Kamis, 03 Juni 2021

Birmingham stabbing: Man charged with murder of Dea-John Reid - BBC News

Dea-John Reid
Family handout

A man has been charged with the murder of 14-year-old Dea-John Reid who was stabbed to death in Birmingham.

Michael Shields, 35, of Castle Bromwich, West Midlands was remanded in custody after appearing before magistrates in the city.

West Midlands Police (WMP) said a 38-year-old man and 14-year-old boy remained in custody for questioning and added investigations were continuing.

Two men, aged 36 and 33, and a 13-year-old boy, face no further action.

Mr Shields, from Alvis Walk, was not asked to enter a plea and will appear before Birmingham Crown Court on Friday.

Det Ch Insp Stuart Mobberley said it was a "significant step forward" but the investigation would continue to find if anyone else was involved.

A post-mortem examination confirmed Dea-John died from a stab wound to the chest in College Road, in the Kingstanding area of the city on Monday.

He collapsed in the street and was pronounced dead a short time later.

The force said it was looking into the circumstances which led up to the attack and a specialist family liaison officer had been appointed to support Dea-John's family.

A police tent at the scene on College Road, Kingstanding, north of Birmingham,
PA Media

In a statement, they said he was an "incredibly talented young boy" and added: "We have lost a son, his siblings have lost a brother and others have lost a friend."

They also thanked people "for their outpouring of love and support throughout this tragic and challenging time".

And they asked: "How many more mothers will have to mourn for their sons for this to stop?"

WMP said it had referred the case to the Independent Office for Police Conduct as it examined previous incidents involving Dea-John.

A police officer stands near the scene on College Road, Kingstanding, north of Birmingham
PA Media

Dea-John was a year nine pupil at Harborne Academy and in a letter to parents and pupils, head teacher Sarah Ross wrote: "Any loss of life at such a young age is tragic, but these circumstances are truly appalling."

The letter, also signed by interim executive lead Sue Woodward, said there would be police officers in and around the school to "ensure the safety of our community" when it reopens on 7 June.

The school has opened an online book of condolence and the head teacher wrote: "We will find ways to remember Dea-John and celebrate his life."

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2021-06-03 11:15:37Z
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Napier Barracks: Housing migrants at barracks unlawful, court rules - BBC News

Napier barracks
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The Home Office's decision to house cross-channel migrants in a "squalid" barracks in Folkestone was unlawful, the High Court has ruled.

Six asylum seekers brought the case, claiming Napier Barracks was "unsafe" and dormitory use caused a Covid-19 outbreak earlier this year.

The ruling could see a damages claim against Home Secretary Priti Patel.

The Home Office said use of the barracks would continue, and it was considering its "next steps".

The judgment could lead to further cases from any other men held at the camp who can bring similar evidence to court.

Mr Justice Linden's judgment looked in detail at a fire that broke out at the site in January, and when nearly 200 people contracted coronavirus during an outbreak at the camp.

Asylum seekers watch a protest outside Napier Barracks
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The ruling followed hearings that took place in April.

The judge said: "I do not accept that the accommodation there ensured a standard of living which was adequate for the health of the claimants.

"Insofar as the defendant considered that the accommodation was adequate for their needs, that view was irrational."

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Failings at the barracks included:

  • Overcrowding
  • Lack of ventilation
  • Run-down buildings
  • Use of communal dormitories during a pandemic
  • Significant fire risks
  • 'Filthy' facilities
  • 'Decrepit' isolation block not fit for habitation
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Mr Justice Linden also criticised the "detention-like" setting for the men.

He said: "They were supposed to live voluntarily pending a determination of their applications for asylum.

"When this is considered, a decision that accommodation in a detention-like setting - a site enclosed by a perimeter fence topped with barbed wire, access to which is through padlocked gates guarded by uniformed security personnel - will be adequate for their needs, begins to look questionable."

Napier barracks
PA Media

Lawyers from Deighton Pierce Glynn had claimed the site - which they said still housed nearly 300 people - had breached the migrants' human rights.

A statement said: "People seeking asylum are more vulnerable to physical and mental illness. They have the right to be treated with dignity and should not be accommodated in detention-style barracks."

In April, the court heard public health experts had repeatedly raised concerns about the use of the site during a pandemic, while an independent report found seven suicide attempts and seven incidents of serious self-harm.

Tom Hickman QC, representing four claimants, previously told the court the site was "squalid, ill-equipped, lacking in personal privacy and unsafe".

Lisa Giovannetti QC, representing the Home Office, said clinically vulnerable people had been "sifted out".

She said Ms Patel had decided the barracks could be used safely by "introducing safeguards".

But in a statement read to the court, one of the claimants, who was later moved to other accommodation, said: "The situation in the camp is very bad and degrading."

"Detainees in the barracks including myself have lost hope."

Napier Barracks
PA Media

The judge declined to rule the barracks could never be used to house asylum seekers, but called for "substantial improvements".

The Home Office and the six men have yet to agree on damages.

A Home Office spokesman said: "During the height of the pandemic, to ensure asylum seekers were not left destitute, additional accommodation was required at extremely short notice.

"Such accommodation provided asylum seekers a safe and secure place to stay. Throughout this period our accommodation providers and sub-contractors have made improvements to the site and continue to do so.

"It is disappointing that this judgment was reached on the basis of the site prior to the significant improvement works which have taken place in difficult circumstances."

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2021-06-03 10:51:48Z
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Birmingham stabbing: Man charged with murder of Dea-John Reid - BBC News

Dea-John Reid
Family handout

A man has been charged with the murder of 14-year-old Dea-John Reid who was stabbed to death in Birmingham.

Michael Shields, 35, of Castle Bromwich, West Midlands, is set to appear in court in the city later.

West Midlands Police (WMP) said a 38-year-old man and 14-year-old boy remained in custody for questioning and added investigations were continuing.

Two other men, aged 36 and 33, and a 13-year-old boy have been released with no further action.

Mr Shields, from Alvis Walk, is due to appear at Birmingham Magistrates' Court.

Det Ch Insp Stuart Mobberley said it was a "significant step forward" but the investigation would continue to find if anyone else was involved.

A post-mortem examination confirmed Dea-John died from a stab wound to the chest in College Road, in the Kingstanding area of the city on Monday.

He collapsed in the street and was pronounced dead a short time later.

The police force said it was looking into the circumstances which led up to the attack and a specialist family liaison officer had been appointed to support Dea-John's family.

A police tent at the scene on College Road, Kingstanding, north of Birmingham,
PA Media

In a statement, they said he was an "incredibly talented young boy" and added: "We have lost a son, his siblings have lost a brother and others have lost a friend."

They also thanked people "for their outpouring of love and support throughout this tragic and challenging time".

And they asked: "How many more mothers will have to mourn for their sons for this to stop?"

WMP said it had referred the case to the Independent Office for Police Conduct as it examined previous incidents involving Dea-John.

A police officer stands near the scene on College Road, Kingstanding, north of Birmingham
PA Media

Dea-John was a year nine pupil at Harborne Academy and in a letter to parents and pupils, head teacher Sarah Ross wrote: "Any loss of life at such a young age is tragic, but these circumstances are truly appalling."

The letter, also signed by interim executive lead Sue Woodward, said there would be police officers in and around the school to "ensure the safety of our community" when it reopens on 7 June.

The school has opened an online book of condolence and the head teacher wrote: "We will find ways to remember Dea-John and celebrate his life."

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2021-06-03 10:32:15Z
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Man charged with murder of 14-year-old Dea-John Reid - BBC News

Dea-John Reid
Family handout

A man has been charged with the murder of 14-year-old Dea-John Reid who was stabbed to death in Birmingham.

West Midlands Police said Michael Shields, 35, from Alvis Walk, Castle Bromwich, was due appear at Birmingham Magistrates' Court later.

The force said a 38-year-old man and 14-year-old boy remained in custody for questioning.

Two other men, aged 36 and 33, and a 13-year-old boy have been released with no further action.

Det Ch Insp Stuart Mobberley said it was a "significant step forward" but the investigation would continue to find if anyone else was involved.

A post-mortem examination confirmed Dea-John died from a stab wound to the chest in College Road, in the Kingstanding area of the city on Monday.

A police tent at the scene on College Road, Kingstanding, north of Birmingham,
PA Media

Dea-John's family said he was an "incredibly talented young boy" and added: "We have lost a son, his siblings have lost a brother and others have lost a friend."

They also thanked people "for their outpouring of love and support throughout this tragic and challenging time".

West Midlands Police said it had referred the case to the Independent Office for Police Conduct as it examined previous incidents involving Dea-John.

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2021-06-03 09:25:05Z
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Five councils in England BAN smoking outside pubs, cafés and restaurants - Daily Mail

Stubbed out! Five councils in England BAN smoking outside pubs, cafés and restaurants with two more to follow - in push to make UK smoke-free by 2025

  • Councils including Newcastle and Manchester ban smoking on pavements outside hospitality venues
  • Durham, Northumberland and North Tyneside county councils are also part of group banning smoking
  • Oxfordshire County Council is set to follow suit under plans for England's first smoke-free county
  • All licences granted by Gateshead Council state that pavement cafes must be smoke-free

Five councils in England have banned smoking outside pubs, cafes and restaurants with others now considering joining them as the Government tries to make the country smoke free within the next decade.

Newcastle City Council, Manchester City Council, Durham County Council, Northumberland County Council and North Tyneside Council have all banned smoking on the pavements where outdoor hospitality venues have tables.

And Oxfordshire County Council is set to follow suit under plans for the first smoke-free county, with employers expected to asked to enforce smoke-free spaces outside shops, offices and factories to help staff kick their habit.

A seventh local authority, Gateshead Council, does not have an official policy on smoking outdoors, but all the licences it grants to venues state that pavement cafes must be smoke-free, reported the Guardian.

In Oxfordshire, officials will work with the NHS and other local organisations to end smoking near hospitals, play parks and school gates. People will also be discouraged from smoking at home and in their car.

It is part of the push to make the county smoke-free by 2025 - five years ahead of the national target - in proposals in the Oxfordshire Tobacco Control Strategy discussed by the county's health improvement board last week.

But a smokers' lobby group said it was 'no business of local councils if adults choose to smoke' - and it follows a failed attempt last summer to push through an amendment in the House of Lords to make pavements smoke-free.

Another organisation which campaigns for vaping said it 'seems fashionable again to attack smokers instead of helping them' and the five councils 'don't care about the individual smoker's health, they care about looking good'.

The pubs industry has suffered a torrid period since the indoor smoking ban in England became active in July 2007, with 11,400 fewer venues open one decade later amid claims that the two were closely linked. 

Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said: 'The pandemic has been the worst period our pubs have ever had to endure. Months of closure followed by periods of severely reduced trading.'

Speaking to MailOnline, she added: 'We would encourage all local authorities to work with the sector in helping us get back on our feet, not burdening us with more red tape at the worst possible time.'

Pubs are said to have suffered financially from the ban because smokers are known to drink more, with previous US studies estimating that 85 to 90 per cent of adults who are alcohol-dependent are also nicotine-dependent. 

Many venues have improved their food offering and family friendly appeal since the ban in an attempt to survive, with the number of jobs at pubs and bars actually rising 6 per cent between 2008 and 2018. The Office for National Statistics said this may be because the greater focus on food requires more waiting and kitchen staff. 

People eat and drink at outside tables in London's Soho in April following the easing of lockdown restrictions in England

People eat and drink at outside tables in London's Soho in April following the easing of lockdown restrictions in England

Smoking poster in Newcastle
Smoking poster in Manchester

Newcastle City Council and Manchester City Council have banned smoking on the pavements where outdoor hospitality venues such as pubs, restaurants and cafes have tables

In Oxfordshire, the policy document says 'reducing the visibility of smoking' will make it seem more abnormal, so children are less likely to start. 

And it adds: 'By compelling smokers to remove themselves from defined areas to smoke, there is increased chance that they will consider stopping.' 

Ansaf Azhar, Oxfordshire's public health director, told the meeting: 'It is not about telling people not to smoke - it is about moving and creating an environment in which not smoking is encouraged and they are empowered to do so.' 

Some 12 per cent of Oxfordshire's population currently smoke but rates are higher among those on lower incomes or with mental illnesses, the homeless and travellers.

Bosses will make it easier for people to access quit-smoking drugs and therapies to bring this figure down, the board papers reveal. 

They say: 'To be smoke free by 2025, smokers need supportive environments to quit and young people need environments where being smoke free is the easy option.

A man smokes a cigarette with his meal at the Craven Arms pub in Birmingham in 2004, three years before the indoor ban

A man smokes a cigarette with his meal at the Craven Arms pub in Birmingham in 2004, three years before the indoor ban

'We will be working closely with workplaces, communities, and our smoke free partner organisations to support the implementation of smoke-free indoor and outdoor places, and to improve access to nicotine replacement and pharmacotherapy for those who need it most.'

How will the proposal work in Oxfordshire? 

When will the ban come into force?

  • Oxfordshire County Council has said there are no timeframes for plans and it has not yet been agreed. 
  • The decision to make outdoor seating 100 per cent smoke-free remains the responsibility of individual district councils - as part of the 2020 Business and Planning Act. 
  • There are no timeframes or plans regarding enforcement or signage. 
  • District councils have yet to agree on a timeframe that would be consistent with the county-wide ambition of smoke-free by 2025.

The proposal

  • Under the proposal by the Oxfordshire Tobacco Control Alliance, the council aims to have reduced the prevalence of smoking in the adult population to below five per cent by 2025.
  • This would include encouraging employers to stop the habit outside offices and factories, or by creating smoke-free areas in newly created pavement dining areas.
  • The authorities have said they will follow the four pillars of prevention, local regulation and enforcement, smoke-free environments and provide support for smokers to quit in order to see through their vision

What the council hopes to achieve by 2025?

  • Reduce the prevalence of smoking in the adult population to below 5 per cent by 2025.
  •  Reduce the prevalence of smoking in routine and manual workers to below 10 per cent. 
  • Reduce the prevalence of smoking in those with a serious mental illness to below 20 per cent.
  • Reduce the prevalence of women who smoke at the time of delivery to below 4 per cent.
  • Reduce the prevalence of smoking at age 15 below 3 per cent.

Local Regulation and Enforcement  

  • The council said it will also support regional programmes to reduce illegal tobacco. 
  • Ensure effective prosecutions continue to be pursued in appropriate cases based on intelligence received.
  • Take actions to reduce the sale of tobacco related products and electronic cigarettes to people underage.  

'Smoke-free' areas

  • Encourage workplaces to promote smoke-free environments and support staff to quit smoking
  • Ensure that local NHS Trusts are smoke-free, including encouraging smokers working in the NHS to quit.
  •  Explore opportunities to protect both adults and children from the harm of secondhand smoke
  •  Support organisations working across the community to promote smoke-free environments, including homes, cars, play parks and school gates. 
  • Train and support staff working with families to promote smoke-free homes and cars.  

Supporting Smokers to Quit

  • The council will reduce health inequalities by targeting those populations where smoking rates remain high, including routine and manual workers, unemployed and those living in the most deprived communities.  
  • Community-based client friendly Local Stop Smoking Services will target vulnerable groups.
  • Frontline healthcare workers will be trained to raise the issue of smoking.           

The Government wants England to be smoke-free - meaning only 5 per cent of the population smokes - by 2030.

But the Oxfordshire Tobacco Control Strategy aims to achieve this goal by 2025.

The local authority will tackle sellers of illicit tobacco and take action to reduce the sale of tobacco-related products and electronic cigarettes to people who are underage.

Dr Adam Briggs, the public health official leading the strategy, said smoking is the leading cause of preventable deaths in Oxfordshire, costing the public purse £120million a year.

He told the meeting: 'We have got a condition that is entirely a commercially driven cause of death and disease. It is impossible to be on the wrong side of history with tobacco consumption.'

Last year, data from the charity Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), found 2,132 people died from smoking-related causes in Oxfordshire between 2012 and 2017.

ASH also said 23 tonnes of waste, or enough to fill 421 wheelie bins, is gathered in the form of cigarette butts in Oxfordshire each year.

It was also estimated that smoking-related house fires cost the Oxfordshire economy £2.7million.

Oxfordshire County Council said on Tuesday: 'Oxfordshire has set itself an ambitious aim to be smoke-free by 2025.

'Creating healthy, smoke-free environments - including considering proposals for hospitality outdoor seating to be 100 per cent smoke-free - is just one small part of a wider range of county-wide plans.

'At present there are no timeframes for smoke-free pavement licensing proposals and nothing has yet been agreed.

'Any decision on this would be ultimately the responsibility of our individual district councils in Oxfordshire.

'Our tobacco control strategy further outlines our smoke-free 2025 plans, which includes creating healthy and family-friendly smoke-free spaces, helping people stop smoking in the first place, and supporting those who wish to quit.'

Simon Clark, director of the smokers' lobby group Forest (Freedom Organisation for the Right to Enjoy Smoking), criticised the plans.

He said: 'It's no business of local councils if adults choose to smoke, and if they smoke outside during working hours that's a matter for them and their employer not the council.

'Nor should it be the role of councillors to force smokers to quit by extending the indoor smoking ban to any outdoor area where there is no risk to non-smokers.'

He added: 'The public will want local authorities to help local businesses bounce back from the impact of the pandemic. They will also be expected to focus on issues like employment and housing.

'Reducing smoking rates to meet some idealistic target is not a priority for most people and council policy should reflect that.'

And Mark Oates, director of campaign group We Vape, said: 'It now seems fashionable again to attack smokers instead of helping them, which is all these five councils are doing.

'They don't care about the individual smoker's health, they care about looking good. Smokers need to be educated in the alternatives, not treated like exiles.

'Public Health England and Cancer research UK have publicly stated between them vaping is 95 per cent safer than smoking, doesn't hurt people nearby and we know it is far more effective at quitting tobacco than any other nicotine replacement method. It is a fact.

'So by ignoring this and not advising on far healthier alternatives and instead forcing smokers down the road or wherever they can push them, they are blindly rejecting science for some PR stunt.'

Professor Chris Whitty, England's chief medical officer, told a recent conference more than 90,000 people died from tobacco related diseases in 2020, compared with 75,000 from Covid.

He added: 'One in five people who die from cancer will die from [lung cancer]. The reason that people like me get very concerned and very upset about it is that this cancer is almost entirely caused for profit.'

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2021-06-03 07:03:30Z
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Covid in Scotland LIVE as Nicola Sturgeon and Boris Johnson to meet at summit - Scottish Daily Record

Finance secretary puts up £50M cash fund for project to transform Scotland from pandemic

The Scottish Government will provide up to £50 million of cash for a new competition as part of efforts to transform the country in the wake of the Covid pandemic.

Kate Forbes announced details of the national challenge competition as she promised more support for some of those businesses that have been hardest hit by the pandemic.

She pledged £12 million to help businesses in the 13 local authority areas that are being held under Level 2 restrictions.

The Finance and Economy Secretary said: "Businesses who were expecting to open or see reduced restrictions as a result of moving to Level 1, but who will now remain in Level 2, will receive weekly support."

She pledged more money for taxi drivers, with an additional funding of up to £62 million being made available, taking support for this sector to more than £90 million.

In addition to this, there will be a further £40 million for the cultural sector, Ms Forbes said.

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2021-06-03 09:11:15Z
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Nicola Sturgeon spent outrageous sum of taxpayers' money for failed Brexit case - Express

Scotland's deficit has ballooned to £40billion, more than eight times the limit set for EU membership, the UK's leading economic think tank has found. The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said that the gap between Scotland’s spending and tax revenue was up to a quarter of the economy last year. The IFS estimated Scotland’s deficit had risen from 8.6 percent of GDP in the financial year before COVID-19 to between 22 and 25 percent of GDP in 2020-21.

The main difference was a massive injection of UK Treasury funding to help cope with the pandemic that allowed more spending in Scotland without an equivalent increase in Scottish tax revenue.

The UK deficit for 2020-21 is put at around 14.5 percent.

Despite the country’s weak economic performance, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is not only ramping up her calls for a second independence referendum but it also appears that her party spent an “outrageous” sum of taxpayers’ money for a failed Brexit court case.

In 2018, the SNP argued that the UK Withdrawal Bill put forward by former Prime Minister Theresa May undermined the founding principles of devolution and diluted the powers of the Scottish Parliament.

Ms Sturgeon’s ministers claimed that some EU powers – like support for farmers, control of our seas or food standards – fell within areas that are Holyrood's responsibility.

Amid failing negotiations between the Scottish government and the UK government, the SNP introduced the EU Continuity Bill.

However, it was later referred to the Supreme Court by UK ministers, who claimed Holyrood acted outside its remit by passing the Bill.

It was the first time in the history of devolution that Westminster challenged legislation passed by Holyrood in the country's highest court.

According to a 2019 report by the Scottish Sun, SNP Ministers spent £132,000 for the court case, which in January last year, ruled against them.

JUST IN: EU's Brexit punishment plan torn to shreds

“There was never any need for this bill but the SNP will take any opportunity to pursue separation, regardless of the cost to the people of Scotland.”

The Scottish Government said in a statement the legal bill included lawyers’ fees of £131,316.60, £160 court costs and £423 on admin.

However, the figure did not include the Lord Advocate’s expenses or internal legal advice from government briefs.

Last week, Ms Sturgeon opened formal talks with the Scottish Greens on a cooperation deal in government, in a move designed to cement a pro-independence majority at Holyrood and bolster its pro-climate credentials.

In a move mooted before the May elections, the First Minister said the SNP and Scottish Greens could jointly write policies on the climate crisis and the shift to net zero, in return for Green votes to back her spending plans and legislation.

The deal, which is likely to stop short of a full coalition agreement, could see the Greens win ministerial seats in future, Ms Sturgeon told MSPs.

A deal would be used by Ms Sturgeon to strengthen her hand in the battle with Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Government for the legal authority to hold a second independence referendum and to ensure any referendum legislation carries a clear parliamentary mandate.

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2021-06-03 07:01:00Z
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