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Laurence Fox suggested Twitter introduce a 'retract button' for people who say controversial things but then change their views today as he blasted a freedom of speech 'crisis'. The Lewis actor turned political activist attacked a 'totalitarian orthodoxy' which was marshalling people's views as he attended a Conservative Party Conference fringe event. He attacked Twitter because 'everything that everyone ever writes exists in perpetuity', and suggested it should have some changes to make it fairer and stop people being arrested for hate crimes. His attendance at a virtual fringe event on 'the free speech crisis' run by the IEA think tank, came the day after he labelled a fellow actor and social media users 'paedophiles' in a bizarre online spat. The actor is embroiled in a heated exchange with a number of Twitter users including Coronation Street actress Nicola Thorp and deputy chair of Stonewall, Simon Blake, whom he called 'pae

Forget the deluge of the past few days – because the colours of autumn that lie ahead are expected to be even more glorious than usual this year. The high levels of sunshine through the summer and into September are likely to create an intense and vibrant range of hues, say experts at the National Trust. Maple trees are already turning red and orange, with ash, cherry and oak trees increasingly going amber and russet. The sun’s rays raise the sugar content in leaves, boosting production of pigments called anthocyanins which turn plants a vivid red and pink. So thanks to high levels of sunshine over six months, followed by a bright spell at the end of September, the chances of a ‘spectacular and prolonged’ autumn display have been raised. The high levels of sunshine through the summer and into September are likely to create an intense and vibrant range of hues, say experts at the National Trust. Pictured: Winkworth Arboretum, Surrey However the next two weeks must remain settled to enco

One-in-four people living in Western Australia say they want the state to break away from the rest of the country for good. WA slammed its borders shut in April as the coronavirus pandemic took hold and has remained closed off ever since. In a recent poll carried out by market research group, Utting Research, 28 per cent of 3,500 Western Australians surveyed said they'd like to see WA become its own country. Some 55 per cent wanted the state to remain in the Federation and 17 per cent didn't know. One-in-four people living in Western Australia say they want the state break away from the rest of the country for good Perth Labor MP, Patrick Gorman, said the results were 'deeply concerning'.  'This poll shows those in the eastern States need to understand the secessionist undertones which have always existed in WA,' he told The West Australian. 'The tyranny of distance between Perth and Canberra often leaves West Australians feeling isolated and ignored by our

The Queensland government has signed a $200million investment deal with Virgin Australia to keep the carrier's headquarters in Brisbane until 2030. The 10-year deal, which involves the state taking an equity stake in the carrier and a series of loans, was signed between the Queensland Investment Corporation and Bain Capital on Monday afternoon. The Labor government sealed the agreement within 24 hours of going into caretaker mode before the October 31 state election. The Queensland government has signed a $200million investment deal with Virgin Australia to keep the carrier's headquarters in Brisbane until 2030 (file picture) The opposition Liberal National Party had threatened to end the talks if it won government and a deal hadn't been struck by the time parliament was dissolved on October 6. A government spokesman told AAP the deal was expected to deliver a seven per cent return over the first five-year loan period. The government also hopes the deal will secure region

Security checkpoints and customs bases in Northern Ireland after Brexit will become targets and a 'recruiting badge' for dissident republican groups, MPs have warned. It came after MI5 carried out an investigation into the terrorism threat linked to 'installations or infrastructure at the border' with the Irish Republic. The intelligence agency said it feared the New IRA could become a more dangerous threat in the future.  Security checkpoints and customs bases in Northern Ireland after Brexit will become targets and a 'recruiting badge' for dissident republican groups, MPs have warned MI5 carried out an investigation into the terrorism threat linked to 'installations or infrastructure at the border' with the Irish Republic MPs on the Commons intelligence and security committee released a report into Northern Ireland terrorism concluding that security and customs bases would 'increase the risk of political violence in border areas'. They also war

Pubs, cafes and restaurants across Sydney have been given the go-ahead to expand their outdoor seating areas in a bid to give the hospitality industry a boost following the COVID-19 pandemic. Amended liquor licensing rules in New South Wales will allow venues to operate in a COVID-safe environment while sustaining their revenue by moving patrons outside. The new regulations are part of what has been dubbed the 'al fresco revolution' and mean the state government can turn around applications to change licence boundaries in less than a week rather than the standard process - which can take three months.  The strategy has already been adopted by 16 venues in The Rocks - a historic entertainment district overlooking the Sydney Opera House - as part of a 12-month-trial to rejuvenate the city. Two young women eat breakfast at a cafe in Freshwater on Sydney's northern beaches on May 15. Pubs, cafes and restaurants in The Rocks will be the first to trial a fast-tracked outdoor seat

A university student has been given a community order and no jail time after repeatedly having sex with a 15-year-old girl and sending her 'sexually aggressive' messages. Alan Yuen, from Melbourne, was about to turn 20 when he had sex with the Year 9 student on multiple occasions between October and December last year. Yuen first slept with the 'sad and vulnerable' girl after he snuck through a window at her home at 2am.  Their relationship was discovered after sexually explicit messages between them were found on her school laptop. Yuen, a Monash University student, pleaded guilty to the sexual penetration of a child under 16 and was sentenced to a three-year community corrections order at the County Court.  A 20-year-old man has avoided jail after sneaking into a 15-year-old's home and having sex with her (stock image) The student was first questioned by workers from the Department of Health and Human Services after the conversations were discovered, the Herald Su