Tories Head For Same Sex Marriage Vote Revolt

By Jon Craig, Chief Political Correspondent

Tory MPs will plunge deeper into civil war later when the party splits over David Cameron's plans to allow gay marriage.

More than 100 Conservative MPs are expected to defy the Prime Minister in a vote on the bitterly controversial Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill.

Although the Bill will get a second reading with Labour and Liberal Democrat support, it is possible that more than half the Tories' 305 MPs could vote against it.

That would be hugely damaging for the Prime Minister, coming amid a febrile atmosphere of plotting against him and claims that hundreds of Tory activists are deserting the party in protest.

Equalities minister Maria Miller has pledged a 'fair approach' to marriage

All three major parties have allowed a free vote on the Bill. Around 20 Labour MPs, a few Lib Dems and the Democratic Unionist Party's MPs are also expected to vote against.

But the Tories are potentially even more divided on gay marriage than they are on Europe, with party activists as well as Conservative MPs publicly clashing over the proposals to allow same sex couples to marry.

At least two members of the Cabinet, Environment Secretary Owen Paterson and Welsh Secretary David Jones, are expected to vote against the proposals and two more, Defence Secretary Philip Hammond and Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith, may abstain.

And in a bizarre twist ahead of the vote, gay Tory activist and pundit Iain Dale has claimed that the Conservative MPs threatening to vote against the Bill include several "closet-case gays" including "two supposedly heterosexual MPs who I know to be conducting gay affairs".

Tory activist Iain Dale claims several 'closet gays' will vote against bill

But in a defiant warning to the Bill's opponents, Equalities minister Maria Miller said on the eve of the debate: "What I will not be doing is stopping the legislation moving forward.

"It's important we have a fair approach to marriage. Simply being gay is not a good enough reason not to have that available."

She went on: "Conservative governments have done things for generations which are progressive, all the way back to the position the party had on the slave trade. I think it is a natural progression for marriage, something that has evolved over centuries anyway."

Justice Secretary Chris Grayling also spoke out in favour of the Bill, telling gay magazine Attitude: "Changing a law has never automatically changed someone's opinion or belief, but a change in law can result in a more supportive and protective environment.

"The Government's proposals on the recognition of gay marriage are a sensible next step in that evolution. They make it clear that the attitudes of today's generations are very different to those of the past.

"Of course we need to protect the right of the individual to have a conscience and of religious institutions to follow their own path. But that does not mean that the state has to do the same."

And in a fightback against activists who oppose the Bill, the Conservative Party's most senior volunteer, Paul Swaddle, president of the National Convention, was one of more than 50 senior figures who signed a letter backing the reforms.

The Bill would allow couples to convert civil-partnerships into marriage

"By opposing gay marriage outright, we risk alienating the voters we will need in 2015," the letter said. "To win, the Conservative Party must mount a broad appeal. We urge our MPs to listen to the wider views of their electorate as they decide how to vote."

But Liberal Democrat MP John Pugh broke ranks and declared that he intended to vote against gay marriage, insisting there was a "good liberal case" against the move.

In an open letter to constituents, he said his fundamental objection was that the legislation "achieves none of its objectives and weakens the link between marriage and the family".

"It is my view that the benefits of the gay marriage proposal over and above civil partnership legislation are marginal and the risks considerable," the Roman Catholic MP said.

"It draws government (the state) into a whole new series of debatable judgments and rulings on sexual, personal and religious behaviour.

"Far from being permissive in effect, it could herald the advent of ever more arbitrary prescription as we forget why the state legislates at all in this deeply personal aspect of life."

Labour's Ed Miliband and Ed Balls will vote in favour of the bill

Labour leader Ed Miliband said he would "proudly" vote in favour and would actively urge his MPs to join him in making "an important step forward in the fight for equality in Britain".

And shadow chancellor Ed Balls admitted he admired the Prime Minister for proposing same sex marriage.

"I think it's brave and he's divided his party in quite a deep way," Mr Balls told ITV's Agenda. "It's not clear why from a Conservative Party point of view he's chosen to do this.

"The economy's in a mess, we need a jobs plan and he's chosen this issue. But in 50 years time we'll look back and say, 'Did we really have a debate where we said your sexuality will decide whether you could get married or not?"'

Speaking just hours before the debate, Yvette Cooper MP, Labour's Shadow Minister for Women & Equalities, said: "As more and more Conservative MPs come out against equal marriage, the important issue of equality and respect for same sex relationships must not get lost in the debate on Tory internecine warfare.

"Couples who love each other and want to make a long term commitment should be able to get married whatever their gender or sexuality. Marriage should be reason to celebrate not discriminate."

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Alabama Hostage Siege Ends As Boy Saved

A boy who was held hostage for a week is safe and his captor is dead after FBI agents stormed an underground bunker in Alabama.

Officials said the raid went ahead after negotiations with 65-year-old Jimmy Lee Dykes deteriorated and he was seen with a gun.

Fearing the child was in imminent danger, agents entered the bunker to rescue the five-year-old. It was not immediately clear how Dykes died.

Officials break the news to gathered media

The boy was taken to hospital nearby. Officials have said the child has Asperger's syndrome.

Dykes had been accused of snatching the boy from a school bus last week after killing the driver, Charles Poland.

Before the news conference, an ambulance that had been parked near the scene could be seen driving away. However, it was not clear if anyone was inside, and the vehicle did not have its sirens or emergency lights on.

Daryle Hendry, who lives about a quarter-mile from where Dykes was holed up, said he heard a boom followed by a gunshot.

Officials had been sending food and medicine to Dykes and the boy in the bunker.

The scene of the hostage drama

Neighbours described Dykes as a man who once beat a dog to death with a lead pipe, threatened to shoot children for setting foot on his property, and patrolled his yard at night with a flashlight and a firearm.

Government records and interviews with neighbours indicate that Dykes joined the Navy, serving on active duty from 1964 to 1969. His record shows several awards, including the Vietnam Service Medal and the Good Conduct Medal.

He had some scrapes with the law in Florida, including a 1995 arrest for improper exhibition of a weapon. The misdemeanour was dismissed. He also was arrested for marijuana possession in 2000.

He returned to Alabama about two years ago, moving onto the rural tract about 100 yards from his nearest neighbours.

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Undercover Police 'Stole' Dead Children's IDs

Undercover police officers working for the Metropolitan Police assumed the identities of dead children and were issued fake passports in their names, it has been claimed.

Britain's largest police force allegedly carried out the practice for three decades without consulting or informing the children's parents.

According to a report in The Guardian, officers would scan national birth and death records to find the identities to use for undercover work infiltrating protest groups.

The newspaper claimed the technique was adopted to lend credibility to officers working undercover and provide them with a back story while spying. It said some officers had used the identities for 10 years.

It is claimed as many as 80 officers used such identities between 1968 and 1994.

Scotland Yard said a formal complaint had been made but that the Metropolitan police would not "currently" authorise such a system.

One officer told the newspaper that he felt like he was "stomping on the grave" of the four-year-old boy whose identity he adopted.

He said: "A part of me was thinking about how I would feel if someone was taking the names and details of my dead son for something like this."

Keith Vaz said the practice would "distress" families of the dead children

Another told how he had adopted the identity of an eight-year-old boy who died from leukaemia in 1968.

Another third officer, who used the identity of a child car crash victim, said he was conscious the parents would "still be grief-stricken" but argued his actions could be justified because they were for the "greater good".

The officers worked for the Special Demonstration Squad (SDS), which was apparently disbanded in 2008.

Keith Vaz, the chairman of parliament's home affairs select committee, which will hear evidence about undercover policing on Tuesday, said he was shocked at the "gruesome" practice.

He told the Guardian: "It will only cause enormous distress to families who will discover what has happened concerning the identities of their dead children."

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "A formal complaint has been received which is being investigated by the Directorate of Professional Standards (DPS) and we appreciate the concerns that have been raised.

"The DPS inquiry is taking place in conjunction with Operation Herne's investigation into the wider issue of past arrangements for undercover identities used by Special Demonstration Squad (SDS) officers.

"We can confirm that the practice referred to in the complaint is not something that would currently be authorised in the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS)."

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Syria: 'Children Are Biggest Casualty'

By Stuart Ramsay, Chief Correspondent, in Aleppo

The anguished cries of a little boy receiving treatment without anaesthetic for a shrapnel wound to the face fills the putrid air of a converted shop that is an Aleppo field hospital.

The walls are splattered with blood. All around are shop fronts with medics working on the latest injured.

A car pulls out and a young man shot in a drive-by attack staggers inside followed by his screaming mother.

In rebel-held Aleppo, this is just another day. It isn't particularly busy. It is just constant.

Medics, who have gone underground after their hospital was reduced to rubble by a targeted Syrian government bombing campaign, say that children are being injured and killed in greater numbers now than the rebel fighters.

Stuck inside this city the children are on the streets more than anyone else. Playing or scavenging amongst piles of rubbish for anything of value to take home, they are now the most vulnerable.

Hamid Sakia was shot by a sniper while playing football

A short distance away in another makeshift hospital room nine-year-old Hamid Sakia whimpers in pain; a sack of draining blood lies on the floor. He was shot by a sniper while playing football. He will lose his kidney. The medics are waiting for a surgeon to get enough anaesthetic to operate.

He whispers a "Yes" as I ask him if it hurts. His mother looks on holding back tears. She buried her daughter this week. Her family is being torn apart.

It is not about the lack of food or heating or supplies, she says.

"What will happen in the future?" She asks: "What will happen? Everyone is scared."

In a room next door, surrounded by seat cushions to try to keep the breeze from her skin, Aya Hussein stares motionlessly ahead. She is dreadfully burnt. Her tiny body a web of fierce welts caused by a fire when her apartment was hit by an artillery round.

Aya Hussein was burned when she was hit by an artillery round

The cushions are her treatment. This is life in Aleppo.

This city is slowly being destroyed. There is barely a building unscarred by the bombing from fighter jets and artillery. A million plus people still live here amongst the ruins where shells and snipers are a constant.

Cars cross the most dangerous parts of town protected by mud walls. You can hear the sniper rounds thudding into the barricade or whining over head as you pass.

The dreadful sound of artillery rounds smashing into buildings never stops wherever you go.

Once tree-filled parks are now open spaces. There is no heat or electricity in Aleppo so wood has become a precious commodity.

In the markets there are plenty of local vegetables. But meat, gas, fuel and pretty much everything else comes from Turkey at a huge cost. Gas bottles are 15 times their proper cost.

The city's scarred buildings

People are living in battered apartment blocks. Theirs is a virtual twilight of dark stair wells and shuttered rooms.

The artillery comes from the south so they huddle in north facing homes. But the shrapnel and the explosive power of the bombs means nowhere is truly safe.

"I am hopeless. I can only trust in my God," 78-year-old Mahmoud tells me. He and his wife Emira are alone. Their family has fled, they depend on the handouts of neighbours. Their flat is freezing and bare.

On the next storey Rada cuddles two of her six children. It is freezing inside and they have just a few scraps of food to eat.

"My husband won't leave Aleppo. We want to stay here whatever happens. Our children are ill, they are frightened, but we have nowhere else to go," she says.

The rebels and the government forces appear to have fought themselves to a standstill. In the middle a population is stuck, surviving but dying as well, every day. This is Aleppo.

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Blackpool Stab Death: Teen 'Received Threat'

A 16-year-old girl whose body was found burning in an alley had recently received a death threat via email, a friend of the teen has told Sky News.

Sasha Marsden's body was set on fire after she had died from stab wounds to the head and face, a post-mortem examination has found.

But her friend, Stephanie Kyle, told Sky News of a threat received by Sasha - which she said she had also informed police about.

"She got an email saying her time was going to come very soon," she said.

"Obviously this happened, and she's gone and ... we don't know why."

Police released this image of Sasha

Police cordoned off the area in South Shore, Blackpool, after her body was discovered at 9pm on Thursday.

A 22-year-old man was arrested nearby and police have been granted a further 36 hours to question him.

A woman aged 20 was also held but later released without charge.

The teenager was on a childcare course at college

A police spokesman said: "Following the death of Sasha Marsden, a Home Office post-mortem examination has been carried out and has found that Sasha died as a result of receiving significant stab wounds to the head and face.

"It also showed that attempts were made to set the body on fire and this was after Sasha had died.

"The results have been shared with the family, and specially trained officers are continuing to support them."

On Friday, specialist crime scene investigators carried out forensic searches of the alley behind Kirby Road and at the Grafton House bed-and-breakfast hotel on the same road, which is a few streets off the Promenade.

The crime scene in Blackpool has been cordoned off by police

Carl Evans, owner of the nearby Kimber Guest House, told Sky News he spotted the fire when he walked out into his back garden on Thursday evening.

"I heard the alarms going and saw the smoke, but I thought it was just someone burning rubbish," he said.

He added that some residents had attempted to put out the flames before realising it was a body on fire.

"The lass two doors up said someone seemed to have put something out - like a mannequin - but it turned out to be the body of a 16-year-old girl."

Sasha was in the first year of a childcare course at Blackpool and The Fylde College and lived with her parents in nearby Staining.

In a tribute to her, Mandy Pritchard, head of the college's school for society, health and childhood, said she was "a friendly, considerate individual who cared about her fellow students".

Numerous tributes were paid to the youngster on a Facebook page set up in her memory.

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Justice Minister Says He Smacked Own Children

Justice Secretary Chris Grayling has defended parents' right to smack their children - and admitted he did it to his own.

The Conservative Cabinet minister said he was not opposed to smacking youngsters, saying sometimes it "sends a message".

Mr Grayling has two children, aged 20 and 16, with his wife Susan.

He admitted to occasionally smacking them when they were younger.

"You chastise children when they are bad, as my parents did me," he told the Mail on Sunday.

"I'm not opposed to smacking. It is to be used occasionally. Sometimes it sends a message - but I don't hanker for the days when children were severely beaten at school."

Following his comments, sources close to the minister said he used the punishment only when "really warranted".

In his interview with the Mail on Sunday, Mr Grayling also reiterated commitments he made soon after taking up the ministerial post to ban perks for prisoners like ending automatic early release for inmates who misbehave during their sentence.

He told the newspaper: "I want prisons to be spartan, but humane, a place people don't have a particular desire to come back to."

He also said he would not tolerate gay couples in prison sharing a cell.

"It is not acceptable to allow same-sex couples to effectively move in together and live a domestic life. If such a thing happened, I would want those prisoners put in separate prisons."

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Blackpool Murder: Burning Body Found In Alley

Two people have been arrested after the body of a 16-year-old girl was found burning in an alley in Blackpool.

Police have cordoned off the alley off Kirby Road, South Shore where the body was found and specialist forensic officers are searching a nearby hotel.

A 22-year-old man and a 20-year-old woman were arrested nearby and are now being questioned by police.

Lancashire Police said the victim was believed to be Sasha Marsden, a student at Blackpool and Fylde College who lived in the Staining area with her parents.

Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Superintendent Andy Murphy from the Force Major Investigation Team said: "This is an incredibly difficult and complex enquiry and we are working to try and build up a picture of what happened.

"From examining the body, it appears to us that someone has attempted to set fire to Sasha and this is a line of enquiry that we are looking into.

Student Sasha Marsden was reportedly set alight (Pic: Facebook)

"This is an incredibly difficult time for the family and we are keeping them informed of our investigation. Our officers will be supporting them as they attempt to come to terms with what has happened."

A port mortem is planned for Friday evening.

Carl Evans, owner of the Kimber Guest House told Sky News he spotted the fire when he walked out into his back garden on Thursday evening.

"I heard the alarms going and saw the smoke, but I thought it was just someone burning rubbish," he said.

He added that some residents had attempted to put out the flames before realising it was a body on fire.

"The lass two doors up said someone seemed to have put something out - like a mannequin - but it turned out to be the body of a 16-year-old girl."

Friends paid tribute to the victim on a Facebook page called RIP Sasha Marsden.

Jordan Silkstone wrote: "Way too young, what this town coming too.. R.I.p huni x."

Emma James wrote: "R.I.P Sasha. I didn't know you very long but you was such a good mate.

"I will miss our little facebook chats. You always knew how to cheer me up when I was down. I hope the people who did this to you get what they deserve. Miss you always beautiful. Xxx."

Anyone with information is asked to call the Major Incident Room at Blackpool on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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Cameron Faces Revolt Over Marriage Tax Breaks

Tax breaks for married couples will not be part of next month's Budget, a senior Government source has said.

The news is likely to upset many Conservative backbenchers who have suggested the change should be included in Chancellor George Osborne's next Budget in return for their supporting plans to introduce gay marriage.

The Conservative general election manifesto pledged to introduce a marriage tax break, and the commitment was included in the coalition agreement.

It is expected that one member of a married couple or civil partnership would be allowed to transfer £750 of their tax-free personal allowance to their partner, reducing their tax bill. This would be worth around £150 a year to basic-rate taxpayers.

But the senior Government source flatly rejected the idea of a "quid pro quo" deal, and ruled out a marriage tax break featuring in the Budget.

"It won't be in the Budget but it will be in this Parliament," the source said. "This Budget obviously, with all that has happened in recent weeks and months, will be very much focused on growth in the economy".

Mr Cameron views the introduction of same-sex marriage - which is expected to split his MPs when it is put to a Commons vote next week - as the "Conservative Party delivering the promise it made".

"This is a difficult issue for some in the Conservative Party and he understands the strong feelings that people have, and of course it's a free vote," the source said.

"He is proud of the fact that it's a coalition Government with strong Conservative participation that is bringing forward a modern and progressive change.

"It is good to encourage people to come together and stay together."

David Cameron is said to have 'full confidence' in George Osborne

The source also said Mr Osborne had the "full confidence" of the Prime Minister - insisting he will still be Chancellor at the 2015 general election.

It came as some MPs are said to be circulating a letter demanding that Mr Osborne is replaced as the economy continues to falter.

"He is an extremely successful Chancellor. He is battling very difficult economic circumstances," the source said.

"George Osborne will be Chancellor at the next general election."

The issue of gay marriage is causing Conservative party members to quit in significant numbers, according to The Times.

Backbenchers insist the issue has sparked "serious unrest" among the party's rank and file and are claiming some constituencies have lost as many as 100 card-carrying Tories each.

Conservative headquarters, however, does not hold up-to-date membership records, the newspaper said.

Tory MP David Burrowes told The Times: "There's serious unrest in the grassroots. You cannot avoid the fact that the troops are unhappy. People are drifting away."

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Fireworks Truck Explodes Killing 26 In China

A truck carrying fireworks has exploded on a bridge in China, killing at least 26 people as it sent vehicles plummeting.

The blast destroyed a section of the bridge outside the city of Sanmenxia.

Emergency crews closed the highway at the accident site, said China National Radio, which reported the death toll of 26.

At least 15 people were injured and sent to nearby hospitals, the Henan Commercial Newspaper reported.

Photos posted on the popular news site Sina.com showed a stretch of elevated highway gone, with a truck perched precariously at the broken edge.

Other photos showed wrecked trucks below and blackened chunks of scattered debris.

More follows...

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Mexico: Pemex Oil Company HQ Blast Kills 25

Twenty-five people are dead and at least 100 injured after an explosion at the headquarters of Mexican oil company Pemex.

Injured workers were seen being evacuated after the blast at the state-owned firm blew out windows and damaged three floors of the tower in Mexico City's commercial centre.

There are reports that as many as 30 people could be trapped in the debris from the explosion, which occurred in the basement of an administrative building next to the iconic 52-storey skyscraper.

Ana Vargas Palacio was distraught as she searched for her missing husband, Daniel Garcia Garcia, 36, who works in the building. She last heard from him at 1pm.

"I called his phone many times, but a young man answered and told me he found the phone in the debris," she said.

The two have an 11-year-old daughter. His mother, Gloria Garcia Castaneda, collapsed on a friend's arm, crying "My son. My son."

Television images showed people being carried out of the building on office chairs and gurneys. Most of them showed injuries likely to have been caused by falling debris.

Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, said in a Tweet that several workers were injured in the blast but no one answered at its offices.

The blast happened in a busy central district of Mexico City

There was no immediate cause given for the blast, but in an earlier Tweet, the company said it had evacuated the building because of problems with the electricity.

"It was an explosion, a shock, the lights went out and suddenly there was a lot of debris," employee Cristian Obele told Milenio television, adding that he had been injured in the leg. "Co-workers helped us get out of the building."

The tower, where several thousand people work, was evacuated. The main floor and the mezzanine of the auxiliary building, where the explosion occurred, were heavily damaged, along with windows as far as three floors up.

"Right now they're conducting a tour of the building and the area adjacent to the blast site to verify if there are any still trapped so they can be rescued immediately," Interior Ministry spokesman Eduardo Sanchez told Milenio.

"We were talking and all of sudden we heard an explosion with white smoke and glass falling from the windows," said Maria Concepcion Andrade, 42, who lives on the block of Pemex building.

"People started running from the building covered in dust. A lot of pieces were flying."

Police landed four rescue helicopters to remove the dead or injured. About a dozen tow trucks were furiously moving cars to make more landing room for the helicopters.

Streets surrounding the building were closed as evacuees wandered around, and rescue crews loaded the injured into ambulances.

"I profoundly lament the death of our fellow workers at Pemex. My condolences to their families," President Enrique Pena Nieto said via his Twitter account.

Shortly before the explosion, Operations Director Carlos Murrieta reported via Twitter that the company had reduced its accident rate in recent years. Most Pemex accidents have occurred at pipeline and refinery installations.

A fire at a pipeline metering center in northeast Mexico near the Texas border killed 30 workers in September, the largest-single toll in at least a decade for the company.

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