Week in the UK. Good or bad

In the early hours of Saturday, the BBC warned that t ime was running out for people to use any standard non-barcoded stamps as Monday is the last day they can be used to post items . After Monday, customers sending mail with these stamps risk the recipient being given a surcharge of £1.10. However, commemorative and non-barcoded Christmas stamps will still be valid. People can swap their old stamps for barcoded stamps through Royal Mail's Swap Out scheme, where there is no deadline for exchange. Royal Mail said: "A leaflet with a form [for the Swap Out scheme] was delivered to every household recently, but customers can also print out a form from our website; call our Customer Experience team to order one; or pick one up at a local Royal Mail delivery office or Post Office." The deadline for using the old stamps was extended from 31 January as more time was required for users, Royal Mail said. After Monday, Royal Mail says a £1.10 surcharge fee will be applied to ...

On Friday, the BBC reported on the MoD accidentally emailing Russian ally instead of the US colleagues.  The emails were intended for the US military, which uses the domain name ".mil". But they missed out the letter i, and so the messages went instead to the West African nation of Mali. Defence officials say the emails did not contain information that could compromise operational security. The mistake, they said, involved only a small number of emails being sent to Mali, whose email domain is ".ml". "We have opened an investigation after a small number of emails were mistakenly forwarded to an incorrect email domain," an MoD spokesman told PA news agency. "We are confident they did not contain any information that could compromise operational security or technical data." The spokesman added that all sensitive information used by the government department was "shared on systems designed to minimise the risk of misdirection". Ye...

On Thursday, the police made a statement on death of a talented Irish singer and activist Sinéad O'Connor the world has lost a day earlier. The Irish singer and activist, 56, best known for the song Nothing Compares 2 U, was found at her home in Herne Hill, south London at 11:18 BST. Police say she was "unresponsive" and "pronounced dead at the scene". London Inner South Coroner's Court said no medical cause of death was given and an autopsy will be conducted. The results could take "several weeks" and a decision on whether an inquest will be needed will be decided when they are are known, the court added, O'Connor's family announced the news of her death on Wednesday evening "with great sadness", saying "her family and friends are devastated". She will be remembered for many political statements, including in 1992 when she controversially ripped up a picture of Pope John Paul II during a performance on US TV ...

On Wednesday, the BBC reported that police in England will attend fewer mental health calls . The government says the policy could save a million hours of police time every year. Senior officers say forces have "lost their way" by dealing with less serious mental health problems. But mental health charities say they are "deeply worried" at what could be a "dangerous" change. At the moment, some police forces in England and Wales attend 80% of so-called health and social care incidents. It is expected this will be reduced to between 20 and 30% within the next two years, under the plans. The government says it is providing an extra £1bn a year, including £150m for facilities to replace police officers, including: specialist mental health ambulances extra capacity for treating patients "crisis cafes", where people struggling to cope can drop in for help And 999-call handlers are being trained to assess a request for officers to attend and decide wh...

On Tuesday, ministers and train companies have been spooked over legal challenges to how the process has been conducted, amid claims that the 21 day consultation was too short and unlawful . Controversial plans to close almost every railway ticket office in England were thrown into disarray that day amid a mounting backlash as it emerged consultations could run on all summer. A public consultation on proposals to shut nearly 1,000 ticket counters was due to end at just before Wednesday midnight. The process could yet be extended following crisis talks between the Department for Transport and train operators earlier today.It is understood the consultations could even be extended over the summer and could run into September. Ministers and train companies have been spooked over legal challenges to how the process has been conducted. At its heart are claims that the 21 day consultation was not only too short but also unlawful and discriminated against disabled people. It is underst...

On Monday, it became known that Network Rail bosses splashed £10,000-a-week on air fares last year because it worked out cheaper than getting the train . Figures showed that staff at the public body - which owns most of the UK’s railway network - bought 985 plane tickets for flights within the UK. They bought a further 1,622 for international journeys, Freedom of Information data has revealed. Many of these domestic journeys could have easily been done by rail - outraging green campaigners who pointed out that getting the train is far more environmentally-friendly. Of the internal flights, 72 were between Birmingham and Glasgow which is served by a direct train line with one-way tickets costing up to £206. And among the company’s staff, high-flying director Michelle Handforth - who pockets an annual salary of £330,000 - expensed £8,000 worth of domestic flights. Criticism of national railway wevice wasn't surprised for anyone. " In Britain we pay exorbitant first world...