THE number of knife crime victims in London has more than tripled over the past five years, a leading surgeon has revealed.

Professor Karim Brohi, a trauma surgeon at Barts and the London NHS Trust said 255 severe injuries had been treated this year.

And he warned that the increase was down to " teenage youth gangs", often connected to schools.

Victims from across the capital are treated by Prof Brohi and colleagues at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel.

The Trust collects figures for stab victims with wounds which threaten their lives, or the loss of a limb. The statistics do not include less serious injuries.

Prof Brohi was giving evidence to the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee, which is conducting an inquiry into knife crime.

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CHELSEA has come bottom of a league table of shame after police were forced to arrest 106 fans last season.

The club chalked up more arrests than any other side in London, while Arsenal was close behind with 105.

The figures were published by the Home Office as Ministers pledged to crack down on hooliganism.

But Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker also praised supporters, saying just one in ten thousand fans, of the 37 million regularly attending games, were arrested for football-related violence.

And as Chelsea, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City fans head to the continent this week for the next round of matches in Europe, the Home Office report also showed that only 25 arrests were made last year of fans following English teams in the Champions League and UEFA Cup competitions.

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BUSINESS leaders urged the Chancellor to bring forward improvements to the Tube and London's rail system, after he announced plans to borrow a massive £500 billion for public spending and tax cuts.

London First, the pressure group representing businesses across the capital, said the city must receive its fair share of investment.

Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, told the House of Commons he will cut VAT by 2.5 per cent, to 15 per cent, but only until the end of 2009.

But in his Pre Budget Report he also unveiled a series of tax increases, to come into effect in 2011, to help pay for the spending spree.

As predicted, they included a new 45 per cent tax rate for people earning more than £150,000.

But it's not only high earners that will pay, with an increase in national insurance due to hit anybody earning more than £40,000.

There will also be significant increases to duty on cigarettes and alcohol. This will be offset by the temporary VAT cut, meaning smokers and drinkers will have to pay more from 2010.

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GORDON Brown has accused Conservative leader David Cameron of "lacking compassion" as the Government prepares to announce major tax cuts to kick-start the economy.

The debate turned personal after the Tories claimed Labour was planning a "tax bombshell" by borrowing billions of pounds which will have to be paid back later.

Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, is set to cut VAT by 2.5 per cent, down to 15 per cent, potentially leading to lower prices in the shops.

The aim would be to encourage shoppers to keep buying, avoiding the threat of deflation and stimulating the economy to start growing again.

But the measure would cost £12 billion, which will have to be paid for by borrowing - with Government debts expected to reach £100 billion this year.

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LOCAL government leaders from across southern England have united to condemn a proposed third runway at Heathrow.

Regional airports such as Kent International could expand to help Heathrow take the strain of increasing passenger numbers without causing additional misery for residents close to Heathrow, they said.

The united front came in a joint statement issued by the South East Regional Assembly, the East of England Regional Assembly and Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London.

Regional assemblies are led by local councillors, and also include representatives of businesses and trade unions.

Authorities in the East of England include Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Essex, while the South East includes Surrey, Buckinghamshire, Kent, Sussex and others.

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BRITAIN should open a dedicated curry college so that Indian restaurants can stop recruiting chefs from overseas, according a London MP.

Curry house owners have warned that changes to the immigration are making it harder for them to recruit skilled chefs.

The Government's new points-based system allows immigrants from outside the EU to work in Britain only if they have specific skills which are in short supply in the UK.

But the Bangladesh Caterers' Association, which represents 12,000 restaurants across the country, presented a petition to Downing Street earlier this year warning that curry houses needed to be able to recruit workers from the Indian sub-continent.

Now MP Karen Buck (Lab Regents Park and Kensington North) has called for the creation of a London college to train home-grown chefs in the art of cooking the perfect curry.

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NOBODY can be sacked from Haringey Social Services department until a full inquiry into the death of Baby P has concluded, Children's Secretary Ed Balls has insisted.

But he pledged that there would be no no-go areas for inspectors looking into the death of the 17-month old boy, after opposition MPs said they were concerned council officials were trying to block the inquiry.

Mr Balls told the House of Commons there was "clear evidence that agencies had failed, singly and collectively, to adhere to the statutory procedures for the proper management of child protection cases."

MP Lynne Featherstone (Lib Dem Hornsey and Wood Green), whose constituency includes much of Haringey, said those responsible must be sacked in order for child protection services to improve.

She said: "The atmosphere and the morale of everyone in Haringey has been shot to pieces, but, for there to be a new start, there must be accountability, because if the same faces remain after the report, we will not have that fresh start."

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