UK

Pledges made by the government regarding its carbon capture and storage plans could create over 100,000 new jobs and inject £6.5 billion a year into the UK’s economy by 2030.

The strategy, outlined by the Department of Energy and Climate Change today, claims to improve industrial growth, enhance the UK’s energy security and expects to address the issue of climate change.

Head teachers have asked the government to ban the legal drug mephedrone after the deaths of two teenagers.

The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) said the drug had the same dangers as Class A substances.

Mick Brookes, the NAHT general secretary, said: "This drug clearly has the same inherent dangers as any Class A drug and I think serious consideration should be given to banning it."

Bob Crossland from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Drug and Alcohol Action Team

Bob Crossland from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Drug and Alcohol Action Team

Parents across the UK will be allowed to ask police if people they know are sex offenders.

By March 2011, The Child Sex Offender Disclousure scheme will be rolled out across the UK.  Parents will be able to get information on anybody who has contact with their children.

It comes after the success for the scheme in four trial areas, in Warwickshire, Southampton, Stockton in Teeside and parts of Cambridgeshire.

An army dog has been given the animal equivalant of the Victoria Cross for bravery, after finding deadly roadside bombs in Afghanistan.

Treo, the eight year old black labrador is to get the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) Dickin Medal from Princess Alexandra.

He sniffed out improvised explosive devices (IDEs)  hidden by Taliban forces on two separate occasions while patrolling with his handler Sgt Dave Heyhoe.

The canine has now retired from duty as a millitary dog and is now being kept as a family pet by Sgt Heyhoe.

Many students are unaware that Gordon Brown is the leader of the Labour Party.

A poll of 1,566 students found that 33 per cent could not name Mr Brown as Labour leader, while 34 per cent could not name David Cameron as the leader of the Tories.

The survey was carried out by the student accommodation provider Unite.

Fashion designer Alexander McQueen, who committed suicide last week, died from asphyxiation according to his post-mortem.

Westminster Coroners Court heard that the designer took his life by hanging himself in a wardrobe at his London home. The hearing lasted five minutes.

His body was found last Thursday next to a note, on the eve of his mother’s funeral.

Detective Inspector Paul Armstrong told the inquest there were no suspicious circumstances.

The broadcaster Ray Gosling has been arrested on suspicion of murder after giving a mercy-killing confession

Mr Gosling, 70, is being questioned by Nottinghamshore Police over claims that he killed his former lover who was suffering from AIDS.

Police arrested the award winning broadcaster this morning, after he confessed on the BBC's Inside Out show to euthanizing the man.

During the programme Gosling explained how he and his lover made a pact to end his life if it became too painful.

A woman from Birmingham has been charged with the murder of a three-year-old girl, believed to be her daughter.

Iman Omar Yousef, 24, of Milverton Road, Erdington, is accused of the murder of Alia Ahmed Jama.

Police are investigating whether a hazardous substance was involved with the death of the three-year-old.

The body of Alia Ahmed Jama was discovered on Saturday afternoon at her home in Erdington, Birmingham.

Yousef appeared in Sutton Magistrates Court only to confirm her name, address, and date of birth.

The number of unemployed people in the UK fell by 3,000 in the three months up to December 2009.

At the end of last year unemployment stood at 2.46 million, according to the National Office of Statistics.

This is the second month in a row the wider measure of unemployment has fallen. But long-term unemployment and the number of people claiming job seeker's allowance have both risen to the highest figures since Labour came to power.

Two thirds of jurors In England Wales do not understand the law prescribed by judges in court.

The report for the Ministry of Justice, was carried out on 68,000 verdicts over a two year period.

However, the report also found that the England and Wales justice system was fair and free of racial prejudice.

The study staged simulated trials and then asked jurors whether they could recall key questions a judge had asked and the legal directions they had given.