from The Guardian, Thursday, November 14, 2013

Bounty parenting club under fire over maternity ward 'exploitation'
'Bounty sales reps distribute child benefit claim forms to new parents on hospital wards as part of a contract with HM Revenue and Customs. The reps typically ask for new mothers' personal details which they can then sell on to third parties'
60,000 sign petition calling on government to sever contract as MPs express concern over sales reps in hospitals


Police tried to spy on Cambridge students, secret footage shows
Officer is filmed attempting to persuade activist in his 20s to become informant targeting 'student-union type stuff'


Ming the clam was not the only really ancient living thing on Earth
The recently deceased 507-year-old bivalve joins a noble throng of spectacularly ancient organisms, from a colony of quaking trees to a pottymouthed anti-Nazi parrot


The message to a poppy-less Charlene White: black women should be seen but not heard
Black women who express an opinion, as White did over not wearing a poppy publicly, are told they don't really belong


What can David Cameron offer those who know the danger of dreaming big?
Talk of 'raising aspirations' for social mobility is little use to those who are only too aware of the obstacles a divided Britain puts in their way.


Top Christmas toys 2013
Old favourites given a new twist sit alongside modern gadgets – it's the dream toys vying for a place at the foot of the tree, and where you can get the best deals


Google Street View conquers Venice
Venice has been added to Google Street View, thanks to 'superfit' employees carrying backpack-mounted cameras through the car-free Italian city. Plus more amazing Street Views from around the world


How to check out a potential partner online – without being creepy
Modern courtship tends to involve due diligence with the help of Facebook and Google. That's fine, as long as you know the limits of cyberstalking.


Pope Francis 'is mafia target after campaigning against corruption'
Prosecutor says pope's attempt to bring transparency to Vatican is making mobsters agitated. 'The mafia that invests, that launders money, that therefore has the real power, is the mafia which has got rich for years from its connivance with the church. These are the people who are getting nervous'


Prince Charles at 65: a pensioner waits for the job of his life
When the longest-serving heir becomes king, no less than a quiet constitutional revolution will occur.


Today is Guantánamo's 12th anniversary, and there's no end in sight
Out of 779 detainees, only seven have been convicted and sentenced. By the end of this fiscal year, Americans will have paid $5.25 billion (£3.27bn) for its detention operations. [13 Nov.]


WikiLeaks publishes secret draft chapter of Trans-Pacific Partnership
Treaty negotiated in secret between 12 nations 'would trample over individual rights and free expression', says Julian Assange


David Suchet: Poirot and me
Few TV detectives have been as well loved as Poirot; and when the final episode airs this week, after 25 years, no one will be sorrier to say goodbye than David Suchet. He talks to Emma John about his defining role. Plus, famous cast and crew explain what the little Belgian means to them. David Suchet's brother, the newsreader John Suchet, warned him off the role, saying 'I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole.'


Over 3,000 US prisoners serving life without parole for non-violent crimes
ACLU report chronicles thousands of lives ruined by life sentences for crimes such as shoplifting or possession of a crack pipe


What promises would the Conservative party most like to be forgotten?
An archive of past speeches have been removed from the Conversative party website. Which pledges, policies and commitments would the party prefer not to be reminded about?