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MAN SHOT IN ROBBERY ATTEMPT A Black Country man has been shot in the arm during a robbery attempt while he was in the back of his own car. The victim, in his 30s, was attacked by two armed robbers who jumped into the back of the vehicle in Wellington Street, Smethwick, and demanded money. The incident happened outside Merry Hill Social Club. One robber is black and the other is of mixed race. MORE RAIL SERVICES PLANNED Rail commuters in Hartlebury, near Kidderminster, could enjoy more services to and from Birmingham if plans by operator Central go ahead. Mid-Worcestershire MP Peter Luff said he was confident of an improvement in the service following discussions with managing director Nick Brown. The plans will now have to be approved by the Strategic Rail Authority. CENTRE TAKES CONGESTION FEES Hundreds of workers at a Coventry call centre are taking payments from London motorists as the controversial congestion charge comes into force. Around 1,000 staff at Capita, in Keresley, will administer the £5 fee to enter the centre of the capital. Motorists can call the centre and use credit cards to make a pre-payment up to 90 days in advance of their visit. YOUTH MP HONOURED FOR WORK A Warwickshire teenager is being recognised for her work as a county youth MP. Gurpreet Gill, 18, is to receive an award during elections for new members of the UK Youth Parliament at a county conference at Dunchurch Park. The teenager, from Lea Marston, near Coleshill, is bowing out after her 12-month term in office. MEN TO GET EQUAL TRAVEL RIGHTS Men over 60 in the Stafford Borough Council area are to get the same rights as women for cheaper public transport. Transport chiefs said the move, coming into force on April 1, would cost £150,000 but would improve the lives of thousands of men aged 60-65. Councillor Andy Compton said: "We are expecting to hear from around four to five thousand men in Stafford borough." POP KITTENS SET TO PERFORM Chart-topping girl band Atomic Kitten are to headline St Patrick's Day celebrations in Birmingham. The trio's performance will top an 11-hour street extravaganza ending with a massive firework display on March 16. Fame Academy's Sinead and Malachi will also perform. City leaders hope it will boost Birmingham's chance of being named European City of Culture in 2008. BODY REPATRIATION LAWS DRAFTED West Midlands MEP Michael Cashman has been charged with drafting proposals for the repatriation of the remains of Britons within the European Union. The ex-EastEnders actor said the EC recognised common procedure was needed. Mr Cashman decided to act following the distress suffered by the family of a constituent, Kris Shambley, from Coventry, who died in Spain in 1998. ATHLETE TO RUN ON WATER A Birmingham athlete is to be made into a hologram sprinting across water to mark next month's World Indoor Athletics Championships in the city. The ghostly image of Curtis Brown will be relayed outside the National Indoor Arena nightly at the three-day event. A special projection on to water jets will create the illusion of the 27-year-old racing across a canal. THREE-CAR CRASH DEATH APPEAL Police are appealing for witnesses to a three-car collision in Shropshire in which one man died. A Vauxhall car was in collision with a Peugeot and BMW, left the road and crashed into a tree on the A518 near the turning for Lilleshall, Telford. The Vauxhall driver was airlifted to North Staffordshire Royal Infirmary, Stoke-on-Trent, but died, said police. 'SKILLS LACK' THREATENS FIRMS Firms who do not invest in training for their workforce threaten their long term competitiveness, Coventry-based Learning Skills Council has warned. A survey found nearly a quarter of firms reported a skill gap last year -a rise of 7% on the previous year. According to the Skills in England 2002 report, the retail and hospitality sectors are the worst hit.
BOY, THREE, STABBED IN CHEST A three-year-old boy is being treated in hospital after being stabbed in the chest at a house in Birmingham. Police found the child near the National Indoor Arena. His injuries are not thought to be life-threatening. He was taken to the Diana Princess of Wales Hospital with a single stab wound. A 29-year-old man was arrested in connection with the stabbing. ROLLS-ROYCE SIGNS £100m DEAL Derby-based engine maker Rolls-Royce has announced it has signed a £100m deal with Hong Kong's Dragonair to maintain engines in a fleet of planes. Rolls-Royce makes the Trent 700 engines, which power the airline's Airbus A330s, at its plant in Derby. The deal covers maintenance of five A330-300 aeroplanes by Rolls-Royce's civil aerospace division. CAR WORKERS STAGE FRESH STRIKE Workers at Coventry-based car giant Peugeot are to stage a fresh strike in a dispute over pay. The new walkout called by union officials at the Ryton plant follows a stoppage last week which cost the firm millions of pounds in lost production. The company says it will not be reopening negotiations on its offer of a 7.3% pay rise over two years. GUNMAN JAILED FOR 20 YEARS A Birmingham gunman who shot a man in the head at point-blank range after a dispute has been jailed for 20 years for attempted murder. Dunstan Williams, 42, of Erdington, had denied attempting to murder Bamidele Ibraheem in Smethwick. A judge at Wolverhampton Crown Court described Williams' actions as "callous" and condemned gun crime. PLEA TO FOOTBALL RIVALS Birmingham's two Premiership football sides are being urged to extend the hand of friendship to each other in the run-up to next month's derby game. A poster promoting good relations between Aston Villa and Birmingham City fans is to appear on a fleet of buses and billboards around the city. September's clash between the bitter rivals was marred by violence. HALL RESTORATION PROJECT BEGINS The first phase of a £13.5m project to restore Birmingham Town Hall is taking place at a Welsh quarry. Conservation experts have opted to refurbish the 19th Century edifice with Anglesey marble - the same material used in the original construction. A city council delegation is visiting the isle to inspect the stone before ordering 500 tonnes for the scheme. TWO QUESTIONED OVER MURDER Detectives are continuing to question two men in connection with the murder of a 25-year-old man who was found unconscious in a Telford street. Carl Jones, from Leegomery, died in the Princess Royal Hospital after being injured during a disturbance in Hurleybrook Way, Leegomery. A West Mercia Police spokesman said the two men were both in their 20s. ICE HOCKEY PLAYER BAILED An ice hockey player has been released on police bail after being questioned about an alleged assault on a fan at a match in Coventry. Police said it was believed the Dundee Stars player was involved in an altercation with a fan after his side's 5-0 win against Coventry Blaze. The 35-year-old, from Edinburgh, has been bailed pending further inquiries. CENSUS 'SENDS WAKE-UP CALL' The Bishop of Lichfield has described the 2001 Census findings on religion as a "wake-up call" for the Church. Figures from the Census showed 72% of people in England and Wales regard themselves as Christian but the vast majority no longer attend church. The Rt Revd Keith Sutton said the data challenged religious leaders to make church relevant to communities. MAN ROBBED BY KNIFEMAN A 35-year-old man has been robbed by a knife-wielding mugger in Coventry. The victim was threatened by the offender at the city's Alvis Retail Park before being searched and robbed of £45. He was not injured. The knifeman was described as dark, of European appearance, in his mid-20s and clean-shaven. Anyone with information should contact police on 0845 113 5000. MAN DUE IN COURT OVER STABBING A 29-year-old Birmingham man is due to appear before the city's magistrates' court charged with the attempted murder of a three-year-old boy. The man, who has not been named, was arrested after police were called to an address near the National Indoor Arena. The boy, who suffered a stab wound to the chest, is in a stable condition in hospital. DEAD COUPLE WERE FACING TRIAL A West Midlands couple have died in an apparent suicide pact hours before one of them was to stand trial at Stafford Crown Court accused of wounding. David Edwards, 40, and wife Christina, 32, were found dead in a car in a garage at their home in Kingswinford. Police are not treating the deaths as suspicious and the matter has been referred to the coroner. WOMAN 'CLAIMED TO BE OFFICER' Police in Shrewsbury are investigating a road rage incident in which a woman claimed to be an off-duty officer. After an earlier incident, the woman got out of her Peugeot 206 in Ellesmere Road and told the driver of a Vauxhall van "you're lucky I am not in uniform". The woman is in her 40s and of stout build. Witnesses have been urged to call police on 08457 444888. CAMPAIGN TO CUT ROAD DEATH TOLL A month-long police campaign to cut the death toll on one of Shropshire's busiest roads has been launched. Officers from West Mercia Police will be in position along a 30-mile stretch of the A41 between Tong and Whitchurch to stop reckless driving. There have been five deaths and 12 serious injuries out of 57 collisions between February 2002 and last month. POLICE APPEAL TO MOTORISTS West Midlands Police have warned motorists not to leave cars unattended with engines running while windows defrost following a spate of thefts. The pleas were issued after five vehicles were stolen in the space of two-and-a-half hours in Birmingham, Solihull and the Black Country. Police are appealing for anyone with information to call 0845 113 5000. JOBS BOOST AT SUPERMARKET Supermarket chain Asda is to create hundreds of jobs at two sites in the West Midlands. The company has received planning permission for seven new branches, including one in Oldbury which will create 350 new jobs. The Bromsgrove store will also benefit from expansion. Nationally, 3,900 jobs will be created in a £360m investment. POOR SALES AXE POPSTARS TOUR The joint appearance in Birmingham of Girls Aloud and One True Voice has been axed because of poor ticket sales. The bands, formed in the ITV1 show Popstars: The Rivals, were meant to be performing 11 concert dates together next month, kicking off at the NEC. Girls Aloud manager Louis Walsh said the tour had been cancelled, but the girls would tour on their own later. LAWRENCE RELATIVE 'ASSAULTED' A relative of murdered black teenager Stephen Lawrence was assaulted by four policemen in Birmingham, a court heard. Worcester Crown Court was told the incident happened while Clarence Lawrence, of King's Heath, was being detained under the Mental Health Act. Jonathan Beard, Hassan Miah Shigdar, Edward Hunter and Alexander Mackenzie Skeoch deny causing actual bodily harm. McCARTNEY'S BEATLES REVIVAL Sir Paul McCartney is to perform the biggest package of Beatles songs Britain has ever seen when he visits Birmingham this year. He is to play his first UK tour in a decade in April, and will perform 22 songs from his Fab Four days, some from the period after they stopped touring. Sir Paul's tour visits the NIA on April 13 and 14. MASKED MEN FORCE WAY INTO HOUSE A Redditch man is recovering after two masked robbers armed with a knife burst into his home. The pair forced their way into the 37-year-old's home in Smallwood and pushed him to the floor after he answered a knock at the door. But the pair fled following a struggle when a friend of the victim, who was not injured, came to his assistance. AUTHORITY SHAMED OVER ELDERLY Birmingham Health Authority has been named in an inquiry into "scandalous" treatment of elderly patients. The Health Service Ombudsman said patients were assessed wrongly for long-term care as authorities do not understand the funding system. Government guidance on NHS-funded care was not simple and led to authorities applying their own criteria. MP WELCOMES ASYLUM RULING A Birmingham Labour MP has welcomed a legal ruling that a new law barring late asylum applicants from claiming benefits breaches their human rights. Lynne Jones, MP for Selly Oak, said she was disappointed that Home Secretary David Blunkett plans to appeal. She will table a Commons motion on the judgment which said it is "inhuman" to leave asylum seekers destitute. TEENAGER ABDUCTED AND RAPED A Malaysian girl has been raped and held prisoner for more than 30 hours by two men who abducted her from the Hillfields area of Coventry. The 16-year-old was visiting relatives when she was bundled into a car, driven around and taken to a property where she was raped and sexually assaulted. She escaped more than a day later when the car she was in stopped for petrol. EURO MPS TO DEBATE WAR ON IRAQ West Midlands Euro MPs are to take part in a debate over the possible war on Iraq at the University of Warwick. Labour's Michael Cashman, Tory Philip Bushill-Matthews and Liberal Democrat Nicholas Clegg are taking part in the European Question Time event. The trio will discuss the European Union's position on military action by the USA and Britain against Iraq. BOARD TO CONSIDER NEW STATUS The board of a West Midlands NHS Trust is being asked to consider whether to apply to become one of the country's first Foundation Trusts. Mark Britnell, chief executive of the University Hospital Birmingham NHS Trust, has recommended making an application for new status. It is believed the move would increase capacity and reduce waiting times. MAN STABBED TACKLING ROBBER A man who was stabbed in a Birmingham supermarket trying to foil an armed robbery is recovering in hospital. The 49-year-old customer suffered two wounds in his back as he tackled the robber, who had a 6in knife, at Safeway in Kings Heath, Birmingham. West Midlands Police said the robber fled with cash snatched from the till after he posed as a customer. FAMILY SUES OVER POOL BURNS The Staffordshire mother of three young girls who suffered chemical burns when they went swimming in a hotel pool said they may be permanently scarred. Jackie West and husband Gary, from Tamworth, are suing tour operator Aspro over their holiday in Tenerife. Megan, nine, Amber, six, and Tiegan, four, were burned on their legs, chests and throats. MURDER BID CHARGE MAN REMANDED A 29-year-old man has appeared at Birmingham Magistrates' Court charged with the attempted murder of a three-year-old boy. James Michael Pinsent, of Ladywood, Birmingham, was remanded in custody to appear at the city's Crown Court on February 26. His alleged victim is said to be in a stable condition in hospital. FREE ADVICE FOR FARMERS West Midlands farmers have been pledged £230,000 for a free advice service to help turn around ailing businesses. Under the initiative, experts from Business Link will provide guidance for farmers during a three-day visit to their land. The funding was announced by Secretary of State Margaret Beckett at the National Union of Farmers' conference. COURT BATTLE OVER DOG A miniature pedigree dog from Shropshire is at the centre of a legal fight over his ownership. The Chinese Crested is living at the Hilbrae Pets Hotel, Telford, after he was found shivering on a doorstep. Jessie Delaney, of Arleston, says he is hers but pound owner Marty Burrell will not hand him over. The owner will be decided next month at Telford court. FUNERAL OF PARTY MURDER GIRL Hundreds of mourners are to gather for the funeral of a teenage girl murdered at a New Year party in Birmingham. Charlene Ellis, 18, from Birmingham, is to be buried following a service at the Cannon Street Memorial Baptist Church in the city's Handsworth district. The college art student was shot dead with her friend Letisha Shakespeare, 17, outside a party in the Aston area. TODDLER ABANDONED BY THIEVES Thieves in the West Midlands who stole a car with a three-year-old girl inside and then abandoned her in the street are being hunted by police. The toddler was sitting alone in the back of a Ford Fiesta in Smethwick when it was taken by a gang of three youths who drew up in a red sports car. The girl was driven away and was later found on a nearby street unharmed. FEARS GROW FOR MISSING GIRLS Fears are growing for the safety of two teenage girls missing from their Stafford homes for nearly a fortnight. Officers are appealing for Stevie Moore, 14, and friend Naomi Stretton, 15, to contact them, after they both disappeared from their homes. Police have urged anyone who has seen the girls, who are white, around 5ft and of medium build, to contact them. BOY SAVED BY SURGEONS' SKILL A teenager left fighting for life after puncturing his heart in a bike accident has been saved by revolutionary surgery at a Birmingham hospital. Adam Newman, 14, from Walsall, suffered a three-quarter-inch wound to his heart when he fell on to the handlebars. Surgeons at Diana, Princess of Wales Children's Hospital inserted a plug down a tube through his neck. MINISTER LAUNCHES TICKET SCHEME Transport Minister and MP for Warley, John Spellar, is launching a scheme allowing travellers to buy tickets to use both on trains and buses. The PLUSBUS initiative is being launched at Birmingham New Street rail station and will eventually be rolled out to every major town in Britain. The scheme is initially being operated in the UK's most populated urban areas. THIEF 'ON LOOSE WITH RIFLE' A thief may be on the loose with a rifle and ammunition after a pick-up truck was stolen in Derbyshire. Police said the weapon and a starting pistol were inside a blue Nissan truck - registration FE02 ZBC - taken from Etwall Lane in Willington. The vehicle has a distinctive aluminum canopy at the rear. Officers have urged the public not to approach the truck PLEA FOR ATTACK WITNESSES Witnesses are sought after an attack in Wolverhampton left a 60-year-old man paralysed from the neck down. The unidentified victim was set upon last October after confronting a group of black youths setting off fireworks near the Lewisham Arms, Park Village. The man, who cannot breathe unaided, has only just been able to give police details of the incident. SCIENCE PARK PLANS UNVEILED Developers have unveiled their vision for a technology and science park on the site of the BBC's studios at Pebble Mill in Birmingham. Calthorpe Estates said the development would include tennis courts, sports fields, cycleways and road improvements created around new office space. Chief executive Richard Allen said the facilities would be world class RISK OF SPIDER FEAR 'CURE' Allowing spiders to crawl on the hands of people with arachnophobia is likely to make them more prone to illness, a Coventry University student has found. Rhys Warwick said participants, who were exposed to a tarantula, exhibited stress levels that may damge the human immune system. The heart rates of many of those tested rose to potentially dangerous levels. BIRMINGHAM BECOMES FAVOURITE FOR TITLE
The news was greeted in Birmingham with great enthusiasm. Stephen Hetherington, director of Birmingham's bid, said: "We presented a very strong case as to why Birmingham should be European Capital of Culture 2008 over a year ago and we have been building on that ever since. Birmingham becoming favourite is not only a bit of fun, but I hope it is also a reflection of a genuine change in opinion. It is a result of all the activity to galvanise support both within the city and beyond." This is not the first time Birmingham has been hailed as favourite.
In October 2002, when the 12 bidding cities were cut to six, a public
poll also put Birmingham top. Taylor Nelson Sofres, an independent polling
company, asked over 1000 people nationwide which city they thought best
qualified to be European Capital of Culture 2008. 16 per cent said Birmingham,
with Cardiff just behind in second place (15 per cent). Newcastle's combined
bid with Gateshead recorded just 12 per cent. Former President of the
United States, Bill Clinton, also described "I think more and more people are realising that Birmingham is the only bidding city capable of delivering a programme of multi-cultural events that will do the title real justice and create the right legacy," continued Hetherington. With the World Indoor Championships in Athletics, the UK's biggest St Patrick's Day festival, and special City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra concerts, together with special performances at The Rep theatre and The Hippodrome all coming up, Birmingham has more good opportunities to show how much the city has done to turn itself around. "Out dated stereotypes of Birmingham as a city best known for the
old Bull Ring and Spaghetti Junction are no longer true, if they ever
were. Birmingham has become a genuine and world-class centre for arts,
sport and entertainment and thoroughly deserves the recognition that the
title Prime Minister Tony Blair MP will announce the winning city in June
2003.
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