Birmingham Post

Key Staff Forced Out of Property Market

Key workers are being priced out of the Midlands property market with house prices now more than 12 times the earnings of some public sector employees, according to new figures released today. Nurses, policemen, teachers, ambulance workers and firemen can no longer afford to buy property in two-thirds of the towns in the region, the research says.

Sikhs Slam Behzti Protest Court Ruling

Prominent Sikhs yesterday criticised a court ruling that police were lawful in their use of anti-social behaviour laws to break up a protest against a controversial play. Court of Appeal judges dismissed a legal challenge by Pritpal Singh, who was arrested for failing to leave a demonstration over the play, Behzti, at Birmingham Repertory Theatre in December 2004.

Motorshow Will Remain in London

Birmingham has lost the chance to stage the British International Motorshow for the next eight years after this year's event in London was described as an overwhelming success. The ExCel centre in Docklands will host the next show in 2008, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said yesterday, and it was highly likely the event would remain in London until 2014.

Public Sector Property Trap

Public sector union officials in the Midlands yesterday said their members' family lives were suffering because of increasing house prices. However, they said they were not surprised by new figures which showed that it was almost impossible for some public sector workers to enter the property market.

Residents Grieve As Street Is Hit by Second Tragedy

A mother of five who was bitterly upset by the hit-and-run death of a schoolboy near her home has died in a house fire. Louise Humphreys was dragged unconscious from her blazing property in Kingstanding by firefighters last night.

Basement Fire Shuts Historic Barton Arms

An historic Birmingham pub was the second in a week to be ravaged by fire early yesterday.. The Barton Arms has been temporarily closed after a fire took hold in the basement, filling all three floors with thick, black smoke. It is thought an electrical fault sparked the blaze at the pub in High Street, Aston.

Fury As Menezes Police Return

The family of Jean Charles de Menezes reacted angrily last night after the two police firearms officers involved in his fatal shooting were cleared to return to full operational duties. They were said to be "very, very upset" and "in pieces" at the prospect of the officers resuming work with Scotland Yard's specialist CO 19 firearms unit on the streets of London.

Deadly Bug Cases Soar in Midlands

Hospitals in the West Midlands are losing the battle against an infection which can kill older patients. Recorded cases of a virulent stomach bug have shot up at hospitals across the region.

Widow Claims Poor Hygiene at Hospital Led to Husband's Death

Barbara Stubbings clearly remembers the last night she spent with her husband. Her family had gathered round for a fish and chip supper while Geoff lay, heavily sedated with painkillers, in a bed nearby.

Radical Cleric Given Leave to Appeal

Radical Islamic cleric Abu Hamza was given the go-ahead yesterday to challenge his convictions for incitement to murder and race-hate offences. Three judges in London allowed his application for leave to appeal.

Justice Call for Stephen Lawrence

The father of Stephen Lawrence yesterday called for the investigation into whether a corrupt detective helped shield his son's killers to be broadened to cover other officers in the original bungled murder inquiry. Neville Lawrence said it was the only way to finally remove all doubt after a painful 13-year campaign to get justice for 18-year- old Stephen.

Cattle Shed Striptease Heaps Shame On Welsh Black Cattle Society

A cattle society was yesterday investigating an impromptu striptease at an agricultural show that appalled its venerable members. The Welsh Black Cattle Society, whose patron is the Prince of Wales, found itself at the centre of a storm after reports of a party in a cattle shed.

Israelis Pull Out of Gaza - but They'll Be Back

Israelis tanks and troops pulled back to the Israel-Gaza border yesterday after a particularly deadly incursion that killed 30 Palestinians over three days, but the army said the withdrawal was temporary and did not mean its month-long offensive was over. The latest Gaza fighting came as the world's attention stayed fixed on fighting further north, where Israel is waging war with Lebanon-based Hezbollah guerrillas.

Rescue Ships Set to Return

Two Royal Navy warships which helped evacuate 4,400 British citizens from Lebanon are to return to the UK next week, a spokesman said yesterday. The aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious and Type 42 destroyer HMS Gloucester are to return to Portsmouth, having extended their deployment by two weeks to assist the operation in the Middle East.

Blair and Bush All Talk and No Action

President George Bush and Tony Blair yesterday called for moves to bring about a ceasefire in Lebanon on an "urgent basis". They said that a meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss introducing a stability force in the area had been brought forward to Monday.

Demonstrators Demand End to War

Hundreds of demonstrators last night converged on Downing Street in a large-scale protest against British policy in Lebanon. Former Labour MP Tony Benn joined organisations such as Stop The War Coalition, CND, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and members of the Lebanese community to hand over an open letter supported by some 8,000 people to Number 10.

Burden Leads Mps in Bombing Protest

A Birmingham MP has led more than 50 colleagues in calling for peace in the Middle East. Richard Burden organised an open letter signed by a total of 56 MPs condemning both Israel and Hezbollah, the militia based in Lebanon which has been attacking Israel.

Attacks Leave One in Five Lebanese Citizens Without a Home

One in five Lebanese has been made homeless by the ongoing violence between Hezbollah and Israel, the UN's World Food Programme said yesterday. Food shortages and the shelling of residential areas has turned the conflict into a major humanitarian situation. An estimated 800,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon - 95,000 in and around the capital Beirut.

Police Ask for Merger Plan Cash Back

A police force has asked the Government to refund almost pounds 250,000 it spent on fighting now abandoned merger plans, it said yesterday. Kent Police has written to Home Secretary John Reid setting out why it should be reimbursed pounds 243,445 - equivalent to the yearly cost of five of its officers - it spent on the controversial scheme to consolidate England and Wales's current 43 forces into around 24 larger forces.

Villa Takeover Battle Takes yet Another Turn

It's a saga that's involved American billionaires, the agent of a former England manager and businessmen from the Middle East. And yesterday the battle to take over Aston Villa took a further twist as a deputy High Court judge emerged as the latest figure to show an interest.