The trade association for the amusement and gaming machine industry has called for a cut down in fixed odds machines after new research revealed they are causing huge welfare losses in the most deprived areas of Britain. According to new research costs of problem gambling associated with fixed odds machines (FOBTs) has topped £10 million and is concentrated in economically deprived areas. A worrying 121,000 FOBT users could be classes as problem gamblers, each suffering an average annual loss in...

Children as young as TEN have been caught in school with knives, razor blades and even MACHETES, shocking police figures have revealed. West Midlands Police reported that 119 children have been caught carrying and using blades in the last 18 months. The force also revealed that two counts of attempted murder were both reported in Birmingham schools since September 2016. Cops received 69 reports of children carrying blades to school in Birmingham - with one 13-year-old found with shards of...

A terraced house collapsed leaving a gaping hole in a street where homes fetch over £1.5 million. The two storey property in West Hampstead suffered a total collapse with floors and the frontage reduced to rubble but the roof left intact but hanging precariously without any support. Residents living next to the boarded up property were evacuated as firefighters tried to make the property safe. London Fire Brigade said: "One fire engine and one fire rescue unit and 10 firefighters...

A joint select committee inquiry into the collapse of outsourcing giant Carillion have criticised the big four accountancy giants. They were accused of “feasting” on the beleaguered company and one of the four had managed “to play all three sides.” Evidence was brought to the inquiry that indicated that these accounting juggernauts have billed for £71m worth of work from Carillion since 2008. KPMG, acted as Carillion’s auditor for 19 years, billed the construction giant £20.2m. PwC, Deloitte, and Ernst and...

The manufacturing industry is one of the sectors that have discovered the advantages of extending business to the online world where most of the consumers get their services from. E-commerce has allowed manufacturing enterprises to offer more convenience by giving other businesses easier access to goods. Product discoverability has increased significantly as manufacturing companies capitalise on various e-commerce tools. Effective B2B e-commerce in manufacturing, however, depends on the ability to structure a website that meets the demands of the audience....

“Just because something works, doesn’t mean it cannot be improved,” we’re told early on in Ryan Coogler’s courageous new entry into the Marvel canon. Loyal fans who have stuck with the series since the first Iron Man will no doubt be relieved to hear that this exhilarating blockbuster yarn doesn’t deviate too far from the studio’s winning formula, but it is those whose voices are callously sidelined so often in such big-budget fare, and crucially given such definition here, who...

A rare "sex manual" from 1720 revealing the most bizarre beliefs of Georgian England has been unearthed and could fetch hundreds of pounds at auction. The 300-year-old book offers a fascinating insight into attitudes towards sex at a time in Britain when witches were still burnt at the stake. They include weird tips to help women avoid giving birth to children "with a hairy lip, wry mouth or great blubber-lips". It also advises men to eat meat, blackbirds and sparrows...

Last Friday (9 February), the Work and Pensions Committee released their interim first report into the experiences of disabled people claiming Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), benefits intended to provide support for disabled people to live independently, or to manage the costs related to being out of work. Nearly 3,500 people provided evidence - an ‘unprecedented public response to a departmental select committee inquiry’ – according to the Committee. The report was described by the...

Controversial comedian Jim Davidson was yesterday (mon) branded a "diva" and "bit of a d**head" after he got into a spat with bar staff before a show. The 64-year-old winner of Celebrity Big Brother 2014 was accused of sexism after ranting at a female member of bar staff who didn't let him bring his beer glass on-stage. He came under fire after branding the seaside town of Cromer, Norfolk, as "hell" and bragging of being paid £15k for the show...