Joanna Yeates may have been held captive before her murder

The 25-year-old Joanna Yeates’, a landscapre architect, vanished on Friday December 17 after a pub gathering with work colleagues. Her body was found about three miles away from her flat in Bristol. The body was frozen and covered in snow, found by dog walkers on Christmas Day. A post mortem examination had revealed that she had died as a result of ‘’compression of the neck’’.
The police said that they now know how she died but that they have to find out why she was killed and who was responsible. According to the police there was no sign of forced entry to the flat, one line of inquiry officers are pursuing is that she knew her killer. Police are also doing research on the possibility that Ms Yeats may have been held captive.


Reaction: Almost every newspaper is telling stories about her, so is must be very important for England. There are also discussions about why there is so much media attention to this murder. I think mainly because she was a young professional woman that was brutally murdered. The media is spending a lot of attention to this drama. The independent charity Crimestoppers is offering an enhanced reward of £10,000 to anyone who provides information which leads to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for her death.I hope that they will find out why she was killed and who was responsible.

'Christmas terror plot' suspects are remanded in custody

Nine Bangladeshi men, aged between 19 and 28, are accused of carrying a reconnaissance missions on targets and testing incendiary devices. Between 6 November and 21 December they are charged with conspiring to cause an explosion or explosions ‘of a nature likely to endanger life or cause serious injury to property in the UK’. They are remanded in custody today on charges concerning an alleged plot for Christmas bombings in the UK. The London Stock Exchange and the US embassy, as well as religious or political leaders, were among the targets. According to the today’s Telegraph the accused made a reconnaissance trip by traveling from Trafalgar Square down Whitehall to Westminster Bridge, where they studied Big Ben. The charges specifically accused the men of "downloading, researching, obtaining and discussing materials and methods; researching, discussing, carrying out reconnaissance on, and agreeing potential targets; travelling to and attending meetings; igniting and testing incendiary material"


http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/dec/27/christmas-terror-suspects-remanded

Reaction: This operation was the most high-profile-terror rain in Britain since April 2009, when 12 men were detained across northern England. All were released without charge. I hope that there is sufficient evidence for a conviction. If there is enough evidence these men should be charged for these offences. It is well-known that Britain is very protective against terrorism after the bomb attacks in London in 2005. In England there is much surveillance and monitoring by police and MI5 officers. There are very afraid that the bomb attacks in 2005 will happen again. In Holland there are also twelve men suspected for involvement in terrorism.

Hormone implant use rises five-fold, contraception figures show

NHS data shows that the number of women using hormone implants for contraception has risen five-hold in five years but the popularity of condoms is declining. Using the condom as their main form of contraception fell from 30% to 25%. The implants are especially popular with younger women and teenagers.  The figure shows that 5 years ago only 1% of girls and women aged 16-19 on some form of contraception say they prefer an implant now it is 10%.

According to sexual health experts the shift shows us that women are increasingly choosing the most effective form of contraception and are demonstrating more responsibility in their sexual behaviour. The implants cost £90 to fit,  work three years and have higher success rates than condoms or the pill.

Local NHS primary care trusts have realised that implants are cheaper and more effective than the pill. More nurses have been trained to fit them and there is more education at school that is why the use is increasing.

The popularity of this implants may be explained that they are invisible, unlike condoms or the pill. Some teenagers choose it so that parents do not know they have a regular form of contraception.

Gillian Vanhegan, a medical spokeswoman for Brook, said that it is not a coincidence that this news comes out at the same time that the lowest teenage pregnancy figures for 20 years were released last week and that the two are obviously linked.

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2010/dec/03/hormone-implants-contraception-condoms

My opinion: Teenage pregnancy is a big problem in the UK, so I think this is good news. This implants has a lot of benefits because there is no need to think about the pill every morning and it is invisible. I think that is also the main reason why teenagers choose this contraception. Women who choose this implants must be aware of the fact that this does not protect against sexually transmitted infections. This might encourage irresponsible behaviour or explain the rise in infections. I think the only reason more women have it is an awareness issue. I think that is why it is so important that school must educate students about sexual health.