IMO BREAKING NEWS BLOG

Twelve people have died in a west London tower block fire and the number of deaths are expected to rise, police have said. Firefighters rescued 65 people from Grenfell Tower in north Kensington, after they were called at 00:54 BST. Eyewitnesses said people were trapped in tower block, screaming for help and yelling for their children to be saved. Policing and fire minister Nick Hurd said checks are now planned on similar tower blocks.

The ambulance service said 68 patients had been taken to six hospitals across London, with 18 in critical care. A further 10 patients made their own way to hospital. During the night, eyewitnesses said they saw lights - thought to be mobile phones or torches - flashing at the top of the block of flats, and trapped residents coming to their windows - some holding children. It is understood that "several hundred" people would have been in the block when the fire broke out shortly after midnight, most of them sleeping.

An emergency number - 0800 0961 233 - has been set up for anyone concerned about friends or family.

Atletico Madrid's Antoine Griezmann has extended his contract by a year, with his new deal expiring in 2022. The 26-year-old France forward had been heavily linked with Manchester United, and said last month there was a "6/10" chance he could move to Old Trafford this summer. But he agreed to stay at Atletico after the club had a transfer ban upheld. "The first thing I want to do is apologise to people who misunderstood my statements," Griezmann said.

"Since I have arrived, I have given everything for my club, my colleagues and my coaching staff." Atletico cannot sign anyone until January after failing in an appeal against a ban imposed in July 2016 for breaching Fifa rules over the signing of youth players. Griezmann, capped 41 times, scored 26 goals in 2016-17 as Atletico finished third in La Liga behind Real Madrid and Barcelona. He was named the third best player in the world, behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, at the Ballon d'Or ceremony in January.

Griezmann, who played in France's 2-1 defeat by Sweden in World Cup qualifying on Friday, is in the squad to face England in a friendly on Tuesday.

A man's mental state can be attributed to a number of factors many of them serious, but when it gravitates to attempting suicide or actually taking own lives, then it becomes a source of worry. A motion seeking to address this very strange occurrence in Nigeria has been moved by Senator Oluremi Tinubu in plenary where the federal government has been urged to embark on a mental health sensitisation and awareness campaigns.

Nigerians are known to be among the happiest people on earth so many wonder why the spate of suicides and suicide attempts resulting from mental disorder is on the increase.

The motions is concerned that incidences of these suicides are made worse by lack of attention and the belief that depression and other mental disorders are alien to Nigerians.

Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday declared that the National Assembly has no right to introduce new projects during consideration of national budgets. Osinbajo, who signed the 2017 Budget into law on Monday, said that the National Assembly only has the right to allocate funds for projects in the budgetary proposals submitted by the Executive arm of government.

Osinbajo spoke on Tuesday during the Flag-off of the 2018 Budget and ERGP Implementation Plan Development Process by the Ministry of Budget and National Planning at the old Banquet Hall of the State House Abuja. He also harped on the need for full attention by all Ministers, permanent secretaries and heads of government agencies to the details of the budget.

Noting that this year is very crucial, he said that President Muhammadu Buhari is very concerned with the budget and its full implementation.

Dino Melaye is the Senator representing Kogi West and for some time now has been having a running battle with the Governor of his state Yahaya Bello.

The Senator has called the Governor all kind of unprintable name just to get the point of his dislike for him across. Recently he was at a rally in Kogi State where some fracas erupted causing the death of one person and shooting at the Senator’s car.

The matter has been brought to the Senate by Senator Melaye who is calling on the Senate to declare a State of Emergency on the state.

The Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, on Tuesday, commenced a series of consultations with leaders across the country on the recent quit notice handed down to people of the South East to leave the Northern part of the country. Osinbajo kicked off the consultations with a meeting with leaders from the Northern part of the country. He is expected to meet with those from the South East separately before he will eventually meet with both groups together. His Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande, confirmed this in a series of tweets on his Twitter handle.

“Acting President Osinbajo will start a series of consultations with Leaders of Thought from the Northern and Eastern regions of the country this afternoon (Tuesday). “Osinbajo will first meet each group separately on different days this week and then meet them together afterwards,” Akande wrote. He also confirmed that the Acting President met with security chiefs over the weekend on the need to ensure that Nigerians are protected in every part of the country.

“The Acting President met over the weekend with security chiefs and gave firm instructions on need to protect lives and property of all Nigerians always, everywhere,” he added.