Economy On Mend As Higher Growth Is Forecast

By Poppy Trowbridge, Business and Economics Correspondent

The UK economy is expected to have picked up sharply in the second quarter of the year, when official figures are published later.

An expected rise of around 0.6% in gross domestic product (GDP) would double the previous increase of 0.3%.

The predicted rise would be the best performance, excluding special events, since the third quarter of 2011.

Kathleen Brooks, research director at Forex.com said: "Most people in the know expect growth to expand, but there's a question mark over how strong that growth will be."

Shadow chancellor Ed Balls says the growth is "long-overdue"

It was just three months ago that it was feared the UK could enter an unprecedented triple-dip recession, however the recovery is still fragile.

Unofficial surveys published since then have suggested continued improvement, while revisions to Office for National Statistics (ONS) data revealed that the double-dip recession from 2011 to 2012 never happened.

But the revisions turned out to be double-edged, confirming that the initial recession following the financial crisis was far worse than first feared.

It meant the economy was still 3.9% below its pre-crisis peak - with the gap previously thought to be 2.6%.

The US and German economies, by contrast, have recovered to their pre-crisis levels. France is also near that point.

Officials at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have added to the ambivalence, raising their forecast for annual growth from 0.6% to 0.9%, but later issuing a gloomy analysis of the UK's prospects.

Meanwhile, the Bank of England's first significant intervention under new governor Mark Carney saw policymakers apparently taking a less rosy view of the outlook than some in the City.

In a rare note issued after this month's meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee, the Bank said: "There have been further signs that a recovery is in train, although it remains weak by historical standards and a degree of slack is expected to persist for some time."

Shadow chancellor Ed Balls said he expected the figures to show that the economy is showing "welcome and long-overdue" signs of growth.

But he warned that most ordinary families will not feel the benefit of the recovery in GDP, because of wages lagging behind inflation.

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Wonga: Archibishop Aims To End Payday Lenders

Payday lender Wonga is facing a fight for survival after the Archbishop of Canterbury insisted he wants to "compete" it out of existence.

The Most Rev Justin Welby wants to force it out of business by expanding the Church of England's credit union plans.

Mr Welby said he had delivered the message to Errol Damelin, chief executive of Wonga, one of Britain's best-known payday lenders, during a "very good conversation".

"I've met the head of Wonga and we had a very good conversation and I said to him quite bluntly 'we're not in the business of trying to legislate you out of existence, we're trying to compete you out of existence'," he told Total Politics magazine.

"He's a businessman, he took that well."

Wonga founder Errol Damelin

The Archbishop's remarks come after he launched a new credit union for clergy and church staff earlier this month at the General Synod in York.

Mr Welby, who has served on the parliamentary Banking Standards Commission, has said he plans to expand the reach of credit unions as part of a long-term campaign to boost competition in the banking sector.

There are also plans to encourage church members with relevant skills to volunteer at credit unions.

The Government announced an investment of £38m in credit unions in April to help them offer an alternative option to payday lenders.

The entire payday lending industry, worth £2bn, was referred last month for a full-blown investigation by the Competition Commission after the trading watchdog uncovered "deep-rooted" problems with the industry.

Wonga said in March that it welcomed any attempt to encourage responsible lending and that it had been "instrumental" in helping to raise industry standards.

Mr Damelin said: "The Archbishop is clearly an exceptional individual and someone who understands the power of innovation.

"There is mutual respect, some differing opinions and a meeting of minds on many big issues.

"On the competition point, we always welcome fresh approaches that give people a fuller set of alternatives to solve their financial challenges. I'm all for better consumer choice."

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Fire Control Room Overhaul 'Is Still Failing'

A project to build new fire control centres which wasted £482m of taxpayer's cash is still costing millions of pounds three years after it was scrapped, MPs say.

The previous Labour government drew-up plans in 2004 to locate 46 local fire services in nine regional centres.

But after a series of delays and problems the FiReControl plan was dropped by the coalition in 2010.

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) made £81m available to support the drive to fill the empty centres and improve existing ones.

But the new programme has already slipped by three months and projected savings are £2m less than originally predicted, the MPs' report said.

Seven of the 22 projects are running late, with two now a year behind schedule.

Four of the nine planned regional centres are still empty and the prospects of finding new tenants "do not look good", with "significant" costs remaining, said the MPs.

The large scale and high specification of the four purpose-built control centres, which are still empty, mean they are very expensive to run, said the report.

The centre at Castle Donington in the East Midlands, for example, costs £1.8m a year in rental charges, facilities management, utilities and rates, the MPs noted.

Labour MP Margaret Hodge, who chairs the committee, said: "Three years after the project was cancelled, the DCLG still hasn't decided what it is going to do with many of the specially designed, high-specification facilities and buildings which had been built.

"Four of the nine regional control centres are still empty and look likely to remain so.

"Seven of the 22 projects are reportedly running late and two have been delayed by 12 months. We are therefore sceptical that projected savings, benefits and timescales will be achieved."

A DCLG spokesman said: "This Government has taken decisive action to protect taxpayers' interests, cancelling the flawed FiReControl contract, which was over-budget, behind schedule and failed to work."

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Torrential Rain Will Bring Heatwave To An End

Britain's three-week heatwave will be brought to an end by strong and violent storms, weather forecasters have said.

Thunder, lightning and hail will last intermittently throughout Tuesday and Wednesday. Torrential rain will increase the risk of flash floods.

Sky News Weather Presenter Nazaneen Ghaffar said: "There are thundery showers this morning across Ireland, Wales and England.

"These showers will be heavy with lightning, hail at times and strong winds.

"There will be a lot of rain in a very short space of time so there is the risk of localised flooding in some of these areas."

Britain has been basking in the highest temperatures since 2006

It follows weeks of scorching temperatures, which peaked on Monday at 33.5C in London – the hottest day since July 20, 2006.

The storms will thunder over the Midlands as well as eastern, central, northern and southern parts of England, with the East Midlands, London and Kent seeing the worst of the weather.

Temperatures will dip to the high 20s and remain very humid in the South East, but the west of England, Wales and Northern Ireland will be far cooler before the rest of the country gradually follows.

The humid conditions will bring big hailstones which have already been seen in south London.

The Met Office issued a low-level alert warning of storms and torrential downpours across England, Wales and Scotland.

It said: "The public should be aware of the risk of localised disruption to travel, and more generally to summer holiday activities, due to, for example, surface water flooding."

The overall trend for the rest of the week will see the UK gradually cool down, with a continuing risk of showers and thunderstorms.

By next week the temperatures are expected to settle in the low 20s in most places.

The hot weather has taken its toll on the UK in recent weeks, with grass fires in London, mountain blazes in the Welsh valleys and forest fires in Fife, Scotland.

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Ecstasy Warning After Martha Fernback Death

A post-mortem examination will take place today on the body of a 15-year-old girl who died after taking a drug she thought was ecstasy.

Martha Fernback died following a cardiac arrest after taking what she believed was MDMA - commonly known as ecstasy - before falling ill at Hinksey Park in Oxford on Saturday.

Relatives of the teenager, who is from Oxford, described her as a "beautiful girl" whose sudden death had left them "utterly devastated".

In a statement issued via Thames Valley Police, her family said: "Our beautiful girl was taken away from us.

"She was the most extraordinary, effervescent human being and all her family and friends felt so privileged to have known her.

"We are all utterly devastated and have sought such comfort in the beautiful condolences we have received from everyone."

Officers, who are treating Martha's death as "unexplained", attended the scene and she was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital, but later died.

The results of toxicology and histology tests are not likely to be known for several weeks.

A 17-year-old boy from the Oxford area has been arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply a controlled drug in connection with the inquiry.

The death of Martha has prompted detectives to issue a warning to young people to avoid dabbling with illegal drugs such as MDMA.

Detective Inspector Brendan Murray said: "I would strongly urge young people not to take or experiment with illegal drugs such as MDMA.

"They are extremely dangerous and often contain poisons and illicit chemicals which can prove fatal."

On Facebook, a page dedicated to her memory had gained 1,300 "likes".

A message posted on the page read: "Her cause of death is under investigation. We are all devastated and in shock."

One message of condolence on the page read: "Such a special creature, such an ever-sparkling little thing."

Another poster wrote: "Martha was a beautiful young soul stolen from us for heaven."

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Royal Baby: Duchess Of Cambridge In Labour

The Duchess of Cambridge is in the early stages of labour in hospital.

Kate, who is thought to be more than a week past her due date, was taken through a side entrance of the Lindo wing at London's St Mary's Hospital just before 6am.

The Duke of Cambridge travelled with her by car from Kensington Palace, where she went into labour naturally after spending the weekend there.

The couple's spokesman said: "Things are progressing as normal."

Sky News' Royal Correspondent Paul Harrison said her condition had been described as "very well".

He said: "There's been a lot of speculation this morning since about 5.30am.

"One or two people had seen a convoy of vehicles that looked as though they had come from Kensington Palace.

"It seems it was a very orderly arrival. There were two vehicles. A Ranger Rover-type vehicle, and behind it there was an Audi vehicle.

"Prince William had said from the beginning that he wanted to be alongside his wife when she went into labour.

The 'Great Kate Wait', as it was dubbed by the press, is finally over

"The big wait begins. We don't know how long she will be in labour."

There is a strong police presence around the hospital, including two police officers who are guarding the entrance to the private wing.

Kate is being tended by a top medical team led by the Queen's former gynaecologist Marcus Setchell, who delivered the Countess of Wessex's two children.

Former Midwife Clare Byam-Cook told Sky News: "The Duke and Duchess will be as excited as any other new parents.

"I'm sure she'll be looked after to perfection.

"They'll be monitoring her very carefully to check that things are progressing well and that the baby is doing well."

The world's press have been camped outside St Mary's in Paddington for days in anticipation of the birth.

The news was confirmed in a brief statement from the palace at 7.30am after rumours the Duchess had been spotted began to spread.

Kate is thought to be more than a week past her due date

The Duke and his younger brother Prince Harry were born in the Lindo wing and the Prince and Princes of Wales famously posed on the building's steps in 1982 holding baby William.

William is known to want a daughter, while the Duchess is hoping for a son.

Betting on the name of their first-born, which will be third-in-line to the throne, has produced one favourite with a number of bookies - Alexandra.

Whatever name they go with, it is likely to set a trend for the next generation of infants.

Recent changes to the rules of succession mean that if it is a girl, she will not be leapfrogged to the throne by a younger brother.

The arrival of the royal baby will be announced with a notice behind the iron railings of Buckingham Palace.

The brief bulletin, on headed Palace notepaper, confirms the sex of the baby but usually gives little else away other than that the baby has been "safely delivered" and perhaps the weight.

When the child is born, Prince William will be on paternity leave from his job as an RAF search and rescue helicopter pilot. It is not known how long Kate intends to put her royal duties on hold.

More follows...

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PM: Child Abuse Web Searches 'Must Be Banned'

Websites will be told to block certain search terms and warn people when they try to view illegal content, as part of a crackdown on child abuse images.

David Cameron will use a major speech to tell companies they have a "moral duty" to protect youngsters.

The Prime Minister will call on websites including Google, Bing and Yahoo! to adopt a blacklist of words and phrases drawn up by the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (Ceop) within months.

He will also recommend splash screens that tell people they could lose "their job, their family, even access to their children" by viewing indecent images online.

David Cameron says internet companies have a "moral duty" to act

The pages could redirect people to the charity Stop It Now's website in an effort to help change people's behaviour.

"There are some searches which are so abhorrent and where there can be no doubt whatsoever about the sick and malevolent intent of the searcher that there should be no search results returned at all," Mr Cameron will say.

"I have a very clear message for Google, Bing, Yahoo! and the rest. You have a duty to act on this - and it is a moral duty.

"You are not separate from our society, you are part of our society, and you must play a responsible role in it.

"This is quite simply about obliterating this disgusting material from the net - and we will do whatever it takes."

The Prime Minister is expected to warn companies that "legislative options" could be used to force them to comply if they have not made progress on a blacklist before October.

Mr Cameron will also urge firms to hold hackathons - events which allow software experts to collaborate on projects - to produce results.

Pressure to prevent people accessing indecent images of children has increased following two high-profile murder trials.

Mark Bridger, who killed April Jones, and Stuart Hazell, the man convicted of Tia Sharp's murder, were both found to have accessed offensive images, including some of children.

Experts argued there was a clear link between their obsessions and their actions.

Last month, the four main UK internet service providers agreed to donate an extra £1m to the Internet Watch Foundation to help its work with Ceop.

In 2012, the Government abandoned proposals for an "opt-in" system that would have forced users to contact their internet service provider in order to gain access to adult content.

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Mosque Blasts Suspect Held Over OAP's Murder

One of two Ukrainian men being held in connection to bomb attacks near three mosques in the West Midlands has been arrested over the murder of a 75-year-old man.

West Midlands Police say the 25-year-old terror suspect was arrested in relation to "a further act of terrorism".

A police spokesman said: "This arrest is in connection with the murder of Mohammed Saleem in Small Heath, Birmingham on Monday April 29."

The stabbing death of Mr Saleem, a highly-regarded and well-known figure in the local community, was described by detectives at the time as a "despicable" attack on a defenceless pensioner.

A joint family statement read during a press conference at West Midlands Police headquarters on May 2 described Mr Saleem as "a much-loved and respected community member".

The statement read: "We can't express our feelings of sadness and devastation.

"It's hard to accept that our beloved father and grandfather has been taken from us in such a brutal way."

Debris from a device was found close to a mosque in Wolverhampton

On Saturday, counter-terrorism officers were granted extra time to question the Ukrainian nationals in connection with the explosions.

A sitting of Westminster Magistrates' Court granted officers up to seven days to question the men, who were initially detained on suspicion of being involved in the commission, preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism.

Following the men's arrest, the "seat of an explosion and debris" were found on a roundabout near the Wolverhampton Central Mosque.

Police believe the debris came from a device that exploded on the city's Fiveways roundabout at about 9.15am on June 28.

The remnants of a home-made explosive device were found outside a mosque in Walsall on Saturday June 22, and another device, containing nails, exploded near a mosque in Binfield Road, Tipton, on July 12.

No one was injured by any of the explosions.

Another device containing nails exploded near a mosque in Tipton

Speaking after police were granted further time to question the two suspects, Assistant Chief Consatble Marcus Beale said: "We continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the three explosions and are appealing to anyone who may have seen anything suspicious around these dates to contact us.

"We do not underestimate the impact this will have on communities across the West Midlands.

"The support of all communities has been fantastic with wider faith communities coming together to show solidarity.

"I would appeal to people, if you have the smallest piece of information that my help the investigation then please contact us on 101 at the earliest opportunity."

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