Key Quotes for 2013

A world perspective in bite-size chunks
Showing page 15 of 24

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Last update: Wednesday 25th March
 
A voice recognition system for telephone banking could end the need for users to remember pin numbers or answer complex security questions. Customers of Barclays Wealth will have a 30-second conversation with an operator compared with a verified "voiceprint" which the bank says provides a more secure authentication than questions and answers…It said that more than 84 per cent of its customers have enrolled in the new system, with 95 per cent successfully verified upon first use.
MoneyDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
Car owners face an automatic £80 fine if litter is thrown out of the window of their vehicle, even if a passenger is to blame. CCTV cameras and traffic wardens would be deployed under proposals to cut the amount of roadside rubbish. The plan, which is being put before the House of Lords today and is supported by local councils, would close a loophole in the law, which makes it virtually impossible to bring to book those responsible for dropping litter from moving vehicles.
The LawDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
Sexual abuse allegations have been made involving as many as 100 victims at five of Britain's leading music schools, it emerged yesterday. Ian Pace, a well known musician and former pupil at Chetham's School of Music in Manchester, said he had heard of accusations concerning his alma mater as well as the Purcell School in Herts, Wells Cathedral School in Somerset, St Mary's Music School in Edinburgh and the Yehudi Menuhin School in Surrey. Many more claims concerned psychological and emotional abuse. The pianist, who has been campaigning for a government-led inquiry into the alleged culture of sexual abuse at music schools and colleges, said he and others had handed the names of all the alleged perpetrators to police. Officers cannot begin an investigation unless a specific formal complaint is made. A "significant" police inquiry is under way in Manchester, where about 10 teachers at Ghetham's and the Royal Northern College of Music are being investigated over allegations of rape and serious sexual assault.
EducationDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
Traditional GCSE grades should be scrapped because the system fails to differentiate properly between bright and weak pupils, Cambridge University's exam board has warned. The existing eight-grade scale - from A* to G - should be abolished as part of a government overhaul of exams for 16-year-olds, it was claimed. Cambridge Assessment said that grades should be replaced by a points-based system in which pupils are awarded scores between zero and 900 depending on their performance in tests. The change, outlined in a policy paper, would prevent two students achieving exam marks "some distance apart" yet receiving the same grade, examiners explained.
EducationDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
Universities in the UK are lagging behind those in other countries because of a lack of investment in higher education, an international study has found. The UK was ranked 10th in the world despite boasting some of the best research institutions, such as Oxford and Cambridge. According to researchers, Britain was outperformed by other nations including America, Sweden, Switzerland, Denmark, Finland and the Netherlands in an assessment of the overall effectiveness of the higher education system. UK universities were named among the best in the world on a pound-for-pound basis — measuring research output and the production of a skilled workforce needed to meet the needs of industry. But the study by Universitas 21, an international network of universities and colleges, found that the nation slipped dramatically when assessed by the amount of public and private investment in universities.
EducationDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
Scientists have discovered that arthritis is caused by fat cells in joints that fight off infections, offering hope of relief for millions of sufferers. The breakthrough suggests that the condition could be relieved through gene therapy, which destroys the protein.
HealthDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
It is feared that a mumps epidemic could follow the measles outbreak in South Wales. Cardiff University has put out a warning after a number of students became ill with the viral infection, which can lead to deafness. Public Health Wales is advising people who have not had the MMR jab, the combined vaccine that protects against both conditions as well as rubella, to get vaccinated as soon as possible. The letter from the university comes as the number of people infected with measles in South Wales reached 1,039 - 85 of whom have needed hospital treatment.
HealthDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
Middle-class professionals who drink at home are the country's biggest problem drinkers because they think they know better than health experts, research claims. The study found widespread evidence that white collar workers consider alcohol, especially wine, an everyday reward for chores such as cooking dinner or putting their children to bed, as well as to combat the stress of office life. There was also a common perception among the group that they could ignore health warnings and that regularly drinking at home is safe and sensible, even if their intakes exceeded recommended guidelines.
HealthDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
Elderly people who have contributed to society should be "rewarded in retirement" David Cameron and Nick Clegg said yesterday, but campaigners warned pensioners to check the "fine print". Pensioners will receive a new flat-rate allowance to be worth £155 a week from 2016 under a new Pensions Bill.
The Care Bill, to be published within days, promises to protect the elderly and disabled from potentially"catastrophic" costs of personal care that force 40,000 people to sell their homes each year….The legislation, to be published later this year, will increase the state retirement age to 67 between 2026 and 2028, followed by increases linked to life expectancy. This means young workers today may not retire until their 70s.
The ElderlyDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
It has gone from being a necessity to a hobby to a national obsession. Now, according to a leading restaurateur, cooking has replaced religion. Oliver Peyton, a judge on Great British Menu, has controversially proclaimed that cooking now has more power to unite people than any religion does…BBC Two's Great British Menu has been credited with encouraging an upsurge in home cooking and baking while regularly attracting audiences of more than two million. The latest figures for church attendance show numbers dwindling, with an average of 1.1 million going to worship every week.
Food and DrinkDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
Low-level criminals who spend a few weeks or months in prison will be supervised for a year in the community after their release in an attempt to cut "shameful levels" of re-offending, the Justice Secretary will announce today.
Every prisoner will have to complete a year-long period of supervision that will see them returned to jail if they misbehave, under laws to toughen up the probation regime.
CrimeDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
UK house prices rose to the highest level in almost three years last month, beating forecasts, as low mortgage repayments helped support demand, according to the Halifax. Prices in the three months to April were 2pc higher than in the same period a year earlier, the highest increase since September 2010, according to the latest Halifax House Price index. The average price of a home in the UK is now £166,094….Elsewhere, property website Rightmove reported a "healthy" start to 2013 with site traffic up 20pc over the first four months, compared with last year.
HousingDaily Telegraph 09.05.2013
 
New figures show that men are twice as likely as women not to visit a doctor, even if they are feeling ill. Reasons given to the survey included difficulties in fitting an appointment around work, embarrassment, or the fear of what the doctor might find. 78% of women would visit the doctor for a check-up if they thought they were ill, as opposed to 38% of men.
HealthSocked.co.uk April 2013
 
The Government is to pump £6.5 million into projects aimed at helping separated parents "put their differences aside for the sake of the children", a work and pension minister has said. About 280,000 British families should benefit from the additional funding which is being provided to seven voluntary organisations in the first part of a £20 million drive to help parents who have split up. The support schemes include a national "virtual" internet-based mediation service hosted by the charity Relate as well as plans for parenting classes for the teenage mothers and fathers who are hardest to reach.
MoneyDaily Telegraph April 10 2013
 
Chatting to friends on Facebook will not improve your relationship with them and is less rewarding than talking face-to-face, research suggests. The amount of time that people spend exchanging messages and photographs with friends and family on Facebook has no bearing on the quality of their relationships in real life, experts said. We feel happier and laugh more when speaking to friends in person or via video messaging services such as Skype because we can pick up on visual cues including smiles and nods. The findings suggest that no matter how long we spend communicating with friends via social networks, text messaging or even over the telephone, there is no substitute for seeing them face-to-face, researchers said.
Social IssuesDaily Telegraph April 10 2013
 
Showing page 15 of 24

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