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Pakistani residents read newspaper stories about alleged match fixing during international cricket matches, in a slum area of Islamabad

The owner of a Greater London football club who is at the centre of match-fixing allegations involving the Pakistan cricket team has been bailed without charge, police said.

Mazhar Majeed, 35, was arrested on Saturday as officers investigated claims that reporters paid a middleman £150,000 in return for exact details relating to play during the Lord's Test match.

Majeed is an owner of Croydon Athletic Football Club who play in the Ryman League.
A statement on the club website said: "Croydon Athletic Football Club were both devastated and appalled to hear of the alleged match-fixing of international cricket matches by its owner Mazhar Majeed. We await the guidance of the Ryman League in the next few weeks."

In a statement last night, Scotland Yard said Mr Majeed was bailed to appear before police at a future date.

Meanwhile, it emerged on Sunday that four Pakistan players, including captain Salman Butt, gave statements to police over the claims.

The allegations centre on the timing of "no balls" delivered during the latest Test match at Lord's.

But it was also suggested that other matches may have been "fixed". Up to 80 international Tests could form part of the police investigation, it was reported.

The Sun claimed that police in the UK were warned a month ago about alleged corruption relating to the first Test of the Pakistan tour, at Trent Bridge in Nottingham.

Pakistan team manager Yawar Saeed on Sunday confirmed that bowlers Mohammad Aamer, Mohammad Asif and wicket keeper Kamran Akmal joined Butt in being questioned by police.

drive from www.independent.co.uk

Health workers' unions expressed anger today after it emerged that a temporary chief executive had cost a struggling hospital trust more than £2,500 a day, plus almost £20,000 in expenses.

Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust accepted that the money they spent on Derek Smith and other interim executives would cause controversy but insisted they had been worth the money.

The trust paid the health services management company of which Smith is part just under £250,000 for his 97 days' work. It also paid £19,539 in expenses to cover Smith's travel to and accommodation in Dorchester.

Set out in the trust's annual report and accounts, the figures show that the equivalent of between £663 and £1,230 a day was paid out for three other senior temporary directors.

Unison spokeswoman Tanya Palmer called the figures "absolutely outrageous", adding: "That is money that could go towards efficiency savings or [be] loaded into frontline services.

"Most nurses will be earning about £1,800 a month after tax, and to see someone earning hundreds of pounds more than that in a single day will be galling.

"A man who runs a county hospital gets far more than the prime minister gets for running a whole country. How does that work?

"It is a disgusting amount of money and I can't see how anyone can justify this exorbitant waste of taxpayer's money."

The row has echoes of last month's controversy over a pay package of almost £250,000 received by a south-east London primary school head, Mark Elms.

Dr Peter Carter, chief executive and general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), said: "It is frankly unbelievable that these shockingly high sums of money continue to be spent at the same time that nurses and other staff are seeing frontline services cut and being asked to accept a pay freeze."

"This wasteful spending should be eradicated and resources must be directed to the frontline where they directly help patient care."

In Smith's case, the money was paid to a consultancy, Durrow Ltd, specialists in health service management. Its clients include not only many British healthcare trusts and the Department of Health but also overseas organisations ranging from the government of Bolivia to the government of South Australia.

Smith has worked at King's College hospital and Imperial College hospital in London and for London Underground. Durrow's website heralds him as a "key player … at the heart of Durrow's work."

His biography on the website claims he has an "unparalleled record in the NHS with over 20 years' experience as an acute hospital CEO."

drive from www.guardian.co.uk

Two heads are better than one, or so the saying goes. Nowhere could that be better put to the test at the moment than in the education world, as both of the country's leading headteacher organisations prepare to start the academic year with a new leader at the helm.

One of the two has not actually been a headteacher himself. Russell Hobby, the 38-year-old general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) raised eyebrows by being headhunted from the world of management consultancy (he was with Hay Group). He is, however, now a leader of heads, and it is not the first time that his union has moved outside of education to finds its chief. His predecessor but one, David Hart, was a lawyer by trade.

The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), though, has gone down a more traditional path, appointing 55-year-old Brian Lightman, headteacher of a 1,400-pupil comprehensive school in Wales and a member of their ruling council for the past two years. It will certainly be a testing time for them both.

They will be in at the start of the schools revolution planned by Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Education, who wants a massive boost to the academies programme. The new academies will be free from local authority control, and heads will be able to run their affairs. Gove also wants to see the opening of Swedish-style "free" schools run by parents, teachers and faith groups. Here, at least, he will have a measure of support from the two new incumbents – even if it is cautiously worded.

"Schools have a very ambivalent attitude towards freedom," says Hobby. "They both want it and fear it at the same time. Our position is that if a school decides it's the right thing to do, then we will support them through it. With freedom, you can choose how you use it. Schools don't have to be isolationist and competitive with it, you can be co-operative and socially responsible towards your neighbours."

Lightman says ruefully: "It has been fascinating to see how the whole education landscape has completely changed since I was appointed to this job – with a new ministerial team and new thinking and a fresh start. We don't have a policy towards any kind of school structure. We represent them all: state secondary schools, independent and colleges. Our advice to members would be to consider all the implications and make an informed decision rather than rush into it." That is why he is unconcerned that Gove appeared to end up with egg on his face after telling Parliament that 1,100 schools had applied for academy status in June, only to reveal the following month that the figure was just 153.

A more gradual build-up would be preferable, Lightman argues. As for "free" schools, he does not see them as an issue as he does not expect more than a dozen proposals for them to come forward. Earlier attempts by John Major's government to encourage parents to run schools met with little response.

It will not all be plain sailing in their dealings with ministers, though. One obvious bone of contention is the national curriculum tests (SATs) in maths and English taken by 600,000 11-year-olds every May. The NAHT joined with the National Union of Teachers in boycotting them this year, as a result of which they had to be cancelled in more than 4,000 primary schools (about 25 per cent of the total).

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Nestlé, the world's biggest food manufacturer, says it will make the palm oil in its best-selling chocolate bars more eco-friendly, after a guerrilla campaign against it on the internet.

The Swiss confectionery-to-coffee giant said it was inviting a not-for-profit group to audit its supply chain and promised to cancel contracts with any firm found to be chopping down rainforests to produce the vegetable oil, which it uses in KitKat, Aero and Quality Street.

The concession followed a three-month campaign by the environmental group Greenpeace, which led to Nestlé being attacked on social networking sites such as Facebook and YouTube. One million people watched Greenpeace's spoof advert for KitKat, despite its being taken off YouTube temporarily after a legal threat.

As well as illustrating the vulnerability of multinational companies to new media campaigns by NGOs which can galvanise individuals in a way that was impossible before the creation of the internet, the campaign also illustrated the intense environmental controversy surrounding palm oil.

Thousands of hectares of rainforests in Malaysia and Indonesia have been cleared to make way for oil palm plantations, depriving tribes of ancestral lands, increasing climate change emissions and killing rare animals such as the Sumatran tiger, sun bear, clouded leopard and pangolins. Campaigners have particularly stressed the damage done to orangutans, a close relative of man which lives only on the heavily deforested islands of Borneo and Sumatra.

Since The Independent disclosed the presence of palm oil in 43 of the UK's top-selling grocery brands, companies such as Nestlé, Marks & Spencer, Cadbury and Mars have committed to moving to a sustainable supply.

But Nestlé had been a relatively slow mover, promising only to meet the latest acceptable date of 2015 set by the World Wildlife Fund for moving to supplies certified sustainable by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil.

On 17 March, Greenpeace began a campaign against Nestlé, launching an early morning protest at its UK headquarters in Croydon, Surrey, and posting its one-minute Have a Break? "advert" on the internet. It showed an office worker biting into a KitKat containing an orangutan finger, which dripped blood onto a computer keyboard.

drive from www.independent.co.uk

The English National Opera was once attacked in a newspaper article with the rather delicious headline: "It isn't English. It Isn't National. It Isn't Opera."

I thought of that headline this week as another similarly named company, English National Ballet, celebrated its 60th birthday with a performance of Cinderella in London. Of ENB's nine principal dancers, just two are English. The Czech ballerina Daria Klimentova danced Cinderella at the anniversary performance. None of that necessarily matters. The arts glory in internationalism.

But it is fair to ask occasionally just what these grand titles of our grandest companies actually mean, and what their identities are. Names of artistic companies send out a message, often of egalitarianism or populism or sheer class. Sir Peter Hall reckoned that he captured all of those aspirations with the Royal Shakespeare Company, royal and Shakespeare being words cherished by all true Britons, and company a word cherished by all who work in the arts.

The National Theatre (which for decades was uncertain whether it was the British national theatre or English national theatre, but now at last has Welsh and Scottish counterparts) for many years did not tour. A famous episode of Yes, Minister had the minister threaten to make it a permanent touring company so that it could be "truly national". It now fulfils most of the criteria for being a national powerhouse, though is less a champion of new home-grown writing than the Royal Court, which itself has a title buried in obscurity and at odds with its radical image. (It opened as the Court theatre in 1888 and the word Royal was added a few years later. There was no Royal Charter, it just felt like a good idea at the time.)

If that's all a little confusing, it is even more so with English National Ballet and English National Opera, the two companies which manifestly try to express their purpose in life through their names. English National Opera does not tour, which makes a mockery of its name, though it does sing in English and employ overwhelmingly English talent. English National Ballet certainly does tour, and at affordable prices, but it's hard to see quite how its largely foreign stars make it an English national company. One can certainly argue that a national company doesn't have to be a showcase for national talent, but it would be nice to hear the argument being made some time, and the criteria that a publicly funded national company has to fulfil made clear.

Then there's the added confusion of the Royal Ballet and Royal Opera. The Royal Ballet has by common consent the best dancers yet does not tour at all in the UK. Neither does the Royal Opera, despite both companies receiving lavish public funding.

drive from www.independent.co.uk

I knew Joanna first as a model in the early 1960s when I was a fashion editor, but it was much later that we met properly, when I wrote a children's book and had the idea to turn it into a ballet for young dancers. The composer who wrote the score was a friend of Joanna's husband [the composer Stephen Barlow] and had told her what I was doing. She was so enthusiastic that he brought her to one of our performances at Sadler's Wells.

Joanna is as lovely as she seems. We share a passion for dance and I love her enthusiasm – for what we do with the National Youth Ballet and in general.

After the performance, I nervously wrote to ask her to be a patron and she accepted. I'm not one to have a name on a piece of paper for the sake of it, so Joanna was perfect; she gets her hands dirty. She's fantastic at drawing, for example, so always has great ideas about sets and costumes.

In the early days, I asked her to come to an event we were doing with the kids. She rang me and said, "I'm not going to come, Jill, because they'll just stick a picture of me on the cover of The Daily Mail and they won't photograph the kids." I remember being a bit disappointed, but she was right – and we ended up getting a huge picture of one of the little ones in the paper. She's not interested in the limelight for the sake of it.

It has been 20 years now and she has become a friend. We meet mainly at galas and first-night performances, but I like the times when we can talk without everybody around watching her or taking pictures.

The last time we were all together socially was when my husband was really ill and knew he was dying. Joanna was just herself – chatting away to him all evening, and that was lovely for both of us, because so many people didn't know how to be.

From the lowest to the highest, Joanna makes no distinctions about who she is speaking to, which is so endearing. She is a great conversationalist, as it's never all about her. She makes others feel charming. It's funny to watch men's reactions to her. They fall at her feet – certainly my sons and even my little grandsons.

Joanna Lumley OBE. 64, is a former model, but is best known for TV roles in 'The New Avengers' and 'Absolutely Fabulous'. She regularly campaigns on behalf of human-rights organisations. She lives in south London with her husband

Around 1990 I went to a performance at Sadler's Wells with the late composer Alan Ridout, a wonderful man who taught my husband composition. It was a children's ballet called Fisherboy and Alan had written the score. I have been in love with ballet for as long as I can remember, so I thought, "How wonderful to drive the composer to the opening night!" When I was 10, I was offered a scholarship at the Royal Ballet and refused – because I was an airhead – so there was quite a frisson going back.

I recognised straight away that Jill comes from that disciplined mould of all dancers that I admire. They don't waste time or energy. There's no sloppiness in anything she does. I was very impressed by her, by the children and the ballet itself.

When she asked me to be patron, I ran my name down the list of other patrons and they had all these fantastic dancers, Monica Mason and Wayne Sleep, and I suppose I hoped the fairy dust might flake off on me a little.

I like Jill on the night of a big performance – she has to be everything and she is so calm, cool and collected. We see each other mainly for ballet-related events, but it's been so regular and for so long that we have slowly got to know each other well. I've met her sons and grandson and I knew her husband – it was agony when he went, but she is terribly brave.

drive from www.independent.co.uk

Pakistan's already creaky economy has been pushed to the verge of ruin by the devastating floods of the past month.
With foreign aid only now beginning to trickle in, the impoverished country has been forced to take out further loans while pleading for outstanding ones to be restructured.
Already burdened by heavy debt, the country's economy has suffered a major setback. Funds will have to be poured into reconstruction efforts while many sectors of the economy, especially agriculture, will suffer losses for up to several months, if not years. So far, the floods have covered a fifth of the country, cost at least 1,600 lives, displaced 4.6 million people, destroyed roads, bridges and schools, damaged power stations and dams, and swamped millions of acres of agricultural land
About 150,000 Pakistanis were forced to move to higher ground yesterday as water from a freshly swollen Indus River submerged dozens more towns and villages in the south. Officials expect the floods to recede across the country in the next few days as the last river torrents empty into the Arabian Sea. Survivors may find little left when they return home. Already, 600,000 people are in relief camps set up in Sindh during the past month. The floods have affected about one-fifth of Pakistan's territory; at least six million people have been made homeless, and 20 million affected overall.
A top-level delegation from Pakistan's Finance Ministry will travel to Washington this week to ask the International Monetary Fund to ease the restrictions imposed on its $11.3bn (£7.3bn) support package. Before the floods, Pakistan was struggling to meet the fund's requirements. Meeting those conditions now will be impossible.
Some officials estimate that the cost of rebuilding infrastructure could be $15bn, money that Islamabad simply doesn't have. As of July, Pakistan had a debt of $55.5bn. That figure will jump to $73bn in 2015-16, as debts that were rescheduled after 9/11, in exchange for Pakistan's co-operation in the "war on terror", will come back into play.
The finance delegation's aim will be to persuade the fund to relax its conditions or draw up a fresh agreement, taking into consideration the toll exacted by the worst natural disaster the country has faced in living memory. As a result of the tragedy, the budget deficit will grow, inflation will rise, and economic growth will slow – all areas where the fund had wanted to see progress in the opposite direction.
At the same time, Islamabad has secured loans of $1bn from the World Bank and $2bn from the Asian Development Bank to help relief efforts and begin the task to rehabilitation and reconstruction. Government officials say that they were left with no option but to approach the banks as foreign aid has generated only a fraction of what's needed.

drive from www.independent.co.uk

Summer shows are a wonderful way to feature gallery artists and for gallerists to become curators of themed exhibitions. They also, in my opinion, most directly reflect a gallery’s point of view and a gallerist’s personality.

When I asked bubbly Deborah Bell why she chose “Children of Summer” as the theme for her summer show, she answered cheerfully, “I love summer, and kids playing gets to the essence of summer.” This, of course, in addition to displaying pictures she particularly loves, some by artists she represents, some not. The range of images in her show spans from classic pictures by August Sander to contemporary color pigment prints by Susan Paulsen, an artist whose work Deborah has been following for many years.

I had never seen before August Sander’s picture “Forester’s Child,” and indeed it is not often seen, Deborah tells me. Perhaps it particularly resonates with me because I grew up in a tiny village surrounded by forests. To me it reflects a particular German moodiness that I know so well. Another favorite of mine is Goesta Peterson’s group picture of children—a fashion picture, photographed for the New York Times in 1965. I love the odd sunglasses the kids are wearing, which, Deborah tells me, Peterson painstakingly hand-painted. But my all-time favorite is Mariana Cook’s picture of a dachshund surveying a summer landscape. I have to admit I love dachshunds, grew up with them, and soon will be the proud owner of one myself. When I asked Deborah why she included a dachshund in a children’s show, she laughed and told me it is a baby dachshund. When I told her it is a miniature dog, she giggled and said the children are hidden behind the trees. After all, children playing is the essence of summer.

drive from www.newyorker.com

A very tall man approaches a Spanish hotel reception desk. He looks rather sheepish and a little worse for wear. The man behind the desk is tiny and dwarfed by the Ray-Ban-wearing, lanky man.

"Hello..."

"Hola sir, how may I assist you today?"

"Yes... hi... I was staying in your hotel last night..."

"I hope everything was satisfactory for you, sir?"

"Yes... yes... it was fine... thank you."

"Gracias, señor, it is always pleasurable to get positive feedback – I shall convey your satisfaction to the entire staff, whom I shall assemble in the ballroom especially for this purpose. You might not realise thees señor but I am personally a huge fan of your football-playing abilities as well as your fancy robot dancing – the staff will be very excited at your pleasure."

"Right... that's good... the thing is... I was wondering whether it might be possible for you to... forget that I stayed here?"

"Forget? Señor, surely you joke with me? I am as likely to forget this day as the time that Penelope Cruz (peace be upon her) walked past the entrance to the hotel in a small white dress."

"That's great, really great but, I really do need you to forget that I was here... for personal reasons."

"I am confused, señor... how can I forget one of the most important days in the history of our establishment?"

"I just need you to do that for me as a favour... a personal favour."

"Well, I will try, señor, but it ees going to be very difficult for me. Shall I also forget your wife who left here very early this morning in an even tighter dress than Penelope Cruz (peace be upon her) – you are a lucky man, señor, to have married such a sensual woman."

"Here's the thing... sorry, I don't know your name."

"Alfons, that is my name."

"OK, Alfons, mano a mano, the woman who left this morning was not my wife."

drive from www.independent.co.uk

Ben Quayle, son of the error-prone former US vice-president, is a gaffe off the old block. Running for office in Arizona, he is committing blunders of his own which maintain the fine family tradition of embarrassing all and sundry.

Campaigning as a family-values conservative, Ben Quayle, 33, first denied then admitted that he wrote for a sex-steeped Arizona website, now known as TheDirty.com. The website's founder, Nik Richie, said Quayle used the alias "Brock Landers", the name of a character from the 1997 movie Boogie Nights about porn stars, and wrote lines such as: "My moral compass is so broken I can barely find the parking lot." Richie said Quayle "was the guy that, you know, people would send pictures to of hot chicks, and he would put together who he thought was the hottest girl and why". He boasted of his physique, comparing it to one of Michelangelo's works, and his sexual appeal. Quayle said he couldn't recall what his posts involved or when he made them.

This came out just days after Quayle sent out a campaign leaflet showing his wife and two young girls, with the words: "We are going to raise our family here." He and his wife have no children – the girls were his nieces. The clangers revive memories of his dad's missteps as vice president in President George H W Bush's administration: a classroom stumble in spelling the word "potato", musings on how terrible it is "not to have a mind", and declaring that "Republicans understand the importance of bondage between a mother and child".

The senior Quayle's political career ended with the Republican ticket's loss in 1992 to Bill Clinton and Al Gore. Yet the famous name helped Ben jump to the front of the pack of 10 candidates vying for his party's nomination in a Republican-leaning district. The former defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and George H W Bush and his wife, Barbara, have either given money or raised it for him.

Another famous name is also seeking a seat in the House this year. In New York, former President Richard Nixon's grandson, 30-year-old Christopher Nixon Cox, is running for a Republican nomination on Long Island.

drive from www.independent.co.uk