A thought to make you shiver... it's colder here than the Antarctic

Speed-skating

Britain is gripped by a deep freeze fit for a polar bear as temperatures plunge to -10C - colder than the Antarctic - and 2,800 motorists call for assistance every hour.

200 bail hostels to open secretly in residential streets across Britain

Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Herbert described the plan as 'covert'

A secret leaked memo reveals 200 bail hostels for dangerous criminals are being opened in residential streets across Britain without any consultation with the public.

One of world's richest men kills himself after £1bn loss in stock market gamble

A family spokesman said: 'The desperate situation of his companies have broken the passionate family entrepreneur and he took his own life'

One of the world's richest men has become the latest high-profile suicide linked to the credit crunch. Police said there was no sign anyone else was involved and there was a suicide note.

We'll force 'Shameless' families to go to work, says Blears

Shameless

A crackdown on 'Shameless' families could see state officials turning up at people's homes to get them out of bed for work and make sure their children go to school.

One in ten shops to close by February as experts warn many high streets will become ghost towns

ghost towns

Four in ten police officers convicted of serious crimes keep their jobs

Chris Huhne

More than four in ten police officers convicted of serious crimes have been allowed to keep their jobs.

Drugs charity boss and her two sons ran 24-hour cocaine delivery service

Karen Stott

The director of a drugs charity and her two sons ran a round-the-clock service supplying cocaine to middle-class customers anywhere within the M25.

Boy, 12, dies after GPs refuse to make house call, telling mother to 'give him paracetamol'

Daniel Farr

A boy of 12 died after out-of-hours doctors refused to make a house call - and told his mother to treat his mystery illness with paracetamol.

A diabetic is diagnosed in Britain every THREE minutes

Nurse

The number of people diagnosed with diabetes has soared by 50 per cent in just a year.

Car insurance premiums could rise by 20% as injury claims soar

Motorist

Car insurance premiums could soar by a record 20 per cent this year, insurers are warning, thanks to the rise in fraud and personal injury claims.

Owners of manors and farmhouses 'may need to cut prices by 25 per cent'

Room with a view: Farmhouses may need to drop their prices by 25 per cent in order to find buyers

Owners of luxury homes could be forced to slash prices by 25 per cent or more to find a buyer, a report has warned. 'Prime' manors, farmhouses and country cottages are all being hit.

The missing lynx: Film that may prove big cats really do roam Britain

Mystery cat: A black panther

For years we have questioned their existence - and put sightings down to human error and tricks of the light.

'We've got the terror gangs in check', says head of MI5

Informal: MI5 head Jonathan Evans told reporters the terror risk 'should not be hyped up'

The number of terror plots targeting the UK has dropped over the past 18 months and the threat must no longer be 'hyped up', the head of MI5 has said.

Hospitals told to lift the ban on mobile phones

mobile on ward

The ban on the use of mobile phones in hospitals should be lifted, the Government has said.

Banned: Estee Lauder ordered to pull advert for wrinkle cream after claims are proved false

Liz Hurley

An advert for a wrinkle treatment which promised to dramatically reduce lines has been banned. Estee Lauder claimed women would 'see wrinkles disappear instantly'.

Israel bows to international pressure after bombing UN school in Gaza's darkest day

gaza

The purple-haired pensioner 'who's been stalking Judge John Deed actor Martin Shaw'

shaw

Jail for millionaire boss of carjackers who sold and stole back vehicles up to SIX times

Nokhiaz Khan

A violent gang stole and re-stole dozens of cars up to six times in a sophisticated scam targeting middle-class families.

Fugitive who escaped prison on day-release used car as 'battering ram to seriously injure female detective'

Catherine Corbett

A fugitive who escaped from prison while on day-release used his car as a 'battering ram' to serious injure a female detective during a sting operation to recapture him.

Model dubbed the new Twiggy dies of cancer at just 23

Battle: Toni Chorley died two days after Christmas, aged 23, after a two-year battle against Hodgkin's Lymphoma

A young model dubbed the new Twiggy has died after being struck down with cancer weeks into her dream career. Toni Chorley, 23, died two days after Christmas Day.

Away-day Cabinet meetings have cost taxpayer £600,000

Costly: Gordon Brown at a session with the public during a Cabinet away day to Leeds last November. The Government spent around £200,000 on the trip

Gordon Brown’s ‘gimmick’ of holding Cabinet meetings outside London in a bid to prove ministers are listening to people outside the capital has cost taxpayers £600,000.

Council bosses fight the credit crunch... by hiring £100k anti-recession guru

county hall - Lancashire

Cash-strapped council bosses believe they have come up with a new approach to fighting the credit crunch - by hiring a £100k anti-recession guru.

Social services boss in Baby P scandal appeals against her sacking

Sharon Shoesmith

The council chief sacked from her £100,000-a-year job over the Baby P abuse scandal has launched an appeal, it has been revealed.

Animal carer dies from rabies 'after being scratched by dog in Africa two years ago'

Lisa McMurray, who contracted rabies while abroad, has died in hospital. She may have harboured the disease for two years

A woman who died from rabies may have contracted the disease in Africa more than two years ago. Lisa McMurray had been in a critical condition in intensive care.

WORLD NEWS

gaza        

'There's probably no God... now stop worrying and enjoy your life': Atheist group launches billboard campaign

God

New internet crime maps for every part of England and Wales 'could become a burglar's guide'

Crime map

Every householder in England and Wales can now check crime levels in their neighbourhood through online crime maps compiled by police forces.

Vicar takes down crucifixion sculpture 'because it's a scary depiction of suffering'

christ

A vicar has removed a sculpture of the crucifixion from the front of his church because it was a 'horrifying depiction of pain and suffering' that was scaring off worshippers.

Two married priests who abandoned their families to set up home together are banned from Church

Rev James Tipp and Rev Elaine Northern

Two married priests who left their families to live together have been banned from the clergy.

First picture of driver killed on level crossing who was due to marry in months

Workers stand by the wreckage of the dead woman's car which was struck by a train after becoming trapped between level-crossing barriers

This is the first picture of the woman who died when the car she was in was hit by a train after getting stuck on a level crossing..

Rail commuters left stranded after power lines come down in another train fiasco

Virgin Trains

Rail passengers were left stranded last night when overhead wires came down and stopped trains from moving, in the third railway incident in five days.

SATs pass marks plunge for English and maths under Labour

SATs test marks appear to be on a consistent downward trend

The pass mark in SATs tests has fallen sharply since Labour came to power, with youngsters needing to score 43 per cent to make the grade in English and 45 per cent in maths.

Baby dies and seven others sick as bug infects neo-natal unit

Birmingham Heartlands Hospital

A baby has died and seven others are in an isolation ward after the outbreak of a bug in a hospital neo-natal unit. The child was one of two premature babies found to be infected.

Benedict Brogan
Robin Page
Peter Hitchens
Mary Ellen Synon