Man Dies Sleeping Rough In Cold For Documentary

A young documentary maker has been found dead while sleeping rough in freezing temperatures to highlight the plight of the homeless.

Lee Halpin, 26, had planned to spend a week living on the streets in his home city of Newcastle.

He began the project on Sunday but was apparently found dead three days later in a derelict building in the West End of the city.

How he died has not yet been confirmed but it is believed he may have died from hypothermia.

Speaking earlier on a YouTube video, he said the project was part of an application for an investigative journalism course to give an example of fearless reporting.

He said he had spoken to a homeless charity about the rise in the number of people on the streets and the possible repercussions of the bedroom tax.

"I'm about to go and spend a week being homeless in the West End of Newcastle.

"I will sleep rough for a week, scrounge for my food, access the services that other homeless individuals use," he said.

"I will interact with as many homeless people as possible and immerse myself in that lifestyle as deeply as I can."

He concluded the video by saying he hoped it showed his willingness to get to the heart of a story.

Mr Halpin's friend Daniel Lake told the Evening Chronicle: "No-one knows how he passed away, but we think it could have been hypothermia.

"He made the ultimate sacrifice trying to raise awareness about what was happening to other people."

A statement from Northumbria Police said: "Officers have arrested two men aged 26 and 30 on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of a controlled drug. They have been bailed pending further enquiries. A report is being prepared for the Coroner into the death of the man."

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Food Prices Set To Soar After Big Freeze

By Emma Birchley, East of England Correspondent

Months of heavy rain followed by extreme cold are set to hit harvests and push the price of the weekly shop up ever higher.

More than a quarter of winter wheat could not be planted last autumn because of waterlogged fields and attempts to catch up this spring have been hampered by frost.

But poor grain yields do not just affect the price of bread and biscuits.

Animal feed is 50% more expensive than 15 months ago, in turn increasing the cost of producing meat, milk and eggs.

Snow covers a field in North Yorkshire, with many crops affected

Mother-of-three Sarah Tait is concerned. She has already seen her weekly bill rise from £80 to around £100 in the past 18 months or so.

She said: "It is a worry. It just means there will be other things we don't buy because we have to buy food and retailers have got you really because you have got to pay what the prices say."

Other crops including potatoes, tomatoes and sugar beet have also been delayed.

In the 12 months to February fruit has risen in price by almost 12%, vegetables are up 7%, meat costs 4% more and bread and cereals are 3% more expensive - all above general inflation, which stands at 2.8%.

On the Euston Estate in Suffolk crops like winter barley have struggled from the start after being sown in November rather than the end of September due to the weather.

Estate manager Andrew Blenkiron expects the late planting to have a 20% impact on yield.

He said: "There are areas of the field that we couldn't plant because it was so wet and usually we would try to work through the winter and try to patch it up, but there's still water lying in it in early April."

UK growers should also have planted 50% of their spring cereals by now but have in fact only managed to sow 15% due to the weather.

Shoppers are being advised by Richard Dodd from the British Retail Consortium not to be too worried.

He said: "Customers shouldn't panic about the impact on food prices of this weather, of course it's adding an extra pressure, but at the same time the cost of lots of key world commodities, things like wheat are actually coming  down, and that's certainly balancing out any upward influences from weather.

"And of course retailing remains incredibly competitive so as the retailers battle it out for every bit of spending that is to be had from customers, they are doing all they can to protect customers from any effects."

But at the beginning of the year, Waitrose's managing director Mark Price warned the price increases in some commodities will be "massive".

And it will be some months before the full impact of the bad weather on crops becomes clear.

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Hospital Patients Should Be Offered Nicotine Gum

Hospital patients who smoke should be given nicotine patches or gum as soon as they are admitted, health officials have said.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said hospitals have a duty of care to help people quit the habit.

In its new draft recommendations, Nice also called on all hospitals to implement smoke-free policies in their grounds.

In some trusts around the country, patients can be seen outside buildings wearing hospital gowns while smoking - meanwhile other hospitals have zero tolerance policy.

In the new guidance, which is now open for consultation, Nice says that such a policy should be implemented across England.

It is also calling on trusts to give all patients information about their smoke-free rules and support to help smokers kick the habit.

Professor Mike Kelly, director of Nice's Centre for Public Health, said: "The benefits of stopping smoking are well known, and people are already required by law not to smoke inside enclosed or mostly enclosed buildings.

"This draft guidance sets out proposals on supporting people in a hospital environment not to smoke, as well as supporting the smoke-free policies in hospitals.

"Secondary care providers have a responsibility to protect the health of people who use or work in their services.

"The draft recommendations propose that this duty of care should also routinely cover providing advice on how to improve health, including stop smoking interventions."

Treating smoking-related illness costs the NHS £2.7bn every year.

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HMV Rescue: Hilco Deal To Save Jobs And Shops

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

HMV, Britain's last remaining independent music retail chain, is on the verge of being rescued tonight in a £50m deal that will preserve 2,500 jobs.

I can reveal that Hilco, the specialist restructuring firm, is poised to sign a binding agreement to secure HMV's future following weeks of speculation that the chain and its historic logo could disappear from high streets.

The deal, which could be announced as early as Friday morning, will involve HMV emerging from administration, backed by a new company incorporated in the UK. Hilco will acquire roughly 130 HMV-branded stores, and all nine of the outlets which operate under the cut-price music brand Fopp.

People close to the talks said an agreement was likely to be struck on Friday although it could yet be delayed.

Hilco has been the frontrunner to become the new owner of HMV since soon after Deloitte was appointed as administrator at the end of January. Initially brought in to manage the retailer's business alongside Deloitte, the restructuring firm acquired HMV's debts just days later.

The chain is expected to be run by a combination of incumbent HMV and newly-appointed Hilco executives.

Major music companies and film studios, anxious to retain a major distribution channel on Britain's high streets, are understood to have agreed to new supply terms with HMV and have given their blessing to the deal. HMV's landlords, confronted with the prospect of scores more vacant shops, are also understood to be supportive.

Some of the shops being taken on by Hilco had been earmarked for closure by Deloitte, so the final redundancy toll from HMV's restructuring was unclear tonight. Prior to falling into administration, HMV had 230 shops in the UK.

Hilco, which has successfully turned around the performance of HMV's Canadian business since buying it two years ago, also has plans to re-establish the brand in Ireland by reopening a store on Dublin's Henry Street. HMV's 16 Irish outlets, including the famous Grafton Street shop which has hosted gigs by the likes of U2, were closed in January.

Since the turn of the year, thousands of jobs have disappeared from Britain's high streets as prominent chains including Blockbuster UK, Republic and Jessops have been forced to call in administrators. Some have been reborn in truncated form, with Jessops acquired by the Dragons' Den entrepreneur Peter Jones and Republic taken over by Mike Ashley, the Sports Direct tycoon.

Trevor Moore, who had a brief stint running HMV before its collapse into administration, had hoped to put together a bid for the company but was made redundant in February. Among the other suitors which looked at bidding for HMV were Asda, the supermarket chain, and Jon Moulton, the private equity veteran.

HMV had been struggling for several years, pinned down under a debt mountain that vastly outweighed its stock market value. Caught between the dual pressures of fast-growing competition from digital rivals and waning consumer confidence, the company had shed some of its most prized assets, including Waterstone's, the books retailer.

Hilco has had a mixed track record investing in other British retailers, having bought assets from chains including Allied Carpets, Ethel Austin and Woolworths.

Neither Deloitte nor Hilco could be reached for comment.

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Hate Crime: Goths, Punks And Emos Recognised

By Rhiannon Mills, Sky News Reporter

Greater Manchester Police have become the first in the country to officially recognise hate crimes against goths, emos, punks and metallers.

Attacks on those who belong to alternative subcultures will now be recorded as a crime by GMP in the same way as disability, racist, religious, sexual orientation and transgender hate crime to provide better support to victims and repeat victims.

The move is a response to the 2007 killing of Sophie Lancaster, who was attacked by a mob for being a goth.

Aged 20, her and her boyfriend, Robert Maltby, were brutally beaten as they walked home through Stubbylee Park in Bacup.

She suffered horrific head injuries after she was repeatedly stamped on and kicked in the head.

Miss Lancaster died in 2007

Mr Maltby survived the attack, but Miss Lancaster never regained consciousness.

Her killers were sentenced in 2008 and the judge recognised her death as a hate crime because they were targeted for being goths.

Her parents set up the Sophie Lancaster Foundation to create respect and understanding of subcultures.

The charity works with police forces and politicians to ensure individuals who are part of subcultures are protected by the law.

Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan, GMP's lead on hate crime, said: "The launch of this new strand of recordable hate crime is a major breakthrough.

"We are able to officially recognise that people who wish to express their alternative subculture identity freely should not have to tolerate hate crime - something that many people have to endure on a daily basis.

"Sophie's tragic death brought forward a need to recognise that there are many other victims of hate crime that should be protected by law.

"While we have worked with the foundation for some time, I am proud to say we are now the first force in the country to officially record alternative subculture as a sixth strand of hate crime motivation."

Mr Maltby was also brutally beaten in the 2007 attack

Sophie's mum Sylvia Lancaster said: "It is a very proud day for me personally and the rest of the team.

"It is a validation of the work we have undertaken in the past five years and hopefully other forces will follow GMP's lead.

"A big thank you to Greater Manchester Police and all our supporters."

Further work will also be carried out to educate communities and officers will be trained so they are able to provide support for individuals and victims of hate crime who are part of an alternative subculture community.

Greater Manchester Police say they recognise "alternative subculture" as a broad term to define a strong sense of collective identity and a set of group-specific values and tastes.

This typically centres on distinctive style, clothing, make-up, body art and music preference.

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Pakistan Aid 'Should Be Linked To Taxes On Rich'

Britain should withhold extra aid to Pakistan unless the country boosts the amount of tax it collects from its own elite, a group of MPs has said.

Pakistan will become the largest recipient of UK aid next year, a controversial move given the backdrop of corruption, tax avoidance and political instability.

And members of the Commons International Development select committee said British taxpayers must not be left to foot the growing bill unless Pakistan's wealthy are made to pay their fair share.

"Any increase in the UK's official development assistance to Pakistan must be conditional on Pakistan increasing its tax collection and widening the tax base," its report states.

"We cannot expect the people in the UK to pay taxes to improve education and health in Pakistan if the Pakistan elite is not paying income tax.

Many of Pakistan's rich pay no taxes as millions live in slums

"In the past, donor money has not been spent effectively in Pakistan for a variety of reasons. Corruption is rife in a social order based on patronage and kinship networks.

"Pakistan's rich do not pay taxes and exhibit little interest in improving conditions and opportunities for Pakistan's poor."

The Government plans to increase its  £267m bilateral aid programme in Pakistan, which has one of the smallest tax bases in the world, for the financial year that ends today to £446m in 2014/15.

During their inquiry MPs were told that while one in three people in Pakistan live on less than 30p a day around 70% of the nation's MPs do not file a tax return.

The committee indicated it wants Prime Minister David Cameron to push for action on corruption and tax evasion with Pakistan's leadership.

It also called for the Government to use its influence within the International Monetary Fund to press for urgent reform of the tax system.

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Derby Fire: Philpotts Guilty Of Child Deaths

By David Crabtree, Midlands Correspondent

Mick Philpott and his wife Mairead have been found guilty of the manslaughter of six children in a fire at their house in Derby.

Their friend Paul Mosley was also convicted of manslaughter over the petrol-fuelled blaze that engulfed the semi-detached house at Allenton, Derby in May last year.

Mick Philpott stared straight ahead as his guilty verdict was read out, but when his wife was convicted he shook his head. She looked down at the floor, clasping a tissue in her hands.

Mosley showed no emotion as he heard the verdicts.

Mick and Mairead Philpott had an uncoventional lifestyle

Moments later the court was cleared because a spectator, believed to be one of Mairead Philpott's sisters, shouted: "You murdering b******".

As he was led from the dock, Mick Philpott shouted: "Not over yet, mate!"

The 56-year-old was attempting to frame his ex-mistress and win custody of his other offspring when he set the fire, the court heard. Lisa Willis, 28, had left the house with her five children and the Philpotts wanted them back.

But the jury at Nottingham Crown Court was told "the plan went horribly wrong".

Five of the children, who died of smoke inhalation as they slept, were Mick and Mairead Philpott's; Jade, 10; John, nine; Jack, eight; Jesse, six; and Jayden, who was five.

Duwayne, 13, who was Mairead Philpott's child from a former partner, died in hospital three days later.

Paul Mosley showed no emotion as the verdicts were read

Paul Mosley told friends they had "actually rehearsed" the fire six weeks earlier and the plan was for him to rescue the children. He would break in the back door while the Philpotts were out front.

The jury heard a disturbing and chaotic 999 call made by the Philpotts. In it Mick Philpott was heard to say: "I can't get in." He had tried to punch and smash his way through an upstairs window, but had been beaten back by the smoke.

While it was being played, he said: "I can't listen to it." He tried to leave the dock but he was stopped by prison guards and sat sobbing with his head in his hands.

As the bodies were being carried from the house, Mick Philpott immediately began to blame Ms Willis, who he had earlier reported to police for allegedly threatening him and his family.

The names of the children can be seen on Mairead's arm in a police van

Samantha Shallow, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: "Today's verdict shows that the children died as a result of the actions of Michael and Mairead Philpott and Paul Mosley when they set the fire.

"It was started as a result of a plan between the three of them to turn family court proceedings in Mr Philpott's favour. It was a plan that went disastrously and tragically wrong.

"Amid all the details of the defendants' personal lives that have come out in court, it should not be forgotten that at the heart of this case were the deaths of six innocent children."

Six-year-old Jesse's coffin is carried at the funeral

In a statement read by police on the steps of Nottingham Crown Court, Mick Philpott's sister Dawn Bestwick, said: "My family and I have attended court each and every day and listened objectively to all the evidence in this trial to understand what happened to our six beautiful children on May 11 2012.

"Following today's verdict, we the family of Michael Philpott, believe justice has been served."

Anthony Latham QC, prosecuting, said that people at the hospital noted that Mick Philpott was "spotlessly clean" for someone who had been caught up in a house fire.

He told the court that afterwards he had sex and smoked cannabis to try to blot out the horror of what had happened.

"I was finding it hard to cope," said Philpott. "Having sex and smoking cannabis was one way of blocking it out. It was my idea, not my wife's."

Mick Philpott said tried to get back in through an upstairs window

After the blaze police bugged their hotel room and a police vehicle.

Mick Philpott was heard to say to Mairead: "Don't worry, we will walk through it. I promise you that, unless you want me to blab about it ... don't say nothing now, don't say nothing."

In another part of the recording he is alleged to have said: "I didn't mean to do it, on my life."

The court was told of the unconventional lifestyle at the house in Victory Road, Allenton.

Mairead Philpott and Ms Willis took it in turns to sleep with Mick Philpott in his caravan on the drive. He said he preferred Ms Willis, but believed that at one time they had been one "big happy family".

The wages or benefits of both women were paid into Mr Philpott's account. He was said to have had complete control over both of them.

A glove and an empty plastic bottle found near the scene

At times Mairead Philpott had sex with her husband and co-defendant Paul Moseley. The Philpotts also went dogging together. Mairead it was was the only time her husband gave her proper attention.

He had mentioned divorcing his wife to marry his mistress but Lisa Willis lost her patience with the arrangement in Victory Road and left the home with her five children three months before the fire.

On the day of the fire, Ms Willis and Mick Philpott were due in court to discuss custody of the children.

All three will be sentenced on Wednesday at 10.30am.

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Fans' Plea To FA Over Homophobic Chants

Fans of Brighton and Hove Albion have appealed for action to tackle homophobic abuse which they say is levelled at them by opposition supporters because of the city's large gay community.

Together with the Gay Football Supporters' Network (GSFN), they have compiled and filed a report to the Football Association detailing evidence and a log of the level of homophobic chanting at both home and away matches.

It also highlights two instances of opposition players making homophobic gestures at supporters in the terraces.

On one occasion, the language used by opposition fans was so bad that a radio station was forced to turn off a microphone and apologise several times on air, the report said.

It said fans have been subjected to homophobic abuse by at least 72% of opponents they have faced this season, in at least 70% of away games and in at least 57% of all their fixtures so far.

It said the chants varied from "fairly mild" and "more unpleasant", to those meant as a "joke", and others "as terms of abuse".

"It is the view of the Brighton and Hove Albion Supporters' Club and GFSN that neither is acceptable," it said.

"For us it is really simple, if the words relating to a person's sexuality were replaced with words relating to someone's race or skin colour, would those chants be acceptable? In all these cases they would not and appropriate action would be taken."

Sarah Watts, Brighton and Hove Albion Supporters' Club Secretary, said: " Brighton fans have been the subject of 'banter' about the city's gay community for as long as many of our fans can remember.

"We hope this report will increase public awareness and help educate our fellow members of the football family of the issues faced, to address them and, ultimately the need to treat each other with basic respect."

Chris Basiurski, GSFN chair, said: "This report clearly shows the shocking extent of the abuse to which Brighton supporters are subjected on a regular basis.

"It is not acceptable and we call on the football authorities to do more to eradicate homophobia from the terraces."

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Woman And Young Girl Die In Boat Tragedy

A 36-year-old woman and a 10-year-old girl have died and a man is being treated in hospital after they suffered serious breathing difficulties on a boat.

The alarm was raised at around 4pm when Cumbria Police and an ambulance were called to a private vessel at a jetty on Lake Windermere in the Lake District.

The woman and young girl, both from the Leyland area of Lancashire, were treated at the scene and then airlifted to Royal Lancaster Infirmary, where both later died.

The man, who was also on the boat near Bowness, was taken to the same hospital where he is still receiving treatment, Cumbria Police said.

Officers said they were unable to confirm reports that the deaths were the result of carbon monoxide poisoning.

A Cumbria Police spokeswoman said: "(We) can confirm that at approximately 4pm today, they attended an incident at Lake Windermere, where it was reported that three people on a private boat on Lake Windermere were having serious breathing difficulties.

"Police attended along with an ambulance crew.

"A 36-year-old woman and a 10-year-old girl, both from the Leyland area, were treated at the scene and then airlifted to Royal Lancaster Infirmary. Unfortunately both have since tragically died.

"A man, who was also on the boat, is still receiving treatment at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary."

The spokeswoman continued: "Police are currently investigating the circumstances of this tragic incident and trying to establish the full facts about what has happened. The coroner has been informed."

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Cashpoint Explosion: CCTV Of Thieves' Attack

Thieves used explosives to blow up a Hampshire petrol station's cashpoint in an attack captured on CCTV.

Police issued a warning after the blast at the Texaco in Weyhill, which they say mirrors similar raids on cash machines in mainland Europe.

Officers were called after a resident reported hearing a loud bang in the early hours of Sunday.

Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Murray said they found the cashpoint on the forecourt blown open and money from inside stolen.

"Although this was a relatively contained explosion and fortunately no-one was injured, the unpredictable nature of this type of offence means we could easily have been dealing with serious injury or death," he said.

"Our priority is to keep the public safe and by showing this CCTV footage, we hope it highlights how potentially dangerous an explosion of this type can be.

"We are aware of crimes of this nature occurring in mainland Europe which have had serious consequences and our advice to anyone using a cashpoint is to be extremely vigilant of any suspicious activity nearby.

"If you notice anything unusual, or see any wires or cables running from the machine, do not attempt to touch it and call the police immediately."

He said detectives were following up a number of enquiries and appealed for anyone with information that may assist the investigation to contact police.

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Tory Chairman: Bedroom Tax 'Is Common Sense'

Conservative Party chairman Grant Shapps has insisted that withdrawing benefits from social housing tenants with spare rooms, which comes into effect today, is "common sense".

Social tenants with one spare room will be deducted 14% and those with more lose a quarter - removing what the Government calls a "spare room subsidy" not available to private tenants.

The controversial move, dubbed a "bedroom tax" by opponents, is part of a package of welfare reforms that has become the focus for protests.

Ministers say the change - affecting around 660,000 claimants - will save the taxpayer £500m a year and free up unused space for people on waiting lists.

But they have been forced to make concessions to protect foster parents and armed forces families and face a legal challenge on behalf of disabled children.

Grant Shapps' Hertfordshire home

Speaking to Sky News, Mr Shapps said: "It is wrong to leave people out in the cold with effectively no roof over their heads because the taxpayer is paying for rooms which aren't in use. It's just a common-sense reform which in the end will help house more people."

Mr Shapps went on to use his own four-bedroom Hertfordshire home to defend the policy, saying: "People share rooms quite commonly - my boys share a room."

Sky's political correspondent Sophy Ridge said his comments have provoked jibes and criticism from Labour MPs and others on Twitter.

"The problem is the debate over welfare has become so political charged, emotional even, that the backlash on Twitter has already begun and some Labour MPs are saying it is not appropriate for Mr Shapps, who is a millionaire, to compare themselves with people on low paid jobs for instance," she said.

Labour said freedom of information responses showed local councils had sufficient one and two bedroom properties to house only one in 20 of those families with spare rooms.

Responses from 37 authorities across Britain revealed 96,041 households faced losing benefit but there were only 3,688 smaller homes available.

Mr Shapps has defended his plans for children to share bedrooms

Shadow work and pensions secretary Liam Byrne said: "These shocking new figures reveal the big lie behind this Government's cruel bedroom tax.

"They say it's not a tax but 96% of people have nowhere to move to. In the same week that millionaires get a huge tax cut, hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people will be hit by a vicious tax they can't escape.

"This wicked bedroom tax is going to rip neighbour from neighbour, force vulnerable people to food banks and loan sharks, and end up costing Britain more than it saves as tenants are forced to go homeless or move into the expensive private rented sector."

Council tax benefit is also replaced today by a new system run by local authorities but with 10% less funding.

Anti-poverty campaigners say around 2.4 million poor families face an average £138 a year rise in their bills, with nearly two million having to pay for the first time.

The 'bedroom tax' move will affect around 660,000 claimants

Working-age benefits and tax credits will rise by a below-inflation 1% from the start of the tax year on April 6 - the start of a three-year cap that represents a real-terms cut.

On April 8, disability living allowance begins to be replaced by the personal independence payment, which charities say will remove support from many in real need.

And later in the month, trials begin of a £500-a-week cap on any household's benefits in four London boroughs and of the new Universal Credit system.

Mr Shapps insists the wide-ranging reforms are vital to tackle the deficit, will encourage people off benefits and into work, and help ease housing shortages.

But charities and churches say the reforms will lead to homelessness and rising demand for food banks, and that vulnerable people will be paying a "disproportionate price" under the coalition's austerity drive.

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Hospitals Could 'Grind To Halt' In Shake-Up

Health experts have warned that NHS is "not ready" for the raft of changes implemented under the controversial health reforms - which come into effect today.

The Health and Social Care Act, which became law after a tortuous passage through Parliament, is expected to cost the taxpayer between £1.5bn and £1.6bn to implement.

Nick Black, professor of health service research at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said that he did not believe the health service was prepared for such a huge structural change.

He warned that hospitals could "grind to a halt" as cuts to social care budgets mean that doctors are unable to discharge patients who do not need to be on the wards.

And Labour said that the reforms have exposed the health service to risk because they have been implemented during a time of huge financial pressure.

When asked whether the NHS is ready for such a big change, Prof Black said: "Not really no. It could really do without this.

"What we have got at the moment is a perfect storm with three major things happening - the changes in the structure, the fall out from Francis and the Nicholson challenge (where the NHS has been tasked with making #20 billion in efficiency savings during the four years to 2015)."

"At one level patients won't notice anything dramatic on Monday morning. But the biggest thing that patients will notice will be the knock-on effect from the cuts in social care funding. It is clear that our hospitals are already struggling to discharge patients. One manager who I spoke to last week said that 100 beds in his hospitals could be discharged if there was the care in the community.

"Hospitals could cease to function and the system could grind to a halt because of people who do not need to be there."

The main aim of the health reforms was to make the NHS more accountable to patients and to release frontline staff from excessive bureaucracy and top-down control.

One of the biggest changes is the move from primary care trusts (PCTs) to clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), which will be led by GPs and other clinicians who will take on responsibility for commissioning care. The move will see 211 CCGs replace 151 PCTs across England.

But last week it was announced that only half of of the new CCGs will be fully ready to start work when the changes come into effect .

However, the Department of Health said that for the first time health and social care services will be "designed around the needs of the local community".

Health Minister Lord Howe said: "From April 1 local nurses and doctors, who best know what their patients need will have the power, freedom and budget to decide what care and services are best for their local communities and how taxpayers' money is spent.

"Patients will be able to choose who provides their care  so everyday health checks like hearing and blood tests can be carried out at a time and place convenient for them, such as at a pharmacy on the high street instead of a hospital.

"Health and care services will be better joined up by bringing together the NHS, local councils and patients. Patients will have a greater influence in changes to their local health and care services through the patient led inspections and the friends and family test.

"Through these changes, the health service will improve, work smarter and, importantly, build an NHS that delivers high quality, compassionate care for patients."

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Richard III: Legal Row Over Leicester Burial

By David Crabtree, Midlands Correspondent

A legal challenge is under way over where the 500-year-old remains of King Richard III should be finally laid to rest.

The bones of the king were discovered under a council car park in Leicester, which was built over a long-demolished friary.

A plan for the last Plantagenet King to be buried in the city's St Martin's Cathedral, only 500 yards away is well advanced.

King Richard III's remains unearthed by archaeologists

But a group called the Plantagenet Alliance, claiming to be the Yorkist King's descendants, has asked lawyers to challenge the process under which the exhumation was carried out by Leicester University.

They say that his remains should be buried in York.

An application for a judicial review is to be lodged. They are bringing the action against the Ministry of Justice, which granted the excavation licence, and is being launched under article 8 of the European Convention, which guarantees the right to a private and family life.

The skull of King Richard III

Leicester's mayor, Sir Peter Soulsby, said: "We have had a number of rather silly suggestions, but the particular one that a king who has been buried for 500 years has a human right to a family life is to put it mildly rather daft."

The remarkable discovery in the centre of Leicester has led to a 20-fold increase in tourism.

There are daily queues outside a Richard III exhibition and the council has plans to redesign the area around the cathedral before holding an "extraordinary event" to reinter the last English king to die in battle.

Richard III was born in Northamptonshire but grew up in Yorkshire and was called Richard of York before he took to the throne. He died in the Battle of Bosworth outside Leicester in 1485.

The Leicester car park under which the king's remains lay

The Rev Canon David Monteith, Dean-Elect of Leicester, said: "We are working together to plan for a reinterment, hopefully in the spring of 2014.

"We are working flat out to make sure that is going to be an extraordinary event. We are going to make history that day and the whole world is going to be watching Leicester.

"We are here to serve the whole people of the community and Richard's arrival here with us, enables us to do that better.

St Martin's Cathedral, Leicester, where King Richard III is to be buried

"We have looked at him, he has looked at us for the last five hundred years.

"As it were we are now becoming more acquainted and we are really looking forward to him being reinterred here in the heart of the cathedral."

Those in Leicester are confident of fighting off any legal challenges. They are hoping that a senior member of the Royal Family will attend the event in spring next year.

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Plebgate: Mitchell's Scotland Yard Complaint

Ex-cabinet minister Andrew Mitchell has lodged a formal complaint against Scotland Yard over the apparent leaking of its report into the "Plebgate" affair.

The senior Tory MP has written to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) accusing the Metropolitan Police of a continued campaign to "destroy" his career.

Mr Mitchell took the action after newspaper reports suggested a police file passed to the Crown Prosecution Service contained no evidence that officers lied about his behaviour.

He strongly denies calling officers "plebs" during an altercation over their refusal to allow him to ride his bike through the Downing Street gates last year.

And the politician - who quit as chief whip amid the storm over the incident - claims he is the victim of a conspiracy by officers to "toxify" the Tories and blacken his name.

In a letter to IPCC deputy chairman Deborah Glass, he wrote: "We are deeply dismayed that the Metropolitan Police appear to have leaked part of their Report prepared for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to certain members of the Press and spun it to the advantage of the Police officers involved.

"This was an Enquiry into a dishonest and illicit attempt to blacken my name and destroy my career. It would appear that this police enquiry continues precisely that process."

Keith Vaz, Labour chairman of the Commons home affairs committee, said the latest development showed it was wrong for Scotland Yard to lead the inquiry into its own officers and called for the whole investigation to be taken over by the IPCC.

Scotland Yard is trying to find out how the Sun and Daily Telegraph obtained information about the "Plebgate" row and if it came from police.

It is also looking at a police officer's claim to have witnessed the altercation and allegations by Mr Mitchell that police had lied in a log of the event.

Three officers from the Diplomatic Protection Group have so far been arrested as part of the investigation. All three remain suspended.

Some 30 detectives have taken statements from all 800 officers in the DPG, which is tasked with protecting government officials.

Papers related to the case were passed to prosecutors on Thursday, but the CPS said it was not "a full file of evidence" and that is expected more.

"We now await the conclusion of the police investigation before considering charges," it said in what was seen as a rebuke to the force.

A number of newspapers subsequently reported sources as saying the file did not contain any evidence to back Mr Mitchell's claim of a conspiracy by officers.

Mr Vaz said the committee had argued from the start that Met Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan Howe was wrong to allow Scotland Yard to conduct the investigation.

Britain's most senior police officer promised a "ruthless" investigation into the alleged conspiracy "no matter where the truth takes us".

It is being supervised by the IPCC and the commissioner invited the Greater Manchester force to provide an external review.

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