Dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei has been refused a six-month visa by the British government amid claims he lied on his visa application form.

Ai posted a letter on Instagram stating his entry to the UK had been restricted because he failed to declare his "criminal conviction".
But Ai, though detained in China for 81 days in 2011, has never been charged or convicted of a crime in China.
The artist was granted a 20-day visa to attend the opening of his London show.
However, it may mean he cannot supervise the installation of the landmark solo exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts which has a private preview on 15 September.
The letter, from the visa section of the British embassy in Beijing, stated Ai's entry to the UK "has been restricted to the requested dates of travel... because you have failed to meet the business visitor rules".
The document, signed by an entry clearance manager from the UK Visas and Immigration department, continued: "It is a matter of public record that you have previously received a criminal conviction in China, and you have not declared this.
"While an exception has been made in this instance, any future application you submit must be completed as accurately as possible," the letter concluded, adding the artist might otherwise face a 10-year ban if he did not comply.
In a separate post on Instagram, Ai stated he "has never been charged or convicted of a crime" and had "attempted to clarify this claim with the UK Visas and Immigration Department and the British Embassy in Beijing over several telephone conversations".
"But the representatives insisted on the accuracy of their sources and refused to admit any misjudgement. This decision is a denial of Ai Weiwei's rights as an ordinary citizen," he added.
Last week, Ai had his passport returned to him after it was confiscated by authorities four years ago.
It was taken when he was arrested in 2011 during a government crackdown on political activists. He was held over alleged crimes of bigamy and tax evasion, but was released without charge.
Ai was fined 15m yuan ($2.4m, Â£1.55m) for tax evasion in a civil case in 2012. The artist lost an appeal against the fine - which he maintains was politically motivated in retaliation for his criticism of the Chinese government.
In a statement, Britain's Home Office said visa applications were considered "on their individual merits and in line with the relevant legislation".
It added: "Mr Ai has been granted a visa for the full duration of his requested dates of travel".
Ai's 20-day visa means he will not be in the UK when China's President Xi Jinping make a high-profile state visit in October - potentially avoiding any diplomatic embarrassment at a time when Britain is trying to improve relations with China.
The BBC has asked the Home Office to clarify what criminal conviction it believes Ai has, but has yet to receive a response.
Tim Marlow, artistic director at the Royal Academy of Arts, said: "We're concerned that Ai Weiwei has not been granted a six month UK visa by the British government.
"We hope for a speedy resolution to this situation and we continue to look forward to welcoming Ai Weiwei at the Royal Academy for his first major institutional exhibition in the UK this September."
Amnesty UK's James Savage said: "Whilst on this occasion this could be an administrative error that we hope will likely be swiftly rectified, Ai Weiwei's case does speak to a wider problem.
"The Chinese authorities routinely charge and convict human rights defenders with spurious, politically motivated criminal offences, for precisely the reasons this case illustrates, to tarnish an individual's reputation and make it difficult for them to travel freely and raise their concerns internationally."
It was only this month the Chinese authorities returned Ai Weiwei's confiscated passport after holding onto it for almost four years.
The dissident artist was clearly delighted at the prospect of travel and did not hang around when it came to applying for visas.
It probably came as a bit of shock then when he was accused by a British official of lying on his visa application form.
His detention in 2011 caused an international outcry, but he was never actually charged or convicted of any crime.
That fact appears to have escaped the British bureaucrats processing his visa.
The UK embassy in Beijing has yet to comment on whether it considers Ai a convicted criminal.
This may well turn out to be nothing more than an embarrassing bureaucratic blunder.
But the visa decision means that the artist will not be in the UK when China's President Xi Jinping arrives for a state visit in October.
The artist is a well-known critic of the ruling Communist party.
And rightly or wrongly, some of his supporters will see this as a UK attempt to curry favour with Beijing.


Paul Trollope has left Wales' coaching staff to concentrate on his role as Cardiff City's head coach.

Trollope succeeded Russell Slade as Bluebirds boss in May and had been working with Wales since July 2015.
He is expected to be replaced in the Welsh set-up by predecessor Kit Symons.
Having been Wales manager Chris Coleman's number two since 2012, Symons left in June 2015 to take charge of Fulham, but the 45-year-old was sacked six month later.
That paves the way for Symons to return to his international role with Coleman, his former Wales and Fulham centre-back partner.
Trollope was with Wales during their historic Euro 2016 campaign, helping his country reach a major tournament semi-final for the first time.
He had been juggling international duties with his club commitments, having joined Slade's coaching team at Cardiff in February 2015.
Slade was removed as manager of the Championship club at the end of last season and was initially given a new role as head of football, but lasted only 28 days in the job before leaving the club.
That allowed former Wales, Derby and Fulham midfielder Trollope to take the reins.
He will be assisted by ex-Cardiff boss Lennie Lawrence - who he worked with at Bristol Rovers - and James Rowberry, while Wales' head of performance Ryland Morgans has joined the Bluebirds as performance director.


Ever fancied a prawn with your pint or a crabstick instead of the usual end-of-night kebab?

That is the luxury "Dave the cockle man" has been serving to Nottingham pub-goers for the past 50 years, with barely a day off.
Despite being 60 miles from the sea, Dave Bartram - thought to be the only trader of his kind left in the UK - tours the pubs of the city on foot, clad in his trademark whites.
Serving up prawns, cockles, mussels - and even the occasional Pepperami stick - from his basket, he is instantly recognisable to Nottingham folk.
Mr Bartram, 67, is a "legend", they will tell you.  He is a little more modest.
"If I wasn't doing it I'd pull my hair out because I'm that used to it," he said.
Now, his five decades in the seafood trade have led father and son filmmakers Mark and Matt Daunt to create a short film about how the cockle man came to be.
The film, which is being premiered at Screen 22 in Hockley on Thursday evening, will form part of a series planned on other Nottingham "legends", the Daunts say.
They spent months following Mr Bartram on his nightly trawls of pubs and bars to create the 15-minute film.
Matt, 22, said: "Everyone who's been drinking in pubs in Nottingham for the last 50 years knows who he is. He's a legend. People shout at him in the street.
"But, in a nice way."
The cockle man is held in such high esteem in Nottingham that he even has his has own parody Twitter account - usually the reserve of national celebrities - and more than 1,600 people have joined a Facebook campaign calling for him to be given the Freedom of the City.
Despite the clamour Graham Chapman, deputy leader of Nottingham City Council, said Mr Bartram's "enormous contribution" to Nottingham life may not be significant enough to merit such an honour, but he is open to suggestions.
Mr Bartram sells his wares seven days a week - and has done since he started aged 17 in 1964, when he worked for a local fishmonger.
When his boss emigrated to Spain, he formed D&S Seafoods with wife Shirley.
When Mrs Bartram died 18 years ago, he thought about closing the lid on his basket for good. But, he was convinced to carry on by Nottingham's supportive landlords.
"There's an awful lot of support out there for me," he said.
Mark Daunt, 51, said: "There's a line in the film where someone says to Dave, 'You are an institution', and that's exactly what he is."
There were so many stories to tell that one used in the film's trailer did not make the final cut but was too good to edit out, the filmmakers said, especially because of how rare he has become.
"We did a bit of research and couldn't find any other cockle men. The ones we did find had long since died," said Mark.
Jonathan Adams, president of the National Federation of Fishmongers, also said he knows of no-one else who does what Dave does.
"It's certainly possible that he's the only cockle man left," he explained.
"It's true that 15 or 20 years ago there used to be a lot of people who went around selling cockles and mussels but you just don't see them any more."
Perhaps one reason the cockle man's ilk is in short supply these days is the various workplace hazards one can encounter working the streets of a city, often late at night.
Mr Bartram's trusty basket once saved him from a serious injury when a drunken reveller plunged a pair of scissors into it, puncturing his prawn sauce - and he even had a close shave with a lit firework.
He explained: "I had a firework in my basket. It was in the Hand and Heart pub. I just started to feel warm and suddenly - boof! I see one in my basket.
"I would have had to go home, I'd lost my stock. I said to the landlord, I'm not coming back no more. He said, 'No, you're coming back tomorrow'.
"He locked the doors, wouldn't let anybody out. He said 'we're going to have a collection' and bought me a new coat.
"The police don't worry about me. I'm not violent but if I get into bother, I've got my basket to push them over with."


A woman has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a man's body was found in Coventry.

The body of the 50-year-old was found at an address on Henley Road after police were called to the scene on Tuesday evening.
West Midlands Police said the woman, aged 54, is being questioned by officers.
Police would like anyone with information to contact them or Crimestoppers anonymously.
More on this and other news from Coventry and Warwickshire


With the passing of Islam Karimov, who has died aged 78 after suffering a stroke, Uzbekistan has lost its first and so far only president.

His rule saw the country emerge from the collapsing Soviet Union to become an independent nation.
But his more than two decades in power have been marred by lurid allegations of state violence, elections derided as a sham and a public spat that led to the fall from grace of his own daughter.
Karimov was born in 1938 in Samarkand, one of Central Asia's oldest inhabited cities and a key stopping point along the Silk Road.
He was raised in an orphanage before studying engineering and economics at university.
The years that followed saw him rise up the ranks in Uzbekistan's Communist Party, becoming first secretary in 1989 at a time when the Soviet Union was becoming increasingly fragile.
In 1991, Karimov declared Uzbekistan independent and went on to win the country's first presidential election by a huge margin, in what Human Rights Watch termed a "seriously marred" vote.
That pattern has repeated itself throughout his presidency. In last year's election, he was re-elected with 90% in a vote observers said fell far short of international standards.
His rivals themselves offered implicit backing for Karimov during the vote, praising the country's "achievements" since independence.
Karimov's near-monopoly on power was enabled by stifling dissent. Opposition politicians and human rights campaigners have been jailed or thrown out of the country. Independent press outlets have been described as "virtually nonexistent".
Last year, Amnesty said that it was an "open secret that anyone who falls out of favour with the authorities can be detained and tortured in Uzbekistan".
According to another notorious allegation, denied by the authorities, two prisoners were boiled to death in 2002.
Activists and witnesses say state forces killed hundreds of demonstrators in the eastern city of Andijan in 2005, an incident the government blamed on Islamist extremism.
Critics accuse Karimov's government of over-exaggerating the Islamist threat to attract foreign aid and crack down on opposition.
Thousands of ordinary Muslims are believed to have been jailed.
While Karimov's human rights' record has been criticised by international governments, Uzbekistan remains a useful ally, with the US using the country as a base during the Afghan war.
Uzbekistan also controls substantial reserves of oil, gas and gold, and is a major producer of cotton.
Karimov's death raises questions about the stability of a country for so long dominated by one man and who will succeed him.
Power struggles have been going on for years, though, as rivals jockeyed for position to replace the ageing leader.
Karimov's daughter Gulnara was once regarded as a possible successor, but she was reportedly placed under house arrest in 2014 and has not appeared in public since.
His other daughter Lola, Uzbekistan's ambassador to Unesco, officially confirmed her father suffered a stroke on her Instagram page, after a government statement saying only that he was in hospital.
That the Uzbek authorities acknowledged Karimov's illness at all, after persistent rumours about poor health, was a sign his condition was grave.
Among the current contenders to replace him are Prime Minister Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Azimov.


A man has been charged with wilful fire-raising aggravated by religious and racial prejudice after a fire at a mosque in Edinburgh.

Thomas Conington, 28, appeared in private before Sheriff Kevin Drummond at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Monday.
He was also charged with an offence under the Explosive Substances Act
His appearance in court follows reports of fire damage to the Edinburgh Central Mosque in Potterrow in the early hours of Sunday, 18 September.
No plea or declaration was made and the case was continued for further inquiry.
Mr Conington was remanded in custody.


Social media companies in Germany face fines of up to 50m euros ($57.1; Â£43.9m) if they fail to remove "obviously illegal" content in time.

From October, Facebook, YouTube, and other sites with more than two million users in Germany must take down posts containing hate speech or other criminal material within 24 hours.
Content that is not obviously unlawful must be assessed within seven days.
The new law is one of the toughest of its kind in the world.
Failure to comply will result in a 5m euro penalty, which could rise to 50m euros depending on the severity of the offence.
In a statement, Facebook said it shared the goal of the German government to fight hate speech.
It added: "We believe the best solutions will be found when government, civil society and industry work together and that this law as it stands now will not improve efforts to tackle this important societal problem."
German MPs voted in favour of the Netzwerkdurchsetzungsgesetz (NetzDG) law after months of deliberation, on the last legislative day before the Bundestag's summer break.
But it has already been condemned by human rights groups and industry representatives.
They claim the tight time limits are unrealistic, and will lead to accidental censorship as technology companies err on the side of caution and delete ambiguous posts to avoid paying penalties.
The law will not come into force until after the German federal elections, which will be held in September.
Justice Minister Heiko Maas singled out Facebook, which has some 30 million users in Germany, saying experience had shown that without political pressure, "the large platform operators would not fulfil their obligations" to take down illegal content.
He added that while the law "does not solve all problems", it tackles the issue of hate crimes on social media, which are "increasingly a problem in many countries".
Mr Maas, who oversaw the legislation, told the German parliament that online hate crimes had increased by almost 300% in the past few years, adding that "no one should be above the law".
The bill was drafted after several high-profile incidents of fake news and criminal hate speech being spread on social media sites in Germany.
One case involved the targeting of prominent Green MP Renate Kunast, with a post that falsely suggested she was sympathetic to a refugee who had murdered a German student in the southern city of Freiburg.
For its part, Facebook said it had already made "substantial progress" in removing illegal content, and called into question the efficacy of the law.
The company recently announced it had hired an extra 3,000 staff (on top of the 4,500 it already has) to help monitor "the millions of reports" that come through every week.
Social media companies also point to a recent report by the European Commission, which showed that some 80% of all reported illegal content is already removed in Germany.
In addition to social media sites themselves, three voluntary, independent bodies currently monitor the German internet.
The BBC was given access to one of them, run by Eco, the German Association of the Internet Industry, in Cologne.
In a small, heavily secured office, three legal experts sifted through thousands of complaints from members of the public.
One example shown to the BBC was of a YouTube video titled "Sieg Heil", a phrase that can be illegal in Germany.
The video was reported to the local police in North-Rhine Westphalia, and followed up with the social network itself after a few days.
But the organisers of the facility, which has been in existence for 15 years, are also concerned about NetzDG, which they say has been "rushed through" for political expediency.
"It takes time to define if a complaint's content is really illegal or not," said Alexander Rabe, a member of the Eco board, which was consulted by the government on the draft law.
Mr Rabe also pointed out that much of what many might deem to be "fake news" or hate speech on their social media feeds was not in fact illegal content under current German law.
The bill has also faced criticism from human right's campaigners.
"Many of the violations covered by the bill are highly dependent on context, context which platforms are in no position to assess," wrote the UN Special Rapporteur to the High Commissioner for Human Rights, David Kaye.
He added that "the obligations placed upon private companies to regulate and take down content raises concern with respect to freedom of expression".
The law could still be stopped in Brussels, where campaigners have claimed it breaches EU laws.


Forty inmates escaped from jail in the eastern Brazilian city of Recife after a bomb was used to blow a hole in an external wall, authorities there say.

Most of the prisoners were captured after a manhunt through local streets lasting several hours, but two were killed and one remains at large.
It is the second mass breakout in the area in a week.
On Wednesday, 53 men escaped from another jail on the city outskirts and only 13 of them have since been found.
Social media images broadcast on Brazilian TV captured the moment when the explosion ripped through the external wall of the Frei Damiao de Bozanno prison.
Minutes before a man in the street walked up to the prison wall, left a package and moved quickly away.
Seconds after the blast, dozens of men are seen leaping through the hole in a cloud of dust.
They fanned out into the residential streets, many running into houses.
The prison guard's union said it had warned the authorities that a breakout was imminent.
It said that at the time of the explosion, only half the observation towers at the prison were manned because of staff shortages.
The union said that the state of Pernambuco in which Recife lies has little more than 1,500 prison guards for its penitentiaries when there should be at least 5,000.
Prisons in the state are often run by electing inmates to maintain security alongside the guards.
The union also said that like most Brazilian jails, this one was severely overcrowded.
The prison complex houses four times the number of prisoners it was built for.


US officials say Egypt and the UAE were behind air strikes in Libya last week that targeted Islamist-linked militia.

A senior US official told the BBC that Washington was not consulted about the attacks and was "caught off-guard".
The air strikes on militia positions around Tripoli's international airport were reportedly carried out by Emirati fighter jets using bases in Egypt.
The Egyptian authorities have denied involvement, and there has been no direct comment from the UAE.
The strikes failed to stop militias from Misrata and other cities, which operate under the banner Libya Dawn and include some Islamist groups, seizing the airport from a militia from Zintan that had controlled it since 2011.
The BBC's Rana Jawad in Tripoli says the Misrata alliance is now effectively in control of the capital because their rivals have withdrawn from the city.
She says that life has largely come to a standstill, with many business and offices closed, while many residents are afraid.
Hundreds of people have died during more than a month of fighting which has left the airport in ruins.
What US officials have described as a pair of air strikes in and around Tripoli airport by jets from the United Arab Emirate is remarkable for a number of reasons.
Firstly the fact that the small Gulf state - staging from an airfield in Egypt -  carried out the attacks at all.
This is very unusual - a mark of the growing unease of the region's traditional rulers at the upheavals prompted by radical Islamists.
Secondly there is the fact that neither the UAE, nor Egypt, told Washington in advance. It is a measure of the declining standing in the region of the Obama administration, which is widely seen as hesitant and vacillating.
Of course, the US was significantly involved in the operation to oust Libya's former regime, but since then, neither it nor its partners like Britain and France, have shown much ability to influence events on the ground.
The official told the BBC that the US had not been consulted about the air strikes and that it was concerned that US weapons may have been used, violating agreements under which they were sold.
A report in The New York Times on Monday said the UAE had provided the military aircraft, aerial refuelling planes and crews while Egypt gave access to its air bases.
The first air strikes, which took place on 18 August, targeted a small weapons depot and other militia positions, US officials told the newspaper. Six people were reportedly killed.
Then on Saturday, jets bombed rocket launchers, military vehicles and a warehouse controlled by militiamen, the officials added, leaving at least a dozen people dead.
On Monday, the US, France, Germany, Italy and the UK issued a joint statement denouncing "outside interference" in Libya which it said "exacerbates current divisions and undermines Libya's democratic transition".
The BBC's Barbara Plett Usher in Washington says the air strikes have exposed another battleground in a regional struggle for power between Arab autocrats and Islamist movements.
Qatar has provided weapons and money to Islamist forces in Libya and elsewhere, she says, while Egypt and the UAE along with Saudi Arabia are trying to roll back Islamist advances.
Violence in Libya has surged recently between the rival groups who overthrew Muammar Gaddafi in the 2011 uprising.
Libya's police and army remain weak in comparison with the militia.
Misrata-led alliance (Libya Dawn):
Zintan-led alliance:
Why is Libya lawless?
Guide to Libya's militias
In another development on Monday, some members of Libya's previous Islamist-dominated parliament reconvened and voted to disband the country's interim government.
Elections in June saw the old General National Congress (GNC), where Islamists had a strong voice, replaced by the House of Representatives, dominated by liberals and federalists.
The GNC has refused to acknowledge the legitimacy of its successor assembly, which is based in Tobruk and is recognised by the international community.
The GNC's mandate expired in June and not enough of its former members gathered in Tripoli on Monday to form a quorum.
The House of Representatives says the groups now in control of Tripoli are "terrorist organisations".
But the Misrata-led brigade has called on the GNC to resume work.
Libya's government has repeatedly called for the militia groups to disband and join the national army. But so far, few have shown a willingness to disarm.


Online payment service Paypal plans to enter the discount coupon market.

The eBay-owned business said it planned to launch the service in the US before April 2012.
Paypal's president, Scott Thompson, told the Bloomberg news agency that his firm would use its knowledge of its 103 million members' past purchases to tailor offers.
The move poses a challenge to the sector's two biggest players, Groupon and Livingsocial.
Daily deal businesses offer their members the chance to buy goods or services - from spa treatments and sushi to cheap flights and theatre tickets - at a steep discount.
Buyers are usually limited to using the coupons within a restricted time span.
The daily dealer business then splits the revenue with the organisation providing the goods. Companies may make a loss on the specific offer, but profit if customers return for repeat business.
According to the daily deal data aggregator Yipit, four of the biggest players
          sold close to $210m (Â£135m) worth of coupons
 in the US in October. The firms surveyed were Groupon, Livingsocial, Amazonlocal and Google Offers.
Mr Thompson said Paypal's service would be "different" because the firm would only offer unique and relevant offers rather than "bombard" its members.
A spokesman for the company hinted it might launch coupons in the UK soon after the US.
"We don't have any specific plans to bring this to the UK at this stage," said spokesman Rob Skinner.
"But Britain is Paypal's second biggest market after the United States, and the past shows that the big developments in the US tends to travel across the Atlantic to the UK very quickly."
Although analysts forecast growth for the sector, they have repeatedly warned that the firms involved are likely to face increasing competition because the barrier to entry is relatively low.
In the past two years KGB Deals, Time Out, Grabone, the Telegraph newspaper, Discountvouchers, STV and Mightydeals are among those to have started targeting the UK public with discounted coupon offers.
However, while it may be relatively easy to enter the market, some firms are finding it hard to replicate Groupon and Livingsocial's success.
"Daily deals are hard to do - the key to success is flawless execution of the sales process," said Shane Hayes, founder of the deal aggregator service Siftie.
"Groupon has proved it can do this and its barrier to entry is more than 5,000 local sales people knocking around doors of businesses around the world.
"What we will probably see is next is 'Daily deals 2.0' where things like better targeting, using consumer data, will be used to change consumers' experience of the phenomenon. This may give Paypal an opportunity."
In the meantime Groupon intends to maintain its lead by increasing its range of offers.
Earlier this week, the firm made headlines when it offered a pair of business class tickets to fly around the world with up to 10 stopovers. The asking price was $20,000 (Â£12,900).


A blind and partially deaf dog was rescued by firefighters from a muddy swamp after escaping across a field.

The Labrador ended up in the waterlogged pit in Beaconsfield at about 11:45 BST after her owner accidentally left a gate open.
Crews sent from three stations used a telescopic pole to secure the animal and bring her to safety.
The dog was very muddy and looked somewhat sheepish after her ordeal, but was uninjured, the fire service said.
More tails from the Buckinghamshire newsroom
Crew Commander David James, from Buckinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: "The dog was about eight feet away from solid ground and when we tested the depth of the mud with a wading pole we found that it would be chest-deep if a person entered it."
"The owner was obviously very upset, so the first thing we did was to calm her down so that the dog wouldn't pick up on her anxiety."
Crews used a telescopic six-metre reach pole which they were able to attach to the dog's collar to help her get her footing.
"It's always best to call us in situations like this rather than try to get the animal out yourself," a spokesman for the fire service said.
"We have the proper training and techniques to carry out this sort of rescue.
"Too often we end up having to rescue a person who has tried to get their own animal out of trouble."


League Two side Crawley Town have signed Mansfield Town striker Adi Yussuf on a six-month loan deal.

The 23-year-old, who scored five goals in 30 appearances for the Stags last season, will remain with the Reds until 22 January.
Yussuf has previously had spells at Burton Albion and non-league sides Tamworth, Harrogate Town, Gainsborough Trinity and Oxford City.
He becomes Crawley's 17th signing of the summer transfer window.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.


Warwickshire had to settle for a draw with Middlesex, one of their rivals for second place, in their weather-affected County Championship clash at Edgbaston.

After resuming on 224-8, despite the early loss of Tim Ambrose (89), the Bears added a further 30 before being bowled out for 254 - a 47-run lead.
Jeetan Patel then struck three times to leave Middlesex in trouble on 105-5.
But all-rounder Neil Dexter hit 43 to shore things up before hands were shaken with his side on 173-6.
Dexter, who had also been the visitors' top scorer in the first innings with 53, again supplied the resistance required in a 74-ball knock spread over an hour and a half.
While Tim Murtagh was Middlesex's most successful bowler with 4-55, spinner Ollie Rayner's three wickets were more of a collector's item, having all been taken on different days - one on Wednesday, one on Thursday and one on Friday.
But, in the end, the loss of the entire first day to rain, allied to further interruptions on days two and three, took too much time out of the game for either side to force victory.
Middlesex's nine points strengthened their chances of finishing runners-up to likely champions Yorkshire, who they now host at Lord's, beginning next Wednesday.
Warwickshire, in fourth place, 26 points behind Middlesex, have a 10-day break before they play again, at home to Nottinghamshire at Edgbaston, starting on Monday 14 September.
Warwickshire director of cricket Dougie Brown told BBC WM 95.6:
"Despite the loss of so much time to the weather we still had a decent game on our hands. Another wicket just after tea and who knows what could have happened.
"It was always going to be difficult to manufacture a result. But we deserve quite a bit of credit for getting as close as we did. Batting was never easy and Tim Ambrose's batting, in conjunction with Keith Barker and Chris Wright, was exceptional. That gave us a bit of a chance with a slender lead.
"The title is out of our reach now so all we can do is try to dominate the game we are playing in. In the latter parts of this game we showed that we are a very good side. And we had not shown that in the previous two four-days games."
Middlesex head coach Richard Scott told BBC London 94.9:
"We showed some good battling qualities against some high-quality spin on a wearing pitch. Without the loss of a whole day in the match it could have been a very good contest.
"It wasn't an easy pitch to bat on. We were probably 50 shy in the first innings when it was probably at its best and then when Warwickshire were 86-6x on the third day we just missed a trick with our accuracy, although Tim Ambrose played tremendously well and played the innings of the match.
"They put us under pressure but we handled it well. Neil Dexter batted very well again. He looks on top of his game and is back in control of everything he's doing. He has played three key innings for us in the last two games and really held us together."


Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump has suggested that Rafael Cruz, his chief opponent's father, was connected to the man who killed President John F Kennedy.

In an interview with Fox News, Mr Trump brought up a story that recently appeared in the National Enquirer.
The tabloid published a photo that it says shows Rafael Cruz with Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald.
Ted Cruz's campaign called the article "another garbage story".
"His father was with Lee Harvey Oswald prior to Oswald's being â€” you know, shot. I mean, the whole thing is ridiculous," Mr Trump said on Tuesday.
Trump seeks to knock out Cruz in Indiana
"I mean, what was he doing â€” what was he doing with Lee Harvey Oswald shortly before the death? Before the shooting?"
"Trump is detached from reality and his false, cheap, meaningless comments every day indicate his desperation to get attention and willingness to say anything to do so," the Cruz campaign said in a statement.
Rafael Cruz, who is now a pastor, has campaigned for his son and is urging evangelical Christians to support the Texas senator's bid.
"Vote for the candidate that stands on the word of God and on the Constitution of the United States of America," Rafael Cruz recently said.
"And I am convinced that man is my son, Ted Cruz. The alternative could be the destruction of America."
Rafael Cruz fled Cuba in 1957 and initially supported Fidel Castro's revolution. He later disavowed communism and Mr Castro.
The National Enquirer hired photo experts who say Rafael Cruz appears in images with Oswald taken in August of 1963, a few months before Kennedy's death.
In August 1963, Oswald was working on behalf on a pro-Castro group Fair Play for Cuba Committee in New Orleans.
The tabloid does not corroborate the report in any other way.
In an interview with the Miami Herald, Gus Russo, an expert on the Kennedy assassination, was sceptical of the Enquirer's claims.
"It's very subjective. It's not proof. It's just an opinion" he told the Herald. "To charge something this big, you'd better have better proof than that 'it looks like him'."
The National Enquirer previously published a report claiming that Ted Cruz had several extra-marital affairs. The tabloid provided no evidence.
Mr Cruz said the story was false and claimed it was planted by the Trump campaign.
At the time, Mr Cruz also noted that Mr Trump and National Enquirer CEO David Pecker are close friends.
The National Enquirer also has endorsed Mr Trump for president, a first for the publication.
The tabloid often publishes fanciful articles, but has occasionally been credited with major scoops.
In 2004, the tabloid reported that presidential candidate John Edwards had fathered a child with a campaign aide. Mr Edwards later confirmed the report.


UKIP's Paul Nuttall has described the decision to launch his party's manifesto as a message to terrorists "that they will not win".

Mr Nuttall said there was no magic formula to "turning back the tide of radical Islam" - but he said it was a "cancer that needs to be cut out".
He said other parties had been too cowardly to address the problem.
Deputy chairwoman Suzanne Evans said Theresa May had "some responsibility" to take for the Manchester bombing.
Mr Nuttall said UKIP would beef up security by increasing numbers of police officers, troops and border guards.
The Manchester bombing had proved there was no limit to the "depth to which these evil and warped individuals would stoop", he added.
"It is not good enough to light candles and proclaim that extremists will not beat us.  Action is required on multiple fronts and I am proud UKIP is setting out its patriotic agenda for defending our country and our way of life."
However, he stressed the vast majority of the Muslims in the UK were peaceful.
Mr Nuttall said politicians had been weak on tackling the terrorist threat for many years, and attacked Theresa May's record as home secretary - but he denied a suggestion by BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg that he blamed the prime minister personally for the Manchester attack.
However, Ms Evans, citing Mrs May's failure to curb immigration, the scrapping of stop and search powers and cuts to police numbers, said the prime minister "must bear some responsibility."
She said: "I think she must bear some responsibility.  All politicians who voted for measures to make cuts bear some responsibility...when 9/11 happened, we should have had a serious rethink about immigration. It didn't happen."
Mr Nuttall said anybody who left the UK to fight for so-called Islamic State should forfeit their passport and never be allowed to return.
The UKIP leader promised 20,000 extra police officers, 20,000 extra troops, 7,000 extra prison officers and 4,000 extra border guards.
Policies outlined in the UKIP manifesto include:
The unveiling of the manifesto in Westminster comes as some low-key campaigning by other parties restarts after Monday evening's attack.
UKIP is hoping to recover from poor local election results that saw it lose 140 seats and gain only one as it seeks to build a fresh identity following the achievement of its central aim - the vote last year for the UK to leave the EU.
Mr Nuttall told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that UKIP would be "the guard dogs of Brexit" and put pressure on the government during negotiations to leave the EU.
He dismissed criticism of his leadership, saying he was elected to lead UKIP "with the biggest mandate the party has ever given anyone".
Mr Nuttall said UKIP backed a "one in, one out" immigration policy, claiming: "We've got a population problem in this country."
He argued that immigration depressed wages and "is also bad for community cohesion - we're becoming a more divided society than ever before".
The UKIP leader said "we're certainly not racist - what we believe in is an immigration policy that is fair to everyone" irrespective of people's ethnicity or religion.
Last month Mr Nuttall sparked controversy over his proposals to outlaw the full-face veil - including criticism from within his own party - but he repeated his support for the policy.
"I wouldn't allow face coverings in public. It's exactly the same as France. It's exactly the same as Belgium, the same as Bulgaria... If you want to enjoy the full fruit of British society, you need to be able to show your face."
Explaining his decision to be the first party leader to resume campaigning after the Manchester attack, Mr Nuttall said: "We took the decision that the best way to show these people that we will not be beaten, that they will not win, is to to get back into the saddle, to launch the manifesto."
The Conservatives, Labour, Greens and the SNP say they will restart low-key local campaigning on Thursday before resuming national events the next day.


About 50 firefighters are dealing with a major blaze at a Morrisons supermarket depot in Yorkshire.

The warehouse is on the Wakefield 41 Industrial Estate, close to Junction 41 of the M1, West Yorkshire Police said.
Kenmore Road, Wakefield, is closed in both directions as fire crews tackle the flames.
A further 50 firefighters are also tackling a second West Yorkshire blaze at an industrial site near Halifax.
Footage of the Wakefield fire has been captured by eyewitness Graham Moore.
Around 80% of the  86,000 sq ft (8,000 Sq m) building is on fire, the fire service said.
Debris is falling around half-a-mile from the site, according to some reports on Twitter.


The body of a man believed to have been swept away by flood water has been recovered by police in County Monaghan.

The victim was 70-year-old Ivan Vaughan from Caledon in County Tyrone.
He was found at about 11:25 local time on a cross-border road at Corraghdown, Glaslough.
A Garda (Irish police) spokesman said it appeared his car got stuck in flooding and when he got out he was swept away. His body was found about 10 metres from his car.
They said Mr Vaughan's death did not appear to be suspicious.
He had been reported missing earlier on Monday morning.
The Mid Ulster Mail is reporting that Mr Vaughan, a former showband singer, was returning from a gig in Glaslough on Sunday night when the tragedy happened.
He was known in the entertainment business as Simon Scott and performed with the group the Plattermen in the 1960s and 70s and recently worked as a solo artist.


UKIP is believed to have broken Northern Ireland Assembly rules by using Stormont's Parliament Buildings for its election manifesto launch.

A spokeswoman for the Assembly Commission, which runs Stormont, said its guidelines stated the building cannot be used for election purposes.
The guidelines were issued to all political parties and individual MLAs.
UKIP's David McNarry told journalist the party had sought and been granted permission to use Parliament Buildings.
"We're only following in the footsteps of others. We made an application to do what we're doing," Mr McNarry said at the launch.
In a statement to the BBC, the Assembly Commission spokeswoman said: "The use of Parliament Buildings as a venue for election purposes is not permitted under the Use of Assembly Resources During the 2015 General Election guidelines which were issued to all political parties and individual MLAs on 2 April 2015.
"The Northern Ireland Assembly Commission is aware that the guidelines may have been breached and is currently reviewing the matter."


Cristiano Ronaldo scored a superb hat-trick as Real Madrid overturned a 2-0 first-leg deficit against Wolfsburg to reach the Champions League semi-finals.

Wolfsburg arrived in Spain's capital protecting a healthy lead, but that was wiped out by a Ronaldo double in the space of 86 first-half seconds.
The Portuguese swept home the first from six yards before a glancing header levelled the scores on aggregate.
Ronaldo's hat-trick goal came from a free-kick when Wolfsburg's wall parted.
It completed a quite remarkable turnaround by the 10-time champions of Europe and keeps alive a season that looked to be over for Zinedine Zidane's side after last week's loss in Germany.
Three months ago Real fans were waving white handkerchiefs in a show of anger during the final throes of Rafael Benitez's short-lived reign.
On Tuesday, supporters gave the players a standing ovation after a dominant performance saw them advance to the semi-finals for the sixth successive season.
Ronaldo grabbed the match ball at the final whistle and placed it under his shirt as he lapped up the applause from the stands after his fifth Champions League treble - and third of this season.
The former Manchester United forward has 93 Champions League goals to his name in 125 appearances - 10 more than nearest rival Lionel Messi.
Yet, despite his hat-trick, this was a team effort from Zidane's side.
Sergio Ramos twice struck the woodwork while substitute Jese forced a fine one-handed from Diego Benaglio.
Real join Manchester City in Friday's draw (11:30 BST), with the winners of Atletico Madrid's tie with Barcelona and the game between Benfica and Bayern Munich to decide the remaining two places.
Real have come alive in recent weeks under Zidane, with a deserved El Clasico win over arch rivals Barcelona one of the highlights of their late season flourish.
Yet, as good as Real Madrid were, Wolfsburg were poor defensively after sitting back and inviting pressure.
Ronaldo was unmarked when he tapped home his first, while his third goal from a set-piece came after the German wall disintegrated.
While Barca will remain favourites to defend the trophy they won last June, Real are hitting form at the right time and cannot be ignored.
Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane singled out Ronaldo for praise but added: "Cristiano needs the whole team, I want to speak about the team because they achieved this together.
"But he is special because not everyone is capable of scoring three goals."
Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale: "We have shown the world what we are capable of.
"We knew this was going to be a difficult test, but we felt we could really do it and we did."
Wolfsburg boss Dieter Hecking: "We should have defended better. To go to the next stage, we needed a goal.
"Two of the three goals were from dead balls and so that tells you that we didn't defend right."
Real, who trail by four points, now turn their attention to catching Barcelona at the top of La Liga and play struggling Getafe away on Saturday (15:00 BST).
Wolfsburg, eighth in the Bundesliga table, play on the same day away to Werder Bremen (14:30 BST).
Match ends, Real Madrid 3, VfL Wolfsburg 0.
Second Half ends, Real Madrid 3, VfL Wolfsburg 0.
Foul by Marcelo (Real Madrid).
Maximilian Arnold (VfL Wolfsburg) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Substitution, Real Madrid. Raphael Varane replaces Luka Modric.
Vieirinha (VfL Wolfsburg) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Gareth Bale (Real Madrid) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Vieirinha (VfL Wolfsburg).
Attempt saved. Gareth Bale (Real Madrid) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner.
Foul by Daniel Carvajal (Real Madrid).
Dante (VfL Wolfsburg) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Corner,  Real Madrid. Conceded by Diego Benaglio.
Attempt saved. Jesé (Real Madrid) right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the top right corner. Assisted by Gareth Bale.
Dante (VfL Wolfsburg) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Dante (VfL Wolfsburg).
Substitution, Real Madrid. Jesé replaces Karim Benzema.
Corner,  Real Madrid. Conceded by Diego Benaglio.
Attempt saved. Karim Benzema (Real Madrid) right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Pepe.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid).
Maximilian Arnold (VfL Wolfsburg) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Substitution, VfL Wolfsburg. Bas Dost replaces Josuha Guilavogui.
Goal!  Real Madrid 3, VfL Wolfsburg 0. Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) from a free kick with a right footed shot to the bottom right corner.
Luiz Gustavo (VfL Wolfsburg) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Luka Modric (Real Madrid) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Luiz Gustavo (VfL Wolfsburg).
Attempt missed. Karim Benzema (Real Madrid) right footed shot from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Gareth Bale.
Substitution, VfL Wolfsburg. Daniel Caligiuri replaces Bruno Henrique because of an injury.
Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Delay in match Bruno Henrique (VfL Wolfsburg) because of an injury.
Attempt saved. Dante (VfL Wolfsburg) header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Ricardo Rodríguez with a cross.
Foul by Pepe (Real Madrid).
André Schürrle (VfL Wolfsburg) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Attempt missed. Vieirinha (VfL Wolfsburg) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the left. Assisted by Naldo.
Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid) hits the right post with a header from the centre of the box. Assisted by Toni Kroos with a cross following a corner.
Corner,  Real Madrid. Conceded by Naldo.
Attempt blocked. Vieirinha (VfL Wolfsburg) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Corner,  Real Madrid. Conceded by Josuha Guilavogui.
Attempt missed. Gareth Bale (Real Madrid) left footed shot from outside the box is too high.


A Spanish judge has summoned three Iraqi officers over a raid by Iraqi security forces on a camp housing an Iranian exile group.

The UN says 34 people were killed in the raid at Camp Ashraf, in Diyala province, in April 2011.
Judge Fernando Andreu has summoned Gen Ali Ghaidan Majid, the head of army, and two other officers to appear.
He is investigating allegations that crimes against humanity were committed during the raid on the camp.
The investigation is an enlargement of an existing probe on a separate raid which took place at the camp in July 2009, in which 11 people were killed.
Universal justice
Under Spain's universal justice doctrine, grave crimes committed in other countries can be prosecuted.
Judge Andreu said that the Geneva Convention applied to the case, as it addresses the protection of civilians in wartime and all those killed and injured in the attack were considered "protected persons" under the terms of the Convention.
According to documents released by Madrid's investigative court, a total of 377 "protected persons" were injured in the 8 April 2011 raid, 154 with bullet wounds.
More than 3,000 members of the banned opposition group, the People's Mujahideen of Iran (PMOI), have been confined by the US military at the camp since the invasion in 2003.
The group, considered a terrorist group by the US and Iran, were given permission to shelter in Iraq by former President Saddam Hussein during the 1980-88 war between the two countries and they have lived at the camp ever since.
In January, the judge had said he would close the dossier into the July 2009 attack if the Iraqi authorities opened their own investigation.
Iraq responded by saying it had carried out its own legal inquiry but this was not judged sufficient by Spanish authorities.
The three Iraqi officers have been summoned to appear before the Madrid court on 3 October 2011.


More than 18 months after Daniel Zamudio was beaten to death in a park in Santiago for the simple fact of being gay, the shock waves from his murder are still reverberating through Chile.

Gay rights are being taken more seriously than ever before. A tentative debate is under way about legalising same-sex marriage.
The candidates in the upcoming presidential election are conscious that this is an issue on which they have to take a stand.
Chile still lags behind some of its Latin American neighbours on these issues.
In Argentina, for example, gay marriage is already legal. In Brazil, homosexuality has been tolerated since the 19th century, while in Chile it was decriminalised as recently as 1999.
And this is still one of only four countries in South America where the age of consent is higher for gays than for heterosexuals.
But attitudes are changing, and the murder of Mr Zamudio was undoubtedly a watershed.
When Mr Zamudio was assaulted on 3 March last year, it wasn't simply the fact that a gay man was beaten to death in a public space that shocked Chileans.
It was the sadistic nature of the attack.
His four assailants carved swastikas on his skin, branded him with cigarettes and smashed his right leg with an 18lb (8kg) rock. According to graphic court testimony released earlier this month, they then urinated on his body.
Mr Zamudio died in hospital three weeks later.
On Monday, a judge sentenced one of the attackers, Patricio Ahumada Garay, to life in prison, describing him as the main perpetrator of the crime.
He sentenced two other defendants, Alejandro Angulo Tapia and Raul Lopez Fuentes, to 15 years each and the fourth man, Fabian Mora Mora, to seven years.
"We would have liked to see life sentences for three of the four but the Chilean law is what it is," said Rolando Jimenez, president of gay rights campaign group, Movilh.
"But we're satisfied that our lawyers managed to get the stiffest sentences possible under the Chilean penal code," he told the BBC.
Within weeks of Mr Zamudio's murder, legislators, spurred into action by public outrage, had signed into law an anti-discrimination bill that had been languishing in parliament for seven years.
The bill makes it a crime to discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender, appearance or disability.
Gay marriage has been an issue in this year's election campaign. Chileans go to the polls on 17 November to choose a new president.
"Of the nine presidential candidates, seven of them are proposing more comprehensive anti-discrimination laws and many of them are advocating gay marriage," Mr Jimenez said.
Among them is Michelle Bachelet, the overwhelming frontrunner to win the election.
She has changed her mind on gay marriage. During her first government, between 2006 and 2010, she opposed it, favouring civil partnerships for same-sex couples instead.
But now she advocates it, although many Christian Democrats in her coalition do not and are likely to oppose any attempt to legalise it if she wins the election.
The current president, Sebastian Pinera, opposes gay marriage but has broadly promoted gay rights, despite distaste from conservative elements within his centre-right coalition.
He surprised many in 2009 by including openly gay couples in his campaign commercials.
On Monday, he welcomed the sentences handed down in the Zamudio case, describing the murder as one of "hatred, discrimination and cruelty".
Chilean attitudes to gay marriage are changing.
A poll in La Tercera newspaper showed that the percentage of Chileans in favour of it grew from 38% in 2009 to 47% in 2011. Another poll, conducted by Radio Cooperativa in 2012, suggested 55% were in favour and 41% against.
In last year's census, Chileans who cohabit with a same-sex partner were given the chance to register the fact for the first time.
And yet, hate crimes continue.
On 20 October, a 21-year-old gay man, Wladimir Sepulveda, was attacked in the town of San Francisco de Mostazal, 60km (37 miles) south of Santiago, as he walked home, arm-in-arm with another man.
His six attackers included two women. Witnesses said the gang hurled homophobic abuse at Mr Sepulveda as they pushed him to the ground and kicked and beat him unconscious.
Eight days later, he remains in a coma in the city of Rancagua.
On Sunday, Health Minister Jaime Manalich visited him in hospital and lamented this latest homophobic attack.
"Unfortunately, we still live in a culture of violence," he said.


A US government watchdog has launched an investigation into actions taken by the FBI during the election campaign.

FBI director James Comey's decision to reopen an investigation into Hillary Clinton's email server 11 days before the election shook up the race.
The Department of Justice (DoJ) Inspector General Michael Horowitz said he would look into "certain actions" by the FBI and DoJ.
Mrs Clinton was cleared of any wrongdoing days before the US voted.
Her campaign team has blamed the FBI announcement as a key factor why she lost the election to Donald Trump.
The announcement on Thursday does not mention Hillary Clinton by name but refers to public disclosures by Mr Comey.
Mr Horowitz said his review would look at a news conference in July 2016 when Mr Comey said he would not recommend charges for Mrs Clinton.
A letter to Congress on 28 October, in which Mr Comey said there were more emails to look at, will also be subject to this new inquiry.
It seems the 2016 election isn't going to go gently into that good night. Thanks to this decision by the Justice Department inspector general, one of the more controversial moments of the recently concluded presidential campaign is going to be given closer scrutiny.
Hillary Clinton and her campaign team say FBI Director James Comey's two interventions close to election day cost her the presidency.
They also contend that the action violated Justice Department guidelines and was an overtly partisan act from a law enforcement agency that should be apolitical. Perhaps they will view this announcement as bittersweet vindication.
The scope of the review covers more than just Mr Comey's actions throughout the campaign, however. It will also address concerns expressed by Republicans that some lower-level FBI officials may have improperly shared information with the Clinton campaign.
Depending on how this investigation is conducted, and the conclusions it draws, the fuse may have just been lit on a stick of political dynamite that will explode later in the year.
The inspector general said his investigation had come in response to "numerous" requests from the public and from members of Congress.
Mrs Clinton said she had set up a home email server for reasons of convenience, but admitted it was a mistake.
In clearing her in July, the FBI said Mrs Clinton and her staff were "extremely careless" in handling classified materials.
But there was no evidence of intentional wrongdoing, it said.
Clinton emails - what's it all about?
What went wrong for Hillary Clinton?


The Home Office's chief scientific adviser was not consulted over the closure of the UK Forensic Science Service (FSS), it has emerged.

Bernard Silverman said he was informed in advance but not consulted "as such".
Dr Silverman was speaking at a hearing in the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee's inquiry into the closure of the FSS.
But he said that he viewed the process as acceptable because it had been taken on legal and commercial grounds.
The government announced last year that the FSS would close, with as many of its operations as possible being transferred or sold off.
Experts have been critical of the decision, saying it could harm the UK's position as a leader in forensic science.
The service analyses evidence from crime scenes in England and Wales, but has been losing about £2m a month. The FSS is a 100% government-owned company, which is expected to compete in the forensic marketplace.
Asked by the committee's chair, Labour MP Andrew Miller, whether he had been consulted, Dr Silverman replied: "I was informed and so was [the government's chief scientific adviser] John Beddington… but we weren't consulted, as such, in advance of the decision being made.
"We were informed so that when the decision was [announced] we were tipped off in advance.
"My understanding at the time, and now, is that the decision was made on legal and commercial grounds. It isn't within the chief scientific adviser's remit to advise on those matters. Therefore, I didn't see the process as unreasonable."
In response to the same question, the UK Forensic Science Regulator, Andrew Rennison, commented: "I was aware, a couple of weeks beforehand, but was not consulted. But I am being consulted now."
Speaking at the hearing, Crime Reduction Minister James Brokenshire MP said the government had been presented with a "difficult" situation, repeating a previous disclosure that the FSS was projected to have run out of money by early 2011.
He said the decision to wind down the FSS was "largely commercially driven, but with the clear recognition of the impact and the overall role the FSS plays in forensics and the role that it plays for the police."
Asked by Mr Miller what options had been considered prior to taking the decision, Mr Brokenshire replied that three possible courses of action had been discussed - including the eventual choice of closure.
The first of these options - allowing the FSS to go into an unmanaged administration - had been discounted because of what Mr Brokenshire said was "our fundamental desire to ensure there was integrity in the criminal justice system".
The minister said that some form of restructuring - to enable the FSS to break even in future - had also been considered.
But this option had been rejected because of projections showing a shrinking forensic market and also past financial outcomes when the FSS had tendered for commercial work in the past.
The government wants private enterprise, which currently makes up 40% of the market, to fill the gap left behind by the FSS.
But some experts are concerned that an over-emphasis on profits could threaten the quality of science.
Mr Brokenshire has previously said that the Forensic Science Regulator should ensure that quality standards are maintained. This course is questioned by the Prospect union, which represents scientists and engineers, in their written evidence to the inquiry.
"Currently the forensic science regulator sits in the Home Office, but... Prospect understands that there are very limited powers and no statutory influence," the union wrote.
"Additional regulatory powers will be needed to ensure that there is a level playing field between police forces and private contractors. It will also be essential to ensure that forensic science practitioners have recognisable and respected qualifications and a professional code of ethics."
Asked whether it was time to give the Forensic Science Regulator statutory powers, Mr Brokenshire said: "It is something I am certainly willing to consider… if Mr Rennison feels he is coming up with issues in terms of his ability to deliver on standards and quality and giving the assurance that we want him to."
Dr Silverman is conducting a review into the future of UK forensic research and development (R&D), which is set to conclude shortly.
Asked whether the UK's international standing in forensic research would be affected by the winding down of the service, Mr Rennison responded: "I think it will be dented."
But he added that commercial forensic providers were carrying out "very good research".
He also commented: "My view is that [the FSS] don't leave a vacuum behind them. There are a lot of people around the world doing equally good work that is held in equally high regard."
Paul.Rincon-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk


Ipswich Town will not be offering defender Steven Taylor a new contract, manager Mick McCarthy has confirmed.

The 31-year-old former Newcastle player featured three times for Ipswich after joining them in January.
His time at Portman Road was hampered by a hamstring injury, but he was invited back for pre-season.
"We have brought in Jordan Spence and Dominic Iorfa in recent weeks to add to what we already have at the back," McCarthy told the club website.
"Both Jordan and Dominic are very versatile players that can cover full-back and centre-back positions and we have good competition for places at the back now so we won't be doing anything with Tayls."


A mother whose two boys died after a house fire in South Yorkshire has blamed her husband for murdering them.

Claire Sykes believes her husband Darren, 44, started the blaze at the house in Penistone on 22 October.
Son Paul, nine, died in the fire along with his father, while Jack, 12, died six days later in hospital.
Police have said the blaze in Tennyson Close was started deliberately and they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the deaths.
Speaking to the Mirror, she said: "I want people to know they were murdered by their father. He killed them because of pure evil spite.
"They had no chance. They were like rats in a trap and they fell for his cold and calculated plan."
She told the newspaper her husband lured the children to the former marital home and started the fire deliberately in revenge for her splitting up with him in April.
Writing on Facebook, Mrs Sykes paid tribute to her sons.
She wrote: "Please please enjoy Halloween and carve pumpkins for the boys treasure every minute you share as a family."
She continued: "My boys were murdered by their father but he never had their hearts and they will stay with me forever xx.
"I don't know how I will carry on without my boys.
"My heart is broken in two but knowing that so many people are thinking of them makes me proud to have been their mum."


US President Barack Obama has said he may speak out after leaving office if he feels his successor Donald Trump is threatening core American values.

By convention, former presidents tend to leave the political fray and avoid commenting on their successors.
Mr Obama said he would give Mr Trump time to outline his vision but added that, as a private citizen, he might speak out on certain issues.
Mr Trump spent the weekend interviewing candidates for top jobs in his cabinet.
"I want to be respectful of the office and give the president-elect an opportunity to put forward his platform and his arguments without somebody popping off," Mr Obama said at a forum in Lima, Peru.
But, he added, if an issue "goes to core questions about our values and our ideals, and if I think that it's necessary or helpful for me to defend those ideals, then I'll examine it when it comes".
The president described himself as an "American citizen who cares deeply about our country".
Speaking at a news conference to mark the end of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit, Mr Obama reiterated that he would extend to Mr Trump's incoming administration the same professional courtesy shown to his team by his predecessor George W Bush.
Mr Bush has refrained since leaving office from commenting on Mr Obama's presidency. "I don't think it does any good," he told CNN in 2013, after Mr Obama was elected for a second time.
"It's a hard job. He's got plenty on his agenda. It's difficult. A former president doesn't need to make it any harder. Other presidents have taken different decisions; that's mine."
Mr Bush's stance falls in line with tradition. US presidents tend to avoid criticising predecessors or successors. Mr Obama was clear that he would not weigh in on Mr Trump's decisions while he was still in office.
But his suggestion that, as a private citizen, he would seek to defend "core values" comes amid mounting concern among civil rights groups and others about Mr Trump's political appointments.
The president-elect's chief strategist, Steve Bannon, was previously the head of Breitbart, a website accused of promoting racism and anti-Semitism. And Mr Trump's national security adviser, Gen Michael Flynn, has previously likened Islam to a "cancer" spreading through the US.
Mr Trump's nominee for attorney general, Jeff Sessions, lost the chance to become a federal judge in 1986 because of allegedly racist remarks.
Mr Obama said he believed  the intense responsibility of the presidency would force Mr Trump to moderate some of the more extreme policy positions he had advocated during his campaign.
On Sunday the incoming president indicated he had made more selections after a weekend of interviews at his golf resort in New Jersey, saying: "We really had some great meetings, and you'll be hearing about them soon."
Mr Trump has confirmed he is considering retired Marine Corps Gen James Mattis for the role of defence secretary, calling him "very impressive" in a tweet. He also met former critic Mitt Romney, who is now being considered for secretary of state.
Mr Trump also says that his wife, Melania, and their 10-year-old son Barron will not move into the White House straight away. They would move "very soon, right after he finishes school", he said. The US school year runs from late August or early September until late May or June.
Mr Obama, meanwhile, said his first priority after leaving office was to take his wife, Michelle, on holiday, and "get some rest, spend time with my girls and do some writing, do some thinking".
Asked about the failure of the Democratic party's campaign under Hillary Clinton, Mr Obama criticised the "micro-targeting" of "particular, discrete groups", arguing there should have been an effort to reach out to the entire country.
Mrs Clinton has been criticised for focusing her energy on certain demographics, including Latinos and women, who were believed to support her, at the expense of a more inclusive campaign.
That approach "is not going to win you the broad mandate that you need", Mr Obama said, adding that the party needed a "smarter message".


Chris Kane's stunning late strike earned victory for St Johnstone over Ross County, and moved the Perth side within a point of fourth-placed Hearts in the Scottish Premiership.

Jay McEveley diverted a Blair Alston cross into his own net for the opener.
Martin Woods' second-half shot deflected into the path of Craig Curran, who duly levelled.
But substitute Kane's brilliant floating effort found the top corner in the final minute of normal time.
St Johnstone look certain for a top-six finish. They are chasing teams above them now having established an 11-point cushion in fifth place.
Kane's late winner was dramatic, timely and on balance looked deserved as Saints were the better side overall. They took their chances whereas County did not.
The loss of Murray Davidson to an early thigh injury was catered for with the introduction of Keith Watson, and a couple of positional changes.
They coped with that setback well, as they did when County equalised, and some refereeing decisions did not go their way.
Alston hit the post early on with a neat flick but Saints went ahead when the midfielder squared dangerously across the six-yard line.
Steven MacLean pressured McEveley enough to force the defender to touch into his own net.
Liam Craig cracked a post direct from a corner but the main source of frustration came when referee John Beaton somehow did not see Woods clearly handle Watson's header on the line.
They might also have had a penalty awarded when Richard Foster was caught on the edge of the box.
MacLean was very unlucky with a superb touch and shot which was brilliantly saved by Scott Fox.
The great thing about this squad is they deliver consistently and did so again. As the clocked ticked, Kane took control and his winner, soaring into the top corner, was a thing of beauty.
County's recent results at home have been damaging - this was their third straight defeat in Dingwall in all competitions, and the result adds pressure given the compact nature of the Premiership's bottom seven teams.
No significant damage was done in terms of league position but results like this might count further down the line.
There were key moments in this game that did not go their way.
Before St Johnstone's opener, Joe Shaughnessy appeared to handle in the box but whether that was intentional was unclear.
It is possibly more fruitful to consider things that can be directly controlled and Michael Gardyne blazed a fabulous chance miles over from inside which would have changed the complexion of the game.
When Gardyne redirected a long diagonal off an upright, you started to wonder if it was just not their day.
Liam Boyce was unlucky with a curling effort, as was Milan Lalkovic.
Their goal had a touch of fortune in that Woods' shot deflected straight to Curran, who delighted in curling home on his return to the starting line-up.
To lose the point so late in the game will be extremely frustrating, with a couple of testing fixtures to follow against Aberdeen and Hearts.
Ross County manager Jim McIntyre: "That's two weeks in a row we've lost a late goal and it's a real sickener given the effort we've put into the game.
"We got ourselves back into the game and didn't punish St Johnstone when we had the opportunity to.
"The most glaring opportunity was Gardyne's shot from eight yards which sailed over the bar. That was a big moment in the match.
"Nothing really changes. It's still very tight. Nothing is going to be decided over the next three or four games because you would class them as a harder run of fixtures.
"We've done it already this season at Ibrox and Tynecastle where we've put in really good performances and picked up points. There's nothing to say we won't go and do that again."
St Johnstone manager Tommy Wright: "I thought we were excellent. I do think we deserved to win on the number of chances we created.
"We were good with the ball when in possession. We were excellent in terms of counter-attacking all day.
"We showed character again but it's a wonderful goal to win the game and it came at the right time.
"We knew if we beat them [Ross County] we'd go 13 [points] ahead of them and that's a big number to make up between now and when the split comes.
"We can't rest. We can't think we're in the top six. You've got to go out and do it week in, week out."
Match ends, Ross County 1, St. Johnstone 2.
Second Half ends, Ross County 1, St. Johnstone 2.
Attempt missed. Andrew Davies (Ross County) right footed shot from outside the box is too high.
Attempt saved. Alex Schalk (Ross County) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Goal!  Ross County 1, St. Johnstone 2. Christopher Kane (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from outside the box to the top left corner. Assisted by David Wotherspoon.
Corner,  St. Johnstone. Conceded by Jason Naismith.
Substitution, St. Johnstone. Christopher Kane replaces Steven MacLean.
Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Delay in match Martin Woods (Ross County) because of an injury.
Corner,  Ross County. Conceded by Liam Craig.
Corner,  St. Johnstone. Conceded by Marcus Fraser.
Hand ball by Craig Curran (Ross County).
Jim O'Brien (Ross County) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Jim O'Brien (Ross County).
Chris Millar (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Jason Naismith (Ross County) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Liam Craig (St. Johnstone).
Corner,  St. Johnstone. Conceded by Jason Naismith.
Attempt blocked. Blair Alston (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Goal!  Ross County 1, St. Johnstone 1. Craig Curran (Ross County) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Jim O'Brien.
Attempt missed. Jim O'Brien (Ross County) right footed shot from outside the box is too high.
Attempt saved. Andrew Davies (Ross County) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner.
Foul by Chris Millar (St. Johnstone).
Jim O'Brien (Ross County) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Richard Foster (St. Johnstone).
Marcus Fraser (Ross County) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Liam Craig (St. Johnstone).
(Ross County) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Corner,  St. Johnstone. Conceded by Scott Fox.
Attempt saved. Steven MacLean (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the right is saved in the bottom right corner.
Substitution, Ross County. Alex Schalk replaces Michael Gardyne.
Foul by Joe Shaughnessy (St. Johnstone).
(Ross County) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Corner,  St. Johnstone. Conceded by Scott Fox.
Attempt blocked. Joe Shaughnessy (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Corner,  St. Johnstone. Conceded by Jay McEveley.
Attempt saved. Blair Alston (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Substitution, Ross County. Jim O'Brien replaces Tim Chow.
David Wotherspoon (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Jason Naismith (Ross County).


Charges for NHS dental treatment in England will rise by 5% this year and next, the government has announced.

By 2017-18, a routine examination will cost more than £20, with more expensive procedures including crowns exceeding £240.
The government said the charges would affect "those who can afford it" and it was "protecting the most vulnerable".
But the British Dental Association said the rise was "unprecedented" and would damage the nation's teeth.
The changes will mean:
In a written statement to Parliament, Health Minister Alistair Burt said: "We have taken the decision to uplift dental charges for those who can afford it, through a 5% increase this year and next.
"Dental charges remain an important contribution to the overall cost of dental services, first introduced in 1951, but we will keep protecting the most vulnerable within society."
Children, pregnant women and people on low incomes get free treatment.
But Henrik Overgaard-Nielsen, from the British Dental Association, argued: "This unprecedented hike in dental charges will only serve to discourage the patients that are most in need of care.
"This money doesn't go to NHS dentists - they are being asked to play the role of tax collector, while our patients are singled out to subsidise the health service.
"For government these increases may be a source of easy money, but they will only undermine the relationship between patients and practitioners.
"Government has given patients another reason to avoid visiting their dentist."
Bills for dental treatment vary in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.


England's Mark Gleghorne scored a last-minute penalty to earn a 2-2 draw with hosts Spain at the Four Nations.

David Goodfield had levelled after half-time following Diego Arana's opener, before Albert Beltran put Spain 2-1 ahead in the fourth quarter.
England started the tournament with a 9-1 defeat by the Netherlands on Sunday, but beat Germany 3-0 on Monday.
The competition serves as a warm-up for the EuroHockey Championships, which start on 18 August in Amsterdam.


Westworld leads the drama nominations at this year's Emmy Awards, with its British stars Sir Anthony Hopkins and Thandie Newton among the nominees.

The HBO sci-fi series has 22 nominations in total, while comedy show Saturday Night Live also has 22.
Stranger Things and Feud: Bette and Joan are up for 18 each, followed by comedy Veep with 17.
Among the other British nominees, Ewan McGregor, Riz Ahmed and Matthew Rhys have two nominations each.
Other big names on the list include Oscar winner Viola Davis, who is nominated for How To Get Away With Murder, and Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon - both for Big Little Lies.
Susan Sarandon and Jessica Lange, who played Bette Davis and Joan Crawford respectively in Feud: Bette and Joan, both get nods.
There's a posthumous nomination for Carrie Fisher for her guest role in Channel 4 comedy Catastrophe.
Benedict Cumberbatch is nominated for Sherlock: The Lying Detective.
His competition for best lead actor in a limited series or movie includes Robert De Niro, who's shortlisted for playing fraudster Bernie Madoff in The Wizard of Lies.
The Crown and The Handmaid's Tale - which had been expected to be among the top drama contenders - both have 13 nominations.
They include nods for their female stars Claire Foy and Elisabeth Moss, both nominated in the best lead actress category.
Thandie Newton is up for best supporting actress in a drama series for playing a robotic brothel madam in Westworld, which is based on Michael Crichton's 1973 film of the same name.
Best lead actress in a drama series
Best lead actor in a drama series
Best lead actress in a limited series or movie
Best lead actor in a limited series or movie
Best lead actor in a comedy series
Best lead actress in a comedy series
Best drama series
Best comedy series
Best limited series
Best TV movie
Five of the seven nominations for best drama series have gone to new shows, including NBC's This Is Us, which is the first show from a major broadcast network to be in that category since 2011.
The new season of HBO's Game of Thrones isn't nominated because it is starting too late to be eligible this year.
Despite that, HBO had the highest overall tally with 110 nominations, followed by Netflix with 91 and NBC with 60.
The winners will be announced at a ceremony hosted by Stephen Colbert on 17 September.
The full nominations are on the Emmys website.
Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.


Swansea City have confirmed they have had an enquiry from Dubai club Al Ahli to sign striker Bafetimbi Gomis.

But the Premier League club rejected the move for last season's top scorer.
Manager Garry Monk insisted the France international "is a Swansea City player" and "I'm not thinking about him leaving".
"Bafe is focused on doing a good job," Monk told reporters. "We had the same thing in January but he ended up finishing the season well."
Gomis was wanted by Emirates side Al Ahli ahead of their AFC Champions League quarter-final next month but they have instead signed Brazilian striker Lima from Portuguese club Benfica.
"That club made contact with us and made an enquiry," added Monk.
"That's no problem, that happens.
"But Bafe is a Swansea City player. We are looking forward to working with him and him hopefully having a productive season."
"We are looking forward to working with him and him hopefully having a productive season."
The 12-times capped France international was omitted from Swansea's team against Nottingham Forest on Saturday with a hamstring injury.


A young girl has been airlifted to hospital with serious injuries after being hit by a car on Anglesey.

Police were called to Corn Hir near Llangefni at about 15:45 GMT on Thursday after the girl was struck by a grey Seat.
"The pedestrian, accompanied by a parent, have been airlifted to hospital with serious injuries," said Sgt Emlyn Hughes of North Wales Police.
The girl was taken to Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor.
The B5109 Cildwrn Road was closed for several hours and has now re-opened following investigations.


Government plans to relax Sunday trading laws in England and Wales have been put on hold, after SNP opposition meant it faced defeat in the Commons.

The SNP had said it would vote against the changes amid fears it could drive down Scottish workers' wages.
With other opposition MPs expected to join forces with some 20 Tory rebels, the plans would have struggled to pass.
The BBC's James Landale said the idea had been parked while talks continue with opposition parties.
Angus Robertson, the SNP's Westminster leader, welcomed the government's "U-turn".
He told the BBC the party supported Sunday trading but not "on the back of often lower-paid shop staff", and said it would be "open to discussions" on how to ensure safeguards.
Downing Street said there had been "absolutely" no U-turn on the policy.
The prime minister's official spokeswoman said the next steps would await analysis of the results of a consultation and be made clear "in due course".
Chancellor George Osborne promised in the Budget earlier this year that councils and mayors would get the power to set Sunday trading laws in their areas.
Large stores and supermarkets can currently open for only six hours every Sunday.
Although the legislation affects only England and Wales, the SNP had been convinced by shopworkers' union Usdaw that retailers would pay for the extra hours by cutting wages across the UK - including those of Scottish workers currently being paid premium wages for Sunday work.
Mr Robertson said the government would have to go away and think again about its proposals.
"We want safeguards, we want guarantees, we want to make sure that shop workers in Scotland and the rest of the UK are not worse off," he told the BBC News Channel.
The government launched a consultation over the summer to look at the changes which are designed to support High Streets and shopping centres by allowing them to stay open for longer at weekends and compete with internet shopping.
Shops in Scotland already have more freedom because the Sunday Trading Act does not apply north of the border.
Government sources pointed out that Scotland already controls its Sunday trading rules and the SNP was once again trying to block something that had no impact on their constituents. They said the SNP move once again made the case for the government's recent changes to parliamentary rules that gave English and Welsh MPs greater control over laws that affect only their constituencies.


The director of the CIA has warned US President-elect Donald Trump that ending the Iran nuclear deal would be "disastrous" and "the height of folly".

In a BBC interview, John Brennan also advised the new president to be wary of Russia's promises, blaming Moscow for much of the suffering in Syria.
In his campaign, Mr Trump threatened to scrap the Iran deal and also hinted at working more closely with Russia.
Mr Brennan will step down in January after four years leading the CIA.
In the first interview by a CIA director with the British media, John Brennan outlined a number of areas where he said the new administration needed to act with "prudence and discipline" - these included the language used regarding terrorism, relations with Russia, the Iran nuclear deal and the way in which the CIA's own covert capabilities were employed.
Mr Brennan offered a bleak assessment of the situation in Syria, arguing that both the Syrian regime and the Russians were responsible for a slaughter of civilians, which he described as "outrageous".
The administration of President Barack Obama has pursued a policy of backing moderate rebels fighting the Assad regime in Syria. The CIA director said that he believed the US needed to continue that support to help rebels withstand what he called an "onslaught" carried out by Syria, Iran, Hezbollah and Russia.
Russia continued to hold the key to Syria's future, he said, but he expressed scepticism about its willingness to come to any kind of deal. He said Moscow had been "disingenuous" in   negotiating tactics, seeking to draw the process out in order to "choke" Aleppo.
"I do not have confidence that the Russians are going to relent until they are able to achieve as much tactical battlefield successes as possible," he said.
The incoming Trump administration has suggested it may try to work more closely with Russia on a number of issues.
"I think President Trump and the new administration need to be wary of Russian promises," Mr Brennan told the BBC, arguing Moscow had failed to deliver in the past.
On the role of Russia in trying to influence the US election by hacking and releasing information, the CIA director confirmed Russia had sought to carry out such activity but said he would defer to domestic counterparts as to the impact.
He did confirm that he had had conversations with his Russian opposite numbers to challenge them over these actions and warn them that they would backfire.
The US should not "stoop to their level" or risk escalation by responding in kind to Russian hacking but, he said, there were other ways of ensuring Russia understood such activity was unacceptable.
He also warned Donald Trump's incoming team over their position taken during the campaign to abandon the nuclear deal with Iran.
"I think it would be disastrous," Mr Brennan told the BBC. "First of all, for one administration to tear up an agreement that a previous administration made would be unprecedented."
He said such a move would risk strengthening hardliners in Iran and risk other states pursuing nuclear programmes in response to a renewed Iranian effort. "I think it would be the height of folly if the next administration were to tear up that agreement," he said.
In 2015 Iran agreed a long-term deal with six world powers - the US, UK, France, China, Russia and Germany - under which it agreed to restrict sensitive nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of tough economic sanctions.
The Obama administration has argued that the deal will prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon but during his election campaign Mr Trump described it as a disaster and said he would dismantle it.
Since his election Mr Trump has not mentioned Iran but his choice to succeed Mr Brennan, Mike Pompeo, is an ardent critic of the deal.
Terrorism remains an overriding concern. The team planning external attacks within the so-called Islamic State remained "very active", Mr Brennan said, and was seeking to demonstrate that - despite setbacks on the battlefield - the group still had the ability to carry out attacks against the West.
The CIA director said he had not yet sat down with the new team to discuss the capabilities and programmes the CIA had but he was ready to do so.
"There are a lot of people out there who read the papers and listened to a news broadcasts where the facts may be a bit - you know - off. And so I want to make sure the new team understands what the reality is. It ultimately will be up to them to decide how to carry out their responsibilities."
Some members of the new administration, such as Gen Michael Flynn, have talked of the US needing to recognise it was in a "world war" with Islamist militants.
When asked if language about "world wars" was helpful, the CIA director said the new team needed to be "disciplined in the language that they use [and] the messages that they send. Because if they are not disciplined, their language will be exploited by the terrorist and extremist organisations as a way to portray the United States and the government as being anti-Islamic and we are not."
Mr Brennan said President Obama had asked US intelligence to "dig down" on whether the transition period might be exploited by adversaries.
The CIA is charged with gathering intelligence and acting as the covert arm of the president. Its activities are usually secret and often - when revealed - controversial.
One of the most public challenges that John Brennan faced during his tenure was dealing with the fallout of the CIA's use of techniques such as waterboarding on detainees after the 9/11 attacks.
President-elect Trump has said he would consider resuming waterboarding if he thought it would be effective. John Brennan made clear he thought that would be a mistake.
"Without a doubt the CIA really took some body blows as a result of its experiences," he said.  "I think the overwhelming majority of CIA officers would not want to get back into that business."
The pace of drone strikes increased during the Obama administration although responsibility for many of them has shifted to the military rather than the CIA. When John Brennan ran counter-terrorism operations in the White House, he was instrumental in putting in place a series of rules over drone strikes.
So could a new administration simply rewrite the rules on drone strikes as well as the handling of detainees?
"This is where there is tremendous responsibility on the new administrationâ€¦to make sure that they use the great capabilities that this government has as effectively and as judiciously as possible," he told the BBC, arguing that if powers such as drone strikes were misused, they could prove counterproductive to US security.


A man was glassed in the face after he went to the aid of women and staff who were being abused at a Chinese takeway in North Ayrshire.

The 48-year-old suffered serious facial injuries in the attack at about 00:15 on Sunday in Saltcoats.
Police said the victim had challenged a man who he overheard abusing staff and women at the takeaway in Countess Street.
He needed stitches as a result of the attack and will be left with scarring.
The suspect, who ran off in the direction of Saltcoats train station, is described as white, in his 30s, 6ft tall, of stocky build and with dark hair.  He was wearing a white polo shirt.
Det Sgt Paul Richmond, of Saltcoats CID, said: "From our investigations so far we know that the injured man had been in a local Chinese takeaway in Countess Street when he overheard the suspect being abusive to staff and women in the shop.
"When the suspect left the shop, the victim went outside and challenged him about his behaviour, however, the suspect turned on him and hit him in the face with a glass object before running off.
"He sustained a significant facial injury which required numerous stitches and will leave a permanent scar.
"Officers have been checking CCTV and speaking to staff and customers in the shop at the time of the attack, however, are still keen to hear from anyone who was in the area at the time of the attack, who saw it happen or who knows the suspect."


A woman has been found dead after an armed man entered a retirement home for former missionaries near Montpellier, according to French media reports.

Police responded to the incident late on Thursday evening in Montferrier-sur-Lez in the south of the country.
The home for former missionaries to Africa has been evacuated, but the suspect remains at large.
There is so far no indication that this is a terrorist incident, sources close to the investigation said.
A caretaker contacted police after escaping from the home, Reuters news agency reported.
The body of the dead woman was found gagged and tied up outside the building, an official said.
Police searched the building extensively, but the suspect had fled the scene.
"For the time being, there is only one victim," Montpellier prosecutor Christophe Barret told the AFP news agency. "For the moment there is no particular evidence about the motive for this crime."
The man was not known to authorities.
Residents of the home "are very elderly with an average age of 75 although some are more than 90," a local councillor said, and many need assistance to walk, he said.
French newspaper Le Figaro said that the attacker was "hooded and armed with a knife and sawed-off shotgun" when he broke into the home, citing sources close to the investigation.
The mayor of the town, Michel Fraysse, told the AFP news agency the building housed around 60 former missionaries, six or seven lay people, and another six or seven nuns.
A correspondent for AFP said 15 police vehicles and a dozen belonging to the fire service were stationed a few hundred metres from the building.
Olivier Ribadeau Dumas, a spokesman for the Conference of Bishops of France, tweeted: "our prayers tonight go to the woman who lost her life in this attack on a retirement home."
France remains in a formal state of emergency since a wave of terrorist attacks last year.


People over the age of 50 are spending more and more on holidays - including cruises - while younger people are travelling less, according to research.

Over the past five years, the older age group has increased spending on travel by 23%, says a study by the CEBR consultancy for Saga.
Those under 50 have cut spending on tourism by 5% during the same period.
As a result, the older generation is now responsible for well over half the UK's total spending on holidays.
Last year, the over-50s spent £39bn on travel, including £2.8bn on cruises.
Other exotic destinations included exploring the silk road in Uzbekistan, the report says.
Saga specialises in selling insurance and holidays to the over-50s.
Earlier this year, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said that younger people had suffered a fall in income since the financial crisis, while those over 60 had enjoyed a higher standard of living.
In the seven years up to 2015, that age group saw an 11% rise in incomes, it said.
However, those under 30 saw a 7% drop in income over the same period, with those in the middle seeing little change.
The divergence in financial fortunes has been guaranteed by the "triple-lock" on pensions.
Since April 2011, the basic state pension has risen in line with average earnings, consumer price inflation or 2.5% - whichever of the three is highest.
Earlier this year, a committee of MPs launched an inquiry into generational fairness. It is expected to publish its report next month.


Police say they have identified 11 potential victims of human trafficking - including six people under the age of 18 - in a major Scotland-wide operation.

About 500 officers from every police division took part in the day of action, which resulted in 15 arrests.
Officers were joined by colleagues from HMRC as they visited businesses, including nail bars.
The force said one person had been detained on suspicion of trafficking.
A further two people have been arrested for immigration offences, while 12 others have been arrested by immigrations enforcement officers.
The operation also aimed to identify people at potential risk or those being exploited as slave labour.
Police said that the six children had been found working in nail bars across Scotland and displayed indicators of trafficking.
Senior officers have said the scale of human trafficking in Scotland is unclear.
Police Scotland hopes to help the public become more aware of the signs that may indicate that someone has been trafficked.
Those leading this latest operation said they were determined to crack down on criminal gangs who deal in people to make profits.
Det Ch Insp Stuart Houston told BBC Scotland: "This is organised crime that is quite often behind exploitation and trafficking of individuals. We need to know about that and need to try and take some action against these groups."
Last week, new Scottish government guidelines were launched as part of the country's first human trafficking strategy.
Consumers are being urged to look for signs that people have been trafficked and consider whether people working in their local nail bar, car wash or shop may be in danger or vulnerable.
The most recent figures have suggested that trafficking has increased in Scotland.
Last year there were 145 potential victims of trafficking identified - a 31% increase on the previous year.
More than a third were trafficked into forced labour while another third were forced to work in the sex industry.