The formula for Scottishness

Summary: There are five million people in Scotland. Those of voting age can have their say in the independence referendum. The 800,000 Scots in the rest of the UK cannot vote in it. But what is the essence of being Scottish?

By Jon KellyBBC News Magazine It's not about being able to tolerate the sound of bagpipes, or preferring Irn Bru to Coca-Cola, or saying "How no?" instead of "Why not?". Instead, it all comes down to where you bide - that is, live. When the referendum on Scottish independence is held in the autumn of 2014, only residents of Scotland will be eligible to vote. As a result, almost 400,000 people living north of the border but born in other parts of the UK will get to take part, while 800,000 Scots living in England, Northern Ireland and Wales will not. "Given that Scotland has a population of just five million, 800,000 is a huge number," says David McCrone, professor of sociology at the University of Edinburgh. "And that makes the emigres a very interesting kind of person." I'm one of them. I spent the first 22 years of my life in Scotland before heading to London for work and, without ever really intending to do so, settling. By any measure, my accent, vocabulary and appetite for cholesterol-rich foodstuffs still mark me out as a Scot. I think "glaikit" is a superior term to "stupid", "messages" preferable to "groceries" and "shoogly" more mellifluous than "unstable". The miserable fortunes of the Scottish international football team depress me no less than if I were following from my hometown of Dumfries. And in the event of independence, my Scottishness would gain legal expression. Under proposals by the Scottish National Party (SNP) government, the fact I was born in Edinburgh would entitle me to citizenship of a sovereign Scotland, even if I continued to remain in exile. Living abroad has not stopped one of the world's most celebrated Scots, Sir Sean Connery, from steadfastly backing the nationalist cause in his homeland. In protest at being disenfranchised, James Wallace, a 23-year-old fellow Dumfries native turned London resident, has launched a petition demanding that expat Scots in other parts of the UK be allowed to participate in the referendum. Scots ministers say this simply would not be practical. And, indeed, it's difficult to imagine how an electoral register of everyone who considered themselves a Scot might be drawn up. Who, after all, is Scottish? Those born in Scotland? People with Scottish ancestry? Anyone who is partial to Tunnock's teacakes and the music of Jimmy Shand? For James Mitchell, professor of politics at the University of Strathclyde, residency is the only logical definition of Scottishness in terms of political representation. If I want a say over Scotland's constitutional status, he believes, I should move back there. "It would be absurd to allow anyone who claimed to be Scottish a vote," Mitchell says. "By extension, it would be wrong - and perhaps more worryingly wrong - to exclude those who do not feel Scottish a vote if they lived in Scotland." Of course, being Scottish is not, for most, about taking part in elections. For some it is about family heritage. Witness the likes of Rod Stewart and Alastair Campbell - born in England, blessed with distinctly non-Caledonian accents, but, by dint of their parentage, regular tartan-wearers and staunch supporters of the Scottish football team (Campbell even plays the bagpipes). Or there is the concentration of Scottish migrant steelworkers' descendants in the town of Corby, Northamptonshire. Many speak with a Glaswegian-esque brogue, stage an annual Highland Gathering and, according to former MP Louise Mensch, buy 17 times more Irn Bru from their local branch of Asda than anywhere else in England. For this reason, Dr David Hume, a senior member of the Orange Order, said people in Northern Ireland with "Ulster Scots" backgrounds were "stakeholders" who should be given a vote in the referendum. However, on this genealogical basis, I - like many other native-born Scots - would not actually be considered all that Scottish. Of my four grandparents, two were Irish and one was the son of an Englishman. Scotland has, after all, witnessed successive waves of migration from Scandinavian countries to the north (Orkney and Shetland were earldoms under Norway until 1468), Ireland to the west and England to the south. More recent population shifts have seen the eastern European community expand, while there are now an estimated 90,000 Asian Scots. As a result, mainstream Scottish nationalism has tended to shy away from defining Scottishness in ethnic terms, says McCrone. In this respect it differs from a country like Germany, whose citizenship laws are based on the principles of jus sanguinis (right of blood). Instead, scholars trying to understand the Scots identity have focused on its symbolism. Forthcoming research co-authored by McCrone saw 1,248 Scots asked to pick two items from a list which they felt were most important to Scottish culture. Some 47% chose the landscape, 39% music and the arts and 38% the Scottish "sense of equality". The first choice might not be surprising, but is intriguing given that 75% of Scottish residents are concentrated in the largely urban central belt. I grew up in a town deep in the Lowlands. But like a plurality of my countryfolk, I'll admit to a lurch of sentimentality when footage of Glencoe or the Cuillins flashes up on, say, Countryfile. And in my cups I can be relied to bang on jingoistically about Scotland's contribution to the arts - the literature of Robert Burns, Muriel Spark and James Kelman; the music of the Jesus and Mary Chain, Belle and Sebastian and Teenage Fanclub; Scots-set films like Whisky Galore, Gregory's Girl and Trainspotting. But Scotland's iconography is composed of negative stereotypes, too - heavy drinking, violence, deprivation and heart disease, all rooted in social problems no Scot would pretend didn't exist, despite our self-image as more egalitarian than our southern neighbours. And another danger of defining Scottishness in a series of national symbols - kilts, the thistle, the Loch Ness monster and so on - is that it reduces the nation's identity to the kind of tourist kitsch sold along Edinburgh's Royal Mile. But for Glasgow writer and comedian Janey Godley, it's a point of pride that Scotland can be so easily packaged. "The main thing I love about Scottish identity is that it travels," she says. "It's not hard to figure out. The scenery, Billy Connolly, haggis... everyone recognises it straight away." Perhaps she's right that a progressive, outward-looking nation should take pride in being so easily understood by outsiders. In self-imposed exile I'll continue to identify with a land of dourness, drizzle, malt whisky and midges. But as for choosing between independence or the union, that's a decision for those I left behind. Wha's like us?

स्कॉटलैंड में पचास लाख लोग हैं। मतदान करने की उम्र के लोग स्वतंत्रता जनमत संग्रह में अपनी बात रख सकते हैं। ब्रिटेन के बाकी हिस्सों में 800,000 स्कॉट्स इसमें मतदान नहीं कर सकते हैं। लेकिन स्कॉटिश होने का सार क्या है?


Fears for Sri Lankan journalists

Summary: A prominent United States media freedom organisation has expressed concern about the Sri Lanka government decision to withdraw from its ceasefire agreement with the Tamil Tiger rebels.

In a letter written to President Rajapakse, the Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the president and members of the government to respect the vital role journalists play in an open democratic society. "Verbal, written, and physical assaults on journalists are attacks on the very fabric of a democratic society. We call on you to make sure that members of your government refrain from such acts of intimidation", the letter said. The New-York-based Committee to Protect Journalists further said they fear that when the ceasefire officially ends next week, the Sri Lankan government will seek to intimidate Sri Lankan journalists who might report critically on activities of the government or the military.

संयुक्त राज्य अमेरिका के एक प्रमुख मीडिया स्वतंत्रता संगठन ने तमिल टाइगर विद्रोहियों के साथ अपने युद्धविराम समझौते से हटने के श्रीलंका सरकार के फैसले पर चिंता व्यक्त की है।


'I risked everything to dance in Iran'

Summary: The arrest in Iran of an Instagram star who posted videos of herself dancing underscores the Islamic republic's strict rules shunning so-called Western behaviour. Here, BBC World Service women's affairs reporter Feranak Amidi describes what happened to her when she danced in Iran.

I grew up in Iran in the 1980s, in a period of difficult change for many in the country after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. These were the years when morality police were put on the streets, and when music, lipstick, nail polish and even colourful clothes were banned. It was the time of the 1980-88 Iraq-Iran war, food was rationed and blackouts were regular. But even during those dark days, I remember dancing with my friends to music on cassettes bought from illegal music "dealers". These dealers were our only window to the outside world. They provided us with the music of Iranian pop stars who had left the country after the revolution and had gone to Los Angeles. These "dealers" were responsible for introducing us to the songs of Michael Jackson and keeping us up-to-date with trends such as break-dancing and groups like Wham! At school we danced at every chance we got. Every time teachers were not around we sang and danced, even though we were aware of an unwritten rule that dancing was now banned. Driven underground Dancing itself has not been defined as a crime in Iran's penal code but the law is pretty vague. Based on Iran's constitution, committing an "indecent" act in public is a crime, so dancing in public can be interpreted as an indecent act and punished. Dancing can be performed on stage in Iran, although only by men. Using social media platforms to "spread and encourage indecency" is also a crime in Iran's penal code. In the absence of clubs and bars, parties in Iran have been the one place where people can dance and freely socialise - though such parties are technically breaking the law. These "underground" parties started immediately after the revolution and no force has ever been able to stop them. Many are family parties or weddings, but they are happening more and more in different cities so that young people can get together to drink, listen to music and dance. 'People were screaming' When I finished high school in the late 1990s, an underground rave scene was forming in Tehran. We smuggled in techno and house CDs when coming back from holidays abroad. On weekends we gathered at someone's basement or villa, played music and danced. But many of these parties were raided and most of my friends and I have been jailed at least once for attending an underground party. If a party is busted and alcohol is found, "culprits" can end up getting corporal punishment. I know many people who received up to 100 lashes after a night out. I was once at a party in Shemshak, an hour's drive from Tehran. We nicknamed it "Shibiza", after the world-famous party resort of Ibiza. The room was dark and the strobe light was the only thing that made the other dancers visible to us every few seconds. In one flash of light I saw an unfamiliar bearded face on the dancefloor, followed by another flash and an unfamiliar aggressive face. All of a sudden the lights were on. People were screaming and running around. The party was raided by the hardline Basij militias, a volunteer security force. They had batons and were smashing things. My friends and I locked ourselves in the bathroom. We could hear women screaming and crying, and men begging for forgiveness. The pandemonium went on for an hour - and then there was silence. We opened the door to find our friends sitting on the ground in silence, their faces wet with tears. The militia had taken the host outside, then 30 minutes later he returned, shouting triumphantly. "It is our lucky night," he said, "they were only after money!" The music was back on and we continued to dance until dawn. Ever-inventive Raids and arrests never stopped us from going to the next party - it just made us more creative in how to avoid the authorities. We paid off police officers, made sure cars were not parked outside the venue and kept the guest list strictly limited to friends. We used mattresses to conceal the windows to keep the music from sounding outside. We continued all this because we didn't believe what we were doing was inherently wrong. Today, young Iranians are still taking challenging social norms and breaking taboos in many ways. The social media campaign in support of arrested Instagram dancer Maedeh Hojabri is just one of them. Every once in a while there is a crackdown, but these young influencers keep coming back and new ones pop up all the time. It's the same show of defiance as we displayed partying a generation before.

ईरान में एक इंस्टाग्राम स्टार की गिरफ्तारी, जिसने खुद के नृत्य करते हुए वीडियो पोस्ट किए थे, तथाकथित पश्चिमी व्यवहार से दूर रहने के इस्लामी गणराज्य के सख्त नियमों को रेखांकित करता है। यहाँ, बीबीसी विश्व सेवा महिला मामलों की रिपोर्टर फेरानक अमीदी बताती है कि जब उसने ईरान में नृत्य किया तो उसके साथ क्या हुआ।


Saudi Arabia's al-Qaeda challenge

Summary: Saudi Arabia's continuing campaign against al-Qaeda-inspired terrorism has enjoyed considerable success. The atmosphere in the country is noticeably more relaxed than it was a few years ago when the kingdom was buffeted by several major suicide bombings.

By Gerald ButtMiddle East analyst But the arrest earlier this month of eight men accused of plotting terror attacks in Riyadh and Jeddah is proof that the campaign is not over. As one Saudi newspaper editorial put it: "Renewed vigilance is required." Of the eight men arrested in the latest sweep, two were Saudis and the other six were Yemenis. There seems little doubt that the terror plot was hatched in Yemen. It is well known that al-Qaeda supporters are exploiting the lawlessness in that country to set up bases. But even if order were to be restored to Yemen, Saudi security officials would still need to be vigilant: the war in Syria is giving impetus to al-Qaeda groups there, and energizing jihadists in Iraq. Tightening border controls is only part of the solution. Saudi officials know they also have to take steps at home to discourage their own young men from being lured into groups advocating the use of violence in the name of Islam. For since the monstrous 9/11 World Trade Centre attacks in 2001 and up to the failed plot in the kingdom earlier this month, a surprising number of Saudi nationals have been associated with terror incidents. Trouble on the borders The Saudi authorities' attempts to eliminate al-Qaeda, and thereby remove its potential attraction to the kingdom's disaffected young men, have been greatly hindered by developments beyond the country's borders. The absence of a strong central government in Yemen has given al-Qaeda, despite frequent US drone attacks, the freedom it has been looking for. Furthermore, jihadist leaders are unequivocal about their aims. Earlier this year, an Islamist website called on Muslims to "do everything possible to strengthen the jihadist front in Yemen as it serves as a source of back-up and reinforcement for operations in the Land of the Two Mosques [Saudi Arabia]." Some Muslims are heeding the call. Just last week, the Yemeni authorities arrested two Egyptians who had entered the country illegally, en route to Saudi Arabia. The Saudi government's concern is that the war in Syria and rising sectarian tension in Iraq will provide yet more recruiting and training opportunities for al-Qaeda, creating more threats to the kingdom. 'New and decent lives' The challenge, as ever, will be to convince young Saudis of the folly and danger of attaching themselves to jihadists. Many Saudis remain mystified by the apparent appeal of such groups. Writing in the daily al-Watan, columnist Yahya al-Amir wondered "why Saudi youth follow calls to jihad, fighting and seeking martyrdom more than anyone else". He concluded that changes were needed to religious education in the kingdom, making a clear distinction between Wahhabi Salafi doctrine on the one side, and that of jihadist Salafis advocating violence on the other. For example, he said, the concept of jihad was "a vital idea of value in Islam", but had been presented out of context in an absolutist way by jihadists. Saudi authorities have made some progress in re-education. As another columnist pointed out, "an enlightened attitude to the rehabilitation of those who have been duped into supporting the bigoted ideas of al-Qaeda has led to a small but significant number of captured terrorists rejecting their evil past and seeking to live new and decent lives in society." Education challenge The problem is that new potential al-Qaeda recruits are emerging each day in the form of disillusioned young Saudis with no jobs and meagre prospects of employment. One reason for this is that many job-seekers lack practical skills. Saudi Arabia's Deputy Minister of Labour Mofarrej al-Haqbani admitted in a speech last May that the education system was out of step with the demands of the market place. "We have to deliver improved standards of training and education. I have to say here that in Saudi Arabia the majority of students after high school turn to study literary and theoretical disciplines", Mr Haqbani said, rather than technical and applied ones. " "It is one of our major challenges," he added. Schemes providing financial incentives for job-seekers have so far enjoyed only limited success. The same is true of the "Nitaqat" programme that requires all businesses to employ a 30% quota of Saudi nationals. Adding to the problem is the prevailing expectation amongst Saudi youth that they should accept nothing less than a comfortable job in the civil service. So Saudi Arabia's campaign against al-Qaeda is likely to continue for some considerable time. Only a foolhardy gambler would bet on when stability will return to Yemen, Syria and Iraq - and when every young Saudi has a job.

अल-कायदा से प्रेरित आतंकवाद के खिलाफ सऊदी अरब के निरंतर अभियान को काफी सफलता मिली है। देश में माहौल कुछ साल पहले की तुलना में अधिक शांत है जब राज्य कई बड़े आत्मघाती बम विस्फोटों से प्रभावित था।


Could an ancient Greek have predicted a US-China conflict?

Summary: Not so long ago, China's rise was seen as essentially benign. A growing economy, it was thought, would go hand-in-hand with a liberalising political system. China was, to use the phrase favoured by US experts, becoming a responsible global stakeholder.

Jonathan MarcusDiplomatic correspondent@Diplo1on Twitter But today China is increasingly viewed as a threat. Indeed, many fear that rivalry between China and the US could ultimately even lead to war, a conflict with global ramifications. In America, a new model is being proposed, one that harks back to the ancient world and the work of Thucydides, the historian of the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta. Prof Graham Allison, of Harvard University's Belfer Center, is one of the US's leading scholars of international relations. His groundbreaking book - Destined For War: Can America and China Avoid Thucydides Trap? - has become required reading for many policymakers, academics and journalists. Thucydides's trap, he told me, is the dangerous dynamic that occurs when a rising power threatens to displace an established power. In the ancient Greek world, it was Athens that threatened Sparta. In the late 19th Century, Germany challenged Britain. Today a rising China is potentially challenging the United States. Having reviewed 500 years of history, Prof Allison has identified 16 examples of rising powers confronting an established power: 12 of those led to war. The rivalry between Washington and Beijing is, he says, "the defining feature of international relations today and for as far as any eye can see". So asking if the US and China can avoid Thucydides's trap is no mere academic question. The trap has fast become a major analytical prism through which to view the competition between Washington and Beijing. Of course, not everyone agrees. Prof Hu Bo for example, of Peking University's Institute of Ocean Research and one of China's foremost naval strategists, told me: "I think the balance of power doesn't support the Thucydides hypothesis." Although China's rise is remarkable, he believes its overall strength is simply not comparable with that of the US. It is only in the Western Pacific, he says, where China stands a chance of matching US capabilities. But a confrontation there might just be enough to tip these two great powers into war. Not least because China is pursuing the world's largest comprehensive naval build-up. "That's not just impressive today," says Andrew Erickson, a professor of strategy at the US Naval War College and one of the leading experts on the Chinese Navy, "that's impressive in world historical terms." Its quality is also improving significantly, with larger, more sophisticated warships whose capabilities are, in many respects, getting closer to those of comparable Western vessels. China's maritime strategy is also becoming more assertive. Though the focus of this assertiveness remains, for now, relatively close to Chinese territory, Beijing is trying to raise the costs of possible US interference in a crisis. It wants to be able to keep the United States at bay if, for example, China decided to use force against Taiwan. And the US is determined to maintain access. But growing Sino-US tensions are also a product of personalities. Chinese President Xi Jinping brings a sense of history, even of destiny, to the rivalry with Washington. Elizabeth Economy, director of Asia Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, told me that Mr Xi has been a transformative leader with "a much more expansive and ambitious sense of China's place on the global stage". She argues that the most underappreciated element of Mr Xi's ambition is "his effort to reshape norms and institutions on the global stage in ways that more closely reflect Chinese values and priorities". The US is also shifting its position. Washington has branded China, along with Russia, a revisionist power. The US military now regards China as a near-peer competitor, the benchmark against which key air and naval capabilities must be measured. But while there is a new mood in Washington, it is still very much early days in terms of setting out a new strategy towards Beijing. Some have spoken of the possibility of a second Cold War, this time between the US and China. However, unlike the 20th Century Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union, the American and Chinese economies are deeply interlinked. This gives their rivalry a new dimension: a battle for technological dominance. The giant Chinese telecommunications company Huawei is at the eye of the storm. The US is refusing to allow the company's technology to be used for key future communications networks, and is pressuring its allies to impose a similar ban. In addition to restricting the purchase of Huawei products, the US is also pursuing criminal charges against the firm and its chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou. Ms Meng, who is the daughter of Huawei's founder Ren Zhengfei, was arrested in Canada in December, at the request of the US. Washington's battle with Huawei exemplifies broader concerns about China's high-tech sector over the theft of intellectual property, illicit sales to Iran and espionage. Underlying all this is a fear that China may soon dominate key technologies on which future prosperity will depend. Economics and grand strategy are inextricably bound up in this debate, with China intent on becoming the dominant global player within the next decade. This of course will depend upon China continuing to rise. There are signs that its economy may be faltering as it clings to its authoritarian model and rejects further market reforms. What might happen if its economic progress slows? Some argue that Mr Xi might rein in his ambitions. Others fear his domestic legitimacy could be hit, encouraging him to ratchet up nationalism, leading potentially to even greater assertiveness. The rivalry between China and the United States is real and is not going away. Strategic miscalculation is a clear danger, not least because of the absence of any rule book to help to manage tensions between them. The two countries are at a strategic crossroads. Either they will find ways to accommodate each other's concerns, or they will move towards a much more confrontational relationship. This brings us back to Thucydides's trap. But Mr Allison emphasises that nothing here is fated. War between the US and China is not inevitable. His book, he told me, is about diplomacy, not destiny. Jonathan Marcus presents Analysis: Will China and America go to War? on BBC Radio 4 at 20:30 GMT on Monday 25 March and available afterwards via BBC Sounds.

कुछ समय पहले ही, चीन के उदय को अनिवार्य रूप से सौम्य के रूप में देखा गया था। यह सोचा गया था कि एक बढ़ती अर्थव्यवस्था, एक उदार राजनीतिक प्रणाली के साथ-साथ जाएगी। चीन, अमेरिकी विशेषज्ञों द्वारा समर्थित वाक्यांश का उपयोग करने के लिए, एक जिम्मेदार वैश्विक हितधारक बन गया था।


New BBC Scotland TV channel launches

Summary: The new BBC Scotland channel has broadcast for the first time.

A specially-commissioned short film featuring Scottish band Chvrches and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra opened proceedings. Chvrches' singer Lauren Mayberry was the first voice to be heard on the channel, performing the band's song Miracle accompanied by images of Scottish people, places and landscapes. The channel will feature hundreds of hours of newly-commissioned programmes. BBC Scotland Director Donalda MacKinnon predicted the new television channel would be a success over time. She told BBC Radio Scotland: "I'm certainly not fixated on a particular audience segment at this stage. "I think it would be folly to try too hard to anticipate numbers - either low or high. "What we're looking to achieve is success over time and I guess audience appreciation in Scotland." What was there to see on launch night? The first programme - a special one-off entertainment show - was presented by Iain Stirling, the Scottish comedian best known for his Love Island voiceover. "A Night At The Theatre" featured chart stars Lewis Capaldi and Nina Nesbitt, as well as comedians Elaine C Smith and Larry Dean. "Getting Hitched Asian Style", a series that goes behind the scenes with Scotland's biggest Asian wedding planners, was also on the schedule. And the channel aired "The People's News", in which Scots speak their minds on the events of the week. The channel has also broadcast the first episode of the final series of popular sitcom Still Game. All six episodes of Jack and Victor's ninth series will be going out on BBC One across the UK later in the year. The launch night also featured a one-off return for cult sketch show Burnistoun, taking a sideways looks at the world of television. The TV premiere of the Bafta Scotland-winning film Nae Pasaran, which tells how Scottish workers stood against the Chilean dictator General Pinochet and his regime, brought the first night of the new channel to a close. Where can I find the new channel? The new channel is available in High Definition (HD) via Freeview/YouView, Sky, Freesat and Virgin Media. It is also be available in standard definition (SD) on Freeview in position 9, although re-tuning is required. For Freeview customers in Scotland only, BBC Four SD has moved down the EPG to position 82. Sky and Freesat viewers without an HD-capable receiver automatically receive BBC Scotland in SD instead. What other shows will be coming on? New four-part drama Guilt is among the new channel's freshly-commissioned shows. The show is set in Edinburgh and stars Line of Duty actor Mark Bonnar. He joins Game of Thrones actor Jamie Sives as two brothers who accidentally run over and kill an old man while driving home from a wedding. Emeli Sandé's Street Symphony will follow the singer-songwriter as she travels across Scotland and selects five buskers to put on a concert with an entire orchestra. The channel will also show a raft of new documentaries such as the three-part series Yes/No - Inside The Indyref, which looks at the opposing campaigns during the tumultuous 2014 vote. In Children of the Devolution, Scottish journalist Allan Little meets families across Scotland spanning several generations to look at how their lives have been shaped by the creation of the Scottish Parliament. Also in the channel's documentary offering is Inside Central Station, a six-part series about the people behind the busiest railway station in Scotland, and The Children's Hospital - an eight-part series on the work of staff inside the Royal Aberdeen Children's Hospital. Other new dramas have also been commissioned including The Grey Area, which tells the story of three young men struggling to overcome gang violence and drugs in Edinburgh. The show was largely cast through addiction recovery groups in the city. Jess Brittain's series Clique will have its second season screened on the new channel and episodes of established Scottish drama River City will appear in the schedule on Monday nights, before being repeated on BBC One Scotland on Tuesdays. What about its news output? A nightly news hour The Nine and Question Time-style series called Debate Night head up the current affairs offering. The flagship news programme - The Nine - will report regional, national and international news from a Scottish perspective. It will be anchored by Martin Geissler and Rebecca Curran, with Laura Miller and John Beattie presenting the news hour each Friday. Weekend coverage will be a 15-minute bulletin on Saturday evenings at 19:00 followed by a 45-minute review programme presented by Fiona Stalker and Nick Sheridan. On Sundays, the 15-minute 19:00 bulletin will be presented by Lucy Whyte. On Wednesdays, there will be a 15-minute entertainment news programme The Edit, hosted by Amy Irons and David Farrell. Debate Night, presented by Stephen Jardine, will allow a studio audience to put questions to people in power in Scotland. What is the new channel's budget? The BBC's director-general Tony Hall announced in February 2017 that Scotland would get its own TV channel. In June last year, TV regulator Ofcom gave the go-ahead for the channel, which will have an initial budget of £32m. The plan is to air 50% original content and 50% repeats. Hall said he wanted the channel to reflect modern Scotland. He said: "It's a channel that will be bold, creative and ambitious, with a brand-new Scotland-edited international news programme at its heart." What's on the channel at other times? Between noon and 19:00, the channel will show BBC Two programmes alongside some political coverage (such as Scottish First Minister's Questions and Politics Scotland) and sporting and music events. On Freeview, the channel will only be available in HD between 19:00 and midnight. Will people in the rest of the UK be able to watch? Yes for some. The BBC says it will be available in both High Definition (HD) and Standard Definition (SD) via Freesat, Sky and Virgin Media. It will only be available in Scotland for Freeview and Youview viewers. The channel and its content will also be available on the BBC iPlayer.

नया बीबीसी स्कॉटलैंड चैनल पहली बार प्रसारित हुआ है।


Somerset double-decker bus crashes into ditch

Summary: Sixteen passengers on a double-decker bus have escaped serious injury after the vehicle toppled on to its side in a drainage ditch.

The number 21 Taunton service crashed shortly before 13:00 GMT on Coast Road, Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset. First Somerset said the ditch collapsed under the weight of the bus. An Avon and Somerset Police spokesman said two people suffered minor injuries and one was taken for treatment at Weston General Hospital. The other was taken to the minor injuries unit in Burnham. The spokesman said it was too early to say what happened but that an investigation would take place. The driver of the First Somerset bus was unhurt, the firm said. A spokesman said they were co-operating with police. Related Internet Links Avon and Somerset Police First in Bristol, Bath and the West

एक डबल डेकर बस में सोलह यात्री गंभीर रूप से घायल होने से बच गए हैं क्योंकि वाहन एक जल निकासी खाई में उसकी तरफ पलट गया था।


US mass shootings: How Mexico's newspapers saw the El Paso massacre

Summary: Mexico's government and media condemned as an act of "terrorism against Mexicans" the 3 August massacre in the US border city of El Paso, Texas, in which at least seven Mexican nationals were among the 20 people killed.

In editorials and commentaries, several leading Mexican media outlets and pundits squarely blamed US President Donald Trump's incendiary rhetoric against undocumented migrants and in particular Mexicans. They said his language played a part in encouraging the anti-immigrant feelings that reportedly motivated the suspect in the El Paso attack. Major Mexican dailies widely reflected the Mexican government position, expressed in a tweet that said: "We condemn this act of terrorism against the Mexican-US community and nationals from Mexico in the USA." 'This was caused by racism' Excelsior newspaper ran the print edition headline "Attack in US, terrorism against Mexicans: Ebrard", citing public statements made by Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard. It quoted Mr Ebrard as saying Mexico's Prosecutor General's Office would determine if there were sufficient grounds to seek the extradition of Patrick Crusius, the 21-year-old white male arrested for the El Paso shootings. With its story, Excelsior published a photo of a banner carried by people in the US protesting against the El Paso massacre, which read, "This was caused by racism." El Universal headlined its print edition "Mexico will accuse author of El Paso massacre of terrorism". 'Control firearms' Milenio newspaper reported that Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, in his daily news conference, had alled on the US government to control the sale of firearms. While stressing that he did not seek to interfere in the internal affairs of another nation, Mr Lopez Obrador made reference to the fact that the crisis on the Mexico-US border caused by a flood of migrants coming up from Central America through Mexican territory was a hotly debated issue in the US as it prepared for 2020 elections. "Despite the sorrow, we are not going to allow ourselves [Mexico] to be used in the [US] electoral process," the Mexican leader, who is known by the initials of his full name, AMLO, said. 'Xenophobic barbarism' As soon as it became apparent from US media reports that xenophobic and anti-immigrant sentiments might have motivated the El Paso suspect, Mexican officials and commentators condemned the anti-immigrant rhetoric used by the US president. Mexico's Foreign Ministry Undersecretary for North America, Jesus Seade, described the El Paso attack as "xenophobic barbarism". 'Openly racist' Mexican media commentators did not flinch from identifying the US leader as a propagator of anti-migrant, and anti-Mexican, feelings. In an editorial entitled "Elements for hatred", El Universal described the El Paso killings as "the biggest massacre of persons of Mexican origin in the United States". The editorial singled out the US president who, it said, "from the podium and on social media distributes a hostile discourse towards migration, towards Muslims, towards Mexicans". An editorial in Mexican left-wing daily La Jornada had already described the El Paso killings as a "massacre with Trumpist nuances". While criticising the facility with which firearms can be obtained in the US, the La Jornada editorial said the motivations behind the El Paso shooting appeared to be, "as in previous cases, openly racist and anti-immigrant, in consonance with the discourse of President Donald Trump, whose sinister resonances support (although he officially condemns the events) all the stupidity and barbarism that are shown by massacres such as that of yesterday [3 August]". Cartoon skewers US leader A cartoon published by La Jornada shows an image of Mr Trump, hands crossed, looking mournful about the "Massacre in El Paso", while behind him a clearly identifiable shadow of the US president claps and cheers. A commentary by Victor Beltri published in Excelsior also takes aim at the US leader, saying: "The tragedy in El Paso is, in reality, a crime of hatred against all Mexicans, a crime of hatred [that is the] product of the incendiary rhetoric that - initially - brought Donald Trump to the presidency of the US and which - subsequently - he has continued using to inflame the mob against his enemies". But Beltri scoffed at Mexico saying that it might seek the extradition of the El Paso shooter: "Extradition of the terrorist? Really? Trump handing over a white supremacist to Mexican justice, just when he is seeking to be re-elected?" Press comment compiled by BBC Monitoring Miami.

मेक्सिको की सरकार और मीडिया ने टेक्सास के अमेरिकी सीमावर्ती शहर एल पासो में 3 अगस्त को हुए नरसंहार की "मैक्सिकन लोगों के खिलाफ आतंकवाद" के रूप में निंदा की, जिसमें मारे गए 20 लोगों में कम से कम सात मैक्सिकन नागरिक थे।


Jersey chief minister aims to create new ministerial role

Summary: A new ministerial role could be created in Jersey's government to oversee financial services, the digital sector, competition and innovation.

Senator Ian Gorst suggested the move as he named his candidates for the 10 ministerial positions in the States. His aim for the role is to initially appoint Senator Philip Ozouf as an assistant chief minister and give him responsibility for this portfolio. Making it a permanent ministerial post would need States approval. Mr Gorst has put forward Senator Paul Routier as his other assistant chief minister with responsibility for promoting social inclusion and developing population policies. Changes to the responsibilities of each ministry are also being proposed: Voting on the changes is due to take place on Thursday.

वित्तीय सेवाओं, डिजिटल क्षेत्र, प्रतिस्पर्धा और नवाचार की देखरेख के लिए जर्सी की सरकार में एक नई मंत्री भूमिका बनाई जा सकती है।


Light of the World: Mexican church holds gathering amid sex crimes scandal

Summary: Hundreds of thousands of members of the Light of the World church have travelled to Mexico to take part in their traditional mass baptisms. The organisation is embroiled in a sex crimes scandal, with its leader Naasón Joaquín García absent from the celebrations after his arrest in the US.

Some 600,000 followers from 58 countries have descended on the city of Guadalajara, where La Luz del Mundo has its international headquarters, for their week-long "holy convocation", when leaders hold mass baptisms and a "holy supper". The fundamentalist Christian organisation was founded in 1926 by Mexican Eusebio Joaquín González, Mr García's grandfather. It claims to have 1.8 million followers in Mexico and millions more worldwide, although many religious experts question these numbers. The church describes itself as a "resurgence of the early Christian church", and their followers believe 50-year-old Mr García is an apostle of Jesus. In recent years, the organisation's influence has spread to the US, particularly in parts of California with large Hispanic populations. Women cover their heads during services and sit separately from the men. Emotions often run high during their mass events and it was not any different this year, despite Mr García's arrest in June. Mr García and three female co-defendants, who are also members of the church, are facing 26 charges including human trafficking, production of child sex abuse images and forcible rape of a minor. The alleged crimes were committed in California between 2015 and 2018. The defendants are accused of coercing underage girls into performing sex acts. According to the California Department of Justice, the girls were told that if they went against the wishes of "the apostle" they would be going against God. Mr García allegedly lectured several of his underage victims "about a king having mistresses and stated that an apostle of God can never be judged for his actions". He has pleaded not guilty, and the church denied all the charges. Critics of the church have often accused Mr García of fostering a cult of personality around him and say the group resembles a sect rather than a church. He addressed his followers in Guadalajara in a letter he wrote from his jail cell in California, AFP news agency reports. He assured them that while he awaits trial, he is fulfilling a different "divine mission": preaching to his fellow prisoners, among them people from Russia, Ukraine and Croatia. "God's plan is perfect, even though it is not always pleasant," he said in the message read out at the gathering. In Guadalajara, many followers believed in Mr García's innocence. "I'm telling you with 100% certainty: he's innocent. He's an honourable man. His heart is a precious work of God," 48-year-old Andres Riquelme, from Panama, told AFP. Elpidio Acevedo, a 60-year-old man from Mexico who was among the newly baptised, said: "The church has never doubted for a moment that God will give his answer. We know that [he] is an honourable man, an innocent man. We're waiting for God, patiently and in prayer." The judge in the case had initially set Mr García's bail at $25m (£20m) but then doubled it at a hearing in July following a request from the prosecutors. They feared his followers could be able to raise money to free him from custody, which would allow him to flee the country, according to the Los Angeles Times. He has since been denied bail altogether by a judge who argued that Mr García was not only a flight risk but also a danger to the community. All pictures subject to copyright.

लाइट ऑफ द वर्ल्ड चर्च के लाखों सदस्यों ने अपने पारंपरिक सामूहिक बपतिस्मा में भाग लेने के लिए मैक्सिको की यात्रा की है। संगठन एक यौन अपराध घोटाले में उलझा हुआ है, जिसके नेता नासोन जोकिन गार्सिया अमेरिका में उनकी गिरफ्तारी के बाद समारोह से अनुपस्थित हैं।


Assisted dying: What does the law in different countries say?

Summary: California has become the fifth US state to allow terminally ill patients to legally end their lives with a doctor's supervision. What does the law say in different states and countries when it comes to the right to die?

By Penney LewisProfessor of law, King's College London What is the difference between euthanasia, assisted suicide and assisted dying? These terms are not always used consistently. Where are these practices permitted? How did the law change in these places? Must the person be suffering? In the Netherlands, the patient's suffering must be unbearable, with no prospect of improvement. The suffering need not be related to a terminal illness and is not limited to physical suffering such as pain. It can include, for example, the prospect of loss of personal dignity or increasing personal deterioration, or the fear of suffocation. The Belgian law is similar. The patient's suffering must be constant and unbearable, resulting from a serious and incurable disorder. There is no requirement that the patient be diagnosed with a terminal illness, although additional checks are imposed if the patient is not terminally ill. In Canada, patients will qualify for assistance if they have a grievous and irremediable medical condition that causes enduring and intolerable suffering. The five US states permit assisted dying only, so the patient must be terminally ill. There is no additional requirement relating to the patient's experience of the disease or any minimum level of suffering. Which requests by patients will qualify? All of the regimes require the patient to be competent, well-informed, and to make a voluntary request. Oregon requires that the voluntariness of the request be confirmed by two witnesses. How old must the patient be? Only the Netherlands and Belgium permit euthanasia for patients under the age of 18. What additional safeguards are imposed? In the Netherlands and Belgium, a second doctor must see the patient to confirm their request is valid and their suffering unbearable. A network of doctors has been trained to undertake these consultations. In the five US states, a second doctor must see the patient to confirm they are terminally ill and their request is valid. In Oregon, Washington and Vermont, the patient must also see a mental health professional if either the attending or consulting doctor suspects they may be suffering from a psychological disorder, such as depression, causing impaired judgment. How are these cases reviewed? None of the regimes require the prior consent of a judge, as proposed in the recent Assisted Dying Bills in the UK. In the Netherlands, the doctor must report the case to the coroner, who passes it to a regional committee. If the committee finds the doctor did not follow the legal requirements, the case is referred to the prosecution service, and to the body that regulates doctors. In Belgium, the process is similar, but there is only one committee. In Oregon, the doctor must report each prescription and each death to the state health department. If the doctor fails to comply with the legal requirements, the health department refers the case to the body that regulates doctors. What is known about the frequency of euthanasia and assisted suicide? Doctors have been asked about the decisions they have made at the end of patients' lives, using an anonymous survey originally designed by Dutch researchers. These surveys have been carried out in a range of countries, including those where euthanasia and/or assisted suicide are permitted, and those where it is not. The rate of euthanasia in the Netherlands has remained fairly stable at 2.8% of all deaths (in 2010). The most recent survey of doctors in the UK was in 2007-08. The rate of euthanasia was reported to be 0.21% of all deaths, and a similar rate has been reported in France (in 2009), even though euthanasia remains illegal in both countries. In contrast, research carried out in Flanders, Belgium found the rate prior to legalisation was unclear, with separate surveys reporting rates of 0.3% of all deaths in the region (in 2001-02) and 1.1% (in 1998). The rate has risen steadily since legalisation in 2002 to 4.6% of all deaths in the most recent survey in 2013. Very low rates of assisted suicide are reported in countries that both permit and prohibit this practice. Penney Lewis is a professor of law and co-director of the Centre of Medical Law and Ethics at the Dickson Poon School of Law, King's College London.

कैलिफोर्निया पाँचवाँ अमेरिकी राज्य बन गया है जिसने गंभीर रूप से बीमार रोगियों को डॉक्टर की देखरेख में कानूनी रूप से अपना जीवन समाप्त करने की अनुमति दी है। जब मरने के अधिकार की बात आती है तो विभिन्न राज्यों और देशों में कानून क्या कहता है?


Don Black: Why he has you singing with the stars

Summary: Don Black says he's part of a disappearing species - people whose job is writing the lyrics for songs. But he's written with - and for - a huge chunk of the entertainment world from Michael Jackson to Andrew Lloyd Webber and Katie Melua. His new memoirs tell the story.

By Vincent DowdArts correspondent, BBC News The Sanest Guy in the Room tells of his colourful experiences and, with the book delivered to his publishers, Black was hoping for some downtime before hitting the publicity trail this summer. But early in May he was diagnosed with Covid-19 - not good news at the age of 81. He was taken to Chelsea and Westminster hospital in London where he spent "nine days in a windowless room with an amazing number of intravenous drips in me". It was a shock but he says not for a moment did he think he would die. "I was admitted under my legal name of Donald Blackstone and one day a nurse said I had very soft hands and what did I do? I said I was a songwriter and they could Google me as Don Black. "The medical staff were so kind and reassuring throughout. When it was time to go home 20 or 30 of them had learnt the song Born Free, which I wrote in the 1960s, and they sang it as I left and they applauded. It was an extraordinary moment." Born into a working class home in Hackney, east London, just before World War Two, Black has had a career full of extraordinary moments - though with a lot of hard work, patience and diplomacy along the way. He borrowed the book's title from journalist Mark Steyn, who used the phrase to describe the laid back amiability which distinguishes Black from more neurotic colleagues. It's the same quality which makes him a popular Sunday evening host on BBC Radio Two. One of the big stars he's worked with, who became a family friend in America, was the young Michael Jackson. "In 1974 I'd had my first big West End hit, writing the lyrics for the musical Billy which had Michael Crawford in it. It ran for three years and I was making money and my accountant said financially I ought to live abroad for a time. "So the family had 15 months in Los Angeles. My boys were teenagers and it was a big adventure. I'd had Oscar nominations and I'd won for Born Free so that opened doors. "I wrote the words for the song Ben which Michael Jackson recorded and he happened to live near us in LA. "He was 14 or 15 and very inquisitive about music of all sorts: he told me his favourite song anywhere was the Frank Loesser song Inchworm from Hans Christian Andersen. "I think at that point he was genuinely innocent: there was no evidence of angst in him. Michael was just a teenager who enjoyed coming over to the house to spend time with us and play pool. He even painted with my wife. "I have to say I was never very fond of his father Joe (who died in 2018). He had a reputation as a disciplinarian and eventually Joe Jackson said if we were to have any more contact with Michael it would be through him. So that got in the way of what had been a good friendship and we gradually parted." No account of Black's career can omit the fact that he wrote the words of songs for five James Bond movies - Thunderball, Diamonds Are Forever, The Man With The Golden Gun, Tomorrow Never Dies and The World Is Not Enough. So how did he come up with the sexy lyric for Diamonds Are Forever? "A good lyric is dictated by the music and John Barry had written a marvellous tune. Because it was for Shirley Bassey I knew the words needed to be a bit provocative and suggestive: Shirley is great when she has a touch of theatrical vulgarity about her. "So if you put all that together the lyric for once almost wrote itself. I remember Steven Spielberg saying to me he admired the word 'lustre' in the lyric because it fitted perfectly the title sequence. But there's an element of chance to these things." Black has collaborated with composers from Van Morrison and Brian May to Jule Styne and Andrew Lloyd Webber. The new book acknowledges that a lot of work sinks straight into oblivion whereas a success can live on in the public's affections for decades. Unusually he's succeeded in writing for the stage, the screen and for recording artists. He's supplied words for at least 2000 songs. But he thinks that, except in the theatre, the job of song lyricist is gradually disappearing. "It's hard to make a living as just a lyric writer and sometimes I think it's not advisable even to try. I've been lucky with the people I knew and worked with. It's a sad development in the music business that unless you perform you're unlikely to get your songs recorded - or not enough to make a career. "For decades theatre had great lyricists such as Larry Hart and Alan Lerner and Yip Harburg who helped create the American Songbook. They had such crafted elegance. But the era has gone when those songs became pop hits too. "Even in the 1960s and 70s there were great pop writers in Britain like Barry Mason and Tony Macaulay and the late Les Reed, who weren't performers. But that's now pretty well redundant as a career." The book is peppered with reminiscences of his wife of 60 years Shirley, who died in 2018. "But you can't only look back: my sons make sure I listen to contemporary stuff because what's required changes all the time." Black always has new projects in prospect. "Before coronavirus I'd started work on what I think is a great idea. We were trying out a new version of Tell Me On A Sunday, the musical Andrew Lloyd Webber wrote 40 years ago and I did the lyrics for. It was a hit in London and on Broadway." In 1979 it was a one-woman show about the romantic problems of a young Londoner living in the USA. The new version keeps the same basic era but makes the central character male and gay. "We workshopped it in a rehearsal studio with Rebecca Frecknall as director. We knew immediately it could open up resonant new areas of the story. "I'll be so delighted if we can put it together. Also we're making progress with a musical version of the film The Third Man and reworking a show from a few years back called Feather Boy. "From experience I know of course that a new musical can take forever. But I still love the work: I feel so much better when I write." The Sanest Guy in the Room - a Life in Lyrics by Don Black is out on 23 July. Follow us on Facebook or on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.

डॉन ब्लैक का कहना है कि वह एक लुप्त होती प्रजाति का हिस्सा हैं-ऐसे लोग जिनका काम गीतों के लिए गीत लिखना है। लेकिन उन्होंने माइकल जैक्सन से लेकर एंड्रयू लॉयड वेबर और केटी मेलुआ तक मनोरंजन की दुनिया के एक बड़े हिस्से के साथ-और उसके लिए लिखा है। उनके नए संस्मरण कहानी बताते हैं।


Why would North Korea powerbroker fall?

Summary: Reports from South Korea (ROK) suggest that Chang Song-thaek, a senior and long-standing influential figure close to the North Korean leadership, may have been removed from his position as vice-chairman of the country's National Defence Commission.

By Dr John Swenson-WrightChatham House If true, this development may indicate that Kim Jong-un, the 29-year-old relatively inexperienced North Korean leader, may after almost two years in office be growing in confidence and seeking to assert his personal and political authority by limiting dependence on older advisers closely associated with his father, the late Kim Jong-il. For now, the evidence of Mr Chang's dismissal is largely circumstantial and based on the public statements of two South Korean legislators citing testimony provided to them and a number of South Korean journalists, by the ROK's National Intelligence Service (NIS). The NIS findings, although reportedly based on "multiple sources", are themselves an extrapolation from reports that two close advisers to Mr Chang were publicly executed in November for economic corruption-related offences. In contrast to past senior leadership changes, such as the dismissal in 2012 of Ri Yong-ho, the North's top military figure, Mr Chang's alleged change of status has not been confirmed by official North Korean sources, nor significantly have there been corroborating reports in the Chinese media. Centralised control Mr Chang's past influence has been a function of his age (67) and experience, the senior positions he has held in the military, party and state security apparatus, and his family ties to the Kim dynasty - a consequence of his longstanding marriage to Kim Kyung-hee, the sister of Kim Jong-il and aunt of the current leader. If the NIS reports are reliable (bolstered by the private assertions of at least one senior ROK analyst and former North Korean defector), then it suggests a number of interpretations. Kim Kyung-hee's influence may be declining, partly a function of her ill-health, Consequently, her ability to safeguard her husband's position may have diminished. As early as the autumn of 2010 there were suggestions that Ms Kim and her husband would function as mentors to Kim Jong-un, following his designation as his father's heir apparent, but this regency-type model of leadership now appears to have been replaced by a much more explicitly centralised system of control in which the new leader is seeking to emphasise his monopoly of power. While Mr Chang has fallen out of favour in the past, having temporarily disappeared from public life between 2004 and 2006, arguably for overly ostentatious financial displays, his removal this time is likely to be permanent. Power base Mr Chang has often been viewed as an economic reformer and there is a possibility that his dismissal might presage a reversal in the North's admittedly guarded and partial support for economic reform. However, Kim Jong-un has made a number of high-profile and public statements, most notably in April 2012, underlining his personal commitment to improving the economic condition of the North Korean people, and he is unlikely to retreat from this position. Mr Chang has had close ties to China, having travelled to Beijing for a high-profile visit in August of 2012. His removal may irritate policy-makers in Beijing keen to believe that they once had a potentially sympathetic ear close to Kim Jong-un. However, this is likely to have been wishful thinking and it is more likely that Chang's engagement with China reflected self-interested pragmatism rather than sympathy for the Chinese position. In the North Korean context, loyalty more than anything is the key to personal influence and survival, and it is unlikely that Mr Chang would have jeopardised his position in the past by appearing unduly pro-Chinese. His dismissal now may have reflected concerns on the part of Kim Jong-un (and those close to him) about Mr Chang's reliability or worries that he was arrogating to himself influence within North Korea's elites tantamount to establishing a rival power base challenging Mr Kim's authority. Dr John Swenson-Wright is a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Cambridge, and Senior Consulting Fellow, Asia Programme, Chatham House

दक्षिण कोरिया (आरओके) की रिपोर्टों से पता चलता है कि उत्तर कोरियाई नेतृत्व के करीबी एक वरिष्ठ और लंबे समय से प्रभावशाली व्यक्ति चांग सोंग-थैक को देश के राष्ट्रीय रक्षा आयोग के उपाध्यक्ष के रूप में उनके पद से हटा दिया गया होगा।


Who won in Canada: Pimps or prostitutes?

Summary: For most of the year, the drive to enact new laws against prostitution, such as France's recent move to increase the penalties on purchasers of sex acts, have garnered international attention. That debate was turned on its head last week, with the decision by the Canadian Supreme Court to strike down three of that nation's anti-prostitution laws.

By Anthony ZurcherEditor, Echo Chambers The court invalidated laws that make it illegal to keep a brothel, communicate in public about acts of prostitution or live off its proceeds. It has set off debate about the morality of sex work and whether the ruling will be good or bad for prostitutes. Andrew Coyne, writing for Canada's National Post, argues that the court's decision has more to do with bad law than with judicial activism. In an attempt to prevent pimps from exploiting prostitutes and keep sex work out of the public eye, legislators ended up putting the health and safety of prostitutes at greater risk. "It was not necessary, to strike at pimps, to forbid a prostitute from employing anyone at all," he writes. "It was not necessary, to protect others from nuisance, to forbid prostitutes from working in any safe locations anywhere, or having done so, to forbid any efforts to protect themselves, such as screening clients or negotiating conditions." On the other hand, two filmmakers who recently made a documentary about prostitution, Tricked, call the Canadian court's decision a "triumph for those who live off and enjoy the commercial sex industry". "Tragically, it's a time bomb for hundreds of thousands of vulnerable and exploited women, girls and boys," Jane Wells and John-Keith Wasson write. "By the end of our extensive investigation, focused on the United States, we shared a conclusion: the commercial sexual sale of someone's body is not empowering, does not offer gender equality and in most cases is a form of modern day slavery." The fact that prostitution is a risky business, writes Coyne, should not be grounds for making it illegal to practice more safely, however. "Coal mining is a risky business, which people are free to enter or not," he writes. "That doesn't mean the state is entitled to forbid mines from operating safely." At its heart, the debate is about who sex workers are and how to balance the interests of those who enter the business willingly versus those who are forced into it and exploited. "The rights of the small percentage of voluntary sex workers should not take precedence over the lives, bodies and souls of those who are forced to work in prostitution as sex slaves," write Wells and Wasson. "The takeaway here is that prostitutes are not, by and large, 'happy hookers', but victims," writes Barbara Kay in the National Post. "The politically correct refuse to judge their choice, but many prostitutes (to their credit) judge themselves. "And as victims, what they don't need is professed admiration for their alleged entrepreneurialism from those who would move heaven and earth to prevent their own daughters taking up such a life. What they do need is help to escape their bondage." Alan Shanoff of the Toronto Sun counters that foes of prostitution like to equate the business with human trafficking, but that is merely a diversion. "If we want to reduce the incidence of sex slaves and human trafficking, we need to put more resources into investigating and prosecuting those offences," he writes. "But attempting to enforce a moral code by criminalizing prostitution, or the activities surrounding it, is a waste of resources." Or is prostitution just a point on the continuum of sexual relations between women and men? (Call it the "you pay for it one way or another" view.) Christie Blatchford writes: Maybe it's because in my observation, there is so often a quid pro quo aspect to relationship sex - gorgeous young women with rich old guys, older gay men with beautiful boys, famous people with other famous people, lifeguards with lawyers - that I am hard-pressed to take offence when the transaction is merely franker. According to Tara Klage, in the Guelph Mercury, those who compare sex work to other kinds of jobs are making a fundamental mistake, however. "Sex is not the same as unclogging a toilet," she writes. "Because of the vulnerabilities of the people who get sucked into it, the world's oldest profession requires a level of scrutiny and vastly more public involvement across a spectrum of services, from law enforcement to social welfare supports. Legalization is not the answer, if for no other reason than because no man anywhere at any time should ever be permitted to view a woman - any woman regardless of choices, background or personal circumstances - as a collection of apertures available for rent." The whole debate is now back in the hands of the Canadian Parliament, which has a year to sort out how (or if) to replace the invalid laws. HuffPost Canada media critic JJ McCullough writes that an outright ban would probably run afoul of the court once more, but a decriminalise-and-regulate law is going to be difficult to pass. "It's entirely possible nothing will be done," he writes. "We may recall that several decades ago the Supreme Court asked parliament to write some new abortion laws after declaring the old ones inadequate. They're still waiting." Maybe the real winner in Canada is politics as usual.

अधिकांश वर्ष के लिए, वेश्यावृत्ति के खिलाफ नए कानूनों को लागू करने के अभियान, जैसे कि यौन कृत्यों के खरीदारों पर दंड बढ़ाने के लिए फ्रांस के हालिया कदम ने अंतर्राष्ट्रीय ध्यान आकर्षित किया है। यह बहस पिछले सप्ताह अपने सिर पर आ गई थी, कनाडा के सर्वोच्च न्यायालय द्वारा उस देश के तीन वेश्यावृत्ति विरोधी कानूनों को रद्द करने के फैसले के साथ।


Train delays: Who is responsible for running the railways?

Summary: The fact that "no-one took charge" was the cause of weeks of delays and cancellations for train passengers across England earlier in the year, according to independent regulator, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR).

But the question of who should have taken charge is not clear-cut, because no single body owns or is responsible for the whole railway system. Tracks, tunnels, bridges Network Rail is the company responsible for the British rail network's infrastructure. That includes tracks and signalling as well as tunnels, bridges and level crossings. It employs and contracts the people who maintain and repair the tracks and other infrastructure. And it is completely publically owned - its predecessor, Railtrack, was sold to the private sector in 1996 and went into administration in 2001. Rail infrastructure was renationalised the following year. It receives its money in the form of direct grants from government and from charging train operators to use the network. So that's the tracks. Running the lines Then there are the services that use those tracks. Train operating companies run services and most stations and set their own fares and timetables - to an extent. But they have to bid for slots in Network Rail's overall track timetable. And about half of all fares are regulated, meaning levels are overseen by government. Train operators are private companies which get their money from passenger fares and government subsidies. They have to pay Network Rail to use its tracks. There are 33 of these train-operating companies in Britain, of which 20 run what is known as franchised passenger services around the country, including Northern, Great Western, Scotrail and Thameslink. That means they have been awarded a contract to run a service in a particular area by governments in England, Scotland and Wales. The rest are franchised on a more local level (by Transport for London for example) or are private operators that buy slots in the timetable rather than winning contracts to run whole services. Northern Ireland's rail system is still nationalised. Trains The trains themselves - known in the business as "rolling stock" - are owned by rolling stock companies which lease the trains out to the operating companies. There are nine in operation in the UK. Government The government pays grants to Network Rail and subsidies to train operating companies. It is responsible for awarding franchises - which must also be approved by the ORR - and for stepping in if those franchises fail. It has overall responsibility for the "strategic direction" of the railway. ORR As well as approving franchises, the ORR also regulates the safety of the railway. Other governments Although the UK government awards these franchises, a number of the franchise holders are companies with links to other countries' governments. The Arriva group, for example, is run by German company Deutsche Bahn, whose majority shareholder is the German government. The c2c line from London to the east coast is run by a company owned by Italian State Railways. And Govia (which runs lines including Thameslink and Southern) is part-owned by French company Keolis, whose main shareholder is state-owned rail company SNCF. Read more from Reality Check Send us your questions Follow us on Twitter

स्वतंत्र नियामक, रेल और सड़क कार्यालय (ओ. आर. आर.) के अनुसार, तथ्य यह है कि "किसी ने कार्यभार नहीं संभाला" वर्ष की शुरुआत में पूरे इंग्लैंड में ट्रेन यात्रियों के लिए हफ्तों की देरी और रद्द होने का कारण था।


Coronavirus: Sadness for pupils who may never go back to their school

Summary: No exams, no proms, no end-of-year celebrations, school trips, sports days, shows, or discos. No farewells to friends and teachers, or signatures on shirts. No nights out to celebrate the end of exams.

By Martha BuckleyBBC News Schools will continue to provide places for the children of key workers. But for the thousands of children and young adults due to finish primary school, GCSEs, sixth-form or university this summer, the news is sinking in that they may never see some classmates again. And they will never again enter those buildings where they have spent so much of their lives. How does it feel to have a such key stage of your life come so abruptly to an end? The Year 6 pupil Tristan, 11, is a Year 6 pupil in Walthamstow, north-east London. He hasn't been to school since March 13, after developing coronavirus symptoms and having to enter isolation at home. Now he knows he might never go back to finish the year. He says: "I had no idea I wouldn't be going back to school. I'm kind of sad because I was looking forward to our school trip. We were going to do lots of outside activities with our friends. "I'm going to miss the Year 6 production, which is always really fun. "It feels unfair. The other year groups [in previous years] have all got to have their Sats and much more learning and also the disco and the parties and the camping trips." He's worried about missing his Sats - the key tests taken by pupils to gauge their progress at the end of primary school. "I'm probably not going to do very well because I won't have as much time and I won't be having lessons in school with a professional teacher. "I don't think it will be a catastrophe if we miss them altogether. It’s just irritating we had to do all the work for nothing.” More than anything, the prospect of not having the chance to say goodbye to his teachers and classmates - all heading off in September to their different secondary schools - is making him feel sad. "I would have arranged to get people's numbers but maybe I won't be able to now," he says. "I feel a bit sad I won't say goodbye to the teachers and go back to the building, but not as much as not ever seeing my friends." The Year 11 pupil Mia, from near Reading, spent what turned out to be her last day of school sitting a mock exam. She says: "We had an assembly, where we heard that school was going to close and it was going to finish at 12 but then we still had to sit there and do the exam. Then we got to take a few pictures and some people signed T-shirts but not everyone had one because they weren't prepared. "It's really sad how school ended so early because I don't think any Year 11s really got a proper last day of school. They didn't get a proper send-off like they usually would. "Half the people I've spent the last five years with I probably won't see again. It's quite sad. "It doesn't feel real, it feels like we're in a movie and something has gone wrong." The sixth-formers Seventeen-year-old Aurelia, from Leeds, was due to sit her A-Levels this summer but has just been told her sixth-form college is closing. She says: "The mood in college is quite tense at the moment as a few of the teachers are trying to take lessons as normal and teach us content we may need over the close, whilst others are just asking how we're feeling and using the lesson time to speak about the news and how the coronavirus is affecting us." Aurelia is worried about getting the grades she needs to get her university place to study medicine – but she is also sad about the events and celebrations she is going to miss. "On a personal level I was about to turn 18 on the day of my last exam, so my friends and I were going to plan a fun transition into adulthood for me, but that doesn't seem like it'll happen now," she says. Oliver, from Darlington, is in a similar position. "We don't know if we're going to be able to see each other again," he says. We don't know if we're going to be able to go into college ever again before we all go off to uni. "It could be I don't get to see some of my friends ever again and we didn't even have the chance to say goodbye properly because we didn't know this was going to happen. It was just very sudden." Some of his friends will keep in touch online but others don't have social media access. He thinks he will see some in the university holidays but not everyone. "I'd like to be able to see my friends again, just to be able to say goodbye, but I don't know if it's going to happen," he says. "We're missing 18th birthdays and all our lessons together before we all move apart. It's just a very stressful time." Majda is also facing an abrupt end to her school years in Hampstead, west London. She says: "It's definitely very upsetting because I've been in this school for seven years and this might be my last day in this school, or tomorrow might be might last day, so I might not see any of these people, or any of my teachers, ever again. And that does make me sad." The university student James, from Oxford, is a final-year maths and economics student at the University of York. He says: "Our university already has short terms so we had broken up on Friday, but none of us realised that that was the last day of university and everything would be cancelled. "None of my friends and I will be able to see one another for the foreseeable, which is jarring as I've spent three years with these people and this whole experience has abruptly come to an end.” “We're all expecting our graduation to be cancelled as well. My friends and I were planning to all come back to York the week of graduation and have a week of fun, that's looking likely to no longer happen. I think what is most stressful for us all is not just this abrupt end to university but what will happen afterwards. "We have had no information from recruiters or our university as to how the coronavirus will affect our job prospects and how to apply for things in this current climate. "I'm wondering if I'll have to do a masters instead because I don't want to waste a year of my life not being able to find work."

कोई परीक्षा नहीं, कोई प्रोम नहीं, साल के अंत में कोई समारोह नहीं, स्कूल की यात्राएं, खेल के दिन, शो या डिस्को नहीं। दोस्तों और शिक्षकों को कोई विदाई नहीं, या शर्ट पर हस्ताक्षर नहीं। परीक्षा के अंत का जश्न मनाने के लिए कोई रात नहीं।


Two people charged over woman's death in Shetland

Summary: Two people have been charged in connection with the death of a woman in Shetland.

Tracey Walker, 40, was found outside a house in the Ladies Drive area of Lerwick at 02:05 on Tuesday. She was pronounced dead at the scene. A 31-year-old man and a woman, 27, have been charged in connection with the death and are expected to appear at Lerwick Sheriff Court on Thursday. Ms Walker's family said they were still coming to terms with their loss.

शेटलैंड में एक महिला की मौत के मामले में दो लोगों पर आरोप लगाया गया है।


Man accused of Poundland stabbing appears in Oxford Crown Court

Summary: A man accused of a fatal stabbing in a Poundland store has appeared in Oxford Crown Court.

Trevor Joyce, 36, is charged with the murder of 61-year-old Justin Skrebowski in the Abingdon branch shortly after 11:20 GMT on Monday. The Abingdon man appeared over a video link from HMP Bullingdon and spoke only to confirm his name. He is due to return to the court for a plea and case management hearing on 7 March next year. Updates on this story and more from Oxfordshire Thames Valley Police said it had voluntarily referred itself to the IPCC following the stabbing.

पाउंडलैंड स्टोर में चाकू मारकर हत्या करने के आरोपी व्यक्ति को ऑक्सफोर्ड क्राउन कोर्ट में पेश किया गया है।


Doors opened on moving Victoria Line Tube near Brixton

Summary: An inquiry has been launched after the doors of a London Underground train were opened by the driver in error as it approached a red signal.

The southbound Victoria Line train was coming to rest in a tunnel outside Brixton station, south London, when the doors opened. Transport for London (TfL) said the doors were immediately closed again. It added that the driver confirmed the incident on Wednesday evening was the result of human error. A TfL spokesman said: "London Underground has launched a full investigation after a southbound 67-stock Victoria line train approaching Brixton on Wednesday evening unexpectedly opened its doors as it came to rest at a red signal. "The train was checked following the incident and no customers were affected." Services were delayed by about five minutes as a result.

लंदन अंडरग्राउंड ट्रेन के दरवाजे चालक द्वारा गलती से खोले जाने के बाद जांच शुरू की गई है क्योंकि यह लाल सिग्नल के पास पहुंची थी।


Woodhill Prison assault: Inmate charged

Summary: A man has been charged with grievous bodily harm with intent following an assault that left a prisoner with life-threatening injuries.

Andre Thompson, 47, of Maidstone Prison, Kent, was charged in relation to the incident at Woodhill Prison on 20 November. A 27-year-old man was taken to hospital after being assaulted at the prison in Milton Keynes. Mr Thompson is due to appear at Milton Keynes Magistrates' Court in June. Following the incident, Thames Valley Police said the victim was in a stable condition. Police have confirmed that the victim has now returned to Woodhill Prison. The family of the victim called for a full investigation into what happened following the incident.

एक व्यक्ति पर एक हमले के बाद इरादे से गंभीर शारीरिक नुकसान का आरोप लगाया गया है, जिसमें एक कैदी को जानलेवा चोटें आई हैं।


HMP Grampian incident: Disturbance at new prison resolved

Summary: A disturbance at the new HMP Grampian in Peterhead, which involved more than 40 inmates, has been resolved, the Scottish Prison Service has said.

The disturbance broke out at about 20:50 on Tuesday on Ellon wing, which houses short-term and remand prisoners. Specially-trained staff wearing body armour entered the accommodation block at 10:30 on Wednesday. All 41 occupants of the block involved were being dispersed to other jails. It is not known what led to the incident. Considerable damage A considerable amount of damage was believed to have been caused to the prison. There were 388 prisoners in the complex at the time. HMP Grampian opened at the beginning of March as a replacement for HMP Peterhead and HMP Aberdeen. Last month, prison officers wearing protective body armour were needed to break up trouble at the prison. No-one was injured.

स्कॉटिश जेल सेवा ने कहा है कि पीटरहेड में नए एच. एम. पी. ग्रैम्पियन में एक गड़बड़ी, जिसमें 40 से अधिक कैदी शामिल थे, का समाधान कर लिया गया है।


Syria chemical weapons allegations

Summary: The BBC has seen video and eyewitness testimony that appears to corroborate allegations of chemical weapons' use in the Syrian town of Saraqeb. So what do we know about the alleged instances of chemical weapons use in the conflict so far?

Syria's chemical weapons stocks, and the possibility that President Bashar al-Assad's government might use them, has been one of the factors that has most worried observers of the conflict. In July 2012, the Syrian government implicitly admitted what had long been suspected by experts in the field of chemical weapons proliferation - that Syria had stocks of chemical weapons. Damascus said the weapons, stored and secured by the armed forces, would never be used "inside Syria", but would be used against an external attack. In March came allegations of the use of chemical weapons in the town of Khan al-Assal in northern Syria. There have been several such alleged incidents since. As with much of the conflict in Syria, the claims have been extremely difficult to verify independently because of restrictions on journalists' movements. Khan al-Assal, 19 March 2013 Syria's state news agency Sana reported that "terrorists" had fired a rocket "containing chemical materials", killing 16 people in the Khan al-Assal area of Aleppo province. Sana published photographs of what it claimed were victims, although they appeared to show no obvious signs of exposure to chemical weapons. The official death toll rose to 31. The UK-based activist group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) put the figure of those killed at 26, including 16 soldiers. A spokesman for the rebel Higher Military Council in Aleppo, Qassim Saadeddine, said the government had carried out a chemical attack. "We were hearing reports from early this morning about a regime attack on Khan al-Assal, and we believe they fired a Scud with chemical agents," he told Reuters news agency. "Then suddenly we learned that the regime was turning these reports against us. The rebels were not behind this attack," Mr Saadeddine said. On the same day as the attack in Khan al-Assal, activists uploaded videos purporting to show victims of a bombardment in the village of al-Otaybeh near Damascus in the aftermath of an alleged bombardment using chemical weapons. The men are shown having difficulty breathing, and one of them appears to show a semi-conscious man having fluid removed from his mouth. In another video, an activist interviews a doctor about the patients' treatment. He says that in his opinion they have been exposed to an organophosphate chemical and that one of the men is being treated with atropine, an antidote for nerve agents. Opposition activists said the attack appeared to be a reprisal for gains made by rebel forces in the area a day earlier. Officials in the town of Douma said they had preserved the bodies of six alleged victims of chemical munitions in a morgue, some of them from Al-Otaybeh, Reuters reported on 12 April. A letter to Dr Sellstrom, sent on behalf of local town leaders by a leading opposition figure, said 32 people had symptoms of illness and had offered to be examined. According to the letter, the deaths occurred in Al-Otaybeh and the the village of Adra. The Local Co-Ordination Committees, a network of activists in Syria, said in its summary for 24 March that two people had been killed and "dozens" injured when Adra was shelled with "chemical phosphorus" bombs. In other media reports, activists described the symptoms of the injured as exhaustion, shortness of breath and muscle cramps. Doctors were quoted as saying they thought it likely that a poisonous gas of some variety had been used. A video circulated by the opposition Shaam News Network appears to show doctors in a makeshift hospital in the nearby town of Adra describing further symptoms: convulsions, excess saliva, narrow pupils and vomiting. "We do not know the nature of the chemical or its source," one doctor says. Patients had been washed and their clothing removed as a precaution, he adds. On 13 April, the SOHR reported that two women and two children had been killed by poisoning from "gases from bombs dropped by an aircraft on the Sheikh Maqsoud neighbourhood." Footage which later surfaced online appeared to show patients frothing at the mouth and twitching, both symptoms of exposure to nerve gas. Anthony Loyd, a journalist for the Times newspaper, said on 26 April that he had been to Sheikh Maqsoud and put the death toll at three. Another 12 people were injured, most of them contracting symptoms after contact with the initial victims, he added. Those injured in the strike itself had responded "very quickly" to treatment with atropine, he said. Shortly after midday on 29 April, the town of Saraqeb came under attack from government military positions about five miles (8km) away. A local activist filmed as the shells landed and showed the footage to the BBC's Ian Pannell. The footage cannot be verified, but it and other images gathered from the scene were taken by people who the BBC met in the town, and they appear to have been filmed on the same day from different positions. Eyewitnesses say canisters were dropped from a helicopter above the town. Eight people were admitted, apparently with similar symptoms, to Saraqeb hospital. They appear to be vomiting and have breathing problems. Videos shown to the BBC show patients with bloodshot eyes and some appear to have constricted pupils. One of the injured, Maryam Khatib, later died. Eliot Higgins, a UK-based blogger who has followed the Syrian conflict closely, has pointed out similarities on his Brown Moses blog between canisters found in Sheikh Maqsoud and in Saraqeb. Rockets with toxic agents were launched at the suburbs of the Ghouta region early on 21 August killing hundreds, Syrian opposition activists claimed. The attack took place as part of heavy government bombardment of the region surrounding Damascus, where government forces had been trying to drive out rebel forces. Activists reported casualties in areas including Irbin, Duma and Muadhamiya, in numbers much higher than in previous allegations of chemical weapons attacks. Footage uploaded to YouTube from the scene by activists showed many people being treated in makeshift hospitals. The videos showed victims, including many children, having convulsions. Others were apparently immobile and had difficulty breathing. The BBC has not been able to authenticate the footage fully, but based on additional checks made, it is believed to be genuine. UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said that if confirmed, the attacks would mark a "shocking escalation in the use of chemical weapons in Syria". A team of UN inspectors had arrived in Syria the day before, to probe earlier allegations of chemical weapons use. Syria's state-run news agency, Sana, called the reports "baseless" and an attempt to distract the inspectors. UPDATE: In September 2013, a team of UN chemical weapons inspectors delivered a report in which they confirmed that the nerve agent sarin was used in an attack on Ghouta.

बीबीसी ने वीडियो और चश्मदीद गवाहों की गवाही देखी है जो सीरियाई शहर सराकेब में रासायनिक हथियारों के उपयोग के आरोपों की पुष्टि करती प्रतीत होती है। तो अब तक के संघर्ष में रासायनिक हथियारों के उपयोग की कथित घटनाओं के बारे में हम क्या जानते हैं?


Skype: How the online chat revolution changed lives

Summary: It's been 10 years since Skype came on to the scene.

By Katia MoskvitchTechnology reporter, BBC News The internet chat service wasn't the first to allow people to make voice calls over the internet. But by allowing the public to make computer-to-computer calls free and using peer-to-peer technology - which meant that connections improved the more people who used it - it helped popularise the concept. Today Voip (voice over internet protocol) and video chats are something many of us take for granted. And Skype faces competition from a multitude of rivals, including Google Hangouts, Apple's Facetime, Blackberry's BBM, Tango and Viber. But on this anniversary it's perhaps worth reflecting on the impact the technologies can have on people's lives. Take the example of Lu Yang and Hamid Sirhan. When the London-based newlyweds decided to have a baby, Lu knew that her Chinese parents would not be able to come and visit them often. As it turned out, her mother and father were not even able to make the journey when her daughter Yasmina was first brought home. But video calls made it possible to introduce the baby to her grandma and grandpa in Beijing. "We talk to them every single evening, and it is the only way for them to see their granddaughter grow," says Yang. "They can't afford to come to London at the moment, and we can't afford to go there, either." Yang adds that she has also used the technology for much more serious pursuits. Until recently, she worked for a London-based charity that helps persecuted freelance journalists worldwide. "It's the only and unique way to get in touch with certain journalists from countries with repressive regimes, such as some former Soviet states," says Yang. "They simply can get killed if they try to get in touch with us using the phone, to discuss the stories they are working on, which are usually stories about corruption and crime." Robot doctors The facility has also been a boon for doctors. For example, Dr Maneesh Batra from Seattle Children's Hospital in the US routinely calls Kiwoko Hospital in rural Uganda to offer his expertise to local doctors. He says that using video makes it easier to explain complicated procedures than trying to do so by email or voice alone. A team of researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US is trying to take this a step further with a spin-off company, iRobot. They have developed a regulator-approved machine that glides through hospital corridors letting medics call in on patients based in other buildings. To let them do this the robot features a 15in (38cm) screen, microphone and built-in camera which connect to InTouch Health's video-conferencing system. "There's an ageing population, especially in developed countries, there's a crisis around the cost of providing healthcare and we have robotics technology - so you put all of those things together and you come out with solutions," Jeff Beck, the firm's chief operating officer, tells the BBC. Of course, older patients might feel a little less positive about the idea of their doctor "teleporting" into consultations via such machines. Split-screen photos Technology giant Microsoft bought Skype in 2011 for $8.5bn (£.5.5bn), and as you might expect, Microsoft's corporate vice-president for Skype, Mark Gillett, has his own favourite story about how the technology can "bridge people's lives together". "About a year ago I saw a couple of portraits where people had hooked up their laptops to a projector and [used the software] to bring a family together," he tells the BBC. "It was a split family in North Korea and China. They could never otherwise have been together. It was such a visual and graphic representation of the power of video to just dissolve geography." But for all its benefits, there is also a dark side to the rise of video-conferencing tech. Earlier this week an Australian military cadet was found guilty of using Skype to stream footage of himself having sex with a female colleague to a room of other students, without telling the victim of his plan. The incident has prompted the government to order a review into wider allegations of sexism in the military. There have also been numerous instances of people using such programs to persuade juveniles to strike suggestive poses and then using recordings of the footage to blackmail them into doing worse. "The fact that people can use this type of software while making themselves difficult to trace means they that it can be abused, sometimes very badly indeed," warns John Carr, secretary of the UK's Children's Charities' Coalition on Internet Safety. "It's why parents need to talk to their children about being careful about who they agree to speak to." However, he adds that on a personal level video-conferencing recently came "to the rescue" of his family. His pregnant daughter's Cambodian partner had been refused access to the UK by the immigration authorities shortly before the birth, which the parents-to-be had wanted to happen in England. As a result he was unable to be present on the big day - but a tablet computer helped him avoid being completely shut out of the event. "The iPad was running Skype within a minute of Ivy arriving, while she was still attached to the umbilical cord and resting on her smiling but exhausted mother's chest," Mr Carr recalls. "Some of the first sounds Ivy heard were of her dad speaking to her in Khmer. The battle-hardened midwives all blubbed."

स्काइप के आने को 10 साल हो चुके हैं।