Britain today: Police chiefs predict 30,000 jobs face axe

ALMOST 30,000 jobs will be lost in police forces across England and Wales under the government's budget cuts, police chiefs have predicted.

The Association of Chief Police Officers told ministers that 12,000 police officers and 16,000 civilian staff jobs will be cut over the next four years.

Couple shot dead in flat

DETECTIVES in Northern Ireland have launched a double murder inquiry after a man and woman were found shot dead in a flat.

The victims' bodies were discovered at an address in Craigavon, Co Armagh, just after 6pm yesterday. Initial theories suggested gangland criminals may be to blame.

Pension system reform ensures it 'pays to save'

THE government is to embark on a fundamental overhaul of the pensions system to ensure that it "pays to save" for retirement, Iain Duncan Smith was set to say today.

The Work and Pensions Secretary was set to signal a move towards a flat-rate state pension that would remove disincentives for lower earners to build up savings.

Such a shift is also likely to benefit mothers who currently lose out on their pensions for having taken a career break to raise their children.

Fears for abuse services

MORE than half of the services that help victims of domestic abuse and sexual violence could face closure as a result of "devastating" government cuts.

A survey for Women's Aid found 60 per cent of refuge services and 72 per cent of outreach services had no funding agreed from April 1.

The charity said more than 70,000 women might not be able to access a service.

Split is a careless whisper

GEORGE Michael called a daytime TV show to assure viewers he has not split from his boyfriend, after he saw presenters discussing it.

The singer rang Channel 5's The Wright Stuff to deny he had broken up with long-term partner Kenny Goss.

Bolton: A Motor Neurone Disease sufferer has turned to pioneering technology to preserve his voice for his young son in case he loses the power of speech. Laurence Brewer, 43, from Bolton, is using voice software to "bank" 1600 phrases and sentences so he can continue to read to his 13-month-old son, Stan.

Lincolnshire: Members of a National Lottery syndicate who won more than 4 million between them are treating themselves to a bungalow each. The group - four of whom worked together at the Moy Park food-processing plant in Sleaford - scooped 4,197,764 last month.