Weekly round-up: Stories you may have missed

A large rectangular speed camera on a tripod is visible. Behind it, a police officer in a high visibility jacket is working in a police van.
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Jersey police said they would consider which hotspots to deploy the camera in

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Sleeping pods for the homeless, a new mobile speed camera and the collapse of a local airline were among the stories in the news over the past week.

Here's a round-up of some of the stories reported by BBC Jersey and BBC Guernsey in the past week.

Airlines step in following collapse of Blue Islands

Two Blue Island planes on the tarmac at an airport. Large yellow bollards are in the foreground of the photo. The back of a lorry parked on the runway can be seen just behind the bollards.
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Two planes were impounded at Guernsey Airport over outstanding charges owed by Blue Islands

Camera aims to 'stop racing and endangering lives'

Robin Smith, Jersey Chief of Police, is positioned slightly to the right of the centre of the frame and is looking directly at the camera with a serious expression. He has short, greying hair and is wearing clear-rimmed glasses. He is dressed in a dark grey police uniform jacket with a high collar, epaulets, and "POLICE" patches on both shoulders. He also wears a traditional peaked police cap bearing the Royal Crest badge. His arms are folded across his chest. To the left of the man is a large, grey and black speed camera or surveillance unit mounted on a tripod. The camera unit is roughly rectangular, facing the same direction as the Robin's gaze, and is the dominant object in the background immediately behind him.
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Police chief Robin Smith said the new camera had been brought in to stop those who were "endangering other islanders"

Police in Jersey have unveiled the island's first mobile speed camera.

Chief officer Robin Smith said it was designed to catch "people that are racing around our island, endangering other islanders", which he described as an "enduring and persistent problem".

He said the camera would be deployed in a way that was "more subtle" than the bright yellow cameras that are commonplace in the UK.

Homeless sleeping pods installed at Vale Douzaine

A grey pod a small white window and brown door with keypad is being moved from a lorry to the ground by a crane arm on the lorry. It has an Amazing Grace Spaces logo on the front.
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The Charitas charity described the pods arrival as a significant set forward in providing practical support to islanders experiencing homelessness

Two emergency sleeping pods were installed at the Vale Douzaine Rooms on Tuesday.

The pods, sourced from from the UK through Amazing Grace Spaces, are solar-powered and self-contained with no need for mains services, helping them to be deployable at short notice.

Graham Merfield, chair of Caritas - the charity behind the project, said: "The pods are not a final answer to homelessness, but they will provide immediate shelter and dignity in times of crisis."

Lack of online age verification sparks concern

A generic image of a phone and someone about click on WhatsApp.
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A review by politicians has found age verification restrictions introduced in the UK did not protect children in Jersey

Politicians have expressed concern for children's safety after a review found there was no age verification on adult sites in Jersey.

The UK introduced age verification on porn sites in July to make it harder for under-18s to see explicit material.

The review by the education scrutiny panel found assumptions UK regulations would indirectly protect children in Jersey were not wholly correct, meaning "children in Jersey may now face fewer barriers to accessing inappropriate content than their UK counterparts".

Responding to the review, Economic Development Minister Kirsten Morel said legislation was being drafted that would allow people to have harmful content removed.

How hard is it for Channel Island footballers to become professionals?

Alex Scott (left) and England team-mates during a training session at the Tottenham Hotspur Training Ground, London.Image source, PA Media
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Alex Scott was called up to the senior men's England squad earlier this month

BBC Sport looked as how big a barrier the stretch of water between the Channel Islands and England is to becoming a professional footballer, with the travel and costs involved making it much harder for youngsters from the islands.

"We've got good talent over here, and if our island was attached to the mainland these players would be at academies," says Guernsey FC manager Tony Vance.

The Green Lions are one of two Channel Island football clubs with teams playing in the English league pyramid - along with their rivals Jersey Bulls.

The club gave Alex Scott his first taste of men's football, as a 16-year-old, before he left Guernsey for Bristol City. From there he moved to Bournemouth, where his form earned him a call-up to the England squad this month.

"The travel, the finance; they're the big barriers," said Jersey Bulls manager Elliot Powell.

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