Body of MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland was discovered at his home after staff failed to rouse himPolice and doctors are investigating the death of a Labour MP whose body was found at his home today.Dr Ashok Kumar, 53, had been working as normal, with major commitments as parliamentary private secretary to Hilary Benn, the environment secretary. He was also campaigning for Corus steelworkers' jobs in his Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency. His body was found after anxious staff failed to rouse him by phone and called emergency services, who broke into his home.The prime minister, Gordon Brown, led tributes to the former research scientist's 14-year Commons career, saying: "He was a tenacious campaigner for his constituents and a warm and incredibly generous...

Detectives investigating the murder of a respected human rights lawyer are looking into whether there are links between his work helping torture victims in Sudan and his killing.Abdelsalam Hassan Abdelsalam, a lawyer and intellectual who had promoted human rights in Sudan for 30 years, was found stabbed to death in his south London flat early on Saturday morning.Police sources said they are probing any connections between his death and his work promoting human rights in Sudan and helping torture victims seek redress.Abdelsalam had been the victim of repeated criminal incidents in the months before his death, including burglaries, antisocial behaviour and harassment. This apparent targeting of the lawyer, who weighed 22 stone and walked with two sticks, is also being investigated."We are...

Ministry of Defence challenges appeal court ruling that it says allows troops to sue over battlefield decisionsThe extent to which British soldiers on any military operation in any country will be able to sue the government under the human rights act will be decided by a landmark case which opened in the supreme court today before nine of the country's most senior judges.The Ministry of Defence is challenging an appeal court ruling which, it claims, will have a serious impact on commanders by allowing troops to sue even as a result of decisions made in the heat of battle.Opponents argue the ministry's fears are exaggerated and that soldiers must be protected by the act as "they are subject to UK law wherever they operate in the world".The case was triggered by the death of Private Jason...

Kate Winslet and her film director husband Sam Mendes have separated after nearly seven years of marriage, their lawyer announced today.Keith Schilling of legal firm Schillings, said: "Kate and Sam are saddened to announce that they separated earlier this year. The split is entirely amicable and is by mutual agreement. Both parties are fully committed to the future joint parenting of their children."He added: "They ask that the media respect the privacy of the family."Winslet, who won an Oscar last year for her role in The Reader, married Mendes, who won a best director Oscar in 1999 film debut, American Beauty, tied the knot in a secret ceremony in the West Indies in May 2003. Later that year Winslet gave birth to the couple's son, Joe. She has a daughter, Mia from her first marriage to...

New evidence that Double Falsehood was, as 18th-century playwright Lewis Theobald claimed, based on Bard's CardenioIt has thrills, spills, sword fights, violent sexual assault and – to modern ears – a terrible ending, but the little-known 18th century play Double Falsehood was propelled into the literary limelight today when it was claimed as a lost Shakespeare.Professor Brean Hammond of Nottingham University will publish compelling new evidence next week that the play, a romantic tragi-comedy by Lewis Theobald is – as the author always maintained it was – substantially based on a real Shakespeare play called Cardenio.Hammond has been backed in his assertion by the Shakespeare publisher Arden and there are unconfirmed rumours that the play will open at the Royal Shakespeare...

Unpopular Gordon Brown lags behind David Cameron on every question in today's surveyThe prime minister's deep unpopularity is continuing to harm Labour's election chances, according to today's Guardian/ICM poll, which shows the gap between the two main parties has grown to nine points.Voters remain unconvinced by the Conservative alternative, with 29% thinking a clear Tory victory would be best. Only 18% think Britain would be best served by a strong Labour win this spring. Both groups are outnumbered by the 44% who want a hung parliament in which the government works with smaller parties such as the Liberal Democrats.Only 38% of people who voted Labour in 2005 want to see the party win a strong majority now, while 43% would prefer a hung parliament.One explanation is that many voters,...

Jonathan Sumption QC charged sum for three-day appeal court hearing in attempt to protect MI5The government spent £80,000 hiring one of Britain's most expensive commercial lawyers in a last-ditch attempt to suppress information in the Binyam Mohamed torture case, the Guardian has learned.Figures from the Treasury solicitor's department show that Jonathan Sumption QC was hired at a rate of £500 an hour last October, in addition to two other government barristers working on the case.Sumption charged the taxpayer £80,174 plus VAT for a three-day appeal court hearing in December, billing for approximately 160 hours, or a month's full-time labour. But his attempts to protect MI5 misfired spectacularly when he privately wrote to the court asking the country's three most senior appeal judges...

Vera Baird responds to Stern report calling for less emphasis on 6% figure, saying it accurately reflects situation victims faceThe government should continue highlighting the low proportion of reported rapes that end in a successful prosecution, despite a review's claim that focusing on the 6% rate was detrimental to victims, the solicitor general, Vera Baird, said today.Baroness Stern's independent report into how rape complaints are handled called for politicians and campaigners to stop quoting the 6% figure. Stern said the way it had been used was "extremely unhelpful" and misleading, because it suggested there was little chance of attackers being found guilty in court. The fact that 58% of cases that reached court resulted in a successful prosecution was more relevant, Stern...

Unite accuses politicians of jumping on anti-strike bandwagon after PM and Lord Adonis condemn walkoutsThe political row over the looming British Airways industrial action has escalated with the Unite trade union accusing Gordon Brown of jumping on an anti-strike bandwagon when he called the walkout "unjustified and deplorable".Responding to the prime minister's attack on the three-day cabin crew walkout due to start on Saturday, the joint general secretary of Unite, Tony Woodley, said: "It's amazing, isn't it, how many people at interesting political times jump on how many bandwagons to condemn workers."Speaking on the World At One show on BBC Radio 4, Woodley also hit back at the transport secretary, Lord Adonis, over his criticism of the strike. Adonis said he "absolutely deplored" the...

Ayrshire Power starts planning process for power station which would be UK's first to use carbon capture and storageClimate activists are threatening a campaign of direct action against a new coal-fired power station that could be the UK's first to fit carbon-capture technology.Campaigners say that if the proposed 1.6GW station in Ayrshire is approved, it will be the "new Kingsnorth", a reference to E.ON's controversial coal-fired plant in Kent that sparked battles between protesters and police before E.ON finally shelved it.The warnings from Friends of the Earth Scotland, WWF Scotland and the World Development Movement came as Ayrshire Power today took the first formal step towards applying for planning permission for the new station, at Hunterston on the Firth of Clyde.The proposal has...

Iraqi Shia group's video shows captive watching television, exercising and playing with childAn Iraqi Shia group blamed for holding hostage the British IT consultant Peter Moore today denied his claims of torture and abuse and released new video footage of him apparently relaxing in captivity.The group, Asaib Ahl al-Haq, accused Moore of lying when he recounted his mistreatment to the Times and Channel 4 last week. Moore said he was beaten almost every day, hung by his arms from a door, and at one point subjected to a mock execution.The group, known in English as the League of the Righteous, said: "We deny the lies he said and assure all that we had treated him well."To confirm our position, we are showing you a video of Moore's circumstances while in custody."The 46-second video depicts...

Commander Steven Drysdale admits charge over nuclear-powered HMS Superb's collision with large rock in Red SeaA Royal Navy commander crashed a nuclear-powered submarine into a large rock in the Red Sea after misreading a number one as seven on a navigational chart, a court martial heard today.Commander Steven Drysdale, who was in charge of HMS Superb, had ordered the vessel to take a shorter route to make sure it reached a rendezvous point in time for an operation. The submarine dived to reach deeper water so that it could travel faster, the hearing at Portsmouth naval base was told.A pinnacle jutting out from the seabed was marked as being at a depth of 123 metres, but Drysdale misread it as 723. Thinking that the boat would clear the obstruction easily, the submarine was directed...

MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland was 53 and not thought to have any serious health problemsLabour MP Ashok Kumar was found dead today at his home in his Middlesbrough constituency, it was announced today.Aides called the emergency services when he failed to arrive at his office in the House of Commons this morning. Kumar, 53, was not thought to be suffering from any serious health problem and his death was described as "sudden".A former scientist, Kumar had been MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland since 1997. At the last election he had a majority of 8,000.He was parliamentary private secretary to Hilary Benn, the environment secretary.Kumar also briefed served as MP for Langbaurgh from 1991, when he won a byelection, until 1992, when he was defeated at the general...

Men's desire for women to take their husband's surname tends to trump women's interest in any alternative solutionThere's nothing wrong with a man saying that his wife should adopt his surname when they get married. While this is quite standard practice in Britain, the history of surnames is one of paternalism, discrimination, and the handling of women in a manner akin to property. Perhaps because of this, indignant feminist friends have recently forced me to defend my expressed preference for patrilinealism.Britain ratified the UN Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination of All Forms Against Women on 7 April 1986, which states in Article 5(a) that we will "take all appropriate measures to modify the social and cultural patterns of conduct with a view to achieving the elimination...

Spanish police confirm operation involving Germans, Swiss and AustriansPolice across Europe are carrying out dozens of arrests of suspected members of a Russian mafia network dedicated to extortion and violent crime in numerous countries, Spanish police confirmed today.At least 69 people have been arrested in raids that started over the weekend, with police claiming that the gang had exported the worst Russian mafia methods to numerous countries, including Britain. "These people were prepared to kill if necessary and accepted tasks of that nature," an anonymous Spanish police source told El País newspaper this morning."The operation is ongoing. There will probably be even more arrests during the day," a Spanish police spokeswoman said.Spain's special organised crime unit was in charge of...

Coroner calls for further review of standards after hearing into morphine-related deaths of Dr Howard Martin's patientsDoctors who fail to adapt to modern medicine may face tougher sanctions, after an inquest into the morphine-related deaths of three seriously ill patients of a "stubborn or conservative" GP.The County Durham coroner, Andrew Tweddle, said today he would ask for a further review of standards, which were drastically revised after the Harold Shipman murders.Recording verdicts that high doses of morphine contributed to two of the deaths involving Dr Howard Martin, Tweddle said there had been no intention to kill but the GP's well-intentioned treatment had been out of date.Martin, 75, was cleared at Teesside crown court in December 2005 of murdering Harry Gittins, 74, Frank...

Prime minister indicates future plans amid speculation election could result in minority governmentGordon Brown said today he intends to "keep going" as Labour leader even if the party loses the general election.The prime minister signalled his intention to carry on in the event of a drubbing at the polls as part of a wide-ranging interview with BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour programme this morning, in which he also admitted that allegations that he sometimes bullied his staff had been "damaging".The prime minister was put on the spot over his future plans amid growing speculation that voters could return a minority government after the general election, which is expected to take place on 6 May.Two polls at the weekend provided further evidence that the Tory lead is shrinking. YouGov in the...

Chief medical officer says physical activity is 'miracle cure' crucial for good healthThe chief medical officer today berates the nation for its slothfulness, saying that inactivity is pervasive in England and the cause – and future cause – of worsening health.If a drug existed that would improve health as drastically as taking more exercise, it would be hailed a miracle cure, says Sir Liam Donaldson in his last On the State of Public Health report before stepping down."Inactivity pervades the country. It affects more people in England than the combined total of those who smoke, misuse alcohol or are obese," says Donaldson. "Being physically active is crucial to good health. If a medication existed that had a similar effect on preventing disease, it would be hailed as a miracle...

Teenager held in connection with death of Rugby couple who died after mobility scooter set alight and fire spread to houseA second teenager was arrested today in connection with the death of an elderly couple after a blaze at their home, police said.Kath and Albert Adams, both 77, died after suffering smoke inhalation on 27 February.A mobility scooter parked outside the front door of their sheltered accommodation in Rugby, Warwickshire, was set alight and the flames spread to their house.A second fire was started at the complex on 1 March, but nobody was hurt.Warwickshire police said an 18-year-old from Rugby was arrested this morning on suspicion of manslaughter and arson with intent in connection with the two fires. He was in custody awaiting questioning by officers.A 15-year-old boy...

Aerial pictures of the path followed by Hadrian's Wall, picked out in light by torches lit from coast to coast...

ONS survey used to track inflation shines light on Britain's changing spending habitsBars of soap, lipstick and pitta bread are out; hair straighteners, garlic bread and Blu-ray disc players are in. The latest shake-up of the shopping "basket" used to measure UK inflation shines a light on Britain's changing spending habits.The Office for National Statistics announced the changes this morning, in its annual shake-up of the measure which tracks changes in the cost of living. It said Britons spend significantly more on bottles of liquid soap (which enters the list) rather than old-fashioned bars, while the market for electrical hair tongs now exceeds that for hairdryers.On the food side, the ONS has added bottles of mineral water to its list, replacing cans of fizzy drinks. Cereal bars are...

PM turns on Unite union as talks with its leadership fail to produce a breakthrough and a three-day stoppage by cabin crew looms for this weekendGordon Brown has labelled a looming British Airways cabin crew strike as "unjustified and deplorable" this morning, as the government steps up the pressure on the Unite trade union.The prime minister turned on one of the Labour party's biggest donors after conversations with the Unite leadership failed to produce a breakthrough at the weekend.Asked in an interview with BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour whether Lord Adonis, the transport secretary, was right in yesterday calling the strikes "totally unjustified", Brown said: "I agree. It is the wrong time, it is unjustified, it is deplorable, we shouldn't have a strike. It is not in the company's...

Government measures force card providers to reduce the costliest part of a debt first, saving card holders millions of pounds in interest paymentsCredit card firms will be forced to change the way they make customers pay off their debts, in a move that could save 9 million borrowers a typical £225 each a year, the government announced today.The move is part of a package of measures to tackle indebtedness unveiled this morning by the prime minister, Gordon Brown.Currently, when cardholders transfer a debt to a card provider at a low or zero rate of interest, and subsequently buy items on the card at a higher rate of interest, often around 20%, most card companies force them to pay off the cheaper debt first when they make repayments.This makes the costlier debt on the card last longer,...

• Regulator was not looking at 'big picture'• Shadow chancellor suggests US banks were taking advantage of UK systemGeorge Osborne has blasted City regulators for not spotting the accounting tricks used by Lehman Brothers to artificially inflate its balance sheet.The shadow chancellor argued this morning that the failure of the Financial Services Authority to intervene before the Wall Street giant dramatically collapsed in 2008 was proof that Britain's financial regulatory system needed a thorough shake-up. He said it was extremely disappointing that the watchdog did not spot the true scale of the problems at Lehmans.Osborne, who has already pledged to abolish the FSA if he reaches Number 11 Downing Street, also suggested that US banks and insurers may have been taking advantage of...

Live coverage as the prime minister gives an extended interview to the Radio 4 programme10.04am: Garvey asks if Sarah, Brown's wife, has changed his image.Brown says marriage has changed him.He will not allow his children to be photographed. Q: Did Sarah advise him to do the Piers Morgan interview? Garvey says seeing Brown talk about the death of his daughter was "deeply uncomfortable".Brown says he felt that the way he was being seen was being determined by a number of newspapers who were presenting an image "that was just not me".Q: But it wasn't easy to do?Brown says it was "very difficult". He explains: "These are private things." I accept that people want to know who you are ... I'm happy to answer the questions that people have ... I've got nothing to hide, nothing to be ashamed...

Baroness Stern talks about her landmark review into the handling of rape complaints. She tells the Guardian's Rachel Williams we shouldn't solely focus on conviction rates but instead give equal weight to care and support of victims - whether or not the case goes to trial.A Guardian enquiry by David Leigh reveals that more than 80 university bosses now earn more than the Prime Minister. The highest paid gets 474 thousand pounds a year. Many more make do with just over 300 thousand.When TV reports tell you that the Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvilli has been killed in another Russian invasion what do you do? The Guardian's Moscow correspondent Luke Harding jumped into action only to find it was a TV spoof.And the Guardian's Northern Editor Martin Wainwright paints us a picture of...

Peer's report chided for letting justice system off the hook after calling for greater emphasis on victim supportA misleading focus on the proportion of rape cases that result in conviction has left victims' needs neglected and stopped women coming forward, the author of a landmark government review said.The independent report by Baroness Stern was commissioned by the government last year in response to ongoing concerns over the level of rape cases resulting in convictions. But in an interview with the Guardian, Stern said that while they remained important, the conviction rate was "not the be all and end all".Stern suggested the figure of 14% – the estimated proportion of reported rapes that end in a conviction for that crime or another related offence – was "not dramatically low"...

Head of watchdog is blamed for a failure to tackle human rights abusesThe scale of in-fighting at the government's equalities watchdog is laid bare today in a cross-party report which blames its chair Trevor Phillips for a failure to tackle human rights abuses and questions its close ties to New Labour.The Equalities and Human Rights Commission's strategy is "too vague" and should be completely rewritten, the Joint Committee on Human Rights concludes.Phillips is subject to severe criticism. In evidence to the committee, one of six commissioners who resigned last year claimed to have felt intimidated by Phillips when questioning his decisions. A lobby group labelled the commission's leadership "closed", "cliquey" and "manipulative".The report is also critical of Harriet Harman, the...

Two extensive police searches have failed to trace exchange student Jonny Dorey, who left his Virginia campus with his mountain bike and backpack on 2 MarchFears are growing over a British exchange student who disappeared 12 days ago from a university in Virginia. Jonny Dorey, 22, a geography student from Guernsey, was last seen leaving the Virginia Commonwealth University campus in Richmond, US, on 2 March with his mountain bike and a backpack.He last used his mobile phone that morning, from Belle Isle, a rural area close to the campus popular with mountain bikers and walkers. Despite two extensive searches in the area, police are no further forward in tracing him or his bike.A family friend, Bob Beebe, said yesterday that his parents, Alan and Debbie, were "very distressed" but remained...

Suggestion comes as the EU's external border agency, Frontex, prepares to assume extra powersDeportation flights should carry human rights monitors to check on the safety of failed asylum seekers who have been forcibly removed, a senior EU commissioner has recommended.The suggestion comes as the EU's external border agency, Frontex, prepares to assume extra powers to charter aircraft, buy equipment and explore satellite technology to survey the union's frontiers.Research by the Warsaw-based agency on the use of drones – unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) – to patrol frontiers is being closely followed in Britain, the UK Border Agency (UKBA) has confirmed. Although the UK is not in the Schengen agreement, which removed most EU internal borders, it is closely involved with Frontex. The...

Men detained following MoD inquiry into companies allegedly receiving millions of dollars for undelivered armoured busesTwo men have been arrested following a Ministry of Defence inquiry into an alleged multimillion pound fraud in post-invasion Iraq, involving British companies headed by ex-soldiers and a former high-ranking Scotland Yard officer.One man was detained after he flew into Britain from the Far East, while a second is understood to have been arrested in London and freed on bail.The arrests, carried out by the fraud squad of the MoD's police force, follow investigations on both side of the Atlantic that were triggered by a Guardian report on fraud on the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) that was installed in Baghdad shortly after the 2003 invasion.In March 2007 the...

More than 80 university heads, generally known as vice-chancellors, now earn more than the prime ministerThe income of thousands of the most senior British academics has soared over the past decade, far outstripping growth in average lecturers' pay, according to a Guardian inquiry.More than 80 university heads, generally known as vice-chancellors, now earn more than the prime minister, and some have seen their annual earnings double or even triple in 10 years. Some got 15% or 20% pay rises last year alone, compared with a 45.7% rise over 10 years for average higher education teaching professionals.The hightest-paid VC gets £474,000, and 19 get more than £300,000, including employer pension contributions. By contrast, the prime minister, Gordon Brown, gets £197,000 plus a...

PM calls Unite chief to discuss deal to halt three-day British Airways strike, following attacks by the Tories over union linksGordon Brown has intervened personally in the British Airways industrial dispute in an attempt to avert a walkout by 12,000 cabin crew next weekend.The prime minister called the joint general secretary of the Unite trade union, Tony Woodley, to discuss potential solutions to the looming three-day walkout, according to sources close to the dispute. Brown's private communications this weekend are believed to have taken a less aggressive tone to the one used todayby the transport secretary, Lord Adonis, who launched a broadside at one of the Labour party's biggest donors.The Conservatives will this week launch a new attack on Labour's ties with the unions in an...

Attacks that killed at least 35 people was a show of force ahead of Nato summer push in and around city facing TalibanisationA series of fatal bomb attacks in Kandahar was a warning to Nato forces that the Taliban is ready to challenge a coming offensive to take control of the area, a spokesman for the militants said today.Insurgents let off a series of bombs yesterday evening in an apparent attempt to repeat their coup of June 2008 when bombers destroyed part of the city's prison, releasing hundreds of Taliban prisoners. The ministry of interior said at least 35 people were killed and 57 wounded in the latest attacks. The dead included 13 police officers and 22 civilians.A Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousef Ahmadi, said the bombings showed that the militants were still capable of carrying...

New National Trust exhibition reveals legacy of work of husband and wife studio in LiverpoolNothing could be more respectable than the devoted couple who lived at 59 Rodney Street, a smart Georgian house in one of the grandest streets in Liverpool. She ran the business, he, a buttoned-up Edwardian figure, reserved and quiet, took the pictures. Between them they created a photographic firm that proved the only place to go to for flattering portraits of plump babies, marriageable daughters, youths in uniform about to go to war, or aldermen bursting with pride in their robes.But the photograph Edward Chambré Hardman took of Margaret Hardman in her silk camisole, or the smouldering photographs she took of actors such as Robert Donat, make it clear that there was more to the relationship...

Leader brushes aside coalition talk, telling pre-election conference he believes party can lead next governmentNick Clegg, today shrugged off the idea he would play the role of kingmaker in a hung parliament, telling the Liberal Democrats' pre-election conference the party "could lead the next government" if it upped its share of the vote from one in four to one in three.Speaking over the heads of the party faithful, the leader encouraged wavering voters to vote "with your heart" and not dismiss voting Lib Dem because the electoral maths where they lived suggested the party would not win a seat outright.The Lib Dems should seek to break the two-party duopoly of Labour and the Conservatives, he said, and end the "pass the parcel" electoral system by increasing their party's share of the...

Paul Rea, 24, believed to have got lost and frozen to death on one of the coldest nights of the winter at Pas de la CasaA British man has been found dead in a ski resort after apparently getting lost on one of the coldest nights of the Andorran winter.The body of Paul Rea was discovered on Thursday afternoon covered in snow near a river close to the resort of Pas de la Casa, in the Pyrenees.Rea, 24, who was on holiday with friends, was last seen on Wednesday evening in the bar district of the resort, which lies on the French border. He is believed to have wandered off, become disorientated and frozen to death, police said.A police spokesman told the Spanish news agency Europa Press that the body was found near the entrance to the Envalira tunnel, a major road artery, and showed "no signs...

Sunderland University to introduce module on law and the legal system beyond Earth's atmosphereWould-be lawyers at a British university are taking a lesson from the Starship Enterprise and boldly going into the potential legal conundra of outer space.For the first time in a UK syllabus, a module on law and the legal system beyond Earth's atmosphere will be included as an option for students starting at Sunderland University in September."It is a fascinating topic, which many students will benefit from studying," said Viv Kinnaird, dean of the faculty of business and law.Topics already arising in the field include gaps in health and safety for potential space tourists, and damage to satellites from other objects orbiting the earth. Looking further ahead, some lawyers have raised questions...

Denise Fergus says comments that Venables and Thompson were too young to stand trial in adult court for killing were 'twisted and insensitive'James Bulger's mother has called for the children's commissioner, Dr Maggie Atkinson, to be sacked after she called for the age of criminal responsibility to be raised and said that the toddler's killers should not have stood trial because they were too young.Denise Fergus described Atkinson's comments in a newspaper interview – stating that Jon Venables and Robert Thompson should not have been prosecuted because they were too young to understand the full consequences of their actions – as "twisted and insensitive".Despite England and Wales having one of the lowest ages of criminal responsibility in the EU, the Ministry of Justice yesterday...

For four years, Officer A lived a secret life among anti-racist activists as they fought brutal battles with the police and the BNP. Here he tells of the terrifying life he led, the psychological burden it placed on him and his growing fears that the work of his unit could threaten legitimate protestAn officer from a secretive unit of the Metropolitan police has given a chilling account of how he spent years working undercover among anti-racist groups in Britain, during which he routinely engaged in violence against members of the public and uniformed police officers to maintain his cover.During his tour of duty, the man – known only as Officer A – also had sexual relations with at least two of his female targets as a way of obtaining intelligence. So convincing was he in his...