A 12-year-old girl has died after being knocked down by a police car – the third person to be killed by a patrol

A 12-year-old girl has died after being knocked down by a police car – the third person to be killed by a patrol vehicle in the past 13 days. Jenny Newbury was hit by a marked police Ford Sierra as she crossed a road near her home in Salford, Greater Manchester, with a friend on Sunday night. The police car was carrying out a speed check on a vehicle it was following.
Jenny was taken to the intensive care unit at Manchester Royal Infirmary with serious head injuries, but died on Monday night with her parents at her bedside.The Police Complaints Authority yesterday agreed to oversee an inquiry into the death – their third in the past fortnight involving a police car.Police said the two girls ran into the path of the car in Trafford Road, Ordsall.The officer at the wheel swerved to the offside lane of the dual carriageway, but was unable to avoid the collision. The PCA inquiry will want to establish the speed of the police car at the time of the accident.Greater Manchester Police said the car was on routine patrol duties when the accident occurred at 7.20pm on Sunday, but gave no details of its speed.An investigation is under way and the two officers in the car, both said to be deeply shocked, are to be interviewed, together with the other girl, who was uninjured.Results of the inquiry will be forwarded to the Crown Prosecution Service to assess whether the officers involved should be charged.Last Wednesday, a newly-wed Turkish woman died after being catapulted into the air by a police car.Yeter Ozer, 22, was killed in front of her husband as they crossed the road near their home in Finsbury Park, north London.Six days earlier, John Stanley, 53, died after being hit by a police car on a pedestrian crossing in Kentish Town, north London.In both those cases the police vehicles had their flashing blues lights on but siren turned off.. Scientists have devised a grape-flavoured solution to the enduring problem of the Canada goose, a natural-born thug that threatens to bury town parks in its excrement. Experiments with a spray made of a flavouring found in grapes, which tastes sweet to humans but repulsive to the geese, have shown there is a non-violent alternative to culling and birdscaring.
According to Paul Curtis, a scientist at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York , who helped to invent the spray, the active ingredient is a harmless “food grade” substance called methyl anthranilate that tastes like hot peppers to a Canada goose.When Dr Curtis tried out the spray in a small New York City park where about 120 Canada geese had made a home next to a children’s play area, the flock soon moved off after initially trying to clean their palates in the nearby pond.Dr Curtis said the spray degrades naturally and is rendered harmless to other wildlife.

“It is important to use the spray at the right time of year, before the birds moult in summer, so that they are still able to fly off to another place.”Britain, like the United States, has suffered a serious explosion in the population of Canada geese, which is expected to double to 120,000 by the end of the decade. The goose was first introduced by Charles II in the 17th century as an ornamental species.Each goose produces up to 2lbs a day of excreta. Geese can aggresssively crowd out other wildfowl when their numbers build up and their gand-like behaviour has earned them a reputation as the bullies of the bird world.Last year, the Department of the Environment declared war on the birds but its plans to pour paraffin over geese eggs and shoot adults in the dead of night ran into opposition from animal lovers such as the musician and entertainer Paul McCartney and Carla Lane, the television script writer.Dr Curtis said that his spray will help to overcome the difficulties of killing the birds in a built-up area, but accepted that culling and egg pricking will ultimately be the only effective ways of controlling Canada goose populations.. Police have warned a 17-year-old girl after a police van carrying Rosemary West, widow of the alleged mass murderer Frederick West, was pelted with eggs as it drove away from a court in Gloucestershire. Officers also appealed to the media covering Mrs West’s committal proceedings at Dursley magistrates court to discourage any similar demonstrations Mrs West faces 10 charges of murder.. Pearson, the media and entertainment group, has become the first major UK company to give significant financial backing to the Labour party with a donation of £25,000. The party immediately seized on the gift as the first sign that British companies are encouraged by the prospect of a Labour government led by Tony Blair, the Labour leader.
Lord Blakenham, chairman of Pearson which owns the Financial Times, said yesterday: “The Labour party has moved much more towards the centre and are the leading opposition party so it is logical to help them.”The Financial Times came out in favour of Labour during the closing stages of the 1992 general election campaign.Tim Collins, director of communications at Conservative Central Office, remained unmoved, saying: “It remains the case that overwhelmingly British business only gives money to the Conservative party.

That reflects the fact that business does not want theSocial Chapter or the trade unions running riot. It is not indicative of a trend.”Paul Blagbrough, Labour’s finance director, said: “The implications of this donation are very considerable.”Lord Blakenham said: “We believe that political parties should be adequately funded to ensure stability and financial integrity Both [parties] are under financial pressure at the moment.”. Farmers are determined that they will not be prevented from continuing to lawfully export livestock, Sir David Naish, the president of the National Farmers’ Union, told the annual general meeting of the NFU in London yesterday morning. “I am determined that we should be able to continue our lawful trade and that means live exports,” he said, addressing nearly 1,000 farmers at the Royal Lancaster Hotel.
Calling for a calm and reasoned debate on the issue, Sir David said farmers cared passionately about animal welfare “For farmers animal welfare is a way of life Farmers care about welfare, they care night and day. For farmers animal welfare is not a fad or trend, it’s a 365 days a year job.”He condemned the “tiny sinister minority of boot boys in balaclavas” who believe animals can be helped by terrorising people.Security at the conference was tight with Compassion In World Farming handing out leaflets to delegates and around 20 animal rights protesters picketing the hotel’s entrance.Sir David said that he had met the leaders of CIWF a few days ago to discuss the issue of live animal exports and was prepared to continue talking to animal welfare groups.”At the same time I have made it quite clear that we are determined that a trade, within the law, must be able to continue. We won’t be deviated from our goal – to preserve a competitive farming industry in the UK.”Sir David reiterated his call for CIWF to withdraw their encouragement for the picketing of farms. He strongly contested claims that he had, in an earlier statement, insinuated that CIWF had issued a rallying call for a violent minority to picket and possibly target for attack farmers, business and families.”We are extremely concerned that even the encouragement of peaceful picketing of farms could be hijacked and misused by a violent minority whose selfish actions are aimed at causing maximum disruption.”The NFU, he added, had taken the lead in seeking an end to the veal crate rearing system in Europe.