Birmingham Post

One in Four Mrsa Bug Cases Not Hospital's Fault

A Birmingham hospital trust which reported the country's highest MRSA rate has revealed one in four of its patients had brought the superbug into its wards. The University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust is the first in Britain to put a figure on the number of cases linked to 'community-acquired' MRSA

Monty Marches On with Plan to Rehabilitate Criminals

Gardening guru Monty Don is to press ahead with controversial plans to rehabilitate young criminals near his Herefordshire home. The BBC Gardeners' World presenter said he had chosen three sites in Leominster for the project, which would see a group of young offenders learn horticultural skills.

Hilton Hotels Up for Sale

Two Hilton hotels in the West Midlands have been put up for sale by the owner, which is looking to raise about pounds 300 million. Hilton Group yesterday confirmed it intended to sell 18 hotels - including outlets in Coventry and Bromsgrove - with some of the profits being returned to shareholders. The Hilton London Gatwick and Hilton London Olympia will also be put on the market.

Ministers Refuse to Reveal Talks Before Mg Rover Crash

Ministers have defied calls to reveal details of their conversations with Rover directors in the run-up to the car giant's collapse. Conservatives made a formal request, in a written House of Commons question, for details of discussions between the Department of Trade and Industry and Rover managers.

String Vest Was Britain's Secret Weapon in Suez

As the UK's global prestige faced peril in the weeks leading up to the Suez Crisis, one Government department pinned its hopes for success in Egypt on a very British secret weapon - the string vest. In a detailed study circulated in October 1956, the month of the start of the Anglo-French action, the Ministry of Supply preoccupied itself with the relative dangers of 'dragging', 'chafing' and 'unsightly sweat patches' resulting from differing models of vest.

Coventry Comes Out of Birmingham's Shadow ; Written Off for Years As a Soulless Concrete Jungle Tinged by Gratuitous Violence, Coventry's Most Famous Band Would Be Hard- Pressed to Recognise the Place Now, Says Chief Reporter Paul Dale

Twenty-four years ago, The Specials topped the charts with uncompromising lyrics capturing an industrial city crippled by the worst economic recession in living memory. 'This town is coming like a ghost town. All the clubs have been closed down.

Football Star Marries at Midland Stately Home

England international and Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher married his fiancee Nicola Hart at a Midland stately home yesterday. The 27-year-old Champions League winner tied the knot at Weston Park, the 17th century stately home on the Staffordshire-Shropshire border.

Phoenix Four in Trust Fund Row

A plan to set up a multi-million pound trust fund to help former Longbridge workers suffered a setback when the four Phoenix Venture Holdings directors refused to hand over assets. They had been due to donate pounds 30 million to the fund but have not done so on advice from their lawyers.

Illegal Immigrant Scam 'Ignored

A Birmingham judge has criticised the Immigration Service for ignoring illegal immigrants detected by an investigation into a massive people-smuggling ring with West Midlands links. Sentencing ten people in the 16-man conspiracy at Birmingham Crown Court yesterday, Judge Philip Gregory said he was disturbed by the 'inactivity' of the service in dealing with eight immigrants who were waiting to be smuggled to the United States when detectives swooped on the ringleaders of the nationwide syndic...

Other Defendants Sentenced

Rare Copy of the Hobbit Sells for Record Sum

A rare first edition of The Hobbit signed by its author JRR Tolkien has sold for a record sum at auction. The copy of the book, which Tolkien gave to four children of a doctor friend, sold for more than pounds 43,000 at Christie's in New York.

Noisy Children's Band Gets Its Marching Orders

A children's band designed to get youngsters off the street has been given its marching orders after residents became brassed off with the noise. Coventry City Council environmental health officers were called to investigate noise levels from Coundon Park last weekend after a complaint from a fed-up householder. And after listening to the 74- strong Phoenix Drum and Bugle Corps practising from the resident's garden they were deemed to be a 'noise nuisance'.

Nurses Use Atkins Diet to Start Weight Loss

Dieticians at a Midland hospital are encouraging nurses to use diets like Atkins to kick-start weight-loss in overweight patients. The low-carbohydrate regime, based around eating mainly meat and dairy produce, has been criticised for being unhealthy.

Birmingham Girl Brought Back to Life After Pool Accident

A Birmingham girl was brought back to life by paramedics after her mother pulled her from the bottom of a swimming pool in Turkey. Two-year-old Cerese Lyon-Bailey was put on a life support machine after the incident, which happened while she was holidaying with her mother and grandmother.

Deaths Blamed On Bad Drugs

Detectives believe contaminated heroin may be to blame for the deaths of two West Midlands drug addicts. A 24-year-old man was found dead in Blockhouse, Worcester, last Friday and an 18-year-old was discovered dead in Arboretum, Worcester, the next day.

Constituency Disappears in Re-Draw

The Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency is to disappear from the map, after officials rejected calls to ensure the name survived a review of Birmingham's boundaries. The city is to lose one of its Parliamentary seats, cutting the number of MPs from 11 to ten.

'Cry Rape' Woman Is Jailed

A Birmingham woman who lied that she was raped on a blind date by a man she met over the internet has been jailed for four months. Sentencing Donna Drennan yesterday at Stafford Crown Court after she admitted perverting the course of justice, Judge Simon Tonking said her actions made it more difficult for genuine rape victims.

Bankrupt Pulls Out of Brum Election

A Labour candidate in a Birmingham election has been forced to withdraw after revealing he was an undischarged bankrupt. Amjad Hussain was selected to fight the Aston ward in the July 28 poll but has not been replaced.

Couple Shot Outside Club

A man and woman were hurt in a drive-by shooting as they stood outside a Wolverhampton nightclub. Both suffered gunshot wounds to the legs outside Atlantis, just yards from Bilston Street police station, at 1.30am yesterday.

City Still Short of Lottery Handouts

Birmingham is still missing out on its fair share of lottery funding, the Government has admitted. Last night the MP representing one of the constituencies worst affected areas said there was 'no point' playing the lottery until grants were distributed evenly.