Birmingham Post

Our City's Eco Policy

A hard-hitting report critical of Birmingham's sustainability was kicked into touch yesterday after city councillors refused to back a call for higher expenditure on promoting environmentally friendly lifestyles. The council's main scrutiny committee poured cold water on an investigation into sustainability, refusing to support a call for a wideranging review of the amount spent on the green agenda.

Festive Railway Chaos Looming

Hundreds of railway workers on Central Trains are to stage a series of strikes over Christmas and the New Year in two separate rows over pay and rosters, it was announced yesterday. The Rail, Maritime and Transport Union said more than 550 senior conductors at the company, which runs services throughout the Midlands, will walk out for 24 hours on Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and again on New Year's Day.

Pupils Chase School Knifeman

Pupils who tried to tackle an intruder who stabbed a caretaker in the neck were last night praised for bravery. Headmaster Tim Moore-Bridger of King Edward VI Grammar School in Church Street, Stratford, spoke out after five teenagers chased the attacker.

A Pounds 68,500 Flash in Pan

A public loo in Acocks Green, Birmingham, has been snapped up by an estate agent for pounds 68,500. The property - sold by auctioneeers Bond Wolfe - had been expected to attract between pounds 5,000 and pounds 10,000.

Worcester Braced for Renewed Flooding

Temporary flood barriers were last night put up in Worcester as the Midlands braced itself for rising river levels after days of downpours. The barriers were erected along Hylton Road with work lasting five hours.

Detectives Search for Violent Raiders

Police are investigating a string of terrifying early evening raids into occupied houses where property was demanded from families. On Thursday four men kicked open a front door in Woodfield Road, Penn, Wol-verhampton, and threatened boys aged 13 and 15.

Drink-Fly Airline Pilot Jailed After Being Seven Times Over Limit

A drunken airline pilot, who was nearly seven times over the legal limit, was jailed for four months yesterday. Emirates captain John Cronly-Dillon had downed so much he repeatedly stumbled at the security check-in, ate a whole packet of chewing gum and swallowed copious amounts of water.

Couple Lose Pounds 30,000 to Lotto Scam

A family has been swindled out of pounds 30,000 in a bogus lottery scam. The Stoke-on-Trent couple, who have not been named, responded to an email claiming to be from 'The European Lottery' telling them they had won two million euros.

Slurry Pit Man Named

Desperately Seeking . . .

Dear Editor I would dearly love to hear from ex-airman Fred Ellis who was stationed at RAF Waterbeach, Cambridge 1947. I seem to remember he lived in the Midlands. I have been trying for a while through other helplines, such as Channel 4 and Mature Times also the RAF newsletter, maybe you will be lucky for me. Lucy Nicholls 5 Trefoil Way Brookfield Littleborough Rochdale Lancs OL15 8RR

Uniting to Bring Calm to Streets of Lozells

A group of multi-faith leaders have announced plans to visit schools in the hope of putting a stop to violence in an area of Birmingham scarred by gun crime. At a meeting held at St Paul's and St Silas's Church in Lozells Road yesterday, Bishop Joe Aldred, chair of the Council of Black Led Councils, said the people of Lozells needed peace.

Shotgun Victim Is Critical

A man was yesterday fighting for his life after being blasted with a shotgun by masked men shortly after leaving a Birmingham shop. West Midlands Police said the man, aged 62, was in a critical but stable condition in hospital after being shot twice at close range in Small Heath.

Available: A Despicable 'Dear Husband'

A furious wife has taken out a billboard poster in Birmingham condemning her cheating husband's "despicable and deceitful" ways. The woman was said to have sought the advice of BRMB radio presenters Caroline Martin and Elliott Webb before dedicating the giant ad to her husband "Mark" and his lover "Shelley", one of her best friends.

Thieves Swiping Manholes

Thieves believed to be posing as council workers have stolen more than 100 metal manhole covers from Car-diff's quietest streets, it emerged yesterday. County council bosses are appealing to the public to look out for bogus officials dressed as workmen.

Litvinenko Witnesses Tested for Polonium

Two potentially crucial witnesses in the Alexander Litvinenko murder investigation were undergoing medical checks for radiation poisoning yesterday, as police focused on the London hotel bar where they met the former spy. Both Andrei Lugovoi and business associate Dmitry Kovtun were being tested in Russia to see if they have been contaminated with the same deadly toxin, polonium 210, that killed Mr Litvinenko.

Grandma, We Love You. . .

Children would rather spend time with grandparents than listening to an iPod or watching television, a survey revealed yesterday. Only surfing the internet was a more popular pastime.

Dna Tests Quash Diana Secret Service Conspiracy Theories in Programme

Fresh DNA tests prove the driver of the car in which Diana, Princess of Wales, was killed, was drunk at the time of the crash, according to an investigation. The French authorities have carried out new checks on the blood taken from Henri Paul to prove his original samples could not have been switched.

Pounds 54m Fraudster's Luxury Life

Britain's biggest tax fraudster said yesterday he did not personally benefit from his crimes in an attempt to fight a confiscation order for a massive pounds 98 million. Ian Leaf, who is serving a 12-and-a-half year jail sentence, wallowed in luxury with the help of a record pounds 54 million criminal pay packet, much of which has never been accounted for.

Sports Tv Awards Attract All Comers

Sporting buffs will descend on the National Exhibition Centre tomorrow for the first staging of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year show outside London. NEC officials have been surprised at the geographical spread of the 3,000 tickets sold.

Wills

Vera Frances Snodin, of Ardenlea Grove Nursing Home, Lode Lane, Solihull, died on June 17 2006' left estate valued at pounds 2,172,513 gross, pounds 2,121,580 net. She left her estate to relatives. Probate has been granted to daughter Veronica Mary Blanco, of Solihull. George Arthur Edmund Yeates, of Rock Hill Farm, Astwood Lane, Feckenham, Redditch, Worcestershire, died intestate on July 20 2006' left estate valued at pounds 1,369,642 gross, pounds 1,357,290 net.