Lloyds' Co-op branch sale collapses
By Anonymous on Apr 24, 2013 03:14 am 24 April 2013 Last updated at 02:10 ET 
The planned sale of more than 600 UK bank branches by Lloyds Banking Group to the Co-op group has fallen through.
Lloyds said in a statement that the Co-op felt it could "no longer proceed" given the continued economic downturn.
Lloyds said it will now seek to sell the branches through a stock market listing. This could happen in 2014.
Lloyds' chief executive António Horta-Osório said: "We are disappointed that The Co-operative Group is unable to complete this transaction."
European regulators demanded that Lloyds sell the branches as a cost of taking a state bailout.
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UK 'becoming a more peaceful place'
By Anonymous on Apr 24, 2013 03:29 am 23 April 2013 Last updated at 23:39 ET 
Police numbers is one of the indicators used to compile the peace index
Rates of murder and violent crime have fallen more rapidly in the UK in the past decade than anywhere else in Western Europe, researchers say.
The UK Peace Index, from the Institute for Economics and Peace, found UK homicides per 100,000 people had fallen from 1.99 in 2003, to one in 2012.
The UK was more peaceful overall, it said, with the reasons for it varied.
The index found Broadland, Norfolk, to be the most peaceful local council area but Lewisham, London, to be the least.
The research comes as a separate study by Cardiff University suggests the number of people treated in hospital in England and Wales after violent incidents fell by 14% in 2012.
Some 267,291 people required care - 40,706 fewer than in 2011 - according to a sample of 54 hospital units, its report said.
For its inaugural index, the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), which defined peace as "the absence of violence or fear of violence", used Home Office data on crime, such as public disorder offences and weapons crime, and police officer numbers.
Continue reading the main story Most peaceful local authorities
1. Broadland, Norfolk
2. Three Rivers, Hertfordshire
3. South Cambridgeshire
4. East Dorset
5. Maldon, Essex
Source: IEP
It found the violent crime rate in the UK was down by about one quarter - from 1,255 per 100,000 people in 2003, to 933 in 2012.
Gang violence These reductions came despite a 6% drop in the number of police offers per 100,000 people, it said.
In Broadland, which has a population of about 125,000 people, only eight violent crimes were recorded for 2012.
Its average overall crime rate for the decade was 323 per 100,000 people - about a third of the national average.
The five most peaceful local authority areas, which also included Three Rivers, in Hertfordshire, South Cambridgeshire, East Dorset and Maldon, in Essex, recorded a combined total of 24 homicides over the decade.
Lewisham, meanwhile, had a homicide rate of 2.5 in 2012 - two-and-a-half times the national average.
The year 2011 was the borough's worst in the decade for the actual number of homicides - defined by researchers as murder, manslaughter and infanticide - with 11.
All five of the least peaceful local authority areas were London boroughs - the others being Lambeth, Hackney, Newham and Tower Hamlets.
BBC home editor Mark Easton said that while Lewisham, an area scarred by gang violence, was found to be the least peaceful area, overall the capital was markedly more peaceful than it was 10 years ago, with some of the biggest drops in some types of violent crime.
The capital's rate of homicides was far lower than in New York, Amsterdam, Brussels and Prague, he added.
Of the UK's "urban areas", the index found Glasgow, with a murder rate of double the national average, to be the least peaceful and Cardiff, with 60% less violent crime than Glasgow, the most peaceful.
Sheffield, Nottingham and Leeds came 2nd, 3rd and 4th respectively behind Cardiff in the urban areas peacefulness ranking.
Minimum wage The IEP's report said that 80% of the 343 local authority areas it had evaluated had seen at least a 10% improvement in their peace over the past decade.
Continue reading the main story Least peaceful local authorities
1. Lewisham, London
2. Lambeth, London
3. Hackney, London
4. Newham, London
5. Tower Hamlets, London
Source: IEP
"This is the fastest decline in violence of any country in Europe," it said.
"Cross-checking Home Office and Eurostat data against a number of metrics, such as hospital admissions, the UKPI shows that this dramatic fall is not a blip in police reporting - the UK really is becoming more peaceful.
"Reasons for this fall in violence are varied, however one of the more likely reasons, often overlooked, is the substantial improvement in police practices particularly related to the adoption of advanced technologies.
"Other factors which have had an impact in reducing violence include an aging population, decreasing alcohol consumption and, finally, rising real wages, supported by the introduction of the minimum wage."
Other findings include
- Extreme poverty is the factor most closely associated with violence
- The number of police officers had no correlation to levels of peace
- Fear of crime is greater than the reality: 25% of Britons think they will be a victim of crime, but only 4% will experience crime
- The UK homicide rate is now roughly equivalent to the Western European average and at its lowest level since 1978
- But UK violent crime rate is significantly higher than the European average
The research follows the IEP's US Peace Index published last year.
IEP chairman Steve Killelea said the increased level of peace in the UK "cannot be narrowed down to any single factor".
But he added: "The findings of the UK Peace Index show that poverty and economic opportunity are significantly associated with peace, as supported by other international studies, including the US Peace Index.
"This suggests greater emphasis needs to be placed on programmes that tackle poverty and related issues, such as access to education and economic opportunity."
Read in browser » Struggling hospitals 'lose patients'
By Anonymous on Apr 23, 2013 09:21 pm 23 April 2013 Last updated at 21:21 ET 
By Nick Triggle Health correspondent 
Some patients are moved as many as five times during their stay in hospital
Patients are getting lost in hospitals across the UK because they are constantly being switched from ward to ward amid pressures on A&E, nurses say.
The situation has got so bad staff are carrying out what have been dubbed "safari rounds", where consultants go searching for their lost patients.
Figures show it is common for patients, particularly elderly ones, to get moved four or five times during their stay.
One nursing union representative said it was a "constant juggle" of patients.
Nurses at the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) conference in Liverpool said the issue was created by pressures on A&E.
Latest data in England shows the number of patients waiting more than four hours is rising.
In the week ending 17 March more than 27,000 patients waited longer than four hours in accident and emergency - double the number from the same week the year before.
Continue reading the main story What happens to a patient in hospital
- About a third of all admissions come through A&E
- Often patients are put on a ward linked to the department, sometimes known as a medical assessment unit (MAU), so they can get assessed before it is decided where they should go
The RCN said the problems have been building for years and exacerbated by problems with the rollout of the new non-emergency 111 number, although the bad weather is also likely to have been a factor.
Delays are also being experienced discharging patients from hospital because of the lack of social care support, it said.
In turn staff have to move patients from ward to ward so patients waiting in A&E units can be admitted, nurses said.
Karen Webb, the RCN East of England representative, said it has resulted in what has become known as "safari rounds" in her region.
"The pressure leads staff to move people off the A&E department. They then get lost in the hospital.
"Consultants aren't sure where they are so they have to go looking for their lost patients. It is widespread."
Moved to tears Other delegates described how some hospitals had started creating jobs known as "queue nurses" solely to look after people waiting to get seen.
RCN general secretary Peter Carter said: "This is where you get chaos in the system.
"It takes time [finding them] and is very concerning for patients. It is the system not working."
Neil Evans, an A&E nurse from south Wales, broke down as he described how he had seen patients left waiting on trolleys for 24 hours at a time.
"It is heart-breaking seeing what our patients are putting up with."
Norman Provan, the RCN's associate director for Scotland, added: "This is happening everywhere up-and-down the country."
Mark Drakeford, health minister for Wales, said he recognised hospitals were under pressure with steep rises in A&E demand coupled with the need for older patients, with more complex conditions, needing to stay in hospital for longer.
"All parts of the UK are experiencing these pressures but Wales has the highest proportion of people over 85."
Meanwhile, NHS England has already announced a review of emergency and urgent care.
Janet Youd, the RCN's emergency care association chairman, said it was a "constant juggle" to accommodate patients appropriately.
"Because of the pressures we have to move them out of the MAU [medical assessment unit], they can get put on an inappropriate ward and then when there is more time they will get transferred to somewhere better.
"But after a while there could be more pressures to move them as more patients get admitted."
Research by the Royal College of Physicians suggests it is common for a patient, particularly an elderly one, to be moved four or five times during their stay.
"No-one comes to work wanting this to happen, we all want to do our best but that is not always possible," said Ms Youd.
A Department of Health spokeswoman said: "The NHS needs to ensure it has proper plans in place to deal with high demand on A&E.
"But it's obvious that this isn't just about A&E services in isolation, it's also about how the NHS works as a whole and how it works with other areas such as social care."
Read in browser » Barclays first quarter profits fall 25%
By Anonymous on Apr 24, 2013 03:20 am 24 April 2013 Last updated at 02:27 ET 
Barclays adjusted first quarter profits have fallen 25% to £1.8bn, largely due to the bank's restructuring programme.
The bank is transforming itself into what it calls a "Go-To" bank.
Barclays has come in for much criticism in recent years, following a series of scandals.
Much of the £609m profits fall is down to the costs involved in restructuring its investment banking arm, Barclaycard and its private wealth and investment management division.
Barclays' Chief Executive, Antony Jenkins said: "In our goal to become the 'Go-To' bank we have not chosen an easy path for Barclays, but we have chosen the right one."
Read in browser » At least 30 dead in Dhaka collapse
By Anonymous on Apr 24, 2013 03:16 am 24 April 2013 Last updated at 01:04 ET 
An eight-storey building has collapsed in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, leaving at least three people dead, officials say.
A fire service official said more people were feared trapped inside the building.
A market and a garment factory were among shops located in the building, which was on the outskirts of the capital.
One report said only the ground floor remained intact.
Read in browser » 'Cosmetic crisis' waiting to happen
By Anonymous on Apr 23, 2013 09:05 pm 23 April 2013 Last updated at 21:05 ET By James Gallagher Health and science reporter, BBC News 
Injections to plump up the skin are a "crisis waiting to happen" and should be available only on prescription, a UK review of cosmetic procedures has said.
It warned that dermal fillers, covered by only the same level of regulation as toothbrushes, could cause lasting harm.
The independent review added cosmetic surgery had been "trivialised". It also attacked "distasteful" companies for putting profit ahead of care.
The review has recommended a series of measures to better protect patients.
From fillers to breast implants - the cosmetic procedures industry is booming. It was worth £750m in the UK in 2005, £2.3bn in 2010 and is forecast to reach £3.6bn by 2015.
But there is considerable concern that regulations have failed to keep pace - leaving patients vulnerable.
The biggest growth is in non-surgical procedures such as fillers to tackle wrinkles, Botox and laser hair removal - the area the report describes as "almost entirely unregulated".
The advisory panel said the procedures, which could go horribly wrong, were being treated as casually as having highlights done at a lunchtime hairdresser's appointment and had become commonplace at "beauty parties".
Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.
Former beauty clinic manager Sarah Payne recalls how a dermal filler treatment went badly wrong
Sir Bruce Keogh, the NHS medical director who led the review, said: "The most striking thing is that anybody, anywhere, anytime can give a filler to anybody else, and that is bizarre."
At a European level, both medical devices such as breast implants and Botox, which is classed as a medicine, are regulated.
Fillers are deemed to have no medical purpose so are regulated in the same way as toothbrushes and ball-point pens. There are 190 different fillers available in Europe compared with just 14 in the US.
Bad practice Continue reading the main story Analysis
James Gallagher Health and science reporter, BBC News
When you go for cosmetic surgery, you expect the same standard of care as for any other operation. The review makes it clear that this is not the case.
There have been widespread calls for reform since a health scare caused by faulty breast implants, made by the French firm Poly Implant Prothese (PIP).
Data on which women had been given PIP implants, let alone what had happened to them, was not kept. It was described as a "data-free zone".
And the problems are wider. Botox should be available only on prescription, but is far more readily available.
Calf and buttock implants are barely regulated at all. The same goes for dermal fillers.
The European Union is making moves to tighten the rules. However, changes are not expected for five more years.
Sir Bruce Keogh says: "I don't think we can wait, keeping our citizens at risk."
Sir Bruce also said cosmetic surgery deals, such as buy-one-get-one-free offers and handing out free breast surgery as prizes in raffles, were a "particularly distasteful" way of incentivising people to go under the knife.
There were also questions of safety. The review said there were no checks on surgeons' qualifications in some parts of the private sector, an issue made worse by more than half of cosmetic surgery being performed by "fly in, fly out" doctors - surgeons based abroad who fly into the UK to perform operations and then fly back out again.
The review recommends:
- Legislation to classify fillers as prescription only
- Formal qualifications for anyone who injects fillers or Botox
- Register of everyone who performs surgical or non-surgical cosmetic interventions
- Ban on special financial offers for surgery
- Formal certificate of competence for cosmetic surgeons
- A breast implant register to monitor patients
- Patients' procedures must be approved by a surgeon not a salesperson
- Compulsory insurance in case things go wrong
- A pooled fund to help patients when companies go bust - similar to the travel industry
The review was commissioned by the Department of Health in England, but the findings will be passed to health ministers throughout the UK.
Dan Poulter, Health Minister for England, said he agreed "entirely" with the principles of the recommendations and there would be a full response in the summer.
"There is a significant risk of people falling into the hands of cowboy firms or individuals whose only aim is to make a quick profit. These people simply don't care about the welfare of the people they are taking money from.
"It is clear that it is time for the government to step in to ensure the public are properly protected."
Common sense The review was started after a global health scare caused by breast implants made by the French firm Poly Implant Prothese (PIP).
A breast implant made by Poly Implant Prothese
The implants were filled with industrial grade silicone and had double the rupture rate of other implants.
Catherine Kydd, 40, from Dartford in Kent, had ruptured PIP breast implants.
She said: "Why is it acceptable that I have to live with industrial silicone in my lymph nodes for the rest of my life due to this industry that is not properly regulated?"
Her story is far from unusual. Michael Saul, from TJL solicitors, represents the victims of botched cosmetic procedures, including one patient who went blind in one eye immediately after being injected with a dermal filler.
"Profits before patients, that's what happens. Surgery is sold like double glazing and it's totally wrong.
"I think it is very difficult for there to be any rational and reasonable opposition to [the recommendations], they're really sensible common sense suggestions."
Sally Taber, director of the Independent Healthcare Advisory Services, which represents the cosmetic surgery industry, praised the review.
"There has been so much bad practice out there, it's very welcome," she said. But she remained "concerned" at a lack of extra protection for people having laser procedures.
Ms Taber added: "Surgeons being on a specialist register will be an issue because we have got a lot of surgeons who fly in, fly out, as such, so that will be an issue that will be controversial."
The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons welcomed the report saying it was "thoroughly relieved" with the findings and that there was an "urgent need" for dermal fillers to be classed as prescription medicines.
The British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons said there had been an exponential increase in the number of cosmetic interventions and that it hoped "they achieve parliamentary approval and support quickly".
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