No charges for Tomlinson death officer
A riot squad officer filmed knocking Ian Tomlinson to the ground during the G20 protests will not be prosecuted over his death, it has been announced. The decision follows an independent inquiry into the clash on the fringes of G20 demonstrations in the City of London on April 1 last year. Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer said that after a thorough review of the case, the Crown Prosecution Service had concluded there was "no realistic prospect" of a conviction. Mr Starmer said: "After a thorough and careful review of the evidence, the CPS has decided that there is no realistic prospects of a conviction against the police officer in question for any offence arising from the matter investigated and that no charges should be brought against him." Mr Starmer added there is a "fundamental" disagreement among medical experts about what led to Mr Tomlinson's death. The death of Mr Tomlinson, 47, became global news after amateur video evidence emerged that challenged the original official version of events.(itn)
Griffin barred from royal party
A BNP member enjoyed the hospitality of the Queen at a Buckingham Palace garden party as his leader, Nick Griffin, was barred from the event for using his invitation for political ends. Andrew Brons, who was elected to the European Parliament last year, stood feet from the monarch as she hosted the summer event but he accused Prime Minister David Cameron of having his "grubby fingermarks" all over the decision to refuse entry to Mr Griffin. Palace officials told the far-right politicians' office at the 11th hour that he was not welcome at the event and he followed the decision by giving a round of media interviews in which he attacked the move. In a statement, the Palace said the BNP leader's use of the invitation for "party political purposes" had increased the security risk as well as the possible "discomfort" of other guests. The decision came after Mr Griffin appeared on GMTV and posted a message on the BNP website asking supporters for questions to ask the Queen. Mr Brons, who was joined by his daughter Emma, described the cucumber sandwiches served to the garden party guests as "excellent" but said he was "disappointed" by the barring of Mr Griffin. He added: "I understand it was because of some breach of protocol. The only thing is, the protocol wasn't written down before hand.(press assocition)
MacAskill will not attend hearing
The Scottish Government has declined a request from US Senators that Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill appear at a hearing on the Lockerbie controversy. The US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations asked for Mr MacAskill, who gave permission for the release of the man convicted of the bombing, to attend the meeting next week. The Scottish Government said it had formally declined the request and also turned down a request that Scottish Prison Service health boss Dr Andrew Fraser appear. Libyan Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was released from Greenock jail last August on compassionate grounds, having been given three months to live. He is still alive and living with his family in the Libyan capital, Tripoli. Megrahi is the only man to have been convicted of the Lockerbie atrocity which killed 270 people in the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 on December 21 1988. David Cameron's first visit to Washington as Prime Minister was overshadowed earlier this week by the row over his release, with US senators suspicious that oil giant BP may have had a hand in the affair. Scotland First Minister Alex Salmond wrote to the committee chairman John Kerry on Wednesday, making clear that the Scottish Government made the decision to free al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds and had received no representations from BP on the matter.(press association)
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A riot squad officer filmed knocking Ian Tomlinson to the ground during the G20 protests will not be prosecuted over his death, it has been announced. The decision follows an independent inquiry into the clash on the fringes of G20 demonstrations in the City of London on April 1 last year. Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer said that after a thorough review of the case, the Crown Prosecution Service had concluded there was "no realistic prospect" of a conviction. Mr Starmer said: "After a thorough and careful review of the evidence, the CPS has decided that there is no realistic prospects of a conviction against the police officer in question for any offence arising from the matter investigated and that no charges should be brought against him." Mr Starmer added there is a "fundamental" disagreement among medical experts about what led to Mr Tomlinson's death. The death of Mr Tomlinson, 47, became global news after amateur video evidence emerged that challenged the original official version of events.(itn)
Griffin barred from royal party
A BNP member enjoyed the hospitality of the Queen at a Buckingham Palace garden party as his leader, Nick Griffin, was barred from the event for using his invitation for political ends. Andrew Brons, who was elected to the European Parliament last year, stood feet from the monarch as she hosted the summer event but he accused Prime Minister David Cameron of having his "grubby fingermarks" all over the decision to refuse entry to Mr Griffin. Palace officials told the far-right politicians' office at the 11th hour that he was not welcome at the event and he followed the decision by giving a round of media interviews in which he attacked the move. In a statement, the Palace said the BNP leader's use of the invitation for "party political purposes" had increased the security risk as well as the possible "discomfort" of other guests. The decision came after Mr Griffin appeared on GMTV and posted a message on the BNP website asking supporters for questions to ask the Queen. Mr Brons, who was joined by his daughter Emma, described the cucumber sandwiches served to the garden party guests as "excellent" but said he was "disappointed" by the barring of Mr Griffin. He added: "I understand it was because of some breach of protocol. The only thing is, the protocol wasn't written down before hand.(press assocition)
MacAskill will not attend hearing
The Scottish Government has declined a request from US Senators that Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill appear at a hearing on the Lockerbie controversy. The US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations asked for Mr MacAskill, who gave permission for the release of the man convicted of the bombing, to attend the meeting next week. The Scottish Government said it had formally declined the request and also turned down a request that Scottish Prison Service health boss Dr Andrew Fraser appear. Libyan Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was released from Greenock jail last August on compassionate grounds, having been given three months to live. He is still alive and living with his family in the Libyan capital, Tripoli. Megrahi is the only man to have been convicted of the Lockerbie atrocity which killed 270 people in the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 on December 21 1988. David Cameron's first visit to Washington as Prime Minister was overshadowed earlier this week by the row over his release, with US senators suspicious that oil giant BP may have had a hand in the affair. Scotland First Minister Alex Salmond wrote to the committee chairman John Kerry on Wednesday, making clear that the Scottish Government made the decision to free al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds and had received no representations from BP on the matter.(press association)
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