Sandwell Council leader Steve Eling steps down weeks after being suspended from the Labour Party.

Local Democracy Reporting Service
George Makin

The suspended Labour leader of Sandwell council has stepped down from his role rather than face a vote of no confidence in March.

Councillor Steve Eling’s decision comes after his party’s councillors chose Steve Trow to head their group following Mr Eling’s suspension from the party last month.

He had previously refused to relinquish the role as the authority’s most senior politician, despite calls for him to go by a local Conservative MP James Morris.

The MP tweeted his time in office would be remembered as some of the council's "darkest days".

But following the news that the council’s Labour party group would seek to replace as him as council leader at meeting in March, he officially resigned on Wednesday.

A decision by Jaguar Land Rover to manufacture a new engine at the i54 plant on the Wolverhampton-Staffordshire border will bring "big new investment", a local MP says.

The company's new six-cylinder petrol Ingenium engine, external, to be built at its £1bn Engine Manufacturing Centre, is expected to be first used on its Range Rover Sport model.

Emma Reynolds, Labour MP for Wolverhampton North East, said the announcement was "really good news".

Two children and two adults have suffered minor injuries as they were hit by a car near a primary school in Burntwood this morning.

Staffordshire Police says officers were called to Springhill Road, near the Springhill Academy at around 08:40 and the four - two women, a boy and a girl - were all treated at the scene and three were taken to hospital as a precaution.

Image source, Google

The woman, who was driving the car, was given medical attention after suffering what the ambulance service called "a medical episode prior to the collision" and no arrests were made.

A girl, who was a passenger in the car, was also assessed, but wasn't hurt.

More than £30,000 has been raised since four children were killed in the house fire in Stafford.

BBC Radio Stoke

The police investigation into the collision that caused long delays on the M6 this morning is into its "final stages" Highways England has said.

A 30-year-old man died, police said earlier, and an investigation team has been at the scene for several hours.

It caused the total closure of the motorway, heading south between junctions 14 and 13 and traffic which has been trapped since 03:30 is still being turned around.

Vehicles are also being diverted, to avoid the closure.

BBC Business News

Patisserie Valerie has been rescued by Irish private equity firm Causeway Capital Partners, safeguarding nearly 2,000 jobs.

Image source, Reuters

Causeway Capital already has some cafes in its portfolio, including BB Bakers & Baristas, which has 65 stores in the UK and Ireland.

The Birmingham-based business fell into administration in January, after serious accounting irregularities were uncovered last year.

Administrators closed 70 stores and put 121 up for sale. The latest deal covers 96 sites, but does not include outlets belonging to sister brands Philpotts and Baker & Spice.

Officers are continuing to question a teenager after a 16-year-old boy was stabbed in the chest near a college in Birmingham.

West Midlands Police said the brawl broke out in Belgrave Road, outside Joseph Chamberlain Sixth Form College, at about 16:00 on Wednesday.

A 16-year-old boy from Highgate is in custody after being arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.

The victim remains in a critical condition, police said.

When the Brexit debate is the opposite of how it appears.

A virtual GP service is set to launch in Birmingham after being given the go-ahead by NHS England.

Image source, Babylon

Babylon Health, the company behind the NHS GP at Hand app, claims its software achieves medical exam scores that are on-par with human doctors.

GP at Hand currently offers a GP consultation via a smartphone 24 hours a day to patients in various locations in London, with the promise of a video consultation within two hours of booking.

Plans to expand the scheme to Birmingham were initially blocked by NHS England due to concerns about patient access to screening, but now says a solution has been found.

But the British Medical Association said it was "wholly inappropriate" to allow the expansion before an independent evaluation of GP at Hand had published its findings.

BBC Radio Stoke

Alton Towers is auctioning off items from its former Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ride for charity.

The 37 items being auctioned on eBay include statues, signs, giant food items and eight Oompah-Loompah characters and all the money raised will go to the Merlin's Magic Wand charity and the Roald Dahl Foundation.

Image source, Merlin Entertainment

The ride closed in 2015 and will make way for the new dungeon ride, which is due to open in March.

Fears public safety is being threatened are raised as a council deals with allegations made 150 miles away.

A man has died after being hit by a lorry on the M6 overnight.

The 30-year-old, described by police as a pedestrian, died at the scene.

The southbound carriageway has been closed since 03:30 between J14 and J13 and is expected to remain shut for the next few hours.

Officers said the man's family had been informed and specialist officers were supporting them.

Staffordshire and West Midlands Serious Collision Investigation Unit is appealing for witnesses or anyone with relevant dashcam footage to come forward.

There's very heavy traffic on roads surrounding Stafford as the closure of part of the M6 southbound carriageway remains in place.

There's three miles of queuing traffic on the southbound carriageway before J15, due to drivers leaving the motorway early to to the closure between J13 and J14.

Image source, Nick Power

Motorist Nick Power, 47, a HGV delivery driver for Bodycare from Preston, said he has been stuck in traffic for more than two hours.

"This is a bad one, people are coming out of their cars to talk to each other," he said.

"It was foggy on the M6 and is still fogging on the A34 now."

Image source, Nick Power

"I've got four deliveries to do, one in Tamworth, Nuneaton, Newcastle-under-Lyme and Burton-upon-Trent. That journey usually takes me two and a half hours. I've already been stuck in gridlock for two and three quarter hours.

"Highways are saying delays of 65 minutes, well it's significantly different here. I don't know how long I'll be here for."

Three vehicles have been destroyed in a fire in Coventry overnight.

Crews were called to the blaze on Hampton Close, in the Foleshill area of the city shortly before 01:00.

Image source, West Midlands Fire Service

The fire service said video streamed to the control room allowed them to increase the number of crews even before the first appliances arrived on the scene.

Image source, WMFS

The M6 southbound carriageway in Staffordshire is likely to remain closed throughout the morning, police said.

A serious crash investigation is being carried out by motorway police after an incident which happened close to J13 at about 03:30.

There are severe delays in the area with seven miles of queuing traffic on the southbound carriageway, and people slowing to look at the crash site on the northbound carriageway, traffic data firm Inrix is reporting.

Traffic trapped on the M6 after an incident overnight is gradually being released, said motorway police.

Some drivers have been there since 03:30, when the incident happened, close to J13 in Staffordshire.

The southbound carriageway is closed between J13 and J14 for the Collision Investigation Unit to carry out an inspection, the force tweeted.

A bridge over the motorway that was cordoned-off by police has just reopened.

Jennie Aitken
Reporter, BBC Radio Stoke

Highways England says it's assisting with a "police lead incident" on the M6 in Staffordshire.

The southbound carriageway has been closed since 03:30 after the incident close to J13, near Stafford.

A bridge over the M6, Ash Flats Lane, is also cordoned off by police.

The motorway is expected to remain closed through the rush hour and several miles of traffic is reported in the area.

A judgement is expected today in a legal battle between Birmingham City Council and a union representing its refuse collectors, connected to the ongoing dispute.

Image source, Getty Images

Unite union members have been working to rule since 29 December over a payment given to GMB members and are set to strike twice a week from 19 February.

The union has asked High Court judges to issue an injunction to stop lorries operating with fewer staff than agreed at the end of the last strike in 2017.

The council says the crewing system is vital to ensure collections are made while union members are working to rule.

It claims that Unite is bringing the case "to further its industrial aims" and says the injunction, if granted, could cost it "millions of pounds".

BBC News Travel

The M6 southbound in Staffordshire remains closed due to a serious crash overnight.

There are severe delays in the area after the incident between J14 and J13.

The road was closed just before 03:30, said Highways England.

There's seven miles of queuing traffic in the area, with trapped vehicles gradually being released.