News | Page 30

Fire crews from Stratford, Plaistow, Hainault, Stoke Newington, Poplar and Millwall were sent to the site of a blaze in Silvertown which disrupted transport in London this week. The fire began in a recycling plant on Monday afternoon (July 18, 2011).

A second set of plans for a commercial arcade have been refused because of the proposals for public toilets. Cambridge City Council said people clearly wanted ground floor toilets, but this was not what they were getting. The second plans provide a sole ground floor disabled unit accessed by a radar key.

Home Retail Group (HRG) will buy the ailing Habitat brand and three central London stores for £24.5 million in cash. HRG will keep 100 staff at the London stores. HRG agreed to buy the branches at Tottenham Court Road, King’s Road and Finchley Road, but not Westfield London.

The Labour MP for West Ham was guilty of "hypocrisy" according to an employment agency for recruiting an unpaid worker for her House of Commons office. Gus Baker, from Intern Aware, said: "It’s absolutely unacceptable for MPs to replace full time, salaried workers with unpaid staff.

Fire crews were called on Monday (June 20, 2011) afternoon to tackle a blaze inside Didcot Power Station in Oxfordshire. The fire broke out in roof panelling above high-voltage electrical switchgear in the main turbine hall. The fire service said it was its "most protracted and arduous incident for some significant time".

London Mayor Boris Johnson was urged to intervene in a long-term dispute as London Underground strike talks broke down again. The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) called on the Mayor’s help after it met LU at conciliation service Acas to discuss the planned action for two hours on Wednesday (June 15).

London Midland workers could walk out over plans to lose jobs at some of its railway stations, while the company said it would aim to avoid compulsory redundancies where possible. London Midland operates rail services through London, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire.

Today (Tuesday, May 24) London Underground workers rejected an improved pay offer.

Londoners will enjoy a feast of sport next year with the arrival of the Olympic Games. Travel around the capital during that time should be trouble-free as management and workers have reached a special agreement. Rail, Maritime and Transport union general Secretary Bob Crow explained: "This is a groundbreaking offer.

Berkshire Fire and Rescue reported there was a risk a few spots could flare up again but it hoped to hand the land back to forest management on Tuesday (May 10) following the largest forest fire in the county’s history.

London Underground (LU) workers will begin a series of Tube strikes in less than two weeks. Tube drivers voted to strike over the "unfair" sacking of two colleagues, the Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) union said. The RMT said the first walkout was planned for Monday, May 16, with another five before the end of June.

London Ambulance Service (LAS) worker Eric Roberts, a Unison official, added: "I am shocked by the size of these cuts. This is a cull of highly-trained staff." He was reacting to news that nearly 900 LAS staff will go over the following five years. A further 330 posts will be removed from management and support services.