09/05/2011

Other UK News In Brief

Infrastructure Must Adapt To Protect Economic Growth

Urgent action is required to protect the infrastructure which the national economy relies upon from the effects of climate change, Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman warned today. Planning and design will need to take into account the impact which more extreme weather will have on essential services such as transport networks and power supplies, otherwise the economy could suffer. Speaking at Blackfriars Station in London, which is under-going extensive reconstruction work, Mrs. Spelman said: “Our economy is built on effective transport and communications networks and reliable energy and water supplies. But the economy cannot grow if there are repeated power failures, or goods cannot be transported because roads are flooded and railways have buckled, or if intense rainfall or high temperatures disrupt Wi-Fi signals. £200bn is expected to be invested in the UK’s infrastructure over the next five years. But if the facilities which support our society cannot cope with floods, droughts, or freezing winters then that money will have been wasted.” The stark message was delivered at the publication of “Climate Resilient Infrastructure”, a cross government report which outlines the challenges to the transport, energy, water and ICT sectors. The report also sets out what action needs to be taken by infrastructure owners and operators, regulators, insurers and Government. The £550m redevelopment of London Blackfriars Station has given significant consideration to the long term implications of climate change. The new station will be fitted with sustainability technology such as sun pipes, rain harvesting systems, thermal insulation, and Photovoltaic (PV) cell solar panels to decrease its reliance on other infrastructure such as water and electricity networks.

Street Performer Jailed For Attack

On Friday, street performer Dechko Ivanov, 37, of no fixed abode was sentenced to serve a minimum term of four years and six months imprisonment for attacking a fellow performer near the London Eye. On Tuesday, 1 June 2010 police were called to reports of an assault taking place on Queens Walk, south east London. On arrival officers found a 45-year-old man suffering from a head injury. He was taken by ambulance to hospital and was found to have suffered a fractured skull. Ivanov, a Bulgarian national, was arrested on suspicion of GBH with intent at the scene. The court heard the victim was a street performer who was dressed in a long silver jacket, a pointed hat and was carrying a wooden stick at the time of his assault. Ivanov was also a street performer and was wearing a silver outfit with a crown and carried a staff. The two men argued over where each would perform and Ivanov stuck the victim with a drawstring bag containing two bricks, in full view of tourists and other members of the public who were in the area. He later claimed that he had the bricks to weigh down his possessions in order to stop them being blown away. Ivanov pleaded not guilty to a charge of GBH with intent but was found guilty after a trial at the Inner London Crown Court on 15 November 2010.

Appeal Launched Following Shooting In East London

Police are appealing for witnesses following a shooting in Tower Hamlets that has left a man critically injured. Officers were called at about 10.20pm on Friday 6 May to reports of a man shot in east London. In an underpass under flats at the junction of Knapp Road and Rounton Road, they found a 42-year-old man suffering gunshot wounds. London Ambulance Service and HEMS also attended the scene. The victim was taken to an east London hospital where he remains in a critical but stable condition. At this stage it appears the victim was riding a bicycle in Rounton Road when two male suspects armed with handguns opened fire, shooting him in the head. The males, described as black or Asian and wearing face coverings, then made off towards Knapp Road and got into a car. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Trident north shootings team.

(BMcN/GK)

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