Mr Schulz’s decision to stand down was made after he lost the confidence of the party membership but a row immediately broke out over attempts to install Andrea Nahles as new leader without a contest. And the latest row threatens fresh instability for Mrs Merkel desperately trying to cling onto a fourth term in power.

The crisis comes just a week before the start of a postal vote by the SPD’s 460,000 members on whether to join a new coalition under Mrs Merkel.

The postal ballot on whether the party should go ahead with the agreement its leaders clinched last week to renew their power sharing alliance with Mrs Merkel's conservative bloc opens on February 20. Results are due on March 4 and a "no" vote would almost certainly mean new elections and yet more uncertainty in Germany.

His comments come following claims the Commonwealth is already making preparations for the succession of the Queen, who is 92 in April, when she dies, according to the BBC. Talks were launched as the role is not hereditary and will not pass automatically to Prince Charles, even though he is likely to become King when his mother dies.

Mr Fitzwilliams said: “The links which bind all but two of its 53 members are with Britain and despite the imperial aspect of this it does add cohesion and a sense of a shared past. Today, the group has 53 members, mostly former constituents of the British Empire, of whom the Queen is head of state to 15 of the members. Mr Fitzwilliams said the idea of replacing the monarch would mean Commonwealth has to choose a rotating headship or make its Secretary General its head. 

He said: “A rotating headship could have disastrous consequences if a repressive regime such as that in Sri Lanka assumed the headship because it was its ‘turn’. No bureaucrat could possibly attract the interest the link with the monarchy gives it. It would mean scaled down interest in a body which has to struggle to get publicity as it is.”

According to the White House, President Trump expressed his condolences for the crash of Saratov Flight 703 on February 11 and offered American assistance in the investigation. President Putin mentioned his meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. President Trump responded that “now is the time to work toward an enduring peace agreement,” per the White House summary.

Putin’s meeting with Abbas did not go terribly well. Putin conveyed “best wishes” from Trump; Abbas shot back that the Palestinian Authority refuses to “cooperate in any form with the US in its status of a mediator, as we stand against its actions.” He was primarily referring to the Trump administration’s formal recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Abbas added that since the United States “can no longer play a leading role” in negotiations, he hoped Russia would assume a more prominent role.

“The two presidents discussed other topics of mutual concern, and President Trump reiterated the importance of taking further steps to ensure the denuclearization of North Korea,” the White House readout of the Trump-Putin call concluded. President Trump recently complained that Russia is “not helping us at all with North Korea.” He also accused the Russians of helping North Korea to evade international sanctions.

This was one of many shocking findings by the United Nations late last year, following a two-week investigation into extreme poverty in the US. The UN report was issued last December by a team of investigators who visited California, Alabama, Georgia, Puerto Rico, West Virginia and Washington DC.

“The United States is one of the world’s richest, most powerful and technologically innovative countries; but neither its wealth, nor its power, nor its technology is being harnessed to address the situation in which 40 million people continue to live in poverty,”wrote Philip Alston, the UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights.

The sewage-filled yards were found in poor areas like Lowndes County, Alabama, where many people cannot afford to install septic tanks, causing sewage to pool by their homes. This untreated waste creates the potential for all kinds of diseases. In Lowndes, it has led to the proliferation of hookworm, a parasitic disease of the intestines commonly found in the world’s poorest developing countries.

The discovery of third world levels of poverty and disease in the richest and most powerful country in the world, shocking as it may be, is only part of the story. The UN findings are in keeping with the downward spiral of America. Perhaps none of this should come as a shock in a country where the rich are getting richer, the poor get poorer and the middle class is collapsing, with most Americans living one emergency away from financial ruin.

Trump made his remarks at a reception at the White House for African American history month. The evening had a special theme, honoring African American soldiers in the military. He also singled out Charles Nesby Jr, an African-American Top Gun pilot and instructor, for recognition.

Trump also recognized famous civil rights heroes Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Booker T Washington, Rosa Parks, and Dr Martin Luther King Jr. “African-American civil rights champions have brought out the best in America, calling us to live up to our founding creed and the truth that we are all made equal by God,” Trump said.

Ridd has been studying the GBR for 30 years and believes that the oft-heard claims that it is seriously threatened by climate change or pollution are just environmentalist scaremongering. He is also highly critical of those supposedly reputable institutions which have been promoting this alarmist myth, among them the Australian Institute of Marine Science and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies.

But when Ridd pointed this out in a published essay and a radio interview last year his university accused him of serious misconduct. It claimed that his criticisms were “not collegial” (the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies is actually part of James Cook University) and threatened him with dismissal. Furthermore, the university ordered him not to mention to anyone the existence of its allegations, let alone any detail. Ridd ignored this order and went public.

Now he is fighting not just for his job and his academic credibility but also for the integrity of science itself.

Packed with chemical additives, the foods bear little resemblance to home-cooked meals. And the more of them an individual eats, the higher their risk of cancer of any type. Experts believe this is because processed foods, which include packaged meat, pies, sweets and crisps, are higher in fat, salt and sugar. They also have less of the vitamins and fibre that ward off disease.

The procedures used to make the food – and the chemicals and additives used to boost their flavours and shelf life – are also thought to raise the risk. The researchers said it was the first study to highlight a link between ultra-processed food and an increased overall cancer risk.

This group is meeting later, officially to review how the Commonwealth is run by its secretariat and governors.  It said the issue of the succession of the head of the Commonwealth was not part of the group's mandate, but described the day-long discussions as "open".  However, senior sources added that the gathering in London would also consider what happens when the Queen, who turns 92 in April, dies.

The agenda for the summit, seen by the BBC, says there will be a discussion of "wider governance considerations" which insiders say is code for the succession.  The group is expected to report to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in London in April, which is likely to be the last that the 91-year-old monarch will attend.  The group said it was independent of the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat, and would report only to the heads of Commonwealth governments.

Scores of jihadists are expected to trickle back to the UK and the continent, bringing with them skills acquired in Syria and Iraq, such as the weaponising of drones and the industrialised manufacture of car bombs and IEDs, according to a new report from defence analysts Jane's Terrorism and Insurgency Centre (JTIC).

“Foreign fighters returning to Europe will provide critical skills that will help an increasing number of operational Islamist networks conduct more complex attacks,” Otso Iho, the report’s author, said. “These skills include the construction of viable IEDs - learned in Iraq and Syria where the Islamic State (Isil) has produced IEDs on an industrial scale - expertise in assault weapons, and the use of new weapons types or technologies such as drones.”

Several recent attacks on European soil have involved crude “low-capability” weapons, but the successful use of drones or car bombs by Islamist militants would mark a notable increase in the threat level, they say. 

Isil fighters have found ways to turn commercial technology - available from Amazon or a high street shop - into effective and deadly weapons. Those who monitor the growing use of drones warn that it is likely only a matter of time before terrorists attempt to use an armed drone for attacks against the West.

Energy companies are currently required to have 100 percent approval from landowners before they can extract gas and minerals from land. As part of her testimony, she read out the list of names of lawmakers who received sizeable donations from fossil fuel companies. Her testimony elicited a less than warm reception from the legislature.

“The people who are going to be speaking in favor of this bill are all going to be paid by the industry … the people who are going to be voting on this bill are often also paid by the industry,” Lucas said. Lucas was ordered by House Judiciary Committee members to desist from making “personal comments” about members.

Police also recommended charging Mr Netanyahu with fraud and breach of trust. The final decision on whether not to bring charges against the prime minister lies with Israeli attorney general Avichai Mandelblit and it may be some time before he decides what to do.

Mr Netanyahu has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and said in a defiant address on Tuesday night that he would not resign over the “baseless” police recommendations. “Nothing will divert me from my commitment to the good of the nation,” Mr Netanyahu said. “I have not known a day in office without vicious allegations against me and my family.”