United Kingdom

    Anjem Choudary, who preached hate over two decades with seeming impunity from legal punishment, has been jailed for five years and six months for his activities to support Islamic State. Choudary was sentenced at the Old Bailey in London after his conviction in July for urging Muslims to support Isis in a series of talks posted on YouTube. He was convicted alongside his acolyte Mohammed Rahman, 33. Choudary, 49, avoided serious criminal charges for years, but his conviction for terrorism was agreed unanimously by a jury. The “hate preacher” and Rahman told their supporters to obey Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Isis leader, who is also known as a caliph, and travel to Syria to support “the caliphate”, the trial had heard. Choudary was a key figure for a succession of Islamist m...

    Keith Vaz has stood down as chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee following allegations he paid two male escorts for sex. The MP for Leicester East allegedly offered to cover the cost of cocaine if it was brought to his London flat, but refused to have any himself. The 59-year-old reportedly met two Eastern European escorts at his property in Edgeware and boasted to them about having unprotected sex, the Sunday Mirror reported. A series of text messages published by the newspaper allegedly show Mr Vaz asking for the legal high poppers to be brought to the meeting. The substance is widely used as a sex-enhancing drug. Voice recordings of a 90-minute meeting on 27 August, also purport to show Mr Vaz examining pictures of men on the gay dating app Grindr. Mr Vaz has p...

    How better to investigate the impact of cocaine than by offering it to guests, and observing its effects on mind and body close-up? How on earth is the Home Affairs committee chair to acquaint himself with the ins and outs of male prostitution, if not by having affairs at home with male prostitutes? An old-fashioned sex’n’drugs scandal graces tabloid front pages this sabbath – and even without any rock’n’roll to complete the trinity, nostalgists will be thrilled about that. It’s lovely to be reminded of that more innocent age, before the demise of News of the World, when dainty treats of this kind were a Sunday breakfast table staple. The fact that this one stars Keith Vaz, the erstwhile Home Affairs committee chair, gives extra savour to the dish. He has somehow survived ...

    British Prime minister declines to commit to points-based system and extra £100m a week for health service as Japan and US warn of exit risks to Britain May’s comments on the way to Hangzhou in China were made before what turned out to be a trying start to the international summit. She had been hoping to pitch the UK as a global leader in free trade during her first major outing on the world stage. However, she was immediately confronted with warnings about the consequences of leaving the EU, as well as diplomatic tensions with the Chinese over their proposed investment in UK nuclear power. Theresa May has cast doubt on whether Brexit will lead either to a points-based immigration system or an extra £100m a week for the NHS – two central promises made by the successful cam...

    The private sector activity in the country saw a modest gain in the three months to August, a recent survey by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has revealed. The latest CBI Growth Indicator showed that this sector had grown at 8% during this period. While headline growth did not ease further, there was a mixed performance among sectors, a CBI press release mailed to IBTimes UK said. With regards to manufacturing, CBI said the sector saw strong total order books and a notable increase in export orders. This, it said, led to a healthy growth in the three-month period. While manufacturing output was expected to rise at a decent level, manufacturers were expected to increase prices amid inflationary pressure, it added. With regards to the retail, wholesale and motor...

    Keith Vaz is to stand aside as Chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee following allegations in a Sunday newspaper. Select Committee member Naz Shah, who has spoken to Keith Vaz, has told Sky News that he has done the right thing by standing aside as chair. Mr Vaz has not resigned completely but temporarily as he speaks to his lawyer and other members of the committee. The married Labour MP allegedly paid for sex with two male prostitutes and offered to pay for a class A drug, according to the Sunday Mirror. In a statement to Sky News he said: It is deeply disturbing that a national newspaper should have paid individuals to have acted in this way. I have referred these allegations to my solicitor Mark Stephens of Howard Kennedy who will consider them carefully and advis...

    Smokers and obese people will be denied surgery on the NHS by cash-strapped hospitals trying to save money, senior health officials have warned. It's the only way providers are going to be able to balance their books... the service is bursting at the seams. Vale of York Care Commissioning Group has announced it will make people wait up to a year for non-essential surgery if they are overweight, until their body mass index (BMI) drops to 30. The group said the decision has been made as “the best way of achieving maximum value from the limited resources available”. The Royal College of Surgeons has described the decision as “the most severe the modern NHS has ever seen” amid concerns the NHS’ funding crisis is seriously impeding its ability to function. Chris Hopson, head o...

    The world was horrified this week by footage showing a young grinning boy aged just 11 executing Kurds in a sickening ISIS propaganda video. Even more shocking was the revelation that the young lad, called Joe Dixon, is the son of British ISIS convert Sally Jones, 47. As pictures emerge of the innocent newborn tot with his grinning mum in hospital, his devastated grandparents reveal how Joe was a "kind and loving" boy before he arrived in Syria. Joe is the youngest child of Jones, who took her son on her ill-fated travels to the war-torn region in 2013. The heart-warming images of the tot being cradled by his beaming mum are a far cry from the gruesome footage emerging this week of Joe dressed in ISIS uniform, wielding a gun before shooting a Kurdish prisoner in the back o...

    Reports of a Birmingham police officer who parked her patrol car in a disabled bay at a KFC to grab a snack has sparked an angry reaction. The Mail revealed a uniformed officer had received a warning after being caught tucking in at the branch in Heybarnes Retail Park, Coventry Road, Small Heath, last Friday, August 19. It became a divisive issue on social media, with most criticising the officer for parking in one of only two designated disabled spaces. However, she was not without support, with some saying it was a victimless event and police officers have busy jobs. Nicky Cunningham posted on the Mail’s Facebook page: “Nothing better to do? Not a big deal? Yes, yes it is a big deal. When every minute of your life is consumed with pain, your legs don’t work, you struggle...

    The Purchasing Managers’ Index jumped to 53.3, helped by the slump in sterling in wake of referendum vote. Manufacturing output unexpectedly surged in August according to the latest Purchasing Managers’ Index report from Markit/CIPS, helped by the post-Brexit vote collapse in sterling. The index – where the 50 mark separates contraction from growth – jumped from 48.2 in July to 53.3 in August. The monthly surge of 5 points was the joint greatest in the 25 year history of the survey, Markit said. Export orders from the US, Europe, China and the Middle East rose strongly and the new orders index leapt from 47.8 to 54.6. Markit reported that the depreciation of sterling since the June EU referendum was "by far the main factor" cited by manufacturers as supporting the surge in...