Energy Bills: Costs-Charges Gap 'Doubles'

The energy regulator has highlighted a doubling in the gap between what customers are paying for electricity and gas and suppliers' costs over the past 12 months.

Ofgem figures indicated average net margins more than doubled between October 2012 and October 2013 from £45 to £95 per household on a rolling month-on-month basis, while wholesale prices rose by just 1.7%.

The wholesale cost - what energy firms pay to generate electricity and produce gas - has been cited by the firms as a core reason for the recent spike in household bills by an average 9% ahead of this winter.

The so-called big six companies collectively made profits of £3.7bn in 2012.

But energy industry sources insisted each company's costs were complicated by when energy was bought - often two years in advance to ensure supply.

Firms employ varying hedging strategies - essentially financial bets on wholesale prices - in a bid to limit their exposure to the trend of sharply rising prices.

Bosses of the big six are due to appear before the House of Commons Energy and Climate Change Committee on Tuesday to explain hikes in bills that many politicians have claimed will force people to chose between "heating and eating".

The average energy bill breakdown. Pic: Ofgem

The Prime Minister's official spokesman said that it was up to the companies to justify their charges to consumers.

"It is for the energy companies to explain the decisions they have taken around bills to their customers," the spokesman said.

In a statement, Ofgem said it "has been at the forefront of making the energy market more transparent for consumers over the past few years".

It added: "Our own weekly monitoring published on our website estimates that, over the last year, the cost of wholesale gas and electricity to serve a typical dual fuel customer would have risen by around £10 to £610.

"However, this figure could be higher depending on the hedging strategy of an individual company for buying gas and power in forward markets. 

However, it also pointed out that wholesale costs were now rising for this current winter - by 8% for gas and 13% for electricity.

Nevertheless, its analysis of the wholesale costs versus profit margins sparked an immediate backlash from the industry while Platts, a provider of energy industry information, suggested near-term energy costs were at a record high during the summer.

Energy bills and the battle for the consumer has sparked a febrile game of political brinkmanship since Ed Miliband announced Labour would freeze prices for two years at the party's annual conference.

David Cameron responded by announcing last week that he would roll back green taxes, which account for £112 of the average fuel bill each year.

Labour's Ed Miliband has pledged to freeze energy bills for 20 months

The Liberal Democrat response has been furious, given environmental issues played high on the  Liberal Democrats' election manifesto, and they have refused to give ground on green levies. However, Nick Clegg has yet to suggest an alternative.

Simon Hughes, the deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, has suggested a rebate of £50 on energy bills for low-income households be included in the Chancellor's autumn statement.

Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander suggested the Liberal Democrats would be willing to shift some of the burden of the levies - which cost households an average £112 a year - from energy bills to general taxation.

Labour's shadow energy secretary Caroline Flint called for a rethink of the biggest levy, the Energy Companies Obligation (ECO), which she described as expensive, bureaucratic and failing to reach those who really need it.

The ECO scheme operated by the big six power companies adds £47 annually to the average bill to pay for energy-efficiency measures like insulation and new boilers for households in fuel poverty.

A report by the IPPR think tank suggested that 1.3 million of those in greatest need have not received help because £434m - 80% of the total £540m budget - was being targeted at homes that are not fuel-poor.

Labour has pledged to "reset the market" if it wins the next election and freeze bills for 20 months - a policy Mr Cameron has described as a "con."

He has pointed to growth in smaller competitors in the market - insisting there is value in switching now the big six have some rivalry.

Speaking at an event at the Mini plant in Oxford, Mr Cameron said: "I'm frustrated about the big six. I want to see the big 60, I want to see many more energy companies.

"Since we came to office, there have been eight new companies come in and start in terms of selling electricity and gas. That's helping competition."

One of those companies, Co-op Energy, said today that it had tripled customer numbers in a year.

The fledgling gas and electricity supplier, which recently called on larger rivals to put customers before profits, saw its total six monthly sales increase seven-fold.

It raised its tariffs by 4.5%, half the rate of its bigger competitors.

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A Sly Look: Stallone's Art Goes On Display

The world's biggest museum of Russian art is hosting a retrospective of work by the quintissential American action hero Sylvester Stallone.

The abstract works by the Hollywood action man won praise from the curators at the State Russian Museum in Saint Petersburg, but some critics suggested the venerable institution was no place for his art.

"If my visit is a challenge for somebody, let it be so," Stallone said when asked what he thought of the angry objections, notably by some in the Communist Party.

The 67-year-old, who took on Russian and Communist villains in many of his biggest hits, said it was an honour to have his exhibition Sylvester Stallone. Art. 1975-2013 go on display in St Petersburg.

"I hope you will like my pictures," he said at a press conference. "I love all of you."

Stallone says he would like to spend his life making art

The Rocky and Rambo star said that if he had a choice, he would spend his life drawing and sculpting instead of starring in action hits.

Museum director Vladimir Gusev said Stallone's paintings "show the character of a passionate man" and were not simply "the work of an amateur".

"This is a real artist," he told journalists. "The Russian museum does not show weak artists."

About 1,000 people waited in line on the opening day to get a glimpse at the paintings.

"I watched Stallone's movies, I'm not surprised that such a macho man can make paintings. I want to look at them," said Natalia Akimova, 49.

A visitor at the exhibition looks at one of Stallone's works called 'Sex'

Others were curious, but dismissive.

"I'm sure these paintings wouldn't be up if someone else produced them," said Igor Savenko.

"It's a commercial trick, not art."

Stallone studied art before his film career took off, and has also had shows in Switzerland and Miami.

The museum's website describes Stallone's works as "comments on the events in his creative and personal life" that focus on the use of bright colours.

The museum is heavily focused on Russian art, so the decision to exhibit contemporary works by a Hollywood star has surprised some.

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Brooklyn Family Stabbings: Cousin Arrested

A Chinese immigrant has been charged with murder after a woman and her four young children were found stabbed to death at their home in New York City.

The suspect, 25-year-old Mingdong Chen, implicated himself in the killings, police said.

Chen is a cousin of the dead children's father and had been staying at the family's apartment on 57th Street, near Ninth Avenue, in Brooklyn, for the past week, police added.

Chief of Department Philip Banks III said the victims had been "butchered with a kitchen knife" and had wounds in their necks and torsos.

A police officer seals off the street near the attack

He added that Chen came to the United States from China in 2004 and seemingly struggled to make ends meet.

"Ever since he came to this country, everybody seems to be doing better than him," Chief Banks said.

The victims have been named as Qiao Zhen Li, 37, Linda Zhuo, nine, Amy Zhuo, seven, Kevin Zhuo, five, and one-year-old William Zhuo.

William and the two girls were pronounced dead at the scene by emergency crews.

The woman and five-year-old boy were taken to separate Brooklyn hospitals where they were later pronounced dead.

Investigators talk outside the Brooklyn home

Family members made the grisly discovery after they were alerted by a relative in China, who had received a phone call from Qiao Zhen Li earlier in the evening.

Chief Banks said the mother had called her mother-in-law in China amid concerns over Chen's "suspicious" behaviour.

Relatives went to the house at about 11pm and kept banging on the door until someone answered, police said.

It was Chen, "and they see that he's covered with blood," Chief Banks said.

They immediately fled the scene and called 911.

The children's distraught father reportedly arrived home from work to find the area already sealed off by police.

"The father was freaking out," neighbour May Chan told the Daily News. "He just came home from work and saw the police and they told him. He was hysterical."

Chen was arrested inside the apartment.

He is also charged with assaulting on a police officer, which allegedly happened while he was being taken into custody, and resisting arrest, Chief Banks said.

Bob Madden, who lives nearby, saw a man being escorted from the building by police.

He was barefoot, wearing jeans and "was staring, he was expressionless", he said.

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Phone-Hacking Trial: Coulson And Brooks Arrive

The Prime Minister's former director of communications, Andy Coulson, and ex-News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks have arrived for the first day of the phone-hacking trial.

The two former editors of the News of the World face charges linked to phone hacking and alleged corrupt payments to public officials.

Rebekah Brooks arrives at the Old Bailey with her husband Charlie

The Old Bailey trial, which is expected to call 100 witnesses and will involve 22 barristers, could take up to six months.

It is the first trial to result from the phone-hacking scandal, which saw the closure of the News of the World two years ago.

Former Sun and News of the World editor, Brooks, 45, of Churchill, Oxfordshire, is accused of conspiring to intercept communications by illegally access voicemails between October 3, 2000 and August 9, 2006.

She is also charged with two counts of conspiring to commit misconduct in a public office linked to alleged inappropriate payments to public officials - one between January 1, 2004 and January 31, 2012, and the other between February 9, 2006 and October 16, 2008.

She faces another two allegations of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

One of those is with her former personal assistant Cheryl Carter, 49, with whom she is alleged to have conspired to remove seven boxes of material from the News International archive.

Brooks' personal assistant Cheryl Carter

The second relates to allegations that Brooks, her race horse-trainer husband Charlie Brooks and former head of security at News International Mark Hanna tried to conceal documents, computers and other electronic equipment from police officers who were investigating allegations of phone hacking and corruption of public officials in relation to the News of the World and The Sun newspapers.

Coulson, 45, from Preston in Kent, is charged with conspiracy to intercept communications in the course of their transmission by illegally accessing voicemails.

The Prime Minister's former spin doctor, Andy Coulson, outside court

He is also facing two allegations that he conspired with the tabloid's former royal editor Clive Goodman, 56, and persons unknown to commit misconduct in public office

News of the World head of news Ian Edmondson, 44, from Raynes Park, southwest London, and the tabloid's ex-managing editor Stuart Kuttner, 73, from Woodford Green, Essex, are also accused of conspiracy to illegally access voicemails between October 3 2000 and August 9 2006.

Goodman, from Addlestone in Surrey, also faces two charges of committing misconduct in public office.

The jury was selected at the court with the judge telling them: "It's critical to the jury system ... that a jury takes the case free from any preconceptions. From now on you do not discuss the case with anyone."

The prosecution is expected to begin later this week.

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Storm Causes Major Headache For Commuters

Rail passengers left stranded by hurricane-strength winds have criticised train companies, claiming they were not kept fully informed.

Hundreds of services were cancelled as a severe storm battered the South and the South East, felling more than 200 trees.

The strong winds also caused damage to overhead power lines, with parts of the rail network so badly affected that several operators, including East Coast, Virgin and East Midlands, urged customers heading to or from London not to travel at all on Monday.

Passengers at London Waterloo were going nowhere fast

Network Rail, the company responsible for Britain's rail infrastructure, defended its response to the storm and the decision to cancel early morning services, saying: "Safety remains our top priority."

However, Graham Collins, who was among those trying to get from Guildford, Surrey, to the capital, told Sky News: "The problem is that you're drip fed information. It's just frustrating."

A mother who was attempting to travel to north Wales with her son for a half term walking holiday said: "It would have been better if there was more accurate information on the internet. The people at the station are doing the best they can but I overheard one of them saying the information on their websites is inaccurate anyway."

A tree on the tracks between Farnham and Alton. Pic: Network Rail/Twitter

Dominic Tuohy, a South African who was stuck at Ipswich train station, added: "It's ridiculous. In my country we manage to get around (any severe weather) but here there's a bit of wind ... and everything gets closed down."

Many train companies announced cancellations or suspensions to services as early as Sunday, as the storm, dubbed St Jude, raced across the Atlantic.

However, asked whether they had overreacted to the risk posed by the storm, Prime Minister David Cameron said:  "Everyone has to act on the basis of the evidence that they are given.

A London bus was hit by a falling tree in Haringey. Pic: Ben Hewis/Twitter

"Afterwards we'll be able to look back and see whether people made the right decisions but right now what matters is listening to the evidence, working together and getting things back to normal."

The strong winds and heavy rain also caused disruption on the roads, with a number of major routes affected.

Both Severn estuary crossings were closed, as well as the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge and the Sheppey Crossing in Kent.

A lorry overturned on the M11 in Essex, while the A2 was shut in west Kent because of the number of fallen trees.

The clean up begins in London. Pic: madebymartha/madebymartha/Twitter

Countless local roads were also closed, as emergency services and council crews battled to remove fallen trees and other debris.

At Heathrow airport, about 130 flights were cancelled, although Gatwick said it was operating a "near normal service".

Rough seas whipped up by the strong winds also caused cancellations to ferry services, including English Channel, Irish Sea and Penzance-Isles of Scilly crossings.

Brittany Ferries also cancelled services between Plymouth and Roscoff, Poole and Cherbourg and Portsmouth and Bilbao.

The Port of Dover was closed for a time but has since reopened, although a spokesman confirmed around 50 cars parked by customers on a Fred Olsen cruise were damaged when waves crashed over the harbour wall.

Among the transport operators which continue to experience disruption are:

Trains

:: Greater Anglia has suspended services on most routes, with customers advised not to travel for the rest of the day.

:: Stansted Express services are suspended until further notice.

:: East Coast has no service south of Peterborough, with no trains running in or out of London King's Cross. There is "no firm indication" about when services will be resumed and passengers are advised not to travel.

:: East Midlands Trains has advised customers travelling to or from London not to attempt their journeys. It has suspended services between Bedford and London St Pancras for the rest of the day because of fallen trees.

:: C2C says all services are suspended between Shoeburyness and London Fenchurch Street.

:: First Hull Trains and Grand Central services are suspended between Peterborough and London King's Cross because of overhead wire problems at New Southgate.

:: London Midland has an "extremely limited service" between Northampton, Milton Keynes, Watford and London Euston and urged passengers not to travel into London where possible.

:: South West Trains is operating a "significantly reduced timetable" for the remainder of the day and asked passengers not to travel. There is no service between Weymouth and Bournemouth, Eastleigh and Fareham via Botley and Hedge End, Lymington and Brockenhurst, Ascot and Aldershot via Camberley, Aldershot and Guildford via Wanborough, Shepperton and Fulwell, and Virginia Water and Weybridge via Chertsey.

:: Southeastern has resumed service on most of its lines. However, tracks between Deal and Dover, Bat and Ball and Sevenoaks, Eynsford and Shoreham and Otford and Maidstone East remain closed.

:: Southern Railway has reopened most of its routes, although the Tonbridge to Redhill and Redhill to Reigate lines are still blocked by fallen trees.

:: First Capital Connect has advised passengers not to travel, warning that some lines, including London to Luton, may remain closed all day.

:: Arriva Trains Wales services between Barry and Bridgend are cancelled or delayed because of flooding. Trains between Rhoose Cardiff International Airport and Bridgend are delayed, again because of flooding.

:: London Overground services have been part suspended, although trains are running between Gospel Oak and Barking, Highbury and Islington and New Cross/New Cross Gate, Euston and Watford Junction, and New Cross Gate and West Croydon/Crystal Palace.

:: London Underground has delays due to part suspensions on the District and Piccadilly lines.

Planes

:: Heathrow airport is experiencing some disruption following earlier cancellations, with passengers advised to contact their airline before travelling.

Ferries

:: Brittany Ferries has announced cancellations between Plymouth and Roscoff, Poole and Cherbourg and Portsmouth and Bilbao.

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Tiananmen Square: Car Crashes Into Crowd

Five people have been killed and 38 others injured after a Jeep crashed into a crowd in China's Tiananmen Square.

The vehicle burst into flames after crashing through barriers

It was not clear what caused the vehicle to veer off the road at the north end of the square in Beijing. It then hit a barrier at the entrance to the Forbidden City and burst into flames.

A female holidaymaker from the Philippines and a male tourist from China's southern Guangdong province were killed along with the driver and two passengers in the vehicle, police said.

Of the 38 injured, three were tourists from the Philippines and one from Japan, they added.

The square, which was the site of pro-democracy protests in 1989 that were brutally crushed by the authorities, was evacuated immediately after the crash.

Streets leading to the area were blocked off, with screens erected to stop people photographing the scene.

Police put up screens to stop people taking photos of the crash

Two AFP journalists were detained close to the site when they went to report on the story.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying declined to say whether the government believed it was a terror attack. She said she did not know the specifics of the case, and refused to comment further.

Sky's China Correspondent Mark Stone said local reports described it as an "accident", but he said many people would find that hard to believe given the politically-sensitive location.

"The location of the incident couldn't be more significant. It's right underneath the portrait of Chairman Mao on the Tiananmen Gate at the entrance to the Forbidden City. It is the most symbolic location in China," he said.

Officers blocked off roads to the square

"There are three likely scenarios. One: this was a car crash which, by astonishing coincidence, took place at the most politically-sensitive place in China.

"Or it was a form of protest; possibly a political protest against the communist leadership.

"The most probable scenario, however, is that this was an extreme form of petitioning: a family with a gripe, passed over by local authorities, take things to the extreme.

"We saw this with the airport bomber - a man who blew himself up at Beijing airport earlier this year to complain about police brutality in his province."

Two hours after the incident, Sky News drove through the square to film the aftermath.

The square was the focus of a 1989 protest that was violently suppressed

"With the exception of a wet patch on the road, the whole area had been cleared up," Stone said.

"But in an indication of how sensitive the incident is, the Sky News vehicle was stopped by the authorities. They questioned the Sky team for 20 minutes and forced them to delete the video footage."

News of the incident first emerged on Chinese social media sites, with pictures showing the flaming wreck surrounded by police and emergency vehicles.

Chinese bloggers are speculating that the crash must have been intentional.

"Is this the 2013 Tiananmen self-immolation incident?" asked one poster. "There's still a person inside the car!"

Around 120 people have set themselves alight since February 2009 in Tibet and adjoining regions of China in protest at Chinese "oppression".

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Briton Held Over US Government Hacking Claims

A British man has been charged by US authorities over the alleged hacking of government computer systems, including US Army and Nasa networks.

Lauri Love, of Stradishall, England, and his partners allegedly stole information about military service members and other US government employees.

The government says the purpose was "to disrupt the operations and infrastructure" of the federal government, and resulted in the loss of millions of dollars.

Love, 28, was arrested by the National Crime Agency (NCA) on Friday at his home in Stradishall, about 70 miles (112km) north of London.

He was released on bail until February 2014, an NCA spokeswoman said.

Love is accused of working with two co-conspirators in Australia and one in Sweden, none of whom have been charged.

US prosecutors say the group "stole military data and personal identifying information belonging to servicemen and women".

The group allegedly placed hidden "shells" or "back doors" within the networks, which allowed them to return at a later date and steal confidential data.

"This arrest is the culmination of close joint working by the NCA, Police Scotland and our international partners," said Andy Archibald, head of the NCA's National Cyber Crime Unit.

"Cyber-criminals should be aware that no matter where in the world you commit cyber crime, even from remote places, you can and will be identified and held accountable for your actions."

Love was charged in New Jersey because he allegedly used a server in Parsippany.

Prosecutors say the group infiltrated the networks of the US Department of Defence's Missile Defence Agency and the US Army Corps of Engineers.

They say Love also broke into networks belonging to Nasa and the Environmental Protection Agency.

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PM: 'Migrants Take Jobs Our Young Cannot Do'

David Cameron has said it is time to say "no" to immigrants taking jobs in British factories and start educating children so they have the skills to be employed instead.

The Prime Minister said that in some factories across the country half the work was done by migrants from Eastern Europe.

But he said that they could not be blamed for seeking jobs in British factories when schools and colleges were not producing students with the required skills to do the work and the jobs were there for the taking.

Speaking at the Mini plant in Oxfordshire as he launched a new and tougher apprenticeship scheme, Mr Cameron said: "You can go to factories in our country where half the people come from Poland, Lithuania or Latvia.

"You can't blame them, they want to work, they see the jobs, they come over and they do them.

"But as a country what we ought to be saying is 'No, let's get our education system right so we are producing young people out of our schools and colleges who are fully capable of doing those jobs'."

He said that the welfare system required reform so it "does not pay to be out of work" and immigration needed to be restricted.

Mr Cameron said: "Let's have sensible controls on immigration, particularly from outside the EU where we can cap the number of people who come."

Linking education, welfare reform and immigration, he said: "Crack those three problems together and we can really get an economy that generates wealth for our people."

Mr Cameron was visiting the Mini factory at Cowley near Oxford

Mr Cameron was introducing a new year-long scheme which have been designed to deliver high quality training alongside a tougher academic assessment.

He also announced 100,000 vocational training schemes for young people over the next two years, modelled on programmes run by the Prince's Trust.

More than 60 firms, including Mini owners BMW, BAE Systems, Microsoft and Barclays Bank, have signed up to deliver the new apprenticeship schemes.

Mr Cameron, who studied politics, philosophy and economics at Oxford, also hit out at "snobbery" aimed at certain degree courses such as music studies or golf course management.

He said: "What's happened with degrees is, because we are asking students to make a bigger contribution in terms of fees and paying them back over their lives, I think students are getting more fussy about what it is they are putting themselves in for."

UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage said: "Cameron is once again looking to pull the wool over the eyes of the British public.

"He has finally acknowledged the damage that unrestricted Eastern European immigration has had on the prospects of British workers, especially our youngsters.

"Yet this is the same Prime Minister who supports Turkish membership of the EU and the open borders that come with it.

"The rise of Ukip may have prompted David Cameron into talking about immigration but whilst we remain in the EU, talk is all we can do."

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Lightning Strikes Clown Twice On Same Day

A rodeo clown has miraculously survived after being struck by lightning twice on the same day.

Casey Wagner was taking part in a Rednecks with Paychecks off-road driving event in Saint Jo, Texas, when a storm hit.

He sheltered under a tree and was struck by lightning.

"What I remember is just a loud boom and it dropped me to my knees and then it hit me again," he told CBS News.

"When I got hit, it was just two big old flashes and then sparks went everywhere."

Mr Wagner said he felt electricity shoot up through his right boot and into his body.

The 31-year-old dropped to his knees when he was struck again.

Mr Wagner was taking part in a Rednecks with Paychecks driving event

He was treated by a nurse who was watching the race and then taken to Nacona General Hospital a few miles away.

"At the hospital they said the poncho I was wearing was carrying static because it was one of those plastic ones," he said.

Doctors told him the tingling feeling would last for about a week.

Mr Wagner says only one thing could have kept him alive.

"I give everything to God," he said. "So I owe everything to him, he's the one that kept me alive. I can tell you one thing, I'm going to start going to church more."

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Storm: Four People Killed By Falling Trees

Four people have been killed by falling trees in the worst storm to hit Britain in a decade.

Bethany Freeman, 17, died after a 30ft tree fell onto a static caravan in which she was sleeping in Kent.

Donal Drohan, 51, from Harrow, north-west London, also died after a tree fell on his red Peugeot 307 as he was driving along Lower High Street in Watford.

Bethany Freeman was asleep in a caravan when a tree hit

Paramedics and firefighters, who attended the scene in Hever, Edenbridge, were unable to save Bethany Freeman, known as "Gia" to her friends.

Neighbours also tried to rescue the Tunbridge Wells Girls' Grammar School pupil. One described someone coming to her door, asking for a chainsaw.

Her family, who were sleeping in a neighbouring caravan, were said to be deeply traumatised by the accident.

The caravan in which Bethany Freeman was sleeping when it was hit by a tree

They had been living in the mobile homes for a year while outbuildings on the grounds were transformed into a new house.

Her driving instructor Neil Chapman turned up at the address unaware of the tragedy and said: "I can't believe it. What a shock. She was a super kid. She was a great girl, good fun ... her family must be so devastated. I can't believe it."

Bethany's school described her as "a dedicated and truly outstanding sportswoman" who was "universally respected" and "had everything to look forward to".

The body of the storm's third and fourth victims - a man in his 40s and a woman - were found at addresses in Hounslow, west London, which were devastated after a tree struck a gas main which led to an explosion.

Three people were taken to hospital following the blast in Bath Road, which destroyed three houses and damaged two others.

A man and a woman who suffered facial injuries were later discharged. Another woman was said to be still receiving treatment for burns.

A map showing the trail of destruction and disruption of the storm

Fire crews rescued a dog from one of the homes and some 12 people were evacuated from neighbouring premises as a precaution.

A 14-year-old boy, named locally as Dylan Alkins, is also feared dead after being swept out to sea on Sunday in Newhaven, East Sussex.

Up to 600,000 homes suffered power cuts as hurricane-speed winds of up to 100mph swept across the South West, South, South East, the Midlands and the East of England.

People climb over a fallen tree in Shepherd's Hill, north London

Power has been restored at 320,000 homes, however 270,000 are still without.

The Dungeness nuclear power station in Kent automatically shut down both reactors after power to the site was cut off.

Gusts of 99mph were recorded at the Needles on the Isle of Wight, according to the Met Office, while the Environment Agency said some 16 flood warnings and 134 flood alerts were in place.

Winds topped 80mph along southern coastal areas and became turbulent inland reaching 81mph in Portland, Dorset, 75mph in Yeovilton in Somerset and 79mph at Andrewsfield in Essex.

A tree crashes through several homes in Hounslow Pic: London Fire Brigade

Some 50mm of rainfall in 12 hours was recorded in Otterbourne in Hampshire and about 44mm in Cardiff.

Fierce winds overturned a double-decker into a field in Coram Street, Hadleigh in Suffolk, injuring the driver and several passengers.

The driver, a man in his 40s, was initially trapped and was treated at the scene by paramedics.

A police spokesman said: "He was suffering from neck pain, had taken a bash to his head and was in and out of consciousness.

Whitehall was closed in both directions in Westminster, London, after a crane collapsed onto the Cabinet Office which was evacuated.

A bus carrying passengers is blown over onto its side in Hadleigh, Suffolk

A helter-skelter at Clacton Pier in Essex was blown over by the storm, but did not fall into the sea.

Rush-hour commuters suffered chaos on the roads and train network, with falling trees and debris blocking roads and covering railway tracks.

Network Rail said: "Trains will not be allowed to run until the worst of the storm has passed and engineers have been able to check railway lines ... branches or any other debris which may have blown onto or damaged the infrastructure."

Several London Underground and train services were suspended, the port of Dover in Kent temporarily shut after gusts of 65 knots were recorded in the area, and more than 130 flights at Heathrow Airport were cancelled because of the weather.

Scaffolding has been blown down in Francis Road, Leyton Pic: Mark Davies

Dover Port said its Western Docks had borne the brunt of the storm with around 50 Fred Olsen cruise customer cars, parked at the terminal, damaged by the severe seas in the high winds, which at times were gusting above 70mph.

The Environment Agency said there were 11 flood warnings in place across the South West, the Midlands and the East of England. There were also 124 flood alerts telling people to be prepared for flooding.

It has teams working to minimise river flood risk, clearing debris from streams and unblocking culverts.

Prime Minister David Cameron, who held talks with Government departments and agencies at the weekend to ensure they were prepared for the impact of the storm, said the loss of life as a result of St Jude's storm was "hugely regrettable".

A tree crashes onto a London bus Pic: @Casawa2011

He said the Government was working to make sure that the emergency services were able to do as much as possible to provide assistance.

Mr Cameron said: "Any injury or loss of life is hugely regrettable. We have to make sure the emergency services can act as fast as they can to help people."

:: Send us your photos and videos of the storm

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