Daily Post

Landlord From Hell On Frau Charge ; Dickens Accused of Deception Over Buying Houses

25 Years On, Liverpool Remembers

Mersey Police Stall Over Merger ; Force Stands Firm As Concerns Rise Over Government Plan

MERSEYSIDE'S police authority last night made a dramatic stand and refused to move forward with Home Office plans to merge forces across the UK. The move places the authority in direct opposition to the Government, which is determined to force through a merger programme reducing the number of forces from 43 to 30.

Veteran of D-Day Landings Dies After Fulfilling Ambition

A D-DAY veteran blinded by a mortar has died at his North Wales home. Trefor Ireland, from Garndolbenmaen, Gwynedd, died on Tuesday with his family by his side. The 84-year-old suffered a stroke in May.

Council Suspends Its Housing Boss ; Alarm at Pounds 700,000 Overspend On Repairs

A NORTH Wales council housing boss was suspended yesterday following a massive overspend on repairs. Flintshire council housing director Steve Partner was suspended just two days after worried councillors were told the housing maintenance budget was at least pounds 700,000 in the red.

Bradley in Wrangle Over City Funding

LIVERPOOL'S newly-elected council leader, Warren Bradley, was last night accused of deceiving residents when he said the city had been short-changed by the Government to the tune of pounds 3m. Labour leader Joe Anderson said the Liberal Democrat council had been effectively handed an extra 6% in Whitehall funding, compared with the 2% announced yesterday.

Cctv Operators Deny Cheap Thrills Claim

TWO council CCTV operators have denied getting "cheap thrills" by spying on a naked woman in her home. David Welsh and Kevin Judge were working in a control centre for Sefton council when a camera was trained on a 25-year-old woman in her flat.

Couple Die in Fire Started by Light Bulb

AN ELDERLY couple have been killed in a fire in their home, believed to have been started by heat from a light bulb, emergency services said. Firefighters believe that the victims, who have not been named, may have been overcome after going upstairs to fight the flames which broke out in an airing cupboard at their home in Abingdon, Oxfordshire.

Driver Quizzed After Fatal Crash

Surgery Fears

Air Rage

TWO business class air passengers have been arrested following claims they flew into a drunken rage after being caught having sex on a plane. A British Airways jet with about 200 people on board was forced to make an unscheduled stop in Bermuda after the incident on Monday.

Dummy Good

Lottery

9,000 People Told T Stop Boiling Water

AROUND 9,000 people will today be told they no longer need to boil their water - as the number of stomach bug cases rose by 11 to 174. The move means around 13% of people on high alert because of the cryptosporidium water bug outbreak will be able to drink their tap water again.

The Sewage Works Under Investigation

WELSH Water is moving tonnes of human effluent from sewage works less than a mile from the reservoir at the centre of the stomach bug outbreak. The company said the movements from the Rhyd Ddu sewage treatment works was a precaution while the cryptosporidium outbreak is investigated.

Barristers in Court Lift Scare

A LIFT at Liverpool's QE11 Court complex plunged three floors and imprisoned the shaken occupants for an hour. An investigation was launched yesterday after seven people - including four barristers - were in the lift, which is for use by members of the legal profession.

Joan to Bring the Show of Her Life to Liverpool ; the Veteran Icon Shares Her Secrets. Homa Khaleeli Reports

FTER almost sixty years in showbusiness, Joan Collins is bringing her first UK tour to Liverpool. The actress, also renowned for her talent as an author and film producer, will stage an hour-and-a-half show in which she will reveal the secrets of her colourful life.

Protest Over Threat to Special Needs Schools

DEMONSTRATORS will today form a human road block outside Liverpool Town Hall to protest over closure plans that will hit the city's most vulnerable children and adults. Parents of children with special needs are furious that three schools have been earmarked for closure.

Government of Wales Bill: No More Two Bites of the Cherry

ONE of the most contentious measures in the bill would prevent future candidates from standing in both constituencies and on a regional list in Assembly elections. The move aims to tackle the so-called Clwyd West question in the last election when three losing candidates in the constituency were still elected under proportional representation on the North Wales list.

Government of Wales Bill: Devolution a New Dawn ; Opposition Slams 'Timid Fudge

PETER Hain last night unveiled a "new dawn for devolution" in Wales. And the Welsh secretary pledged a fast track to Welsh law- making by 2007. His new Government of Wales Bill allows the Assembly to secure Westminster approval for drawing up its own legislation. Most controversially, it overhauls the voting system in Assembly elections, banning candidates from standing in both constituencies and on regional lists.