Birmingham Post

Birmingham Escapes Bbc Cull - and Gains Casualty ; Mailbox Loses Bbc One Drama Doctors 2,500 Jobs Shed Across the Country Bbc News Saving Pounds 155 Million Over Five Years

BBC Birmingham has escaped the worst of the corporation's cull, with the loss of just 43 of the 2,500 jobs being shed nationwide. The Mailbox office will lose the BBC ONE daytime series Doctors, but will replace it with the primetime hospital drama Casualty which will move from Bristol.

City Beats National Average for Gcses

An educational landmark has been reached in Birmingham after the city surpassed, for the first time, the national average for GCSE achievement. Government figures released yesterday reveal the proportion of youngsters getting the benchmark five or more GCSEs graded A* to C this year was 60.8 per cent.

Tennis Coach Is Guilty of Pupil Affair

Paedophile tennis coach Claire Lyte is facing jail after being convicted of having a lesbian affair with a teenage pupil. Lyte, from Solihull, was convicted yesterday of four counts of sexual activity with a child - a 13-year-old she taught at the Lawn Tennis Association academy in Leicestershire.

'Heartless' Victorian Society Under Attack

A leading conservation group has been condemned as "heartless" after lodging an official objection to plans for a pounds 1.5 million teenage cancer ward at the Birmingham Children's Hospital. The Victorian Society said the modern design, in which the building would be covered with aluminium panels, was out of keeping with the Steelhouse Lane Conservation Area and would spoil the view from Corporation Street of historic buildings.

Drunk Jailed for Hitting Ferguson ; Courts

A drunken thug who punched Sir Alex Ferguson in the groin, was jailed for 15 months yesterday. Homeless Kevin Reynolds, branded by the judge a "significant risk to the public", spotted the Manchester United manager outside a train station, staggered towards him and delivered a single blow.

Pounds 6,000 Claim Costs Driver Pounds 100,000 ; Courts

An accountant who accused a car dealer of selling him an Audi sports car with faulty steering is facing a legal costs bill of up to pounds 100,000 after the latest round of a court battle. Darren Egan's three-and-a-halfyear battle with Bath-based Millhouse Audi was described by a judge yesterday as a classic example of a case which "cried out for mediation" rather than court action.

Strike Stopped ; Dispute

Postal workers in Liverpool voted unanimously yesterday to end their unofficial strike, the Communication Workers Union said. The decision was taken by more than 800 staff. Postal workers in Liverpool started their unofficial strike on Wednesday last week. It had affected 21 sorting offices.

Babes Switch-On ; Celebrity

Girl band Sugababes are to switch on this year's Birmingham's Christmas lights. McFly, Leona Lewis and Scouting For Girls will also perform alongside the pop trio in a free five-hour concert at Millennium Point in the build-up to the big switch-on.

Councils Pay Mileage Rates Above Recommendations

Almost all West Midlands councils are paying their staff and councillors car mileage rates far in excess of the maximum level recommended by the Inland Revenue. A survey by the TaxPayers' Alliance found the average payment by the region's local authorities for casual users was 52.4p per mile for the first 8,500 miles, although 23 councils pay as much as 55.8p.

Teenager Receives Pounds 5.5m for 'Abysmal' Hospital Blunders

A Black Country teenager received pounds 5.5 million compensation after a series "abysmal" blunders by medics at a Midland hospital left him severely disabled and brain damaged. Daniel Kay was joined by his parents Tony and Angela at the High Court in Birmingham, where the settlement was approved yesterday.

Nhs Trusts Face Radical Action Over Performance

Health Secretary Alan Johnson warned yesterday that the four worst-performing NHS trusts face "radical action" - including a takeover - unless they improve. The four affected are those judged to be "weak" in both parts of the Healthcare Commission's performance ratings - for quality of services and use of resources - in 2006/07 and 2005/06.

More Warks Rubbish for 'Chernobyl of Coventry'

Warwickshire has dropped plans for its own waste treatment plant and will instead send more of its rubbish to be incinerated at the "Chernobyl of Coventry". County councillors yesterdayr agreed to abandon proposals for a dedicated facility in Warwickshire, and instead will increase the waste it sends to the Coventry incinerator in Whitley.

Bt Gets Wind Up Over Its Own Electricity

BT is planning to build a series of wind farms that will meet 25 per cent of its UK electricity needs by 2016, the telecoms company announced yesterday. The pounds 250 million project will see turbines installed on or adjacent to BT-owned parcels of land across the country, for example radio mast sites, that could generate 250MW of electricity a year.

Why Climate Change Is a Real Worry for Britain

Climate change is the most serious problem facing the country today, according to a body responsible for providing statistical information to West Midlands local authorities. The Regional Observatory, in launching its Real Lives-Real Issues report, urged councils and all policy makers to start planning now to deal with the impact of global warming.

Examinations May Be Abolished

A university is considering plans to abolish all exams for first year students and assess undergraduates through podcasts and DVDs instead. Patricia Broadfoot, vice-chancellor of the University of Gloucestershire, said she wanted a "radical reduction" in the number of timed exams students take throughout their courses.

Gambling Addict Jailed for Scams Netting Pounds 153,000

A gambling addict who claimed he was a successful overseas businessman to con his 82-year-old grandfather, a long-time family friend and a woman he met through a dating agency out of pounds 153,000 has been jailed. In 12 months, Darren Bradford cost his grandfather his house and forced him to move into a council care home, while 64-year-old family friend Mrs Rosemary Rogers could not meet the nursing home fees for her husband, Terrance, and ended up with not enough money to pay for his funera...

Mp George Warns of Russian Stand-Off

Britain must re-arm in preparation for the prospect of a confrontation with Russia, a senior Black Country MP has warned. Bruce George (Lab Walsall South), who chaired the Commons Defence Committee for eight years, warned that Britain risked repeating the mistakes of the 1930s, when it failed to understand the threat from Hitler. Defence spending had been cut after the Cold War ended but it was time to accept that hopes for a more peaceful world had not come true, he said.

Brown Promises to Fight for Uk's Red Lines at Eu

Gordon Brown last night vowed to safeguard the British national interest as he prepared to embark on crucial negotiations on the EU Reform Treaty. At the start of the EU summit in Lisbon, the Prime Minister stressed his determination to preserve the UK's "red line" opt outs. "At every point we have been determined to protect the British national interest and ensure the interests of the British people are safeguarded," he told reporters.

Tory Poster Slams Pm's Lisbon Stance

The Tories unveiled a poster yesterday - with the slogan "Who has a say on the EU Treaty? Not you. Just Gordon" - in an attempt to increase the pressure for a vote. Launching the ad, which then toured London on a lorry, with party chairman and Midland MP Caroline Spelman (Meriden), shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague said: "Gordon Brown cannot walk away from his manifesto promise of a referendum. He has absolutely no democratic mandate to agree to this treaty. It is not just his decision -...

Entrepreneurial Culture Under Attack, Warns Osborne

The new fixed-rate capital gains tax will "kill the entrepreneurial culture" in the UK, shadow Chancellor George Osborne warned yesterday. He said small businesses and employees with shares in their company could be hit by the proposed 18 per cent flat rate.