Eight reasons Leave won the UK's referendum on the EU

Summary: The UK has voted to quit the European Union following a referendum on its membership. So how did the Leave campaign win?

1. Brexit economic warnings backfire What started off as a trickle soon became a steady stream and ended up as a flood. The public was bombarded with warnings about how they would be poorer if they voted to leave the EU but, in the end, weren't convinced by what they were told and/or believed it was a price worth paying. The CBI, the IMF, the OECD, the IFS - an alphabet soup of experts lined up to say economic growth would be hobbled, unemployment would go up, the pound would plummet and British business would be left in a no man's land outside the EU. The Bank of England raised the prospect of a recession while The Treasury said it would be forced to put income tax up and slash spending on the NHS, schools and defence. If that wasn't enough, President Obama suggested the UK would go to the "back of the queue" in terms of securing a trade deal with the US while top EU official Donald Tusk hinted at the end of Western political civilization. Some on the Remain side accepted this was overkill and that so-called "Project Fear" had got a bit out of hand while the Leave campaign was quick to dismiss the naysayers as wealthy, unaccountable elites with their own vested interests talking down Britain. But the fact the public discounted so readily the advice of experts points to something more than just a revolt against the establishment. It suggested far more people felt left behind and untouched by the economic benefits of five decades of EU involvement being trumpeted. How will Brexit affect your finances? 2. £350m NHS claim gets traction The assertion that leaving the EU would free up £350m a week extra to spend on the NHS is the kind of political slogan that campaigns dream of: striking, easy to understand and attractive to voters of different ages and political persuasions. No surprise then that Vote Leave chose to splash it across the side of their battle bus. The fact that the claim does not stand up to much scrutiny - the figure is calculated using sums which were disputed by the Treasury Select Committee and described as potentially misleading by the UK Statistics Authority - did not reduce its potency. Remain campaigner Angela Eagle may have told her opponents to "get that lie off your bus" but polling suggests it gained traction and was the single most remembered figure from the campaign, with many people believing that money handed over to the EU to be a member should be spent in the UK instead. In that sense, it served as a powerful illustration of how the UK could be better off outside the EU. 3. Farage makes immigration the defining issue If they didn't quite bet the farm on the issue of immigration, Leave played what they knew was their trump card often and they played it successfully. The issue fed into wider questions of national and cultural identity, which suited Leave's message - particularly to lower income voters. The result suggested that concerns about levels of migration into the UK over the past 10 years, their impact on society, and what might happen in the next 20 years were more widely felt and ran even deeper than people had suspected. Just as crucially, it suggested Leave's central argument that the UK cannot control the number of people coming into the country while remaining in the EU really hit home. Turkey was a key weapon in Leave's armoury and, although claims that the UK would not be able to stop it entering the EU were firmly denied, there was enough uncertainty about this - a fact that the ongoing migrant crisis in Europe unquestionably fed into. The language and imagery used by the Leave campaign came in for criticism and there were recurring tensions between the Conservative dominated official Leave movement, Nigel Farage's UKIP roadshow and the separate Leave.EU group. But their various messages resonated and segued with their central proposition that a vote to leave was a once in a generation chance to take control and assert national sovereignty. 4. Public stop listening to PM David Cameron may have won one leadership contest, one (or two if you include the 2010 coalition-forming one) general elections and two referendums in the past ten years but this was the moment his luck ran out. By putting himself front and centre of the Remain campaign, and framing the decision as a question of trust, he staked his political future and personal reputation on the outcome. Having put so much store on his ability to secure a fundamental change in the UK's relationship with the EU, it was inevitable that the concessions he came back with following nine months of negotiations would be dismissed as a damp squib by Eurosceptics in his party. But this summed up a deeper problem. Having constantly stated that he would "not rule anything out" if he didn't get what he wanted, trying to enthuse the UK to stay in on the basis of reforms most believed were modest at best was always going to be a difficult sell. Throughout the process, he found himself at odds with many Conservatives who have never quite reconciled themselves to his decision to go into coalition after the 2010 election and the compromises that brought. Unsuited to winning over Labour supporters, the prime minister was not able to persuade enough floating voters to give him the benefit of the doubt. It was his failure to get the outcome he wanted, coupled with his desire to try and unify the country after the bruising campaign, that prompted him to say he would stand down as PM by October. 5. Labour fail to connect with voters The Remain campaign always needed Labour voters to win the referendum and the fact that they did not play ball will be the subject of a long and acrimonious post-mortem within the opposition. Not only did Labour - 90% of whose MPs backed staying in the EU - badly misjudge the mood of its supporters, when it realised something was wrong during the campaign, it was unable to do much about it. Despite sending in big beasts such as Gordon Brown and Sadiq Khan to talk up the benefits of the EU, and hinting that further controls on immigration would be needed, it was unable to shift the impression of a growing schism between those running the party and its base. Although Alan Johnson, the head of Labour In, has been singled out for criticism, it is likely that Jeremy Corbyn - who declined to share a platform with pro-EU politicians of other parties - will take most of the blame. Critics have said his lukewarm support for the EU - which he summed up as 7 out of ten in one appearance - filtered through to the entire campaign and his emphasis on the need for a "social Europe" simply did not resonate with enough people. 6. Big beasts - Boris Johnson and Michael Gove We always knew a handful of cabinet ministers would support Brexit but it was Michael Gove and Boris Johnson's declaration of support which really put rocket boosters under the campaign. The justice secretary brought intellectual heft and strategic nous to the table while the former mayor of London, after a bout of soul-searching, brought star appeal and ability to appeal across the party divide. The two men were deployed deftly, Boris Johnson cast in the role of foot soldier as he criss-crossed the country on the Vote Leave bus, pulling pints and brandishing cornish pasties in his wake. Meanwhile, Mr Gove did much of the heavy lifting, helping to put together Leave's post-Brexit manifesto as well as facing the public in TV referendum specials on Sky News and the BBC. Then there was Nigel Farage, the face of Euroscepticism in the UK but also a potential loose cannon for the Conservative dominated official campaign? The UKIP leader, as is his forte, did his own thing and occasionally provoked controversy but also played a vital role on the ground in motivating his party's supporters and numerous others to go to the polls. 7. Older voters flock to polls While experts will pore over the finer details of turnout over the coming days and weeks, the cry will inevitably go up that it was older voters which won it for Leave - particularly in the south, south-west, Midlands and the north east. It is a matter of fact that the older you are, the more likely you are to make the effort to vote - 78% of those 65 or over voted in the 2015 election, compared with 43% of 18-24 year olds and 54% of 25-34 year olds. Despite the last minute rush to register - which saw 2.6 million people sign up, many of them younger voters, between 15 May and the extended deadline of 9 June - the breakdown may not be radically different this time. Factor in research suggesting that support for Brexit was significantly higher among those aged 55 and over than among younger age groups - three out of every five voters aged 65 or over said they wanted to leave - then you have the foundation for Friday's result. Of course, it is not as simple as that, with many younger voters will also have supported Brexit across England and Wales. But a big inter-generational divide in voting patterns is just one of the many talking points going forward. 8. Europe always slightly alien The UK's relationship with Europe has never been simple nor static. It took the country years to join what was then the European Community and, even then, when it was last put to the vote in 1975 many backed it grudgingly or for narrow economic reasons. Many of those have since changed their minds, with their earlier ambivalence turning into outright hostility. There have been decades of scepticism towards the EU among politicians and in large parts of the UK media. The younger generation were generally seen as pro-EU but it remains to be seen - once the details of the voting is looked into - how the result broke down by age. What appears clear from the campaign is that the vote to Leave was as much a statement about the country's national identity, and all that involves, as it was about its economic and political future.

ब्रिटेन ने अपनी सदस्यता पर जनमत संग्रह के बाद यूरोपीय संघ छोड़ने के लिए मतदान किया है। तो छोड़ अभियान कैसे जीता?


'Sleep - key to tackling obesity'

Summary: The focus in the fight to tackle obesity tends to be diet and exercise. But what about sleep? In this week's Scrubbing Up, Dr Neil Stanley argues getting a good night's rest is just as important.

By Dr Neil StanleyIndependent sleep expert It is an undeniable fact that we have a problem with obesity in the UK. The government and the NHS rightly believe that for the health of the nation, levels of obesity need to be reduced. So we have campaigns based on eating less and more healthily, such as "5-a-day" and exercise - "10,000 steps a day" and the "Change for Life" initiative. However, given recent reports, these efforts, whilst very well-meaning, are seemingly having absolutely no effect on reducing levels of obesity or increasing rates of exercising. The conventional line is that this is because we are all victims of the "aggressive advertising" and "easy availability" of sugary and fatty foods and/or that we are addicted to computer games/TV/Facebook etc. It is possibly true that in the past we did move a bit more than modern children, but I seem to remember that sugary and fatty foods were just as "aggressively" advertised and easily available. 'Hunger hormones' My "bog-standard" comprehensive school had a tuck shop and there were plenty of local shops selling a myriad of sugary and fatty comestibles for our delectation. Perhaps there is some other reason why the "eat less, move more" advice is not working. What if we simply cannot help ourselves? And that, from a physiological point of view, we actually crave junk food and don't want to exercise? So what might be the answer? Numerous studies have shown a significant association between short sleep duration and being overweight or obese in both children and adults. And I believe that it is more than coincidence that, over the last 40 years, as there has been a reduction in our sleep duration, there has also been a rise is the number of people who are overweight or obese. Using fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging), poor sleep has been shown to affect the brain areas responsible for complex decision-making and response to rewards causing us to favour unhealthy foods. Apple - or cupcake? Poor sleep also causes changes in the levels of our hunger hormones. There is a decrease in the level of leptin - which regulates food intake and signals when we have enough food, while the level of ghrelin - which stimulates appetite, fat production and body growth - rises. Research suggests this causes 24% higher feelings of hunger, a 23% increase in overall appetite but a 33% increased desire for high-fat, high-carbohydrate foods making us feel that we have had insufficient food and thus encouraging us to increase food intake. Short sleep has also been shown to increase our urge to snack between meals and causes us to excessively season our food, eat fewer vegetables, buy more junk food and buy more food overall. So the availability and advertising of junk food is seen as the problem. However, the simple fact is that because of poor sleep, you may actually physiologically want to eat these foods regardless of the efforts of the multi-national purveyors of junk food - though this is in no way trying to absolve them of their responsibilities. But be honest - when you are sleepy, which would you prefer: an apple or a cupcake? The "eat less, move more" message, no matter how it is presented and how much money is spent on its promotion, is obviously not working - and I would contend that, in isolation, it cannot work. Up until now, there has been no serious government or NHS advice or guidance about sleep, no multi-million pound campaigns - they haven't even appointed a scientist off the telly as a "Sleep Tsar". I believe that if we are serious about reducing the weight of the nation and increasing rates of exercise, we need to address the issue of poor sleep. Isn't it is time for a new approach - "eat less, move more, sleep well"?

मोटापे से निपटने की लड़ाई में ध्यान आहार और व्यायाम पर केंद्रित होता है। लेकिन नींद के बारे में क्या? इस सप्ताह के स्क्रबिंग अप में, डॉ नील स्टेनली का तर्क है कि रात का अच्छा आराम करना भी उतना ही महत्वपूर्ण है।


US Election 2016: Michelle Obama in 2020?

Summary: Are you glad that the US election is finally over?

By BBC TrendingWhat's popular and why Well don't look now, because the next one is just around the corner. The potential first shots of the next campaign were fired online in the hours after Donald Trump's victory became clear when hundreds of thousands took to social media to urge the current first lady to run for President in 2020. "Perfect conditions for Michelle Obama to win 2020 elections," read one comment. Another said simply: "Michelle Obama 2020 please Michelle Obama 2020 please Michelle Obama 2020 please". Mrs Obama is that extreme rarity, a popular figure in America's political landscape. Her favourability rating, pegged by Gallup at 64 percent, is significantly higher than that of Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, or even her husband. There's one small problem for the first lady's supporters, however. In March, she said she had no interest in the top job. On the other hand, a few things have changed since then. Blog by Mike Wendling More US election coverage from BBC Trending: The American Brexit In the final days of his campaign, Donald Trump promised a victory that would be "Brexit plus plus plus" - after his win at the polls it didn't take long for Americans and Brits to pick up the theme.READ MORE You can follow BBC Trending on Twitter @BBCtrending, and find us on Facebook. All our stories are at bbc.com/trending.

क्या आप खुश हैं कि अमेरिकी चुनाव आखिरकार समाप्त हो गया है?


Rocket rumbles give volcanic insights

Summary: What do volcanoes and rockets have in common?

By Jonathan AmosBBC Science Correspondent, New Orleans "Volcanoes have a nozzle aimed at the sky, and rockets have a nozzle aimed at the ground," explains Steve McNutt, a geosciences professor at the University of South Florida in Tampa. It explains why he and colleague Dr Glenn Thompson have installed the tools normally used to study eruptions at the famous Kennedy Space Center. Comparing the different types of rumblings could yield new insights. In the case of rockets, the team thinks their seismometers and infrasound (low-frequency acoustic waves) detectors might potentially be used by the space companies as a different type of diagnostic tool, to better understand the performance of their vehicles; or perhaps as a way to identify missiles in flight. In the case of volcanoes, the idea is to take the lessons learned at Kennedy and fine-tune the algorithms used to interpret what is happening in an eruption. It might even be possible to develop systems that give early warnings of some of the dangerous debris flows associated with volcanoes. "It all started really as a way to test and calibrate our equipment," says Glenn. "We don't have any volcanoes in South Florida - obviously. But Kennedy provided some strong sources, and it also gave our students the opportunity to learn how to deploy stations and work with the data." The team has now recorded the seismic and acoustic signals emanating from about a dozen rockets. Most have been associated with launches; a few have been related to what are called static fire tests, in which the engines on a clamped vehicle are briefly ignited to check they are flight-ready. But perhaps the most fascinating event captured so far was the SpaceX pad explosion in September 2016. This saw a Falcon 9 rocket suffer a catastrophic failure as it was being fuelled. Many people will have seen the video of the spectacular fireball. But Glenn's and Steve's equipment caught information not apparent in that film. For example, they detected more than 150 separate sub-events in the infrasound over the course of 26 minutes. These were likely individual tanks, pipes or other components bursting into flames. Of course, the SpaceX explosion was an unusual occurrence, and it is the more routine activity that most interests the team. And some clear patterns are starting to emerge in their study of "upside down volcanoes". "As the rocket gets higher and higher and accelerates, we see a decrease in the frequency in the infrasound - that's basically a Doppler shift because the source is moving away from us," says Steve. "And then you get a coupling of the signal in the air into the ground and this produces seismic waves recorded on the seismometer. "So, we get some common features between the infrasound and the seismometer, but then there's a little separation of the energy between the two." There is a lot still to learn, but the pair think they can distinguish the different types of rockets - to tell a Falcon from an Atlas from a Delta. There are subtle but significant divergences in their spectral signatures, which almost certainly reflect their distinct designs and modes of operation. Where in particular the rockets could have instruction for volcano monitoring is in describing moving sources. A rocket is a very well understood physical process. Its properties and parameters - such as the size of the nozzle orifice, the thrust, the trajectory and the distance - are all precisely known. The related seismic and acoustic signals should therefore serve as templates to help decipher some of the features of eruptions that share similar behaviours. Good examples of rapid movement in the volcano setting are the big mass surges like pyroclastic flows (descending clouds of hot ash/rock) and lahars (mud/ash avalanches). An objective of the team is to improve seismometer and infrasound systems' characterisation of these dangerous phenomena. This could lead to useful alerts being sent to people who live around volcanoes. "Assuming you can find a few safe places to put your instruments that are reasonably close, you'd get your advance warning," said Steve. "What you'd be doing then is getting the time and the strength of the signal and then watching it evolve to figure out which direction it's going. "If you can do that successfully then you can forecast with a couple of minutes in advance things like lahars and pyroclastic flows downstream." Glenn added: "I worked on [the Caribbean island of] Montserrat during the crisis from 1995 to 2011, and we did have a rudimentary system even then for tracking the pyroclastic density currents coming down the slopes of the volcano. "It wasn't quite a real-time application, but we hope with this kind of work that we can improve those algorithms and make them more of an automated alarm system." The equipment at Kennedy has been temporary, but the team is looking for a permanent installation. Like everyone, Glenn and Steve are particularly looking forward to the launch of SpaceX's Falcon Heavy vehicle in the New Year. The Heavy should produce nearly 23 meganewtons of thrust at lift-off, more than any rocket in operation today. It is sure to make for some interesting seismic and infrasound signals. Glenn Thompson and Steve McNutt detailed their work here at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union. Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos

ज्वालामुखी और रॉकेट में क्या समानता है?


Algeria's President Bouteflika is going - but that's not enough for protesters

Summary: Weeks of protests in Algeria have pushed long-time leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika to drop his plans of running for a fifth term as president. However, he remains in office and protests have continued, with calls for him to resign immediately. The BBC's Ahmed Rouaba looks at what might happens next in the country.

The significance of Mr Bouteflika's resignation cannot be understated. He has been in power since 1999, so almost half of the country's young population have only known him as president. So is this a defeat for the regime? There is no doubt that this is the end of Mr Bouteflika. A senior party figure in the ruling party, Hocine Kheldoun, said in a TV interview on Thursday that the long-serving leader was "history now". But many Algerians believe that the octogenarian's health has declined to such an extent that he is just being used as a front by the murky group of businessmen, politicians and military officials, known as "le pouvoir" (the power) who don't want to give up their influence. This group dominates the National Liberation Front (FLN), which has governed Algeria since independence from France in 1962. So the protesters see the concessions as a ruse to avoid far-reaching reform. The new Prime Minister Nouredine Bedoui, a close ally of Mr Bouteflika, has been tasked with bringing about political reforms until new presidential elections are held. His government is also expected to organise a national conference, but no dates have been given for either the elections or the conference. And for the moment, Mr Bouteflika remains in office. One of the protesters' new slogans is: "We wanted elections without Bouteflika, we were given Bouteflika without elections." Is Bouteflika still in charge? His supporters say the 82-year-old leader is "mentally and intellectually" capable of running the country. However, since suffering a stroke in 2013 he has rarely been seen in public and does not travel around the country or abroad, except for medical treatment. His aides represent him at events and read his messages to the public. He was not physically present at the constitutional council to submit his paperwork run for his fifth term as required by the law. And the announcement that he was not standing was read on his behalf by a newsreader on national TV. Some say his brother Saeed is making key decisions for him, although the reality is much more complicated. Saeed is at the head of one of the groups which make up "le pouvoir". Why is it so hard to find another candidate? A veteran of Algeria's war of independence, Mr Bouteflika's upper-class, Westernised style led him to be called "the dandy diplomat" in some quarters. He came into office, backed by the army, after the 1990s civil war and was largely viewed as a unifier of the many factions underpinning Algerian politics. Unlike some leaders in the region, his presidency survived the protests of the Arab Spring in 2011 - until now. Mr Bouteflika has been the pivot, or the balance, in the patronage created by "le pouvoir" - a system of rule which gives power to a small privileged group. He has been key to making this complicated and conflicted system work. It is unclear what would happen in the country if the cog for the past 20 years is removed. And this is why it has been so hard to find an alternative. Bouteflika's key dates: So why did the government back down? One thing that is clear is that the government was taken by surprise by the sheer number of protesters that have been pouring onto the streets for weeks and also their unrelenting push to achieve their goals. It seems that the government had underestimated how unpopular it had become after years of corrupt and repressive rule. The protests, which were initially led by young people, were later joined by lawyers, judges and teachers, making it an intergenerational push for change. Some parents have also taken their young children to the marches. Public broadcasters which had ignored the demonstrations in the beginning were later allowed to cover them. The demonstrators have also been largely peaceful, and adhered to a code of conduct which has been widely shared on social media, to reduce confrontation with security forces. In fact, the peaceful nature of the protests earned praise from former Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia, who resigned this week after President Bouteflika dropped his fifth-term plans. The security services have also showed an unusual self-restraint towards protesters which could suggest that they are not prepared to use force against them. The government, and all Algerians, are also aware than any violent clashes are likely to escalate and get out of hand in a country which was torn apart by a decade-long civil war in the 1990s. It was not hyperbole when Mr Ouyahia warned that "the situation in Syria also started with roses". What does the opposition want? The main opposition parties have rejected the decisions of the government to delay the elections and hold the national conference. A constitutional law expert at the University of Algiers, Fatiha Benabou, told the AFP news agency that there was no legal basis in the Algerian constitution for postponing the elections and that Mr Bouteflika's announcement did not refer to any legislation. The leader of the opposition Adala (Justice and Development) party, Abdallah Djaballah, is currently co-ordinating talks that include the HMS (Society of Peace) party and political personalities, including former prime ministers Ali Benflis and Ahmed Benbitour, as well as prominent human rights lawyer Mustafa Bouchachi. Other political parties are expected to join the group, including the Socialist Forces Front (FFS), a social democratic and secularist political party which has boycotted previous elections because of alleged fraud. Kamel Guemazi and Ali Djeddi, members of the banned Islamic Salvation Front (FIS), were also seen at the opposition talks. The FIS won the first multi-party legislative elections in 1991, which were later cancelled by the military, leading to the civil war. The opposition says the current regime cannot continue to run the country against the will of the people and beyond the scope of the constitution. Adala party MP Ben Khallaf told the BBC the opposition was preparing for its own national conference to set up a roadmap for reforms. He added that protests would continue until the will of the people was respected by the regime. How strong is the opposition? There is no indication that opposition political parties have influence on the protests which were led by waves of youths not involved in party politics. Opposition parties - which range from socialists to Islamists - are known to be deeply divided and have failed on several occasions to come together and find common ground to stand up to the regime. However, the alternative national conference proposed by the opposition does present a robust challenge to the government. They, however, have to take into consideration that the people went to the streets to end politics as usual - and this might include the traditional opposition parties. Mustapha Bouchach, a prominent figure in the opposition has refused to speak for the protesters as suggested to him on social media. He said on a local TV programme: "These protests are led by the youths who are in the streets. They speak for themselves and no-one has the right to spoil their successes." He urged the political parties and personalities in opposition to support the protesters and not try to take the lead form them. "That would be a big mistake," he added.

अल्जीरिया में हफ्तों से हो रहे विरोध प्रदर्शनों ने लंबे समय से नेता रहे अब्देलअजीज बुतेफ्लिका को राष्ट्रपति के रूप में पांचवें कार्यकाल के लिए चुनाव लड़ने की अपनी योजना को छोड़ने के लिए मजबूर कर दिया है। हालाँकि, वह पद पर बने हुए हैं और विरोध प्रदर्शन जारी हैं, जिसमें उनसे तुरंत इस्तीफा देने की मांग की गई है। बीबीसी के अहमद रुआबा देखते हैं कि देश में आगे क्या हो सकता है।


Elmete Wood: Firefighters tackle overnight school blaze

Summary: Forty firefighters have been tackling a fire overnight at a derelict school in North Leeds.

It took hold at about 18:00 GMT on Saturday night at the former Elmete Wood school on Elmete Lane in Roundhay. Residents in the area surrounding the old school were advised by police to stay inside their homes and close windows and doors. The school, which catered for children with educational and behavioural issues, closed in 2016. Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to yorkslincs.news@bbc.co.uk or send video here. Related Internet Links West Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service

उत्तरी लीड्स में एक परित्यक्त स्कूल में रात भर लगी आग पर चालीस अग्निशामक काबू पा रहे हैं।


London 2012: Olympic ticket resale website reopens

Summary: The website for people to sell Olympic tickets has reopened.

Rather than members of the public being able to buy the tickets immediately, Games organiser Locog will initially purchase them "at face value". The unwanted tickets can be sold until 18:00 GMT on 3 February, and the public can buy them from April. The website crashed on the day it opened and Locog commercial director Chris Townsend said: "We are sorry for any inconvenience caused." The resale window had opened on 6 January but problems developed as the site, run by Ticketmaster, was slow to update sessions which had sold out. This resulted in the system closing that day. Mr Townsend added: "We made a commitment to our customers to give them a safe, secure and legal way of selling Olympic and Paralympic tickets which they are no longer able to use. We are delivering on that commitment, and will buy any tickets that customers are no longer able to use. "We believe this system - purchasing the tickets back from customers now, and offering them again from April, will result in a better customer experience for everyone." The move follows a series of ticketing problems for Locog. The first sales period had to be extended after the site slowed down. In the second round of sales, thousands of people thought that they had bought tickets. They were told the following day that they would not be charged, as they had not actually got any tickets at all. Ten thousand tickets to watch synchronised swimming were put up for sale, yet they did not exist and customers have been offered a swap with seats at some of the Games' most sought after events like the men's 100m final. However on 9 January, Locog partially reopened the site to sell Football and Paralympic tickets. Police have warned it is a criminal offence to resell London 2012 tickets on the open market without the permission of Locog.

ओलंपिक टिकट बेचने के लिए लोगों के लिए वेबसाइट फिर से खोल दी गई है।


What is stopping women from cycling?

Summary: The bicycle was once a symbol of women's emancipation, with suffragettes taking to two wheels to spread their message of equal rights. But the latest figures show a big gender divide when it comes to cycling. Why?

By Anna AllattBBC News About 50% fewer women than men cycle twice a week or more, according to walking and cycling charity Sustrans, and when it comes to cycling on the roads, the number drops again. Commonly cited reasons for shunning the benefits of getting into the saddle include sexual harassment, fears about appearance and concerns about safety. So what can be done to get more women on their bikes and out on the road? Tackling sexist attitudes among male road users would be a first step, says Leigh Campbell, who leads all-women cycling rides in Nottingham. "Sometimes, when I've been out cycling on my own, I've had male drivers shout at me as they're overtaking," said the 45-year-old British Cycling Breeze Champion. "I've been told to 'read the Highway Code' and 'get off the road'. I've also been sworn at. "I've even had 'keep pedalling, nearly there' - from a male cyclist. They wouldn't have said it to another man, it's so patronising and uncalled for. "All I want to do is ride my bike and I don't think I should have to put up with abuse from other - mainly male - road users, just because I'm a woman." What some men may see as harmless fun can be unnerving, frightening and confidence-draining. Helen Pidd, a journalist who has written a book aimed at women cyclists and rides with an all-female club called Team Glow, has had her fair share of comments. "We get a lot - some of it's general, anti-cyclist stuff but sometimes it's really mean. Stuff like 'thunder thighs'. Cycling gear is not kind to people's sizes - I'm a size 10 and sometimes I have to wear a large in tops. "I was riding through the Peak District in Derbyshire one time and a motorbiker slapped me on the bum. It was frightening and dangerous. I reported it to Derbyshire Police who said I'd been sexually assaulted." Another primary concern for many female cyclists is safety, according to a report on cycling by Sustrans in 2013. "Women tend to be more concerned about safety than men," said Ms Pidd. "And those fears are perfectly rational. Roads aren't safe for cyclists - you need to be confident to go on the roads." Throw sexual harassment into the mix and is it any wonder many women are reluctant to get on their bikes? For some though, overcoming their inhibitions can be life-changing. Maryam Amatullah, a 46-year-old from Leicester, had a passion for cycling as a child but quit in her teens. Then in 2010, while recovering from chronic fatigue, she realised she wanted to get back on the road again. "My youngest was playing on the PlayStation and I thought 'I want to get out in the fresh air', so I went out and bought myself a bike," she said. "I got a lot of stares at first in my hijab, particularly from my community and I didn't like it. "I got tearful and felt self-conscious but I contacted the council to see if there were any clubs I could join. They told me the only thing to do was to set something up myself or train as an instructor. "So that's what I did and started volunteering for cycle organisations and delivered training in schools. In 2011 I trained as a Breeze Champion and now my life has changed forever." Breeze Champions are volunteers who lead women-only rides as part of British Cycling's goal of getting one million more women cycling regularly by 2020. Zero to 1,500 miles in a year - Anna Allatt, former non-cyclist I have been a cycling widow for several years but in the new year of 2017, I decided I wanted to cycle the 20-mile round trip from home to work a couple of times a week. As a full-time working mother-of-two, it was almost impossible to factor in exercise but this way I'd be able to make it part of my daily routine. I would also have to overcome the fear of the work shower room (singular). And figure out how to dry my hair and do my make-up to make myself presentable for work - all in the confines of one slightly grotty space. My husband suggested signing up to a Breeze ride and I haven't looked back. Weather permitting, I commute a couple of times a week. I have also joined a club, completed my first sportive and racked up a total of 1,541 miles on my bike in 2017. I feel better physically and mentally and have made some really good friends. And this year's goals? To get a road bike and complete a 100-mile ride. Mrs Amatullah's fellow coach, Lindsey Ball, 54, says she feels equally strongly. "Mentally, I know when I've not been cycling. If you've got a family, a job, you can get bogged down, you get so busy but on the bike you have some 'me' time, you're taking control and you get to exercise," she said. "The friends I've met through cycling are my best friends now. When we do our cycling holidays, we're tired and exhausted; you don't want to see another hill but we all encourage each other and it really builds your self-esteem." Offering women a "safe and comfortable" environment such as a female-only group can encourage them to take up cycling, according to Kate Dale, head of Sport England's This Girl Can (TGC) campaign, which aims to get women active and involved in sport. "Groups of men aren't necessarily intimidating but can be cliquey and if you think they all know what they're doing it can be off-putting," she said. "They may not be doing it on purpose but it may be an environment you're not comfortable in." TGC research also found appearance was an important issue for women while there were worries among some about ability. "Women who've had bad experiences of sport at school or feel they're "too fat to get fit", or aren't sure how to change a tyre or work out their gears on a bike, can feel intimidated," Ms Dale said. "And then there are priorities. We feel guilty if we do exercise, for taking some 'me' time, and guilty if we don't as we're not setting a good example. It's all too much to overcome, or can certainly seem that way." As 2018 begins, the year that marks the centenary of women being given the vote in the UK, the words of Susan B Anthony, the US suffragist and abolitionist, seem fitting. "I'll tell you what I think of bicycling. I think it has done more to emancipate women than any one thing in the world. "I rejoice every time I see a woman ride by on a bike. It gives her a feeling of self-reliance and independence the moment she takes her seat; and away she goes, the picture of untrammelled womanhood." She may have made that comment in 1896 but Maryam Amatullah feels much the same way more than 120 years later. "I grew up shy and I lacked self-esteem but when I'm on the bike, I feel like a superhero. "I feel as if I'm in control." The changing face of cycling - advice for the female rider of 1895 Source: New York World 1895

साइकिल कभी महिलाओं की मुक्ति का प्रतीक था, जिसमें मताधिकार प्राप्त करने वाले समान अधिकारों के अपने संदेश को फैलाने के लिए दो पहियों पर चलते थे। लेकिन नवीनतम आंकड़े साइकिल चलाने के मामले में एक बड़े लिंग विभाजन को दर्शाते हैं। क्यों?


Aston factory unit fire: Five fire crews sent to scene

Summary: A fire broke out at a large derelict factory unit close to scene of a similar blaze.

People reported seeing smoke coming from the building on Priory Road in Aston, Birmingham, at about 10:25 BST, the fire service said. Five crews tackled the blaze, bringing it under control by 13:30 BST, West Midlands Fire Service said. It is not yet known who owns the building, on the same road as another unit which caught fire in August. An investigation is under way.

इसी तरह की आग लगने के स्थान के पास एक बड़ी परित्यक्त फैक्ट्री इकाई में आग लग गई।


Covid-19 alert: Moreton Hall adjusts to life after virus warning

Summary: People on a housing estate once hailed as having the highest life expectancy in the UK were shocked when it was issued with a Covid-19 warning. So what do they think caused the spike in infections - and how do they feel about the prospect of a second lockdown?

By Rachael McMenemy and Laurence CawleyBBC News Moreton Hall feels like a small town in its own right. A neighbourhood of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, it is home to 8,000 people and separated from the main town by the busy A14. It has a mix of housing dating from the 1970s to the present day and at its centre is a hub of shops and amenities, including a butcher, GP's surgery, post office, community centre, coffee shop and small supermarket. A lot of residents like the sense of community and it is a place where most people stop to chat to their neighbours. And at the moment, there is one major topic of conversation: Covid-19. Last week, a coronavirus alert was issued for the estate, with West Suffolk Council warning of a large rise in cases and telling residents to "take action now" to avoid a further spike. The authority said the increase involved household transmissions, linked to visits to friends and family. Although no further restrictions were imposed, the council reminded people of the need to adhere to those already in place, including the Rule of Six. Figures show there were 21 new cases in the week to 27 October for the Moreton Hall area, taking the rate to 262.7 cases per 100,000 people. 'It felt like we were all tarred with the same brush' Nicola Moody, who has lived in Moreton Hall since the age of two, helps run a Facebook group for residents. On hearing about the local alert she, like many others, was shocked, having seen little or no evidence of people flouting the rules. "It sounded incredibly official and serious, and sounded like it condemned the whole of Moreton Hall, and [it] felt like we were all tarred with the same brush," she says. She said people had believed cases were localised to Abbots Green Academy, which has remained shut this week following the half- term break due to the number of positive cases, and the need for many other staff and pupils to self-isolate. "The vast majority of people here are following the rules. It is a very small number of cases in a very large estate. Moreton Hall is like a small town, really," she says. With a second England-wide lockdown looming, Ms Moody, who is seven months pregnant with her second child, is particularly anxious at the prospect of giving birth, since the West Suffolk Hospital, like many others, is only allowing partners to attend once a woman is in active labour. "It is a very scary experience," she says. Many on the estate fear Thursday's lockdown will extend well beyond the four weeks the government has initially stipulated. "People are very disappointed and worried... because if it gets extended it will be very near Christmastime," she says. "If you've been following the rules it is very frustrating to know you're going into lockdown again." 'It's been so quiet' Lucy Newell, co-owner of The Coffee House on the estate, says there has been a marked downturn in customers since news of the local warning broke. "It has been so quiet," she says. "The cases in this whole area have been so low, everyone has been doing what was asked... people have been obeying the rules, so it is really hard to believe about the cases." On Thursday the shop will be closed while a sister site nearby will stay open. "We'll keep Fornham All Saints open for takeaway but we're going to close this one as it's been so quiet," she says. She also feels "a duty of care" to shut the shop while cases remain high. 'We'll really miss this place' Friends Denise Brown and Vicky Heighes are regulars at the coffee shop, often popping in after a workout. They, too, were shocked at news of the higher rates on Moreton Hall, and say at first it sounded quite scary. Ms Brown, whose family run the company Vacs R Us on the estate, also noticed a downturn in business in the days immediately after the alert was issued. "We had less people coming in and I know that happened here [the coffee shop] too. But it's started to pick back up again." Ms Heighes says the pair are both "really going to miss" the coffee shop and its friendly atmosphere once lockdown starts again. 'Everyone pulls together' Peter Thompson is a concerned resident, a Conservative district councillor and mayor of Bury St Edmunds. Living on Moreton Hall, he says he understands the frustrations of local people, but has no worries that the estate will not pull through and drive down case numbers again. "We have got really strong community in Moreton Hall; everyone pulls together, there is a really good community spirit," he says. As a councillor, he says adult-to-adult household transmission was the "red flag" leading to the alert, rather than the school outbreak as some believe. "We've got a very mixed community in terms of demographic," he says. "This used to be the place in the country where people had the highest life expectancy... so we do have an elderly population. We've also got two good primary schools and a high school. So you've you a mix of the very young and very old." The "worrying bit", he says, was transmission between households with no children, or between people in their 40s. Mr Thompson says residents seemed split in terms of the actions they wanted to see. "The reaction was 50/50, really, with people saying they wanted lockdown of schools, but also saying they need a living and people being scared of losing a job if things shut down again. "People are not intentionally going out there to be reckless... but if you do anything for seven to eight months some people will make some mistakes. "It's a bit like when you're on a diet, you need to consciously think about what you're eating, and with this you have got to make a conscious, mindful effort and not get complacent." 'A frustrating time' Suffolk County Council said it was too soon to comment on case numbers on the estate, but confirmed Abbots Green Academy would remain closed this week. It said two new pupil cases were identified at the weekend and that some staff who tested positive for Covid-19 were not well enough to return. In a statement, it said: "We would like to thank the Moreton Hall Community for following the guidance. We understand that this is a frustrating time but if we stick with it we should start to see cases reducing." Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk

एक हाउसिंग एस्टेट पर लोग जिन्हें कभी यूके में सबसे अधिक जीवन प्रत्याशा के रूप में जाना जाता था, वे तब हैरान रह गए जब इसे कोविड-19 चेतावनी के साथ जारी किया गया था। तो उन्हें क्या लगता है कि संक्रमण में वृद्धि हुई-और वे दूसरे लॉकडाउन की संभावना के बारे में कैसा महसूस करते हैं?


Brexit: Why is everyone talking about fishing?

Summary: The fishing industry has found itself at the heart of the debate over Brexit and the prime minister's draft deal. But how did a sector which accounts for about 0.1% of the UK's economy become such a big issue?

By Philip SimBBC Scotland political reporter Whale or minnow? A Commons research library briefing reckons the UK's fishing and fish processing industries employ a total of 24,000 people, and contribute £1.4bn to the UK economy. Yes, that's a lot of jobs and a lot of money. But it's a drop in the ocean when you consider that it's 0.12% of the overall economy, and less than 0.1% of the 33 million strong national workforce. In terms of economic impact (measured by gross value added, or GVA), the timber industry has similar heft. Indeed, looking at the latest statistics for GVA by industry, almost all of them are bigger than fishing. The leather goods industry is slightly larger - and given its reliance on European markets, could be as significantly affected by Brexit as fishing. Equally the travel agency industry is also watching political proceedings with interest, and is worth significantly more in GVA. And yet, we don't hear backbench MPs fretting about the future of woodworking, or writing to the prime minister to demand a good deal for tanners. We don't even hear as regularly about the financial services industry, which is worth £119bn(or 6.5% of economic output). So why does fishing have so much pull? Local significance The difference between fishing and industries like wood processing can be found in their histories and its geographical concentrations. By and large, if you're going to go fishing, you need access to the sea. So the actual fish-catching infrastructure is packed into a few small areas - particularly in Scotland, which has 53% of the entire UK industry. While it might make up a small sliver of the national workforce, the industry dominates some coastal communities in places like Peterhead. This means any changes in its fortunes have a very noticeable impact - similar to the way the downturn in the oil industry was particularly stark in Aberdeen. The history of the fishing industry also gives it a firm hold on the heartstrings of a nation which up until quite recently claimed with some justification to "rule the waves". On top of this, the industry has a powerful lobbying presence - Scottish Fishing Federation chief Bertie Armstrong has a keen eye for a media opportunity, and has become a more prominent figure in the current political debate than quite a few cabinet ministers. Where does Brexit come in? The fishing industry played a fairly major role in the Brexit campaign - and was central to one of the weirdest moments in the build up to the referendum, when Nigel Farage and Bob Geldof engaged in a sort of nautical battle on the Thames. The industry became a symbol of dissatisfaction with the EU, an illustration of the "take back control" narrative of the Leave campaign. It was a tangible example that people could point to - the UK would literally be reasserting control over its waters by exiting the unpopular Common Fisheries Policy. The 2017 election had an impact too, when the Scottish Conservatives swiped a series of coastal seats from the SNP - prising Moray away from the SNP's then deputy leader Angus Robertson, and overturning an enormous majority in Banff and Buchan. The 13 Scottish Conservative seats won at Westminster election helped keep Theresa May in Downing Street (albeit with a crutch in the form of the DUP). But this has become a double-edged sword for Mrs May when it comes to selling her Brexit deal, as it has magnified the influence of members who represent fish-heavy constituencies. The Scottish Conservative MPs wrote to Mrs May making clear that they could only support her deal if it protects the fishing industry and guarantees a speedy exit from the CFP, and Mr Mundell has threatened to quit (although it's fair to say that opponents have questioned his sincerity). Mrs May has managed to keep these concerns largely at bay, for now, by kicking the can down the road to future negotiations. But the topic continues to rear its head constantly. During her latest Brexit statement in the Commons, the prime minister discussed fishing with 11 different MPs. Only the Northern Irish backstop rears its heads as often when it comes to gripes about her draft deal. Do we eat the fish we catch? The symbolic value of fishing in the Brexit debate is chiefly about the catching of fish, given the ongoing row over whose boats will get to go where (and how much they'll be allowed to catch). But just as important as the catching of fish is the selling of it. For an example, let's look at the battered (or breaded) heart of the iconic British fish supper, cod and haddock. These fish only make up a small slice of the UK catch - 5% is cod, 7% is haddock. And the majority of the stuff actually eaten here is actually imported - 83% of the cod consumed in the UK is shipped in from abroad, alongside 58% of the haddock. What the UK fleet actually catches a lot of is herring - and 93% of it is exported, mostly to Norway and the Netherlands, where people have much more of a taste for it. So, while the most regularly-cited issues are quotas and access, future trading arrangements are also going to be a big deal when it comes to fish. Basically, even if Mrs May's deal makes it through the Commons, we won't have heard the last of fishing.

मत्स्य उद्योग ने खुद को ब्रेक्सिट और प्रधान मंत्री के मसौदा सौदे पर बहस के केंद्र में पाया है। लेकिन एक क्षेत्र जो यूके की अर्थव्यवस्था का लगभग 0.1% हिस्सा है, वह इतना बड़ा मुद्दा कैसे बन गया?


Coronavirus: How will launderettes come out in the wash?

Summary: Launderettes have been at the heart of communities for decades but despite being deemed an essential service during the coronavirus lockdown, many owners say their businesses are suffering. What does the future hold for them?

By Samantha JaggerBBC News From the outside, they look a bit like a waiting room - the occupants gazing quietly at the machines as their clothes whirl round. Photographer James Wise has always been drawn to the charm of their interiors and facades, photographing the people who own them and the people who use them in towns across Lancashire. When the lockdown was announced, the 33-year-old continued to document those near his home in Chorley. "I find launderettes fascinating. They are preserved anomalies - a time capsule. High street shops are so sterile and are geared towards not offending anyone, whereas launderettes are full of character. "I still use the machines and feel nostalgic about my childhood, as I have so many memories from them. Pre-coronavirus, I remember them being bustling with people. "Now there is a nervous apprehension from people not wanting to get close to each other. It's a solemn mood - there is just a hum of the machines." The Washtub on Moor Road features heavily in James' photographic series, which he posts on his Instagram account. Owner Imtiaz Master, who has been in the business for 12 years, said his shop has been "significantly impacted" due to the outbreak. The 32-year-old said he is worried about the future of his business. "We've seen a 90% reduction in a lot of the elderly customers who come in on a weekly basis. If this continues with the amount of customers I'm receiving, I may have to shut as I won't be able to afford my bills for electric, gas and water." The Washbowl Launderette on Pall Mall has been in operation since 1960 and its owners span three generations of the same family. Taryn Baker left a job in London to take over the business last year. "I grew up with the business being part of family life," said the 31-year-old. "During school holidays, it was a treat to travel around Lancashire with my grandparents to check on the machines and staff." Taryn said she "remains hopeful" about the future and is working on updating her business strategy to move forward. "There is no doubt that Covid-19 has financially impacted our business with our turnover dropping substantially." The landscape is similar at launderettes across England. Derek Read inherited Swift Launderette from his father, who opened in Kings Heath, Birmingham, in 1950. "I grew up in launderettes and I remember when it was normal to have to queue to use a machine. For many years, they were the social hub of many communities, with much gossip and many scandals being discussed. "We chat to our regular elderly customers as much as possible as many are lonely due to the social isolation," the 63-year-old added. Derek has seen dry cleaning turnover drop to "almost zero" and is unsure what the future holds. "I suspect many in this industry will find it impossible to continue if the lockdown continues much longer." You might also be interested in: How are coastal resorts faring during lockdown? 'They were fighting for a pack of chicken breasts' The effect of lockdown on Little America Mark Gillows quit his job at a rugby club to open four shops in Wiltshire and Bath in 2004. "My first memory of launderettes was the warmth from the big old tumble driers hitting me - like when you step out of an aeroplane in Barbados," said the 48-year-old. "It has become quite trendy to want to own one. They are community-based and this can be a lifeline to people who use the launderette facility to not only do their laundry, but to socialise too." The impact on the Bath branches have been "dramatic", but "not by all means grave". In fact, Mark remains "hugely optimistic" for the industry. "The word cleaning has taken on even greater meaning now, as people come to terms with living in a society where it has become even more essential." James, who has struck up friendships with some of the launderette owners, hopes to show his photographs at an exhibition in July at The Tap in Manchester. "I would be so upset if [the launderettes] had to close. The owners are in a precarious position and their livelihoods are at stake. "Launderettes are some of the last shops left in the world with personality." Photographs by James Wise and Lauren Potts.

लॉन्डेरेट्स दशकों से समुदायों के दिल में रहे हैं, लेकिन कोरोनावायरस लॉकडाउन के दौरान एक आवश्यक सेवा माने जाने के बावजूद, कई मालिकों का कहना है कि उनके व्यवसायों को नुकसान हो रहा है। उनके लिए भविष्य क्या है?


Is the NHS going to blow a gasket?

Summary: Too often we think of NHS services in isolation.

Nick TriggleHealth correspondent Take the current debate over A&E. The focus has been on what is happening in these units rather than how it fits in with the entire system. But in many ways the NHS is like an engine. It is made up of many different parts. If a problem develops in one area, it is likely to have an impact on the whole. Each part either has to work harder to keep the car moving or if the strain becomes to much it breaks down. The problems being encountered in A&E are proof of that. Visits have risen by 50% in England in a decade and this winter A&E departments have started spluttering. But to get a full picture of what is happening you need to look at the whole system. Rises in demand are being seen everywhere in England. GP consultations are up by a third since the mid 1990s. Some of this workload has been passed on to hospitals with referrals for non-emergency care at one point during the 2000s rising by 15% a year. This in turn has prompted increasing restrictions being placed on referral processes in recent years. Nonetheless, the number of routine operations carried out by hospitals, such as knee and hip replacements, has still jumped by 60% since the mid 1990s. Rationing There are signs the GP workload has had an effect on A&E too. Amid complaints that doctors could no longer cope, they were allowed to relinquish responsibility for providing out-of-hours care in 2004. This has been taken on by agencies, but with confidence in the system low there are large numbers of patients now attending A&E who do not need emergency care. The College of Emergency Medicine estimates up to a third could be treated elsewhere. But what is causing this? The overall population has been rising, but not at such a rapid rate to explain these figures. Instead, it is the complexity of the cases that has resulted in people needing more frequent help. The ageing population has meant there are more people with multiple conditions, such as heart disease, dementia and respiratory problems. These patients need careful managing and more help. Take GP consultations. The average patient is now seen 5.5 times a year compared to less than four times in 1995. A similar pattern has emerged in hospitals. Two thirds of patients are now over the age of 65. A quarter of beds are taken up by those aged over 85 - and they spend much longer in hospital than younger patients (11 days on average compared to three for the under 65s). The rises in demand have happened at a time when the number of hospital beds has been reduced too. There are now 107,000 beds - down a third in the past 25 years. But as well as seeing demand at the front-door rise, the NHS is finding it difficult to get patients out the other end. Cuts to council budgets have meant they have had to ration social care, which affects the ability of hospitals to discharge frail and elderly patients as quickly as they should. Luxury Unsurprisingly, all this has resulted in hospitals becoming over worked. According to recommendations, hospitals should only be 85% full to allow them to cope with surges in demand and provide the flexibility to allow patients to be moved around to the most appropriate areas. An analysis last year by Dr Foster found once quiet periods, such as bank holidays and Christmas are stripped out, hospitals are running at 90% capacity. In other words, they are too full. This, of course, has an impact on the ability of A&E units to admit patients and get their treatment under way - hence the long waits that were experienced in many parts of the county this winter. It may also ultimately drive up waiting times for non-emergency operations as hospitals struggle to fit in their routine patients around the emergency cases - a point made by NHS Confederation chief executive Mike Farrar when he appeared before MPs on the Health Select Committee this week. However, the irony is that as soon as this problem has hit the headlines, the official figures have started suggesting the pressure is easing. A&E data has been improving as the weather gets milder and within the next few weeks the major units should start hitting the waiting time target again. But no-one should be fooled into thinking the issues have gone away. Whereas in recent years there has been extra money to throw at problems, that luxury is no longer available. The engine of the NHS may still be running, but under the bonnet all is not well.

अक्सर हम एन. एच. एस. सेवाओं के बारे में अलग-थलग सोचते हैं।


What are people's experiences of living in a shared home?

Summary: Landlords have warned tenants in shared houses could face eviction or rent increases because of a change to government rules. But what is it like to live with strangers? We asked three people to tell us about their experiences.

By Ian MurphyBBC news Houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) are homes where people, who are not related, sleep in separate rooms but share facilities such as kitchens or bathrooms. Previously only houses of more than three storeys and with five or more people forming at least two households had to be licensed. A new rule has been introduced that removes the three-storey threshold and applies to smaller homes. 'They cram as many people into one space' Shanice Ireland, 25, moved into her first shared house after leaving her mum's home in May. She says her landlord has "crammed" four people on to the ground floor of the end-terraced house in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire. "The upstairs is then rented out as a flat where people come and go, it is almost like a hotel," she said. "We've had builders, a family of four and tourists going to the Harry Potter experience, so you often have people getting drunk and being loud. "It has no soundproofing so when they are walking around and talking I can hear everything." Shanice says she hates living in an HMO, which costs her £800 a month, and wants to get out as soon as possible. "I haven't cooked in this place once. It's such a small kitchen with four people trying to cook, I just go to my mum's to cook. "I literally just use it to sleep in. It is a bit of a rip-off." Shanice, who works in Watford as an IT reseller, says she would leave if her landlord increased her rent. "If they were going to rent it normally as a house they would never make as much money as they do by splitting it up. "They just try and cram as many people into one space." 'Landlords forget we call these places our home' Anna Mäkinen has lived in five shared homes since she moved to England from Finland in 2013. The 26-year-old says at the worst place she stayed in Whitechapel, east London, there were seven people living in a three-bedroom house. "I was living in the living room. We had one girl living on a balcony. It had a roof and was sealed but the wind would come in. "When I moved into where I live with my boyfriend now there was still painting to be done and the floors needed to be finished. "We had to put our stuff on the balcony and it got wet." Anna, who works in HR, now lives in an HMO in east London with her boyfriend and two other women. She hopes the new legislation will mean people in shared houses have a better standard of living. "Our landlord has been overpromising for seven months to fix things that aren't working. "We had mice in the house and had to get rid of the problem on our own and with our own money. "I have tried to contact the council but we never get any help. They said it was the landlord who needed to fix it. "I understand the market is competitive but I feel like landlords have completely forgotten that we call these places our home." 'You've got these people who are almost forgotten' Liam Moyna lived in about 20 different shared houses over a 20-year period after leaving university. He says he rarely had a problem with landlords but that people he lived with could often have issues because of marriage or relationship breakdowns. "I found it was a bit of a mixed bag with anything from PHD students to people who are just out of prison," the 43-year-old added. "One person who had taken something out of context waived a hammer around during a scuffle. I decided to move out the next day. "The houses have generally all been nice and the landlords have been brilliant." Liam thinks there should be legislation to stop landlords being able to put too many people in houses. "Young single men on a low wage make up a lot of the people I found in shared houses," the IT worker says. "You've got these people who are almost forgotten, they coast along and are stuck there. "The problems come from having too many people in a house. I think they should legislate against that. The houses are just not designed for it." Liam, who bought his own house in Southampton this year, adds: "Most of the time you move because the landlord sells up. "I certainly didn't have enough money to save up for a mortgage and that is what I found with a lot of housemates. People are so often sorely missed by the system "I am one of the lucky ones."

मकान मालिकों ने चेतावनी दी है कि सरकारी नियमों में बदलाव के कारण साझा घरों में किरायेदारों को बेदखल या किराए में वृद्धि का सामना करना पड़ सकता है। लेकिन अजनबियों के साथ रहना कैसा लगता है? हमने तीन लोगों से अपने अनुभवों के बारे में बताने के लिए कहा।


Boat crash off Isles of Scilly prompts rescue of 48

Summary: Forty-eight people have been rescued from a passenger boat after it struck an object and started taking on water.

The boat, which also had two crew on board, had been on a wildlife trip when it got into trouble south of the Isles of Scilly, just after 11:30 BST. No one was injured, and all passengers were taken by RNLI lifeboat to safety on St Mary's island, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency said. The crew members remained on board to pump out the vessel. The boat has been returned to the harbour while investigations are carried out.

एक यात्री नाव के एक वस्तु से टकराने और पानी पर चढ़ने के बाद अड़तालीस लोगों को बचा लिया गया है।


Venezuela readies for key post-Chavez election

Summary: As Venezuela prepares for 14 April elections - the first presidential poll without Hugo Chavez's name on the ballot in almost two decades - the choice for voters appears as stark and as divisive as ever, the BBC's Will Grant in Caracas reports.

While he was alive, very few committed supporters of late President Hugo Chavez would ever openly criticise him. They had no time for opposition arguments about the government's control of the media and the judiciary, and rejected the idea that Venezuela was living under a dictatorship. Rather, when there were complaints they tended to be over more immediate quality-of-life issues: infrequent rubbish collections or a lack of local sporting facilities. In pro-Chavez neighbourhoods - like 23 de Enero in the capital, Caracas - such problems were easily solved with oil money. Shouting over the noise of a gleaming-new government rubbish truck as it crushes the mountains of waste outside her building, local co-operative leader Judith Vegas explains how she has enjoyed a direct line to the Chavez government for years. She shows us around a brand new baseball ground and takes us on the shiny lifts which the socialist administration installed in the crumbling 1950s housing blocs. In her state-owned apartment, Judith cannot hold back her tears when talking about Hugo Chavez. "It hurts me what's happening," she says between sobs. "I loved him and everything he did for us." For Judith, the most fitting tribute to the late socialist leader is a vote for his chosen successor, Nicolas Maduro, in next month's election. "We'll love Maduro, too. The absence of Chavez won't mean that things will stop here. No. Chavez is inside all of us." But her support for Mr Maduro isn't completely unconditional. "It's not that we don't trust him but he must follow the lines which Chavez left down to the letter so that this revolution can continue. "If he fails to do so, he will come up against the people on 14 April," she warns, before adding brightly: "But I'm sure he won't." 'Commando Hugo Chavez' Millions of like-minded Chavistas agree. Although campaigning doesn't officially get underway until 2 April, tens of thousands turned out to the National Electoral Council earlier this month to see Mr Maduro hand in his credentials as presidential candidate. The rally outside was, in all but name, an election campaign event. Unsurprisingly, Mr Chavez's image is emblazoned across all of the United Socialist Party's election propaganda. "We are trying to choose between two names for the campaign team," Nicolas Maduro told the assembled crowd. "It's between 'Commando Battle of Carabobo,'" he said to muted murmurs, "or 'Commando Hugo Chavez'!" he cried - to rapturous applause. "Approved! My election team will be called Commando Hugo Chavez!" the acting president declared. One of the Commando's main leaders is Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez. He opened the doors of his office to BBCMundo - in a rare at-length interview in the days immediately after Mr Chavez's death. He was still wearing the armband in the colours of the Venezuelan flag which all of Mr Chavez's inner circle had worn at his funeral. "Without doubt we have lost the most important leader of the 20th and 21st Century," Mr Ramirez opened by saying. "I have been his oil minister for 10 uninterrupted years. President Chavez wasn't just our boss and our leader, he was our friend." When the discussion turned to the election, Mr Ramirez was adamant about what he believed April's vote entailed. "This is a referendum to confirm the political will already expressed by the people last October (in the presidential election which Mr Chavez won by 11%) and then again in December when we won 20 of the 23 governorships in the country." And he was typically dismissive of the chances of the opposition's candidate, Henrique Capriles. "There is no way that the right wing will again govern this country. And much less, these men." 'Unique opportunity' In opposition circles, they know they face an extremely tough prospect against a man hand-picked by Mr Chavez the day before his final cancer operation. Nevertheless, Mr Capriles is showing a far more aggressive style against Mr Maduro than he did against Mr Chavez last year, resolutely refusing to call him president and referring to him instead as just "Nicolas". There is even an outside possibility of a televised debate between the candidates - something Mr Chavez never countenanced. In an interview earlier this year, before Mr Chavez's death, opposition leader Maria Corina Machado spoke of the prospects for the opposition in a post-Chavez Venezuela. "After 14 years of control of the media, resources and all the public powers, in our last electoral processes, which were not clear and fair processes, almost half the population voted against (Hugo Chavez)." "That shows that Venezuelans understand the true nature of the regime which tries to be imposed on us: a regime in which citizens are dependent on the government and are not allowed the right to disagree or dissent." This was "a wonderful, unique opportunity to produce a true transformation of our society", she added. In the country's first presidential election without Hugo Chavez's name on the ballot in almost 20 years, it seems the choice in front of Venezuelans remains as stark and as divisive as ever.

जैसा कि वेनेजुएला 14 अप्रैल के चुनावों की तैयारी कर रहा है-लगभग दो दशकों में मतपत्र पर ह्यूगो शावेज़ के नाम के बिना पहला राष्ट्रपति चुनाव-मतदाताओं के लिए पसंद हमेशा की तरह कठोर और विभाजनकारी दिखाई देता है, बीबीसी के विल ग्रांट इन कराकस की रिपोर्ट।


Type 1 diabetes: 'A simple test could have saved my son'

Summary: Peter Baldwin was 13 when he died.

By Gemma RyallBBC News He had become critically ill with undiagnosed type 1 diabetes and his body was shutting down. Six days later he lost his fight. His mother Beth believes four simple questions asked by GPs could help prevent similar deaths in future. In her own words, Beth explains why she hopes Peter's story will lead to change. I'd been watching Peter in his hospital bed all night. He was semi-awake - I was talking to him but he wasn't really responding. He kept trying to move the oxygen mask and he was just so tried. About 6am one of the nurses walked past his room and she said to me "get your head down". I said "I'm ok" but she insisted: "He's ok, get your head down." I was sat next to him and put my head down on a little pillow. I don't know what woke me up about 10 minutes later... I got a feeling. I woke with a start, looked up and he didn't look right - he looked grey. I called the nurse and said "what's going on? This doesn't look right". She came over, lifted his eyes... I don't know if she pushed the buzzer but within 30 seconds all hell broke loose. Someone said "he's really not well, talk to him" and I just started screaming "come on Peter, I'm here, mummy's here". Nurses came from everywhere, alarms were going off, doctors came in shouting for a crash team. One was doing chest compressions. They were trying to save him because he'd had a cardiac arrest. I was shouting at him all the time to wake up and telling him "mummy is here". A nurse said she would call my husband Stuart. He came as our house is only two minutes around the corner. We just watched in disbelief as a team of goodness knows how many doctors and nurses managed to restart his heart. They took him to surgery, off to try to stabilise him. We went up to the surgical department, just waiting, waiting, waiting. Just 24 hours earlier, on New Year's Day 2015, my son Peter - fun-loving, everyone's friend and so clever - had been at our home in Whitchurch, Cardiff. He had been ill with a chest infection. We'd been to see a GP and given antibiotics. But I was so worried about how ill he was that I called my parents to come over - more for reassurance, I suppose. I wanted someone to say he was ok. They took one look at him and said I should call an ambulance straight away. I started to panic. He was not breathing properly. I was very scared. A first responder arrived at our house and one of the first things he did after giving Peter oxygen was prick Peter's finger for a blood test. Within 30 seconds of coming he had diagnosed him as having type 1 diabetes - a condition where the body doesn't produce enough insulin. I was told he was in a DKA - diabetic ketoacidosis - which is when your body starts to shut down if you haven't had insulin and it can lead to organ failure. The ambulance journey to the University Hospital of Wales didn't take long from our house and soon Peter was in critical care in the high dependency unit, hooked up to a drip and oxygen. Stuart went home at midnight to be with our eight-year-old daughter Lia. I remember saying: "Peter will be fine, come back in the morning." I had no idea how bad he was. After he had the cardiac arrest, the doctors and nurses saved him but when we were able to see him again we could tell his poor little body had been through the mill and back. He was in the intensive care unit for four days. We sat by his side the whole time but he never really came back. They said the DKA had gone too far and even though he'd been given medication, his body was already in shutdown mode and he couldn't fight it. That led to too much pressure on his organs. They did all sorts of tests and he was put on dialysis. They came to us and said there were signs of damage to the brain and the outlook didn't look good. On the day he died, it's all a bit of a blur... but they said he's not likely to make any recovery. The majority of the brain had been damaged and the machines were keeping him alive. Hearing this broke us. We played music to him and read to him. We held his hands and rubbed his feet and kissed him a million times and told him how much we loved him and that everyone was praying for him. Then at about lunchtime they said it's not really fair on him and we need to start making decisions. I don't remember much about that day other than trying to process that my child was about to die. It's something you never ever consider and to this day I can't accept or comprehend. I have to be grateful we had six days to get our heads around it almost, even though we were hoping and praying for a miracle. We had to switch the machines off and there was a last hope that he would start to breathe. But he didn't. My daughter was eight at the time and she decided she didn't want to see him with all the tubes and machines. Our family all came in - my parents, brother and sister - and said goodbye. Stuart's family all came down from Newcastle. My mum was hysterical and I was trying to say to her "I tried". I felt like I failed him and there was nothing I could do - he'd gone. My dad died when I was four and Peter was named after him. I was praying to my dad "make sure Peter's ok. Save him". Now I know my dad's looking after him. I have to believe that. It's so hard. We had to leave the hospital that night without him. My life turned completely upside down and I was heartbroken. Within 24 hours my house was full of flowers. It's lovely for people to show their support but flowers will wilt and die - I thought the money should go to charity instead. So we decided to raise money - the target was £500 and we reached that in an hour. It reached £10,000 in a week. It showed the impact Peter had had on people's lives. Diabetes UK got in touch to thank us and offered to support us. We have been working with them ever since. They have taken Peter into their hearts and shared his story as a way of helping raise awareness of the dangers of not diagnosing type 1 diabetes. I'm immensely proud and heartbroken at the same time. This is Peter's legacy. I know he would have been a really good ambassador for type 1 diabetes. The fact he's not here means we have to continue in his spirit and on his behalf. Since we started campaigning, many people and children have been in touch to say they were only diagnosed as type 1 diabetes as an emergency. That should not be happening as four simple questions can raise the alarm for GPs examining a sick child. They call it the Four Ts test: We want those questions to be mandatory for all GPs in Wales - they don't cost anything and take 30 seconds to ask. If the answers are yes to these, there's a simple and accurate test available which GPs can carry out - a finger prick test, like you have if you go to give blood. It takes less than one minute and has instant results. All GPs have finger prick monitors but not all have them on their desk. So we want working equipment they know how to use. If Peter had had that test, we would have had a head start in helping him. Peter wasn't a sickly child and the GP was correct to diagnose him as having a chest infection. But the examination stopped there without exploring if anything else was wrong, even though he was very ill. That's why Stuart and I are leading Diabetes UK's national campaign called 'Know Type 1' to raise awareness of the symptoms. We are also petitioning the Welsh assembly to ensure effective diagnosis and gave evidence to the petitions committee on Tuesday along with Diabetes UK Cymru. Just a few weeks before he died, Peter had gone on a school trip to Germany to see the Christmas markets and he'd just started going into town with his friends - he was getting his first taste of independence. He had an amazing group of friends and he used to play with them all the time, out on his bike and computer games. When he moved to Whitchurch High School he was in the school council and he used to volunteer for stuff like the anti-bullying group. He did well at school and was active in all parts of school life and really took pride in what he did. I'm angry, heartbroken, devastated and distraught that Peter's life could have been saved. It's such a small test that is readily available. That's why it's so wrong. That's why we are determined changes must be made.

पीटर बाल्डविन 13 वर्ष के थे जब उनकी मृत्यु हो गई।


Murder arrests after body found in house in Lincoln

Summary: Three men have been arrested on suspicion of murder after a body was found at a house in Lincoln.

Police were called to a property on Albany Street, off Burton Road, at about 13:00 GMT and discovered the body of a man. A cordon is in place while forensic teams work at the scene, the Lincolnshire force said. It has not released any further details and has appealed for anyone with information to contact them. More news from across Lincolnshire Follow BBC East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Send your story ideas to yorkslincs.news@bbc.co.uk.

लिंकन में एक घर में एक शव मिलने के बाद हत्या के संदेह में तीन लोगों को गिरफ्तार किया गया है।


Fossil fuels: The 'untouchable reserves'

Summary: Is the "carbon bubble" wobbling in the face of a new assault? A paper in the journal Nature has lent support to the notion that combating climate change and developing more fossil fuels are mutually contradictory.

By Roger HarrabinBBC environment analyst Its key message is that keeping global temperature rise within 2C means leaving in the ground 80% of known coal reserves, 50% of gas and 30% of oil. The University College London authors invite investors to ponder whether $670bn, the amount they say was spent last year on seeking and developing fossil fuels, is a wise use of money if we can’t burn all the fuel we’ve already found. The movement to divest from fossil fuel companies is being prompted by the small but increasingly influential NGO Carbon Tracker, which argues that investment has created a carbon bubble of fossil fuel assets that will be worthless if climate change is taken seriously. The managers of the Rockefeller fortune have heard its message and already divested from coal. The University of Glasgow’s investment fund will avoid fossil fuels altogether. NGO 350.org is gathering support for a similar campaign in the US, and Norway’s vast government pension fund is seeking to pressure companies to take their climate responsibilities more seriously. Surprisingly, the Bank of England has also chipped in. It is conducting an enquiry into the risk of an economic crash if future climate change rules render coal, oil and gas assets worthless. The findings will be interesting; even if the enquiry team are alarmed by the potential extent of stranded assets, they can hardly make their case bluntly for fear of creating a stampede. To heap on the pressure, the talks leading to the prospective climate deal in Paris in December will debate whether fossil fuels can be completely phased out by 2050. Oil firms like Shell have stated their confidence in the energy status quo that has formed the economic bedrock of modern society and helped billions out of poverty. They say they see no risk to their business model (because executives privately do not believe that politicians will keep their promises on carbon limits). And they have hopes that technology to capture and store carbon will give their products a new lease of life. But the UCL team has more bad news: carbon capture technology, they say, is too late, too expensive and too inefficient. Some commentators argue that the world should continue to develop cheap energy and take a chance that we can adapt to whatever climate change brings. And leaders of the fossil fuel asset class, worth over $4 trillion, may be currently more worried by the plummeting oil price than the embryonic divestment movement. But campaigners believe tiny pinpricks like the one from UCL can ultimately deflate what they think is a great carbon bubble. Follow Roger on Twitter @rharrabin

क्या "कार्बन बुलबुला" एक नए हमले के सामने हिल रहा है? नेचर पत्रिका में एक पेपर ने इस धारणा का समर्थन किया है कि जलवायु परिवर्तन का मुकाबला करना और अधिक जीवाश्म ईंधन विकसित करना पारस्परिक रूप से विरोधाभासी है।


Trolls and triumph: a digital battle in the Philippines

Summary: This year, an authoritarian, anti-establishment firebrand, famed for his controversial statements and uncompromising stance on law and order, won a presidential election with the help of a divisive, innovative social media campaign.

By BBC TrendingWhat's popular and why No, not Donald Trump, but President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines. During his campaign Duterte, nicknamed "The Punisher", promised harsh punishment for those suspected of using and selling illegal drugs. Dealers, he said, would be "fed to the fish in Manila Bay." (And that was not his only threat - here's a few of his most notable quotes). Many attributed his popularity to his straight talk, but something else also helped Duterte secure the presidency - social media. Maria Ressa, founder of the Filipino social news site Rappler, has investigated the machine built by the Duterte campaign. "Duterte was the only candidate who took it seriously," she says of the power of social networking. "They (his campaign) claimed it was because they had no money and social media is essentially free." That idea is backed up by the man who steered the president's strategy, former advertising executive Nic Gabunada. "When we realised we didn't have money for TV, radio, print, billboards etc, we made the decision to tap up the social media groups," Gabunada says, "How did we organise them? We reached out to them, we assigned co-ordinators." Those co-ordinators were in charge of particular geographic regions of the country and one group was devoted to Filipino workers overseas. Each group received targeted, bespoke messages, relevant to their own immediate experience. "During the campaign we had a 'message for the week'. It was really up to each group to amplify that message to their own circles and to craft how that message is best framed in their own networks," Gabunada says. With the help of those overseas workers, Gabunada was able to make the Duterte machine work 24 hours a day. "Late at night the people from abroad, the (workers) in a different time zone took over, people from Europe, people from down under, or the Middle East," he says, The campaign also rallied the help of high profile digital influencers, and using the hashtag #Du30 (a hashtag that rhymes with the president's name). The influencers were chosen for their connections to messages central to the Duterte campaign. "Some of them have very real experience of how crime has affected or destroyed their lives," says Gabunada, "like Mocha, whose father was murdered." The "Mocha" he's talking about is Mocha Uson, one of the biggest and most controversial faces in the Duterte volunteer network. She's a Filipino singer with more than four million Facebook followers. She released songs supporting the president during the campaign and her group played at Duterte rallies. "I uploaded the videos of his rallies," she tells BBC Trending. "And it is only through social media that Filipinos saw how many people actually supported him, because they didn't show that on the mainstream media." Uson put up 20 to 30 political posts a day. One photo she shared claimed to be of a Filipina who was raped and murdered - but the picture was actually taken in Brazil. She later took it down. More reporting on the Philippines from the BBC Trending team Listen to Trolls, 'the Devil', and Death on the BBC World Service Watch Manila's brutal nightshift: the photographer on the front line of Duterte's war on drugs Read No country for poor men: the human cost of the anti-drugs campaign Mocha tells BBC Trending that she's also willing to hold the government to account, but it's not totally clear Nic Gabunada sees her in the same way. "Filipinos are like that actually, as long they are able to get your message, they will work for you," he says, "I have a term for that. Arouse, organise, mobilise. That's the secret." Rappler founder Maria Ressa agrees, but says that one intriguing aspect of the Duterte campaign is that it didn't end with his election victory. "Most of the time you'd think when you win, you retire your campaign machinery, but not in this case. The campaign helped change values and perceptions in our society and we're watching it unfold in the first months of his presidency." Rappler investigated online networks of Duterte supporters and discovered that they seem to include fake news, fake accounts, bots and trolls, which Ressa thinks are being used to silence dissent. Follow BBC Trending on Facebook Join the conversation on this and other stories here. "What we're seeing on social media again is manufactured reality... They also create a very real chilling effect against normal people, against journalists (who) are the first targets," she says, "and they attack in very personal ways with death threats and rape threats. "The weaponisation of hatred I think is what you're seeing." Indeed, journalists in the Philippines critical of the Duterte campaign were subject to online intimidation. "Even at press conferences, which are televised live... journalists get immediate responses if they ask any question that challenges him," says Ressa, "and the responses are 'you should die', 'you should get raped'." Ressa says that the messages often appear to originate from pro-Duterte accounts and are then amplified through the Duterte support network in order to create a powerful wave of dissent against those that challenge the president. But the notion that fake or troll accounts are driving the president's social media machine is denied by Mocha Uson. She points to her huge numbers of fans as proof that Duterte's support is real. "On my Facebook I have 4.4 million followers and the engagement is as high as 3.6 or 3.7 million. Maybe (critics) are the ones who have these trolls or bots or fake accounts." Nic Gabunada points out that dirty tricks were not exclusive to some of the president's supporters. "It happened not just from Duterte but from other camps," he says. "You cannot expect to control all people in the social media sphere, people have been given a weapon and a medium where they can express themselves, so you should understand this is a whole volunteer movement, you cannot control everybody." Blog by Kate Lamble and Megha Mohan You can follow BBC Trending on Twitter @BBCtrending, and find us on Facebook. All our stories are at bbc.com/trending. Next story: The dad who asked for donations - even though he's well-off A row has erupted on social media in China over a father who raised money for his sick child without disclosing what some people argued were substantial assets of his own.READ MORE You can follow BBC Trending on Twitter @BBCtrending, and find us on Facebook. All our stories are at bbc.com/trending.

इस साल, अपने विवादास्पद बयानों और कानून और व्यवस्था पर असम्बद्ध रुख के लिए प्रसिद्ध एक सत्तावादी, सत्ता विरोधी फायरब्रांड ने एक विभाजनकारी, अभिनव सोशल मीडिया अभियान की मदद से राष्ट्रपति चुनाव जीता।


Death becomes you: Picking the perfect coffin

Summary: Dying is the one thing we all have in common.

By Fiona GrahamBusiness reporter, BBC News, Beaconsfield The novelist Maria Edgeworth remarked, "I've a great fancy to see my own funeral afore I die". While you may not be able to take a seat in the pews, you can still have a say in your final send-off. As anyone who has had to arrange a funeral will know, it can be a heart-wrenching process. Many bereavement counsellors believe that pre-planning your funeral can be one of the greatest gifts you can give to those that survive you And, perhaps as people act on such advice, in recent years there has been a steady rise in the numbers of personalised funerals. Fran Hall is a former funeral director who now manages the Chiltern Woodland Burial Centre, and she is hosting this year's National Coffin Exhibition. The event, "Handled with Care", organised by the British Institute of Funeral Directors, hopes to encourage people to have that difficult conversation. "We really want people to start thinking about and actually talking about their own future funeral. It's a subject we don't like to talk about in British society." Going green Although the majority of funerals are still fairly traditional, humanist and civil celebrants are becoming increasingly common. There are more than 200 natural burial grounds across the UK, and organisations such as the Natural Death Centre provide information on alternative arrangements, even DIY funerals. Environmentalism is one driving factor. Actresses Lynn Redgrave and Wendy Richards, chef Keith Floyd and Body Shop founder Anita Roddick have all chosen eco-friendly coffins. "Ten years ago it was all your stereotypical wooden coffins - now there's a whole range," says Julian Atkinson, managing director of coffin makers and distributors JC Atkinson They include a hand-made woollen coffin made by Hainsworth. Sales have been brisk, according to Mr Atkinson. "People like it because it's touchy-feely, it's warm," he says. Craig Wensley of Daisy Coffins feels the use of the term "alternative" is misleading. His company produces caskets made from banana leaf and water hyacinth. "For me, it was about offering modern products that aren't sombre, but look nice," he says. "With willow, sometimes you can see through. We wanted to be green, but we also wanted it to look nice." Newcomer Sunset Coffins has not looked back since launching last year. "Business is good," says managing director Steve Ancrum. "We've been genuinely surprised at how the public have received the product. "We think it's partly because it's British-made, but it's also because it's 100% recycled newspapers." Coffins are not the only choice. Bellacouche is a company that makes soft felt shrouds from locally sourced wool. The base is reinforced to make it rigid, so the body can be carried. "It captured the essence of her" Pamela Barton loved to paint, and made cards for family and friends. Before she passed away a few months ago after a long illness, she talked to her daughter about what she wanted. Her daughter, Anne Barber, works for Civil Ceremonies, training civil funeral celebrants. She contacted picture specialists Colourful Coffins. A few days later Pamela's granddaughter Gemma visited their offices, armed with a painting of her grandmother's of snowdrops. "We looked at it and thought 'gosh, yes, it's exactly it'. The coffin was beautiful, really. It was exactly what she wanted," says Anne Barber. "What I didn't expect was the difference it made to the funeral. What happened when the coffin turned up, the only thing I could say was it was perfect. And it really was. People would touch the coffin, they couldn't believe it wasn't wood. It captured the essence of her." "I call it my own carriage" For some people, simply decorating the coffin isn't enough. When Brian Holden takes that final trip it will be aboard the Alnwick coach of the Orient Express Northern Belle. He and his wife first travelled on the the real-life Northern Belle eight years ago, as an anniversary treat. They liked it so much they became regulars, always travelling in the same carriage. Three years ago, his wife Jean passed away. After 50 years of marriage he found himself alone. "I decided I was not going to scurry into a little hole," he says. "It was a good part of my life, we'd been married for 50 years when we first went on the journey. "I found I could still carry on and make the journey on my own." After spotting an newspaper article about a company called Crazy Coffins that makes unusual caskets, he contacted Orient Express, which agreed to provide plans for the coffin makers to work from. "The older you get, the less years you have ahead of you, and it was nice there. I thought, 'why not get to go out in an environment where you've been happy'. "I'll go out in comfort, and disappear into the fiery furnace in the Alnwick Northern Belle carriage." The company is currently building a Viking longboat and a Tardis. Complicated orders such as Mr Holden's need to be ordered in advance, but simpler designs, such as a skateboard they built for a 9-year-old boy, can be done in a few days. Plan ahead The funeral industry has been criticised for having pushed up prices in recent years The president of the British Institute of Funeral Directors, Ken Satterly, says he would always advise people to shop around. He blames the increases on rising fees. "Over the last five years there's been tremendous increases in charges for cremations, fees for minister and church, fees for doctors, fees for issuing of cremation forms ... and the cost of fuel has risen steeply." Given the expense involved, it makes sense to make provision before you go, or you could risk leaving your family struggling to pay, funeral directors say. It does not have to cost the earth - the Natural Death Centre publishes a 14-point checklist of money-saving tips. You do not need to use a funeral director, and you can even be buried in your back garden. And if you still want a bespoke coffin - do not despair. Greenfield Creations has been selling cardboard coffins direct to the public for 20 years. Will Hunnybel, whose father started the company, says he gets 50 - 60 internet enquiries a week. A plain cardboard coffin will set you back around £130, or for a few hundred pounds more you can have the design of your choice printed on it, and have it delivered to your front door.

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