GSK Probed By SFO In UK Over Bribe Claims

Britain's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is investigating drugs giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) over alleged bribery, it has been confirmed.

The west London-based pharmaceutical firm, the world's sixth largest, said the SFO has opened a "formal criminal investigation".

It comes after Chinese authorities claimed GSK staff had bribed government and health officials in the country.

A company spokesperson said: "GSK is committed to operating its business to the highest ethical standards and will continue to co-operate fully with the SFO."

Shares in GSK were down more than 1.5% in mid-morning London trades.

The firm has been bruised by successive allegations about its business practices in a number of territories.

Although the most damaging investigation into its behaviour has been in China, its conduct in Iraq and Poland has also been probed by local law enforcement officials.

Chinese investigators claimed the former head of GSK's China unit, Mark Reilly, ordered his salespeople to bribe doctors and hospital officials to use the drug company's products.

Officials said it netted the firm more than £100m in "illegal revenue".

Less than two weeks ago Chinese officials said they had charged the former British boss of GSK's China business and other colleagues with corruption.

If allegations are proven, the company risks being fined under the UK Bribery Act or the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

From 2008 onwards, fines under the FCPA have been ratcheted up in value, some to nine digits.

The FCPA is designed to prevent corrupt payments to government officials, while UK anti-bribery legislation can be used in cases involving both government and non-government recipients.

The SFO investigation was launched after an inside informant made allegations against GSK.

The unit has also encouraged more people to come forward with claims of bribery against GSK, or any other firm.

A spokeswoman said: "Whistleblowers are valuable sources of information to the SFO in its cases.

"We welcome approaches from anyone with inside information on all our cases including this one - we can be contacted through our secure and confidential reporting channel, which can be accessed via the SFO website."

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Racism Poll: Almost A Third Of Brits Prejudiced

By Becky Johnson, Sky News Correspondent

Almost a third of British people admit to being racially prejudiced, according to a survey.

Researchers say it suggests people are as racist as they were 30 years ago.

The poll on British Social Attitudes found 30% of Britons describe themselves as either "very" or "a little" prejudiced against people of other races.

The findings of the attitudes survey have been described as "troubling"

Among people over the age of 55 a higher percentage of people, 36%, consider themselves to hold some prejudice, while among those aged between 17 and 34 the figure is much lower, 25%.

The survey found variation in attitudes between geographical locations.

People in the West Midlands are most likely to describe themselves as racially prejudiced, with 35% admitting to some prejudice.

In London, just 16% of people admit to prejudice against people of other races.

Dave Stokes, from Birmingham, told Sky News: "Due to all the immigration that's going on at the moment I think people are worried about losing their homes and losing their jobs... I think it does turn people against foreigners."

Teacher Jonny Ivey said: "I work in a school in a white working class area where there is very overt racism in a part of east Birmingham."

He told Sky News he would not consider himself to be racially prejudiced, but added: "the tolerant society we live in doesn't allow people to air maybe more perceived racist views they have.

"When people get an anonymous chance to have a vote they will chose maybe more right wing views."

However, Sernjeet Seera, who is British Asian, said: "I've lived here all my life and I was born and bred in Birmingham and I've never seen it personally myself, any racism.

"And I work in a multicultural school and I've never seen it there either. They all get on, they all mix and mingle together."

The study, carried out by the independent organisation NatCen Social Research, found more than nine in 10 of those who admit to some level of racial prejudice would also like to see a reduction in the current level of immigration, in comparison to around seven in 10 who say they are not prejudiced at all.

Penny Young, the organisation's chief executive, said: "The findings are troubling.

"Levels of racial prejudice declined steadily throughout the nineties, but have been on the rise again during the first decade of this century.

"This bucks the trend of a more socially liberal and tolerant Britain.

"Our local and national leaders need to understand and respond to increased levels of racial prejudice if we are to build strong local communities."

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Rolf Harris 'Disguised Dark Side Of His Character'

By Nick Pisa at Southwark Crown Court

Rolf Harris used "bear hugs" to hide his serial sexual abuse and is good at disguising a "dark side" of his character, a court has heard.

The TV entertainer, who denies 12 charges of indecent assault, is facing questions from prosecutor Sasha Wass QC.

She told the jury all the alleged victims describe a similar scenario: bear hugs then sexual molestation.

The prosecutor claimed Harris committed child abuse in conducting an affair with his daughter's best friend. She added that he "psychologically dominated that girl" so she kept it secret.

But the 84-year-old said the relationship was based on a "mutual feeling of warmth and affection" - and claimed the alleged victim initiated the affair.

Harris added that he "laughed in disbelief" when he discovered the alleged victim had been "terrified" of him.

He recalled her coming to his house in Bray, Berkshire, to have sex, telling the jury that he took her a cup of tea and she started flirting with him, kicking off her duvet to reveal her bare legs.

Rolf Harris arrives at Southwark Crown Court with his family

Harris said they would "whisper sweet nothings" to each other, but under continued cross examination he admitted he could not remember what was said.

He told Southwark Crown Court he had worked with the NSPCC on child abuse issues, making a campaign video for them.

But Ms Wass described him as a "brilliant and polished performer".

The prosecutor said the trial was "not a talent show" as she recalled how he had entertained the court by singing during his earlier evidence.

Jurors were told: "Underneath the friendly and loveable exterior there is a darker side."

Accused of being "pretty good" at hiding this dark side, Harris replied: "I suppose so."

Ms Wass said the court had to discover "how dark that dark side is".

The jury has been told how his daughter's friend alleges she was molested by Harris twice during a family holiday in Hawaii in 1978.

Harris denies 12 counts of indecent assault on four women

The defendant said it was "possible" he had admired her body sexually during the holiday but insisted "nothing happened" during that period and he had "no recollection" of the other allegations.

Harris explained how he was on a ship exhibiting his paintings when police searched his home.

Under further cross examination Ms Wass said his relationship with the main complainant was not "deep and meaningful" to which Harris replied: "I don't suppose it was."

Ms Wass said: "You didn't even talk to the girl. It was a pretty cynical sexual relationship, no tenderness, no love, no friendship."

Harris replied: "I thought there was."

The prosecutor asked why he initially mentioned two occasions when he had sex with his daughter's friend, but later talked of four.

Harris said there were two "attractive young ladies" in the police interview room which prevented him from going into detail when questioned.

He denies 12 counts of indecent assault on four females aged between seven or eight and 19 between 1968 and 1986.

The trial continues on Thursday.

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NHS Urged To Send Obese To Slimming Clubs

By Rhiannon Mills, Sky News Correspondent

Obese and overweight people should be sent to slimming clubs on the NHS, according to official new guidance.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) advice says sending people on "lifestyle weight management programmes" will save the health service money.

The 61-page document, sent out to doctors and local authorities, says 12-week programmes costing £100 or less can be cost-effective.

It said approved schemes must be proven to be effective at 12 to 18 months, which it said Slimming World, Rosemary Conley and Weight Watchers had shown they were.

While acknowledging there is "no magic bullet" to the "complex" problem, the guidance says the 64% of the population classed as obese or overweight can enjoy significant health benefits by losing as little as 3% of their weight.

Carol Weir, guidance developer for Nice and head of nutrition and dietetics at Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust, said Nice recognised the difficulties people faced losing weight and the "significant" effort required to prevent a regain of the weight once lost.

"Obviously, if you need to lose weight, the more weight you lose the better, and the health benefits derive from that, but even a 3% loss, kept up long term, is beneficial and that is why we are recommending sensible changes that can be sustained life long," she said.

"It is not something where you can just wake up one morning and say 'I am going to lose 10lbs' - it takes resolve, it takes encouragement, and one of the things about involvement in these programmes is the mutual support from others who try to do the same thing seems to be hugely helpful from a motivational point of view."

Professor Mike Kelly, director of the Public Health Centre at Nice, said obesity was costing the British economy and the NHS £5.1bn a year and that only smoking was a bigger health issue for the country.

"Many of the gains we've made by having a population who smoke in much lower numbers than 40-50 years ago - many of those benefits, particularly with respect to heart disease, are being lost by the additional risks that come as a consequence of overweight and obesity," he said.

Obesity increases the risk of serious conditions including diabetes, heart disease and some cancers. Statistics show more than a quarter of adults in England are now classified as obese, while 42% of men and 32% of women are overweight.

Under the guidance issued by Nice, GPs have been told to raise the issue of weight loss in a "respectful and non-judgemental" way and identify people who are eligible for referral for lifestyle weight management services by measuring their Body Mass Index (BMI).

Public Health England and other agencies should be a national source of information on effective lifestyle weight management programmes suitable for commissioning, it said.

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Speeding Motorist Drove At 149mph On M25

Efforts to make speeding as unacceptable as drink driving are failing it has been warned, as new figures revealed some motorists are driving at up to 70mph over the limit.

The highest speed clocked on Britain's roads last year was 149mph (239kph) on the M25 in Kent.

Other police data released under a Freedom of Information Act request by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM), showed the highest speed recorded on a 30mph road was 96mph - three times the limit - in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear.

One motorist drove at more than three times the limit in Gateshead

The top speed in a 60mph zone was 127 on a bypass in Buckinghamshire, while a motorist was clocked driving at 119mph in a 50 zone in Hertfordshire.

IAM chief executive Simon Best said: "A speed of 149mph equates to nearly two and a half miles in a minute. If anything goes wrong at that speed, you're unlikely to walk away and you are a grave danger to the innocent road users around you."

He added: "Speed limits are a limit. They are not a target to beat. Unfortunately this message has not got through to many motorists and it's clear that efforts to make speeding as socially unacceptable as drink-driving continue to fail.

"The current guidelines on sentencing for excessive speeding offences are out of sync with modern roads, modern vehicles and society's view of the value of lives lost in crashes."

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One Direction Call In Lawyers Over 'Joint' Video

One Direction's lawyers are examining a newly emerged video which appears to show two of the band members joking about smoking an "illegal substance" during their South America tour.

A spokesman for the group told Sky News: "The matter is now in the hands of our lawyers."

No other comment was offered and there has been no official confirmation that the boys who appear in the video are indeed members of the British band.

One Direction is one of the biggest boy bands on the planet

The video obtained by MailOnline appears to show band members Zayn Malik, 21, and Louis Tomlinson, 22, sharing a rolled up cigarette in the back of a car as they are driven through Peru.

Tomlinson, who appears to be filming but never appears on camera, can be heard saying: "So here we are, leaving Peru. Joint lit. Happy days!"

Smoke then clouds the shot as the voice says: "I'm trying to blow it to the camera."

The video shows the cigarette being passed to Malik who begins smoking.

Malik meeting fans in Leicester Square last year

At one point Tomlinson, who narrates the five-minute video, asks him: "What do you think about that kind of content?"

Malik replies: "Very controversial".

It is not clear from the video what is inside the cigarette, although the pair can be heard joking about smoking "illegal substances" as a policeman drives past on a motorbike.

As the camera pans to the policeman, the voice behind the camera laughs: "One nil b***h! Look at this b***h! He's having a look. He's thinking, 'I'm sure I can smell an illegal substance in there'. And he's hit the nail on the head."

The video also appears to show Malik and Tomlinson criticising the band's latest book, describing it as "so girly and not cool".

According to the MailOnline, the film was shot on April 27 while the band were en route to perform a concert in Peru's capital Lima.

It appeared that Tomlinson filmed the video

Fellow band members Harry Styles, Liam Payne, and Niall Horan are not seen in the film and are thought to have been travelling in another car.

The film has emerged as the group gear up for the first UK date of their Where We Are Tour.

They are due to play at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland later on Wednesday evening.

Since their debut on ITV's X Factor talent show One Direction has become one of the biggest boy bands on the planet.

Earlier this month they were named the fourth wealthiest musicians in the Sunday Times Rich List with an estimated fortune of £14m each and a combined wealth of £70m.

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Leeds Man Hurt In Bungalow Explosion

A man has been injured in a suspected gas explosion that blew the roof off a bungalow in Leeds.

A gas blast is suspected

The West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service was called to the property in Tingley following the explosion just before 9.30am.

The man walked out of the house and was taken to hospital after suffering smoke inhalation and burns to his arms. No-one else was injred.

Three neighbouring homes were evacuated after the suspected gas blast and a structural engineer has been called to assess the damage.

Emergency rescue services were soon at the scene

Locals reported seeing flames coming through the roof and pictures of the aftermath showed smoke continuing to rise from the property.

Neighbouring homes were evacuated

One onlooker said: "The bungalow looks a mess and the damage is pretty bad.

"The brickwork has been exposed and the timbers are all charred inside. But we think there's no fatalities."

The timbers underneath the roof were exposed and charred

The residential street was cordoned off while the emergency services carried out their work.

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Lib Dem Peer Oakeshott Resigns Over Poll Leak

Lord Oakeshott's Statement

Updated: 12:43pm UK, Wednesday 28 May 2014

In his resignation statement, Lord Oakeshott said Nick Clegg has led the Liberal Democrats to a position where the party has "no roots, no principles and no values". Here is the statement in full:

I am today taking leave of absence from the House of Lords and resigning as a member of the Liberal Democrats.

I am sure the Party is heading for disaster if it keeps Nick Clegg; and I must not get in the way of the many brave Liberal Democrats fighting for change.

I leave, with a heavy heart, the party I helped to found with such high hopes with Roy Jenkins, Bill Rodgers, Shirley Williams and David Owen at Limehouse in 1981.

We then, like most Liberal Democrats now, wanted a radical progressive party, not a "split the difference" Centre Party, with, in Shirley's memorable words, no roots, no principles and no values.

But that is where Nick Clegg has led us.

I am sorry I have so upset and embarrassed my old friend Vince Cable and that we were not able to talk before he issued yesterday's statement from China. This is the background:

Several months ago a close colleague, concerned about voting intentions in Twickenham, asked me if I would arrange and pay for a poll to show us Vince's current position and how best to get him re-elected.

I was happy to help, and Vince amended and approved the questionnaire, but at his request I excluded a question on voting intentions with a change of leader.

Although Vince had excellent ratings, both as a Minister and a local MP, he was slightly behind the Conservatives in this poll, as the full details on the ICM website show.

That poll worried me so much that I commissioned four more in different types of constituency all over the country and added back the change of leadership question.

The results were in the Guardian yesterday and on the ICM website. Several weeks ago, I told Vince the results of those four polls too.

The combined message of these five professional and reputable ICM constituency polls, Nick Clegg's dire approval ratings year after year in all national polls, and Thursday's appalling council and European election results is crystal clear: we must change the leader to give Liberal Democrat MPs their best chance to win in 2015.

On Thursday I also commissioned one more ICM poll, in Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey; the results should also be on the ICM website tonight.

A few stout-hearted M.P.s and peers and hundreds, maybe soon thousands, of candidates, councillors and Lib Dem members all over Britain are now fighting constituency by constituency for a leadership election.

I have tried to give them the evidence they need to make the change.

I pray that they win, and that the right man, or preferably, woman is now elected to save the Party.

When Charles Kennedy rang to make me a peer, from a panel elected by the party, fourteen years ago he said he wanted me to shake up the Lords.

I've tried - my bills to ban non-dom peers are now law - but my efforts to expose and end cash for peerages in all parties, including our own, and help get the Lords elected have failed.

I am very sorry to leave my many old, close comrades-in-arms on the Liberal Democrat benches all over Britain, and good friends and fellow campaigners across the House.

But the unreformed Lords is now a bloated balloon and at 67 it's time to concentrate on running my business and my charity.

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Political Battle Over Who Can Make Scots Richer

Scots Independence: Rest Of UK Firms Want Union

Updated: 4:40am UK, Wednesday 07 May 2014

By Niall Paterson, Sky News Correspondent

An overwhelming majority of businesses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland say that Scotland should remain part of the UK, according to a survey for the British Chambers of Commerce.

The BCC, which itself remains impartial in the debate, surveyed close to 2,500 of its members, and whilst 11% said Scotland should vote yes, some 85% preferred the union to remain.

Two thirds said no new opportunities would arise in the event of a 'Yes' vote, and just over a third, 35%, said a formal currency union, a key ambition of the SNP-led campaign, would be in the best interests of the UK as a whole.

The BCC's director general John Longworth said: "Business opinion across the United Kingdom on the Scottish independence debate is far from unanimous. That's only logical, as businesses have different interests, and different views on our complex history of economic and political union.

"In the event of a 'Yes' vote, cross-border trading and currency arrangements loom large in businesses' thinking. If Scotland votes 'no', constitutional questions remain around the devolution of power and the distribution of public funding between nations."

The poll has been seized upon by those campaigning for a 'No' vote, as with a recent report from credit ratings agency Moody's which said an independent Scotland would find itself downgraded.

Edinburgh South Labour MP and Shadow Business Minister Ian Murray said: "This survey confirms what some of Scotland's largest employers like Standard Life, RBS and Shell have made clear. Breaking up the UK would create huge risks and cost jobs in Scotland.

"The majority of businesses in the rest of the UK do not support a currency union. It would be bad for Scotland and bad for the rest of the UK. That's why it is off the table.

"What people in Scotland need from the nationalists is some honesty about what would replace the pound if we leave the UK. Would we rush to adopt the euro or would we set up a separate Scottish currency? The idea that Scots can go to the polls blind on this fundamental issue isn't credible."

Yet there is hardly unanimity north of the border either - nor an overwhelming sense of fear that cross-border trade would come to a juddering halt.

Many here expect business to continue if not entirely as normal then with significant benefits in the longer term.

Tony Banks, chairman of Business for Scotland, a pro-independence campaign group with close to two thousand members said: "This is a survey that of course doesn't include Scottish businesses who have a rather different perception.

"Scottish independence offers real advantages to everyone, not only in Scotland but across our shared markets in Europe - that independence doesn't equal isolation and businesses here are well aware of the opportunities they can gain.

"Even the Scottish Chambers of Commerce survey issued last week conceded that 53% of its members see the opportunities that independence could bring."

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Murder Arrest After Dorset Nurse Vanishes

A 60-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a nurse went missing from the hospital where she works.

Rui Li, 44, was last seen leaving Poole Hospital at around 6pm on May 23. 

Officers are now holding the 60-year-old man from Bournemouth, who is known to Ms Li.

Forensic experts are investigating three addresses in the Boscombe area and police have appealed for the public's help in working out Ms Li's last movements.

Detective Inspector Marcus Hester said: "We sadly have reason to believe Ms Li may have come to harm and have arrested a man on suspicion of murder.

"However, at this time we do not know her whereabouts.

"Our investigations are focused on establishing exactly what happened between Friday evening and the time Ms Li was reported missing to us on Tuesday morning.

"I would ask anyone who has seen or heard from her since she left work at Poole Hospital to contact us.

"We are building up a picture of her life, so I would also ask anyone who we haven't spoken to already, who knew her well and may have information that could assist us, to get in touch."

Ms Li is described as around 5ft 5in tall and slim.

She sometimes wears glasses and often wears her shoulder-length black hair in a ponytail.

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