England and Wales

Latest news on england and wales

Ex-ECB chief against England tour

Former England and Wales Cricket chairman Lord MacLaurin believes England should call off their tour of India but ex-skipper Nasser Hussain urges the players to make a statement and return.

Offenders to wear community vests

Offenders in England and Wales are to begin wearing high visibility vests while doing community service as part of their punishment.

Cricket: England will return to India before the end of the week

The England cricket team are set to return to India on Thursday or Friday to fulfil their agreement to play two Test matches later this month. The matches are likely to take place in Ahmedabad and Chennai, though Kolkata has been pencilled in as an alternative if the first of these venues is judged unsuitable.The warm-up game due at the end of this week will now be played at, or near, the venue for the first Test, which is due to start in Ahmedabad on Thursday week, though everything is dependent on the England and Wales Cricket Board being satisfied about the security arrangements in India after the terrorist atrocities in Mumbai. The ECB will present the players with a safety report today and is likely to confirm on Tuesday that the tour will resume later in the week. There are thought to be few security worries about Chennai but there is some concern about the team hotel in Ahmedabad, which is in the middle of the city.The board chairman, Giles Clarke, returned from business meetings in Colombia yesterday and the chief ­executive, David Collier, came back early from holiday in the United States to take part in a ­teleconference with members of the Board of Control for Cricket in India.It is understood that the ECB is also talking to the Indian and British ­governments, high commissions in Indian cities, ­security advisers and other risk assessment experts in order to give the cricketers a thorough dossier on safety issues in India.The ECB has also spoken to the ­International Cricket Council and the Professional Cricketers' Association, with whom there has been a constant dialogue. Hugh Morris, the England team's managing director, has already held informal talks with the players. Thoughts of moving the preparation to Abu Dhabi, or of returning to India in the New Year, before the players fly to the Caribbean on January 21, have been discounted.The ECB has been bombarded with telephone calls and emails from cricket supporters in India and at home urging them to continue the tour. Fifteen of the 18 first-class counties have also contacted the board with their support. But England's players, who arrived home on Saturday after the cancellation of the final two one-day fixtures, could be without two of their biggest names. Steve Harmison, who is hardly renowned for his appetite for touring, could withdraw and he may be supported by his close friend Andrew Flintoff, who also has an ankle injury. Jimmy Anderson, whose wife is pregnant, may also choose to stay in England.The national selector, Geoff Miller, said pulling out of the Tests "will not count against" any player and wants only those sure about returning: "Players need to be on their full mettle. There is no point in anyone going out there if their mind is on physical self-preservation. We need them performing with bat and ball. But, depending on the character involved, it might not be right for some."He emphasised safety was his priority and said the captain, Kevin Pietersen, was doing a "ring-round to canvas opinion", with the result expected today or tomorrow. Morris hinted that England would not have their first-choice side for the Tests: "At the moment nothing has been confirmed with any of the players. We are committed, as it stands, to playing in those two Test matches, subject to safety and security advice. The support we've had in India has been incredible. Cricket is a galvanising force in that country and that's got to be taken into account as well."There are strong feelings at the ECB, reflecting those in India as a whole, that terrorism must not be seen to win the day. The ECB is also close to agreeing with the BCCI the staging of a five-Test series between the two countries in ­England in 2011 or 2015; India have not played five Tests in England since 1959.Lalit Modi, vice-president of the BCCI, suggested his board would not press for compensation if England remained at home. "I really do believe that it [the tour] will happen. It's just that we need to take it to another city, which we've agreed to do." Modi, who also recalled that the 2005 Ashes series started within weeks of terrorist attacks in London, added: "We can't allow events around the world to deter us, to be afraid to play." He is clearly desperate for England to return and the ECB would then be well placed to use the enhanced ­goodwill between the two boards.Haroon Lorgat, the chief executive of the ICC, yesterday called for England's tour to continue. Whatever the make-up of the England team that returns to India they are likely to be greeted as heroes. The country is ­desperate not to become like Pakistan, which has not hosted international cricket for a year.England Cricket TeamEngland in India 2008-09India Cricket TeamCricketguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Cricket: Power battle looms over England's return to India

The England and Wales Cricket Board is bracing itself for a potential confrontation over its right to run the game if security reports judge that the Test series in India should go ahead in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Mumbai that have left India in a state of profound shock.The Indian board has shifted the venue of the second Test from Mumbai to Chennai after a request from the ECB for a venue in southern India. The first Test, surprisingly, remains in Ahmedabad, another city that has suffered recent terrorist violence, and the warm-up match has yet to be moved from Vadadora. The dates of the game are unchanged, with the Chennai Test beginning on December 19.The majority of England's squad will arrive at Heathrow this evening after flying yesterday from Bhubaneshwar to Bangalore to join the High Performance squad. Many England players have been adamant that they will not return, although it remains to be seen if those feelings will soften. An intense week of negotiations between the ECB and players' representatives is now inevitable.That debate will be partly based on an updated report compiled by Reg Dickason, England's security officer. If the Foreign Office has not adjusted its advice for any Indian city other than Mumbai it is hard to see how Dickason could take a tougher line. However the England players, who repeatedly express faith in his judgment, might expect him to do just that.The ECB, which anticipates that some players would pull out of the tour, is likely to look on these sympathetically, but the impression is that an England team will tour India even if severely weakened. An England side that has just lost 5-0 in a one-day series can hardly regard itself as irreplaceable. Any attempt by the Professional Cricketers' Association to organise a collective refusal to travel in the light of a critical security report could also cause a major stand-off between the ECB and players' representatives.Kevin Pietersen, England's captain, did not talk of a collective decision as England left Bhubaneshwar, but of people's right to run their own lives. Presumably that should go for those who do wish to represent England in India next month as well as those who do not."We need to make sure the security's right - but if it's not safe, then we won't be coming back," he said. "Players are their own people, I'll never force anyone to do anything or tell them to do anything against their will. On the field I may ask people to do things in a certain way but people run their own lives. We'll have to see how the security is."The television coverage here has been pretty graphic. I've heard back home it's not been like that but out here you see pools of blood, you see everything that has been going on. We've woken up this morning and seen more pictures of people jumping out of helicopters where we were two weeks ago. It's really made the guys aware and shocked them."I bet all the guys lost a whole battery on their mobiles yesterday with calls from friends and relatives and kids wanting to know where daddy is. We'll make a decision on it over the next 48 to 72 hours."The threat of terrorism is now a perpetual feature of an international cricketer's life, although such are the levels of hotel security they receive the likelihood that guns and explosives could be smuggled into a hotel while they were there is far lower than when they are not. The International Cricket Council has insisted that it has "no role to play in the current situation", although any disagreement between the ECB and the Indian board over safety would bring a security assessment that the ICC would regard as binding and could conceivably bring large financial penalties if the ECB was unable to accept its findings.Sean Morris, the PCA chief executive, has talked of security advisers assessing the Indian situation "in the cold light of day" and determining "is it safe to return or not?" Morris said that the players would accept that advice as long as the security situation does not deteriorate further.Ejaz Butt, the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, believes that the terrorist attacks in Mumbai could force the cancellation of India's tour to Pakistan in January. The Indian board is awaiting guidance from its government, and Butt said: "Now the scenario has definitely changed and now it is entirely up to the governments what they decide. We must wait and see what will happen." Cancellation would be another blow for Pakistan, who have not played a Test match for almost a year.Lalit Modi continued to insist yesterday that the Twenty20 Champions League was not postponed because of security fears but for logistical reasons. He went so far as to claim: "All eight teams tried to implore us to continue with the Champions League and just change Mumbai. Logistically, we could not replace a venue in 48 hours. We proposed the postponement."England in India 2008-09England Cricket TeamEngland cricket seriesIndia Cricket TeamCricketMumbai terror attacksguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Call to recycle food separately

All households in England and Wales should be required to put food scraps in a separate bin, says the Local Government Association

Pupils set for 'ringtone lessons'

Children in England and Wales are to be given lessons in how to avoid scams and hidden charges when downloading mobile phone ringtones.

England and Wales Cricket Board may use Test series as pawn in Premier League power games

Test series with India could be bargaining chip in squabble over the Indian Premier League and its English equivalent.

Sisley In England And Wales At London's National Gallery

A collection of works by Impressionist landscape painter Alfred Sisley from his time spent in England and Wales is currently on show at London's National Gallery.