Cyprus says it has begun exploratory drilling for oil and gas in the eastern Mediterranean in defiance of Turkish anger at the plans.

The SNP should stop dodging questions on independence and start providing the answers, Scottish Secretary Michael Moore demands.

A project to reorganise 999 fire control centres wasted nearly half a billion pounds and was a "complete failure" says an MPs committee.

Researchers say just nine of 137 developing countries will achieve ambitious targets to improve the health of women and children.

A British firm offered to supply "cyber-spy" technology used by Egypt to target pro-democracy activists, documents seen by the BBC suggest.

Ministers are discussing how to inject £5bn into the economy without abandoning their deficit reduction strategy, the BBC understands.

Scotland Yard decides "not to pursue" its legal bid to force the Guardian to reveal the sources it used for stories about phone hacking.

Anti-Gaddafi forces have captured two key positions close to the southern city of Sabha, says a spokesman for Libya's transitional authorities.