News in brief

Defence Secretary Philip Hammond shot a fresh warning to the Treasury today that the armed forces could not take more large-scale spending cuts.

But he denied being in "conflict" with George Osborne over where the axe of further financial retrenchment should fall and said he understood the Chancellor's "problem."

250,000th visitor at Supreme Court

The Supreme Court welcomed its 250,000th visitor today more than three years after opening.

A spokesman said about 70,000 visitors a year had passed through the doors since the Supreme Court opened in October 2009.

He said the court in central London had proved a "significant draw" for schools and tourists.

'Designer' drug abuse puts strain on NHS

Designer drugs have led to a surge in NHS hospital admissions, an international drugs agency warned today.

The International Narcotics Control Board said the abuse of illicit drugs in Europe has stabilised in recent years, but the emergence of new psychoactive substances or legal highs posed a "major challenge."

Gove civil servants hold 2-hour strike

Hundreds of employees of Education Secretary Michael Gove will walk out for two hours on Thursday in protest at job cuts and office closures.

Other forms of action will also be taken as part of the PCS union's campaign against cuts which it says could see up to 1,000 Department of Education jobs and half of its 12 offices being axed.

Women 'key to economy's future'

The future of the economy depends on removing the barriers that stop women working, Plaid Cymru's Alun Ffred Jones said today.

High childcare costs and Con-Dem welfare reforms meant that women's talents and experience were "underutilised," he said.