A man has been killed in a machete attack and two suspects shot by police in Woolwich, south-east London.

Prime Minister David Cameron said there were “strong indications that it is a terrorist incident” and the UK would “never buckle” in the face of such attacks.

Footage has emerged showing a man wielding a bloodied meat cleaver and making political statements.

There are unconfirmed reports that the dead man was a soldier.

Both French President Francois Hollande and MP Nick Raynsford said the dead man had been a soldier at Woolwich barracks.

The footage shown on the ITV website shows a man, speaking to the camera, saying: “We must fight them as they fight us. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.”

He added: “I apologise that women have had to witness this today, but in our land our women have to see the same. You people will never be safe. Remove your government, they don’t care about you.”

• Downing Street said Mr Cameron, who had been planning to stay in Paris overnight after meeting the French president, would be returning to the UK later on Wednesday
• At a meeting of the government’s emergency response committee, Cobra, it was decided to tighten security at Woolwich and other barracks in London
• Both shot men were taken to hospital, one by air ambulance
• One of the men is in a serious condition, the other is also being treated for injuries
• In a joint press conference, Mr Hollande said he wanted to express his solidarity with the UK after the “murder of a British soldier”, but Mr Cameron did not confirm the victim had been a serviceman
• The Ministry of Defence said it was urgently looking into reports the incident had involved a soldier
• Another Cobra meeting will be held on Thursday morning, chaired by Mr Cameron

Home Secretary Theresa May said she had been briefed by the director general of Security Service MI5, Andrew Parker, and Metropolitan Police Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe on the “sickening and barbaric” attack.

Mr Cameron said Britain had faced “these sort of attacks”, adding: “We will never buckle in the face of them.

“People across Britain, people in every community, I believe, will utterly condemn this attack.”

He expressed sympathy for the victim and his family, saying: “It is the most appalling crime. We are obviously seeking, and the police are urgently seeking, the full facts about this case.”

One witness, identified only as James, said two men had attacked another man, aged about 20, who was wearing a T-shirt of military charity Help for Heroes.

“These two guys were crazed. They were just animals. They dragged him from the pavement and dumped his body in the middle of the road and left his body there,” he told LBC radio.

He said after the “horrendous” attack, the two men, who were also in their 20s, stood around, waving knives and a gun, and asked people to take pictures of them “as if they wanted to be on TV or something”.

Continue reading the main story

AnalysisDominic CascianiHome affairs correspondent

The case for this being a jihadist attack, following the ideology of al-Qaeda, is compelling – even if the police won’t yet say so officially.

If it is, then it would be the first such incident leading to a death of someone other than the perpetrator since the 2005 London suicide bombings.

So the first task for ministers and officials is to assess the threat to the public – are other attacks planned?

The official terrorism threat level is currently “substantial”, which means an attack is “a strong possibility”.

If officials raise the level to “severe”, that would mean they fear another attack is highly likely.

If the victim is indeed a soldier, then that will be no surprise to security chiefs.

Jihadists believe they are at war with the military because of its role in the Afghanistan conflict and elsewhere.

The UK has previously uncovered three plots linked to possible terror attacks on the armed forces, including a cell in 2007 which planned to kidnap and behead a soldier in an Iraq-style hostage video.

• Read more from Dominic

“They were oblivious to anything, they were more worried about having their photo taken, running up and down the road,” he said.

Witness Graham Wilders told the BBC he had arrived on the scene to find a car crashed into a wall and a man on the ground.

“Two people were lying over him and I thought they were trying to resuscitate him,” he said.

But Mr Wilders said he had driven on to park his car, and when he had returned another witness had told him the two men had been stabbing the man on the ground.

Thomas, another witness who contacted the BBC, said: “I got there minutes after it happened because you could hear gunshots from Woolwich High Street.

“Basically two men carried out an axe attack on a young army cadet walking along the street, by the looks of things the police responded and then shot them in front of the public, at the same time I couldn’t really tell if the cadet was fatally or not hurt as police were crowded around him.”

According to senior Whitehall sources the people carrying out the attack were heard to say: “Allahu Akbar [God is Great]“, BBC political editor Nick Robinson reported.

On Twitter, the Mayor of London Boris Johnson described the attack as a “sickening deluded and unforgivable act of violence”.

Buckingham Palace says the Queen is concerned at the news of the attack and is being kept informed.

Help for Heroes said the charity was “appalled to hear that a man, believed to be a serving soldier, has been brutally murdered in Woolwich today”.

School lock-down

Mr Raynsford, the Woolwich and Greenwich MP, said he had spoken to local police and understood a number of weapons had been seized at the scene including a gun, knives, and a machete.

Metropolitan Police Commander Simon Letchford said two alleged attackers had been shot by officers.

He said: “Police were called to reports of an assault… where one man was being assaulted by two other men. A number of weapons were reportedly being used in the attack, and this included reports of a firearm.

“Officers including local Greenwich officers arrived at the scene, and shortly after firearms officers arrived on the scene.

“On their arrival at the scene they found a man, who was later pronounced dead.

“Two men, who we believe from early reports to have been carrying weapons, were shot by police. They have both been taken to separate London hospitals. They are receiving treatment for their injuries.

“I can understand that this incident will cause community concerns and I would like to reiterate that we are investigating the circumstances.”

Meanwhile, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) confirmed it had been informed.

David Dixon, a local head teacher, told the BBC News Channel he walked out of the school gates and saw a body lying in the road a short distance away.

He then heard gunshots and instructed staff to lock all the gates of his school.

The air ambulance landed in the playground and most of the children have now gone home, he said.

Snow, sleet and rain have disrupted transport and power suppliesas wintry weather continues in much of the UK.

A number of roads and airports have closed, with many of the weekend’s sporting fixtures affected too.

Snow is falling across central and northern parts of the country and spreading to the South and South East of England.

A Met Office yellow weather warning, urging people to be aware of adverse conditions, covers most of England.

It comes after snow fell on Friday, disrupting travel, schools and power supplies across parts of the UK.

Friday’s weather led to the closure of hundreds of schools across Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England.

Motorists across much of the UK have been advised to exercise caution.

Road closures have occurred in much of the country. Meanwhile, drivers in some areas have been left stranded after roads have become impassable.

In Belfast, more than 200,000 electricity customers were affected by a blackout.

Northern Ireland Electricity said that at one stage the blackout swept across the whole of Belfast after an issue with the high voltage transmission network.

All but about 35,000 properties had had power restored by late evening, it added.

By late on Friday, power companies said a total of 14,000 customers in Scotland were left without power.

And more than 3,000 homes in north Wales are without power.

There have been a number of developments across the UK.

• Police said motorists should avoid travelling by road in the Dumfries and Galloway area, where many people have been stuck in their cars overnight, because conditions were “extremely dangerous”
• Search and rescue teams led stranded motorists to safety in Cumbria overnight after deep snowdrifts made roads impassable
• Residents of Arran have been warned that they may be without power for up to three days, prompting Scottish Hydro to send a portable generator to the island
• Snow across the UK has disrupted the weekend’s sporting schedule
• In Staffordshire, overnight snow and high winds brought down trees and closing roads, as well as forcing the closure of Alton Towers and Drayton Manor theme parks
• Flights are currently not operating at Leeds Bradford airport – passengers are advised to check with their airline or tour operator before arriving at the airport
• All flights at Humberside Airport have been cancelled due to snow. East Midlands Airport runway has now reopened
• Tributes have been paid to a woman who died when her home collapsed after a landslip at Looe, Cornwall, caused by torrential rain

The prolonged cold snap has sparked fears that the UK will run out of stored gas.

However, the National Grid has said there is “plenty of gas available”, and the Department of Energy and Climate Change has said gas needs are being met.

Its warning covered many central parts of the UK and involved a slow-moving band of rain, sleet and snow.

It said further significant snowfall was likely to accumulate on hills, with continued drifting and blizzard conditions in strong south-easterly winds.

At lower levels, some areas could see a further 5-10cm (2in to 4in) of snow, though exact location remain “very uncertain at this stage”, it said.

he polls on Thursday to vote for a new MP following the resignation of Chris Huhne. But who is in the running, and why are the votes so important?

WHY IS THERE A BY-ELECTION IN EASTLEIGH?

The small Hampshire town of Eastleigh was thrown into the political spotlight at the beginning of February, following the resignation of Lib Dem MP Chris Huhne.

The disgraced former Energy Secretary became the only British cabinet member in history to be forced from office by a criminal prosecution, after admitting perverting the course of justice.

Huhne, 58, pleaded guilty to the charge on February 4, which related to speeding points a decade ago.

His resignation sparked a by-election in the constituency where he had been Lib Dem MP since 2005.

Candidates from all three major political parties – as well as several ‘less conventional’ candidates – are now campaigning to become MP of a town which has turned into a key political battleground.

David Cameron joins Conservative candidate Maria Hutchings on a leaflet drop around the Hampshire town (PA)

WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT?

The by-election in Eastleigh will be the first time the Coalition partners have fought over a single seat since they took shared power in 2010.

Political commentators have speculated that the by-election is a test of David Cameron‘s leadership of the Conservative Party.

He has already visited the Hampshire town to help canvass for votes with his candidate, Maria Hutchings – who is currently second in early polls behind the Lib Dem’s Mike Thornton.

Related: Coalition candidates battle it out in Eastleigh

Senior Tories have previously confessed that losing Eastleigh would ‘put some real question marks over our election strategy’.

Others say Eastleigh is the most important by-election in 30 years, as the Prime Minister needs a victory to convince his party he can gain a workable majority by 2015.

Candidates have been relentlessly campaigning across the Hampshire town since early February

As well as support from the Prime Minister, Maria Hutchings has also been assisted on the campaign trail by London Mayor Boris Johnson.

The UK Independence Party (UKIP) have a 21% share of support in the town, according to a recent poll by Survation.

The anti-Europe party, whose candidate is councillor Diane James, claim they could cause a ‘political earthquake’ by winning the Hampshire seat.

Eastleigh became a political battleground after the resignation of Chris Huhne as MP earlier this month (PA)

WHO ARE THE MAIN CANDIDATES?

The Conservative candidate, Maria Hutchings, stood against Chris Huhne in 2010, but came second.

The hard-working mother-of-four hit the headlines in 2005 when she challenged then Prime MinisterTony Blair during a live TV debate.

Mrs Hutchings, a campaigner for special needs children and carers, showed Mr Blair a photo of her autistic son John Paul, claiming she struggled to get him the speech therapy he needed.

The by-election has become a big talking point – whether residents like it or not (PA)She has campaigned fiercely across the town, but according to recent polls remains neck and neck with Lib Dem candidate Mike Thornton.

Mr Thornton has lived in the Eastleigh area for almost 20 years, and has been a parish and borough councillor since 2007.

He has pledged to protect green spaces, cut income tax for local workers, and bring more jobs and investment to the Hampshire constituency.

The two frontrunners will be mindful of UKIP candidate Diane James, the councillor for Waverley Borough in Surrey who joined the party in 2010.

Sources in Eastleigh describe the healthcare expert as ‘more Conservative than the Conservative candidate’, and Mrs James has received good support on the doorsteps of the Hampshire town.

Experts say Mrs James ‘looks and sounds like a Tory’, and with her more centrist views and promises of ‘integrity and commitment’, could snatch victory from the Coalition partners.

Labour’s candidate, broadcaster and author John O’Farrell, is fourth in the popularity stakes, with support of around 11-12 per cent.

He previously stood for the party in 2001 in Maidenhead, and describes himself as a ‘lifelong Labour supporter’.

The race to become MP for Eastleigh has predictably drawn a number of less orthodox candidates.

Others in the running include ‘Howling Laud Hope’ (real name Alan Hope) of the Monster Raving Loony Party, Ray Hall – from the ‘Beer, Baccy and Crumpets’ party, and David Bishop – from the ‘Elvis Loves Pets’ party.

Ian Dunt, editor of politics.co.uk, said the Conservatives could be foiled by the Lib Dems’ strength in local campaigning.

He said: “Eastleigh is the Tories’ first chance to test out the ‘weaponised’ policy-led campaigning which they plan to use against the Lib Dems in the general election.

“The party needs to take about 20 seats from their coalition partners to be in with a shot of a majority in 2015.

“Unfortunately for the Conservatives, the Lib Dems are seasoned and disciplined local campaigners.

“Even when the national picture is grim, they retain much of their local support – and in a race against the Tories they can rely on Labour supporters to back them as the least worst option.

“It’s a timely reminder to those forecasting the end of the Liberal Democrat party that British elections still rely on a great deal of strategic voting.”

WHO LIVES IN EASTLEIGH? HOW HAVE THEY VOTED BEFORE?

Created as a constituency in 1955, Eastleigh has an electorate of over 78,000.

Eastleigh had been a safe Conservative seat for four decades until the death of MP Stephen Milligan in 1994.

The Lib Dems took over the constituency with 44% support in the resulting by-election, with MP David Chidgey holding on to the seat until he stood down at the 2005 General Election.

Chris Huhne, the town’s most recent MP, took over the same year, before twice launching unsuccessful Lib Dem leadership campaigns in 2006 and 2007.

He lost out to Sir Menzies Campbell in 2006 and Nick Clegg a year later, but joined the Coalition government in 2010 as Energy Secretary. 

 

Cardinal Keith O’Brien, Britain’s most senior Roman Catholic cleric, has missed Sunday Mass after being accused of inappropriate behaviour.

Bishop Stephen Robson told St Mary’s Cathedral in Edinburgh the Church “cannot not be saddened” by the news.

Three priests and one ex-priest have reportedly complained about the leader of the Scottish Catholic Church’s behaviour some 30 years ago.

The Scottish Catholic Church said the cardinal, 74, contested the claims.

He is also taking legal advice, it added.

Cardinal O’Brien is due to retire next month when he turns 75.

He will have a say in who succeeds Pope Benedict XVI when the pontiff stands down on 28 February. He is Britain’s only representative in the election for a successor.

Pope Benedict XVI has now given his final Sunday blessing at the Vatican before he steps down.

Pope informed

Cardinal O’Brien was due to celebrate Mass in St Mary’s Cathedral to celebrate the eight years of Pope Benedict holding office.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

Robert PigottReligious affairs correspondent, BBC News

The cases raised by Cardinal O’Brien’s four accusers go back to the 1980s – so why are they being raised now just as he prepares to leave for Rome and the election for a new Pope?

It seems that wasn’t a conclave that prompted the complaints initially – the letter complaining about Cardinal O’Brien was written to the Vatican ambassador, Archbishop Antonio Mennini, in the week before the Pope’s unexpected resignation.

It seems to have been timed instead for Cardinal O’Brien’s planned retirement in the next few weeks.

Two of the priests mentioned the “immense power” an active bishop has over his clergy, but with the Pope’s resignation they have decided to publicise their allegations, evidently in an attempt to prevent Cardinal O’Brien taking part in the conclave.

It’s unlikely to work.

Firstly any decision by Cardinal O’Brien to stay at home might be read as an admission of guilt, and secondly, Church law makes it very hard to prevent a cardinal who is qualified to vote from doing so.

But he did not appear and Bishop Robson, who is auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh, made a statement at the cathedral.

He said: “A number of allegations of inappropriate behaviour have been made against the cardinal.

“The cardinal has sought legal advice and it would be inappropriate to comment at this time. There will be further statements in due course.

“As always in times of need such as this we cannot not be saddened by the events of the last 24 hours.

“It is to the Lord that we turn to now in times of need.”

A spokesman for the Vatican said “the Pope is informed about the problem and the question is now in his hands”.

The Observer reported that the three priests and one former priest - from the diocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh – complained to the Pope’s representative to Britain, nuncio Antonio Mennini, of what they claimed was the cardinal’s inappropriate behaviour towards them in the 1980s.

The four complained in the week before 11 February, when Pope Benedict announced his resignation. The complainants have now called for the cardinal’s immediate resignation.

The former priest claims Cardinal O’Brien made an inappropriate approach to him in 1980, after night prayers, when he was a seminarian at St Andrew’s College, Drygrange, the Observer says.

The complainant, who is now married, says he resigned as a priest when Cardinal O’Brien was first made a bishop.

He reportedly says in his statement: “I knew then he would always have power over me. It was assumed I left the priesthood to get married. I did not. I left to preserve my integrity.”

Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor says the church has become more transparent in dealing with allegations

A second statement from another complainant says he was living in a parish when he was visited by O’Brien, and inappropriate contact took place between them.

A third complainant alleges dealing with what he describes as “unwanted behaviour” by the cardinal in the 1980s after some late-night drinking.

And the fourth complainant claims the cardinal used night prayers as an excuse for inappropriate contact.

BBC religious affairs correspondent Robert Pigott says the allegations seem to have been publicised now because the four complainants do not want Cardinal O’Brien to go to the Vatican to participate in electing a new pope.

The chances of him not going, however, are “very remote”, as not only has he denied the allegations but it is very difficult to prevent a cardinal from exercising their papal vote, unless he is detained by the state.

Petition protest

Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, the former archbishop of Westminster, told the BBC’s Andrew Marr programme he was “very sad” to hear of the claims made against Cardinal O’Brien.

“The cardinal has denied the allegations so we will just to have to see how that pans out,” he said.

He added: “There have been other cases which have been a great scandal to the Church over these past years.

“I think the Church has to face up – has faced up – to some of them very well indeed…

“I don’t know what the Church will do. I think Cardinal O’Brien is very near to retirement and I suspect that his resignation, which is already with the Pope, because he’s nearing 75 and every bishop has to retire – then presumably that will be accepted.”

Cardinal O’Brien, who was born in Ballycastle, Co Antrim, has been the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh since 1985.

He has been an outspoken opponent of plans to legalise same-sex marriage and was named “bigot of the year” by gay rights charity Stonewall last November, prompting a storm of controversy.

Meanwhile, nearly 10,000 people in the United States have signed a petition calling on a senior Catholic clergyman to not participate in the election for the next Pope.

Cardinal Roger Mahony has been accused of helping priests suspected of sexual abuse to escape detection.

The Los Angeles archdiocese, of which he was formerly the head, has paid out millions of dollars in compensation to victims of child sex abuse.

Vince Cable has said the UK’s loss of its AAA credit rating is “largely symbolic” and there are “positive” signs for the economy.

The business secretary agreed that attempts to reduce the deficit while boosting growth were proving “tricky”.

But he said the measures were “working slowly” and rejected calls for the pace of cuts to be slowed or accelerated.

Labour say the downgrade is a “humiliation” for the coalition and ministers must change course.

Ratings agency Moody’s cut the UK’s top rate to Aa1 on Friday.

The agency, which was the first to downgrade the country’s rating since 1978, said expectations were that growth would “remain sluggish” over the next few years and the government’s debt reduction programme faced significant “challenges”.

Asked about the downgrade, Mr Cable likened credit ratings agencies to “tipsters” and part of the “background noise we have to take into account”, suggesting they had a “pretty bad record” on economic and corporate forecasting.

He said the US and France had both survived similar cuts to their ratings in the past.

“It is largely symbolic,” he told the BBC’s Andrew Marr programme.

“In terms of the real economy, there is no reason why the downgrade should have any impact…These things do not necessarily affect the real economy but they do reflect the fact that we are going through a very difficult time.”

‘Last chance saloon’

Mr Cable said efforts to reduce the deficit while also boosting growth were working, but there were “a lot of pressures in the opposite direction” which meant it the recovery was taking longer than anticipated.

The government would maintain its current course, he added, rejecting calls for more extensive cuts as “utterly counter-productive” and labelling calls for an alternative Plan B in which the deficit reduction strategy was fundamentally overhauled as “a bit juvenile”.

“What I am concentrating on in my job in government is factors that create real substantial long term growth. In other words skills training, supporting manufacturing, supporting exports, investing in science. These are the things that really matter.”

“There are some positive things happening,” he added – with the rate of employment, export growth and business start-ups all rising.

Amid suggestions that sterling could be heavily sold when financial markets open on Monday, Conservative MP Kwasi Kwarteng warned against a “kneejerk reaction” and said the downgrade should have already been “priced into” foreign exchange calculations.

Mr Kwarteng told the BBC that he would like to see more done to generate growth, including further cuts to corporation tax, but the government had “generally the right approach” on the economy and Mr Osborne should stay as chancellor.

However fellow Tory, Adam Afriyie, suggested the party could lose the next election unless it took decisive action, starting in next month’s Budget.

Writing in the Mail on Sunday, the MP – touted by some as a future leadership candidate – said the coalition “is about to enter the last chance saloon” and must consider a radical programme of tax cuts, including phasing out employers’ national insurance contributions.

“How do we view the people who follow their dreams, build businesses, create products, employ people and, yes, make money? In general, not very well at all. We devalue their contribution, sneer at them and spend our time looking for ways to make life even harder.

“This has to stop. If we’re to achieve sustainable growth we need to stop beating up the only people who can solve our economic problems.”

‘Change course’

Labour said people’s living standards would continue to be squeezed and the deficit would continue to rise until Mr Osborne changed direction and increased investment on job creation, infrastructure and industry.

“How many more signs does he (George Osborne) need before he realises their economic plan is failing and is making things worse and he needs to change course,” its deputy leader Harriet Harman told the Andrew Marr programme.

The UK is at risk of slipping back into recession for the third time since 2008.

The economy grew in the third quarter of last year, boosted by the impact of the Olympics, but shrunk again by 0.3% in the last three months of 2012 and would enter a triple dip recession if it contracted in the first quarter of 2013.

Germany and Canada are the only major economies to currently have a top AAA rating, as much of the world has been shaken by the financial crisis of 2008 and its subsequent debt crises.