Summary

  • Updates from Monday 8 March to Sunday 14 March

  1. Jota scores Liverpool winner on Wolves returnpublished at 23:38 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    Diogo Jota rekindles Liverpool's Premier League top-four hopes with the winning goal on his return to Molineux in a game that ends with a worrying head injury to Wolves goalkeeper Rui Patricio.

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  2. Knives can be put in two new bins and destroyed safelypublished at 14:03 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    BBC Radio WM

    From today people can leave knives in two new bins in a knife surrender scheme that BBC Radio WM is launching with West Midlands Police.

    Bin

    One is at McDonald’s on Belchers Lane in Bordesley Green, Birmingham, and the other at the Cornbow Shopping Centre, Great Cornbow, Halesowen, in an initiative that is part of the radio station's Knives Cost Lives campaign.

    Knives can be put in those bins and destroyed safely. Since the beginning of last March when we all started staying at home to keep each other safe from the pandemic, the radio station has reported on 16 fatal stabbings in the West Midlands.

    Michael Miles, who was sent to prison for a knife attack and released in 2018, now works as an anti-knife campaigner and works with young people at risk of criminality.

    Quote Message

    There's a lot of kids what carry these knives nowadays and they don't carry the knives with the intention to stab somebody and then out of fear they'll pull this knife out when they get in a situation and before you know it they're pushing it into someone and by then it's too late."

    Michael Miles, Anti-knife campaigner

  3. 'Women don't matter as much as statues'published at 13:43 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    Jess Phillips MP tells Andrew Marr that laws need to change to better protect women.

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  4. Birmingham 2022 'first' carbon-neutral Gamespublished at 13:32 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    Plans for urban forests and woodlands are announced to mark 500 days until Commonwealth Games.

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  5. Hundreds of unclaimed council tax refundspublished at 13:30 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    Local Democracy Reporting Service

    Hundreds of people are missing out on unclaimed council tax refunds in Coventry.

    Coventry Council HouseImage source, Local Democracy Reporting Service

    A total of 11,331 council tax refunds have been issued this financial year, with the vast majority successfully cleared.

    If the council tax was paid by direct debit, the refund will usually be paid back into the bank account where payments were taken from, but 715 uncleared refunds remain, totalling £34,853.

    The council said refunds not cleared will be offset against future bills if the account remains live, however refunds to closed accounts will be retained by the authority until claimed - with the onus on residents.

    A spokesman said: "When the credit is generated we issue a payment to the customer by BACS, where we hold bank details, and by cheque where we do not have bank details... We currently have 87 closed accounts, where we hold no forwarding address."

    Ian Rogers, chairman of Coventry Citizens Party, who submitted a Freedom of Information request, said: "The point was to help people at a time when they needed it most not offset the value against future bills."

  6. Lamplugh case 'still active' 35 years onpublished at 12:41 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    Police say they are still determined to get justice for the family of the missing estate agent.

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  7. New £360m skyscraper scheme 'to create 1,000 jobs'published at 12:15 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    Developers said one of the proposed towers could become Birmingham's tallest building.

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  8. 'Amazing' sales of virtual tickets to help feed most vulnerablepublished at 12:04 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    BBC Midlands Today

    Wolves head coach Nuno has thanked fans for buying virtual tickets to help feed the city's most vulnerable.

    The club are selling the tickets for this evening's Premier League game against Liverpool.

    By Friday they had sold 1,000 tickets raising £60,000.

    BagsImage source, Wolves Foundation
    Quote Message

    It's amazing and we cannot thank them enough because we know that it's not easy. It's a difficult moment for everybody. But there's already 1,000 (that have) been sold. We ask for more.. because each and every penny of that will go directly to persons... in Wolverhampton."

    Nuno, Wolves head coach

  9. Husband and wife jailed for killing butcherpublished at 11:05 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    Mazammal Butt was stabbed after a heated row with his brother-in-law in a car park near his shop.

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  10. Councillor resigns after Covid jab Facebook postpublished at 10:54 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    Jamila Azad says she "wasn't thinking" when she described having a jab from a "private" doctor.

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  11. Government to move transport jobs northpublished at 10:38 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    The Department for Transport is creating a second headquarters in Birmingham and a new hub in Leeds.

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  12. St Patrick's Day parade cancelled againpublished at 09:58 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    BBC Midlands Today

    Birmingham's famous St Patrick's Day parade has been cancelled for the second year in a row because of coronavirus restrictions.

    The St Patrick's Day parade in 2019Image source, Bianca Harvey/Birmingham St Patrick's Day Festival

    The parade through Digbeth is the third largest in the world and would have taken place next Sunday.

    Instead there will be a week of live streamed performances by cultural groups and a special video memorial service.

    It's hoped the parade, which began in 1952, will return next year.

  13. 'I learned to walk again during lockdown'published at 09:25 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    Alfie, 14, from Shropshire, had his leg amputated after being diagnosed with bone cancer.

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  14. Birmingham set to sack head coach Karankapublished at 09:06 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021
    Breaking

    Birmingham City are set to confirm the sacking of head coach Aitor Karanka after less than eight months in charge.

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  15. Man charged with murder over teen's stab deathpublished at 08:58 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    A man has been charged with murder after a teenager was fatally stabbed in Birmingham.

    Jack Barry, 19, was found seriously injured in West Road, Hamstead, just after 21:45 on 7 March and died at the scene.

    Jack BarryImage source, Family handout

    A post-mortem examination found he died as a result of a stab wound, West Midlands Police said.

    Cameron Cheshire, 18, of West Road, Great Barr, is due to appear before magistrates in Birmingham later.

  16. Midlands Live: Breaking news and local storiespublished at 06:24 Greenwich Mean Time 15 March 2021

    The latest news and updates from across the West Midlands and south Cheshire.

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  17. Irish beat Worcester with 61-yard penaltypublished at 16:39 Greenwich Mean Time 14 March 2021

    Paddy Jackson lands the longest penalty of the Premiership season from 61 yards to pinch victory for London Irish against Worcester.

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  18. In Pictures: Sarah Everard vigils held across UKpublished at 14:06 Greenwich Mean Time 14 March 2021

    Official events were called off because of Covid rules, but people still gathered to pay tribute.

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  19. Man charged with murder after teenager stabbedpublished at 09:17 Greenwich Mean Time 14 March 2021

    Jack Barry, 19, was found seriously injured in Birmingham and died at the scene.

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