Oil prices have hit a new record of $94 a barrel, as US government data showed a surprise fall in crude stockpiles for the second week in a row.

New York light crude jumped $3.62, or 4%, to $94 a barrel, while London Brent traded at $90.74 a barrel, up $3.30, in late afternoon trade in Europe.

The US government's figures showed that domestic crude stocks fell by 3.9 million barrels last week.

Analysts had forecast an increase of 100,000 barrels.

"I am very surprised, the crude number is insanely bullish, it's a big drop, for the second week in a row," said Mike Wittner, global head of oil research at SocGen in London.

Volatile trade

The US is the world's biggest energy consumer and therefore, the state of its inventories is a key concern.

UK house prices rose at their fastest rate in four months during October, mortgage lender Nationwide has said.

Prices rose 1.1% in October from the previous month, taking the average house price to £186,044, it said.

On an annual basis, house prices rose by 9.7% from the same month in 2006, up from September's figure of 9%.

However, the Nationwide said that it would be "misguided" to view the rise as proof that house prices were immune to problems in the financial markets.

Propped up

House prices in the three months to October rose by 1.9% compared with the previous three months, up from September's figure of 1.7%.

The three-month on three-month figure is often seen as a more accurate gauge of underlying price movements.

According to the Nationwide, house prices are currently being supported by a number of factors, including the low level of properties coming onto the market.

Organic produce is better for you than ordinary food, a major European Union-funded study says.

The £12m four-year project, led by Newcastle University, found a general trend showing organic food contained more antioxidants and less fatty acids.

But researchers did admit the study showed some variations.

The findings call into question the current stance of the Food Standards Agency (FSA), which says there is no evidence that organic food is better.

Researchers grew fruit, vegetables and reared cattle on adjacent organic and non-organic sites across Europe, including a 725-acre farm attached to

They found levels of antioxidants in milk from organic cattle were between 50% and 80% higher than normal milk.

Organic wheat, tomatoes, potatoes, cabbage, onions and lettuce had between 20% and 40% more nutrients.

But the study, which is yet to be published in a peer-reviewed journal, also showed there were significant variations.

AN elderly couple who are still waiting to return to their home flooded three months ago are angry nothing is being done to stop it happening again.

John Lee, 78, actually brought in a digger to clear muck and silt from the Chil Brook, running past his bungalow, at Corlan Farm, Eynsham, after the July floods.

But, following the heavy rain earlier this month, the water again burst through on to his land - though this time not getting into the property.

He blames the Environment Agency for not getting the brook cleared downstream, and for not taking action over a small historic bridge, which cannot cope with excessive water flow.

Mr Lee lives with his wife, Louise, 70, at the bungalow, but on July 20, more than a foot of water came in. They have been living in a caravan on site, along with their daughter, Shelley Beaver, and dehumidifying the house.

Mr Lee said: "We've been here 13 years, and the brook has put our property in danger three times now.

POLICE are urging people to take simple steps to avoid becoming victims of crime as the clocks go back this weekend.

Crime reduction advisors at Thames Valley Police are urging people to be prepared for darker evenings and have issued some tips to think about at this time of year including:

Trimming overgrown trees and hedges that obscure lighting or might hide a burglar from your neighbours or passers by.

AN OXFORD charity is hoping to light up the city's skies, and help keep a pioneering children's hospice running, in one fell swoop.

Next Saturday's massive fireworks display in South Park will be the 40th Oxford Round Table has organised.

And organisers have set themselves the target of raising £11,000, enough to keep Helen and Douglas House hospices in East Oxford running for a day.

Oxford Round Table decided to pledge money raised at last year's event to help the hospice.

Table vice-chairman Jason Priest said: "We have always done small donations, but this was the largest single donation that Oxford Round Table has ever made.

"In the hospice national campaign they talked about how much it cost to run them, so we did our calculations and decided we would sponsor a whole day to kickstart their scheme and maybe get other people to sponsor a day too."

Raising £11,000 in a day is no mean feat.

Average diesel prices have risen above £1 a litre to a record high as the cost of crude oil continues to forge higher.

A litre of diesel, which fuels around a third of UK vehicles, now costs an average of 100.15p, according to the AA and industry researchers Catalyst.

With oil prices now above $90 a barrel, experts says it is only a matter of time before petrol prices follow suit.

The average price of a litre of unleaded petrol is now 97.92p, just below its record high of 98.54p.

The price of oil is rising amid tension over possible military action by the Turkish army against Kurdish rebels in Iraq and as a weak dollar makes oil a cheaper investment.

The Communication Workers' Union (CWU) has called off strike action which had been set for later this week.

The suspension comes as the union's executive continues talks on whether to accept a Royal Mail deal.

The CWU must decide whether or not to recommend the offer, which is aimed at resolving a long-running row over pay, jobs and pensions.

An announcement is expected on Tuesday on whether the CWU will accept Royal Mail's 6.9% pay rise over two years.

A series of 48-hour stoppages and unofficial walkouts is estimated to have cost Royal Mail more than £200m.

The union had plans for strikes to be carried out in various parts of the country on different days this week.

Postal workers' union leaders are meeting to decide whether to accept a deal to end nationwide strike action at the Royal Mail.

If the postal executive of the Communication Workers' Union (CWU) accepts the settlement, a ballot of 130,000 workers will be called.

The BBC has learned that under Friday's outline deal,CWU members will get a 6.9% pay rise over 18 months.

Despite Friday's agreement, some wildcat action continued on Monday.

Liverpool and parts of London are affected by the unofficial action, which is likely to add to the backlog of mail in these areas.

POSTAL workers in Oxfordshire returned to work this morning but union leaders are warning it could be Friday before any mail is delivered.

Communication Workers Union representative Bob Cullen said there was a backlog of "millions and millions" of letters and parcels at the Oxford Mail Centre in Cowley.

As a result, staff who would normally be delivering mail have been called in to help with the mass sorting operation.

Mr Cullen said: "The problem is that it is not just mail backed up in the system - the public and businesses have been told to hold back until today and there is going to be a deluge of new mail."

Meanwhile, postal workers in the Liverpool and Glasgow areas refused to go back to work today and there are fears the wildcat action could spread nationally.

The situation is also likely to remain chaotic next week with strike action staggered across the service on different days.

Talks over pay, jobs and pensions remain deadlocked, although the CWU claims there has been significant movement.

But Royal Mail chief executive Adam Crozier fuelled the flames by claiming Royal Mail staff were paid 25 per cent more than workers in rival post firms.

He added that other companies in the business were 40 per cent more efficient, which is why the Royal Mail wanted a long-term solution to the current dispute to help it compete more effectively.

Source: Witney Gazette.

Since his weekend decision not to hold a general election Mr Brown has sought to regain the political initiative with statements on Iraq and on his government's tax and longer-term spending plans.

But those tax plans - on inheritance tax, "non-doms" and green taxes on flights - have prompted accusations from both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats that their policies have been stolen.

In the Commons, Mr Brown faced a volley of abuse from Mr Cameron, who accused him of lacking courage and "bottle".

'Flunk an election'

The Tory leader mocked the prime minister for denying that he would not have called an election even if the polls showed he would have secured a 100 seat majority.

"Do you expect anyone to believe that?" asked Mr Cameron, who added that Mr Brown's failure to hold a referendum on the EU treaty also "damages your credibility".

WITNEY was in the pink on Saturday, when a dedicated band of women held their annual Breast Cancer Awareness Month fundraiser.

The sixth Witney in the Pink Day was an enormous success - with £5,000 raised for the Oxfordshire charity Against Breast Cancer by the Witney Fundraising Team.

The town was a sea of pink balloons and pink shop window displays in what has become a very popular community event, as well as a hugely successful fundraiser.

As a band of volunteers shook tins, shoppers were entertained by Hazazz belly dancers, Mason's Apron clog dancers, soprano Elizabeth Cameron and Witney Town Band. Even Witney police officers got into the spirit of the occasion by wearing bright pink ties.

The event was opened by the Mayor of Witney Chrissie Curry, resplendent in a pink wig, who arrived in a bright lipstick pink convertible Mini driven by Karen Gibson, before cutting a pink ribbon stretched across the High Street. She then toured the town to judge the shop window display competition and the winner was Vente Tsunami hair salon, with Top Bags second, Mellers Art Café third and Reids hair salon highly commended.

A Big Pink Balloon race, with prizes donated by The Good Deal Directory, Lloyds-TSB Bank in Witney, and the North Oxford Mini garage at Long Hanborough, was a huge success, as was the sale of helium-filled balloons to youngsters. Stalls selling pink accessories, cakes, jewellery and bric-a-brac also did a good trade. T-shirts from the Perfectly Pink Company were snapped up, and shops and businesses in Witney supported the cause with their own fundraising events too.

OXFORDSHIRE was today facing up to the start of yet another postal strike.

About 2,000 workers across the county were due to walk out at noon today, along with colleagues across the UK, as the next round of action in the national dispute is launched.

Staff will stay out for 48 hours until 12pm on Saturday, but effectively there will be no deliveries as another two-day strike starts at 3am on Monday.

The disruption is expected to cause a backlog of millions of items of mail, which union officials say could take up to two weeks to clear.

The strikes focus on pay, changes to working conditions and also the closure of the Oxford Mail Centre in Cowley, which has been put on the national agenda.

Oxfordshire Communication Workers Union representative Bob Cullen said: "If the situation is allowed to continue, what we are facing is the end of the Royal Mail in three years.

"We have got to win it back, but if we don't have the equipment, the offices or the capacity to handle the mail, then it won't happen."

Businesses are facing up to the prospect of another damaging period of no deliveries.

Barry Wheatley, chairman of the Oxfordshire Federation of Small Businesses, said: "This just puts more pressure in businesses and people are now looking for alternatives. We are an advanced economy and to not have a reliable postal service is unacceptable."

Source: Witney Gazette

A PLASTICS firm is creating new jobs and undergoing major expansion after completing its ninth acquisition in ten years.

Data Plastics, in Station Lane, Witney, has seen its turnover soar, with managers confidently predicting it will reach £3.5m this year, up almost 40 per cent on 2006.

The firm has also taken on seven staff this year, taking its workforce to more than 50, and it is looking for three more to fill senior positions.

Managing director, Joe Reeve, said the firm had actually profited from the recession in the UK plastics industry.

He added: "When we started, there were about 5,500 dealers in the UK, but now there are 780. We have grown by buying out other companies, but we have also managed to grow organically."

PETROL prices were on the verge of breaking the £1 barrier today as motorists were warned to expect further price rises this week.

Car owners have borne the brunt of Monday's 2p rise on fuel duty and the AA predicted prices would increase further by Friday as supermarkets used up their remaining stock bought before the rise.

Private motorists and businesses, who have seen the average price of unleaded petrol rise 7p in the past 12 months, spoke of their dismay at the prospect of more increases.

Some predicted rises in taxi fares and a tough time for small businesses and families who have been forced to swallow the increase.

Yesterday, motorists in Yarnton teetered on the verge of a £1 litre of unleaded fuel as Blenheim Service Station in Woodstock Road raised prices to 99.9p.

Diesel prices peaked at 102p at the BP garage in Thame Road, Stadhampton, while an Asda self-service petrol station in London Road, Wheatley, claimed the cheapest prices for unleaded petrol and diesel at 93.9p and 95.9p respectively.

Brendan McLoughlin, co-founder of website www.petrolprices.com, said: "I would be very surprised if the price doesn't go up to £1.

"The future of the price of petrol is pretty bleak."

MOTORISTS have been caught speeding at up to 65mph in a crackdown run today by Thames Valley Police and Oxfordshire County Council.

Police and road safety officers carried out speed checks for two hours this morning on the A329 between the villages of Stadhampton and Little Milton.

Between 8.30am and 10.30am, 14 motorists were pulled over for driving at excess speed along the 50mph road. All were issued with a fixed penalty ticket of £60 and three penalty points.

However, 12 motorists caught driving at speeds below 62 mph were offered the chance to speak with county council road safety officers and, after taking advice, were allowed to hand their ticket back.

PC Mark Pilling, from Abingdon Road Policing Department, said: "I had visited the site before today's event and it was clear to me that there is an issue with speed.

"In the past six years between Stadhampton and the M40 junction there have been three fatalities, 23 injury collisions and a number of non-injury accidents. Nine of those were classified as serious injury collisions.

GLAMOUR model Danielle Lloyd posed on a pink sofa to help raise funds for the Oxfordshire charity Against Breast Cancer (ABC).

Danielle was approached by ABC's Witney fundraising team to help promote the auction of a bespoke pink sofa, manufactured and donated by the Witney company, Wesley-Barrell, to coincide with National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October).

Accompanied by Natasha Hall, a member of Witney ABC, Danielle was driven by Neil Haine from her home in Essex to Witney to do the photoshoot at the studios of photographer Stephen Randall.

Danielle, 23, posed on the pale pink sofa with her pet Pomeranian dog, called Trouble. She modelled a T-shirt from the Perfectly Pink range - £2 from every T-shirt sold is donated to ABC.

She was happy to help the charity, following her own breast cancer scare earlier this year.

She said: "When I was working in New York, I found a lump in my breast. Because I was working so much, I didn't actually tell anyone about it for about three months. I have a good friend who is a surgeon at the Linda McCartney Centre, and when I finally told him that I'd discovered this lump some time earlier, he went absolutely mental!

"He sent me for a biopsy, and I had the lump removed - luckily, it was benign."

LAND which was under water ten weeks ago at a notorious flooding area of Witney has been given planning permission for 15 new homes.

West Oxfordshire District Council has approved the scheme, near the corner of Crawley Road and Hailey Road, despite warnings and fears of worse flooding from residents and one of its own councillors.

A key factor, however, is that the Environment Agency did not object because the site, at 1A Crawley Road, is not actually within the River Windrush floodplain.

Yet the property next door, owned by the county council, is still not back in use because of July flood damage, caused by a massive surge of run-off water which the drains in Hailey Road could not cope with.

Resident Malcolm Willis, who lives opposite, is unable to return home while his property is being dehumidified.

He and his wife are still living in temporary accommodation in the town.

He said this week: "We were flooded just like many others on July 20.

WITNEY is gearing up for its annual Pink Day - and organisers promise it will be bigger and better than ever.

The sixth Witney in the Pink Day takes place on Saturday, October 6, and the Witney fundraising team of the Oxfordshire charity Against Breast Cancer (ABC) is aiming to smash last year's record total of £5,000, with a packed programme of community fun.

As always, the town centre will be a vista of pink balloons, and ABC Witney is hoping that as many shops and businesses as possible will show their support by putting up balloons and taking part in the best dressed shop window competition - which will be judged by the town mayor, Chrissie Curry, who will be chauffeured by Karen Gibson in her pink Mini.

Witney in the Pink Day is the Witney team's major fundraising event of the year. Last year, they raised more than £24,000 from a range of events - from a ladies' dinner and fashion show to craft stalls and coffee mornings.

THE owners of Witney's main shopping centre are planning a revamp to increase the number of stores.

A substantial two-storey extension is to be built after partially demolishing the Cargo shop in the Woolgate Centre.

French Square, outside the Waitrose supermarket, is also to be realigned under plans submitted by owners the Universities Superannuation Scheme, and approved by West Oxfordshire District Council's lowlands planning sub-committee.

However, the clock tower, imitating the town's landmark Buttercross, is to be retained.

The changes will result in two new shops, while the facilities for cyclists in the town are to be enhanced by doubling the number of racks from 36 to 72.