The Patrol: Film Examines Afghan War Legacy

By Alistair Bunkall, Defence Correspondent

The first UK feature film about the conflict in Afghanistan is due to premiere next week - and Sky News has had access to an exclusive screening of it.

The Patrol is set in Helmand Province around 2006/07 and tells the story of a British Army patrol sent to protect an Afghan town against the Taliban.

But early in the Helmand occupation, forces were stretched and the soldiers are ordered to lengthen their patrol. The film explores the tensions that arise and questions the strategy and equipment the soldiers are expected to fight with.

Tom Petch: 'We are pulling out with 444 dead and little reconstruction'

"I wanted to portray conflict in a way the public doesn't see it," explained writer and director Tom Petch, who is a former Army officer himself.

"My film raises a question that back in 2006 John Reid told us that we were deploying to into Helmand Province as part of a reconstruction effort.

"In fact he's often misquoted but I think the press conference he gave in Kabul went something like 'he'd be very happy if we left after three years without firing a single shot' because we were protecting the reconstruction effort.

"Here we are pulling out in 2014 with 444 dead and very little reconstruction seems to have happened, and those questions haven't really been answered."

The Patrol was actually filmed in Morocco. The cast was sent on a boot camp and trained in drills to learn basic soldiering techniques. It was shot in 40 degree heat - similar temperatures to the Afghan summer - and the actors were deprived of sleep on location for realism.

"The soldiers use the language they would be using so a lot of it is abbreviations, a lot of it is slang. I think you can get what is going on from the emotion of the characters rather than what they say," added Petch.

The film was shot in Morocco in 40 degree heat similar to Afghanistan

Sky News watched the film with a group of current and former military personnel, all of whom have served in Afghanistan - a scrupulous audience.

"I take issue with the idea that there was a kit or an ammunition issue," said Corporal Jake Fisher, who is in the RAF.

"But I'm sure some lads might come out and say there was, particularly if you were on a PB (patrol base) or something and you're very seldom getting resupplied.

"There was a line in it talking about the loneliness of the officer. It asks those questions that don't normally get asked."

The film doesn't judge the British Army: not the fighting nor the bravery of the soldiers, rather the purpose of the mission.

And the timing of the release is pertinent as the process of withdrawing British combat troops from Afghanistan is well under way and due to complete by the end of 2014.

:: The Patrol will premiere at The Raindance Film Festival in central London on Friday, October 4, at 9pm.

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Downing St Denies PM's Catfight With Larry

Number 10 has denied claims made in a new book that Larry the Downing Street cat is disliked by the Cameron family.

Following allegations that the rescue pet was little more than a public relations prop, a "savelarry" hashtag quickly took off on Twitter with users poking fun at the furore.

GlobalPolitico ‏wrote: "The radical anti-cat agenda of this government is revealing itself."

Cumbrian Labour councillor John Burns tweeted: "Is there no end to David Cameron's victimisation of those who cannot speak up for themselves?"

Larry was drafted into Downing Street to catch rodents

Downing Street moved to dismiss suggestions in Matthew d'Ancona's In It Together that the cat was "unloved".

A spokesman said: "Totally untrue. He is very popular with everyone in the building and we all get on purr-fectly well."

The six-year-old-feline, who was rescued by Battersea Dogs And Cats Home, joined the staff at Number 10 in 2011 after a rat scuttled across the doorstep of the PM's residence during a live TV broadcast.

Larry's seemingly complacent approach to his rodent duties led to speculation that his days could be numbered, but in August last year, Downing Street announced he had finally made his first kill.

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'Smart Drug' Modafinil Risks Student Health

Students at some of Britain's best universities are potentially putting their health at risk by using a 'smart drug' bought off the internet, Sky News has been told.

Doctors have warned that increasing numbers of teenagers are using the prescription-only medicine modafinil to stay awake and alert for long periods of time.

The drug is designed to combat the sleeping disorder narcolepsy.

However, research shows it is available to anyone from dozens of online retailers.

Anecdotal evidence suggests there is a black market at universities, including Oxford and Cambridge, with students selling it to each other for around £2 a pill.

Some students are now said to be demanding drug tests before exams to stamp out a practice they believe to be equivalent to cheating.

Some students are turning to the internet to get the drug

One Oxford student told Sky News that he believed up to a quarter of his student friends had taken modafinil.

But academics say that the long-term effects are unknown, and medicines' watchdog the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency says the drug should not be taken without a prescription.

Barbara Sahakian, professor of clinical neuropsychology at Cambridge University, said there had been an increase in the number of students taking the drug in recent years.

"A lot of young people are purchasing these drugs over the internet.

"[It] is a very unsafe way to get these drugs because you don't really know what you're getting and you don't know if it's safe for you as an individual."

She said some students feel peer pressure to take the drug in order to keep up with their fellow students.

There can be pressure to take modafinil, says Professor Barbara Sahakian

"There's this kind of coercion that goes on.

"I think a lot of students feel it's very unfair that other students are taking these drugs during exams and they feel that they're losing out because the other person has a competitive advantage.

"Some students feel when you go into the exam perhaps there should be a test to see whether you're on the drug or not, because otherwise there's no way of detecting whether you are or not."

Prof Sahakian believes that the increasing use of modafinil raises serious concerns both for students and society.

"What are the effects of putting a drug into and changing the chemicals in your brain as your brain is developing?" she asked.

"What will society be like in the future? Will we all be just popping pills to stay awake, and alert and keep working? Will we accelerate into a 24/7 society? Is that what we really want?"

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt told Sky News: "I'm very concerned. Let's be clear. This is drug abuse.

"To all those young people we completely understand the pressures of taking exams but you are playing with fire if you take drugs that haven't been prescribed.

"You don't know what the effect will be on your mind and body. It's a very dangerous thing to do and I would strongly encourage students to think again before doing this."

Laurie Pycroft believes around a quarter of his friends have taken the drug

Laurie Pycroft, a masters student at Oxford University, admits taking the drug every few weeks.

He told Sky News: "Some people report that they become very focused or very good at concentrating on a repetitive task.

"I have found the ability to go without sleep, when necessary, quite effective. It's essentially like caffeine, just a bit more effective and with less jitters.

"The people I've met who offer me modafinil for sale, they've all been fellow students, or academic types, rather than your stereotypical wheeler-dealer in a hoodie down a dark alley."

Doctor Anders Sandberg, research fellow at Oxford University's future of humanity institute uses modafinil every one or two weeks.

While he believes he is doing himself no harm, he would rather be able to get the drug from his GP.

Oxford University says it had not seen evidence of a modafinil problem

"Going via an internet drug store means the money ends up in the grey market, and that's problematic. You might be feeding your money into a market that is actually doing a lot of harm in the world.

"It would be much better if it were in the open market, which would mean that we could actually control that it's actually healthy, that side effects get reported, that you could actually study it properly."

He added: "I don't regard the use itself as immoral or problematic. I'm not competing with anyone else. I am taking the risks on my own."

Buying prescription-only drugs is not illegal, however, supplying them is.

Universities UK says there is no firm evidence to suggest taking 'smart drugs' is widespread among students and called for more research to discover how common it is.

In a statement, it said: "We would be very concerned if the impression were given that most students at UK universities are now taking … 'smart drugs'.

"We are not aware of any new research or data to suggest that such drugs are widely used and available among the UK's higher education student population of 2.5 million students."

It said however, that it would have "grave concerns" about students taking drugs not prescribed to them.

An Oxford University spokesman said: "If 'cognitive enhancement' drugs are a particular problem at Oxford we have yet to see any substantive evidence for it."

In a statement, spokesmen for Oxford and Cambridge universities both said they strongly advised students never to take prescription-only medicines without a doctor's recommendation.

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NHS' Life-Extending Cancer Drug Fund Extended

Funding to pay for life-extending drugs for cancer patients is to be extended, the Prime Minister has announced.

The £200m-a-year Cancer Drugs Fund was set up for patients in England to access drugs approved by doctors but which have not been given the go-ahead for widespread use on the NHS.

The scheme was designed to make it easier for doctors to prescribe treatments even if they have not yet been approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice).

It had been set to run until 2014 and campaigners raised concerns about where patients would turn to when the funding ceased. But David Cameron said the funding programme will run for another two years to March 2016.

The Rarer Cancers Foundation, which campaigned for the fund to be extended, welcomed the announcement.

Andrew Wilson, chief executive of the charity, said: "The Cancer Drugs Fund has made a huge difference to cancer patients in England, significantly improving the quality of treatment available to people with advanced forms of cancer.

"It has also addressed some of the historic inequities that have existed for people with rarer cancers, ensuring that access to treatment is not denied simply because you are unlucky enough to have a rare form of cancer.

"This is a compassionate, common sense announcement which will be warmly welcomed by many thousands of cancer patients."

So far more than 34,000 patients have benefited from the fund and the charity estimates that 16,500 extra patients will benefit each year as a result of the extension of the funding programme.

Mr Cameron said: "When I became Prime Minister three years ago many patients with rare cancers were being denied life saving treatments.

"That is why we created the Cancer Drugs Fund, it is why we are extending it, and it is why we are partnering with Cancer Research UK to conduct new research into the effectiveness of cancer drugs."

Dr Andrew Protheroe, consultant in medical oncology at The Churchill Hospital in Oxford, added: "The more treatment options that are available to me, the better job I feel I can do for my patients.

"There is nothing more frustrating than knowing there is an effective, licensed, evidence-based treatment available which I am not allowed to use."

Sir Andrew Dillon, Chief Executive of Nice, said: "Nice guidance on new cancer drugs provides the basis for informed decisions to be taken by clinicians and patients, and by making clear when drugs work well in routine practice, it helps the NHS allocate the money it has available fairly and efficiently.

"NHS organisations have always been able to consider exceptions to our guidance. The Cancer Drugs Fund provides a national resource to meet the cost of those exceptions.

"NICE cancer drugs guidance helps to make sure that the fund is used only where exceptions to our recommendations on routine practice really will work in the interests of patients."

Mr Cameron also announced Genomics England - a Government-owned organisation tasked with mapping the DNA of 100,000 patients with cancer and rare diseases - will begin a partnership with Cancer Research UK.

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Paul Gascoigne Claims His Bank Account Hacked

The former England footballer Paul Gascoigne has claimed he was targeted by hackers who stole up to £50,000 from his bank account.

The 46-year-old, whose battles with alcoholism have been well documented, said his account was hit 23 times in two days.

Gascoigne, who was once reportedly worth £14m but ended up facing bankruptcy over a £32,000 unpaid tax bill in 2011, said he had been "bled dry" in the scam.

Speaking outside his Bournemouth home, he told The Sun he believed he knew who was responsible but that he did not understand how it had happened.

Gazza in his playing days was worth a reported £14m

He said: "I know who did it ... It was quite a lot of money.

"It wasn't that much. **** knows. I don't know. Website, internet, I've not got a clue."

Police are investigating the claims by the former Tottenham and Newcastle player, who said between £9,000 and £50,000 had been stolen.

Widely regarded as one of the most talented footballers of his generation, Gascoigne has fought a protracted battle with alcohol including a number of stints in rehab.

Gascoigne at court in August for drunken assault

Most recently in February he was taken to intensive care after a detox spell at a clinic in Arizona in the US.

He later said that he had overheard doctors saying that they did not think he was going to make it.

In August he was fined £1,245 for drunkenly assaulting railway staff at Stevenage train station in July.

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Leicester House Fire Murders: Four In Court

By David Crabtree, Midlands Correspondent

Four people, including a 16-year-old boy, have appeared in court charged with murdering a mother and her three teenage children in a house fire.

In the early hours of Friday, September 13, a blaze engulfed the Taufiq family home in the Spinney Hills area of Leicester.

The bodies of the mother Shehnila, 47, her daughter Zainab, 19, and sons Bilal, 17, and Jamil, 15, were all discovered in upstairs bedrooms.

Dr Muhammad Taufiq said he would "deeply miss" his wife and children

The children's father, Muhammad Taufiq al Sattar, was not home at the time. The neurosurgeon was working in Ireland.

In a hearing lasting less than three minutes at Leicester Magistrates' Court, the four accused confirmed their names and addresses and indicated they did understand the nature of the charges against them.

Jackson Powell, 19, Nathaniel Mullings, 19, Shaun Carter, 24 and the 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were remanded in custody.

They are due to appear before Leicester Crown Court on Tuesday, October 1, with a further preliminary hearing fixed for October 12.

Another man, Kemo Porter, 18, was charged on September 19 with four counts of murder. He will appear at Leicester Crown court at a later date.  

Mr Taufiq al Sattar has said he would "deeply miss" his "beautiful" wife, daughter and two teenage sons.

The family are originally from Pakistan, but had a home in Ireland for at least 15 years before the children moved to the UK with their mother around five years ago for an Islamic education.

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Tory Aide Alan Lewis Held Over Rape Claim

The Conservative Party vice-chairman has been arrested on suspicion of raping a teenager in the 1960s.

Alan Lewis, 75, who was appointed by David Cameron in 2010, was held by police after a woman claimed she was sexually assaulted by him when she was younger.

Mr Lewis, a self-made business tycoon who owns the Crombie luxury menswear chain, was released on police bail after his arrest by Manchester police.

The allegation comes as the Conservatives prepare for their party conference to begin in Manchester on Sunday.

A spokesman for Alan Lewis said: "An allegation has been made against Alan Lewis in respect of an event 46 years ago by a then adult female. He vigorously denies the allegation."

In his role for the Conservative Party, Mr Lewis, is responsible for business relations.

The Manchester-born businessman was made a CBE in 1990 for his services as chairman of the Confederation of British Industry's initiative to prepare British businesses for the single market.

Mr Lewis, who has reportedly amassed a fortune of between £220m and £260m, was appointed treasurer of a special committee dealing with the marginal seats campaign for the 1987 General Election under Margaret Thatcher.

A Greater Manchester Police spokesman said: "A 75-year-old man was arrested following a complaint received earlier this year of an historic rape that occurred in the Manchester area in the late 60s.

"The man was later bailed pending further inquiries. Specially trained officers are providing support and welfare to the victim."

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Marriage Tax Breaks For Four Million Couples

David Cameron says four million couples will benefit from the Government's new £1,000 marriage tax allowance.

Ahead of the start of the Conservative Party conference, the Prime Minister said the scheme - starting in April 2015 - will be worth up to £200 a year for married couples, including 15,000 in civil partnerships.

They will receive the benefit at the end of the tax year in 2016.

It will work by letting people transfer £1,000 of their personal tax allowance to their spouse or civil partner - an increase on the £750 allowance promised in the Tory manifesto, which would have seen couples gain £150.

The new allowance, which is not available to couples which include a higher rate taxpayer, is aimed at couples where one partner has not used all of their personal allowance or does not work at all.

Bride-to-be Jo Herbert, told Sky News at a west London wedding show that she did not think the proposals were fair and that she felt they would do little to encourage marriage.

She said: "Personally I don't think that it's very fair that they (married couples) are receiving financial rewards and couples that just that just choose not to get married for any reason cannot benefit as well. 

The PM says 'nothing would be possible' without his wife Samantha

"I don't think that it would actually incentivise anyone to get married because £200 - I mean yes thank you very much I will take that -but it is not going to go too far especially in the grand scheme of things, in how much weddings cost."

The announcement comes after a trade-off that allowed the Liberal Democrats to announce free school meals for all children under eight earlier this month.

The proposal, which Downing Street said shows the Government values commitment by recognising marriage and civil partnerships in the tax system, makes good on promises Mr Cameron made when he was running for leadership of the party in 2005.

In an article in today's edition of The Daily Mail, he said: "I believe in marriage. Alongside the birth of my children, my wedding was the happiest day of my life.

"Since then, Samantha and I have been a team. Nothing I've done since - becoming a Member of Parliament, leader of my party or Prime Minister - would have been possible without her."

He said that the new measures would apply "if you're gay or straight - and in a civil partnership or a marriage. This summer I was proud to make Equal Marriage the law. Love is love, commitment is commitment".

Labour's shadow chief secretary to the treasury, Rachel Reeves, said that the marriage tax break would not even help two-thirds of married couples and said he was out of touch if he "thinks people will get married for £3.85 a week".

She said: "And even for the minority who might benefit, it will be far outweighed by what David Cameron's Government has already taken away in higher VAT and cuts to child benefit and tax credits. In most cases, the extra payment will be paid to men, even though it is women who have disproportionately lost out so far."

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Baroness Thatcher Finally Laid To Rest

Baroness Thatcher's ashes have been laid to rest in the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea in London.

Her children, Sir Mark and Carol Thatcher, attended a short service in the chapel there before a solid oak casket containing her ashes was placed in the ground alongside those of her husband Sir Denis, who died in 2003.

A simple headstone bearing the inscription Margaret Thatcher 1925 – 2013 marks the site of the final resting place of Britain's first and only woman prime minister.

Lady Thatcher's ashes are carried ahead of her son Sir Mark and his wife

Lady Thatcher died aged 87 on April 8.

The longest-serving prime minister of the twentieth century, Lady Thatcher was given a ceremonial funeral with full military honours at St Paul's Cathedral on April 18, attended by more than 2,300 mourners including the Queen.

It was in stark contrast to Saturday's private service at All Saints Chapel in the hospital's Margaret Thatcher Infirmary, which she opened in 2009.

Carol Thatcher, her twin brother Mark and his wife Sarah

The small group of mourners included Lady Thatcher's former private secretary Lord Powell and Lord Bell, her former political adviser.

Sir Mark, his wife Sarah and Carol took it in turns to place a single red rose alongside the casket.

Carol, who wore sunglasses, comforted Cynthia Crawford, who was Lady Thatcher's personal assistant for more than 30 years.

Carol and Sir Mark leave a single red rose alongside the casket

Prayers were said while music was provided by the chapel choir who sang Po Atarau, a traditional Maori song of goodbye in recognition of Lady Thatcher's family connections with New Zealand.

Lady Thatcher built up a strong relationship with the Royal Hospital Chelsea during the last 10 years of her life and her final resting place was chosen by her.

She was elected MP for Finchley in 1959 and served as Conservative prime minister between 1979 and 1990.

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Kenya Attack: Sixth Briton Confirmed Dead

A sixth Briton has been confirmed dead following the Kenya shopping centre attack, as officials say the number of British casualties may rise further.

Some 67 people were killed in the attack on the Westgate shopping mall and dozens of people are still reported missing.

The number of British deaths had earlier been revised from six down to five, but on Saturday the Foreign Office revealed that another UK national had been identified among the fatalities.

The identity of the sixth victim has not been revealed.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We have no information at this time that any further British nationals have been killed although we cannot rule out the potential for further British casualties and we continue to stay in close contact with the Kenyan authorities as their investigations continue."

It comes as Sky News filmed new footage from the rear of the Nairobi mall which shows the extent of the damage following the attack.

New images filmed by Sky News show the extent of the damage

Hundreds of tons of masonry, debris and metal fell down several floors after part of the roof collapsed.

Sky News filmed from a private property of resident Sukhbir Singh, who said he heard "really loud blasts" and "several gunshots".

He said at the part of the roof which has now fallen down he saw two or three gunmen opening fire towards children, adding "it was really, really bad".

"They just came in and sprayed bullets without talking," he added.

The Islamist group al Shabaab said it carried out the massacre to punish Kenya for sending its troops into Somalia to fight the al Qaeda-linked organisation.

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