Kenya Massacre: Video Shows Gunmen In Mall

A video has emerged showing four of the gunmen involved in the massacre at a shopping centre in Nairobi, Kenya.

The footage shows four heavily-armed attackers walking through a storeroom in the mall, and searching other adjacent rooms. 

It is understood that the CCTV pictures captured the gunmen mid-way through the assault - as many of the victims remained trapped inside Westgate Mall.

The video has surfaced after a government official revealed that security cameras showed there may have been fewer gunmen than originally thought.

Two of the gunmen in one of the storerooms

Kenya's government initially said 10 to 15 attackers were involved in the assault, which left at least 67 people dead.

However, the official now believes only four people took part in the protracted siege. 

Dozens of youths have been detained in the Majengo slum area of Nairobi in recent days in police efforts to track down the mall attackers.

One of the gunmen holds a weapon in the storeroom

Al Shabaab has said it carried out the attack in retaliation for Kenya sending troops into Somalia nearly two years ago.

The group has promised more attacks inside Kenya unless those troops are withdrawn.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has vowed to continue the military mission inside Somalia despite the mall attack.

Mr Kenyatta ordered a commission of inquiry into the attack. The Red Cross says a further 39 people are still unaccounted for.

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Help To Buy: Doubts Over Success Of Scheme

By Poppy Trowbridge, Business and Economics Correspondent

The second phase of the government mortgage guarantee scheme Help to Buy is due to launch next week, three months earlier than expected - but experts are sceptical the initiative will help buyers.

Lack of capacity in the housing market and claims by banks which say they are not ready because they haven't received essential information from the Government threaten to leave many would-be buyers empty-handed.

Exclusive research by Sky News shows interest from potential buyers has skyrocketed since the Government surprised the market.

Property website Rightmove says clicks on its Help to Buy pages numbered 14,807 on Saturday, the day before last Sunday's surprise announcement.

When David Cameron revealed, on the eve of the Conservative Party conference, that the launch date had been brought forward from January - clicks, measuring potential buyer interest, spiked to 59,571.

Now, almost a week later, they remain far above average at 23,660.

But there is concern that pent-up demand cannot be met by existing market services.

Sky News has learned that the two taxpayer backed banks, Lloyds Banking Group and RBS, are not able to guarantee a launch date. Sky News understands both are waiting for further details from the Government.

Barclays has issued a statement saying it, too, is undecided.

"Whilst we cannot take a decision over participation in the new scheme before the terms are set, we are encouraged by the tone of the discussions so far," the bank said.

Estate agents are also worried that capacity to deal with a surge in interest is lacking.

Robert Ellice, of Clarke Hillyer, told Sky News: "At the moment we've got big delays in the whole process anyway, mortgages are still taking a long time to be offered and taking a long time to be verified on values."

Does that mean hopeful homebuyers will have to wait for Westminster to work out the finer details before others can catch up?

Mortgage manager Ray Boulger said: "The first details of mortgage rates under this scheme we are expecting on Tuesday from Halifax, but they are likely to be the only lender offering these mortgages for probably some weeks.

"From a buyer's perspective the good news is there will be 95% mortgages available from the biggest lender in the country, the bad news is there will be no competition."

He added: "But it is a start, you have got to start somewhere."

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Prince Harry Celebrates Navy Centenary In Oz

By Jonathan Samuels, Australia Correspondent

Prince Harry is in Australia helping the country's Navy celebrate 100 years since its first warships steamed into Sydney.

The prince, dressed in crisp white uniform, looked at home among the military personnel as he took part in the once-in-a-lifetime nautical extravaganza.

Harry took to the sparkling harbour on board HMAS Leeuwin as hundreds of thousands of onlookers filled the shoreline to watch the gathered warships and catch a glimpse of the prince.

The International Fleet Review is celebrating 100 years since seven warships arrived in Sydney harbour, the first fleet solely owned and operated by Australia's then fledgling Navy.

The event is expected to draw 1.4 million spectators

About 40 warships, 16 tall ships and 8,000 sailors are participating in this weekend's celebrations, which will feature a light show and massive fireworks display over the harbour on Saturday night.

The event is expected to draw 1.4 million spectators.

Following a 100-gun salute, Governor-General Quentin Bryce, who represents Queen Elizabeth II in Australia, joined Harry on board the Leeuwin to officially review the ships.

The participating warships are from the US, China, Britain, Brunei, Micronesia, France, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Spain, Thailand and Tonga.

Harry is in Australia's largest city for just one day as part of a quick trip Down Under.

He greeted the public opposite the famous Sydney Opera House before attending a reception with Prime Minister Tony Abbott at Kirribilli House, Abbott's official residence in Sydney.

One young Sydney woman went to great lengths to get Harry's attention.

Victoria McRae, 20, got taken out of Sydney Harbour by the Water Police after she got on a kayak and waved a flag that read "I (heart) U Harry" and printed her phone number on it in big red letters.

The trip is Prince Harry's first official visit to Australia

"I just wanted to see Harry on the boat really, I thought we'd get up close," Ms McRae told AAP. "It didn't quite go to plan, we got towed away, but it was worth it.

"We were under the Harbour Bridge and they were worried we were going to get run over. He's an eligible bachelor, I thought I was in with a chance."

Ms McRae said she got her mum's boyfriend to navigate the kayak as she tried to look for the popular Royal on the Leeuwin.

The prince flies to the Western Australia capital, Perth, on Sunday morning for a brief visit before leaving the country.

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Capitol Shooting: Woman Dead After Car Chase

A woman has been shot dead after she led police officers on a car chase that ended in gunfire near the US Capitol in Washington.

Witnesses said shots rang out after the woman driving a black Toyota Infiniti attempted to smash through a barricade close to the White House.

The woman then fled, and was pursued by police who caught up with her near the Capitol Building.

Video footage showed officers with guns drawn attempting to get the driver out of the vehicle on the west side of the Capitol Building before she then flees again, with officers in chase.

The car is then understood to have crashed near the Hart Senate Office Building, on Capitol Hill.

Police seen moving through US Capitol. Pic: Marc Schloss

Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy Lanier said a one-year-old child was pulled from the car after the woman was shot.

She was later pronounced dead. Police revealed in a press conference that shots occurred in two locations.

The first series took place at the junction of 15th Street and East Street, close to Pershing Park.

The second set happened on Maryland Avenue NW, close to the Hart Senate Office Building.

In between, the car went down Pennsylvania Avenue, to the US Capitol, before escaping along Constitution Avenue where it was stopped as it entered Maryland Avenue.

First responders are seen aiding a victim at the scene

Ms Lanier said two officers were injured and were taken to hospital. One was an officer with the Capitol Police Department. The other was with the Secret Service.

The Capitol police officer, said to be a veteran of 23 years, was recovering in hospital, but was "doing really well."

"He's going to be fine," said Capitol Police Chief Kim Vine.

It is understood he was injured when the vehicle he was in while chasing the suspect, hit a barrier in front of Capitol Hill.

No details were released about the Secret Service officer, other than he too was not badly hurt.

The woman was confirmed dead by Ms Lanier, but she said police were not releasing any details about the suspect.

She would not comment on whether the woman was of Somali origin. Capitol Police Chief Vine said it did not appear that terrorism was a motive, but Ms Lanier said nothing has been ruled out.

The child, believed to be girl, was later taken to hospital.

Witnesses said at least 20 police cars chased the Toyota toward Capitol Hill, where the car crashed outside the Capitol.

A lockdown was put in place at the Capitol and other federal buildings, but lifted about an hour after the shots rang out.

Sky News US correspondent Amanda Walker, who is in Washington, said she heard a series of shots within minutes of each other before police swarmed the area.

She said: "It was about 2.20pm local time and we heard a series of gunshots and then there was a brief pause for around five minutes.

"Then we heard further gunshots and that's when immediately we heard this cacophony of sirens, police cars and various units going around this area that is constantly so heavily-guarded."

Senator Bob Casey told reporters he was walking from the Capitol to the Senate Russell Office Building across the street when he noticed several police officers driving fast up Constitution Avenue on motorcycles.

He said: "Within seconds of that we heard three, four, five pops." He said he assumed they were gunshots.

Television footage showed at least one person being removed from the scene on a stretcher.

As a warning was sounded, the House of Representatives abruptly went into recess and lawmakers left the chamber floor.

The House had just finished approving legislation aimed at partly lifting the government shutdown by paying National Guard and Reserve members.

People standing outside the Supreme Court across the street from Congress were hurried into the court building by authorities.

The White House was quickly locked down after the incident at Capitol Hill and the stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the compound was closed to pedestrians.

Secret Service said the procedures were precautionary.

In a notice distributed by email, the US Capitol Police advised everyone to "close, lock and stay away from external doors and windows".

The reports come two weeks after a deadly shooting at the nearby Navy Yard and amid a government shutdown.

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Madeleine McCann: Police Probe Phone Records

By Ian Woods, Senior Correspondent

Scotland Yard detectives investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann in 2007 are analysing the mobile phone details of everyone who was in the Portuguese holiday resort from where she disappeared.

They are set to reveal new information about the hunt for the missing girl in a televised appeal in 10 days.

There are around three dozen British police officers working on what has been designated Operation Grange, but the officers leading the investigation say there has been increasing cooperation with the authorities in Portugal. 

Six Portuguese police officers based in Faro have been appointed to liaise with officers in London. 

The Metropolitan Police stress that they are "professional and committed" and were not involved in the original investigation, which remains closed.    

Assistant Commissioners Mark Rowley and Detective Chief Inspector Andy Redwood are also sending formal International Letters Of Request to 30 other countries asking for assistance with their inquiry, reflecting the range of nationalities likely to have been in the town on May 3, 2007. 

Detectives want to cross reference mobile phone data with other lines of inquiry, especially with individuals they have previously identified as "persons of interest". 

Madeleine was three-years-old when she vanished from her parents' rented apartment in the Algarve seaside town of Praia Da Luz. 

The Portuguese authorities closed their investigation after initially investigating her parents Kate and Gerry as possible suspects. 

The Home Office agreed to order a review of the case by the Metropolitan Police and in July it became a full blown investigation.

Officers have been looking into the backgrounds of 41 individuals, 15 of whom are UK nationals. 

Assistant Commissioner Rowley said three of these British citizens are on the verge of being eliminated from the inquiry.

It is a huge undertaking requiring extensive international cooperation. 

The phone data has always been available, and some of it has been examined before, but the trawl through thousands of phone numbers is the most thorough yet undertaken. 

DCI Redwood said the phone records could be the key to solving the mystery and he that it is not a "general trawl" for information but a "targeted attack" on possible key numbers.

"We've got a data set of phone traffic. Within that phone traffic you can see we've got some of those numbers we can attribute to people, but a large number of them we can't. So in a targeted way, we're trying to say in a particular moment in time, that is around the moment of opportunity, who's there."

"What we're trying to do is to use every route available to us to identify as many of them as possible and the phone data is one route into that, as are appeals. If you were in Praia da Luz at the time, you may get a routine phone call from the police."

The Metropolitan Police team say they have collated 39,148 documents from previous inquiries by both the Portuguese authorities, and eight different teams of private detectives hired by the McCanns.

So far 21,614 have been processed. Some 4,920 of those have necessitated follow up action and 2,123 lines of inquiry have been completed.

The new lines of inquiry will be publicised in a BBC Crimewatch programme on Monday, October 14. 

The police will not confirm if new photo-fits or artist impressions of possible suspects will be issued, but there will be a reconstruction of events in Praia Da Luz, and Madeleine's parents will be interviewed during the programme. 

Mr Rowley said: "It's important to stress, the Crimewatch appeal is not simply 'this is a live investigation has anyone got any information?' It is more than that. There is new information not previously presented. Fresh, substantive material upon which to make an appeal."

The McCanns will be accompanied by DCI Redwood, making it the first time the couple have made an appeal for information alongside an investigating officer. 

Every other public appeal they have made during the past six years has been on their own initiative. 

Press conferences in the days immediately after their daughter's disappearance were not organised by friends and advisers rather than the Portuguese Judicial Police. 

It will be a symbolic moment in the long inquiry , with Kate and Gerry McCann, once labelled "aguidos" in Portugal, and investigated as possible suspects, now officially supported by detectives investigating the case.

DCI Redwood said: "I have no reason to be anything other than confident in the McCanns. They have been thoroughly supportive of our inquiry and our relationship is very strong."

There will be similar appeals on TV programmes in Germany and the Netherlands, reflecting the high number of tourists from those countries who were in Praia Da Luz when Madeleine went missing.

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China Couple Speak Of 'Forced Abortion'

By Mark Stone, Asia Correspondent

A couple have told Sky News how they were physically forced into an abortion by the Chinese authorities, three months before their child was due to be born.

At 4am last Friday, a group of 20 officials from the Shandong Province Family Planning Commission forced their way into the home of Zhou Guoqiang and his wife Liu Xinwen.

The officials kicked down the door of the family's home. Mr Zhou was held down while his wife was pulled from her bed and taken away.

Liu Xinwen, 33, was taken to the People's Hospital of Fangzi District in Weifang City where she was injected with an abortion-inducing drug.

Liu Xinwen says she was forcibly removed from her bed

Her baby, which she would later discover was a boy, died a day later in her womb. It took a further day for the foetus to be delivered.

Her husband was not told where she had been taken. It took him five hours to find her at the hospital. By then, the injection had been given.

Sky News met the couple six days later. Mr Zhou had invited us to the family's modest home in a rural corner of the province to hear their story.

We found his wife lying in the bed she had been taken from a week earlier. She was sobbing quietly.

"I miss him." she said.

An image of Liu Xinwen in hospital

"I didn't get to see him. I would be even more upset if I had seen him.

"Baby, I'm sorry. We were not meant to be. You rest in peace in heaven. We will pray for you. We hope your next life is better."  

Her heartbreak is the most brutal consequence of China's one-child policy.

The law is designed to keep the country's population in check. It prevents couples from having more than one child with a few exceptions in some rural provinces.

The policy is supposed to be enforced through financial penalties and not forced abortions. But in some provinces, over-zealous local officials, keen to keep within their birth quotas, break the law and terminate pregnancies by force.

"They don't have any humanity. They are not humans." Liu Xinwen said.

"They must have children and parents too. But they don't have any conscience. This is how China is."

Mr Zhou told how the officials held him down on the sofa while others took his wife away. In all, there were 16 male officials and four females.

We then sit down to look at photos he had taken in the hospital room. They are almost indescribably graphic.

One photograph shows Liu Xinwen lying on the bed. Beside her, on the floor, is a bucket. Inside is her aborted child.

Several other images show the foetus. It is fully formed.

Mr Zhou broke down after discussing the abortion

"His nose, ears, mouth are all there." Mr Zhou said.

"It is a child that would have lived if not for the forced abortion. It's because of their cruelty. Look, his hand is very obvious."

Mr Zhou broke down as he recalled the moment he arrived in the hospital, just minutes after the injection had been administered.

"My wife was lying in bed. I asked her: 'Have you been injected?' She said 'yes'. I asked if the baby was still moving. She said 'not much'.

"After that, I didn't want my wife to see my crying. I went outside. I cried, but only for a while because I needed to return to comfort her. She was very sad. She cried, day and night.

"Every time I heard babies' voices from other wards, I could hardly control myself. I had to go out. I have lost my child. I am speechless, words can't describe my feelings."

A footprint on the front door of the couple's home

He claimed that his wife was forced to sign papers which said she had agreed to the abortion.

When she initially refused, he said they told her that if she did not sign the papers, they would arrest her husband and she would have nothing. We have not been able to independently verify this.

The couple already have one son. Zhou Junfeng is 10. As we talk to his parents, he runs around the house playing. He is oblivious to the grief around him.

After Zhou Junfeng was born his mother underwent a state-proscribed procedure to insert a contraceptive coil into her body.

She says that this "forced sterilisation" must have failed, allowing her to fall pregnant for a second time.

The couple had the option to tell the authorities about the pregnancy the moment they discovered it, four months after conception.

They decided not to come clean because they were concerned that an abortion may be forced on them.

Mr Zhou and his son cook together

Instead, they said they planned to tell the authorities after the birth and then offer to pay the fine. This is common in parts of China and is sometimes acceptable.

Mr Zhou offered to take us to the hospital to see the room where the abortion happened.

Inside the hospital, we saw the room which is part of a fully functioning maternity ward; it is not a backstreet abortion clinic.

We found just two members of staff. One refused to comment. The other, a young nurse, was reluctant and a little startled to find a foreign TV crew in her hospital. 

"I don't know if it's forced or not. And I don't know the reason for it," she said.

"This is a maternity ward; there are many reasons for abortions. I don't know the specific reason for this case and it's not my place to care."

Sky News has approached the Shandong Health and Family Planning Commission, the central government Family Planning Commission in Beijing and the Chinese Embassy in London for a response to this case.

To date, none has been forthcoming.

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Melanie Hall Murder: 'Significant' New Clues

Missing Melanie Case: Timeline Of Events

Updated: 8:48am UK, Thursday 03 October 2013

Bones found in a bag near a motorway slip road are those of missing hospital clerk Melanie Hall, according to Sky sources.

Here is a timeline of events since the 25-year-old disappeared.

:: 1996
June 9: Miss Hall goes missing after a night out at Cadillacs nightclub in Bath with her boyfriend of three weeks, German doctor Philip Karlbaum.

Police interview 850 people who were at the club and around 1,250 taxi drivers and mini-cab drivers.

Underwater search units begin a four-week trawl of a one-mile stretch of the River Avon.

June 17: Dr Karlbaum describes his devastation at his girlfriend's disappearance.

November: A reconstruction of Miss Hall's last-known movements is shown on BBC's Crimewatch.

:: 1998
June: Miss Hall's parents Steve and Patricia say they are almost certain she has been murdered as they make a new appeal on the second anniversary of her disappearance.

Mrs Hall says: "Not only has the person responsible deprived us of our daughter's life, but they have deprived us of laying her to rest with the love and dignity she deserves.

"She is out there on her own and we have nothing to grieve over."

:: 1999
August: Police divers search the River Avon again between Cleveland Bridge and Chatham Row after a tip-off from someone who remembered hearing a man and woman argue on the riverbank.

:: 2003
March: Two men from the Bath area, both in their 30s, are arrested over Ms Hall's death and later bailed.

Police spend two weeks searching fields in Inglesbatch village near Bath.

April: Officers appeal for a new witness, believed to be called Shelley, to come forward. The woman was drinking in a Bath pub the night Miss Hall disappeared.

August: The two men arrested in March are released without charge due to lack of evidence.

:: 2004
November 17: An inquest records an open verdict.

Coroner Paul Forrest says there was no explanation for her disappearance but speculates that she was killed soon after she went missing.

Her family make another appeal for information about her final moments.

:: 2006
June: Miss Hall's parents make another appeal on the 10th anniversary of her disappearance.

Mrs Hall said: "We feel somehow that we're running out of time - we would just like an outcome."

Mr Hall said: "You have to try to lock the awfulness of the truth at the back of your mind."

:: 2009
October 5: A workman finds a bag of bones as he is clearing vegetation on the M5 slip road at junction 14, north of Bristol.

October 8: Police confirm the remains have been identified as those of Melanie Hall.

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Dave Lee Travis At Court Over Sex Charges

By Tom Parmenter, at Westminster Magistrates' Court

DJ Dave Lee Travis is appearing in court facing further sex charges.

The 68-year-old arrived at Westminster Magistrates' Court in central London this morning without saying anything to waiting reporters and photographers.

He was charged with the two supplementary allegations of indecent assault on Tuesday.

They relate to a woman who says she was assaulted between January 1992 and December 1993. She was over the age of 16 at the time.

The two extra charges have been added to 12 others he faces of indecent or sexual assault that span the last three decades.

His trial is scheduled to take place next March.

The DJ has consistently denied any wrongdoing since he was first arrested at his home near Leighton Buzzard in November 2012.

His arrest was part of Operation Yewtree which investigated the Jimmy Savile scandal but the allegations faced by Dave Lee Travis are not linked in any way to his disgraced former BBC colleague.

During a long career in broadcasting the DJ was known as DLT and hosted the BBC Radio One breakfast show between 1978 and 1980.

Recently he had been working for the Magic Network of radio stations but has been taken off-air pending the outcome of court proceedings.

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At Least 40 Dead As Migrant Boat Sinks

The Italian coast guard has pulled at least 42 bodies from the sea after a migrant boat caught fire off a Sicilian island.

The boat is reported to have sunk and left more than 100 people in the water off Lampedusa.

Mayor Giusi Nicolini said the dead included a young child and a pregnant woman.

Lampedusa is a frequent destination for migrants wanting to get to Italy

Search and rescue operations were continuing, the mayor said.

Lampedusa is closer to Africa than the Italian mainland and is the frequent destination for smugglers' boats.

It is the second deadly sinking this week.

Thirteen men drowned on Monday while trying to reach southern Sicily, just a few metres from the shore.

More follows...

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PTSD Fears Over Plan For More Army Reservists

By Alistair Bunkall, Defence Correspondent

Ministers' plans to replace tens of thousands of full-time soldiers with reservists risks creating a new wave of veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, campaigners have warned.

In an interview with Sky News, Andrew Cameron, chief executive of Combat Stress, said members of the Territorial Army (TA) who serve on the front line are at far greater risk of developing the condition than ordinary troops.

Last year, as part of cost-cutting measures, the Government announced plans to double the size of the TA from 15,000 soldiers to 30,000, while reducing the number of regular servicemen by 20,000.

But reservists returning home from conflicts do not have the same level of support afforded to full-time soldiers, Mr Cameron warned.

"The preponderance of post-traumatic stress disorder amongst veterans who are reservists is 50% higher than it is for regular servicemen," he said.

"The reason for that is they don't get the level of support from their regiment, their ship or their squadron that they might have done if they were a regular.

"If we double or treble the number and if we continue with high-intensity warfare then I think society has got a big challenge because we will see a lot more reservists who need help."

Combat Stress said that since 2009, it had seen a large rise in the number of veterans seeking help after returning from Afghanistan.

Combat Stress CEO Andrew Cameron says reservists do not have the support

In 2008/9, the charity was approached by 56 veterans of Afghanistan. This had risen to 271 in the last year, a fivefold increase.

Mr Cameron, whose intervention comes just days after Defence Secretary Philip Hammond was heckled at the Conservative Party conference by veterans over cuts, said he expected veterans to need help for another decade.

He said: "I'm planning for services at or above the level we are providing for at least the next five years and I don't expect to see a tail-off in very much less than 10."

Soldiers' families, friends, colleagues and employers need to be more aware of what they have gone through, he added.

Jake Wood, 40, an investment bank analyst, was a Lance Sergeant in the TA in Afghanistan from April to October 2007.

He told Sky News he suffers from what he calls "Survivor Guilt" and "Killer Guilt", leading to nightmares and sleepless nights, after discovering a member of the Taliban had died in a firefight he had been involved in.

He said: "I didn't feel anything at the time. I couldn't. I was immersed in the normality of Afghanistan.

"But it's when you come home and you're re-immersed in the different normality of home, the cosiness of home life, that you can remember things differently.

"And I just remember playing my part in killing an extremely terrified, dying man."

Mr Wood said he also struggled to recover from a Taliban attack in which his commanding officer was blown up. Returning to work was a very difficult experience.

"On a moral level it didn't fill me with glee going back to that environment," he said.

"As a soldier on the ground, you look after the guy next to you and he looks after you. It's a cliche but it's a cliche for a reason because it's what happens.

"It's a completely unselfish, black and white existence.

"Then when you're suddenly re-immersed in an investment bank after just a few weeks leave, there can be this profound sense of sudden isolation, and also alienation as well, where you're just completely and utterly alone.

"It's basically a hangover from the past, which in my experience does not go away. And now I'm not expecting it to either. This isn't defeatism.

"I've had years of intensive treatment and I've no doubt it has helped me, and the reason I know it has helped me is that I haven't killed myself."

A recent study of thousands of servicemen and women in Iraq and Afghanistan by King's College London found 6% of reservists suffered from PTSD compared with 3% in a control group.

When studied again five years later, they were still found to have greater levels of PTSD and marital instability than regular soldiers.

The Ministry of Defence is set to release new figures detailing the number of servicemen suffering from mental health conditions on Thursday.

:: Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 08457 90 90 90 or email jo@samaritans.org

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Cameron: 'We'll Boost Aspiration With Reforms'

By Jon Craig, Chief Political Correspondent

David Cameron will round off the autumn party conference season with a pledge to create a "land of opportunity" in Britain.

The Prime Minister will vow that the Conservatives will "finish the job" the coalition has started in "clearing up the mess" created by Labour.

In his speech at the end of the Tory conference in Manchester, he will promise to boost aspiration with sweeping reforms of education, welfare and the economy.

After major announcements this week on Help-to-Buy, welfare, GPs' hours and a petrol price freeze, Mr Cameron will call for a second term with a Tory majority.

"This party at its heart is about big people, strong communities, responsible businesses, a bigger society - not a bigger state," he will say.

"It's how we've been clearing up the mess. And it's how we're going to build something better in its place. So let's stick with it and finish the job we've started."

David Cameron wants to point towards a more positive future

Mr Cameron will begin his speech by declaring: "Our dreams are about helping people get on in life, aspiration, opportunity. These are our words, our dreams.

"I believe it is the great Conservative mission that as our economy starts to recover we build a land of opportunity in our country today."

But he will say finishing the job is about more than clearing up the mess, adding: "It means building something better in its place.

"In place of the casino economy, one where people who work hard can actually get on.

"In place of the welfare society, one where no individual is written off.

"In place of the broken education system, one that gives every child the chance to rise up and succeed.

"Our economy, our society, welfare, schools, all reformed, all rebuilt - with one aim, one mission in mind: to make this country, at long last and for the first time ever, a land of opportunity for all."

Mr Cameron will say it makes no difference whether you live in the North or the South, are black or white, or a man or a woman, what school you went to, what background you have, or who your parents were.

"What matters is the effort you put in, and if you put the effort in you'll have the chance to make it," he will say. "That's what the land of opportunity means. That's what finishing the job means."

On aspiration, Mr Cameron will say: "You don't help children succeed by dumbing down education. You help them by pushing them hard.

"Good education is not about equality of outcomes, but bringing the best out of every single child.

"You don't help people by leaving them stuck on welfare, but by helping them stand on their own two feet.

"Why? Because the best way out of poverty is work - and the dignity that brings."

In a strongly pro-business message, Mr Cameron will say: "We know that profit, wealth creation, tax cuts, enterprise - these are not dirty, elitist words, they're not the problem.

"They really are the solution because it's not government that creates jobs, it's businesses.

"It's businesses that get wages in people's pockets, food on their tables, hope for their families and success for our country."

Mr Cameron will say there is no short cut to a land of opportunity, no quick fix and no easy way to do it.

"You build it business by business, school by school, person by person, patiently, practically, painstakingly," he will say. "And under-pinning it all is that deep, instinctive belief that if you trust people and give them the tools, they will succeed."

And in a rallying call to his party to fight for an outright Tory victory in 2015, he will say: "It requires a strong government, with a clear mandate, that is accountable for what it promises and yes, what it delivers.

"And let me tell everyone here what that means. When the election comes, we won't be campaigning for a coalition.

"We will be fighting heart and soul for a majority Conservative Government - because that is what our country needs."

:: Watch David Cameron's speech live on Sky News from 11am.

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Greenpeace Brit Charged With Piracy By Russia

A Briton has been charged with piracy by Russian investigators after taking part in a protest against Arctic oil drilling.

A total of 30 Greenpeace campaigners were detained last week as their ship circled near the Prazlomnaya oil platform in the Pechora Sea, after some activists attempted to get on to the platform.

And Mikhail Kreindlin, a representative of Greenpeace, said: "The first two activists have been charged with piracy. These activists are from Brazil and Britain."

They are freelance videographer Kieron Bryan from the UK and Ana Paula Alminhana from Brazil. If found guilty of piracy, they could be sent to prison for up to 15 years.

Kieron Bryan is a freelance videographer. pic: @kieronjbryan

Greenpeace International executive director Kumi Naidoo condemned the charge, saying: "It is an extreme and disproportionate charge.

"A charge of piracy is being laid against men and women whose only crime is to be possessed of a conscience. This is an outrage and represents nothing less than an assault on the very principle of peaceful protest."

The group of activists had already been ordered to spend two months in custody in the northern city of Murmansk, pending an investigation.

The other Britons being held are cameraman Philip Ball, communications officer Alexandra Harris, logistics co-ordinator Frank Hewetson, activist Anthony Perrett and engineer Iain Rogers.

The activists said the Russian officials pointed guns at them

The platform, the first offshore rig in the Arctic, is owned by Russia's state-controlled energy giant Gazprom.

Oil giants ExxonMobil, Eni and Statoil, along with other Norwegian firms, plan to drill for oil in Russia's Arctic waters in the coming months.

Greenpeace has warned an oil spill would cause significant environmental damage and warns of fossil fuel extraction contributing to climate change.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had said he did not think the protesters were pirates but defended their detention, saying that coast guards had no way of knowing who they were.

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Kenya: Troops 'Looted Shops' In Attack Mall

Shop owners at the Westgate Mall in Nairobi have been returning to their stores after last week's terrorist attack to find displays ransacked and valuables stolen.

They say jewellery and mobile phones have been taken, cash tills plundered and restaurants emptied of alcohol.

Shopkeepers believe troops sent in to protect the complex are to blame, although they admit they have no proof.

One witness told the Associated Press he saw a Kenyan soldier take cigarettes out of a dead man's pocket.

Owners spent Monday removing merchandise and other valuables from their stores and restaurants to prevent any more thefts.

A family trapped inside the mall after the attack

Soon after the attack began on September 21, officials put a cordon around the mall, allowing only security forces and a few government personnel to pass through.

One business owner said money and mobile phones were taken from bags and purses left behind in the mayhem.

Employees of a book shop on the second floor returned to find cash registers yanked open and cash gone.

The store's laptops were also stolen, although none of the books were touched, said owner Paku Tsavani.

People giving blood for victims of the attack

It is the second time in two months that Kenyan security forces have been accused of robbery after an emergency.

There were also reports of looting during a huge fire at Nairobi's main airport in August.

Acknowledging the Westgate thefts, Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku promised: "Those responsible for looting will be prosecuted."

Meanwhile, Kenyan intelligence officials are to be questioned by the country's MPs about whether they had advance warning of the attack.

Soldiers about to enter the shopping mall

Almost no details have been released about what happened immediately after the terrorists moved in.

Mr Lenku has declined to give any information about them, saying: "We do not discuss intelligence matters in public."

Nine suspects are now in custody following the assault, which is thought to have been carried out by the Islamist Somali group al Shabaab.

Kenyan police assisted by US, Israeli and European experts are still examining the shopping centre, which was extensively damaged.

A candlelit vigil held for victims of the attack

The Red Cross says 39 people are still missing, although the government insists everyone is accounted for.

At least 50 Kenyans were killed in the raid, along with six Britons and citizens of France, China, Ghana, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Peru and the Netherlands.

A candlelit vigil was held for the dead at a makeshift memorial near the mall just before sunset on Sunday.

The attack, which al Shabaab claims was in retaliation for Kenyan military operations in Somalia, ended after a four-day siege by security forces.

Five of the attackers were killed.

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GP Plan To Bring In Out-Of-Hours Surgeries

David Cameron has told Sky News he wants doctors' surgeries to be open for longer to ease the pressure on overstretched A&E departments.

The Prime Minister confirmed plans for a £50m trial to have surgeries open from 8am until 8pm, seven days a week.

He insisted the pilot scheme in areas across England, which is expected to cover up to half a million patients, would be properly funded.

Almost one in five patients in a recent NHS survey said inconvenient appointments were a concern, with more than 70% backing weekend and after office opening hours.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt will outline the plans at the Tory conference

The scheme, which was unveiled at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester, will offer extra cash to groups of GPs proposing the most effective ways to improve patient access.

As well as extended surgery hours, ministers hope they will pioneer more effective use of technology, such as consultations with patients via video calls, email and by telephone.

Electronic prescriptions, online appointment booking and allowing people to visit a number of different surgeries across an area are among other measures which could be introduced.

Mr Cameron told Sky: "Sometimes people using Accident & Emergency really just need to see a GP but for hard-working people it is often too difficult because you are at work, you can't get an appointment at the time that fits.

"Let's see if we can have GPs' surgeries open 12 hours a day, seven days a week so you can always get that appointment you need.

"We are starting with pilot schemes in nine regions of England. We are spending the money to help GPs achieve this. We will be able to see how it works."

He added: "I believe that will work well and then our ambition is to roll that out across the country. That is good for hard-working people but I also think it is right for our health service.

"If you look at A&E, since 2004 when the GP contract changed we see four million more people a year going to Accident & Emergency so I think we are not getting the balance right at the moment."

The first pilot projects are due to be operating by April 2014.

Similar initiatives are already being trialled in some parts of the country, including parts of Manchester, where some surgeries will move to seven-day opening.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who will talk about the initiative in his speech to the conference, said: "We live in a 24/7 society and we need GPs to find new ways of working so they can offer appointments at times that suit hard-working people.

"Cutting-edge GP practices here in Manchester are leading the way, and we want many more patients across the country to benefit."

Professor Steve Field, Chief Inspector for General Practice, said: "This move towards seven day services is great news for patients and should be embraced by GPs.

"I want to see brilliant access to GP services for patients across the country and will be assessing this in each practice I inspect."

However, shadow health secretary Andy Burnham accused Mr Cameron and his Conservative Party of "taking the NHS backwards".

"This announcement is a major admission of failure and a U-turn of fairly epic proportions," he said.

"Patients are also finding it harder to get appointments, and turning to A&E instead, after he removed Labour's guarantee of an appointment within 48 hours."

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US Shutdown: Deadline Passes Without Deal

A bitterly divided Congress has plunged the US into a partial government shutdown – the first in almost two decades – that will put some 800,000 workers on unpaid leave and close museums and national parks.

A deadline to fund government spending passed without agreement, and the shutdown went into force at 12.01am.

The Democrat-dominated Senate and Republican-controlled House of Representatives refused to back down in a clash over President Barack Obama's controversial healthcare law, known as Obamacare.

The deadlock means non-essential services, including some of America's most famous tourist attractions, will be forced to close.

Workers classified as essential government employees, such as air traffic controllers or Border Patrol agents, will continue to work.

Shortly after midnight, Mr Obama tweeted: "They actually did it. A group of Republicans in the House just forced a government shutdown over Obamacare instead of passing a real budget."

It is the first US shutdown in 17 years, with analysts concerned about its potential impact on Wall Street and global markets.

Mr Obama warned of the possible risks to the economy, saying a shutdown would have "very real economic impact, right away".

He said he had been willing to negotiate, and placed the blame on Republicans, especially the hard-line Tea Party conservatives.

Some of America's most iconic landmarks will be affected by the shutdown

"One faction of one party, in one house of Congress, in one branch of government doesn't get to shut down the entire government just to refight the results of an election," Mr Obama said.

"Keeping the people's government open is not a concession to me."

"Tourists will find every one of our national parks and monuments ... immediately closed and of course the communities and small businesses that rely on these national treasures for their livelihoods will be out of customers and out of luck."

New York's Statue of Liberty and the National Zoo in Washington, as well as Yellowstone and other national parks, are among the tourist attractions the shutdown will affect.

The Internal Revenue Service will suspend audits and taxpayer services, programmes for children will be halted and up to 800,000 government employees will be furloughed. More than a million others could be asked to work without pay.

The military's 1.4 million active duty personnel will remain on duty and Mr Obama signed a law on Monday to ensure they would receive their pay on time.

The Republicans had sought to tie passing the government spending bill to a delay in major elements of the Obamacare reform.

They insisted the fault rested with Democrats who had refused to negotiate any changes to the healthcare law.

House Speaker John Boehner, who spoke to the president before the midnight deadline, claimed "the Senate has continued to reject our offers".

Mr Obama's healthcare law was passed by Congress and signed into law in 2010, despite opposition by the Republican Party, especially from within the Tea Party.

A protester voices her dissatisfaction outside the Capitol building

Some elements of the scheme - which aims to provide greater access to affordable health insurance for poorer sections of society - take effect today despite the shutdown because they operate with money that is not subject to the budget wrangling.

In March, the Republicans and Democrats failed to agree on a 2013/14 budget bill, although they reached a compromise that gave both sides an extra six months - until October 1 - to continue negotiations.

Market reaction was muted following stock market falls across the board on Monday in anticipation of the shutdown.

Japan's Nikkei rose slightly while in Europe the FTSE 100 share index was flat in early trading following the previous day's 0.8% drop.

Dow Jones Futures pointed to a rise on opening in New York.

The dollar dropped slightly against the pound while there was also a move towards safe havens as gold values rose by up to 0.5%.

London-traded Brent Crude fell by 0.4% to $107 a barrel as the shutdown was seen as potentially damaging to US economic growth prospects.

Much of the shutdown's economic impact will depend on how long it takes politicians to find a solution.

The last shutdown, under the Clinton Administration, lasted 21 days between December 1995 and January 1996.

The political dysfunction at the Capitol also raised fresh concerns about whether Congress can meet a crucial mid-October deadline to raise the government's $16.7trn debt ceiling.

This would force the country to default on its obligations, dealing a potentially painful blow to the economy and sending shockwaves around global markets.

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Chancellor: 'Jobless Must Work For The Dole'

The long-term unemployed will have to earn their benefits by doing full-time unpaid community work from next year.

From April, people still without work after two years on the coalition's Work Programme will face three options if they want to remain on the dole.

They will have to do community work such as litter picking, visit a job centre every day or take part in compulsory training to tackle problems like illiteracy.

Those who break the rules of the new Help to Work scheme, for example by failing to turn up without a good reason, could lose their benefit for four weeks.

A second offence would see them lose it for three months.

The Chancellor wants the jobless to earn their benefits

Chancellor George Osborne will unveil the tough US-style initiative in his speech to the Tory conference later today, pledging to end the "something for nothing" culture.

Ahead of his address, he insisted on Sky News that the policy was not a return to the Conservative "nasty party" of old - describing the move as "compassionate".

"This is not about punishment, this is about help," he stressed, but also said: "What we are saying is there is no option of doing nothing any more.

"We are saying we are going to help you into work but we are going to ask for something in return. I think it is a very compassionate approach to people who previous governments just ignored."

Amid concern that job centres will be overstretched, he added that they would have extra money to police the scheme.

Potentially, around 200,000 long-term Jobseeker's Allowance claimants could be eligible for the new initiative.

But ministers believe the numbers on it will be significantly lower, as many of those working covertly will decide it is no longer worth trying to claim benefits and drop out.

The scheme, devised by Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith, will cost around £300m - with the money likely to be found from departmental underspends.

Sky's chief political correspondent Jon Craig described the new conditions as "a tough crackdown".

Labour's shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, Rachel Reeves, said: "It's taken three wasted years of rising long-term unemployment and a failed Work Programme to come up with this new scheme.

"But this policy is not as ambitious as Labour's compulsory jobs guarantee, which would ensure there is a paid job for every young person out of work for over 12 months and every adult unemployed for more than two years."

During his speech later, Mr Osborne is not expected to unveil specific action on living standards, despite pressure to respond to Labour leader Ed Miliband's energy price freeze pledge last week.

Instead, the Chancellor will stress the need to stick with the coalition's economic plans, warning that the UK still has not fully recovered from the credit crunch.

He told Sky: "Our economic plan is helping Britain turn a corner. We have dealt with the problems we inherited, we have still got a long way to go ...

"By contrast the Labour party got us into this mess and all I hear from them is that they want more borrowing and more spending. A set of gimmicky announcements isn't going to cover up the fact that they don't have a credible economic policy."

:: The Chancellor's speech to the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester will be broadcast live from 11.30am on Sky News.

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Baghdad Car Bombs 'Kill At Least 42'

A wave of car bombings in Baghdad has killed at least 42 people and injured 75, according to police and medical officials.

Police said the parked car bombs - in Shi'ite neighbourhoods - hit outdoor markets and car parks.

The deadliest bombing was in the Sadr City neighbourhood where seven died, including two soldiers.

That attack was followed by four more bombs, which went off in quick succession in New Baghdad, Habibiya, Sabaa al-Bour and Kazimiyah.

It is not yet clear who carried out the bombings, but hardline Sunni militants who view Shi'ite Muslims as non-believers have been stepping up their insurgency.

The attacks follow another day of violence in Iraq on Sunday.

At least 40 people died in a suicide bombing at a Shi'ite funeral in Mussayab, 40 miles south of Baghdad. The attack caused the mosque's roof to collapse.

Two more suicide bombings in Irbil - in the relatively peaceful northern Kurdish region - also killed six people.

The United Nations mission in Iraq said about 800 Iraqis were killed in acts of violence in August.

More follows...

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Knox Back On Trial Over Meredith Murder

By Tom Kington in Florence

The retrial of Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend in the 2007 murder of British student Meredith Kercher has opened in Italy, but neither defendant was in court.

The proceedings opened in Florence, with the hearing expected to be largely devoted to procedural matters.

In 2009, American student Knox, and Raffaele Sollecito, an Italian IT graduate, were convicted of killing Miss Kercher in the student flat the two women shared in Perugia.

An appeals court acquitted them in 2011, citing weaknesses in DNA evidence.

Knox and Sollecito, who at that point had spent four years behind bars, were released, and the American flew back home.

Sollecito at his appeal hearing in 2011

But in March, Italy's supreme court overturned the acquittal, citing what it said were "shortcomings, contradictions and inconsistencies" in the appeal court's verdict, and ordered a retrial.

A new appeal verdict will now be reached, possibly by Christmas, before the case returns to the supreme court.

If Knox is found guilty and the supreme court upholds the verdict, she may face an extradition request, although the US would probably refuse to hand her over.

The appeals judge could order new DNA tests on a tiny biological trace on a knife suspected of being used in the killing, which was overlooked during earlier trials.

Francesco Maresca, a lawyer representing the Kercher family, said: "It was considered too small to test at the time, but there are new kits now. Let's see how well it was conserved."

Meredith Kercher was murdered in Perugia in 2007

Mr Maresca said the experts appointed by the appeal court who questioned DNA evidence found on the knife and on Miss Kercher's bra clasp had been rightly challenged by the supreme court.

"They were unprepared for something that important and probably influenced by the defence," he said.

Carlo Dalla Vedova, a lawyer for Knox, defended the experts' work and said he would ask that they be summoned to defend their work at the new trial.

"The supreme court's criticisms of the acquittal are all wrong," he said.

Giulia Bongiorno, a lawyer representing Sollecito, said she would request an examination of a stain found on Miss Kercher's pillow, suspected to be sperm, which was never tested.

After giving a stream of interviews in recent weeks in which she has proclaimed her innocence, Knox, now 26, has said she will not travel from her home in Seattle for the trial, while Ms Bongiorno said Sollecito would attend later hearings.

Knox has said she would like to visit Miss Kercher's grave, but Miss Kercher's family said last week she should stay away from her former flatmate's final resting place.

Mr Maresca said Miss Kercher's sister Stephanie had planned to attend the hearing, but had decided to stay with her parents in Coulsdon, south London, because "they need her support".

A third man, Rudy Guede, was convicted in the killing in a separate trial and is serving a 16-year term. Judges have said that Guede had not acted alone.

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Police Chief: 'Make Class A Drugs Legal'

Durham's chief constable has called for class A drugs such as heroin and cocaine to be legalised.

Mike Barton has claimed the war on drugs has failed and decriminalisation is the best way to strip power away from criminal gangs.

Writing in The Observer, the national intelligence leader for the Association of Chief Police Officers also suggested the NHS should supply class A drugs to addicts.

"Not all crime gangs raise income through selling drugs, but most of them do in my experience," Mr Barton said.

"So offering an alternative route of supply to users cuts off the gang's income stream.

"If an addict were able to access drugs via the NHS or some similar organisation, then they would not have to go out and buy illegal drugs.

"Drugs should be controlled. They should not, of course, be freely available.

"I think addiction to anything - drugs, alcohol, gambling, etc - is not a good thing, but outright prohibition hands revenue streams to villains."

Under Mr Barton's direction, Durham Constabulary launched Operation Sledgehammer, a sustained campaign  to "get in the faces" of organised crime gangs.

Mr Barton has highlighted the way Capone (pictured) was brought down

He has previously claimed to seek inspiration in the way notorious Prohibition-era gangster Al Capone was finally brought down not for bootlegging, but tax evasion.

Mr Barton, who has served for nearly 34 years, said he had witnessed a worsening drug addiction problem since prohibition began in 1971 with the Misuse of Drugs Act.

He argued that pushers had made billions from adulterated drugs, transforming them into local folk heroes for young people.

"Decriminalising their commodity will immediately cut off their income stream and destroy their power," he said.

"Making drugs legal would tackle the supply chain much more effectively and much more economically than we can currently manage."

Mr Barton said that offering drugs therapeutically through the NHS and similar organisations would avoid the spread of HIV and hepatitis C among needle users.

But he underlined that he was in favour of their use in a controlled environment, rather than a "free for all".

"I am saying that people who encourage others to take drugs by selling them are criminals, and their actions should be tackled," he said.

"But addicts, on the other hand, need to be treated, cared for and encouraged to break the cycle of addiction. They do not need to be criminalised."

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Pakistan Police Station Bombs Kill At Least 33

Two bombs have exploded near a police station in the city of Peshawar, killing at least 33 people and injuring 70.

At least one of the explosions appeared to have been caused by a bomb planted in a parked car and detonated by remote control, local police said.

It comes just a week after two suicide bombers killed 85 people in an attack on All Saints' Church, just 300 yards from the scene of Sunday's blasts.

The area was crowded with shops and families.

A woman is carried to safety from the site of the latest blasts

Spokesman for the Lady Reading Hospital Jamil Shah said the dead included six children and two women as well as 70 wounded who have been brought to the hospital from the blast site.

A crowd gathered outside the hospital as relatives tried to find out the fate of their loved ones. Women sobbed as ambulances pulled up with more bodies.

Shopowner Sher Gul said he had made repeated trips to the hospital on his motorbike to bring six people to be treated for their wounds.

The northwestern frontier city is the gateway to the troubled tribal regions, which are overrun by Taliban and al Qaeda-linked militants.

Scenes at the Anglican church bombing a week ago

Islamist violence has been on the rise in Pakistan in recent months, undermining Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's efforts to tame the insurgency by launching peace talks with the Taliban.

The Taliban have repeatedly rejected Pakistan's constitution and have called for the full implementation of Islamic law and for war with India.

Mr Sharif was expected to meet Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly later on Sunday, only hours after Mr Singh described Pakistan as the "epicentre of terrorism in our region".

Last week's church attack by a Taliban faction was the deadliest attack on Christians in Pakistan.

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Cameron Launches State-Backed Mortgages Plan

David Cameron will announce 95% government-backed mortgages to help people get on to the property ladder will start within days - three months earlier than planned.

The scheme was due to start in January next year but the Prime Minister will say at the Conservative Party conference today that people will be able to start applying for the new mortgage guarantee from next week.

Speaking on Sunday, ahead of the conference, Mr Cameron said that Nat West, RBS and Halifax would all be offering the new deals.

Mr Cameron says the 'earlier the better' for the scheme's launch

It is widely being seen as a response to Ed Miliband's Labour conference crowd-pleasing announcement that the party would freeze energy prices for two years as conference season has shaped up as a "battle over the consumer".

The mortgage guarantees will allow buyers to acquire a newly built home or an existing property worth up to £600,000 with a deposit of only 5%.

The second stage of the Help To Buy scheme aims to boost mortgage availability by reducing the risk for lenders because the Government takes on the risk of default when it guarantees a proportion of a loan.

Mr Cameron believes that will help solve the skewed market that means people on good wages struggle to buy even modest properties because they cannot scrape together the massive deposits needed or find a mortgage.

The Prime Minister said: "You take a nurse married to a teacher. They're both earning £25,000 - that's pretty close to average full time earnings. If they want to buy a £200,000 house, they're going to have to find a £40,000 deposit.

"Now, they can't do that, unless they've got rich parents. That's not right. That's not an aspiration nation."

Sky News Political Correspondent Anushka Asthana said bringing forward the mortgage plan and the announcement, on Saturday, of tax breaks for married couples was an attempt to give Conservatives something to "take to the doorsteps".

She said: "This is also about Mr Cameron looking outwards and thinking about the public and trying to come back on some of the ideas that Labour and the Liberal Democrats have put forward over the past few weeks.

"People are calling this the battle over the consumer. At the Lib Dems we have free school meals and then Ed Miliband promises to freeze energy prices. The Tories have tried to rubbish that idea but at the same time they are clearly worried."

Mr Balls says the Government focus should be on affordable homes

A YouGov poll for The Sunday Times put Labour on an 11 point lead on 42%, with the Conservatives at 31%, UKIP on 13% and the Liberal Democrats trailing on 9%.

The 95% mortgage scheme has previously attracted widespread concern, with some claiming it may lead to more problems than it solves.

Liberal Democrat Business Secretary Vince Cable warned the scheme "could inflate the market" and said he feared there was a "danger of getting into another housing bubble".

Former Bank of England governor Lord King said the scheme is "too close for comfort" to a general scheme to guarantee mortgages.

Speaking on Sunday, Labour's shadow chancellor Ed Balls said: "If David Cameron is serious about helping first-time buyers he should be bringing forward investment to build more affordable homes. Rising demand for housing must be matched with rising supply, but under this government housebuilding is at its lowest level since the 1920s."

The first stage of Help To Buy was launched in April and offers loans to give people the chance to buy a new-build home with a deposit of just 5%. The scheme has been credited with spurring a surge in home sales and driving up prices.

:: Watch Conservative Party conference coverage on Sky News from 2pm

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