13.12.01

COCAINE WORTH £40 MILLION FOUND AT DOCKS

The largest ever discovery of cocaine on Merseyside has been found on board a ship in Liverpool. Customs Officers found 595 kilos of cocaine concealed within industrial rolls of paper in a container on a vessel from Panama with a street value of almost £40m last Monday.

The ship was due to offload in Liverpool and officers believe the drugs were heading for the streets of the city.
Customs minister Paul Boateng said: "This seizure is another significant blow against organised criminal gangs who attempt to introduce deadly addiction onto the streets of Britain.
"We are determined to fight drug smuggling every step of the way. This seizure is an example of Customs' hard work in this area paying off."

Customs officers became suspicious of two containers aboard the ship that had arrived from Central America, via the USA. A thorough examination of the containers revealed the drugs.
Mr Boateng added: "Tackling the smuggling of class A drugs such as cocaine and heroin into the UK is a top priority for the government."
No one has been arrested in connection with the find.

13.12.01

TEXT VOTES?

People on Merseyside could be allowed to vote with their mobile phones in the 2002 local elections. Liverpool City Council is applying for government funding to help it take part in a pilot scheme allowing people to vote electronically. The project plan comes after it was revealed that the turnout for May 2002 elections in Riverside was only averaging in 16 percent.

If the scheme is approved, two or three Riverside constituencies will be chsen to take part in the scheme during the elections. Votes could be cast using text messages. Each person on the electorial role will be given a PIN number, which will be barred after the person has given the vote to void fraud.

Internet voting and votes cast via public computer kiosks would also figure in the plans and people will be able to vote in the days preceding the election. People will also be allowed to use any polling station in their ward, whereas previously they could only vote in the station they were allocated to.

13.12.01

CLOSURE THREATENS PHILHARMONIC HALL

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For the first time, the annual report officially acknowledges the disastrous cash consequences of managing the Millennium Summer Pops.

Philharmonic chief executive, Michael Elliot said: “The Philharmonic still has to make savings of about £200,000 a year. The new levels of funding, and the extra required to turn our finances around, is only what’s really needed to even begin to try and match our competitors.”

The big increase in city council funding is partly due to the Philharmonic being seen as a vital part of Liverpool’s bid to European Capital of Culture 2008. Philharmonic Hall has been at the centre of Merseyside's cultural life for over 150 years, from its beginnings in 1849 to its current incarnation as one of the world's great concert halls.

Despite its popular image as one of the greatest classical arenas in the country, Philharmonic Hall has never exclusively been an orchestral venue. A wide-eyed Paul McCartney was in the audience when the legendary Buddy Holly played here in March 1958. In the 1970s, it was the turn of bands like Deep Purple and Curved Air but it was not until the refurbishment that the Hall took off as a multi-purpose concert venue.

10.12.01

STAR LINE UP FOR 2002 SUMMER POPS

The Summer Pops returns bigger and better than ever next year, the organisers say after rumours of well known acts appearing. Huge names including Paul Mcartney, Elvis Costello, Paul Weller and Westlife are thought to be taking part in the event. The aim is to top last years festival as the city bids to become European Capital of Culture in 2008. Liverpool Council Leader Mike Story said: "Next year's Pops are crucial, because the actual judging of the city will be done at the same time."

The event will be held at a 4500-seater big top at Kings Dock, and the festival is predicted to last throughout July. Last years festival had an audience of 55,000 and the organisers are hoping to top that amount for the upcoming year. Tickets to see Supertramp on July 19 are already on sale and are available by calling 0151 256 5555.

10.12.01

CONCERT BANNED OVER VIOLENCE FEARS

A planned concert in Liverpool by the controversial chart topping group, So Solid Crew, has been cancelled amid fears of violence.
Last month at a London nightclub shots were fired while the group was on stage.Two people were wounded and there were fears the situation could have been repeated when the group toured the rest of the country.

A spokesman for the group said: "The incident where there was a shooting did not directly involve So Solid Crew and they have made it clear that they abhor violence."

However, some of the venues on the planned agenda have decided to go ahead with the gigs, saying they have adequate security measures in place to cope.
A spokeswoman for Merseyside Police said that the decision to cancel the Liverpool event had not been taken by them.
She added: "This is something that has been decided by the venue itself. However, we were in the process of assessing the situation along with the city council."

10.12.01

LIVERPOOLS BIG NAME COMEDY FESTIVAL

The festival, which is pat of the capital of Culture bid, will be the first in Liverpool for eight years. Rawhide Comedy Club plans to hold the festival between July 4 and 14 2002. Manager Kevin Fearon said: "The prospect of a comedy festival in Liverpool is very exciting.We are hoping it will be held year-on-year and that in the long term it will stand beside the Edinburgh Festival as one of the country's top comedy events."

Paul Bell, spokesman for Rawhide, said: "In our original plans we were hoping to have big names like Lee Evans playing in the theatre venues and have smaller gigs booked for traditional standup. Our final plans will depend on talks with the Capital of Culture team."