Other News In Brief

Daughter Held Over 'Burn' Body Discovery

The daughter of a woman whose body was discovered in a stream - or burn - in Scotland has been arrested in relation to her death. Anne Brown, 51, had been missing since 18 October. Her remains were discovered in water near Craignaught Farm, Dunlop in Ayrshire last Friday. Her 21-year-old daughter Lisa, was arrested in connection with the death, along with her daughter's fiance John Keen, aged 25. They will appear at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court on Monday.

'Leprechaun' Jibe Case Dropped

A Liverpool teenager who allegedly called her pregnant neighbour a leprechaun, and swore at her, has had her case dropped. Andeliza Tucker was accused of insulting Belfast-born Helen Vince in June during a long-running feud. Ms Tucker, 18, had been charged with racially aggravated harassment. She was tried at Liverpool Crown Court when prosecutors withdrew the case. A Criminal Prosecution Service (CPS) spokesman, however, said it had been right to prosecute her. He said: "We reviewed the case and in the light of the evidence served that morning, decided there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction." Ms Tucker had claimed she was talking about leprechauns after watching a film about them.

Man Charged With GBH

A 32-year-old man has been charged with grievous bodily harm after he stabbed a teenager in Newcastle. The 14-year-old received multiple stab wounds – mostly on the buttocks - during the assault in the Scotswood area on Newcastle on 24 October. The man, who is due to appear before magistrates in the city on Friday, was arrested after police inquiries and charged on Thursday.

New Rail Terminal To Cut Carbon Emissions

A new rail terminal that will help to tackle local congestion and substantially reduce carbon dioxide emissions was opened by Transport Minister Andrew Adonis today. Trains from the Keypoint Swindon rail terminal will transport around 23,000 vehicles each year from the Honda factory to the Channel Tunnel, meaning almost 3,000 fewer transporters on the roads. This will not only help to reduce congestion on key local routes, it will also cut local CO2 emissions. The new terminal will allow Honda to export cars from their Swindon plant to their European logistics centre in Gent, Belgium. The terminal links directly to the Honda facility, and has been developed jointly between Honda and Kilbride Group. Vehicle logistics company STVA operates the movement service for Honda. Up to two trains a week will run from the terminal, with each train carrying over 200 cars. Carrying the equivalent number of cars on the road would require 30 HGVs and substantially reducing CO2 emissions.

Consultation On Proposed BSE Testing Changes

The Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the Welsh Assembly Government and the Food Standards Agency (FSA) have today launched a joint consultation on proposals to raise the age above which cattle must be tested for BSE. Under these proposals, the age above which all cattle slaughtered for human consumption and all fallen stock must be tested for BSE would rise to 48 months. The Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy (England) Regulations 2008 and the Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy (Wales) Regulations 2006 would be amended to administer this change. The FSA Board and Health Ministers must agree to raise the age above which all cattle slaughtered for human consumption must be BSE tested, to 48 months, before this change could be implemented in the UK.

(JM)