burglary.

Mr Miller said his goods - like those of many with deposit boxes there - were uninsured.

Sky's Crime Correspondent Martin Brunt said: "The suspects have had perhaps several days (over the Easter weekend) in which to get in.

"One report, I'm told, suggested that they used a lift shaft at some stage to get into the centre, which must be pretty heavily protected.

"It's probably going to be some days before we get an idea of exactly how much has been stolen or what indeed has been stolen."

Hatton Garden is known as London's jewellery quarter and the safe deposit boxes are mainly used by local jewellers to store loose diamonds in packets.

Other boxes - around 10% of them - are rented by private individuals and so the true value of the heist may never be known, Mr Phillips said. 

Lewis Malka, a diamond jewellery expert who works in Hatton Garden, tweeted: "Quiet day in the office and then I found out one of my client's antique bracelets was stolen in the Hatton Garden robbery."

Mr Malka added: "Most of the people who have got safe deposits there are people in the trade.

"I know for a fact that some of my work colleagues have got boxes down there and we are talking about hundreds and hundreds of thousands of pounds in goods."

In 2003, cash and valuables worth an estimated £1.5m were stolen after a suspect emptied safe boxes at the Hatton vault while posing as a customer.

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  1. Gallery: From Securitas To Brink's-Mat

    The Securitas depot raid in Tonbridge, 2006, was the largest cash robbery in UK history, netting the gang more than £53m after they kidnapped the site manager and his family. Four received life terms

Graff's Jewellers in London's New Bond Street was hit by men whose faces had been disguised by prosthetics in 2009. They took jewellery valued at £40m but the gang was jailed for a total of 71 years

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Tony Blair Criticises Cameron Over Europe

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 07 April 2015 | 18.25

Tony Blair has warned David Cameron's promise of an EU referendum is an "unacceptable gamble" with Britain's future.

The former Labour prime minister also told Sky News the current party leader Ed Miliband had his "100%" support, and said he had showed "real leadership" in resisting calls to back an in/out vote.

Speaking in his former constituency of Sedgefield, Mr Blair claimed the PM did not believe the UK should quit Europe, but had committed to a referendum in 2017 as a "sop" to the right wing of his party and UKIP.

But he warned the vote would be a "huge distraction", risking economic chaos and threatening the UK's national interest.

It would also put EU "exit" on the agenda for the first time.

And he had sharp words for UKIP, arguing its brand of nationalism as "ugly".

In his speech Mr Blair said: "I believe passionately that leaving Europe would leave Britain diminished in the world, do significant damage to our economy and, less obviously but just as important to our future, would go against the very qualities and ambitions that mark us out still as a great global nation.

"Think of the chaos produced by the possibility never mind the reality of Britain quitting Europe.

"Jobs that are secure suddenly insecure; investment decisions postponed or cancelled; a pall of unpredictability hanging over the British economy."

:: Full Coverage Of General Election 2015

He added: "And the oddest thing of all about David Cameron's position? The PM doesn't really believe we should leave Europe; not even the Europe as it is today.

"This was a concession to party, a manoeuvre to access some of the UKIP vote, a sop to the rampant anti-Europe feeling of parts of the media.

"This issue, touching as it does the country's future, is too important to be traded like this."

In a broadside against UKIP, Mr Blair said: "National pride is a great thing. Nationalism, as a political cause in the hands of parties like UKIP, is almost always ugly and, despite being wrapped in the garb on high-sounding phrases, can never disguise its essentially mean spirit."

And praising Mr Miliband's stance, Mr Blair said: "Labour and its leader took a brave decision when they decided not to yield to pressure but instead to make the principled and intelligent case for Britain in Europe.

"In doing so, in my view, they showed they understand Britain's future and its destiny better than those prepared to trade policy for political advantage.

"That is one very good reason, amongst many others, for voting Labour on May 7."

Asked afterwards about his relationship with Mr Miliband, Mr Blair told Sky News: "I support him 100% to lead our party to victory at the election."

However, he went on to point out there had "always been disagreement" within Labour hinting at behind-the-scenes differences over the direction Mr Miliband was taking the party in.


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