The new scheme has been delayed for six months

A banking scheme for one-day cash transfers over the telephone or on the internet has started without any major problems, High Street banks say.

The new scheme will speed up the process which previously meant that it took up to four days to transfer money between banks.

Banks made an estimated £30m in interest from the delay last year.

By 7am on the first day, 898 payments totalling £461,383 were made successfully under the new scheme.

The £300m Faster Payments Service, developed by 13 banks, starts on 27 May, although only a fraction of payments will be quicker from day one.

Slow start

Customers can make one-off payments up to a maximum value of £10,000 over the telephone or via the internet, which will leave their account and arrive at the destination account on the same day.

Given we have been waiting for years, if not decades, for the industry to invest in decent systems, if the price of embedding it properly is a delay of a few months, then that is sensible Philip Cullum National Consumer Council See the big five banks' timetable Changes in the way we pay

For many consumers the frustration has been most common when money disappeared for a few days when they transferred cash from a current account to their own savings accounts with a different bank.

The same-day project will be extended to standing orders from 6 June.

In 2007, there were 124 million internet and phone payments made at an average value of £303. The number of payments is expected to rise to 300 million in 10 years.

Some 347 million standing order payments were made in 2007, expected to rise to 422 million in a decade, at an average value of £321.

The banking industry says it does not want to flood the new system from day one, and various banks will phase in the system at different times.

"Given we have been waiting for years, if not decades, for the industry to invest in decent systems, if the price of embedding it properly is a delay of a few months, then that is sensible," said Philip Cullum of the National Consumer Council.

'Complex project'

The banks have been preparing for the scheme by testing the service with hundreds of penny payments.

One of the main things that you need with any payments system is total reliability Paul Smee Apacs chief executive Q&A on faster clearing times

"The final part of this enormously complex project has been to test the new system in a live environment," said Paul Smee, chief executive of UK payments association Apacs.

"After such substantial investment by the industry we would like, in time, to see the new Faster Payments Service being used for all of the UK's internet, phone and standing order payments."

One of the first payments made on 27 May under the new system was a £10,000 donation to charity Oxfam by the participating banks to help victims of the cyclone in Burma.

Some concerns have been raised about security under the faster scheme, with banks having less time to check payments.

But Apacs said that although no system could promise 100% security, the issue had been at the heart of developing the system.

Who's involved?

The 13 banks included in the scheme are: Abbey, Alliance and Leicester, Barclays, Citi, Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks (National Australia Group), Co-operative Bank, HBOS, HSBC, Lloyds TSB, Nationwide Building Society, Northern Bank (Danske Bank), Northern Rock, and Royal Bank of Scotland Group (including NatWest and Ulster Bank).

Cheques are not covered under the Faster Payments Service

The system was set up after the Office of Fair Trading, acting on consumers' complaints, told the banks in 2005 to make the system faster. An original deadline of last November was extended.

The new system updates technology set up about 25 years ago to deal with cheques, since when internet and telephone banking has been introduced widely and surged in popularity.

A website has been set up at www.canipayfaster.co.uk to allow people to check, using the receiving account's sort code, whether a bank is set up to receive faster payments.

Cheques are not covered under the new system. A recent report suggested they were in "irreversible decline" and new clearing rules were introduced last year.

Since November, interest must be credited no more than two days after a cheque has been paid in and the money must be available to be drawn out after no more than four days.

After six days, a cheque is deemed to have cleared absolutely and so banks cannot recoup money from a customer's account if they discovered the original cheque payment was fraudulent.

'Elizabeth' was raped by 10 UN peacekeepers in Ivory Coast

Children as young as six are being sexually abused by peacekeepers and aid workers, says a leading UK charity.

Children in post-conflict areas are being abused by the very people drafted into such zones to help look after them, says Save the Children.

After research in Ivory Coast, southern Sudan and Haiti, the charity proposed an international watchdog be set up.

Save the Children said it had sacked three workers for breaching its codes, and called on others to do the same.

The three men were all dismissed in the past year for having had sex with girls aged 17 - which the charity said was a sackable offence even though not illegal.

The victims are suffering sexual exploitation and abuse in silence Heather Kerr Save the Children

The UN has said it welcomes the charity's report, which it will study closely.

Save the Children says the most shocking aspect of child sex abuse is that most of it goes unreported and unpunished, with children too scared to speak out.

No support

A 13-year-old girl, "Elizabeth" described to the BBC how 10 UN peacekeepers gang-raped her in a field near her Ivory Coast home.

'Elizabeth' tells the BBC about her abuse

"They grabbed me and threw me to the ground and they forced themselves on me... I tried to escape but there were 10 of them and I could do nothing," she said.

"I was terrified. Then they just left me there bleeding."

No action has been taken against the soldiers.

The report also found that aid workers have been sexually abusing boys and girls.

"In recent years, some important commitments have been made by the UN, the wider international community and by humanitarian and aid agencies to act on this problem," said Save the Children UK chief executive Jasmine Whitbread.

"However, all humanitarian and peacekeeping agencies working in emergency situations, including Save the Children UK, must own up to the fact that they are vulnerable to this problem and tackle it head on."

UN SEXUAL ABUSE SCANDALS 2003 - Nepalese troops accused of sexual abuse while serving in DR Congo. Six are later jailed 2004 - Two UN peacekeepers repatriated after being accused of abuse in Burundi 2005 - UN troops accused of rape and sexual abuse in Sudan 2006 - UN personnel accused of rape and exploitation on missions in Haiti and Liberia 2007 - UN launches probe into sexual abuse claims in Ivory Coast

After research involving hundreds of children from Ivory Coast, southern Sudan and Haiti, the charity said better reporting mechanisms needed to be introduced to deal with what it called "endemic failures" in responding to reported cases of abuse.

It also said efforts should be made to strengthen worldwide child protection systems.

Heather Kerr, Save the Children's Ivory Coast country director, says little is being done to support the victims.

"It's a minority of people but they are using their power to sexually exploit children and children that don't have the voice to report about this.

READ THE REPORT No One to Turn To [378k] Most computers will open PDF documents automatically, but you may need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader. Download the reader here

"They are suffering sexual exploitation and abuse in silence."

Save the Children says the international community has promised a policy of zero-tolerance to child sexual abuse, but that this is not being followed up by action on the ground.

A UN spokesman, Nick Birnback, said that it was impossible to ensure "zero incidents" within an organisation that has up to 200,000 personnel serving around the world.

"What we can do is get across a message of zero tolerance, which for us means zero complacency when credible allegations are raised and zero impunity when we find that there has been malfeasance that's occurred," he told the BBC.

The New South Wales town does not have a large Muslim population

Authorities in an Australian town have rejected proposals to allow an Islamic school to be built there.

Councillors for Camden, a small town on the outskirts of Sydney, unanimously voted against the proposed school for 1200 pupils.

The councillors said they based their decision solely on planning grounds, citing an internal report about its environmental impact.

The proposed development had met with fierce local opposition.

Camden's authorities received some 3,200 submissions from the public about the school and only 100 in favour.

The BBC's Nick Bryant in Sydney says Camden does not have a large Muslim population so most of the pupils for the proposed school would have had to be brought in by bus from Sydney, an hour's drive away.

Town moves against school

Residents' views

The issue prompted a strong response from Camden locals.

"They've got terrorists amongst them, OK? We can't say they haven't - they have," said one resident.

"We're quite happy to integrate, we happily integrate with Italians, Greeks, English, Scottish - this town has every nationality. Muslims do not fit in this town - we are Aussies, OK?"

A variety of local residents' views were aired at a public meeting late last year and attended by over 1,000 people.

Some speakers focused solely on the environmental impact of locating an urban-scale school in such a bucolic setting.

One speaker implored the crowd to stick to planning issues, and not let the campaign be contaminated by racism or xenophobia.

Andrew Wynnet of the Camden/Macarthur Residents' Group told the BBC's Nick Bryant about local concerns for the long-term demographic impact of such a development.

"The character of the town will change," he said.

The Quranic Society, the organisation behind the proposal, has kept a low public profile throughout the process.

Its position has been that Australian parents have the right to educate Australian children wherever they wish, regardless of race or religion.

The organisation was not represented at the meeting, but it can appeal against this decision in the courts.

An internal Camden council report had earlier recommended against construction, mainly citing traffic concerns.

Lawyers said the woman's life would be in danger is she were sent home

An HIV-positive Ugandan woman's claim to stay in the UK has been rejected by the European Court of Human Rights.

Her lawyers argued that a lack of medical care in Uganda would lead to her early death, and this would amount to cruel and degrading treatment.

The government denies this, saying all NHS HIV drugs are available in Uganda.

The court agreed that if the unnamed woman were sent back to Uganda, there would be no violation of the bar on inhuman or degrading treatment.

When the woman entered the UK in March 1998 under an assumed name, she was seriously ill and was admitted to hospital.

Rejected claim

Soon afterwards, solicitors lodged an asylum application on her behalf, claiming she had been raped by government soldiers in Uganda because of her association with the Lord's Resistance Army, a rebel group in the north of the country.

The lawyers argued that her life would be in danger if she were returned to Uganda.

By November 1998, she was diagnosed with two illnesses which are known to be indicators of having AIDS, and as being in an extremely advanced state of HIV infection.

Her asylum claim was rejected in March 2001, a decision she appealed against.

In rejecting her claim, the secretary of state found no evidence that Ugandan authorities were interested in her and that treatment of Aids in Uganda was comparable to any other African country.

The secretary of state also found that all the major anti-viral drugs were available in Uganda at highly subsidised prices.

In January the government sent a terminally ill Ghanaian woman who had been receiving treatment in the UK back to her country because her visa had expired.

Lou Pearlman has forfeited four cars to help repay victims

Boy band mogul Lou Pearlman, who created the Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync, has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for a $300m (£153m) fraud.

Pearlman swindled family, friends, investors and banks by enticing them to put money into two fake companies for 20 years. He pleaded guilty in March.

As part of a plea agreement, he pledged to help prosecute his accomplices.

Judge G Kendall Sharp said he would reduce the term by one month for every $1m (£0.5m) he gave back to victims.

The sympathy factor doesn't run high with the court Judge G Kendall Sharp

Prosecutors counted at least 250 individual victims who lost a total of $200m (£102m), plus 10 financial institutions that lost $100m (£51m).

The judge held up letters in the Florida court from people who Pearlman defrauded.

They included "his family, his close friends and people in their 70s and 80s who have lost their life savings", the judge said.

"So the sympathy factor doesn't run high with the court," he added.

Pearlman was behind boy bands including the Backstreet Boys

Pearlman had admitted persuading people to invest millions of dollars in two companies that existed "only on paper".

In a statement, Pearlman said: "Over the past nine months since my arrest, I've come to realise the harm that's been done. I'm truly sorry and I apologise for what's happened."

Pearlman unsuccessfully tried to delay sentencing while he launched his current boy band US5 - already successful in parts of Europe - in the US and Asia.

He said money made by the band could be used to repay people he had swindled.

Pearlman has also agreed to forfeit four cars, including a 2004 Rolls Royce Phantom.

Day of violence in Johannesburg suburb In pictures

South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki has approved the deployment of the army to quell violence against foreigners.

The announcement from his office came after xenophobic attacks spread outside Johannesburg to the city of Durban.

It is the first time troops are being ordered out onto the streets to quell unrest since the end of apartheid.

The violence, which began last week, has left more than 20 people dead and is estimated to have driven 30,000 people from their homes.

The Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation says many of the people were sheltering in mosques and churches around Johannesburg.

There are believed to be between three and five million foreigners living in South Africa, most of them Zimbabweans fleeing poverty and violence at home.

SOUTH AFRICA Foreign population: 3-5m Majority from Zimbabwe, also Mozambique, Nigeria Total population: 49m Unemployment rate: 30% Tensions erupt in city of promise Bloggers want end to violence

The Durban attack prompted about 700 African migrants to seek refuge in a nearby church while in Cape Town a safety forum has been set up to try to prevent violence.

Police say a group armed with sticks and bottles attacked Nigerians drinking in a tavern overnight.

In Johannesburg, police fired rubber bullets to disperse mobs in one area on Tuesday.

'Political'

There are fears that politicians are exploiting the situation in Durban.

"A mob of plus/minus 200 were gathering on the streets carrying bottles and knobkerries (wooden clubs) busy attacking people on the streets," Provincial police spokeswoman Superintendent Phindile Radebe told AFP news agency.

"They attacked one of the taverns there believed to be owned by Nigerians," she said.

KwaZulu-Natal's Community Safety Minister Bheki Cele blamed Zulu nationalist Inkatha Freedom Party members for being behind the Durban violence.

"These are purely criminal activities and they will be dealt with decisively in ensuring that xenophobic attacks are not used as scapegoats for criminals who want to serve their own selfish interests," he said in a statement.

The attacks on foreigners began a week ago in the township of Alexandra, north of Johannesburg, before spreading to the city centre and across the Gauteng region.

Mobs have been roaming townships looking for foreigners, many of whom have sought refuge in police stations, churches and community halls.

Some South Africans say foreigners are taking jobs from locals and contributing to crime.

Earlier, President Mbeki urged South Africans to welcome foreigners.

Khyra Ishaq was taken to hospital on Saturday. Pic: Caters News Agency

A woman and man have been charged with neglect after the death of a seven-year-old girl.

Khyra Ishaq, of Leyton Road in Handsworth, Birmingham, was taken to hospital on Saturday where she was pronounced dead.

Tests are continuing to find the cause of Khyra's death.

Angela Gordon, 33, and 29-year-old Junaid Abuhamza were charged with neglect at Birmingham Magistrates' Court on Monday.

The pair, believed to be Khyra's mother and stepfather, were remanded in custody until 28 May.

A Birmingham Crown Court spokesman said Ms Gordon and Mr Abuhamza would appear at the court for a preliminary hearing on that date, charged with causing or allowing the death of a child between 9 May and 17 May.

According to neighbours there were six children living in the house, three boys and three girls.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said it was called to the address in Handsworth at 0545 BST on Saturday. From that address Khyra was taken to Birmingham Children's Hospital.

A statement by West Midlands Police said inquiries into the girl's death were continuing. "Her cause of death has not been confirmed at this stage," it added.

Valerie Frances, the sister of Kyra's natural father, said she was "shocked" by the news of her niece's death.

Speaking outside the house in Handsworth she said: "All the time I have been coming here I couldn't get into the house, as far as I am concerned because nobody was there.

"The last time I saw them was last year some time. I've been coming here all the time, knocking on the door on four occasions and no-one came to the door."

Birmingham Perry Barr MP Khalid Mahmood pledged to write to the chief executive of the council on Thursday calling for an inquiry to look at all the issues in the case.

A Birmingham City Council spokesperson said: "We are deeply saddened by the death of this child and our sympathies go to the child's family and friends at this difficult time.

"This death is now the subject of a police inquiry and Birmingham City Council are fully supporting their investigation."

The door and ground floor windows of the house in Leyton Road have been covered with metal shutters.

A family friend, who did not want to be named, said: "Khyra was a happy girl. I saw her with her mum about nine or 10 days ago, she looked normal."

The coroner's office said it would be "at least another week" before a second post-mortem examination takes place.

The by-election takes place on Thursday

The Information Commissioner is launching an investigation after the Conservatives accidentally sent details of 8,000 people to a radio station.

The e-mail sent contained the names, addresses, telephone numbers and intentions of voters in the Crewe and Nantwich by-election.

Deputy Information Commissioner David Smith said the disclosure, to Manx Radio, raised "serious concern".

The Conservatives admitted a "mistake" had been made.

Files deleted

The information, which had been gathered by the Tories during the campaign for Thursday's by-election, was contained in three Excel files, and was sent in an e-mail to Manx Radio by accident, potentially breaching data protection laws.

The e-mail was received by the radio station at lunchtime on Wednesday.

It sent it on to the local newspaper in Crewe, although it is understood that both emails have now been deleted.

Mr Smith said: "It is a serious concern if people's personal details and voting intentions have got into the public domain.

"Voting information is particularly sensitive. We will be launching an investigation to establish the full facts and see where responsibility lies."

A Conservative spokesman said: "The email shouldn't have been sent but we have done all that we can to ensure that it remains confidential.

"The email - which was based on information from the electoral register - was sent in error to a journalist.

"Within two and half hours the recipient was informed. Both he and the local newspaper he sent it on to have now given undertakings that the information on the email has been destroyed.

"A third media outlet was also forwarded the email. It is unclear by whom. They too have given an undertaking that the contents will not be published.

"An internal investigation has already discovered that it was due to human error but an internal inquiry has begun to ensure that it does not happen again."

Polling stations in Crewe and Nantwich open at 0700 BST and close at 2200 BST on Thursday. The result is expected at about 0230 BST on Friday.

The by-election follows the death of long-serving MP Gwyneth Dunwoody last month.