Shutdown: White House Rejects GOP Debt Plan

The White House has rejected a new proposal from House Republicans for reopening the government and extending the debt ceiling.

House GOP leaders on Tuesday pitched the plan to fellow Republicans to counter an emerging Senate deal to reopen the government and forestall a looming default on US obligations.

The proposal, which includes a two-year suspension of a tax on medical devices aimed at funding President Obama's signature health care law, was immediately rejected by the White House.

Senate leaders Reid (L) and McConnell have expressed cautious optimism

White House spokeswoman Amy Brundage said the plan is a "partisan attempt to appease a small group of Tea Party Republicans who forced the government shutdown in the first place".

Democratic Representative Chris Van Hollen tweeted that the "GOP's latest plan is designed to torpedo the bipartisan (Senate) solution."

He called the plan "not only reckless", but "tantamount to default".

Mr Obama rejected the latest proposal from House conservatives

The House proposal emerged after conservative lawmakers rebelled at the outlines of the emerging Senate plan by Majority Leader Harry Reid and GOP leader Mitch McConnell.

Those two hoped to seal an agreement on Tuesday, just two days before the Treasury Department says it will run out of borrowing capacity.

The White House praised the Senate negotiations as a good-faith effort to end the partial government shutdown and avoid an economy-shaking default.

The partial government shutdown has entered its third week

Mr Obama also planned to meet with House Democratic leaders on Tuesday afternoon as talks continue.

John Boehner, the top Republican in the House, stopped short of saying the GOP's latest proposal would be tabled for a vote on Tuesday.

The House Speaker told reporters he is "trying to find a path forward" but that "there have been no decisions about exactly what we will do".

The competing House and Senate plans are a far cry from the assault on "Obamacare" that Tea Party Republicans originally demanded as a condition for a short-term funding bill to keep the government fully operational.

It lacks the budget cuts demanded by Republicans in exchange for increasing the government's $16.7trn (£10.5trn) borrowing cap.

Like the House GOP bill, the emerging Senate measure - though not finalised - would reopen the government through January 15 and permit the Treasury to borrow normally until early to mid-February.

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Immigration: Brit Workers 'Against The World'

By Ed Conway, Economics Editor

Immigration is changing Britain. This is not merely a theory - it's statistical fact. Back in 2004, less than a decade ago, one in 11 of those living in Britain were born abroad. Today the proportion is one in eight - 12.4%.

And, just as is the case for economic growth and productivity, the immigration picture varies throughout the country. Some 42% of London's population was born outside the UK, compared to just 5% in the North of England.

Though more attention tends to be focused on the flows of immigration - in other words people entering and leaving the country, the gradually-changing make-up of the UK population represents a significant shift - both in social and economic terms.

On the one hand, there's the question of how much immigrants cost Britain's welfare state. A quarter of new-born babies in Britain last year had non-UK-born mothers - the highest proportion since records began in 1969.

But you can only really get a clear sense of the absolute impact by taking a step back and comparing the cost of immigration with the related income - the taxes these new members of the population pay.

Research from the OECD shows that immigrants actually bring in over £7bn more than they cost. That's the equivalent of a penny off the basic rate of income tax.

There are other economic arguments in favour: Free movement of labour is usually good news for businesses, since it allows them to attract workers from all over the world, not merely locals.

But there are clearly challenges as well. Immigration increases GDP (though not necessarily GDP per capita), but it also increases the demand for housing - a real problem in a country facing a chronic shortage of property. And more potential workers means more competition for British employees.

In pure statistical terms, immigrants work harder than their UK counterparts. Some 71% of foreign nationals are economically active, compared with 67% of UK nationals. They are better-qualified: 38% of non UK-born people in Britain have degrees, compared with 30% of UK nationals.

And contrary to popular opinion, they are not just plumbers. The biggest proportion of immigrants actually work in finance, followed by health, then retail, then manufacturing.

According to the OECD half of all immigrants hired in Britain are high-skilled - and the proportion is increasing.

This has had an undeniable impact on Britons' job prospects. Since the start of the crisis in 2008, seven British workers have lost their jobs for every one non-British worker to have lost theirs.

Some are likely to see this as an argument against immigration. However, the economic message is just as significant. Britons need to work harder if they want to compete. That's the inevitable consequence when you're competing against a whole world's worth of workers, rather than just one country.

:: Immigration UK: A week of special coverage on Sky from October 14 to 18 - watch on Sky 501, Virgin Media 602, Freesat 202, Freeview 82, Skynews.com and Sky News for iPad

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Madeleine McCann Appeal: Response Welcomed

Madeleine: Key Events Timeline

Updated: 9:48am UK, Monday 14 October 2013

Here is a timeline of the key events since Madeleine McCann's disappearance.

2007

:: May 3 - Kate and Gerry McCann leave their three children asleep in their holiday apartment in Praia da Luz while they dine with friends at a nearby tapas restaurant.

Jane Tanner, one of the friends eating with the McCanns, later reports seeing a man carrying a child away earlier that night.

:: May 5 - Portuguese police reveal they believe Madeleine was abducted but is still alive and in Portugal, and say they have a sketch of a suspect.

:: May 14 - Detectives take Anglo-Portuguese man Robert Murat in for questioning and make him an "arguido", or official suspect.

:: May 25 - Detectives release a description of the man reported by Jane Tanner three weeks earlier after pressure from the McCanns, their legal team and the British Government.

:: May 30 - Mr and Mrs McCann meet the Pope in Rome in the first of a series of trips around Europe and beyond to highlight the search for their daughter.

:: August 6 - A Portuguese newspaper reports that British sniffer dogs have found traces of blood on a wall in the McCanns' holiday apartment.

:: August 11 - Exactly 100 days after Madeleine disappeared, investigating officers publicly acknowledge for the first time that she could be dead.

:: September 7 - During further questioning of Mr and Mrs McCann, detectives make them both "arguidos" in their daughter's disappearance.

:: September 9 - The McCanns fly back to England with their two-year-old twins Sean and Amelie.

:: October 2 - Goncalo Amaral, the detective in charge of the inquiry, is removed from the case after criticising the British police in a Portuguese newspaper interview.

:: October 25 - The McCanns release a new artist's impression drawn by an FBI-trained expert showing the man described by Jane Tanner.

2008

:: March 19 - Mr and Mrs McCann accept £550,000 libel damages and front-page apologies from Express Newspapers over allegations they were responsible for Madeleine's death.

:: April 7 - Three Portuguese detectives, led by Paulo Rebelo, fly to Britain to re-interview the seven friends on holiday with the McCanns when Madeleine vanished.

:: July 17 - Mr Murat receives £600,000 in libel damages from four newspaper groups over "seriously defamatory" articles connecting him with the child's disappearance.

:: July 21 - The Portuguese authorities shelve their investigation and lift the "arguido" status of the McCanns and Mr Murat.

:: August 4 - Thousands of pages of evidence from the Portuguese police files in the exhaustive investigation into Madeleine's disappearance are made public.

2009

:: January 13 - Mr McCann returns to Portugal for the first time since coming back to the UK without his daughter.

:: March 24 - The McCanns launch a localised new appeal for information focused on the area in the Algarve where Madeleine disappeared.

:: April 4 - Mr McCann goes back to Portugal to help film a reconstruction of the events on the night his daughter vanished.

:: April 22 - The McCanns fly to the US to record an interview with chat show host Oprah Winfrey to mark two years since Madeleine's disappearance.

:: June 14 - Dying paedophile Raymond Hewlett says he was in the Algarve when Madeleine disappeared and has an alibi - but has no plans to reveal it.

:: August 6 - Detectives say they are hunting a "Victoria Beckham lookalike" with an Australian or New Zealand accent, reportedly seen in Barcelona three days after the little girl went missing.

2010

:: Feb 18 -  Kate and Gerry McCann say they are "pleased and relieved" at a judge's decision to uphold a ban on a book by former detective Goncalo Amaral.

:: Mar 3 -  A newly-released file from Portugese police on possible sightings is called "gold dust" and could lead to a breakthrough, says a spokesman for the McCanns.

:: May 1 - Kate McCann reveals she had thoughts about being "wiped out" in a motorway crash to end the pain of losing Madeleine - but vows never to give up.

:: November 10 - Madeleine's parents launch an online petition to help force a UK and Portuguese joint review of all evidence in the case.

:: November 15 -  The McCanns sign a deal to write a book about their daughter's disappearance.

2011

:: May 13 - The Prime Minister David Cameron asks London's Metropolitan Police to help investigate the case.

:: November 23 - Kate and Gerry McCann appear at the Leveson Inquiry into media ethics.

They tell how media pressure affected their family life and accuse newspaper editors of hampering the search for their missing daughter.

Kate McCann says she felt "violated" when her diary was published without her permission.

:: December 5 - Scotland Yard detectives spend time in Barcelona as part of their re-examination of the case.

2012

:: March 9 - Portuguese police in Oporto launch a review of the original investigation.

:: April 26 - Scotland Yard says Madeleine McCann may still be alive and release an artist's impression of what she may look like as a nine-year-old.

:: July 6 - British detectives examine a claim that the little girl's body is buried near the apartment from where she vanished. It comes after a self-styled investigator sends police radar scans he claims show a burial site.

2013

:: Feb 11 - Gerry McCann calls for politicians to implement the conclusions of the Leveson Inquiry in full, backed by legislation.

:: Feb 13 - Police say the results of DNA tests on a girl in New Zealand who was mistaken for Madeleine reveal that she is not the missing British girl.

:: Feb 21 - Retired solicitor Tony Bennett who published claims that Madeleine McCann's parents caused her death is given a suspended jail sentence.

:: May 2 - Madeleine McCann's parents tell Sky News a police review into their daughter's disappearance is making "excellent progress" as they mark the sixth anniversary since she went missing.

:: May 17 - Scotland Yard say they have identified a number of "people of interest" they want to speak to. It believes it has found enough evidence to reopen the case but the Portuguese authorities are still resistant. 

:: June 15 - The Home Office agrees to fund a full-scale investigation by the Metropolitan Police.

:: October 13 - UK detectives reviewing the case say key details in the timeline of her disappearance have "significantly changed".

:: October 14 - A fresh appeal is launched in a bid to find a suspect detectives say is of "vital importance", with two new separate e-fits - thought to be of the same man seen on the night Madeleine went missing - released by police.

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Murder Hunt After Bodies Found In Garden

By David Crabtree, Midlands Correspondent

Police have launched a murder inquiry after the skeletal remains of a "reclusive" couple were unearthed in the garden of a Nottinghamshire house.

Officers believe the victims are William Wycherley and his wife Patricia, who "vanished without trace" from their home in a quiet Mansfield cul-de-sac in the late 1990s.

They were discovered by officers who were led to the semi-detached house last week after a tip-off.

Post-mortems have been carried out on the remains but have so far proved inconclusive.

Mr Wycherley, who would now be 100, and his wife, who would be 79, moved into the house in 1987, but disappeared some time after 1998.

At a media briefing, Detective Inspector Rob Griffin said: "Whilst it is difficult to ascertain cause of death given the passage of time, the circumstances in which the skeletal remains have been found  is suspicious and we have now launched a murder inquiry.

"Insofar as suspects are concerned, we are entirely open-minded, but it is far too early in the investigation to be talking about suspects at this stage.

"The focus of the investigation is on the Wycherleys themselves and the goings-on at number 2 Blenheim Close back in the 1990s."

He said the couple had been reclusive and that police desperately needed people to come forward with information.

It has been reported locally that a family member had been receiving Christmas cards signed 'Bill and Pat' until four years ago.

One neighbour is quoted as saying he thought they had emigrated. 

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Pensioner Sea Fall Inquest: Narrative Verdict

By Becky Johnson, North of England Correspondent

A coroner has ruled that failings by rescuers which led to a pensioner being dropped into the Arctic Ocean were a "significant factor" in her death.

Janet Richardson, 72, from Cumbri, was taken ill while on a cruise to Norway from Hull in April 2011.

The inquest into her death at Carlisle Coroners Court heard how as she was being transferred from the ship to a boat waiting to take her to hospital, rescuers dropped the stretcher she was on and she plunged into the "icy" water.

It was a "number of minutes" before she was pulled from the sea. She died three weeks later in hospital.

The pensioner fell into the sea while being transferred off the cruise ship

Fellow passenger on the cruise, Colin Prescott from Lancashire, witnessed what happened and told the inquest there was "abject panic" on board the ship at the time.

He told Sky News that as he watched the stretcher being passed between the boats "the two vessels separated and the three people on board the little rescue craft had no chance of hanging on".

"As the stretcher fell the people on board the cruise ship couldn't hold the handles any longer and she just slipped into the water," he said.

"I was terrified. It was very frightening as you can imagine, someone in that kind of water, it was very, very cold."

The inquest heard that Mrs Richardson had a history of ill health including problems with her kidneys and liver.

The coroner recorded a narrative verdict, noting that Mrs Richardson was not wearing a life jacket and the cruise ship and rescue boat were not tied together.

The lifeboat that was sent for Mrs Richardson

He concluded that although Mrs Richardson died as a consequence of her underlying health conditions, the immersion in cold sea water was a significant factor and accelerated her death.

Mrs Richardson's husband, George, was at the two day inquest and told Sky News the cruise to see the Northern Lights had been "a trip of a lifetime" for his wife.

Speaking after the verdict he said: "There have been serious shortcomings in the way the evacuation of Janet was handled and I hope that lessons have been learnt."

He described his wife as "a very enthusiastic person in everything she did".

The coroner said the incident should never have happened and confirmed he has written to the Norwegian rescue service and the cruise operator to question their procedures.

More follows...

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Madeleine McCann Kidnap 'Was Pre-Planned'

Madeleine: Key Events Timeline

Updated: 9:48am UK, Monday 14 October 2013

Here is a timeline of the key events since Madeleine McCann's disappearance.

2007

:: May 3 - Kate and Gerry McCann leave their three children asleep in their holiday apartment in Praia da Luz while they dine with friends at a nearby tapas restaurant.

Jane Tanner, one of the friends eating with the McCanns, later reports seeing a man carrying a child away earlier that night.

:: May 5 - Portuguese police reveal they believe Madeleine was abducted but is still alive and in Portugal, and say they have a sketch of a suspect.

:: May 14 - Detectives take Anglo-Portuguese man Robert Murat in for questioning and make him an "arguido", or official suspect.

:: May 25 - Detectives release a description of the man reported by Jane Tanner three weeks earlier after pressure from the McCanns, their legal team and the British Government.

:: May 30 - Mr and Mrs McCann meet the Pope in Rome in the first of a series of trips around Europe and beyond to highlight the search for their daughter.

:: August 6 - A Portuguese newspaper reports that British sniffer dogs have found traces of blood on a wall in the McCanns' holiday apartment.

:: August 11 - Exactly 100 days after Madeleine disappeared, investigating officers publicly acknowledge for the first time that she could be dead.

:: September 7 - During further questioning of Mr and Mrs McCann, detectives make them both "arguidos" in their daughter's disappearance.

:: September 9 - The McCanns fly back to England with their two-year-old twins Sean and Amelie.

:: October 2 - Goncalo Amaral, the detective in charge of the inquiry, is removed from the case after criticising the British police in a Portuguese newspaper interview.

:: October 25 - The McCanns release a new artist's impression drawn by an FBI-trained expert showing the man described by Jane Tanner.

2008

:: March 19 - Mr and Mrs McCann accept £550,000 libel damages and front-page apologies from Express Newspapers over allegations they were responsible for Madeleine's death.

:: April 7 - Three Portuguese detectives, led by Paulo Rebelo, fly to Britain to re-interview the seven friends on holiday with the McCanns when Madeleine vanished.

:: July 17 - Mr Murat receives £600,000 in libel damages from four newspaper groups over "seriously defamatory" articles connecting him with the child's disappearance.

:: July 21 - The Portuguese authorities shelve their investigation and lift the "arguido" status of the McCanns and Mr Murat.

:: August 4 - Thousands of pages of evidence from the Portuguese police files in the exhaustive investigation into Madeleine's disappearance are made public.

2009

:: January 13 - Mr McCann returns to Portugal for the first time since coming back to the UK without his daughter.

:: March 24 - The McCanns launch a localised new appeal for information focused on the area in the Algarve where Madeleine disappeared.

:: April 4 - Mr McCann goes back to Portugal to help film a reconstruction of the events on the night his daughter vanished.

:: April 22 - The McCanns fly to the US to record an interview with chat show host Oprah Winfrey to mark two years since Madeleine's disappearance.

:: June 14 - Dying paedophile Raymond Hewlett says he was in the Algarve when Madeleine disappeared and has an alibi - but has no plans to reveal it.

:: August 6 - Detectives say they are hunting a "Victoria Beckham lookalike" with an Australian or New Zealand accent, reportedly seen in Barcelona three days after the little girl went missing.

2010

:: Feb 18 -  Kate and Gerry McCann say they are "pleased and relieved" at a judge's decision to uphold a ban on a book by former detective Goncalo Amaral.

:: Mar 3 -  A newly-released file from Portugese police on possible sightings is called "gold dust" and could lead to a breakthrough, says a spokesman for the McCanns.

:: May 1 - Kate McCann reveals she had thoughts about being "wiped out" in a motorway crash to end the pain of losing Madeleine - but vows never to give up.

:: November 10 - Madeleine's parents launch an online petition to help force a UK and Portuguese joint review of all evidence in the case.

:: November 15 -  The McCanns sign a deal to write a book about their daughter's disappearance.

2011

:: May 13 - The Prime Minister David Cameron asks London's Metropolitan Police to help investigate the case.

:: November 23 - Kate and Gerry McCann appear at the Leveson Inquiry into media ethics.

They tell how media pressure affected their family life and accuse newspaper editors of hampering the search for their missing daughter.

Kate McCann says she felt "violated" when her diary was published without her permission.

:: December 5 - Scotland Yard detectives spend time in Barcelona as part of their re-examination of the case.

2012

:: March 9 - Portuguese police in Oporto launch a review of the original investigation.

:: April 26 - Scotland Yard says Madeleine McCann may still be alive and release an artist's impression of what she may look like as a nine-year-old.

:: July 6 - British detectives examine a claim that the little girl's body is buried near the apartment from where she vanished. It comes after a self-styled investigator sends police radar scans he claims show a burial site.

2013

:: Feb 11 - Gerry McCann calls for politicians to implement the conclusions of the Leveson Inquiry in full, backed by legislation.

:: Feb 13 - Police say the results of DNA tests on a girl in New Zealand who was mistaken for Madeleine reveal that she is not the missing British girl.

:: Feb 21 - Retired solicitor Tony Bennett who published claims that Madeleine McCann's parents caused her death is given a suspended jail sentence.

:: May 2 - Madeleine McCann's parents tell Sky News a police review into their daughter's disappearance is making "excellent progress" as they mark the sixth anniversary since she went missing.

:: May 17 - Scotland Yard say they have identified a number of "people of interest" they want to speak to. It believes it has found enough evidence to reopen the case but the Portuguese authorities are still resistant. 

:: June 15 - The Home Office agrees to fund a full-scale investigation by the Metropolitan Police.

:: October 13 - UK detectives reviewing the case say key details in the timeline of her disappearance have "significantly changed".

:: October 14 - A fresh appeal is launched in a bid to find a suspect detectives say is of "vital importance", with two new separate e-fits - thought to be of the same man seen on the night Madeleine went missing - released by police.

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Sean Edwards: British Driver Dies In Crash

A "hugely promising" British racing driver has been killed in Australia after the car he was a passenger in smashed into a race track wall.

Sean Edwards was instructing a 20-year-old male driver in a Porsche at the time of the accident at Queensland Raceway in Willowbank, west of Brisbane.

The driver, from Brisbane, was pulled from the burning wreckage and is in intensive care with life-threatening injuries.

Edwards, 26, the son of Guy Edwards, the British former Formula 1 driver, was born in London but was living in Monaco. He was the 2013 Porsche supercup championship leader.

The aftermath of the fatal crash

The Motor Sports Association (MSA) said: "The Motor Sports Association (MSA) is shocked and saddened by the loss of British racing driver Sean Edwards, who died in an accident on Tuesday in Australia.

"Sean was a hugely promising young racer who came through the junior formulas in Britain, before making a career in international sports car racing.

"He is leading the 2013 Porsche Supercup championship and had won both the Nurburgring and Dubai 24 Hours this year.

"The MSA extends its deepest sympathies to Sean's family, friends and fans at this difficult time."

Edwards had coached drivers for the acclaimed Formula 1 movie Rush, in which he also played the part of his father.

Sean Edwards competes in a Porsche Supercup race in May

One of the scenes saw him recreate the moment Guy Edwards pulled fellow driver Nicki Lauda from a burning race car.

Just two days ago, Sean Edwards wrote on his Twitter page: "Time to hit Queensland Raceway today, should be fun, hope there aren't too many kangaroos like at Bathurst!"

Reacting to the news of Edwards' death, F1 driver Mark Webber tweeted: "Way way too early... What a talent.. Always enjoyed watching him drive at the F1 weekends. #RIPSeanEdwards."

Also on Twitter, former McLaren driver David Coulthard wrote: "Shocking news about Sean Edwards passing, top man and super talented racer, condolences to his nearest and dearest."

And another British former F1 driver, Martin Brundle, tweeted: "Terribly sad news re the death of Sean Edwards, a very talented racer. Condolences to his family and friends. Motor sport can be too cruel."

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Somali Pirate Seized In Belgium Film Sting

A notorious Somali pirate chief has been arrested in Belgium after being lured there on promises of filming a documentary about his life on the high seas.

Federal prosecutor Johan Delmulle said Mohamed Abdi Hassan, better known as 'Afweyne' or 'Big Mouth', is being held in the Belgian city of Bruges after being detained at Brussels airport on Saturday when he stepped off a flight from Nairobi.

Afweyne and his powerful accomplice, Mohamed Aden "Tiiceey", the former governor of Somalia's self-proclaimed Himan and Heeb statelet, are facing charges of kidnapping, piracy and organised crime, the prosecutor said in a statement.

The charges followed the 2009 capture of a Belgian ship, the Pompei, seized and held by pirates off the Somali coast for more than 70 days until a ransom was paid.

An inquiry led to the arrest and conviction of two of the pirates but the Belgian prosecutor's office had not let up its determination to bring to book the people "behind this act of piracy, who ordered, financed and organised logistical backup", Mr Delmulle said.

"Afweyne" is being held in the medieval city of Bruges

As the pirate was a resident of Somalia and rarely travelled, police "elaborated an infiltration operation aimed at arresting Afweyne outside of Somalia". the prosecutor said.

"Via Tiiceey, Afweyne was asked to collaborate as an adviser and expert on a film project on maritime piracy. The film was supposed to reflect his life as a pirate."

But when Afweyne and Tiiceey landed on Saturday morning to sign the movie contract, "they were awaited and taken into custody", the prosecutor said.

Described last year by the UN as "one of the most notorious and influential leaders" in Somalia's pirate hub, Afweyne notably was involved in the 2008 capture of the Saudi-owned Sirius Star oil supertanker, released for a ransom of several million dollars.

He also reportedly took part in the 2008 capture of the MV Faina, a Ukrainian transport ship carrying 33 refurbished Soviet-era battle tanks, which was released after a 134-day hijack.

Afweyne announced in Mogadishu in January that he was leaving piracy after a highly profitable eight-year career. He said he was working to persuade other pirates to do the same.

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British Soldier Killed In Afghanistan

A British soldier has been killed by enemy fire while on patrol in Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence has announced.

The serviceman, from 14 Signals Regiment (Electronic Warfare), attached to the Task Force Helmand Brigade Reconnaissance Force, died in Helmand Province.

The death takes the number of UK service personnel who have lost their lives since operations in Afghanistan began in October 2001 to 445 and it is the seventh this year.

It is the first UK death in Afghanistan since Corporal William Savage, Fusilier Samuel Flint, and Private Robert Hetherington died when their Mastiff armoured vehicle hit an improvised explosive device (IED) on a routine patrol on April 30.

The soldier had been on a patrol in the area of Kakaran, north-east of Lashkar Gah.

Despite receiving immediate medical attention, he died from his injuries at the scene, according to the MoD.

The soldier was on patrol in the area of Kakaran, north-east of Lashkar Gah

Task Force Helmand spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Hywel Lewis said: "A fantastic soldier has tragically died defending his comrades. He was the brightest and the best.

"Those who served alongside him were privileged and feel his loss most deeply. Our prayers and thoughts are with his family at this extremely difficult time."

It comes in the week after the last large military handover in Afghanistan, with the 7th Armoured Brigade, known as the Desert Rats, taking over authority for the British mission in Helmand.

Part of its job will be the closure of bases around Helmand and the return of equipment to the UK.

The British presence in Afghanistan will be almost halved by the end of this year to 5,200.

All combat operations in the country should be over by the end of next year, leaving Afghan forces fully in control.

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Rotherham Murder Probe After Man Stabbed

A murder investigation has been launched after a shopkeeper was stabbed to death in Rotherham.

Emergency services were called to the Grosvenor Road area at around 2pm and found one man dead and a second man seriously injured, South Yorkshire Police said.

The incident follows sightings of a man brandishing a machete in Eastwood and Rotherham town centre.

The injured man has been taken to hospital where he is undergoing treatment.

A 27-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder and is currently in police custody.

South Yorkshire Police said: "The investigation is at an early stage and enquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances surrounding the incident.

"There is a large police presence is in the area and this will remain in place to reassure residents."

More follows...

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