Birmingham Post

News: Unlikely Hero

Business: Homes Fear

Sport: Villa Tribute

Post People

Plan for Pounds 150m Tower Hotel

A pounds 150 million hotel boasting one of the tallest towers in the city is being planned for Birmingham's Broad Street. The luxury development with a sky restaurant and conference facilities could be built between Sheepcote Street and the Novotel within the next four years.

Talk Is Cheap, Let's Get Moving On Transport Improvements

Plans to improve the region's transport network were thrown into confusion yesterday after the Government admitted it still hadn't made up its mind whether to press ahead with widening motorways or building a new high-speed rail link. A new document published by Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly said these were part of "a broad range of options" which wouldn't be considered until next year.

Alcohol Tsar to Target City's Drinking 'Timebomb'

An alcohol tsar has been appointed to lead the fight against a drink-related crime, health and social "timebomb" costing Birmingham more than pounds 700 million a year. The post is backed by a three-year alcohol strategy launched today aimed at reversing a view that "drunken anti-social behaviour is acceptable or normal".

Traffic Policeman Caught Speeding ; Crime

Britain's most senior traffic policeman is to be prosecuted for speeding, his force said yesterday. Meredydd Hughes, who is head of roads policing for the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo), was allegedly caught driving at 90mph in a 60mph zone in North Wales while on holiday last May.

Rnli Saved Thousands ; Charity

Volunteer RNLI lifesavers rescued thousands of people this summer including those affected by the devastating inland floods, figures showed yesterday. Lifeboats launched more than 3,500 times throughout June, July and August around the coast of the UK and Ireland and RNLI lifeguards rescued around 8,500 people on beaches during the same period.

Call for Witnesses ; Assault

Warwickshire Police are seeking witnesses to a serious assault near Coventry in which a man and a woman were attacked with a broken pool cue. The victims were both beaten unconscious in the attack outside the Lord Raglan pub in Exhall.

Murder Charge ; Court

The husband of a Stoke-on-Trent mother-of-four found dead in a lay-by has appeared in court charged with her murder. Nicholas Roy Cooper, 38, of Meir, Stoke-on-Trent, appeared before Burton Magistrates' Court.

Paintballing Was to 'Prepare for Jihad', Policeman Told

An undercover police officer who went paint-balling with a gang of suspected extremists was told it was preparation for jihad, a court heard yesterday. The agent described how up to 25 young men travelled from east London for a day of outdoor activities at a family-run business in White Waltham, Berkshire.

Demonstration Men Win Appeals

Three men jailed for their part in a demonstration in London against an anti-Islamic cartoon yesterday won reductions in their sentences. Umran Javed, now 28, from Birmingham, Abdul Muhid, 25, of Whitechapel, east London, were originally sentenced to a total of six years each following separate Old Bailey trials.

Tea Dance Kicks Off Celebrations

Supporters of the Moseley Road Baths yesterday kicked off a week of events to celebrate its centenary with an Edwardian tea dance. Campaigners, who have battled to save the Grade Two listed building, were joined by The Lord Mayor Coun Randel Brew at the gathering in the Methodist Church Hall opposite.

School Dubbed 'Worst in Britain' to Close, Councillors Decide

A school which was once dubbed the worst in Britain is to close, councillors decided last night. The Ridings School, in Halifax, West Yorkshire, became the centre of a political and media storm in 1996 when staff walked out over "unteachable" pupils.

High Court Judge Rules Out Magistrate's Bid to Sue Daughter-in-Law for Slander

A magistrate yesterday lost his bid to sue his daughter-in-law for slander and libel over an allegation that he assaulted her and his baby grandson. JP Richard Westcott's claim was struck out by a High Court judge who ruled that both an oral complaint and a written statement to the police made by Dr Sarah West-cott, the estranged wife of his son Edward, were protected by absolute privilege.

Paparazzo Offered the Sun Pounds 300,000 Pictures

A paparazzo rang a British newspaper from the tunnel where Diana, Princess of Wales's Mercedes crashed to offer exclusive pictures for pounds 300,000, her inquest heard yesterday. Dramatic photographs taken by Romuald Rat of the injured Princess in the wreckage were sent to the Sun picture desk that night.

Racial Divide for Stop and Searches

Black people were seven times more likely than whites to be stopped and searched by the police last year, official figures showed yesterday. Ministry of Justice data showed the rate was even more disproportionate than the previous year, when it was six times more likely.

City Unveils Tribute to Surrealist Artist Maddox

Birmingham has acquired a permanent commemoration of one of its unlikeliest art movements with the unveiling of a plaque to the surrealist painter Conroy Maddox. Maddox, who was born in Ledbury in 1912 and died in London, aged 92, in 2005, was a central figure in a group of surrealist artists who gathered in Birmingham between the mid-1930s and mid-1950s.

'Magic' Scam Was 'Designed to Con People Out of Thousands'

The chance stopping by police of a motorist in Birmingham led to the discovery of a "magic" scam designed to con people out of thousands of pounds. Officers who later raided the homes of suspects involved found "incriminating" evidence including a photo of one of them showering himself in 'bank notes', the City's Crown Court was told.