Ministers are promising to this year publish a "secret" list of who owns Britain's fishing quota against claims the Westcountry's small fisheries sector is being muscled out.

The Government has hailed reform of the much-maligned Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) for offering greater hope for the future of small-scale fishing vessels – which make up three-quarters of boats in UK waters.

But critics of the reform fear the dominance of large "fishing barons" is unlikely to be reversed until a register of who owns fishing quota has been released.

However, it is a large task administratively and some are against the move, claiming it will release commercially sensitive information.

European Union member states late last Friday agreed a new CFP, which is expected to become law later this year once it has secured the final blessing of the European Parliament.

Among the reforms is the promise to end the scandal of dead "discard" fish being thrown back into the sea, from 2015, and ceding decision-making power away from Brussels to regions.

The draft legislation has also insisted member states take account of supporting small-scale fisheries when allocating fishing quotas. Small-scale fishermen have access to just 4% of the UK's fishing quota.

In a House of Commons debate following the CFP clearing the latest hurdle, Labour has demanded to know when ministers would publish the details of who owns the UK's fishing quota and how the reforms will support jobs in fishing communities.

Fishing quotas, which are allocated annually to EU countries based on stock levels, are handed out in Britain to fish producer organisations – trade associations dominated by owners of large vessels and dominated by foreign interests, who land the fish caught in British waters in foreign ports with no economic benefit for the UK.

However, a lucrative and secretive quota-trading market has developed in which owners of vessels sell on their rights to other interests.

It has led to speculation that investment funds, football clubs and even celebrities now possess quotas in their portfolios.

Labour's Environment Secretary, Mary Creagh, said: "Small-scale fishing vessels make up 77% of boats in UK waters, but they have access to only 4% of the quota. The government now needs to spell out how these reforms will support our traditional fishing communities and boost jobs in our coastal areas."

In the Commons, Fisheries Minister Richard Benyon said there was a "disparity" in the balance of quota and "we are trying to address it". He added: "I can also provide confirmation about our plans to publish a register of who [holds] quota and has access to fishing opportunities in this country. The register of who holds quota will be published by the end of the year."

This slightly strange article is of course laid before you via the Editor, and at his discretion, but what follows is a brief, but true, account of something that a number of you might find useful.

Illnesses are a rather private thing, but I am persuaded that in this case what happened to me, and the good fortune that I was blessed with in terms of having a level-headed and perceptive chum or two and an excellent GP, might well apply to a number of you.

At the age of just over 60 and with a senior job within the NHS (I was actually chairman of the Strategic Health Authority of the whole of the South West!) and without any symptoms of any illness whatsoever, I was sitting next to a friend at a business lunch who urged me to go and have a routine blood test (five minutes and £4, which the NHS pays) down at my GP's clinic, and to ask for a "PSA test" within it. I didn't do this immediately and a couple of months later he chided me for not taking him seriously enough. He almost said that he would drive me down to the surgery as he felt so strongly about it and he then revealed that he was suffering from very serious prostate cancer, which had become life-changing in his case. All cancers are, of course, but some are more serious than others.

Off I went and just 72 hours later my GP telephoned to say that he wanted me to come in and see him IMMEDIATELY. He meant there and then, when I was driving down to the Hoe in uniform heading for Armed Forces Day celebrations.

He told me that my PSA level was 21 (miles higher than it should have been) and that he needed to conduct a very quick routine physical examination, which he did there and then. He told me that he could not be sure that I had not got prostate cancer and that together we should plan on the basis that I probably had.

A devastating weekend followed, during which I Googled and researched and rang friends and was given advice by others who either had it themselves or knew someone else who did. It was an extraordinary 36 hours and I have never known such a lot of instant and sincere advice being on offer all at once from both clinicians and others who have the disease.

I am going to stop there because from this point on everyone is different and because the more invasive and complex tests that are then carried out vary from consultant to consultant and hospital to hospital, and when those test results are known, each sufferer is faced with a spectrum of options ranging from "do nothing" to five or so different types of clinical and other interventions.

Almost exactly a year on, I have had a complex operation, and may well be hugely better off as a result of it, but one continues to live with uncertainties in terms of cancer recurrence and spread.

The point of the story is, of course, the first paragraph and the friend who urged me to go and have that simple test – oh that I had had it a bit sooner and thus perhaps caught the disease a bit earlier – because time is everything with this one and as it is a potential killer it needs to be dealt with before it spreads too far.

So what should you do upon reading this? If you are a man over a certain age (I am going to say 40, but there is no official guidance) I would certainly ask your GP for this test, and then I would have it routinely every year. He will be very unlikely to deny it to you, and will probably think how sensible you are being by requesting it. The NHS will not however send for you and give it to you, unrequested.

I am not alone here in Plymouth in wanting to spare my blushes, but have decided to share what is normally a very private matter in order to encourage others to increase their own chances of long-term survival by doing something very easy and very simple. Not enough is known about this and I certainly knew nothing about it and had no idea that anything might be amiss before that simple random test and the immediate diagnosis that followed it.

How lucky I was to have that concerned friend and a wonderful GP, and so if this letter can perform a part of that same service for you, then I will be more than happy to have written it.

A pensioner had to be rescued after falling off his mobility scooter into a pond. The man, who was in his late 60s, managed to keep his head above water at Mettaford Cross in Hartland, North Devon until he was spotted by a passing police officer. Fire crews helped lift the man and his scooter from the pond following the incident at around 4.10pm yesterday. The man was not injured in the incident, but was taken to North Devon District Hospital by ambulance as a precaution.

Strange lights in the sky, cigar-shaped flying objects and a "sphere half the size of the moon" were among the Westcountry sightings made in the final days of the Ministry of Defence's UFO desk.

The MoD closed its UFO desk in 2009 because it served "no defence purpose" and was taking staff away from "more valuable defence-related activities", newly released files showed today.

Prominent sightings around the westcountry

1: July 24, 2007. Lynton, North Devon. A ball of fire was seen. No tail. It was moving from West to East. 2: April 6, 2008. Delabole, Cornwall. A bright orange light was seen. It started to move backwards, up and down and then started to wobble to and fro, very fast. It faded away, as though it was moving into the distance. 3: April 29, 2008. Exeter. A UFO was flying around and looked like it was having trouble keeping in control. It looked like it was going at about 250 miles per hour. 4: July 13, 2008. Davidstow, Cornwall. Six lights were seen. They looked like bright orange stars, rising up into the air one after the other. 5: November 4, 2008. Somerton, Somerset. The object was cigar shaped, was 80ft long and 30ft tall. Was orange in colour and looked illuminated. It had a rear, bright white light. 6: February 7, 2009. Fowey, Cornwall. Strange object in the sky. Bright orange in colour with intensity of fire. Like a huge hang glider. 7: February 10, 2009. Weston-super-Mare. An orange/yellow object moving NW to SE. Followed by three more. No navigation lights and they made no sound. Not that high up. 8: March 14, 2009. Harlyn Bay, Cornwall. Five strange orange lights in formation, moving very quickly. 9: March 28, 2009. Torquay. A group of very bright orange objects heading NW to SE at a consistent speed and low altitude. There was a group of 15 followed by groups of 2-3 and 3-4 over a five minute period. They made no noise. 10: July 18, 2009. Weston-super-Mare. A metallic aircraft shaped like a missile. One quarter was white, another green/blue and another red. Was circling. It had no wings and was moving diagonally. It made a sound like a motorbike. 11: July 25, 2009. Plymouth. Six orange/white lights, lying astern. Thought they were aircraft navigation lights but were evenly spaced out. No noise but moved with speed of a passing helicopter. Changed into a 'hammer head' shape. 12: August 20, 2009. Shebbear, Devon. Circular shape with a mix of stars, one was getting brighter and then dimmer and disappearing for a short number of minutes. Another red light hovered around the object. Camera on phone would not pick anything up. 13: September 13, 2009. Shepton Mallet, Somerset. RN Air Traffic Control. Seven silent objects emitting a bright orange light. One group of three and then singles. Travelled at about 100 knots then turned right. 14: October 23, 2009. Yeovil, Somerset. Metallic ball in the sky chased by fast jet then helicopter from Yeovilton. 15: November 9, 2009. Plympton, Devon. Red and orange sphere half the size of the moon, no noise, but bits were falling off it, tracked it for 20 seconds.

The latest tranche of declassified documents showed the decision was taken to close the desk and its UFO "hotline" in a year when sightings reported to the department had trebled, but that, in more than 50 years, none had indicated the existence of "any military threat to the UK".

The 25 files, released today by the National Archives, include 4,400 pages and cover the work carried out in the final two years of the MoD's UFO desk, from late 2007 until November 2009.

In that period there were 58 records from across the Westcountry.

In April 2008, it was reported that a UFO was flying around Exeter and "looked like it was having trouble keeping in control. It looked like it was going at about 250 miles per hour".

The same month, in Delabole, North Cornwall, a "bright orange light" was seen to "move backwards, up and down and then wobble to and fro, very fast".

In Lynton, North Devon, a member of the public reported seeing a "ball of fire" moving from west to east while "a huge hanglider" which was "bright orange in colour" was reported from Fowey.

Official records also revealed "very bright orange objects" moving at "a consistent speed and low altitude" over Torquay while a professional photographer in Plymouth reported "six orange/white lights" which made "no noise but moved with speed of a passing helicopter". They then "changed into a hammer head shape".

Some of the more intriguing reports were made in Somerset with an illuminated, 80ft long "cigar-shaped" object being seen at Somerton.

Another person at Yeovil believed that had seen a "metallic ball in the sky chased by fast jet then helicopter from Yeovilton".

Then in Weston-super-Mare, the MoD recorded "a metallic aircraft shaped like a missile. One quarter was white, another green/blue and another red. Was circling. It had no wings and was moving diagonally. It made a sound like a motorbike".

The latest release of official documents reveal accounts of alleged abductions and contact with aliens and UFO sightings near UK landmarks, as well as documentation of the decision to close the UFO desk.

In a briefing for then defence minister Bob Ainsworth in November 2009, Carl Mantell, of the RAF's Air Command, suggested the MoD should try to significantly reduce the UFO task, "which is consuming increasing resource, but produces no valuable defence output".

He told Mr Ainsworth that, in more than 50 years, "no UFO sighting reported to (MoD) has ever revealed anything to suggest an extra-terrestrial presence or military threat to the UK".

An official MoD statement said: "The Ministry of Defence has no opinion on the existence or otherwise of extra-terrestrial life.

"However, in over 50 years, no UFO report has revealed any evidence of a potential threat to the United Kingdom.

"The MoD has no specific capability for identifying the nature of such sightings. There is no defence benefit in such investigation and it would be an inappropriate use of defence resources."

Dr David Clarke, author of the book The UFO Files, said: "The last pieces of the puzzle have finally been revealed with this insight into the last days of the UFO desk.

"These files spell out clearly why the MoD decided – after 60 years – it no longer needed to keep tabs on sightings, even those made by 'credible' people such as police officers and pilots.

"The last files from the UFO desk are now all in the public domain. People at home can read them and draw their own conclusions about whether the truth' is in these files or still out there."

MoD told: I know how you can shoot one down

The Ministry of Defence politely declined an offer of a weapon that could "shoot down UFOs", newly released files reveal. One suggestion was sent to the MoD in March 2009 by a "UFO researcher" who wrote: "I have knowledge that the RAF have on more than one occasion intercepted a UFO using military aircraft. "Therefore, the reason I am contacting you once again is that, through my research as a UFO researcher, I believe I know how you can shoot down a UFO. Hypothetically, let's assume that these UFOs are extraterrestrial and that the RAF has tried but failed to bring down an extraterrestrial UFO. "I have a suggestion for a new weapon which could and will bring down a potential extraterrestrial UFO." It went on: "It is your choice. Trust me, have faith." In a response on March 11, an official politely declined the offer, writing: "The UK has a comprehensive suite of capabilities that provide its air superiority, both here at home in the UK and also on expeditionary operations. "The UK's Air Policing Area is under continuous surveillance using a combination of civil and military radar installations that provide a continuous real-time 'picture'. "Any threat would, of course, be handled in the light of the particular circumstances at the time, however, rest assured that we have at our disposal a range of capabilities that we are confident can neutralise even the most demanding of targets."

Ufologist urged Queen to act over alien 'threat'

A UFO researcher wrote directly to the Queen to voice concerns that the government was ignoring the threat of unidentified flying objects. The final UFO files include several messages from "ufologists" and members of the public to key figures, including the Queen, former prime minister Gordon Brown, and government ministers and defence secretaries, between 2007 and 2009. One, from a UFO researcher in Victoria, Australia, sent in March 2009, was addressed directly to "Your Majesty Queen Elizabeth II". The letter said: "These Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) are, I believe, a threat to the United Kingdom in view of the air and safety issues involved. "As I am writing this letter to you Your Majesty, I contemplate whether or not you will see reason and if you will choose to act Madam?" The letter closed: "As a UFO researcher, I must highly recommend you act now Your Majesty. "You are capable of deciding your own destiny. "The question is Your Majesty, which path will you choose?" A reply from Buckingham Palace, included in the files, said: "The Queen has asked the Private Secretary to thank (the unnamed recipient) for his letter of March 18. "Although this is not a matter in which Her Majesty would intervene, the letter has been passed to the Secretary of State for Defence, so that this approach to the Queen may be known and consideration given to the points raised in the letter."

A mother jailed for killing her three-year-old daughter has spoken publicly for the first time to say she will never accept the jury's guilty verdict.

Lesley Dunford is serving a seven-year sentence after being found guilty last year of smothering little Lucy.

Her death in 2004 came just six months after the couple's son Harley died in a suspected cot death.

During her sentencing, Dunford, of Windermere Close, Exeter, was told she had turned from "carer to killer" by inflicting fatal injuries on the toddler, who was found with bruising under the skin by her shoulders and neck.

But the 35-year-old has revealed in a letter to the Press that she will never take responsibility for her daughter's death.

"I am not going to put my hands up to something I have not done even though confessing to it may make my life easier," she wrote . "But I have not done anything."

In the letter, penned from her cell in a prison in the North of England, Dunford also issued a desperate plea to be moved closer to her husband Wayne after the prospects of an appeal were dashed.

Dunford had been given a date to transfer prisons back in April but believes she is being held back as she has not completed the victim awareness course.

"I have done as much of victim awareness as I can," she added. "I haven't been able to complete all of it because they can't class Lucy as a victim because I am not admitting to the offence that I am in jail for, which is manslaughter."

Dunford was first arrested two days after Lucy's death, but the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to press charges, a decision based largely on conflicting reports from pathologists. One post-mortem examination said the toddler died from suffocation, while another concluded she had inhaled vomit as a result of an infection.

But during an inquest in 2009 the coroner dramatically halted proceedings because he said evidence he had heard had aroused suspicion. He asked the police to re-examine the case, which led to Dunford's arrest at her Exeter home. After a six-and-a-half week trial she was cleared of murder but found guilty of manslaughter.

In her letter she said that being convicted for a crime she continues to deny has left her severely depressed and committing self-harm.

"When I am feeling down and fed up, Wayne does as well," she added. "Not a day goes by when I am not worrying about him and vice-versa and this jail is doing nothing to help me get through it in here.

"All I want is to move so I can have regular visits, which is one of the main things that keep me going. I still have another two-and-a-half years to do before my first parole hearing in December 2015, which is also causing my depression and self-harm to be bad, as a lot of people don't get their first parole.

"It tears me apart to be in here so far from Wayne."

Mr Dunford, 55, said he was standing by his wife despite her conviction. The couple have been together for 14 years.

He said: "I am still 100 per cent behind her. Everyone who knows me knows that.

"If I had thought Leslie had done something to my kids I would have been the first to grass her up. She is not able to keep anything from me. If I had the slightest suspicion she did what they said she did, I would want her done for it."

He added: "The tag of child killer is an awful one to carry around but the longer it goes the more it disappears. The important thing is that anyone who knows me and Lesley knows she is not capable of that."

A Devon man has died following a three-vehicle crash in Dorset almost two weeks ago. The 60-year-old man from Plymouth died in hospital yesterday after the collision in Lyme Regis on June 7. He was admitted to Derriford Hospital three days after the accident on the westbound carriageway of the A35 at Raymonds Hill. Two of the drivers, a 58-year-old woman from Axminster and a 67-year-old man from Bournemouth, were treated at the scene for minor injuries.

Exeter Phoenix

Ever since he was a child, Laurence Clark has been told he's "inspirational" for doing the mundane, everyday activities everyone else does.

"It's my pet hate," says comedian Laurence, who has cerebral palsy; he uses a wheelchair to get around and jokes that his slurred voice makes him sound drunk. "Whether it's for being married, doing stand-up or having kids, it just seems like they thought I'd never amount to much.

"I love to inspire people with my stand-up comedy, but don't call me inspirational for just getting on with my life!"

So it's no surprise to learn that the gist of his darkly funny stage show, Inspired, sets out to smash presumption on the head and challenge social views on disability by getting us to laugh with him about them. And he's very good at it.

Dinham House, Rock

While the Rock Oyster Festival this weekend is famous for, well, oysters... the family-friendly event on the banks of the Camel Estuary also boasts an eclectic music line-up. Now in its fourth year, the festival has over 30 music and entertainment acts across three stages. Tonight's headliners are Smerins Antisocial Club, pictured, whose diverse style encompasses swing, hip hop, ska, dub and rock and Slamboree, a live ten-piece band made up of musicians, DJs, circus performers and daredevils. Tomorrow's bill is dominated by songstresses The Half Sisters, whose soothing sounds feature flutes and ukuleles, and acoustic troubadour Martha Tilston. Families are well catered for with a designated children's area. Find full details at rockoysterfestival.co.uk.

Nobody does epic like the BBC, with its lavish and star-studded new historical drama The White Queen (BBC One) dominating our Sunday night viewing for the next ten weeks.

Philippa Gregory's popular novel has been adapted for TV with a central romance set against the backdrop of complex political and courtly machinations during the Wars of the Roses.

At its heart are King Edward (Max Irons) and young widow Elizabeth Woodville (Rebecca Ferguson). He's from the House of York, and she is a Lancastrian and a commoner to boot.

But the young king is bewitched at their first meeting when she implored him to help after she is denied access to her late husband's estate to raise their two young sons.

After a swift courtship, they are married (in secret at first) and set on a course of events which is destined to end in tears.

There was a lot of paying attention required in this opening episode as characters and plot twists arrived thick and fast. But there was a great deal of clarity in the performances, particularly from Max Irons and Rebecca Ferguson, who proved a winsome and attractive pairing.

What was particularly pleasing in The White Queen was the behind-the-scenes manipulation of the various parties, particularly the women.

Experienced (OK, that's a euphemism for middle-aged) actresses Caroline Goodall and Janet McTeer play the mothers of the young lovers. They subtly convey their understanding of power games and how women must manipulate their most powerful weapon, their looks.

Beautifully photographed with a sharp script and none of the silliness (and nakedness) of The Tudors, this is a credible and hugely entertaining drama to savour.

Talking of savouring things, you could almost smell the spices wafting up from the pans in new series Rick Stein's India (BBC Two, Monday).

This is no run-of-the-mill cookery school – Rick didn't even go into the kitchen for the first 18 minutes... and even then not until it had been blessed by letting milk boil over and serving the warm milk to everyone.

What Rick does brilliantly is to set the scene for his culinary odyssey.

There is more to curry than three pints of lager and a vindaloo, says Rick. I appreciate that, having worked my way through some of the delights in his last book Far Eastern Odyssey.

Rick's exploration of a new place is always informed by literature, one of his other passions, and quotes from E M Forster, who wrote A Passage to India, added more colour to the story.

He's good with people too, asking the right questions, appreciating their hospitality and enjoying their company. He's a quite charmer, too, making the ladies of the wonderfully named All Bengal Women's Union giggle as they prepare him an egg curry.

His evokes his own childhood memories of curry – something many of us will appreciate – as his mum added tins of madras curry powder, desiccated coconut and raisins to what was, essentially, a beef stew.

And he tasted mulligatawny soup for the first time in 20 years, pronouncing it delicious. We should also take great pride in the fact that Rick's programme is made by Denhams, a Westcountry-based company.

Well done to all involved.

And a bouquet too, to the BBC for the brilliant Frankie (BBC One). For some reason I didn't fancy this when it first started, but as soon as I caught it, I frantically caught up with the six-part series.

Eve Myles played Frankie with great enthusiasm and imagination, creating a truly three-dimensional character – a district nurse whose long-term partner, policeman Ian (Dean Lennox Boyd) disgraces himself with a one-night stand with a colleague. Lots of fascinating stories and great characters.

More please!

A criminal network of 20 people have been sentenced to more than 100 years in prison for trying to "flood" Cornwall with cocaine and cannabis after falling foul of the biggest police sting operation in the Duchy's history.

The perpetrators, who were sentenced at Truro Crown Court this week, the last yesterday, all played a part in trafficking drugs to Cornwall from Northern England and Surrey by car and train, using a variety of methods to conceal their stash.

Two gangs, which operated out of the Falmouth and Newquay areas, consisted of fathers, sons, brothers and old school friends, using their network of contacts to distribute their drugs throughout the county.

It is known they were responsible for trying to bring in cocaine, cannabis, and amphetamines, with a street value of £880,000 but it was acknowledged in court that they were responsible for bringing in more.

In some cases the cocaine they brought in was adulterated to such an extent that less than 15% of it was the drug it was marketed as when it hit the streets.

But they were caught following a lengthy police investigation, titled Operation Ipanema, that spanned nine months, involving surveillance, mobile phone analysis, CCTV footage, police chases and roadside arrests.

Standing before Judge John Neligan in the dock throughout this week, each gang member heard the same message from him upon sentencing.

"This behaviour would have provided many with the opportunity to become addicted to cocaine or to have fed their addiction," he said.

"This in turn, in many cases, leads to loss of health and a general downward spiral which many addicts find difficult to recover from and in the future lead some to commit crime in order to support their addictive habit.

"Also a very huge profit may be made on this at the very top of the organisational chain, doubtless getting a larger share than those near to or at the bottom."

Every defendant told the court their own story of how they became embroiled in the conspiracy. There were those who claimed it was to support an alcohol or gambling addiction, others to pay off debts, sometimes to the gang members themselves, others more frankly admitted they were in it just to make money.

Matthew Bird, of Dale Road, who along with Samuel Tucker, of Pendragon Crescent, and his cancer-suffering brother, Joseph, of Tamarisk Lane, led the Newquay operation, received one of the harshest sentences at 12 years, despite pleas from his defence barrister, Michael Gregson, to keep the sentence below 10, so that his wife and three daughters may visit him more easily in prison. Roy Jones, of Porhan Green, who headed the Falmouth and Penryn gang, was dealt a 13-year sentence for being involved in five conspiracies to supply cocaine and cannabis – his half brother Michael Dean Thom, also of Porhan Green, was given five years.

But the out-of-county connections were also dealt stiff sentences. Ian Singleton, then of Woodlands Close, Broadbottom, Hyde, Jason Carter, of Marston Close, Ashton-under-Lyne, courier John Carter Dukinfield Road, Hyde Park, received 23 years collectively.

Kevin Waller, of Allen Street, Maidstone, in Kent, who became involved months after being released from a 10-year sentence for his part in a conspiracy to supply cocaine, received a six-year sentence.

The court also heard how one defendant, Michelle Mageean, of Trelawney Road, who was spared jail for playing a lesser role as a courier in one conspiracy, was to keep her job after her line manager, at the Real ideas Organisation, came to court to speak highly of her character.

But each were greeted with the same message by police – who said that their prosecution sends out a warning to all criminal gangs involved that they will be caught.

Speaking outside of court, David Dale, detective inspector of the serious and organised investigation team (SOCIT), said of the men: "They are major suppliers of drugs, who have made substantial amounts of money, hundreds of thousands of pounds in profits that they made and they have been living a pleasant lifestyle.

"These people have contempt for everybody else, they don't care about their neighbours, they don't care about other people because they are going to take money off them. They just see them as cash cows they can take money off.

"The message is, if you operate within Cornwall and you are a substantial drug dealer we will locate you, we will arrest you, and we will prosecute you. Every single person we target will be prosecuted. If you bring drugs in to Cornwall, we won't just prosecute the people in Cornwall we will go after you as well."

The gangs' activities were slowly scuppered by a series of operations following months of investigations, stretching from September 2010 to August 2011.

The court heard how the level of their involvement was highlighted by the continued activity despite some being released on bail.

Detective constable Chris Louca, who was highly commended by Judge Neligan for his handling of the case said, outside court, he was pleased with the lengths of sentence handed out.

He added that although historically the Westcountry may have been viewed as an easy target for drugs gangs, with cases like this, that was beginning to change.

"With recent operations, Ipanema included, Devon and Cornwall is now going to begin to get a reputation for being a tough place to go and try traffic drugs.

"I think what we've shown, especially with this job is that we don't just look at our criminals who are trafficking the drugs in to Cornwall, we actually look at who is supplying them in bulk quantities and wherever and whenever possible we will identify them and also bring them to justice."

A further man, John Patrick Kennedy, of Stonleigh Pavilions, Bryan Road, Huddersfield, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine and cannabis and possession while intending to supply cocaine, and is awaiting sentencing.

A father who killed his 11-month-old baby son has been jailed for life.

Shane Anthony Hawkins was told he would serve a minimum of 14 years after a jury at Truro Crown Court found him guilty of murdering his son Kaydon.

The court heard that Hawkins, who was 22 at the time of the offence, was a physically abusive father who had told six different accounts of how his son ended up in hospital on December 11, 2010, and that bruises and marks on the baby suggested there was a history of assaults on Kaydon.

Much of the medical evidence suggested the boy's fatal head injury was not the result of an accident, the court was told.

Hawkins, who was living on the Kinsman Estate in Bodmin, and is now aged 25, maintained in court that he had accidently dropped Kaydon, and the baby had hit his head on a storage heater when he fell.

He died three days later at Bristol's Children Hospital from severe brain damage.

Kaydon had suffered retinal haemorrhaging in both eyes consistent with being shaken violently, the court heard.

The judge, Mr Justice Hamblen, said Kaydon's death had been caused by Hawkins shaking him violently when the baby's cries interfered with him playing a computer game.

"You were on your PlayStation and his interruptions angered you, and at some stage you flipped.

"Kaydon's death was caused by your hand, and it was not the first injury he received as a result of your violence against him,'' the judge told Hawkins.

The judge said although Hawkins had been "immediately remorseful'' for his actions, and called an ambulance straight away, he had caused his baby son's death.

Following the verdict the senior investigating officer, DI Jackie Swift, said: "This was a violent act committed against a defenceless baby who sustained fatal head injuries at the hands of the person who was there to care for him.

"In the subsequent investigation, Kaydon was also found to have suffered other injuries during his short life inflicted by his father.

"This was a complex and protracted investigation which was handled sensitively by officers from our Child Abuse Investigation Teams, supported by the Major Crime Team."

The independent head of children's care in Devon has resigned after a damning report into services.

Alan Wooderson, chairman of the county's Safeguarding Children Board, has quit in the wake of the Ofsted report which branded Devon County Council's child protection services "inadequate" subjecting youngsters to "unnecessary risk of serious harm".

But critics say this does not go far enough and senior officers should shoulder the blame for the "sorry fiasco".

Jennie Stephens, the strategic director of the People department which oversees social care, faced criticism this week after she failed to attend the first meeting of a scrutiny panel set up to investigate the failure.

Liberal Democrat deputy leader Julian Brazil said the council response "smacked of complacency", adding that "more heads should roll".

"This is a sorry fiasco – the report is incredibly damning," he said.

Mr Brazil said senior officials were "blaming everyone but themselves", adding that people could not have confidence in the authority unless senior people took the blame for a failures in "management control".

Investigators from the regulator last month gave services for about 5,000 vulnerable children the lowest of four ratings.

Inspectors said in some cases, children who were at risk had their cases "closed inappropriately" or were given an assessment of being a "child in need" when more robust child protection process should have been put in place.

Council leader John Hart is now chairing weekly meetings to resolve the problems and yesterday officials were locked in crisis talks with the Department for Education.

Leading councillors said signs of failure had been raised long before Ofsted down-rated the council.

Vanessa Newcombe, a Lib Dem chairman of the scrutiny panel before she was unseated in May's election, said she had flagged up concerns about many of the issues but senior officers had failed to act.

She said Mr Wooderson was not to blame and "others should also be taking responsibility" by resigning.

"I was pretty taken aback [by the report] and disappointed – people had been alerted and it worries me that more wasn't done.

"A lot of [the criticisms] were flagged up in a peer review in October – we knew all the problems, they were very clearly highlighted."

Councillor Will Mumford, who took over cabinet responsibility for children's services, last month, said: "We have strengthened our senior management team by appointing David Taylor – the former director of a top-performing children's service – to advise us. He will also chair the Devon Safeguarding Children Board for the time being.

"We have a very clear plan of action to put things right, which I am monitoring very closely."

"It is every architect's dream to build his own home," says Nigel Blackman. "And I have been lucky enough to do just that."

Newly on the market, the beautiful property that Nigel designed is a truly stunning five-bedroomed house in the Dartmoor National Park, near Yelverton.

Called Higherfield Bungalow, this substantial house is, in fact, anything but a bungalow. It was, but then the small timber-framed building on the site was bought by architect Nigel and his IT manager wife Sue, not to mention their then-tiny daughters Helen and Julia.

Nigel set about designing and building a new Grand Design home and the end result, finished in 1992, is this very special family home.

"We bought the plot when it had outline planning permission to replace the old bungalow with a new house," explains Nigel, who works as an architect in Plymouth. "Then we had some very careful negotiations with the Dartmoor National Park, which has strict guidelines as to what can be built and what materials to use."

For this reason, the house is built using local materials, such as local slate and stone, and is designed to blend into the landscape. "We knew we had to abide by their criteria and make sure the house was in sympathy with its surroundings," says Nigel.

Inside, however, the Blackmans were able to let their imaginations run more freely.

As a result, the house is full of surprises, such as the huge show-stopping upstairs sitting room with panoramic Dartmoor views. "From here you can see right over the tors and vistas of Dartmoor, spotting the ponies and sheep and just enjoying the beauty of it all," says Nigel.

The house took more than a year to build, with Sue and Nigel living on site with Helen and Julia throughout the process.

"For one of the girls' birthday parties, we made a virtue out of necessity and had a Bob the Builder theme," remembers Nigel. "We all had to wear hard hats and eat a party tea off scaffolding boards – it was fantastic fun for the children."

Indeed, providing a safe and happy childhood for their children was the main reason why Nigel and Sue came to Devon back in the late 1980s to begin this ambitious project.

"We were living in the South East and began to think that sitting on the M25 in a traffic jam was no way for the girls to spend their childhood," says Nigel. "So we started a completely new life here in Devon, which has been wonderful."

Today, however, Helen is 29, Julia 27 and Nigel is about to turn 60. With Helen and her two children, Finley four, and Ella, two, living many miles away in Yorkshire, the Blackmans have decided it is time to move on after more than 20 happy years. "While we still have the ability and the energy, we want to move closer to our grandchildren," says Nigel. "We also want to free up our lives so we can go travelling and have some adventures."

As a result, this rather wonderful architect-designed home is now up for sale. With a large garden bordering the western edge of Dartmoor, it is the perfect location for walking, cycling, riding or just enjoying the country views.

Inside, there are five bedrooms, with the master bedroom having an en-suite bathroom. The bathrooms are top-of-the-range, with underfloor heating and Porcelanosa tiles.

The smart, sleek kitchen is open plan from the adjoining family room and features top-quality integrated Neff appliances and a large American-style fridge/freezer.

Here, the electric sockets pop up from the stone working surfaces to ensure the clean lines of the kitchen are retained.

Throughout the house there are lovely touches of design. The window sills are Delabole slate, and there is wonderful mood lighting throughout. The house also has planning permission already granted for a sizeable two-storey extension, which could prove very useful for any buyers wishing to create an annexe or additional accommodation.

The house is on a quiet, no-through-road lane, which has recently been re-surfaced by all the properties on it joining together to pay for the work. The property is about a mile from the village of Horrabridge where local shops, two pubs, a post office and a primary school can be found. Yelverton's shops are about 1.5 miles away.

Many lovely walks in the immediate area can be enjoyed not only across the moor but also over the recently opened cycle track and beside the river Walkham.

The city of Plymouth is within easy commuting distance, as is the historic town of Tavistock with its many attractions, independent shops and restaurants.

"We have had some very happy years here and I am sure the next owners will do the same," says Nigel.

Higherfield Bungalow, near Yelverton, Dartmoor £750,000

Property: A five-bedroomed architect-designed family home in a beautiful garden on the western edge of Dartmoor Location: Near Yelverton on the edge of Dartmoor, within easy reach of Plymouth and Tavistock Accommodation: Five bedrooms, one en suite, with large triple-aspect sitting room and top-spec kitchen and bathrooms. Planning permission for substantial two-storey extension for a possible annexe. Outside: Large two-third of an acre garden leading directly on to the moor, plus a garage. Price: £750,000 Agent: Country and Waterside Prestige, 01392 660007, www.countryandwaterside.co.uk

A former mayor has denied making false benefit claims in which he failed to reveal he was receiving payments from the Liberal Democrat party.

Kevin Wilson pleaded not guilty to two counts of making dishonest representations to Mid Devon Council, where he is a councillor.

Wilson, 54, is a former Mayor of Tiverton, where he is also a prominent member of the local Liberal Democrat party. He remains a serving member of Mid Devon District and Tiverton Town Councils.

He appeared at Exeter Crown Court for a plea and case management hearing in front of Judge Phillip Wassall, who set a trial date for January 6 next year and released him on bail.

Wilson, of Besley Close, Tiverton, pleaded not guilty to two charges of making false representations to obtain benefit.

The first alleges that on November 21, 2010, he failed to disclose to Mid Devon District Council that he had a private Scottish Life pension from which he was receiving payments.

The second alleges a similar charge on March 9 this year in which he failed to disclose the pension and income from the Central Devon Liberal Democrat Party.

Lee Bremridge, defending, said the issue in the case will be whether Wilson acted dishonestly.

A pair of lifelong friends who were in the same class at school and started the exact same job in the same factory aged 15 retired on the same day yesterday.

Neighbours Keith Hockey and Ian Glover grew up just three streets away from each other and attended the same primary and second schools.

They both joined the same furniture factory as apprentices aged 15 and worked together at the plant for an incredible 48 years. And now they have finished work they plan to both take up cycling to keep fit – and stay friends.

Ian, 64, said: "Before we went to school we knew each other and as kids used to go out across the fields together.

"We went all though school together in the same classes. I started work at the factory a little bit before Keith as I turned 15 first, but when he joined we just took back up from there.

"We have some of the same interests like gardening and swap plants quite a lot.

"I put my name in first for retirement but then Keith thought he would probably go now too, and we decided to choose the same day.

"Our lives have intertwined right the way through life really – we even live on the same street now."

Father-of-two Keith, 63, added: "It's quite nice to have known someone for so long really and to have followed such a similar path along the way. We are both going to get new bikes and take up cycling so we'll see each other out on the road all the time I expect."

Both men met before they started school and used to play together in the streets around the homes – both off Milverton Road in the village of Tonedale near Wellington, Somerset.

Ian and Keith started as apprentices at the Relyon factory in Wellington, Somerset, just months apart when they each turned 15. They finished as production operatives – Keith with 48 years service under his belt, and Ian clocking out after 49 years work.

Ian has lived in the same street all his life and Keith and his wife Valerie and two daughters joined him a few doors away 45 years ago.

Bosses congratulated the pair. Managing director Andy Murdoch said: "We are proud to have given a life-long career to these two skilled craftsmen and many others."

Westcountry council bosses have warned it may be impossible to protect frontline services as they face a further 10% cut in their budgets in 2015.

It has emerged Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles has been forced to accept one of the highest cuts among Whitehall departments as Chancellor George Osborne looks for a further £11.5 billion of austerity savings.

The cuts – to be confirmed next Wednesday alongside other scaled-back departmental budgets – will put a serious squeeze on children's services and adult care that councils have been anxious to protect since big reductions in central government grants started in 2010.

Liberal Democrat councillor Alex Folkes, cabinet member for finance on Cornwall Council, said the additional cut was "severe", and would mean having to find another £20 million of savings.

Labour councillor Tudor Evans, leader of Plymouth City Council, said: "Pickles has failed to speak up for local councils – but worse than that for local communities and valuable local services." Senior Whitehall officials said that Mr Pickles was still negotiating the details, which could include a transfer of cash from the NHS budget for social care. But the 10% cut had been agreed, it is thought.

Councils are already struggling to make ends meet, and the early £80 million of savings estimate that Devon and Cornwall's four upper-tier authorities are looking for in the next two years is now seen as too low.

Mr Folkes said in 2015 Cornwall Council is already having to find around £19 million in savings. Mr Folkes said: "That is severe. We have already made all the back-office and organisational savings we can make – in a way we were lucky because moving to a unitary meant we could make savings in the first four years. But that is no longer possible. We can't do the same thing again."

Mr Folkes said the Independent-Lib Dem coalition running the council would prioritise protecting the vulnerable, but indicated some frontline services would be squeezed.

He added: "Mr Pickles seems to be someone who when George Osborne asks 'can you save £1 billion', he says: 'I can save you £2 billion'." Councillors at Labour-run Plymouth City Council have said Mr Pickles "seems determined to bring a return to Dickensian Britain".

Leader Mr Evans said yesterday: "The council has a plan to try to match the cuts already announced by Mr Pickles. These additional cuts are going to bite deeply into frontline services.

"Pickles' machismo may play well in Conservative Party circles, but in fact it will have terrible consequences for facilities for adult social care, educational support and many other facilities for the vulnerable.

"There seems to be no end to it, and there's no real purpose, as the consequences are more unemployment, less tax revenue and it does nothing for the deficit. It therefore makes no economic sense."

Thirteen departments have already agreed up to 10% cuts. Council budgets have now been reduced by more than 35% since 2010. Mr Pickles has renewed his search for efficiency savings by calling for local authority funds to be merged, which he said could save £750 million a year.

A young wheelchair tennis star has been given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play alongside former British No.1 Tim Henman.

Luz Esperanza Merry, 12, from Plymouth, was joined on court for a lesson with the four-time Wimbledon semi-finalist who was full of praise for the disabled youngster.

"Esperanza is a real inspiration," he said. "She's got a great attitude. She just wants to get out on the court and compete.

"She's already taking to wheelchair tennis like a natural."

As a talented junior non-disabled player, she received coaching in Arizona, USA and Paris, France and has won over 40 tournaments in the UK, France and the USA.

But in November 2011 the schoolgirl was diagnosed with an infection in her right hip, which led to aseptic arthritis.

After a series of operations, and a chance meeting with British No. 1 Lucy Shuker at Taunton Tennis Centre, the right-handed player began playing wheelchair tennis.

"My ultimate sporting goal is to beat Esther Vergeer – the best female player on the planet – and win Paralympic gold," she said.

A company lawyer who was instrumental in winning a landmark legal victory for hundreds of holiday chalet owners in Cornwall deliberately misled a court, a judge has concluded.

Charles Knapper, a senior partner at Fursdon Knapper in Plymouth, failed to reveal the existence of key documents including a transcript of a meeting which could have affected the outcome of the case, according to a lengthy judgment handed down this week.

The damning verdict came in the latest instalment in a long-running £2 million legal dispute between chalet owners at Atlantic Bay, in St Merryn, near Padstow, and site owners Martin and Rebekah Francis who took over the park and doubled the maintenance fees.

Solicitor Charles Knapper, a former Royal Navy submariner who partly represented the group, was singled out for severe criticism by Judge Barry Cotter, who characterised the dispute as descending into open "warfare".

Judge Cotter said Mr Knapper's comments in court had been "misleading, and deliberately so".

"I have concluded, with some sadness, that Mr Knapper, a very experienced litigation specialist, had developed a settled intention to prevent what he must have considered potentially helpful documentation coming in to the hands of Mr and Mrs Francis," he wrote.

Lawyers for the owners successfully argued in the High Court in 2010 that the chalets on the park were "dwellings" and were therefore protected under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985.

This left jubilant chalet owners confident they would be due thousands of pounds in refunds from Mr and Mrs Francis, who bought the site for £1.35 million in 2008.

The decision is expected to have far-reaching effects in protecting park home owners from being subjected to huge fee rises in order to pay for maintenance.

Atlantic Bay had been run as a co-operative between chalet owners known as Point Curlew since 1975 before being sold to the couple after the park's management company ran into financial difficulties.

When Mr and Mrs Francis took over, the owners of the 155 chalets believed they had been absolved of financial responsibilities other than maintenance fees.

But trouble flared when fees of £1,250, excluding VAT, were imposed in 2008 and then increased to £2,710 in 2009 and £2,800 in 2010.

Much of the legal dispute centred around whether the chalet owners, which included Mr Knapper, had known about major defects at the site, which resulted in the fee hike.

Complaints about Mr Knapper's conduct were first made by a barrister representing Mr and Mrs Francis at a hearing in March to decide who pays the massive legal costs relating to the 2010 hearing.

Jonathan Seitler QC, representing Mr and Mrs Francis, claimed Mr Knapper had known relevant documents were stored in an unused chalet.

He also alleged Mr Knapper had personally placed other important company documents out of reach of the court and in the hands of a liquidator, backed by an "undertaking" for them not to disclosed.

In his 46-page judgment, Judge Cotter said that there had been "substantial and systematic non-disclosure" by Mr Knapper, whose actions had been "designed to conceal", and his statement "disingenuous".

Judge Cotter added that he was "quite satisfied that there are matters arising that may have been put and may have had an impact on my judgment".

The case is expected to be finally resolved at a further hearing in the Court of Appeal, establishing the principle of how service charges should be charged for leasehold residential properties.

The serious finding against Mr Knapper could now be taken further by Mr and Mr Francis with a complaint to the legal regulator, the Solicitors' Regulation Authority, which could potentially trigger a disciplinary tribunal.