IS 'chemical weapons expert killed'

30 January 2015 Last updated at 23:50

A chemical weapons expert with the Islamic State (IS) militant group in Iraq has been killed in a coalition airstrike, the US military has said.

Abu Malik's training provided IS with "expertise to pursue a chemical weapons capability", a statement said.

He served as a chemical weapons engineer under former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, before joining al-Qaeda in Iraq and then IS, the US said.

The US-led coalition has carried out nearly 2,000 strikes against IS.

Mr Malik was killed in a raid near Mosul on 24 January, according to the US.

His death is expected to "degrade and disrupt" IS and weaken their ability to produce and use chemical weapons, the US military said.

There have been frequent reports of IS using chlorine gas, but no evidence the group has accumulated a significant chemical weapons cache.

Last year, Iraqi police officers suffered from dizziness and vomiting after clashing with jihadist fighters north of Baghdad. It was thought chlorine gas may have been to blame.

Chlorine gas is classified as a "choking agent", burning the lungs when inhaled in large quantities. But it is nowhere near as dangerous as nerve gases.

Islamic State controls large areas of Syria, where the government has been destroying its chemical weapons, but not all the stockpiles have been accounted for.

The US and its allies has been targeting IS positions in Iraq and Syria since last August, destroying military equipment and killing the group's fighters.

Military chiefs are hoping they can re-take the key city of Mosul with the help of Iraqi forces this spring.

But there are concerns that Iraqi troops are not yet ready to do the fighting needed on the ground.

19.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Merkel rules out Greek debt relief

31 January 2015 Last updated at 10:22

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has ruled out cancelling any of Greece's debt, saying banks and creditors have already made substantial cuts.

But Mrs Merkel told the Die Welt newspaper she still wanted Greece to stay in the eurozone.

Greece's left-wing Syriza party won last weekend's election with a pledge to have half the debt written off.

Its finance minister said the "troika" of global institutions overseeing Greek debt was a "rotten committee".

The troika - the European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund - had agreed a €240bn (£179bn; $270bn) bailout with the previous Greek government.

But new Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis has refused to work with the troika to renegotiate the bailout terms and has already begun to roll back the austerity measures the creditors had demanded of the previous government.

Meanwhile, EU economic and financial affairs commissioner Pierre Moscovici told the BBC's Hardtalk that Greece had to honour its previous commitments, although he said he wanted Greece to remain in the eurozone.

'Blackmail'

Mrs Merkel told the Hamburger Abendblatt: "I do not envisage fresh debt cancellation."

She said: "There has already been voluntary debt forgiveness by private creditors, banks have already slashed billions from Greece's debt."

Greece still has a debt of €315bn - about 175% of gross domestic product - despite some creditors writing down debts in a renegotiation in 2012.

Greek economy in numbers

• Average wage is €600 (£450: $690) a month
• Unemployment is at 25%, with youth unemployment almost 50%
• Economy has shrunk by 25% since the start of the eurozone crisis
• Country's debt is 175% of GDP
• Borrowed €240bn (£188bn) from the EU, the ECB and the IMF

Mr Merkel insisted she did not want Greece to leave the eurozone.

She said: "The aim of our policy was and is that Greece remains permanently part of the euro community. Europe will continue to show its solidarity with Greece, as with other countries hard hit by the crisis, if these countries carry out reforms and cost-saving measures."

On Friday, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble warned Greece about its negotiation tactics on writing off debt.

"There's no arguing with us about this, and what's more we are difficult to blackmail," he said.

Finance Minister Varoufakis on Friday refused to work with the troika, saying he would instead talk to individual organisations and EU member states.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis: "We are not prepared to carry on pretending and trying to enforce an unenforceable programme"

He has brought forward to Saturday his planned trip to Paris, where he will meet French counterpart Michel Sapin.

"We are not prepared to carry on pretending and extending, trying to enforce an unenforceable programme which for five years now has steadfastly refused to produce any tangible benefits," Mr Varoufakis told the BBC's Newsnight.

"The disease that we're facing in Greece at the moment is that a problem of insolvency for five years has been dealt with as a problem of liquidity."

Greece's current programme of loans ends on 28 February. A final bailout tranche of €7.2bn still has to be negotiated.

New Greek PM Alexis Tsipras will visit Cyprus, Italy and France next week but has no plans to visit Germany as yet.

Mr Moscovici meanwhile told the BBC the Greek government had to respect previous commitments.

But he added: "We believe that the place of Greece is in the eurozone, the euro needs Greece and that Greece needs and wants to be in the eurozone.

"We feel that it's very important for the stability of the eurozone and for the credibility of the euro that there is no 'Grexit'. This is why we will do everything that is needed to avoid it."

The full interview with Mr Moscovici can be seen on BBC World News on Monday 2 February at 0430, 0930, 1630 and 2130 GMT.

19.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Williams wins sixth Australian Open

By Piers Newbery BBC Sport at Melbourne Park

Serena Williams beat Maria Sharapova to win her sixth Australian Open and 19th Grand Slam title.

The American world number one served superbly to win a pulsating final 6-3 7-6 (7-5) after Sharapova fought back in the second set.

Williams, 33, moves past Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert with a 19th major singles title.

She has now beaten Russia's Sharapova, the world number two, 16 times in a row dating back to 2004.

"I have to congratulate Maria, she played a wonderful match and she really pushed me," said Williams.

"She played so well and gave me a great final not only for the fans, but for women's tennis. I'm really honoured to play her in the final."

Despite feeling so unwell during a rain delay in the first set that she left the court to vomit, Williams hit 18 aces and 38 winners as she won in one hour and 51 minutes.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Australian Open: Rallies 'don't get better than this'

Seemingly unsure for a moment that an ace had sealed victory, she then shook hands with Sharapova and bounded over to the corner of Rod Laver Arena towards her player box.

It was a brilliant performance in a final that exceeded many expectations, bearing in mind the players' head-to-head record.

Sharapova made a nervous start, double-faulting to drop serve in game one, while Williams appeared keener than ever to shorten the points, possibly because of her ailment.

The American crushed the Russian's second serve and was not disrupted by a 12-minute rain break that led to the roof being closed.

Still feeling the effects of a heavy cold that has dogged her over the last week, Williams headed off court - in contrast to Sharapova - but the top seed returned at the potentially dangerous score of 3-2, 30-30, to calmly produce an ace and a forehand winner.

Breaks of serve were swapped before Williams took the set in 47 minutes with a backhand and a scream.

Sharapova was looking at another one-sided defeat when facing break points early in the second, but showed why she is a five-time Grand Slam champion.

She served her way out of trouble and managed to cling on in a set in which Williams hit 15 aces and won almost 90% of first-serve points.

A gripping contest developed, with Serena escaping at 3-2, 0-30 thanks to three aces and a service winner.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Williams seals title with ace

Another game of three aces led to the American being called for hindrance after shouting "Come on" before the point had finished, and she mockingly mouthed "calm down" to herself after another winner soon after.

Sharapova would not give in, saving a match point with a screaming forehand winner to make it 5-5, and seeing off a second in the tie-break behind a bold second serve.

Williams had a third opportunity, however, and after an apparent ace was called a let - much to her disbelief - she clinched it with another unplayable serve.

"I've not beaten her for a long time, but I love every time I play her as she is the best and you want to play against the best," said Sharapova.

"I gave it everything. I love playing in the Rod Laver Arena, I've had some of my best memories and toughest losses but that is the life of a tennis player."

19.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Tasers 'needed for all police'

31 January 2015 Last updated at 11:57

All front-line police in England and Wales should be offered Tasers in light of the increased terrorism threat, the head of the Police Federation says.

Steve White said the devices would help protect against "dangerous people" who could be preparing to attack officers.

"We've got to show our officers that we're taking the threat seriously," he told Radio 4's Today.

Chief Constables' lead expert on armed policing said extended use of Tasers should be linked to risk assessment.

Simon Chesterman, deputy head of the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, is the Association of Chief Police Officers lead on armed policing.

"I support extended roll out of Taser if; linked to threat and risk assessment, standards not diluted, volunteers only," he tweeted.

Mr White told The Guardian that terrorists seeking to attract attention could attack at any time, anywhere in the UK.

The federation is to vote on the proposal to offer all frontline officers Taser training next month. Some officers may choose not to carry one, it says.

'Respond to threat'

Continue reading the main story

The alternative is to have officers out there without anything at all - we have to do something"

End Quote Steve White Police Federation

It has been shown that Tasers could keep officers and the public safe, Mr White told Today.

And he said police officers should be able to "respond to the current threat environment".

"We've got to make sure that we give them every opportunity to respond to the threat," he said.

"Because it's not just their personal safety, it's the safety of the public as well."

'Less than lethal'

He told the programme he was making the call after seeing the "usefulness" of Tasers.

Mr White made a similar call when vice-chair of the federation, following the murder of Fusilier Lee Rigby.

Tasers were introduced into British policing in 2003 as a non-lethal alternative for firearms officers facing potentially dangerous suspects.

Officers are required to take a training course before being allowed to use a Taser and they are told only to deploy them when threatened with violence.

'Use sparingly'

Between January and June 2014, the weapons were fired 826 times out of the 5,107 occasions they were deployed.

There have been a number of deaths related to the use of the stun guns.

Amnesty International UK's arms programme director Oliver Sprague said: "We've always said that Tasers can have a part to play in policing operations where there's a clear risk of death or serious injury to police officers or members of the public - but Tasers should be used sparingly and only by highly-trained officers."

He also queried if there was evidence that a terrorist would be deterred by knowing police officers were armed with Tasers.

Sophie Khan, a solicitor, said the weapons are being used too often.

People who are mentally ill are being tasered, people from a certain minority background are being tasered," she said. " When there is an incident, the taser comes out and the person is tasered without really going through the motions of what it is that's happening in front of them.")

19.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Royal household 'like Wolf Hall'

31 January 2015 Last updated at 11:58

Clarence House's internal rivalries have led to a former staffer calling the Prince of Wales's base "Wolf Hall", says a new biography of the prince.

The Times reports that the book documents "common and bloody" turf wars between Prince Charles' staff.

Author Catherine Mayer claims in Charles: Heart of a King that in-fighting thwarted a deal to streamline his charity operations.

Clarence House told the BBC the biography was not authorised.

"One former householder refers to Clarence House as Wolf Hall, in reference to the treacherous and opportunistic world depicted by Hilary Mantel in her fictionalised account of the rise of Thomas Cromwell under Henry VIII," Ms Mayer writes in her book, according to the paper which is serialising it.

Ms Mayer's account says that his staff call him "the Boss" but the Queen's eldest son identifies with the hapless Blackadder character Baldrick.

She writes about the future king's "native insecurity", and states: "He doesn't always believe he's earned the praise that comes his way, while criticism has the power to cast him into despair."

She also claims that the Prince often changes his aides' job descriptions, leading to some feeling "threatened as colleagues are instructed to undertake work on turf they consider their own".

'Anxiety'

She writes of Charles: "Apart from his time in the Navy, he has never held a paying job and doesn't understand the anxiety such moves can create.

"No student of management theory, he believes rivalries promote better performance, rather than recognising the glitches and strains which territorial disputes can cause."

The reputed organisational problems led to the collapse of a plan to make the Prince's charity operations more efficient, according to Ms Mayer.

Several thousand pounds was allegedly spent on drawing up plans for housing 15 of his charities in the same building, in order to concentrate resources and make a bigger impact.

Ms Mayer writes: "Sources say internal conflicts scuppered the scheme after it was already significantly advanced, wasting money instead of saving it."

Clarence House pointed out the biography, contrary to some reports, was not authorised and the author did not have any exclusive access to the prince or his staff.

19.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Earthquake recorded in East Midlands

29 January 2015 Last updated at 10:51

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Yeshe Chodom in Rutland said the earthquake felt like "a massive explosion"

An earthquake with a magnitude of 3.8 has been recorded in the East Midlands, the British Geological Survey has confirmed.

The epicentre was near the town of Oakham, in Rutland, at 22:25 GMT on Wednesday.

People reported feeling buildings shake and vibrations lasting as long as 10 seconds.

It comes after an earthquake with a magnitude of 2.9 was recorded in Hampshire on Tuesday.

The British Geological Survey (BGS), based in Edinburgh, said it had received 1,400 reports so far from people who felt the Oakham earthquake, including residents from as far away as Dudley and Huddersfield.

One person in Rutland told the survey it "sounded like a really large bomb had just gone off" and there was a "build up of rumbling and the house shook really violently".

Another said it was "like a loud explosion" and they looked for cracks in their house.

'Like Jurassic Park'

Other people reported books moving on shelves, dogs growling uneasily and "significant vibration" lasting for about 10 seconds.

One person in Grantham, Lincolnshire, reported: "I could see rings in my glass of wine! A bit like in Jurassic Park when the T Rex chases the car!"

BBC cricket correspondent Jonathan Agnew was among those who tweeted about the tremor, saying: "The earth just moved in the Vale. I mean seriously. Anyone else feel it?"

The tremor comes after two earthquakes were recorded near Oakham in April last year.

The first, on 17 April, 2014, measured 3.2 in magnitude, followed by a second tremor the following day, which measured 3.5 in magnitude.

On Tuesday, an earthquake with a magnitude of 2.9 was recorded in Hampshire.

The British Geological Survey reported a tremor at a depth of 3km (1.9 miles) at Headbourne Worthy, just north east of Winchester.

19.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

'No interest' in care insurance

29 January 2015 Last updated at 06:00 By Nick Triggle and Sophie Woodcock BBC News

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Alex Adamou on his mother's care: "You have to make cold-hearted calculations"

There are no plans for any insurance products to help people plan ahead for their care needs in old age, leading companies have told the BBC.

Creating such a market was one of the key aims underpinning the government's decision to introduce a cap on care costs from next year.

Two years ago Prime Minister David Cameron said he hoped the plans would "open up an enormous market".

But 17 major companies said there was not enough interest in such policies.

Care experts said the revelation was a blow.

About 60% of people are expected to need care in their old age - with one in 10 facing costs in excess of £100,000.

From April 2016, the government is setting the cap on care at £72,000 from the age of 65. Currently people face unlimited costs - although those with little wealth get help towards their costs.

Under the change, once an individual has spent that sum, the state will pick up the bill for care - although people will still be liable for £230 weekly living costs if they are in a care home.

How does the care system for the over-65s work?

Care refers to everything from support provided in people's homes to round-the-clock help in care homes.

Unlike with the NHS, people have to pay towards these services.

Some get help from their local authorities, but others pay the full cost of their care. One in 10 people faces lifetime costs of more than £100,000.

About 420,000 people are currently living in care and nursing homes across the UK, while about one million receive help in their own home.

There are another 1.5 million people who rely on friends and family for support.

By covering the catastrophic costs, ministers hoped insurance policies would be offered to people so they could make small payments in the decades before they reached the age when they needed care.

The only products currently on the market are immediate needs annuities, which involve people paying a one-off lump sum - often about £100,000 - when they start needing care.

The idea is that they will then be paid an income over the rest of their life to cover the costs of care.

However, some people have reported the policies have failed to keep pace with the rising costs of care - and, because of the upfront money involved, they are out of the reach of many people.

Difficulties

The BBC approached 20 companies and received 17 responses as part of its Cost of Care project, which includes an online guide to how care works and what it costs.

The companies participated on the basis they would remain anonymous. One said a key problem was that people tended not to plan for retirement and the government's proposals had not "fundamentally changed that picture".

Another reported that few people were prepared to "defer consumption today to pay for an event which may not occur".

BBC Cost of Care project

Care Minister Norman Lamb said: "I do challenge the insurance industry - don't be conservative on this. Step up to the plate. They have a responsibility in my view too. We need to do this collaboratively.

"We've taken the steps that they wanted us to take to enable them to do these reforms. And I think they need to be ambitious and to recognise the importance of providing products so that people can plan for old age."

But Yvonne Braun, of the Association of British Insurers, said the industry was ultimately responding to the "law of supply and demand".

"If you wanted to sell to somebody in their 30s, 40s and 50s, or even 60s, I think you would find it very very difficult. Younger people... have other financial priorities - specifically paying off their mortgage and supporting their children."

She said it was more likely that other insurance products, such as critical illness cover and life insurance, would be adapted to cover care costs.

James Lloyd, director of the Strategic Society think tank, said there were always doubts the insurance industry would develop products.

"The government could lower the cap to try to encourage more interest, it could just accept that people will have to pay the £72,000 in costs or develop its own state insurance model - that has happened in Germany. But there really isn't an easy answer."

19.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Malaysia declares MH370 an accident

29 January 2015 Last updated at 11:19

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Azharuddin Abdul Rahman: "We have reviewed all available data"

The Malaysian government has officially declared the disappearance of Malaysian Airline flight MH370 an accident and has said that there were no survivors.

No trace of the Beijing-bound aircraft has been found since it disappeared on 8 March 2014.

Officials said that the recovery operation is ongoing but that the 239 people onboard are now presumed dead.

The plane's whereabouts are still unknown despite a massive international search in the southern Indian Ocean.

The declaration on Thursday should allow compensation payments to relatives of the victims.

Malaysian officials added that the recovery of the missing aircraft remained a priority and that they have pursued "every credible lead".

Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) Director-General Azharuddin Abdul Rahman said that it was "with the heaviest heart and deepest sorrow that we officially declare Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 an accident.''

"All 239 of the passengers and crew onboard MH370 are presumed to have lost their lives," he said.

He added that Malaysia, China and Australia have spared no expense in the hunt for the plane.

Four vessels are currently searching the sea floor with specialised sonar technology in a remote stretch of ocean where the plane is believed to have ended its flight.

'No evidence'

Based on analysis of satellite and aircraft performance data, MH370 is thought to be in seas far west of the Australian city of Perth.

The vessels have so far searched an area of over 18,000 km sq (11,185 sq miles), according to officials.

The search area involved also has known depths of up to 6,000 m (19 685 ft).

Mr Azharuddin said that the progress of the safety investigation into the accident would be released soon, but that "at this juncture, there is no evidence to substantiate any speculations as to the cause of the accident".

The DCA said on Wednesday said that it planned to release an interim report on the investigation on 7 March, a day before the first anniversary of the disappearance.

19.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

More school grades dip amid changes

29 January 2015 Last updated at 11:37 By Hannah Richardson and Katherine Sellgren BBC News education reporters

The number of state secondaries in England said to be underperforming has more than doubled amid exam changes.

Some 330 schools failed to get 40% of pupils gaining five good GCSEs including English and maths, and making the expected progress.

This rise, from 154 last year, comes after ministers toughened exams and banned re-sits and some vocational qualifications from school tables.

Meanwhile scores of top private schools have ended up bottom of the tables.

These include renowned schools such as Eton, Harrow, Winchester and St Paul's Boys'.

This is due to the fact that, in some independent schools, pupils have continued to be entered for unregulated versions of qualifications, such as IGCSEs.

The changes have prompted claims from state and private school heads alike that the league tables are a "nonsense" and the results therein are not comparable with previous years.

Continue reading the main story

'; spinnerHolder.style.backgroundColor = '#fff'; spinnerHolder.appendChild(spinner); link.parentNode.appendChild(spinnerHolder); }, handleIframeLoad: function (startIframing) { // IMPORTANT: Had to make this an onload because the // polyfilling and jquery on one page causes issues window.addEventListener('load', function () { startIframing(); }, true); if (this.elm.onload) { this.elm.onload = startIframing; } // Bug in IE7 means onload doesn't fire when an iframe // loads, but the event will fire if you attach it correctly else if ('attachEvent' in this.elm) { this.elm.attachEvent('onload', startIframing); } }, decideHowToTalkToIframe: function (href) { if (window.postMessage) { // if window.postMessage is supported, then support for JSON is assumed var uidForPostMessage = this.getPath(href); this.uidForPostMessage = this.getPath(href); this.setupPostMessage(uidForPostMessage); } else if (href.search(window.location.protocol + '//' + window.location.hostname) > -1) { this.setupIframeBridge(); } else { this.data.height = staticHeight; this.elm.scrolling = 'yes'; } }, onBbcDomain: function () { return window.location.host.search('bbc.co') > -1; }, setupPostMessage: function (uid) { var iframeWatcher = this; window.addEventListener('message', function (e) { iframeWatcher.postMessageCallback(e.data); }, false); }, postMessageCallback: function (data) { if (this.postBackMessageForThisIframe(data)) { this.processCommunicationFromIframe( this.getObjectNotationFromDataString(data) ); if (this.istatsInTheData()) { this.addToIstatsQueue(); this.emptyThisIstatsQueue(this.istatsQueue); } } }, postBackMessageForThisIframe: function (data) { return data && (data.split('::')[0] === this.uidForPostMessage); }, getObjectNotationFromDataString: function (data) { return JSON.parse(data.split('::')[1]); }, istatsInTheData: function () { return this.data.istats && this.data.istats.actionType; }, addToIstatsQueue: function () { this.istatsQueue.push({ 'actionType': this.data.istats.actionType, 'actionName': this.data.istats.actionName, 'viewLabel': this.data.istats.viewLabel }); }, setupIframeBridge: function () { var iframeWatcher = this; window.setInterval(function () { iframeWatcher.iFrameBridgeCallback(); }, iframeWatcher.updateFrequency); }, iFrameBridgeCallback: function () { if (this.elm.contentWindow.iframeBridge) { this.processCommunicationFromIframe(this.elm.contentWindow.iframeBridge); this.emptyThisIstatsQueue(this.elm.contentWindow.istatsQueue); } }, processCommunicationFromIframe: function (data) { this.data = data; this.setDimensions(); this.getAnyInstructionsFromIframe(); }, istatsQueueLocked: false, emptyThisIstatsQueue: function (queue) { var istatCall; if (this.istats && queue) { this.istatsQueueLocked = true; for (var i = 0, len = queue.length; i -1); }, getIframeContentHeight: function () { if (this.data.height) { this.lastRecordedHeight = this.data.height; } return this.lastRecordedHeight; }, setDimensions: function () { this.elm.width = this.elm.parentNode.clientWidth; this.elm.height = this.getIframeContentHeight(); }, getAnyInstructionsFromIframe: function () { if ( this.data.hostPageCallback && (!this.iframeInstructionsRan) ) { /* jshint evil:true */ eval('var func = ' + this.data.hostPageCallback); func(); this.iframeInstructionsRan = true; } }, getPath: function (url) { var urlMinusProtocol = url.replace('http://', ''); return urlMinusProtocol.substring(urlMinusProtocol.indexOf('/')).split('?')[0]; }, getWindowLocationOrigin: function () { if (window.location.origin) { return window.location.origin; } else { return window.location.protocol + '//' + window.location.hostname + (window.location.port ? ':' + window.location.port : ''); } } }; var iframe = new IframeWatcher('responsive-iframe-9856062'); })(); Continue reading the main story

Users of the BBC News app click here to search for a school by postcode.

Continue reading the main story

School performance data released by the Department for Education - based on last summer's exam results - shows that on average 56.6% of pupils in state schools in England achieved the benchmark of five good GCSEs including maths and English.

Continue reading the main story

This is a decline of four percentage points on 2013, when 60.6% of pupils in state schools reached this benchmark.

The dip in the overall performance of schools comes in the wake of government changes designed to make exams more academically rigorous.

From this year, only a pupil's first attempt at a qualification is included for league table purposes. This was aimed at ending the practice of schools entering pupils for re-sits to boost their ranking.

The list of qualifications included has also been restricted to those the government says are of the highest academic quality, and the number of non-GCSEs counting has been capped at two.

The school with the best GCSE results was Pate's Grammar School in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan says league tables show "a period of transition"

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan said: "For too long pupils were offered courses of no value to them and schools felt pressured to enter young people for exams before they were ready.

"By stripping out thousands of poor quality qualifications and removing re-sits from tables, some schools have seen changes in their standings.

"But fundamentally young people's achievement matters more than being able to trumpet ever higher grades."

IGCSE confusion

But for some schools, the confusion over which IGCSEs count towards the league tables has cast a cloud over this year's rankings.

The IGCSE - or international GCSE - is sat by candidates overseas, but has long been favoured by many private schools and some leading state schools as a more rigorous assessment.

They were once heavily promoted by the coalition government as a way of increasing rigour in the exams system, but now it wants pupils to take the new "more ambitious" GCSEs currently being phased into schools.

Many leading schools - such as Cheltenham Ladies' College, Eton, Harrow, Winchester, Oundle and Marlborough - are now reported as having 0% of pupils attaining the government's benchmark of five GCSEs at grades A*-C including maths and English.

Richard Harman, chairman of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC), which represents many leading independent schools, said the decision to drop IGCSEs made a "nonsense" of the tables.

"Several of the UK's most highly performing independent schools and others offering this excellent qualification will now appear to be bottom of the class in the government's rankings," he said.

"This obviously absurd situation creates further confusion for parents as they cannot compare schools' performance accurately and transparently.

"Many HMC schools will continue to offer the IGCSE, as experience tells us it is rigorous and offers a good basis for sixth-form study."

'Caught unawares'

Brian Lightman, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said "quite a few schools have fallen foul" of the various changes to school league tables "by continuing with exams that don't count".

"In spite of this, the children themselves have received a good set of qualifications," he added.

"This calls into question the validity of the performance tables.

"The government has promoted these qualifications [IGCSEs] heavily in the early years of the coalition, but now they have decided that they want everyone to do the new GCSEs.

"Lots of independent schools are carrying on with IGCSEs and have no intention of stopping - their reputation goes beyond the league tables."

He said some state schools had been "caught unawares", adding many were already unhappy with the way their results had been presented in government data. Now his association has launched alternative performance tables aimed at giving a more complete picture.

'Ambitious'

A spokesman for the Department for Education said: "As part of our plan for education, we are making GCSEs more ambitious and putting them on a par with the best in the world, to prepare pupils for life in modern Britain.

"We have made important changes to a system that rewarded the wrong outcomes.

"We have stripped out qualifications that were of little value and are making sure pupils take exams when they are ready, not before."

The DfE added that in some independent schools, pupils had continued to be entered for unregulated qualifications that did not count in performance measures, such as IGCSEs, and not been moved across to the regulated certificate versions.

"The effect of this has been enhanced in 2013-14 by the final group of unregulated IGCSEs reaching the end of their grace period and not being included in results."

Head of the Nasuwt union, Chris Keates, said: "Every year the coalition government has changed the basis on which school performance is measured.

"It's unacceptable that schools, teachers, parents and children are subjected to this negative annual ritual."

And the National Union of Teachers argued that frequent changes to the league table measures meant that "yesterday's success story becomes today's failure - even though a school's quality will not have changed".

19.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Airport suspends flights due to snow

29 January 2015 Last updated at 11:59

Heavy snowfall has forced flights at Manchester Airport to be suspended as wintry weather disrupts travel across northern England.

The airport said it hoped to resume services later and advised passengers to arrive as normal.

Elsewhere, hazardous driving conditions have been reported and hundreds of schools have been closed across the North.

Parts of Yorkshire, Derbyshire and the North East are the worst affected.

Click here for the latest on the Manchester Airport disruption

A Manchester Airport spokesperson said: "We have currently suspended all departures and arrivals for a short period of time, whilst we are in the process of clearing both runways of snow so we can resume operations as quickly as possible.

"The safety and security of all of our passengers is of paramount importance and we ask for them to come to the airport as normal but to check with their airline for any further update."

Passenger Charlotte Eames, who is travelling to Egypt from the airport, said she was sat on the plane for one hour before being told the plane would not leave.

"We have been told that earliest flight will be at 13:00 GMT. Snow ploughs are working and cleaning the runway. For now we are just waiting and have been given meal vouchers."

Sallie George, BBC News producer at Manchester Airport

"We got on our flight this morning, which was due to set off to Newark at 09:15 GMT and we sat here for about half an hour and then were told both runways were closed for about an hour.

"Since then, the weather has got much worse. It's like a blizzard outside at the moment.

"They're keeping us well informed and we've had a few announcements, but the latest we were told was 11:30 before the runways reopen.

"The de-icing vehicles have been out this morning but I think they're really fighting a bit of a losing battle and the snow has settled.

"We have a nice selection of films, but most people are keeping an eye on the weather really, looking through the windows and chatting about what their arrangements will be if they are not able to make their destination or their connecting flights."

Several road accidents have closed main routes and snow and ice have disrupted bus and train services.

Some flights have been delayed and cancelled at Newcastle International Airport.

In Hunwick, County Durham, resident David Parry said a lorry caught on fire after sliding backwards down a hill.

"In trying to drive out of the position he had got stuck in, two tyres set on fire and the fire then spread to the truck itself," he said.

Schools across northern England have been closed, with 150 in West Yorkshire, about 80 in the Bradford area, 45 in east Lancashire, 40 in South Yorkshire, 34 in Cumbria and 20 in Manchester.

In the North West on the M62 several vehicles have been stuck in snow causing long delays.

In the North East between Consett and Tow Law, near Durham, driver Mark Litt said drifting snow had resulted in the road only being passable by motorists in four-wheel drive vehicles.

In Scotland, wintry weather is causing hazardous driving conditions and has led to more than 130 school closures.

In Northern Ireland, snow showers are continuing to affect the road network with motorists warned about the risk of ice on roads.

Laura Young, from the Met Office, said the deepest snow fell in Scotland, northern England and Northern Ireland with 9ins (23cm) falling at Tulloch Bridge in Inverness-shire, 8ins (21cm) at Glenanne in Armagh and 5ins (13cm) at Spadeadam in Cumbria.

19.12 | 0 komentar | Read More