Interest Rates Held

UK interest rates have been kept on hold at a record low of 0.5% by the Bank of England. The Bank also decided not to pump any more money into the UK economy under its policy of quantitative easing (QE). Interest rates have now been 0.5% since March 2009, and analysts do not expect any rate rises soon while the economy continues to recover.

Jimmy's Tale On TV

The parents of murdered teenager Jimmy Mizen were joined by TV presenter Ben Shephard, Spurs striker Jermain Defoe and the Metropolitan Police to launch a personal safety film campaign for schools at New Scotland Yard today. Barry and Margaret Mizen and Jermain - brother of the victim who was killed in a violent street attack - have become ambassadors for Kids Taskforce. They are appealing to teenagers to listen to the vital messages in the film, and to parents to help bring the free resource into every classroom. "We want Jimmy to be remembered. We need to work together to stop the hatred and reclaim our children," said Margaret. Watch Over Me is a soap opera for teenagers based on real-life stories. Ten episodes of hard-hitting drama address challenging topics such as arson, anti-social behaviour, preventing extreme violence and the real threat of young people being radicalised by religious and political extremists.

Stab Victim Dies

A murder investigation has been launched following a stabbing in north London. Police were alerted at approximately 11.20pm on Saturday 8 May to reports of a man stabbed in the vicinity of FinsburyPark underground station. Officers and London Ambulance Service and discovered a man, aged 19, suffering stab injuries. He was taken by the ambulance service to a north London hospital where he died on Sunday. While formal identification awaits, police are confident the deceased is Marcin Bilaszewski, a Polish national, from the N15 area. Next of kin have been informed and a post mortem will be arranged in due course.

Cannes Defies Storm Damage

Some 10,000 film industry professionals and an about 4,000 journalists are expected to attend the Cannes Film Festival this week - despite massive storm damage taking place.

The festival organisers have said the French resort "will be ready" for the start of the event after it was hit by the severe weather. Freak waves caused millions of Euros of damage to waterfront cafes on the town's landmark Croisette. "We will need several days to clean up, but it should all be ready on time," said City Councillor David Lisnard. The film festival runs from 12-23 May and will attract thousands of people to the south of France.

(BMcC/GK)