Former Prime Minister Baroness Thatcher has died "peacefully" at the age of 87 after suffering a stroke while staying at the Ritz hotel in central London. David Cameron called her a "great Briton" and the Queen spoke of her sadness at the death. Lady Thatcher was Conservative prime minister from 1979 to 1990. She was the first woman to hold the role. She will not have a state funeral but will be accorded the same status as Princess Diana and the Queen Mother. The ceremony, with full military honours, will take place at London's St Paul's Cathedral. The union jack above Number 10 Downing Street has been lowered to half-mast while Parliament will be recalled from its Easter recess on Wednesday to enable MPs to pay tributes to the former prime minister.
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De regering-Cameron wil vanaf maart een nieuwe inburgeringstest met meer nadruk op de Britse geschiedenis en cultuur. De regering gaf meteen ook enkele voorbeeldvragen mee. Zou jij een geschikte Brit zijn? Doe hier de test. Hieronder vind je een filmpje waarin David Cameron, de premier, ook met enkele vraagjes geconfronteerd werd. Hij sloeg de bal zelf vaak mis. It has been turning heads all over London. Walking down streets, in parks, even stuck in traffic jams on the M25, people have been watching the steady ascent of a towering landmark on the capital's skyline. Its 310m (1,016ft) tapering steel structure was topped out in March, with the last few of its 11,000 shimmering window panes fitted in recent weeks. On Thursday, the Shard's inauguration will be followed by a dazzling light show, during which the skyscraper will fire laser beams at other iconic buildings, marking its new dominance of the London skyline. Its restaurants and viewing galleries, where - weather permitting - people will be able to see as far as Southend, are not expected to open until February 2013. But Italian architect Renzo Piano is already keen to convince locals the London Bridge skyscraper is not just another monolithic office tower. 'Vertical town' "For me, the most important thing is, is it going to be loved in London or not? "Skyscrapers have to give back to the city more than they get from the city." He hopes the Shard will be a building Londoners can take possession of, rather than just gazing in awe at its exterior. The EU's tallest building will have office space at its base, but higher there will be apartments, restaurants and a hotel - though it is perhaps unlikely the average Londoner will be able to afford to sleep there.A viewing gallery at the summit, however, should prove more accessible and is expected to draw more than a million people each year. Not everyone is full of praise. Local campaigners Bermondsey Village Action Group co-ordinator Russell Gray said: "It's just a great big pyramid of glass and steel. "There's nothing intrinsically endearing about it." But the veteran property developer behind the skyscraper, Irvine Sellar, believes what he calls "the first vertical town in Europe" will have a positive impact. He said: "People commuting in London Bridge are now seeing a pleasurable experience opposed to the kingdom of darkness that Renzo described was there before." Facing local critics is just one of many obstacles Mr Sellar has overcome to get the Shard built. He has also battled through gales, a world financial crisis and a public inquiry. When he bought Southwark Towers, a rather uninspiring 25-storey office block, in 1998, Mr Sellar says he "had no intention of developing the site". The tower that houses the famous Big Ben bell, whose distinctive chime can be heard throughout Westminster, is to be renamed in honour of The Queen in her Diamond Jubilee year. Presently known as the Clock Tower, it will be renamed Elizabeth Tower at a special ceremony, following recent approval of the proposal by the House of Commons authorities. It is worth noting, however, that the name change will only apply to the tower and not the bell. Big Ben, incidentally, is said by some to have been named after a giant and very successful 19th century boxer called Ben Caunt, proving that all sorts of achievements are capable of making history. The former economics teacher said three in 10 pupils got good GCSEs in 1997 but claimed that was 60 per cent. It was an attempt to attack Education Secretary Michael Gove's ability at maths, but it backfired and prompted the cabinet minister to say percentages were not Labour's strong point. Following reports that the Government was considering ditching GCSEs in favour of a return to O-level style examinations, Mr Brennan said: ''Standards rose under Labour because we focused on literacy and numeracy.'' The Oxford graduate and former head of economics at Radyr Comprehensive School in Cardiff added: ''It was we who inherited a weak system on maths and English from the Tories. ''Only three in 10 pupils, that's 60 per cent because I know the Secretary of State is not very good at maths, only three in 10 pupils got a good GCSE in 1997.'' Commons Speaker John Bercow was forced to intervene to appeal for calm as Tory MPs heckled the Labour frontbencher, who was standing in for Stephen Twigg, the shadow education secretary. Mr Brennan said: ''I was just testing their numeracy, it is of course 30.'' While Mr Gove was speaking, Labour MPs questioned his use of statistics but he shot back: ''I think, given the questions that were put by the Honourable Member, trading percentages across the despatch box is not an area in which Labour can consider themselves to be strong.' The new lighting system for Tower Bridge, one of the world's most well known landmarks, has been officially switched on.
After weeks of testing at 9pm on Wednesday 30th May 2012 the new energy efficient lights illuminated the famous London icon for the first time. At first the bridge was swathed in a dazzling white but as darkness descended on the Thames the bridge and its towers was ablaze with a range of colours including the patriotic red white and blue of the Union Jack national flag. Tourists and Londoners alike stood and watched the display and at 10pm the bascules of the bridge were raised to allow the MV Dixie Queen to pass through into the Upper Pool of London, sounding her horns in celebration as she did so. The unveiling comes just days before the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and in time for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games. |
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