Egypt to swear in interim leader
By Anonymous on Jul 04, 2013 03:21 am 4 July 2013 Last updated at 02:02 ET 
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General Abdul Fattah al-Sisi makes the televised announcement
The top judge of Egypt's constitutional court, Adli Mansour, is to be sworn in as interim leader, hours after the army ousted President Mohammed Morsi.
Army chief Gen Abdul Fattah al-Sisi announced the move in a TV address on Wednesday evening, in what Mr Morsi said was a military coup.
Gen Sisi said Mr Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected leader, had "failed to meet the demands of the people".
The move comes after days of mass rallies against the Islamist president.
His opponents celebrated through the night in Cairo's Tahrir Square, as the army announced it had suspended the constitution and pledged to hold new elections.
Gehad el-Haddad, a spokesman for Mr Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood, told the BBC the ousted leader had been put under house arrest and the "entire presidential team" was in detention.
Continue reading the main story Analysis
Jeremy Bowen BBC Middle East editor, Tahrir Square
The military's move against the Muslim Brotherhood was well planned. Intervention must have been in the mind of the army chief, Gen Sisi, for some time. Muslim Brotherhood activists were arrested. Islamist TV stations were taken off the air.
In the elections that followed the Arab uprisings of 2011, the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, and its offshoots across the region, did extremely well. That was because it was well organised, with a reputation for honesty, and took advantage of the failure of secular parties to organise themselves.
But now the Egyptian army has inflicted a serious blow on the Muslim Brotherhood. One question is whether the Brotherhood will be forced back underground, as it was when it was banned in the years before 2011.
The Brotherhood foreswore violence many years ago. But there are jihadist groups in Egypt that have not. The army has calculated it can handle any trouble. But it is playing for high stakes - the future of Egypt.
Mr Haddad's father, senior Morsi aide Essam el-Haddad, and Saad al-Katatni, head of the Brotherhood's political wing, are among those held.
The state-run al-Ahram newspaper reported that arrest warrants had been issued for 300 leaders and members of the Muslim Brotherhood.
US President Barack Obama has said he is "deeply concerned" by the latest turn of events and called for a swift return to civilian rule.
'Do not respond' The removal of the president followed four days of mass protests against Mr Morsi and an ultimatum issued by the military, which expired on Wednesday afternoon.
In his televised speech, Gen Sisi said the armed forces could not stay silent and blind to the call of the Egyptian masses, who accused Mr Morsi and the Brotherhood of ruling in their own interest and pursuing an Islamist agenda for the country.
Gen Sisi spoke of a new roadmap for the future, and said Mr Mansour would be given the task of "running the country's affairs during the transitional period until the election of a new president".
Mr Mansour, currently chief justice of the Supreme Constitutional Court, is scheduled to be sworn in as head of state at around 10:00 (08:00 GMT).
The army moved quickly after Gen Sisi's speech, with military vehicles seen fanning out across the capital.
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Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Gehad el-Haddad says the pro-Morsi camp in Cairo has been attacked
TV stations belonging to the Brotherhood went off air and state news agency Mena said managers at the movement's Misr25 channel had been arrested.
A notice on Mr Morsi's Facebook page condemned the "military coup".
The statement asked Egyptian citizens to "abide by the constitution and the law and not to respond to this coup".
But clashes erupted overnight between Morsi supporters and the security forces in Cairo and Alexandria, leaving seven protestors dead. A further 10 deaths have been reported in confrontations in other parts of the country.
In Tahrir Square thousands of anti-Morsi protesters celebrated with fireworks and honking car horns.
One protester, Omar Sherif, told AFP news agency: "It's a new historical moment. We got rid of Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood."
The BBC's Kevin Connolly in Cairo says no-one knows what will happen next. The danger, he says, is that both sides will try to settle differences by bringing supporters on to the streets.
The army has said it will not allow that to happen but, our correspondent says, it will not be easy to stop.
After Gen Sisi's address, both Pope Tawadros II - the head of the Coptic Church - and leading opposition figure Mohammed ElBaradei made short televised speeches about the new roadmap for Egypt's future which they had agreed with the army.
Mr ElBaradei said the roadmap aimed for national reconciliation and represented a fresh start to the January 2011 revolution.
"This roadmap has been drafted by honourable people who seek the interests, first and foremost, of the country," added Pope Tawadros.
Opposition leader and former Arab League chief Amr Moussa told AFP that consultations for a government and reconciliation "will start from now".
Continue reading the main story "Start Quote
The fact is the Obama administration won't be tremendously disappointed by what has happened"
End Quote Discontent Mr Morsi became Egypt's first Islamist president on 30 June 2012, after winning an election considered free and fair following the 2011 revolution that toppled Hosni Mubarak.
However his term in office was marred by constant political unrest and a sinking economy.
The mass protests at the weekend that led to the army's intervention were called by the Tamarod (Rebel) movement, in response to worsening social and economic conditions.
But there has been a growing sense of discontent since last November, when Mr Morsi issued a controversial constitutional declaration granting himself extensive powers.
His moves to entrench Islamic laws and concentrate power in the hands of the Muslim Brotherhood also alienated liberals and secularists
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News Corp defends Murdoch over tapes
By Anonymous on Jul 03, 2013 07:52 pm 3 July 2013 Last updated at 19:52 ET 
Mr Murdoch would assume staff were "innocent until and unless proven guilty", News Corp said
News Corp has defended chief Rupert Murdoch after a secret recording was released of him criticising the police inquiry into alleged phone hacking.
Talking in March to a group of Sun journalists - many of whom are under investigation - he complains about "totally incompetent" police officers.
The recording was obtained by the Exaro website and broadcast on Channel 4 News on Wednesday.
News Corp said Mr Murdoch had shown "understandable empathy" with staff.
Allegations of phone hacking at the now-defunct News of the World thrust the newspaper's owners, News Corp, and its journalists directly into the spotlight.
A separate Scotland Yard investigation is also looking into claims of inappropriate payments made to police.
The BBC's media correspondent David Sillito said that, in July 2011, Mr Murdoch had told the world how humble he was as he appeared before MPs to answer questions about phone hacking.
Two years on, Mr Murdoch appeared to sound rather different in private, our correspondent added.
"Still, I mean, it's a disgrace," the News Corp boss is heard saying in the tapes acquired by the Exaro investigative website and said to have been recorded at the Sun headquarters in Wapping, east London.
"Here we are, two years later, and the cops are totally incompetent.
'Total support'
"The idea that the cops then started coming after you, kick you out of bed, and your families, at six in the morning, is unbelievable.
"But why are the police behaving in this way? It's the biggest inquiry ever, over next to nothing.
"And now they're arresting their own, who never even took money... they're going to put all newspapers out of business."
He also offered his backing to the journalists, even if they were found guilty.
"I will do everything in my power to give you total support, even if you're convicted and get six months or whatever," he said.
"You're all innocent until proven guilty."
A spokesman for News Corp told Channel 4 News: "No other company has done as much to identify what went wrong, compensate the victims and ensure the same mistakes do not happen again.
"The unprecedented co-operation granted by News Corp was agreed unanimously by senior management and the board, and the MSC [News Corp management and standards committee]continues to co-operate under the supervision of the courts.
"Rupert Murdoch has shown understandable empathy with the staff and families affected and will assume they are innocent until and unless proven guilty."
Read in browser » Tech-levels 'to have A-level status'
By Anonymous on Jul 03, 2013 07:58 pm 3 July 2013 Last updated at 19:58 ET By Judith Burns BBC News education reporter Technical courses for 16- to 19-year-olds will gain the same status as A-levels from 2014 but only if they attract business or university support, the government has announced.
The new Tech-level qualifications are aimed at raising the status of vocational qualifications in England.
The overhaul follows concerns about variable quality.
Neil Carberry, of the CBI, warned the new qualifications would "need to command respect across entire sectors".
The changes will mean that only vocational courses that achieve Tech-level status will count in the secondary league tables for 16- to 19-year-olds from 2016. Some 80% of vocational qualifications for this age group will be removed.
There will be two types of vocational qualification under the new system.
Practical training Tech-levels will take as long to complete as A-Levels and will need to be endorsed by either a professional association or by five employers registered with Companies House.
These qualifications will focus on hands-on practical training, leading to recognised occupations for example in engineering, computing, accounting or hospitality.
In addition, Applied General Qualifications will take the same time to complete as AS-levels and will focus on broader study of a technical area, not directly linked to an occupation.
These qualifications will need backing from three universities to count in performance tables.
A Tech-level along with a core maths qualification, for example AS-level maths, and an extended project will amount to an over-arching Technical Baccalaureate, says the government.
The shake-up comes after a review of vocational qualifications for the government by Prof Alison Wolf two years ago, which suggested that the current system was failing young people, with schools tempted to teach qualifications that attracted the most points in school performance tables.
This meant students were steered to take qualifications that might not help them into work or higher education, she suggested.
Last year the government announced controls on which vocational qualifications for 14- to 16-year-olds would count in the school league tables.
On Thursday, the Skills Minister, Matthew Hancock, said: "High-quality rigorous vocational education is essential to future prosperity and the life chances of millions.
"Because technical education is so important, it is vital the qualifications young people take are stretching, high-quality and support their aspirations.
"These reforms are unashamedly aspirational and will ensure Tech-levels help people into apprenticeships and jobs."
'Gold standard' The CBI said it backed the principle but would need reassurance that the system would command respect across industry, and not just be run by a "handful of firms".
Mr Carberry said: "The litmus test is that Tech-levels offer the gold-standard training that employers want while not being seen as second-class.
"Courses must have stretching subject knowledge, rigorous assessment, hard-nosed practical experience, and be a stepping stone to a great career.
"The new system must be very clear about which provision is deemed 'occupational' and which is to be 'applied general'.
"Perception is all with qualifications, so we must avoid a two-tier system, where one is seen as too narrow and the other as too broad.
"We want to see the more rigorous Tech-level brand extended to both."
Gill Clipson, of the Association of Colleges, welcomed the changes saying they would mean "even stronger links" between colleges and local employers, particularly for work experience, assessment and extended projects.
Labour's Tristram Hunt said: "After three years of the government downgrading vocational education, there are almost a million young people unemployed.
"It's no surprise that David Cameron and Michael Gove are now desperately playing catch up, while Labour sets the agenda on skills.
"It is right that pupils have a choice of taking new vocational courses, but Michael Gove needs to reassure parents that it will be a gold standard to sit alongside A-levels and not an afterthought.
"Labour's plans for a Tech Bacc would ensure that pupils do rigorous vocational courses accredited by employers, English and maths to 18 and a quality work experience placement."
Read in browser » France apology in Bolivia jet row
By Anonymous on Jul 03, 2013 06:02 pm 3 July 2013 Last updated at 18:02 ET 
Bolivian protesters threw stones at the French embassy in La Paz and burned the French and European flags
France has apologised to Bolivia for refusing to allow President Evo Morales' jet into its airspace, blaming "conflicting information".
Bolivia accused France, Italy, Spain and Portugal of blocking the plane.
It said some wrongly believed US fugitive Edward Snowden was on board.
Speaking in Berlin, French President Francois Hollande said he granted permission as soon as he knew it was Mr Morales' plane.
President Morales was flying back to Bolivia from Moscow when the plane was forced to stop in Vienna.
Angry reactions The French foreign ministry issued a statement on the incident.
Ministry spokesman Philippe Lalliot said: "The foreign minister called his Bolivian counterpart to tell him about France's regrets after the incident caused by the late confirmation of permission for President Morales' plane to fly over [French] territory."
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Footage shows Bolivian President Evo Morales waiting inside Vienna airport, as Steve Rosenberg reports
The episode sparked angry reactions from heads of state across Latin America.
- Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner referred to "not only the humiliation of a sister country, but of the South American continent".
- Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro said on Twitter: "I reaffirm all our solidarity with Evo [Morales] and from Venezuela, with dignity, we will respond to this dangerous, disproportionate, and unacceptable aggression"
- Ecuador's President Rafael Correa tweeted: "We express our solidarity with Evo [Morales] and the brave Bolivian people."
- A statement by Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff said: "The embarrassment to President Morales hits not only Bolivia, but all of Latin America."
Demonstrators marched on the French embassy in La Paz, burning the French flag and demanding the expulsion of the ambassador to Bolivia.
President Correa asked that the Unasur group of South American nations call an urgent meeting over the matter.
The secretary general of the Organization of American States (OAS), Jose Miguel Insulza, expressed his "deep displeasure" with the "lack of respect" shown by the countries that denied airspace to Mr Morales' jet.
Bolivia's Vice-President Alvaro Garcia said a group of Latin American leaders would meet in Cochabamba, Bolivia, on Thursday over the case.
Continue reading the main story Snowden asylum requests
- Rejected: India, Poland, Brazil
- Considering: Bolivia, Germany, Italy
- Has to be in the country for request to be considered: Netherlands, Austria, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Spain, Ireland, Switzerland, Ecuador
- Unconfirmed: China, France, Venezuela
- Withdrawn: Russia
- Pending: Nicaragua, Cuba
Austrian officials said the airport authorities had searched the plane, but with Mr Morales's permission.
But the Bolivian government denied any search had taken place.
The plane took off from Vienna on Wednesday morning, having landed there late on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, France urged EU-US trade talks be delayed amid the fallout from secrets leaked by Mr Snowden.
The talks are due to begin on Monday but claims that the US bugged EU diplomatic offices in the US, and spied on internal computer networks, have upset transatlantic relations.
However, a spokesman for German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Berlin did not back a delay to the talks, which correspondents say if successful will deliver the biggest trade deal in history.
Mr Snowden is still believed to be in Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport, from where he is seeking asylum in Bolivia and several other countries.
He is wanted by the US on charges of leaking secrets he gathered while working as a contractor for the National Security Agency (NSA), America's electronic spying agency.
The leaking of thousands of classified intelligence documents prompted revelations that the US has been systematically seizing vast amounts of phone and web data.
China, Russia and several European countries have expressed anger with the US over the apparent scale of its surveillance programme.
Read in browser » More flood defence spending urged
By Anonymous on Jul 03, 2013 11:09 pm 3 July 2013 Last updated at 21:38 ET 
By Roger Harrabin Environment analyst 
Defra said it was working on long-term projects to protect homes and businesses
Flood defence spending is still not high enough to combat the risk of water invading people's homes, MPs have said.
The amount spent on defences should rise by £20m year on year over the next 25 years, the environment, food and rural affairs committee (Efra) said.
It said spending was not "keeping pace" with the risk of more severe weather.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said that from 2015 it would spend £370m on new defences, rising to more than £400m in 2021.
Ministers have also reached an agreement with insurers ABI guaranteeing affordable flood insurance for people in high-risk areas.
But the MPs said ministers should be attracting much more private funding into defences.
They warned that there was a risk to food production because farmland was not properly protected from rising waters.
And they complained it was short-sighted to keep up spending on building new flood defences while allowing maintenance spending for flood defences and watercourses to fall.
Chairwoman Anne McIntosh said: "Record rainfall in the past two years has led to extensive flooding, cost the economy millions and caused disruption and distress to householders and communities across the UK.
"Additional capital funding for flood defences is welcome since every £1 spent on flood defences delivers economic benefits worth £8.
"But spending on flood defences has not kept pace with rising risks from more frequent severe weather.
"The chancellor must ensure that investment increases by £20m year on year. We need that money over the next 25 years to protect homes and businesses better. Maintenance of these defences and effective dredging of watercourses must be a priority."
A Defra spokeswoman said: "Flooding is terrible for those affected, which is why we're working on long-term projects to protect people's homes and businesses."
Follow Roger on Twitter @rharrabin
Read in browser » Overfilled kettles 'waste millions'
By Anonymous on Jul 03, 2013 11:06 pm 3 July 2013 Last updated at 23:06 ET 
Some 40% of people boiled water five times a day or more, the study found
Three-quarters of British households overfill their kettles, wasting a total of £68m each year, an Energy Saving Trust (EST) report has suggested.
The study of 86,000 households also found the average shower lasted seven-and-a-half minutes. A minute less and £215m would be saved, the EST said.
Washing clothes at 30C and filling kettles to the required amount were among ways to save money, it added.
It said people must not think they were "powerless to control our water use".
The EST found British homes collectively used nine billion litres of water a day with showers using a quarter of that and toilets using 22%.
Kitchen appliances, such as kettles, dishwashers and washing machines - together with taps - also used 22% of household water, the report said.
The study found 95% of people boiled the kettle every day with 40% boiling water five times a day or more.
And it suggested the average household washed dishes by hand 10 times a week and used a dishwasher three times a week.
The EST said bigger households could make energy and water savings by using modern, efficient dishwashers rather than washing by hand.
Other ways consumers could save money included installing an "eco" shower head, it added.
EST water strategy manager Andrew Tucker said that, when people thought of energy use, "they think of heating and lighting, running electrical appliances or filling the car with petrol".
"It's all too easy to turn on the tap and not think about the consequences," he said.
"But there is an environmental and energy cost attached to water which many people do not consider."
Hot water use contributed £228 to the average energy bill, he said.
"It's clear that we are all using more water-consuming appliances regularly, especially showers, but that doesn't mean we're powerless to control our water use.
"By reducing the amount of water - especially hot water - that we use, we can cut down on the energy demands of our lifestyles, which have changed radically over the last 50 years."
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