Claim of separation 'false as well as intrusive', say lawyers, as Pitt and Jolie begin action in London high courtHollywood stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie today began a privacy action against the News of the World over a story that alleged the couple were separating.The News of the World claimed in a story last month that the pair, who met on

As their protest runs into a fourth day, some are said to be fainting or injured. But the Home Office denies wrongdoingA controversial immigration removal centre was reported to be in a state of chaos today, as at least 50 women entered the fourth day of a hunger strike, with several fainting in corridors and almost 20 locked outdoors wearing few c

The latest fatality means the UK death toll in Afghanistan exceeds that of the Falklands warA British soldier was killed by an explosion in Afghanistan today as the UK death toll exceeded that of the Falklands war.Comrades said the soldier, from 36 Engineer regiment, part of the counter-IED Task Force, died as he led a team conducting route clearan

From Thatcher's calf-cradling to Alastair Campbell's emotional interview, political figures struggle to get the human touch rightSo Alastair Campbell is filmed apparently choking back tears in his appearance on Andrew Marr's programme. I have to say I thought my TV had developed a fault when the screen appeared to freeze. Campbell himself was sw

Houston cardiologist Conrad Murray would face up to four years in prison if convictedMichael Jackson's doctor has tonight been charged with involuntary manslaughter over the pop singer's death.Dr Conrad Murray, a Houston cardiologist, was with Jackson when the star died on 25 June last year. He faces up to four years in prison if convicted.Murray

Company suggests 'driver error' may be to blame as damage to firm's value is put at $4bnToyota denied today that brake problems on its Prius hybrid cars were a safety issue in Britain despite speculation in Japan that the crisis could deepen tomorrow if the company recalls 270,000 vehicles in the US and Japan.In a defiant move, executives assure

• Yulia Tymoshenko under pressure to concede defeat• Monitors praise 'impressive display' of democracyUkraine's prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko, was today under pressure to concede defeat in the country's presidential election after international observers this afternoon hailed yesterday's poll as fair and "truly competitive".Observers

Scotland Yard commander who falsely arrested man is jailed for misconduct and attempting to pervert course of justiceThe case against Commander Ali DizaeiThe Metropolitan police commander Ali Dizaei was jailed for four years today after being convicted of falsely arresting a man and making up an account that he had been assaulted and threatened.A j

Chilcot inquiry told that the 'problem of leaks' was used to stop attorney general Lord Goldsmith addressing ministersJack Straw made clear in evidence to the Iraq inquiry today that he believed there was absolutely no need for the cabinet to be told of the attorney general's doubts about the legality of the invasion.The inquiry has heard that a

Defeated presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka to face coup attempt charge as row over election result takes dramatic turnThe defeated candidate in last month's tense presidential election in Sri Lanka, General Sarath Fonseka, was arrested today at his office in Colombo and is to be charged with attempting a military coup to overthrow the governme

Ahead of the rainy season there are huge concerns over shelter, sanitation and human rights. The US has a responsibility to helpLast month actors and human rights advocates Danny Glover and Harry Belafonte, along with the Reverend Jesse Jackson sent a letter to Congress and the Obama administration calling attention to "serious mistakes that have

As their protest runs into a fourth day, some are said to be fainting or injured. But the Home Office denies wrongdoingA controversial immigration removal centre was reported to be in a state of chaos today, as at least 50 women entered the fourth day of a hunger strike, with several fainting in corridors and almost 20 locked outdoors wearing few c

Conservative evangelicals tell General Synod they will train their own clergy outside the church if proposals go aheadConservative evangelicals in the Church of England today became the latest group to threaten to split the church if it decides to consecrate women bishops.At the start of this week's meeting of the General Synod, the church's parl

Minister insists he carefully considered Sir Michael Wood's 'contradictory' guidance but did not accept itJack Straw today hit back at claims he had willfully ignored legal advice ahead of the Iraq war, insisting he had considered it with "great care" but had good reasons for taking another view.Addressing the Iraq inquiry for the second time,

Summer-long Brazilian culture festival will be the South Bank arts complex's most elaborate festival to dateAlthough the muddy Thames foreshore can't quite rival the white sands of Copacabana beach, London's Southbank centre is promising a summer-long explosion of light, colour and samba beats, in a three-month festival of Brazilian culture cent

David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Elliot Morely all suspended from party and whip as Cameron says news is 'a humiliating change'The three MPs facing criminal charges over their expenses claims were today suspended from the Labour party, immediately sparking accusations from David Cameron that Gordon Brown had been forced into a "headlong retreat" o

James Murdoch's delaying tactics have helped ensure that BSkyB retains its dominance of the pay-TV marketThree years and four rulings later Sky has finally agreed to what everybody has known all along: that it should not be allowed to own a debilitatingly large stake in its biggest UK commercial TV rival.But the fact that it has taken so long for

Oligarch sues Russian TV channel for claim he was involved in polonium poisoning of former Russian agentThe Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky was the victim of a "savage" libel that aimed to "muddy the waters" of the investigation into the death of the former secret agent Alexander Litvinenko, a court heard today.Berezovsky, who has lived in th

Speaker also says 'golden goodbye' payments for the three MPs will be suspended while legal proceedings are ongoingCommons Speaker John Bercow today warned of the danger of prejudicing the trials of three MPs charged with criminal offences relating to their expenses claims.Bercow's intervention came after comments by David Cameron about the case

Former oil chief admits to obsession and loneliness during his 12-year reign at BPLord Browne has admitted he stayed at BP too long because he had become obsessed with running the oil group. He has also suggested in his revealing memoirs published this week that his arrogance and a culture of complacency contributed to BP's failure to prevent a hu

New arrivals take proportion of non-Spanish residents to 12%The number of immigrants registered as living in Spain has increased more than sixfold over the last 10 years, figures released by its National Statistics Institute have revealed.Some 5.6 million non-Spaniards were registered as living in the country last year, accounting for 12% of the po

Proposals to encourage people to inform on benefit cheats are being examined by Labour's manifesto teamPeople who inform on benefit cheats could be given a share of the resulting savings to the state under proposals being examined by Labour's manifesto team.The idea has been put to Ed Miliband, Labour's manifesto co-ordinator, by Jim Murphy, the

Proposals for a levy, thought to be £20,000, would be deducted from the estates of older people when they dieRadical proposals for a £20,000 compulsory inheritance levy to help pay for Gordon Brown's social care plans may be endorsed by the government before the general election.The health secretary, Andy Burnham, believes he may get the backing

Chilcot inquiry told that the 'problem of leaks' was used to stop attorney general Lord Goldsmith addressing ministersJack Straw made clear in evidence to the Iraq inquiry today that he believed there was absolutely no need for the cabinet to be told of the attorney general's doubts about the legality of the invasion.The inquiry has heard that a

Conservative mandarins still refuse to answer questions on party benefactor's UK tax statusConservative party officials repeatedly refused to say today whether they believe the British public has any right to know the truth about the current tax s­tatus of Lord Ashcroft, the multi-­millionaire who has helped bankroll the party for almost three d

The latest fatality means the UK death toll in Afghanistan exceeds that of the Falklands warA British soldier was killed by an explosion in Afghanistan today as the UK death toll exceeded that of the Falklands war.Comrades said the soldier, from 36 Engineer regiment, part of the counter-IED Task Force, died as he led a team conducting route clearan

Tireless campaigner for older people's rightsDonald Steele, who has died aged 76, was a leading campaigner for improvements in social policy for older people. From 1993 onwards, Don was director of social policy for the Association of Retired and People over 50 (ARP/O50), and, in 2007, became the leader and chairman of the Friendship Centre Federa

• Straw denies ignoring Foreign Office legal advice• Suggests Blair wrong to blame Iran for postwar problems• Says Goldsmith should have provided legal advice sooner1.33pm: Jack Straw, the justice secretary, has already given evidence to the Iraq inquiry about the foreign policy aspects of the decision to go to war. But, as foreign secretary

David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Elliot Morely all suspended from party and whip as Cameron says news is 'a humiliating change'The three MPs facing criminal charges over their expenses claims were today suspended from the Labour party, immediately sparking accusations from David Cameron that Gordon Brown had been forced into a "headlong retreat" o

Europe has witnessed a tectonic shift to the right since the war. No wonder the Tories might feel short of breathing spaceLooking back over the last 50 or 60 years, what have been the most ­important changes, and the most surprising? The fact that Europe has been at peace, outside the ­Balkans, since 1945 would have been a surprise and relief to

Author, academic and wartime intelligence officer at Bletchley ParkPeter Calvocoressi, who has died aged 97, was best known as an Ultra intelligence analyst at the Bletchley Park codebreaking centre in Buckinghamshire during the second world war, but this episode represented only four years in a long career with many different aspects. ­Internatio

The ancient and important right of parliamentary privilege has become a grey area - some legislative clarification is neededLike most people nowadays David Cameron has a short memory, which he combines with a good sense of self-preservation. Today the ­Conservative leader toned down pre-briefed remarks saying that the attempted use of parliamentar

Speaker also says 'golden goodbye' payments for the three MPs will be suspended while legal proceedings are ongoingCommons Speaker John Bercow today warned of the danger of prejudicing the trials of three MPs charged with criminal offences relating to their expenses claims.Bercow's intervention came after comments by David Cameron about the case

Conservative mandarins still refuse to answer questions on party benefactor's UK tax statusConservative party officials repeatedly refused to say today whether they believe the British public has any right to know the truth about the current tax s­tatus of Lord Ashcroft, the multi-­millionaire who has helped bankroll the party for almost three d

Company suggests 'driver error' may be to blame as damage to firm's value is put at $4bnToyota denied today that brake problems on its Prius hybrid cars were a safety issue in Britain despite speculation in Japan that the crisis could deepen tomorrow if the company recalls 270,000 vehicles in the US and Japan.In a defiant move, executives assure

Prosecutors say man was abducted and beaten by group of retirees over lost US investmentsA retired architect and four other pensioners took their financial adviser hostage and held him in a purpose-built prison in Bavaria after their stock market investments failed, a court has heard.The 74-year-old architect, identified only as Roland K, told a co

• Minister to make key decision on major crop• Broad alliance takes on Monsanto subsidiaryA fierce row over the future of the humble aubergine, staple ingredient of fiery brinjal curries for tens of millions of Indians, will reach a climax on Wednesday with a key government decision on the possible future commercial cultivation of genetically-m

Claim of separation 'false as well as intrusive', say lawyers, as Pitt and Jolie begin action in London high courtHollywood stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie today began a privacy action against the News of the World over a story that alleged the couple were separating.The News of the World claimed in a story last month that the pair, who met on

Conservative evangelicals tell General Synod they will train their own clergy outside the church if proposals go aheadConservative evangelicals in the Church of England today became the latest group to threaten to split the church if it decides to consecrate women bishops.At the start of this week's meeting of the General Synod, the church's parl

Royal Scots Borderers killed by explosion on foot patrol as Ministry of Defence warns of more casualtiesTwo British soldiers have been killed by an explosion in southern Afghanistan, bringing the number to have died there equal to the death toll in the Falkland war in 1982.The two soldiers, from The Royal Scots Borderers, 1st Battalion The Royal Re