The foster mother said she had recently bought a larger car and had been renting a farmhouse, with a pony in a field, so that she could provide more disadvantaged children with a new life. 'That was always my dream and then suddenly, bang, it was gone. I am now in a one-bedroom flat,' she added.

Mike Judge, a spokesman for the Christian Institute, a pressure group which is funding her case, said: 'I cannot imagine that an atheist foster carer would be struck off if a Christian child in her care stopped believing in God. This is the sort of double standard which Christians are facing in modern Britain. In recent months, we have seen grandparents, a nurse, adoption agencies, firemen, registrars, elderly care homes and now a foster carer BEING PUNISHED BECAUSE OF THE CHRISTIAN BELIEFS THEY HOLD. It has got to stop.'

The carer's solicitor Nigel Priestley said: 'There is no doubt that the event that provoked the council was the decision by the girl to be baptised. THIS GIRL WAS 16 AND HAS THE RIGHT TO MAKE THIS CHOICE, so for the council to react in this way is totally disproportionate. Even at this late hour, we hope that the council will resolve the issue.'

A senior aide to President Sarkozy told a private gathering of senior British and French politicians that HE IS TO TELL FELLOW EU LEADERS THAT MR BLAIR IS THE ONLY MAN WHO CAN HELP EUROPE STAND UP TO THE REST OF THE WORLD. The remark by Alain Minc, a key member of Mr Sarkozy's inner circle, is the second French blow to Gordon Brown's standing in two days, coming after Mr Sarkozy said Mr Brown's decision to combat the recession by cutting VAT was a 'mistake'.

Mr Minc, a political wheeler-dealer, entrepreneur and TV show host, was attending a meeting last month of the Franco British Colloque, a high-powered discussion group of British and French politicians, civil servants and opinion-formers. Members are under orders not to reveal the confidential discussions, but The Mail on Sunday has established that Mr Minc used the meeting to win support for Mr Sarkozy's campaign to ensure Mr Blair becomes the President of Europe.

The role is due to be created next year – but only if the EU's controversial Lisbon Treaty is ratified in the autumn by Ireland and the Czech Republic, the two EU countries which have so far refused to do so. Mr Minc told the gathering, which was also attended by French Prime Minister Francois Fillon: 'When the Lisbon Treaty is ratified, Europe will move into a new phase. EUROPE WILL NEED A STRONG LEADER and Nicolas Sarkozy will nominate Tony Blair for the position.'

He said: 'We have to unite and say to Mrs Merkel that we cannot afford not to have Tony Blair, who will be a strong figurehead. He is entirely respected around the world and will be a commanding leader at the helm of Europe.'

Around the UK, thousands of students have occupied lecture theatres, offices and other buildings at more than 20 universities in sit-down protests. IT SEEMS THAT THE SPIRIT OF 1968 HAS RETURNED TO THE CAMPUS. While it was the situation in Gaza that triggered this mass protest, the beginnings of political enthusiasm have already spread to other issues.

John Rose, one of the original London School of Economics (LSE) students to mount the barricades alongside Tariq Ali in 1968, spent last week giving lectures on the situation in Gaza at 12 of the occupations. "This is something different to anything we've seen for a long time," he said. "There is genuine fury at what Israel did. I think it's highly likely that this year will see more student action. What's interesting is the nervousness of vice chancellors and their willingness to concede demands; it indicates this is something that could well turn into another '68."

TECHNOLOGY HAS SET THESE ACTIONS APART FROM THOSE OF PREVIOUS GENERATIONS, allowing a national momentum to grow with incredible speed. THROUGH THE LINKING UP OF INTERNET BLOGS, NEWS OF SUCCESSES SPREAD QUICKLY AND PROTESTS GREW NATIONWIDE.

Levine, who ran the group's American investment bank RBS Greenwich Capital, received the bumper pay deals over 2005, 2006 and 2007, according to sources close to the bank. His pay has never been disclosed since he was not a main-board director. The pay deals came as the bank ramped up its exposures to sub-prime mortgages, asset-backed securities and collateralised debt obligations (CDOs).

Levine became co-head of Greenwich in 2000 after RBS acquired the business as part of its takeover of NatWest. In 2004 he was promoted to a larger role that also saw him head up corporate banking for the group across North America. RBS has unveiled about £12 billion of write-downs since the credit crunch began and is poised to unveil full-year losses of up to £28 billion – the biggest loss in UK corporate history.

There are now six class-action lawsuits that have been filed against the group in the Southern District Court of New York, alleging that RBS misled investors on the true state of its accounts in a series of filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Other suits allege that RBS was "negligent" in due diligence on its acquisition of ABN Amro, or that it misled investors at the time of its £12 billion rights issue last April. RBS said it was aware of the actions and that they would be "defended vigorously".

Russia and China have been identified as having the most active spy networks operating in the UK but it is understood that some European countries are also involved in espionage attacks against Britain. Details of the spy plots were revealed in a government security document obtained by The Sunday Telegraph which states that Britain is a "high priority espionage target" for 20 foreign intelligence agencies.

Security sources have revealed that the list of foreign agencies operating within the UK includes Iran, Syria, North Korea and Serbia, as well as some members of the European Union, such as France and Germany, who have traditionally been regarded as allies. The document, marked "restricted", warns that foreign spies are trying to steal secrets related to the military, optics, communications, genetics and aviation industries.

The source said: "If a country, such as Russia or Iran, can steal a piece of software that will save it seven years in research and development then it will do so without any hesitation. Russian agents will target anybody that they believe could be useful to them. Spying is hard-wired into the country's DNA. They have been at it for centuries and they are simply not going to stop because the Cold War has ended." The source added that Britain's European neighbours, including Germany and France, were also engaged in industrial and political espionage within the UK.

So far, eight states have introduced resolutions declaring state sovereignty under the Ninth and Tenth Amendment to the Constitution, including Arizona, Hawaii, Montana, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma and Washington. Analysts expect that in addition, another 20 states may see similar measures introduced this year, including Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Nevada, Maine and Pennsylvania.

"WHAT WE ARE TRYING TO DO IS TO GET THE U.S. CONGRESS OUT OF THE STATE'S BUSINESS," Oklahoma Republican state Sen. Randy Brogdon told WND. "Congress is completely out of line spending trillions of dollars over the last 10 years putting the nation into a debt crisis like we've never seen before," Brogdon said, arguing that the Obama stimulus plan is the last straw taxing state patience in the brewing sovereignty dispute. "This particular 111th Congress is the biggest bunch of over-reachers and underachievers we've ever had in Congress," he said.

"A sixth-grader should realize you can't borrow money to pay off your debt, and that is the Obama administration's answer for a stimulus package," he added. THE NINTH AMENDMENT READS, "The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people." THE TENTH AMENDMENT SPECIFICALLY PROVIDES, "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

THE SCALE OF THE PLAN IS LIKELY TO INCREASE PUBLIC ANGER AS THE RECESSION DEEPENS, and add to the frustration of ministers. It comes as Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, announces in The Sunday Telegraph today his plans for an independent review of the way banks are managed, including the bonus system. The review, which ministers hope will address voters' concerns about big payments to executives, will examine the roles of directors and institutional investors and study how British banks compare with overseas institutions.

"We cannot return to business as usual," writes Mr Darling in this newspaper. "It is in everyone's interest to get banks' governance right. It would be wrong to reward people whose excessive risk-taking brought the banks down, causing misery to millions of their customers. Success should be rewarded. Failure should not." The Chancellor will announce the detailed terms of reference of the review, and its chairman, tomorrow.

His tutors felt that a career in paediatrics, the area he was interested in at the time, would be inappropriate because of his sexuality. Tutors said parents might not like him working with their children, nor might other staff. Today, more than a decade later, attitudes have changed greatly and DR VARNEY IS A CONSULTANT IN PUBLIC HEALTH MEDICINE WITH RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE HEALTH OF 40,000 children in the Barking and Dagenham area of London.

Today, more than a decade later, attitudes have changed greatly and Dr Varney is a consultant in public health medicine with responsibility for the health of 40,000 children in the Barking and Dagenham area of London. Dr Varney, who is co-chairman of the Gay and Lesbian Association of Doctors and Dentists (Gladd), explains that attitudes are very much improved.

"I was steered away from some specialties by some consultants who said people might not be too comfortable about me doing paediatrics as a gay man. "I felt it would be difficult to take up a post in certain hospital specialties because of my sexuality. Genitourinary medicine has lots of gay doctors, orthopaedics does not."

Dr Susan Bewley, consultant in obstetrics/maternal-foetal-medicine at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London and fellow co-chairman of GLADD said there were still some cases of doctors facing discrimination, but that generally things are improving. However, she said the NHS also needed to focus on the requirements of lesbian, gay and bisexual patients .

Many people had started cleaning up, believing the waters were receding. Giandomenico said "it's a bit disheartening and people do get upset." Treasurer Wayne Swan on Saturday announced emergency relief funding for flood victims, while a commercial jet laden with food and other supplies left Sydney for the waterlogged region.

Much of Queensland state has been declared a disaster zone, with an area of more than one million square kilometres (386,100 square miles) and 3,000 homes affected by floods due to torrential rains. Hundreds of people were forced to evacuate, or have been stranded in their homes for up to six days. The sugar cane and cattle industries have been devastated by the floods, with tens of thousands of stranded cows starving to death.

Many of the 40-odd recommendations echo the demands of privacy campaigners who have been dismissed as 'extremist' by ministers. But there is one piece missing.

The report is silent on the massive information sharing powers in Clause 152 of the Coroners and Justice Bill, currently being debated in Commons Committee. This proposal appears in legislation to coincide with the report, but has been a key part of the 'Transformational Government' database state agenda in official documents for a long time. It would allow departments to make regulations for officials to take any information and use it for any purpose, without any parliamentary debate.

Phil Booth, NO2ID's National Coordinator said, "The report screams - Stop! Stop unwarranted surveillance. Stop abusing, misusing and losing citizens' information. Stop building the database state - But the government has just stamped on the accelerator. It is not listening.'

Read full report - http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200809/ldselect/ldconst/18/18.pdf

Thousands of firefighters are battling several major fires, and the number of dead is expected to rise. Victoria Premier John Brumby said he had accepted an offer from the federal government to send in the army. Entire towns have been destroyed in the fires, fanned by extremely high temperatures and unpredictable winds. Temperatures are dropping now, but officials fear they will not be able to get the fires under control until there is substantial rain.

Firefighters have been battling against what are described as the worst conditions in the state's history. Witnesses described seeing walls of flames four storeys high, trees exploding and the skies raining ash, as fires tore across 30,000 hectares (115 sq miles) of forests, farmland and towns. At least 640 homes have been destroyed in Victoria and about 14,000 homes are without power. Most of the people who died came from a cluster of small towns to the north of Melbourne.

A survivor from Kinglake, Chris Harvey, told AFP: "It was a most horrible day. It's going to look like Hiroshima I tell you, it's going to look like a nuclear bomb. There's animals dead all over the road." Another resident, Darren Webb-Johnson, told Sky TV: "The service station went, the take-away store across the road went, cylinders (exploded) left, right and centre, and 80% of the town burnt down to the ground."

Following overwhelming public support for Caroline Petrie, the Christian nurse who was suspended after she offered to pray for an elderly patient, her employers have caved - said she could return to her job. The row over her treatment has reached the House of Commons, with Sir Patrick Cormack, the Tory MP for South Staffordshire, claiming that HER CASE HAD HIGHLIGHTED THE "UTTER ABSURDITIES" OF POLITICAL CORRECTNESS.

A little-noticed document published by the Department of Health last month gives warning that attempts by doctors or nurses to preach to other staff or patients will be treated as harassment or intimidation under disciplinary procedures. But it does not make clear the limits of acceptable discussion about religion. Faith groups said the guidelines were so vague that they could mean action could be taken against anyone who talks about their beliefs to fellow workers or patients.

The Department of Health said: "The guide recognises that for some groups evangelising is part of their religious practice, which for some staff or patients can cause offence or discomfort. [It] suggests, to avoid misunderstanding or complaints, that as part of staff induction staff are made aware that this practice could be construed by some patients or staff as harassment.

The Age of Obama begins with perhaps the greatest frenzy of old-politics influence peddling ever seen in Washington. By the time the stimulus bill reached the Senate, reports the Wall Street Journal, pharmaceutical and high-tech companies were lobbying furiously for a new plan to repatriate overseas profits that would yield major tax savings. California wine growers and Florida citrus producers were fighting to change a single phrase in one provision. Substituting "planted" for "ready to market" would mean a windfall garnered from a new "bonus depreciation" incentive.

After Obama's miraculous 2008 presidential campaign, it was clear that at some point the magical mystery tour would have to end. The nation would rub its eyes and begin to emerge from its reverie. The hallucinatory Obama would give way to the mere mortal. The great ethical transformations promised would be seen as a fairy tale that all presidents tell -- and that this president told better than anyone.

I thought the awakening would take six months. It took two and a half weeks.

GTC Biotherapeutics said regulators cleared its drug Atryn, which is manufactured using milk from goats that have been scientifically altered to produce extra antithrombin, a protein that acts as a natural blood thinner. The drug's approval may be the first step toward new kinds of medications made not from chemicals, but FROM ANIMALS ALTERED BY SCIENTISTS. Similar drugs could be available in the next few years for a range of human ailments, including hemophilia.

The FDA cleared the drug to treat patients with a rare hereditary disorder that causes a deficiency of the protein, putting them at higher risk of deadly blood clots. The injectable treatment will be marketed in the U.S. by Deerfield, Ill.-based Ovation Pharmaceuticals. To make the drug, scientists from GTC put modified DNA, or rDNA, for the human antithrombin protein into single-cell embryos of goats. Goat embryos with the gene were then inserted into the wombs of surrogate mothers who gave birth to baby goats that produce the protein-charged milk.

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED, OR GE, ANIMALS ARE NOT CLONES BUT RATHER ANIMALS THAT HAVE HAD THEIR DNA CHANGED to produce a desirable characteristic. But consumer groups said the FDA's long-awaited policy will NOT REQUIRE ALL GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOODS TO BE LABELED AS SUCH. And they said the government has not done enough to examine the potential impact of genetically engineered animals on the environment, particularly if some escape and begin to mate with animals in nature.

While politicians in Washington have liked to portray the scientist as some kind of dark mastermind of nuclear proliferation - former CIA Director George Tenet reportedly referred to him as "AT LEAST AS DANGEROUS AS OSAMA BIN LADEN" - Dr AQ Khan has always been a hero for many Pakistani people.

The reason for his popularity is simple - he is widely seen as having made Pakistan a nuclear state and delivered it a form of status and security that the country otherwise would profoundly lack. The reason for his notoriety is the belief that he also secretly helped other countries to develop their nuclear programmes. Many questions remain unanswered about his activities though, including what exactly he gave to whom.

Even last year there were reports that his network may have had copies of far more advanced nuclear weapons design than previously understood. So, whilst AQ Khan will be celebrating his release, Washington will be watching very closely.