The News Matrix: Tuesday 26 July 2011

UK growth lowest on international table

Britain will today fall to the bottom of the table charting international economic growth. The Office of National Statistics is expected to report that the economy grew just 0.2 per cent last quarter. This leaves Britain facing one of the weakest recoveries in history. MORE

No compromise, so debt default looms

US politicians continued to dice with a debt default yesterday, with both sides pushing their own agendas and appearing to be as far away as ever from a deal to raise the country’s $14.3 trillion debt ceiling. The US could technically default on its debt in little more than a week. MORE

Knox’s legal team query DNA evidence

Amanda Knox was back in court yesterday, appealing against her conviction for the murder of British student Meredith Kercher. Knox’s team questioned DNA evidence. MORE

News Corp unfit to run BSkyB, says poll

Sixty-five per cent of people want Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp to sell its stake in BSkyB as they believe the company is not “fit and proper” to run it, according to a poll by ComRes. All the party leaders are now seen less favourably because of the hacking scandal, the poll found. MORE

Vatican recalls envoy over abuse report

Amid growing tensions between the Vatican and Ireland, the church withdrew its ambassador to Dublin yesterday after accusations that the Holy See sabotaged efforts by Catholic bishops to report clerical sex abuse cases to police. MORE

Wealthy nations act at last over famine

The international response to the famine in the Horn of Africa finally received a degree of urgency yesterday as the G20 met in Rome to discuss the crisis. Aid agencies have been scathing about the West’s reaction. “It is shameful that only a few of the richest and powerful economies were willing to demonstrate today their commitment to saving the lives,” said the head of Oxfam. MORE

Three steps to a happier life

The first stage of a £2m survey has revealed that the three things that make us happiest are good health, functioning relationships and a satisfying job. The research, ordered by David Cameron last year and run by the Office for National Statistics, questioned 34,000 people. MORE

Rant by journalist starts gay rights row

A Russian journalist’s homophobic rant sparked a row over gay rights. Nikolai Troitsky was sacked for saying he’d like to invent a bomb that killed only gay people, which he withdrew, but said Moscow’s gay pride march should be cancelled. MORE

Driver suspended for ‘reading paper’

A train driver has been suspended over a photograph that allegedly shows him reading a newspaper while in charge of a high-speed train carrying passengers. First Great Western has taken the driver out of rotation while an investigation into the photograph is carried out. MORE

Bounty hunter in the ‘Dog’ house

Celebrity US bounty hunter Duane “Dog” Chapman was rebuked by a Colorado sheriff, who accused the reality TV star of reckless showmanship in bringing his latest bail-jumper to justice. Mesa County Sheriff Stan Hilkey said Chapman engaged in “profit-driven peacockery” and disregarded public safety when he delivered the injured fugitive to the county jail while TV cameras rolled.

Buying sex makes men ‘more violent’

Men who pay for sex are more likely to commit offences including violent crimes against women, according to research conducted in the Boston area. The study was based on interviews with 202 men conducted by non-profit group Prostitution Research and Education and led by clinical psychologist Melissa Farley.

Man turns sour after dealer refuses refund

A man angry that a car dealership refused to take back a “lemon” van he had purchased, intentionally crashed it into seven parked vehicles, police have said. The dispute began when David Cross and his wife bought a van at the Portsmouth Used Car Superstore, New Hampshire, last week.

Dylan’s grandson launches rap career

The grandson of Bob Dylan is angling for a career in rap music after releasing his first hip-hop mixtape, 10 minutes. Pablo Dylan is the 15-year-old son of Jesse Dylan, Bob’s eldest. In an interview Pablo said that considers his grandfather the “Jay-Z of his generation”.