EU plans to ban all petrol and diesel cars from cities to force drivers to go ‘green’

By Daily Mail ReporterA more common sight? Electric parking bays would become the norm under the new EU rulesThe vast majority of British motorists will be outlaws in their own land under controversial new EU plans to ban petrol and diesel powered cars from cities.But critics said the latest Brussels blueprint to force people into 'green' cars, slash dependence on oil and tackle climate change, was bamboozling drivers and taking the European Union into "the realms of fantasy". The European Commission says its plan to drive out 'conventionally fuelled' petrol and diesel cars within 40 years and replace them with 'clean' alternatives such as electric...

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Addicted to junk food and celebrities...Lonely Planet's damning verdict on England today

By Jonathan PetreEngland has been damned as celebrity-obsessed with a ‘dicey’ economy and an addiction to junk food.The verdict is in the latest Lonely Planet travel guide, which also portrays the Coalition Government as devious over spending cuts. The guide, published this month and expected to be bought by 100,000 people worldwide, is regarded as a bible by many travellers. Co-ordinating author David Else laments that the nation which spawned Shakespeare, Dickens and the Brontes has become obsessed with celebrity. He writes: ‘It’s impossible to overlook the recent trend for scurrilous celebrity autobiographies – penned by everyone from footballers...

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The pizza firms slicing a 900% profit off your delivery: £1.25 to make a Margherita... but you pay £12.49

By Sean PoulterPizza delivery firms are cashing in with a price mark-up of up to 900 per cent, industry insiders have revealed.Sales are rising at a time when more people are trying to save money by eating in rather than dining out.Yet customers may be unaware that while they are being charged £12.49 for a large cheese and tomato Margherita pizza, it has been made with ingredients costing just £1.25. Some of the 900 per cent mark-up can be explained by the fact the Government takes its own cut, with VAT at 20 per cent. The firms also have other costs, including rent, rates and wages. But leaked details of the prices paid by the major pizza chains...

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Estimated 74 dead and over a hundred injured after 6.8 earthquake hits Burma

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER Disaster: At least 74 people were killed when a strong earthquake struck Myanmar, officials said, with fears that the toll would rise Quake was felt in Thai and Vietnamese capitalsFour-year-old boy killed in mountain town where earthquake hitUN sending relief teams to affected areasA strong earthquake that toppled homes in north eastern Burma has killed over 70 people, and there were fears today the toll would mount as conditions in more remote areas became known. Last night's quake, measured at a magnitude 6.8 by the US Geological Survey, was centred just north of the town Tachileik in the mountains along the Thai border,...

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Naked woman, 27, rescued from cliffs after getting stuck trying to reach nudist beach

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER Nowhere to go: A 27-year-old climber was caught on the bluffs in the buff and had to be rescued by lifeguards on Tuesday A naked woman had to be rescued by lifeguards yesterday after she got stuck trying to climb down cliffs to a secluded nudist beach.She had taken off her clothes before trying to clamber 450ft down to Black's Beach, which lies in Torrey Pines State Park in San Diego, California. But the 27-year-old got into difficulties and found herself stranded on a ledge unable to climb back up or head down to the shoreline. At last! A female coastguard is lowered down the rock face to help rescue the woman - and...

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The Japanese road repaired SIX days after it was destroyed by quake

By MAIL FOREIGN SERVICE The picture of gaping chasms in a Japanese highway demonstrated the power of the March 11 earthquake.Now the astonishing speed of reconstruction is being used to highlight the nation’s ability to get back on its feet.Work began on March 17 and six days later the cratered section of the Great Kanto Highway in Naka was as good as new. It was ready to re-open to traffic last night. Now you see it...: This stretch of the Great Kanto highway was wrecked by deep chasms in the March 11 earthquake - but was repaired in just six daysMany workers returned to their jobs the day after the quake and subsequent tsunami and some businesses...

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Interest rate rise fear grows as inflation hits a 20-year record

By Becky BarrowRetail Price Index rises from 5.1 to 5.5 per centFamilies are being punished by the highest rate of inflation for two decades amid fears of an interest rate rise.Figures published yesterday put the retail prices index (RPI) measure of inflation at 5.5 per cent, the biggest annual increase in the cost of living since 1991.At the current level, inflation is higher in Britain than any other European country – except Estonia, Bulgaria and Romania.The figures were released on a day of bad news for the economy, which included:n The cost of fuel hitting a record average price of £1.33 for a litre of unleaded.n The announcement that public...

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The moment nuclear plant chief WEPT as Japanese finally admit that radiation leak is serious enough to kill people

By David Derbyshire-Officials admit they may have to bury reactors under concrete - as happened at Chernobyl -Government says it was overwhelmed by the scale of twin disasters -Japanese upgrade accident from level four to five - the same as Three Mile Island -We will rebuild from scratch says Japanese prime minister-Particles spewed from wrecked Fukushima power station arrive in California -Military trucks tackle reactors with tons of water for second day Overwhelmed: Tokyo Electric Power Company Managing Director Akio Komiri cries as he leaves after a press conference in FukushimaThe boss of the company behind the devastated Japanese nuclear...

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When Harry met Silly... Young royal makes quite an impression as he mimics his father, Prince Charles

By Daily Mail ReporterYoung pretender: Prince Harry does a rather good impression of his father while on a tour of the Mary Rose Museum at Portsmouth Historic DockyardPrince Harry played his royal joker card today... with a half-decent impression of his father Charles.Braving the cold rain on a tour of the Mary Rose Museum at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, he tried out his comical grimace on a group of schoolchildren.The young royal took part in a ceremony laying a foundation stone for a new museum to house the Tudor warship and its artefacts.The ceremony involved a time capsule created by pupils from Haslemere Preparatory School being buried...

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Just eight months in prison for drunk mother who attacked disfigured girl in a bar after telling her 'take off your mask'

By Daily Mail Reporter-Prosecutors lobbied for tougher prison sentence -To add insult to injury a BBC security guard asks 'Don't you think you're taking Red Nose Day a bit too far?'Attacked: Chantelle Richardson, left, was taunted and punched by Rachel Rooney on a night out in Oldham. Here the 23-year-old is pictured with Katie Piper who suffered an acid attackA drunken mother who attacked a disfigured girl in a bar in an 'appalling' disability hate crime sobbed as she was jailed yesterday. On a night out in Oldham, Rachel Rooney taunted and attacked 23-year-old Chantelle Richardson, who rarely leaves the house because of her deformity and could...

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Dark days in ghost town of Tokyo

By RICHARD SHEARS Ghost town: A landmark crossroads in Tokyo's Ginza district is eerily dark and empty as people stay indoors after warnings about a radioactive cloud from the stricken nuclear plant 150 miles awayIt is one of the great cities of the world, home to 13million and as advanced as any metropolis on the planet.Now Tokyo, usually so full of life by day and night, has the aura of death about it.Its lights have been cut, supermarket shelves are empty, there are queues for everything and aftershocks come every day. You could find a few die-hard Brits and other expatriates who wouldn't leave their beers on the counter in the party-time...

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