Birmingham Post

Brother Banned to Stop Gun Gangs

The brother of Aston shooting victim Charlene Ellis has been banned from his home area of Birmingham to protect the public from fresh outbreaks of gang-related violence. Officials hope a court injunction barring Nathaniel Ellis from areas of north Birmingham when he is released from jail will spare innocent people being caught in the crossfire if there are further shootings - and persuade him to change his gang lifestyle.

Investors Nervous As Shares Tumble

Whitby Eats Humble Pie Over Schizophrenic Jibe

The leader of Birmingham City Council issued a partial apology last night after describing a Labour opponent as schizophrenic, writes PAUL DALE. MIND, the mental illness charity, said it was looking carefully at comments by Mike Whitby, which were delivered during Tuesday's rowdy council budget meeting.

Water Bills Set to Burst the Banks

Water bills across the Midlands are set to rise by more than double the rate of inflation. Customers whose water is provided by Severn Trent can expect to see prices rise by 5.7 per cent, adding about pounds 15 to the average household bill of pounds 264.

Whitby Calls Bluff On Mayor

City Council leader Mike Whitby has challenged campaigners in favour of an elected mayor for Birmingham to organise a petition demanding a referendum on the issue. Coun Whitby, who insists there is little public support for the idea and doesn't believe there will be many signatories, said he had received no letters calling for an elected mayor or a ballot.

News Digest: Strike at Base

News Digest: Jackpot Winners

News Digest: Firemen First

News Digest: Driver Missing

A missing lorry driver from Stoke-on-Trent could be in Wales, police said. Robert Worming-ton, 62, left home to go to the dentist on February 5, but did not turn up and has not been seen since.

An Mbe and Majestic Aura for Knight of the Realm

Midland singing star Beverley Knight said she was struck by the Queen's "remarkable aura" when she collected her MBE yesterday. The 33-year-old, from Wolver-hampton, who has had a string of UK hits, said it was the first thing she noticed when she came face-to- face with the monarch at a ceremony at Buckingham Palace.

Guilty by Association Plot Claim

One of the alleged July 21 terror plotters protested his innocence when he was detained in Ethiopia, a court heard yesterday. Adel Yahya told British officers who flew out to Africa to question him that he knew people involved in the alleged attacks, but that he "should not be found guilty by association", Woolwich Crown Court was told.

Dumped Baby's Grandmother Tells of Night He Was Taken From Cot

The grandmother of a baby whose body was found wrapped in a bin- liner and dumped in a brook described yesterday the night he was taken from his cot. Six-month-old Troy Simpson was discovered by police inside a plastic drawstring bag in a culvert beside Thimblemill Brook in Smethwick on February 8 last year - one day after he was reported missing. Sherwain McCoy Smith, aged 21, now of no fixed address but formerly of Arden Road, Smethwick, denies murdering the baby, who he thought was his chi...

Vicar's Bold Gay Move at Synod

A Black Country vicar who tried to change the church's official stance on homosexuality has said she hopes to see openly gay bishops accepted within a decade. Mary Gilbert, of St Nicholas's Church, Codsall, proposed a private motion to the General Synod in London yesterday calling for recognition that different views of homosexuality could be valid.

We Are Not Betting On School Placement Lottery

Government proposals to use lotteries to allocate places at popular schools were yesterday rejected by Birmingham council. As Brighton and Hove became the first authority to adopt the new ballot system, designed to stop middle-class families dominating the best schools, Birmingham leaders said they would not be following suit.

Virgin Squares Up to Sky

Virgin Media vowed to take on the might of Sky TV last night, by buying the rights to some of Sky's most popular programmes and setting up its own channels. Sir Richard Branson made his announcement as talks over the future of Sky channels on the Virgin platform ground to a halt yesterday.

Pilots Threaten to Strike

Youth Jail a 'Timebomb'

Worker Injured by Hoarding Ripped Off in Strong Winds

High winds tore loose a hoarding panel from a building site yesterday, injuring an office worker on her lunch break. Jacqui Ward, who works in advert production at the Birmingham Post and Mail, had to be taken to City Hospital after she was hit by the hoarding at around 1.30pm.

Politics: News Digest - Girls Are Best

Teenage boys fell further behind girls in reading and writing last year as hundreds of schools failed to meet minimum government targets, figures showed today. Only 65 per cent of 14-year-old boys reached the level expected of the age group in national curriculum English tests in 2006, compared with 80 per cent of girls.

Politics: News Digest - Lords Ping-Pong

The threat of parliamentary "ping pong" over a controversial Government Bill is looming in the Lords. Opposition peers urged the Government to think again after a defeat inflicted by them earlier this month, to include prisons and police cells in new laws on corporate manslaughter.