UK AG won't challenge Harris jail sentence

British government won't challenge the sentence handed down to convicted paedophile Rolf Harris. Source: AAP

DISGRACED entertainer Rolf Harris's sentence for sex offences will not be referred to an appeals court despite numerous complaints that it was too lenient, the attorney general's office in Britain says.

THE 84-year-old Australian-born Harris, a long-time fixture on British television, was jailed earlier this month for five years and nine months for a string of sexual assaults against girls.

Attorney General Jeremy Wright, the government's chief legal adviser, received 150 complaints asking to review the sentence for being too lenient.But his office said on Wednesday that the sentence will not be referred to the Court of Appeal."After very careful consideration, the Attorney General, Jeremy Wright... has decided not to refer the five year and nine month sentence given to Rolf Harris to the Court of Appeal, as he did not think they would find it to be unduly lenient and increase it," said a spokeswoman from his office.Wright acknowledged that the ruling would cause disappointment, but said the courts were bound by the maximum sentence in force at the time of the offences.Trial judge Nigel Sweeney made some of the sentences on the 12 counts consecutive to make up the total term, of which Harris will serve around half, but also had to take into account the entertainer's age.The television star, artist and songwriter was found guilty of indecently assaulting four victims between 1969 and 1986, including the childhood best friend of his daughter Bindi."You have shown no remorse for your crimes at all," Sweeney told Harris as he handed down his sentence earlier in July."Your reputation lies in ruins, you have been stripped of your honours, but you have no one to blame but yourself."Harris was the second person to be convicted under a wide-ranging police investigation set up in the wake of revelations that the late Jimmy Savile, a fellow major BBC star, was a prolific abuser.Seven of the 12 counts against Harris related to the friend of Bindi, including one incident when she was 15 where he seriously sexually assaulted her while his daughter slept in the adjacent bed.The entertainer's conviction caused widespread revulsion in Britain, where his television programs were watched by millions of children, and his homeland of Australia.He was made a CBE in 2006 - one step below a knighthood - and even painted Queen Elizabeth II's portrait to mark her 80th birthday.

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US companies add 218,000 jobs

A PRIVATE survey shows that businesses hired at a healthy pace in July, though the job gains slowed from the previous month.

PRIVATE employers added 218,000 jobs, down from 281,000 in June, payroll provider ADP said on Wednesday.

It was the fourth straight month of job gains above 200,000, a healthy pace that usually is enough to lower the unemployment rate.The figures suggest that the government's jobs report, to be released on Friday, will also show a solid increase, but the ADP numbers cover only private businesses and often diverge from the government's more comprehensive report.Economists forecast that the government's report will show that 225,000 jobs were added in July, while the unemployment rate stayed at 6.1 per cent, according to a survey by FactSet."It feels to me like the job market is humming," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, which helps compile the report.The job gains were mostly broad-based.Construction added 12,000 positions, most of which likely pay mid-level wages.Retail, shipping and utilities gained 52,000 and professional and business services, which mostly include higher-paying jobs, gained 61,000.Manufacturing, however, added just 3000 jobs, according to ADP.A separate government report on Wednesday showed the economy grew at a rapid four per cent annual pace in the April-June quarter, following a sharp 2.1 per cent contraction in the first three months of the year.But the second half of 2013 was also revised higher to show growth at a four per cent annual pace.The better growth figures should support continued strong hiring, Zandi said."This feels a lot more consistent with the jobs numbers and more supportive of the idea that the economy is gaining traction," he said.

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Airlines divert flights over Iraq

Turia Pitt finally wins compensation

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Man carjacked at lights, forced to drive 140km

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Derelict Merrylands home fetches $3.2m

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Businessman has corrupt conduct finding overturned

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British Airways sued for pilot 'sex abuse'

A LONDON law firm representing 16 girls in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania says it is initiating legal proceedings against British Airways over allegations that one of its pilots sexually abused the girls during layovers.

THE 54-year-old British Airways pilot, Simon Wood, who is now dead, was able to abuse the girls, between the ages of eight and 20 years, because of his employment with the airline and the company's community outreach work, Leigh Day lawyer Nichola Marshall said on Wednesday.

"The schools and orphanages that our clients attended were all in receipt of charitable donations from the airline, and Wood played a key role in administering those donations, on behalf of British Airways," Marshall said in a statement.British Airways said it was shocked and horrified by the allegations, which the company said appeared to be related to activities "entirely outside the scope of his employment with British Airways".The airline extended its sympathies to the victims."It is disappointing that the conduct of one person has caused so much distress to the many thousands of decent people who engage in charitable works on a regular basis," the company said in an email to The Associated Press.Wood was struck by a train and died two weeks before he was to appear in court last August.He had faced charges of indecent assault of a girl under the age of 16 and making and possessing child pornography, the statement said.An investigation into his death began Wednesday, the law firm said.Marshall said a team will be travelling to meet with other potential victims who have recently come forward in Kenya and Uganda.

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Hyundai recalls 883,000 Sonatas

HYUNDAI is recalling its popular Sonata midsize sedan to fix problems with the gear shift levers.

THE recall covers 883,000 cars from the 2011 through 2014 model years.

The Korean carmaker says the automatic transmission shift cable can separate from the shift lever.If that happens, the lever may not show the correct gear, increasing the risk of a crash.The company says in documents posted Wednesday by US safety regulators that it has received 1,171 warranty claims about the problem, plus seven other reports with related symptoms.The documents don't say if there have been any crashes or injuries.Hyundai will notify owners by letter between now and the end of September.Dealers will inspect the shift cables and repair the connection if needed.

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Fiat 2Q profits drop by 55 per cent

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Landslide kills 17 in Indian village

TORRENTIAL rains have triggered a massive landslide that buried a remote village in western India, killing at least 17 people as it swept away scores of houses and possibly trapping many more people under debris, officials said.

NATIONAL rescue personnel reached the area before nightfall, but continuing rains and bad roads were hampering rescue efforts and preventing reinforcements from reaching Ambegaon, a village in Pune district in Maharashtra state, said Alok Avasthy, a National Disaster Response Force commander.

District official Suresh Jadhav said 17 bodies had been recovered from under mud, rocks and trees and other debris and rescuers planned to work overnight using floodlights mounted on two jeeps being sent from Pune, along with earthmoving vehicles."Everything on the mountain came down," he said.But with 70 homes buried and reports of another 158 hit by the landslide, rescuers anticipated more dead in the village, home to 704 people in the foothills of the Sahyadri Mountains.The landslide hit early on Wednesday morning, but details of the damage only began to trickle out several hours later.The area around the village has been deforested extensively, increasing its vulnerability to landslides and the area received 10.8 centimetres of rain on Tuesday, with a heavy downpour continuing through Wednesday.Some 250 disaster response personnel were in the area assisting local police and medical teams who began clearing the debris. At least 100 ambulances were also sent to the area, Jadhav said.One local commissioner said more than 150 people could be trapped.Pune district is about 150 kilometres southeast of Mumbai, India's commercial capital, with the nearest medical centre about 15km from the village.

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Pistorius prosecutor submits summary

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