(Close): The pound jumped following data showing a pick-up in UK wage growth, while the FTSE 100 was led higher by bid target SABMiller.

Between May and July, UK earnings excluding bonuses grew 2.9% compared with the same period last year.
The rate was the fastest since 2009, and was seen as bringing forward estimates of when rates might rise.
Sterling rose more than 1% against the dollar to $1.5505 and was up 0.84% against the euro at â‚¬1.3730.
The FTSE 100 index closed up 1.49% to 6,229.21. SABMiller was the stand-out stock on the market, jumping 20% after it received a bid approach from rival AB InBev.
A deal would combine the world's two largest brewers, bringing together brands such as Budweiser, Stella Artois, Peroni and Grolsch.
Burberry shares were 0.9% higher following encouraging news from rival luxury goods group Richemont.
Richemont's latest sales figures beat expectations and also showed that sales in China - a key market for Burberry - had begun to grow again.
Shares in Glencore rose 5% after the mining giant said it had raised $2.5bn through a share placement as part of its debt-cutting strategy.
Shares in packaging and paper group Mondi were the biggest fallers on the index, down 4.3%, after Goldman Sachs cut its rating on the firm to "sell".
JD Sports rose 3.1% after the sportswear firm reported an 83% jump in half-year pre-tax profits to Â£46.6m.


The family of a man who was killed in the Manchester attack have said his loss is "immeasurable".

John Atkinson, 28, from Radcliffe in Bury, was among 22 people who died when a suicide bomber attacked concertgoers at Manchester Arena on 22 May.
Paying tribute, his relatives said he was the "life and soul of his family".
They said he had been with his partner, Michael, for 15 years and was "well loved for his 'on point' eyebrows and his Nike flip-flops".
He was "the devoted son of Daryl and Kevan, a caring and thoughtful brother to Stacey, Laura and Amy, and also a dear uncle, nephew, cousin and friend".
Relatives told how he would text his mother and sisters every day to make sure they were OK.
Special report on Manchester concert attack
They said he loved his job as a support worker, looking after people with autism and Asperger's syndrome.
"They will feel his loss greatly," his family said.
He was "immensely proud" that he had recently lost eight stones in weight and went to the gym daily.
His loved ones said he was "music mad" and his "senseless death has left our family broken-hearted".
"Our lives have been shattered beyond belief," the family added.
"He had a heart of gold."


As the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh begins a seven-phase election on 11 February to choose a new government, the BBC's Geeta Pandey in the state capital, Lucknow, explains why these polls matter.

The northern state is India's most populous, with more than 200 million people. If it were a separate country, it would be the fifth-largest by population in the world after China, India, the United States and Indonesia.
Commonly called UP, the state sends the largest number of MPs - 80 - to India's parliament. It is often said that the party that wins the state rules the country.
Several prime ministers, including India's first PM Jawaharlal Nehru, have come from here.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is from the western state of Gujarat, also chose to make his parliamentary debut from the state in the 2014 general election when he contested from Varanasi.
And voters in the state can easily claim the credit for his Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) stunning sweep of the elections. Of the 282 seats they won, 71 were from Uttar Pradesh.
It's a three-way contest between the governing BJP, the regional Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the state's ruling Samajwadi Party (SP), which is contesting the polls in alliance with the Congress.
Since the late 1990s, the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party have dominated state politics, with the Congress and the BJP pushed to the sidelines.
The family drama gripping Indian politics
Why the bicycle could decide an election
But this time, buoyed by its success in the general election, the BJP is making a serious bid for victory. The party is yet to declare a chief ministerial candidate and is banking on the popularity and charisma of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to win the polls. Mr Modi has been criss-crossing the state, addressing election rallies and exhorting voters to give the BJP a chance.
The Samajwadi Party is led by 43-year-old Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav. He led his party to victory in the 2012 state assembly polls and is hoping for an encore when the votes are counted on 11 March. His journey, however, has been far from smooth, especially in the past few weeks when he fought a very public battle with Mulayam Singh Yadav, his father and chief of the party.
As father and son fought for power in a manner likened to political drama House of Cards, the party seemed on the verge of disintegrating. But Yadav junior won the duel, and has since forged an alliance with India's main opposition Congress party. The partners have been holding joint election rallies, promising good governance, state development and free smartphones for young people.
Pitted against the BJP and the SP-Congress alliance is the Bahujan Samaj Party, led by Dalit (formerly Untouchables) icon Ms Mayawati. The four-time state chief minister, who lost power in 2012, is seeking a comeback. She is hugely popular among her community, but during her earlier stints she was criticised for spending millions of dollars to build statues of herself and other Dalit icons. This time though, she has promised to not spend money on statues and says she will work to lift millions of people out of poverty.
Because of its sheer size and numbers, UP is a key battleground. And for the parties in the fray, these elections are being seen as a do-or-die battle.
The BJP hasn't done too well in state polls since winning the 2014 general elections, so a victory here is important. Also, the polls are being seen as a referendum on Mr Modi's recent move to ban 500 and 1,000 rupee notes. The timing of the move has been questioned by many and if the party loses, a blame game is likely to begin.
A victory for Akhilesh Yadav is crucial as it will cement his position as the leader of his party. If he loses, the rebel faction led by his uncle Shivpal Yadav will get a boost. A win will also bring cheer to the Congress, which has had little joy with voters in the general election or in regional polls for the last few years.
And a win is absolutely essential for Ms Mayawati, who has spent the past five years in the political wilderness. Analysts say if she loses this time too, she risks becoming politically irrelevant and may find it very difficult to bounce back.
With 403 seats up for grabs, thousands of contestants are in the fray, fighting for a share of the pie.
More than 138 million voters will be casting their votes at 147,148 polling centres, watched over by thousands of police and paramilitary troops, during the seven phases of voting spread over a month.
Despite its political significance, UP remains among India's most backward states with millions living in extreme poverty, a lack of employment opportunities and rampant corruption.
For some voters the only tool they have to express themselves with is their vote. And during elections they come out in large numbers to use it - often against those in power.


Cameron Chalmers says he turned down a 400m spot at this weekend's London Anniversary Games to rest before next week's European Under-23 Championships.

The 20-year-old, from Guernsey, came third at the British trials on Sunday to boost his World Championship hopes.
It has been a breakthrough season for Chalmers, who initially planned to run at the Island Games before pulling out.
"I actually got a phone call yesterday offering me a lane which I turned down, as crazy as that sounds," he said.
"If you're running at the Olympic Stadium, there's potentially a bit of money there as well and it would definitely have been the highest level race I've ever done in my life.
"But it's just the wrong timing, to put it plainly. I've run half-a-second quicker than I thought I would [this season] and that's suddenly opened a lot of doors, so I'm a victim of my own success a little bit."
Chalmers, who only started in the sport four years ago, ran 46.11 seconds at the 400m trials in Birmingham, just short of his personal best time of 45.64 seconds, set in June.
He missed out on automatic qualification for next month's World Championships in London, but hopes to figure as part of Great Britain's 4x400m squad.
"If they take five, six or seven athletes then, based off my performance, I'm definitely in the mix to be considered for that," he added to BBC Sport.
"But it's really out of my control now. I'll just have to wait and see whether I'm picked for that."


London's Victoria and Albert Museum will open around-the-clock to accommodate demand for its Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty exhibition.

The V&A has released 12,000 new tickets one month before the show closes on 2 August.
The museum will open through the night for the final two weekends of the run.
Martin Roth, Director of the V&A said: "We knew that Savage Beauty would be very popular, but the response has been even greater than we imagined."
He added: "It is not going on tour to other venues so our aim is to provide as many people as possible with the opportunity to see it by opening through the night for the last two weekends.
"This will be the first time we have opened the V&A around the clock and we certainly think it is an event worth getting out of bed for."
More than 345,000 people have visited the Alexander McQueen show, making it the most visited paid-for exhibition at the V&A in the last decade.
The museum revealed it had received 10,000 new members during the exhibition - with members gaining free entry - and its Friends of the V&A membership was now 75,000.
An earlier version the Savage Beauty retrospective took New York by storm when it opened in 2011 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Met).
London-born fashion designer Lee Alexander McQueen killed himself in 2010, at the age of 40.
Top Five Most Popular V&A Exhibitions (paid-for tickets)


West Brom have signed Egypt defender Ahmed Hegazi on a season-long loan deal.

The centre-back arrives from Egyptian side Al Ahly, where he spent two years after leaving Italian club Fiorentina in 2015 following an injury-hit spell.
Premier League side West Brom have the option to sign Hegazi, 26, permanently at the end of the loan period.
"He's a good addition. He's got good pedigree and played for some good clubs," said Baggies boss Tony Pulis.
"If he does well, we've already agreed a final deal. It's really, really good for us."
Hezagi was named in the team of the tournament at the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations, where Egypt finished as runners-up to Cameroon.
He has flown out to Hong Kong to link up with the West Brom squad before their Premier League Asia Trophy game against Leicester on Wednesday, although he is still awaiting international clearance.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.


A US judge has ordered actor Johnny Depp to stay away from his estranged wife, actress Amber Heard, after she alleged he assaulted her.

Ms Heard said in court on Friday that Mr Depp threw her mobile phone at her during a fight on Saturday.
The judge also said Mr Depp should not try to contact Ms Heard.
On Monday, she filed for divorce from the Pirates of the Caribbean actor after 15 months of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences.
Ms Heard brought a photograph of herself with a bruised cheek and eye to the Los Angeles Superior Court.
"I live in fear that Johnny will return to (our house) unannounced to terrorise me, physically and emotionally,'' Ms Heard wrote in a sworn declaration.
She said the actor was high on drugs and drunk when the incident occurred, and that he had pulled her hair, screamed at her, grabbed her face and hit her.
Her filing alleged a history of abuse throughout the relationship.
"The judge has reviewed the evidence that we presented," Ms Heard's lawyer Joseph Koenig told reporters outside court.
"He issued a restraining order based on the evidence that he received and there will be a further hearing."
Mr Depp's lawyer wrote in a court filing that the actor would agree to a mutual-stay order. He is currently in Portugal with his band Hollywood Vampires.
Mr Depp, 52, and Ms Heard, 30, met while co-starring in the 2011 film The Rum Diary. They have no children.


Claims that Northern Ireland's Public Prosecution Service (PPS) has lost public confidence are "sweeping and inaccurate", its director has said.

Barra McGrory QC was appearing before a Stormont committee to answer questions on a review that criticised the PPS's handling of historic rape allegations.
Justice committee member Edwin Poots said there had not been "such a poor service" from the PPS in "decades".
The DUP MLA added that there was "a public dissatisfaction" with the PPS.
Sir Keir Starmer, a former director of public prosecutions for England and Wales, produced a report in May on three cases linked to the alleged rape of Máiría Cahill.
She told a BBC NI programme that an IRA member raped her when she was 16.
She had accused the PPS and the police of failing to properly investigate her allegations.
The PPS apologised to Ms Cahill after the report by Sir Keir concluded that it had "let down" her and other victims.
Mr McGrory told the justice committee on Thursday that the report was "more difficult reading" for the PPS and acknowledged that "blurred" lines of communication with the organisation was one of the problems.
He was also addressing the report by Northern Ireland's attorney general, John Larkin, in relation to the PPS's decision not to prosecute Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams for allegedly withholding evidence about his rapist brother.
The committee chair, Alasdair Ross of the DUP, put it to Mr McGrory that "public confidence [in the PPS] has been damaged" by the two reviews.
The SDLP's Alban Maginness said the Starmer report amounted to "serious and damaging criticism", while Mr Poots said "there is a lot to be concerned about in the attorney general's report".
Mr Poots added: "I think Mr McGrory would do well to reflect on the quality of service that is being provided.
"In some instances, people are scratching their head and asking the question: 'What has to be done to get a successful prosecution against certain members of our community?"
While Mr McGrory said he accepted the criticisms on the Cahill case, he told the committee there was "nothing damaging" in Mr Larkin's report on the Adams case.
"To say that there isn't a public confidence in the Public Prosecution Service is a sweeping and inaccurate statement," he said.
During the session, Ms Cahill tweeted: "It would have been nice if someone had informed me my case was being discussed in detail today."


A 'painless' sticking plaster flu jab that delivers vaccine into the skin has passed important safety tests in the first trial in people.

The patch has a hundred tiny hair-like microneedles on its adhesive side that penetrate the skin's surface.
It is simple enough for people to stick on themselves.
That should help more people get immunised, including those who are scared of injections, experts told the Lancet journal .
Unlike the standard flu jab, it doesn't need to be kept in the fridge, meaning pharmacies could easily stock it on their shelves for people to buy.
Volunteers who tested it said they preferred it to injections.
It offers the same protection as a regular vaccine, but without pain, according to its developers from Emory University and the Georgia Institute of Technology, who are funded by the US National Institutes of Health.
The patch punctures the uppermost layers of the skin, whereas regular flu injections go all the way through and into muscle.
Lead researcher Prof Mark Prausnitz, who is also part of a company that wants to license the technology, said: "If you zoom in under the microscope what you'll see are microscopically small needles. They puncture painlessly into the skin."
His team tested the patch alongside flu injections. Some of the 100 volunteers got the regular shot in the arm, while others applied the microneedle patch to their wrist for 20 minutes.
Most said using the patch was painless, but some experienced mild side effects - redness, itching and tenderness in the area of skin area where it had been applied. These symptoms got better on their own over days.
Experts say the patch could revolutionise how flu and other vaccines are given, although more clinical tests over the next few years are needed to get the patch system approved for widespread use.
Dr Nadine Rouphael, from Emory University, said: "We could envisage vaccination at home, in the workplace or even via mail distribution."
The patch can be thrown in the bin after it is used because the microneedles dissolve away.
And because it can be safely stored for up to a year without refrigeration, it could prove extremely useful in the developing world.
Experts from Public Health England said it might also be good to use in young children, who tend not to like needles, although the UK has already introduced a nasal spray flu vaccine for them.
John Edmunds, an expert in infectious diseases at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said: "This study is undoubtedly an important step towards a better way to deliver future vaccines."
Other researchers have also been looking at pain-free skin delivery. A flu shot syringe that uses a microneedle has already been approved for use in the US.
Scientists in Australia have been designing a nanopatch with even smaller needles.
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A 12-year-old schoolgirl who posed for "selfie" photos with Prince William says it was a dare from her mum.

Madison Lambe, of Boston, Lincolnshire, took the snaps during a visit to Sandringham on Christmas Day to watch the Royal Family walk to church.
Following the service the Duke of Cambridge came over to her and when asked for a photo he replied "you can't beat a good selfie on Christmas Day".
"He didn't seem bothered that I asked him, he was really nice," said Madison.
"It was sort of a dare from my mum to ask the Queen or him for a photo," added Madison, a pupil at Boston High School.
"I took down some flowers and there were a lot of other children there. When William got down to where I was stood I asked him if I could have a picture and he said 'yes'.
"Then he said 'right, you can't beat a good selfie on Christmas Day'.
"I didn't really expect it. It was a really good experience."
The prince posed for two photos with Madison, appearing to pout slightly in the second.
Last month Prince Charles posed for a selfie with a boy during a visit to Stevenage, Hertfordshire.


At least 18 people have been killed in two suicide car bomb attacks in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, police say.

At least 37 people were injured in the bombings in the predominantly Shia north-western district of Kadhimiya.
They happened on Adan square, which attracts many visitors over weekends, the AFP news agency reports.
No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attacks. Dozens of people have been killed in bombings across Baghdad in recent months.
In August, at least 67 people died in a car bombing in the crowded Jameela market in the predominantly Shia district of Sadr City.
Sunni jihadists from Islamic State - the group that controls large swathes of Iraq - said they carried out that attack.


The discovery of the first chemical to prevent the death of brain tissue in a neurodegenerative disease has been hailed as the "turning point" in the fight against Alzheimer's disease.

More work is needed to develop a drug that could be taken by patients.
But scientists say a resulting medicine could treat Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's and other diseases.
In tests on mice, the Medical Research Council showed all brain cell death from prion disease could be prevented.
Prof Roger Morris, from King's College London, said: "This finding, I suspect, will be judged by history as a turning point in the search for medicines to control and prevent Alzheimer's disease."
He told the BBC a cure for Alzheimer's was not imminent but: "I'm very excited, it's the first proof in any living animal that you can delay neurodegeneration.
"The world won't change tomorrow, but this is a landmark study."
The research team at the Medical Research Council Toxicology Unit, based at the University of Leicester, focused on the natural defence mechanisms built into brain cells.
Source: London Brain Centre
When a virus hijacks a brain cell it leads to a build-up of viral proteins. Cells respond by shutting down nearly all protein production in order to halt the virus's spread.
However, many neurodegenerative diseases involve the production of faulty or "misfolded" proteins. These activate the same defences, but with more severe consequences.
The misfolded proteins linger and the brain cells shut down protein production for so long that they eventually starve themselves to death.
This process, repeated in neurons throughout the brain, can destroy movement or memory or even kill, depending on the disease.
This process is thought to take place in many forms of neurodegeneration, so safely disrupting it could treat a wide range of diseases.
The researchers used a compound which prevented those defence mechanisms kicking in and in turn halted neurodegeneration.
It is rare to get cautious scientists keen to describe a study in mice as a turning point in treating Alzheimer's.
It is early science, a lot can go wrong between a drug for mice and a drug for humans and the only published data is for prion disease, not even Alzheimer's.
So why the excitement?
It is the first time that any form of neurodegeneration has been completely halted, so it is a significant landmark. It shows that the process being targeted has serious potential.
If this can be successfully developed, which is not guaranteed, the prize would be huge.
In Parkinson's the alpha-synuclein protein goes wrong, in Alzheimer's it's amyloid and tau, in Huntington's it's the Huntingtin protein.
But the errant protein is irrelevant here as the researchers are targeting the way a cell deals with any misfolded protein.
It means one drug could cure many diseases and that really would be something to get excited about.
Alzheimer's Research UK: Is it a cure?
The study, published in Science Translational Medicine, showed mice with prion disease developed severe memory and movement problems. They died within 12 weeks.
However, those given the compound showed no sign of brain tissue wasting away.
Lead researcher Prof Giovanna Mallucci told the BBC news website: "They were absolutely fine, it was extraordinary.
"What's really exciting is a compound has completely prevented neurodegeneration and that's a first.
"This isn't the compound you would use in people, but it means we can do it and it's a start."
She said the compound offered a "new pathway that may well give protective drugs" and the next step was for drug companies to develop a medicine for use in humans.
Prof Mallucci's lab is also testing the compound on other forms of neurodegeneration in mice but the results have not yet been published.
Side effects are an issue. The compound also acted on the pancreas, meaning the mice developed a mild form of diabetes and lost weight.
Any human drug would need to act only on the brain. However, this gives scientists and drug companies a starting point.
David Allsop, professor of neuroscience at Lancaster University described the results as "very dramatic and highly encouraging" but cautioned that more research was needed to see how the findings would apply to diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
Dr Eric Karran, the director of research at the charity Alzheimer's Research UK, said: "Targeting a mechanism relevant to a number of neurodegenerative diseases could yield a single drug with wide-reaching benefits, but this compound is still at an early stage.
"It will be important for these findings to be repeated and tested in models of other neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease."


A second man has been arrested on suspicion of murdering an off-duty police constable in Liverpool.

Police said the arrested man, 30, was also suspected of two assault offences.
PC Neil Doyle, 36, was attacked near the Aloha Club in the city centre early on Friday and died of bleeding around the brain.
A 28-year-old suspect handed himself in earlier. The suspects, both from Huyton in Merseyside, are being interviewed by detectives.
Merseyside Police has been granted permission to keep the 28-year-old in custody for further questioning until Monday night.
Officers said the 30-year-old suspect had been arrested on suspicion of murder and "two offences of Section 18 assault" - causing grievous bodily harm with intent.
PC Doyle was with two colleagues when they were assaulted on Colquitt Street, during a Christmas night out.
A post-mortem examination revealed major blood vessels were damaged, and police said his injury was consistent with an assault.
Investigators are considering the possibility that the three men were attacked after being recognised as police officers, although a Merseyside Police spokesman stressed it was "not a set-in-stone motive".
Chief Constable Sir Jon Murphy said the off-duty officers had been subjected to "an apparently unprovoked attack by a group of males".
"Following intensive emergency treatment at the scene Constable Doyle was taken to Royal Liverpool Hospital, where he sadly died a short time later," he said.
PC Doyle had been due to go on honeymoon with his wife Sarah, next month.
In a statement she said: "Neil was very well loved by all of his family, friends and colleagues and it is a great loss to us all.
"We are finding it extremely difficult to come to terms with what has happened and need time to be left to grieve."
Merseyside Police Federation chairman Peter Singleton said PC Doyle was "a good cop that any officer would be proud to call a colleague".


Calls have been made for a mandatory home education register after an eight-year-old boy who had no contact with the authorities died from scurvy.

An inquest heard Dylan Seabridge, who died in Pembrokeshire in 2011, was "invisible" to the authorities because he was home schooled.
Wales' Children's Commissioner said parents should sign a register declaring they are home educating.
The Welsh government said it would publish guidance on the matter soon.
A leaked draft serious case review into Dylan's death, written in 2013, concluded the laws on home education in Wales needed to be strengthened as a matter of urgency.
Children's Commissioner Sally Holland said it was every parent's right to home educate their child if they wished, but she was concerned some children were "falling under the radar".
She said a mandatory home education register and regular meetings with an education specialist would allow parents the freedom to choose the education they wanted, while also letting local authorities provide support when needed.
"I don't think home education itself is a child protection worry but we do need to as a society keep our eye on all the children in our community," she added.
Child protection charity NSPCC Cymru has long-supported the idea of a register.
"Every family has a right to choose how to educate a child and home learning alone is not a risk factor for abuse or neglect, but it is important to ensure that they do not fall off the local services radar," a spokesman said.
"We know that the overwhelming majority of parents want a safe learning environment for their children. A register would help to ensure this is the case for every single home educated child."
Bev Carr, a home educator in Brecon, Powys, said the only involvement the authorities played in her son's education was "a token letter" each year.
She said she had no objection to a register if it was funded properly and proved to be "more of a help then a hindrance".
Speaking to BBC Radio Wales' Good Morning Wales programme, Ms Carr said health authorities should be as much of a part of the process as education services and called for funding for healthy living such as encouraging home schooled children to use sports facilities.
"If a child is born in the western world in our modern society, they shouldn't be invisible," she added.


Plusnet, an internet service provider owned by BT, has been fined £880,000 for wrongly billing more than 1,000 former customers.

An investigation by watchdog Ofcom found that the ISP broke a fundamental billing rule by continuing to  charge a group of customers for landline and broadband after they had cancelled services.
In total, customers were overcharged by more than £500,000.
Plusnet has apologised for the error.
Lindsey Fussell, Ofcom's consumer group director, said: "There can be no margin for error, and no excuses, when it comes to billing customers correctly.
"This fine should serve as a reminder to telecoms companies that they must adhere to Ofcom's billing rules at all times, or face the consequences."
A spokeswoman for the ISP said: "We are very sorry and would like to apologise to the 1,025 customers affected.  We reported this ourselves to Ofcom and made every effort to contact these customers to arrange a full refund before the investigation started.
"We would also like to reassure all customers this was an isolated historic issue and we have implemented a number of new robust measures to make sure this doesn't happen again."
Plusnet has made repeated attempts to refund all affected ex-customers by letter and phone. It has refunded 356 people a total of £212,140, which included interest at a rate of 4% for each of them.
The remaining funds, for customers whom it could not contact, have been donated to various charities.
The fine, which will be passed on to the Treasury, must be paid within 20 working days.


A major signal failure at London Bridge has caused severe disruption for commuters trying to reach central London from Kent and the South East.

Trains to London Victoria, Charing Cross and Cannon Street are affected.
Passengers were urged to check the Southeastern trains website before they travel, with more than 50 services currently delayed or cancelled.
Southeastern apologised, saying it had been caused by "a complete loss of signalling".
The signal is now working again, but delays are expected to continue.
Train passengers are being advised they can use their tickets on London Underground, Docklands Light Railway and London Overground, and on London Buses between Lewisham and central London.
Commuters delayed by more than half an hour can claim compensation.
The general secretary of the RMT union blamed the problem on a "toxic mix of massive overcrowding and infrastructure failures".
A Network Rail spokesperson said: "We apologise for the delays passengers experienced this morning on the line through London Bridge to Charing Cross and Cannon Street.
"The signalling problems have been fixed but there are delays as the service recovers. We would advise passengers to check the latest travel information on National Rail Enquiries or with their train operator."


Australia, all out for 60 in 18.3 overs. Stuart Broad, eight wickets for 15 runs. All of it done with 20 minutes to go until lunch on the first morning of an Ashes Test. There are no missing characters in this paragraph, although there are plenty in this Australia team.
This has been a series on fast-forward, yet even by the standards of a nonsensical summer this was a morning that felt like watching the trailer rather than an actual film.
The shortest first innings in Test history. Only two players making double figures. Extras the leading scorer for the first time in an Ashes contest.
England supporters were in real danger of forgetting their own names, never mind the identity of their team's missing fast bowler. Only three times in Test history has a team bowling first been batting before lunch on the first day.
How embarrassing was it for the old enemy? Lunches themselves have lasted longer. Hell, so have cups of coffee.
Australia would have been mortified had the top score by any of their players had been 60. Had any single batsman not lasted for 111 balls there would have been questions about the team's attitude and technique.
Instead they lost their first three wickets inside the first eight deliveries.
After 20 minutes their scorecard read 0 0 6 0. That's the international dialling code for Malaysia, so if the rest of your number is 10 1 2 13 1, you might find yourself receiving some unusual calls.
Pity the person with tickets who stopped en route to Trent Bridge to pick up a paper or grab a sandwich for later. The first over alone saw 10 runs scored and two wickets fall, which felt like the entire daft series summarised in six deliveries until you saw what happened next.
These Ashes are not simply racing past at unprecedented pace. They are accelerating. We are getting to the point when buying tickets for the third day is as much of a gamble as walking out to bat without pads.
Adam Voges - poor old hapless Adam Voges, a grand total of 74 runs in the entire series - could at least complain that he fell to an impossible catch; Ben Stokes's one-handed dive at fifth slip was every bit as extraordinary as Andrew Strauss's Superman effort to see off Adam Gilchrist on this same ground a decade ago.
Even then his shot was poor, but in a rogue's gallery like this, no witness could ever pick it out.
Chris Rogers went for the first duck of his Test career. He has now been out three times in the last five balls he has faced from Broad coming round the wicket.
Steve Smith was squared up, David Warner beaten through the gate. Those first three set a template that all would follow: playing too hard, playing too early, playing in a manner that spoke of disintegrating confidence and an inability to cope with the moving ball.
Michael Clarke? He fell to a shot that would have felt inexcusable had it been the morning of the second day and his team 300 up. It was not so much a captain remaining on the bridge as his ship went down as grabbing the last lifejacket and smothering himself with it.
As you watched England's six slips crouching, as you listened to the joyously sarcastic standing ovation when the innings limped past 50, it was almost impossible to recall that this was a team who had handed out a 405-run thrashing less than three weeks ago.
Beaten by eight wickets in Birmingham last week, humiliated in less time than it takes for a Twenty20 innings a few days later. If this was cycling, the international governing body would be ordering spot-checks for motors in cricket balls.
For England's supporters it was wondrous stuff, perhaps only the dismissal of Australia for 98 on the first morning of the Boxing Day Test at the MCG in 2010 coming close in recent Ashes memory.
For Broad, on his home track, as the new leader of his country's attack, it was both a classic whirlwind burst and something entirely beyond those previous tornados like at Durham in 2013 and at The Oval in 2009.
Australia would take 8-15 as a score when the two nations meet again in the Rugby World Cup this autumn. Here those figures have surely cost them the Ashes.
They are the best figures by a fast bowler in any Ashes Test, home or away, and the best figures for England since Devon Malcolm's 9-57 at the Oval 19 years ago. Not since Sydney Barnes 102 years ago has an England bowler taken five wickets before lunch on the first day of a Test.
Somewhere there will be Englishmen bemoaning the speed of this match, wishing even on a subconscious level that Australia were acting more like the ultimate Test opponents and less like a bunch of hapless innocents.
Even with England's reply in progress it is worth reminding those neurotics of the myriad humiliations handed out in reverse in the last 25 years.
Eighteen months ago, Australia were thrashing Alastair Cook's team 5-0, an experience so miserable that the memory still brings a dread lurch in the guts of those Englishmen who experienced it.
The first session, Trent Bridge, 2015. Remember it forever, or at least until The Oval brings something even wilder and weirder.


Police investigating a targeted shooting in Leeds on Christmas Eve have released footage of two witnesses they want to trace.

A 25-year-old man was shot near the BP petrol station in Burley at around 15:00 GMT on Wednesday 24 December.
West Yorkshire Police stressed officers were only interested in speaking to the men as witnesses and not as suspects.
Another two men, aged 24 and 27, were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and have been released on bail.
The victim was treated in hospital for serious gunshot wounds to his abdomen, but has now been released.
Det Ch Insp Mark McManus, of West Yorkshire Police, said the witnesses were seen on CCTV on Thornville Road near the petrol station at the time of the shooting.
"I am appealing directly for the men themselves to contact us, or for anyone who recognises them to get in touch," he said.
A white Audi and a dark hatchback car met at the scene, close to the Thornville Road junction with Alexandra Road, just before the shooting.


The inquiry report into the death of ex-Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko in London in 2006 has been completed.

Inquiry chairman Sir Robert Owen's report will be published in Parliament on 21 January 2016 and will be sent to the home secretary 48 hours prior.
The report will be published on the inquiry's website and Sir Robert will make a brief public statement.
Mr Litvinenko, 43, died three weeks after drinking tea laced with the radioactive substance polonium-210.
The police investigation concluded the fatal dose of polonium-210 was probably consumed by Mr Litvinenko when he was in the company of former Russian colleagues Andrei Lugovoy and Dmitri Kovtun at London's Millennium Hotel.
UK prosecutors want both men to be put on trial for the murder of Mr Litvinenko but it has not been possible to secure their extradition. Both men deny they were involved in murder.
The inquiry was set up in July 2014 to establish the facts surrounding the death of Mr Litvinenko, a fierce critic of the Kremlin, including the possible involvement of Russian state agencies.
Who was Alexander Litvinenko?


Moves by a police commissioner to force out her suspended chief constable have been backed by the chief inspector of constabulary, the BBC understands.

Sir Thomas Winsor was consulted about Avon and Somerset PCC Sue Mountstevens' plans to "call upon" Nick Gargan to resign.
The PCC says Mr Gargan has lost the confidence of the force at all levels, having been found guilty of misconduct.
But some local Conservative MPs say he has been treated unfairly.
In August, Sue Mountstevens became the first police and crime commissioner to say she would start the process of using new powers to call upon a chief constable to quit, a process which would effectively force him out.
She referred her decision to Sir Thomas - her office has not confirmed his response.
But BBC Points West's home affairs correspondent Steve Brodie said he understood the letter backed Ms Mountstevens' decision. Mr Gargan told the BBC he was unable to comment further.
Now the decision will go to the local police and crime panel for scrutiny, although ultimately, Ms Mountstevens has the final word.
Mr Gargan was suspended in May 2014, amid allegations of inappropriate conduct towards female staff.
An IPCC investigation found those allegations were not proven, but that he had "repeatedly breached data protection principles" and had stored "intimate" material on his police-issue phone.
An independent QC-led panel cleared him of gross misconduct, a sackable offence, but found him guilty of eight misconduct charges and recommended eight final written warnings.
But his three predecessors as chief constable said he should quit for the good of the force.
Announcing her decision in August to initiate the process to call upon him to go, Ms Mountstevens said his position had become "untenable".
But MP for Bridgwater Ian Liddell-Grainger said Mr Gargan was the victim of a "witch hunt", and Bristol North West MP Charlotte Leslie said he had been tried in a "media court".


I had a split second to come to terms with winning the Davis Cup before I was mobbed by my team-mates.

One of the special things about this competition is you get to celebrate with your team-mates straight away, whereas after any other win you don't get to see them until maybe an hour after the match has finished.
On Sunday it was immediate, and I felt the full force of the team!
It's not the first time, it happened to me once at school after I scored a goal and everybody then jumped on top of me, so it brought back a few memories.
I actually get claustrophobic, so it was fine at the beginning when Leon got to me and then a couple of others but when there were a few more and I couldn't move, I started to panic and shouted to all of them "get off!"
The next couple of days will be much more fun than after my two Grand Slam wins, for sure.
I regret maybe not celebrating as much as I should have done after some of my other wins, because now I know how much effort goes into achieving them. You never know when the next one might come - it may never - so we should make the most it.
That's why we spent an hour and a half on court after the match taking selfies and chatting with the supporters. I don't really have many personal photos to be honest, but hopefully it made the day that bit more special for those who travelled over to Belgium.
It did take its toll on me a bit though - I could barely stand up at the end of it! By the time I got back to the locker room, I think everyone had enjoyed a few glasses of champagne but I jumped in an ice bath immediately. I'd started to stiffen up from not getting to cool down, stretch or go through my normal routine after matches. Standing around in wet clothes is not very good for you.
I do now make sure that I spend the time after wins like this with the people that I want to spend time with. Right now I want to spend my time with the rest of the team, and also my family and friends.
There are plenty of characters here and it will be great over the next day or two to enjoy some celebrations. I would imagine Dan Evans is the most experienced on our team in that respect.
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To play and win a Davis Cup final with your brother is great, I'm really proud of him, and it may never happen again, so it's something else to savour.
What he was doing standing in my line of vision during Sunday's match though, I have no idea!
I just saw him standing in the entrance at the corner of the court at one point and found it more off-putting because it was my brother, rather than someone I don't know. I generally try to avoid eye contact with him altogether during matches.
Some players might find it beneficial to look over at their family but when they're right there, you see when they're stressed or nervous or pumped, and because you know them, you know what their expressions mean.
I'd just rather Jamie wasn't in my eye-line at that moment, so I let him know!
Winning the Davis Cup is a huge victory for everyone in the team, but from a personal point of view I don't see it so much like ticking off another big title from a list.
There are obviously still two Grand Slams I haven't won, and the Australian Open is a tournament I would love to win because I've been close there so often, reaching the final four times.
And had I got through the fifth set of my semi-final with Novak Djokovic, I would have had an opportunity to win the French Open, so I'm not that far off on the clay.
Hopefully I can use this Davis Cup win as a springboard for next year, to take on the attitude I had in every point and maybe get my first Aussie Open in January.
The Davis Cup has been amazing this year, and I would like to thank all those that have followed us.  It's been an amazing journey and we couldn't have done it without you. Now for some rest before I start training for the new season in a week or so…
Andy Murray was speaking to BBC Sport's Piers Newbery. You can follow Murray on Twitter,Facebook and Instagram.


Former Wales scrum-half Mike Phillips says the four Welsh regions must do what they can to bring Leigh Halfpenny back to play in the Pro12.

Halfpenny, 28, is without a club ahead of the new season after leaving Toulon.
The Welsh Rugby Union had held talks earlier in the year to sign the full-back on a National Dual Contract (NDC) with one of the four Welsh regions, but no deal was agreed.
"It would be great to have him back in Wales," said Phillips.
Bath and Wasps have this week stated they are not interested in signing Halfpenny, with Phillips hoping the three-time British and Irish Lions tourist returns to one of the four Welsh regions.
"The Welsh regions should do everything they can to keep these players," said Phillips.
"Hopefully they can do everything to get Leigh back in Wales, because it would be great for everyone, especially for the young supporters to come and see the stars play.
"It's important the talent stays here."
Halfpenny joined Toulon in 2014 from Cardiff Blues and won the European Cup in his first season.
His current deal ran out with Toulon in June and with no new contract agreed with the French side, Halfpenny is set to leave after three seasons in the Top 14 and looking for a fresh challenge with the season just over a month away.
"Sometimes going outside of Wales is great for your development and a lot of players have done it and come back as better players," said Phillips.
"Hopefully he can come back and bring what he has learned outside into Welsh rugby.
"There would be so many fans who would be pleased to see him.
"He is one of the stars of the team and his return would be great for the future of Welsh rugby."


Industry spending on the break-up of old North Sea equipment is expected to rise 60% this year, to nearly £2bn pounds.

That is according to the energy industry consultancy Wood Mackenzie, in a new analysis of Britain's offshore industry.
It foresees a drop in other capital expenditure of 30%, to reach £5.7m.
In recent boom years for investment in major projects, it was more than double that amount.
The forecast for this year is for a continued low level of exploration, but production from existing fields rising for a third consecutive year.
Meanwhile, deal-makers are expected to be busy as major oil and gas producers exit the North Sea, and private equity firms buy assets at low valuations.
The Wood Mackenzie report, published on Tuesday, follows a global report on the exploration and production of oil and gas, which was upbeat about new investment this year, though much of it in North American fracking.
Its estimates for decommissioning of older, disused equipment follows years of high expectations being met with lower results, as the industry continued to sweat assets, and then put off scrappage until its tax treatment became clearer.
With the cost of maintaining older equipment remaining high, that is expected to change in the next eight years. Last year is thought to have seen £1.1bn spent on decommissioning, up from less than £800m in each of the previous two years.
Shell and Exxon Mobil are expected to be the main spenders, as that rises to £1.8bn during 2017.  Fields to watch include Brent, operated by Shell, CNR's Murchison, BP's Miller field, the Janice area operated by Maersk, and MacCulloch which is owned by Conoco.
The UK offshore report suggests there is "still an appetite to drill" for new fields in 2017, much of that linked to locations where there is already infrastructure in place to develop new finds. Statoil, the oil major which is part-owned by the Norwegian government, is on course to be a leading player in that.
There is an estimate that production will rise to a daily 1.9m barrels of oil, or its gas equivalent, up from 1.4m barrels three years ago.
That rise is linked to recent projects which were approved before the end of 2015, when the oil price was much higher than it has been over the past two years. Fourteen fields are expected to come onstream during 2017.
But there are very few projects reaching the stage where they will get Final Investment Decisions. Wood Mackenzie analysts highlight only three such projects, with total reserves estimated at 171m barrels of oil or its gas equivalent. At current levels, that represents less than 100 days of production.


The Republic of Kosovo was having a birthday - and it wanted everyone to know.

Posters proclaiming "KO5AVA" were plastered across the capital, Pristina, to coincide with the fifth anniversary of the unilateral declaration of independence.
At the "Newborn" monument, volunteers got busy with paintbrushes. They adorned each letter of the sculpture with the flags of the 98 countries which have so far recognised Kosovo.
Notably missing were the red-white-and-blue banners of Serbia and Russia. They are among more than 90 UN member states which have refused to acknowledge independence. Indeed, as far as Serbia is concerned, Kosovo is still its southern-most province.
Such matters are brushed aside by Petrit Selimi. Kosovo's deputy foreign minister wants to highlight the progress the country has made - noting its low national debt and steady economic growth.
But he does acknowledge that his country's status can be problematic.
"For me maybe the failure is for our kids and our youth; we don't have a team in the Champions League, we don't have a song in Eurovision song contest. Sometimes the platforms of national identity are more important to make us proud," he said.
Other things are missing too.
Kosovo still does not have an international telephone dialling code - and, unlike other Balkan countries, its citizens cannot travel visa-free to the European Union.
And the international presence here is still significant.
"Supervised independence" may have come to an end last year, but KFOR international peacekeepers remain a common sight in Kosovo. Meanwhile the EU's rule-of-law mission, EULEX, is crucial while Kosovo's own judiciary is in its infancy.
Some view the international missions  as less than helpful.
"They've put us on a shelf that's labelled 'crisis'," says opposition leader, Albin Kurti.
"They keep comparing us with Afghanistan, Palestine and Bosnia. They're not saying we got out from war and should prosper - but they got out and how do we stop it happening again."
Others suggest the considerable influence of western diplomats is stifling the growth of democracy in Kosovo.
"They prefer having in power politicians they control rather than those that have capacity to improve society," says Ardian Arifaj, senior researcher at the Kosovar Institute for Policy Research and Development.
In Northern Kosovo, the problem is control of any kind. Most of the population there is ethnic-Serb, and they have rejected government from Pristina. As far as they are concerned, they are still citizens of Serbia.
Most of them live in the northern half of the town of Mitrovica, split down the middle by the River Ibar.
On one side of the bridge, which is blocked to traffic, Serbian flags flutter. On the other, the blue-and-yellow colours of the Republic of Kosovo fly alongside the black-and-red Albanian flag.
Most Serbs are quick to voice their fear: the ethnic-Albanians want their land, but not the people currently living there.
"We are scared for our kids and property - deeply scared," says Kosovo Serb leader, Oliver Ivanovic.
"We have no electricity or water on a daily basis. But we are still happy - because people are afraid it could be worse. They are afraid of the possible political changes which could make us even more concerned for our lives."
Developments may come sooner than the Kosovo Serbs would like.
Serbia wants to become a member of the EU - and that means it will have to compromise on Kosovo. The prime ministers of the two countries have been holding regular meetings in recent months.
The Serbs in the North fear that Belgrade will sacrifice them - meeting a similar fate to Croatia's Serbs almost 20 years ago.
But Albanians in the South worry about the creation of an autonomous area. That might - as they see it - make Kosovo into another mess like ethnically-divided Bosnia.
So while Pristina enjoyed its party weekend, the clear-up will have to cover the big issues - for both the north and south of Kosovo.


Northern Ireland have reached an all-time high of 25th in the Fifa world rankings.

Michael O'Neill's team are about to make their European Championship debut, having last featured in a major finals at the 1986 World Cup.
Northern Ireland are now one place ahead of Wales, who drop two spots, while England slip one place to 11th and Scotland fall three to 43rd.
Argentina remain top of the rankings ahead of Belgium.
Wales and England are in the same group at Euro 2016, with the former having qualified for their first major competition since the 1958 World Cup.
The Republic of Ireland, who face a difficult Euro 2016 group with Belgium, Italy and Sweden, drop two places to 33rd.
Northern Ireland qualified as winners of Group F, finishing one point ahead of Romania after recording six victories, three draws and one defeat from their 10 qualification matches.
O'Neill was appointed Northern Ireland boss in December 2011 and signed a four-year contract extension in March after his side secured qualification.
Who do you think should start at Euro 2016? Step into Michael O'Neillâ€™s shoes and pick your XI - and then share it with your friends using our brand new team selector.
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Children as young as eight are being used in Indonesia to produce palm oil found in popular household products, according to Amnesty International.

Unilever, Colgate-Palmolive, Kellogg's and Nestle are among those linked to Singapore-based company Wilmar, the human rights group says.
The Amnesty report alleges that children as young as eight are working in "hazardous" conditions in Indonesia.
Wilmar said it was carrying out an "assessment" of the findings.
It was, it said, "aware of the issues" raised by Amnesty.
The BBC has not been able to verify the report's findings.
Amnesty researchers investigated the working conditions at plantations in the Indonesian regions of Kalimantan and Sumatra.
It found that the palm oil produced at the sites for the company Wilmar had been sold on to manufacturers that produce items ranging from toothpaste and cosmetics to ice-cream.
The report "will shock any consumer who thinks they are making ethical choices" when selecting products that claim to use sustainable palm oil, Amnesty senior investigator Meghna Abraham said.
"Something is wrong when nine companies turning over a combined revenue of $325bn [£260bn] in 2015 are unable to do something about the atrocious treatment of palm oil workers."
The report details children aged between eight and 14 carrying out physical labour on plantations in Indonesia without safety equipment in areas exposed to pesticides.
Some of the children had dropped out of school to work with parents, while others worked in the afternoons, at weekends and during holidays, Amnesty said.
It added that its investigation had found that some plantation workers were earning as little as $2.50 a day.
In response to the report, Wilmar said it had already been carrying out an "internal assessment" of its supply practices before being approached by Amnesty.
"We acknowledge that there are ongoing labour issues in the palm oil industry, and these issues could affect any palm company operating in Indonesia," the company said, adding that the report was welcome as it helped "highlight labour issues" within the trade.
Amnesty said that seven of the nine companies mentioned in the report had admitted that they bought palm oil through Wilmar's Indonesian operations:
Amnesty's business and human rights programme director, Peter Frankental, said human rights abuses linked to any supply chain should result in a product being viewed as "defective".
"Using mealy-mouthed excuses about 'traceability' is a total cop-out from these companies," he said. "You can be sure that if one these companies' products were contaminated and had to be taken off the shelves of supermarkets, they would ensure that they could trace the source to specific plantations."


Urgent safety checks should be carried out on hundreds of public buildings constructed after the year 2000, architects have warned.

The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) said a lack of scrutiny over building techniques meant lives could be at risk.
It follows the publication of a report which raised concerns about building standards at 17 schools in Edinburgh.
The Scottish government said it had written to councils about the issue.
The Cole report, published last week, was prompted by the collapse of a wall at Oxgangs Primary School in January 2016.
How Edinburgh built unsafe schools
It blamed poor building and a lack of oversight for the problems, which also affected 16 other schools and 7,600 children in the city.
The report also said that it was only due to "timing and luck" that the collapse of the wall, which sent nine tonnes of masonry crashing to the ground, did not result in child deaths.
Prof John Cole said the problems were not the result of one "rogue bricklayer", but were instead linked to the absence of proper inspections by the local council and building contractors.
RIAS said it "would be naive" to assume similar issues would not be present in hundreds of council projects constructed since the year 2000 across Scotland and the rest of the UK.
RIAS secretary Neil Baxter said Prof Cole's report was the most important he had seen in his 40-year career.
He added: "We are talking about hundreds of buildings just in Scotland.
"The same procurement process that applies in Scotland applies across the UK, so there is no reason this would be limited to Scotland.
"Councils have a responsibility to the public to ensure these buildings are safe."
RIAS has called on local authorities to ensure they have trained staff to carry out inspections as soon as possible and denied they had any vested interest in a future inspection programme.
The organisation's president Willie Watt added: "The message is simple and the responsibility of all commissioning authorities is clear.
"An early process of inspection by appropriately-qualified experts should proceed as urgently as the various public commissioning authorities, local, health and governmental, can muster the skilled individuals who can do this work."
Mr Watt added that without "diligent and careful checking at every stage of the building process" problems were almost inevitable.
A Scottish government spokesman said the safety of people in public buildings was an absolute priority.
He added: "That is why the housing minister has written to all local authorities highlighting the issues and recommendations the Cole Report raises and underlining the importance of adhering to building regulations, technical standards and the inspection processes which are in place to protect the public."
Cosla, the umbrella group that represents many of Scotland's councils, said the safety of public buildings was "of the highest priority".
The organisation said: "When problems were first identified with schools in Edinburgh, local authorities quickly prioritised the inspection of school buildings to check for similar issues.
"Local government takes these responsibilities extremely seriously. However, we should not forget that the report published last week also has implications for the construction sector.
"As a result, all involved must take time to consider carefully the lessons to be learned from what was a serious report."


The morning after the EU referendum - before she had even been to bed - Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she thought another independence referendum was "highly likely".

Since then she has upgraded that prediction several times from "more likely" to "almost necessary".
Yet some people think she won't dare call for another vote while the opinion polls continue to suggest a majority of the Scottish electorate still does not support independence.
The polls are not what matters, according to Duncan Hamilton, a former SNP MSP and advisor to Alex Salmond during the 2014 independence referendum campaign.
"I think we are beyond the stage of the opinion polls dictating whether or not there will be a referendum", he says.
"I think Nicola Sturgeon would find it difficult ultimately to justify not putting to the people the option of having an independent Scotland as opposed to being taken out on the current hard Tory Brexit terms."
The SNP argue that this is about Scotland democratic wishes being ignored.
Scotland voted by 62% to 38% to remain inside the EU. But the Scottish government claim that their demands for a bespoke Brexit deal for Scotland are being ignored by Westminster. Scotland isn't getting what it voted for, they say.
That argument about a democratic deficit is very reminiscent of the political battles of the 1980s that led to the creation of the Scottish Parliament.
That could resonate with voters in Scotland now according to Val McDermid, a best selling author, and a Yes voter.
She says: "The Scots.. we can be a bit difficult. There's a great Scots word, 'thrawn', and it means essentially taking up an adversarial position because we can.
"I think for a lot of people the EU thing was a close call. It wasn't that they were passionate about the EU, but they thought on balance that we were better in than out.
"Then, when the rest of the UK told us we were going, there was a certain sort of 'wait a minute, I've suddenly become a lot more passionate about the EU, this is really important to me'."
The vote to leave the EU may well provide the SNP with the justification for holding another independence referendum. But they will have to be careful not to tie the campaign too closely to EU membership.
Around of third of those people who voted Yes to independence in 2014 also voted to leave the EU. Making another referendum all about EU membership would risk alienating many of the SNP's core supporters.
Jim Sillars, a former SNP deputy leader, says: "I could not vote Yes if on the ballot paper it said we wish the Scottish state to be a member of the European Union.
"And I'm not alone in that; there's something like 350,000 to 400,000 of people like me who voted to come out of the EU and under no circumstances would vote to go back in."
The SNP are already preparing for the possibility of another referendum.
They have experts working hard on formulating a new economic case for independence, considering key questions such as what currency an independent Scotland might use and how they would cope with the sharp fall in the price of oil.
Other Yes supporting campaign groups have already started fundraising.
But calling another referendum would still be a gamble, and the consequences of defeat could be disastrous for Nicola Sturgeon.
To lose two referendums in quick succession could set back the cause of Scottish independence for at least a generation.
And there could be a high personal cost. Both Alex Salmond and David Cameron resigned immediately after losing referendums. There would be an expectation that Nicola Sturgeon would have to do the same.
But still, every time the first minster mentions the possibility of another vote she makes it seem increasingly likely.
Nicola McEwen, professor of politics at Edinburgh University, believes Ms Sturgeon may now find it hard to justify not calling another referendum.
She says: "In one sense she may have talked herself into the position of almost having to commit to a referendum even in the absence of majority support.
Ms Sturgeon still says that if the UK government is prepared to compromise on the terms of Scotland's exit from the EU then another independence referendum can be avoided. But she warns that time is running is out to reach some kind of agreement.
She wrote this week: "If an independence referendum does arise, it will not be down to bad faith on the part of the Scottish government, but to sheer intransigence on the part of the UK government."
Sarah will be examining the SNP's possible strategy for a second referendum on BBC Radio 4's Analysis programme at 20:30 on Monday 6 March.


Wales will host New Zealand in a two-Test netball series in February 2017.

The Welsh have faced the four-time World Cup winners 14 times, but have not hosted the world's second-best side for almost 20 years.
The two Tests will be held on consecutive days from 7 February at the Sport Wales National Centre in Cardiff.
"This will be an exhilarating event for the ever-growing netball community in Wales," Welsh Netball chief executive Sarah Jones said.


World champion Lewis Hamilton believes Formula 1 is broken as it struggles to finalise rules for the next two years.

The Mercedes ace was asked by reporters if the sport was fundamentally broken, lacking direction or in rude health.
The 31-year-old Briton, world champion three times, said: "Probably the first two you suggested. I don't want to say too much but I agree with those."
McLaren-Honda driver Fernando Alonso added that indecision over qualifying regulations for 2016 was "sad".
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Hamilton also questioned the new 'halo' safety system that was trialled on Thursday's penultimate day of winter testing in Barcelona.
The system is designed to protect drivers from impact and debris, but Hamilton used social media to call it "the worst F1 modification in history".
In the earlier news conference, he added he was "dying" to be able to drive a car from 30 years ago, which he said he finds much more appealing.
He also sees no need to change qualifying, a reference to attempts by F1's bosses to introduce a new elimination-style system for this year.
Hamilton said: "It was fine, it was OK. Why confuse people even more? Even we don't understand what is going on."
F1 bosses agreed last week to introduce a qualifying system that would see the slowest car eliminated at 90-second intervals through three stages of qualifying.
But the following day, F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, who was keen on the new format, said he had been told there was not sufficient time to amend the sport's timing system before the season starts in Australia on 18 March.
The teams, who were asked to analyse the new proposal to check it had no flaws, have proposed a revised system that retains the elimination format for the first two parts of qualifying but reverts to a straight fight between eight drivers for the top places on the grid.
This idea will be discussed at the FIA World Council on Friday.
Senior figures have also questioned why the timing software and television graphics cannot be amended in time, with one senior figure telling BBC Sport that the explanation given was "pathetic".
Bosses have also had to extend a deadline to finalise new rules for 2017 aimed at making the cars faster and more dramatic-looking.
Alonso said the lack of clarity did not portray F1 in a good light.
"I am sad for the sport," said the two-time champion. "If I were a sportsman from another sport, I will look at Formula 1 a little bit surprised about that."
The 34-year-old Spaniard added there were "too many changes" and complained that "the complexity of the rules for the spectator is quite high".
He said: "All my friends here in Spain want to switch on the television and watch battles, big cars, big tyres, big noise and enjoy the race like they do with other sports. We want simplicity in the rules."


Officials at a US university were left red-faced after their decision to rename a law school after late Supreme Court judge Antonin Scalia prompted hilarity over its unfortunate acronym.

George Mason University in Virginia said its law school would be called the Antonin Scalia School of Law.
The eagle-eyed immediately took to Twitter to point out that the acronym would be ASSoL.
The university has since renamed it as the Antonin Scalia Law School.
In a statement to students, the university said the new name was a "logical substitute" after the initial name "caused some acronym controversy on social media".
The renaming of the law school was a condition of an anonymous $30m (Â£21m) donation received by the university on 31 March.
The dean of the law school, Henry Butler, said the money would be received over the next five years and would be used to increase "the quantity and quality of students" over that time.
Antonin Scalia, one of the most conservative members of the US Supreme Court, died in February at the age of 79. He had been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1986.
President Barack Obama has nominated moderate Judge Merrick Garland as a replacement.


South African players are excited by the prospect of competing in the Pro12, according to Southern Kings scrum-half Rudi van Rooyen.

The Kings, who play in Port Elizabeth, and the Bloemfontein-based Cheetahs are expected to join the league after losing their Super Rugby status.
The Pro12 comprises teams from Scotland, Wales, Ireland and Italy.
"A lot of the players at South African teams would prefer playing in the Pro12," van Rooyen told BBC Scotland.
"Most of the guys are really excited to play in the northern hemisphere - it's a new challenge, a new type of game, playing new opposition that you don't know at all."
Van Rooyen, 25, says the players have not been informed of their immediate future after the Kings' exit from Super Rugby was confirmed by the national governing body on Friday.
He hopes a berth in the Pro12 would create opportunities for him to impress Springboks selectors - and carve out a more lucrative career path in Europe.
"Most of the South Africans want to earn their pounds or their Euros and I think playing in Europe, playing against Munster or Ulster, the big teams from Ireland or Scotland or Wales can certainly put your foot in the door a bit," Van Rooyen said.
"The only way people in Europe can see you play is clips and games that you send them, but once you start playing against them week in, week out, they can know more about you as a person and how you play.
"I've got only about four, five, six years left - you have to make your pounds or your Euros. Playing against the European teams week in, week out, should hopefully make a way for us to get overseas just by playing against the teams there.
"We're going to play more of a kicking game against the northern hemisphere teams because it is wet most of the time - maybe that's what the Springboks selectors want for certain games.
"So I think it can really help us to become Boks or to get that big contract in Europe to help you get financial stability for after rugby.
"It can be a huge door to be opened for South Africans wanting to make a few bucks before their time runs out with rugby."
An ankle injury limited Van Rooyen to two Super Rugby appearances this season, with the Kings' campaign coming to a close against the Cheetahs on 14 July.
They have won six of their 14 matches and sit bottom of the Africa 2 conference.
Deon Davids' side are expected to join the Pro12 for the coming season, which should begin in September, and their scrum-half believes that, with a deeper player pool, his team can be very competitive.
"The bodies have taken a few shots now, but the type of game is totally different," he said.
"It's a slower game, so you can manage the bodies a bit better. You just have to get the right squad, with enough guys in specific positions for depth, because it is such a long competition.
"But I think the excitement of the new competition could really boost that. Tiring bodies is one thing, but if you know you can tour Ireland or Scotland, that's a big motivator.
"The first season might get a bit long, but our depth was tested in Super Rugby and we did exceptionally well.
"We've shown this year we're a great running side - I think we can bring something new to the Pro12, more running than kicking, and I think that will be good for the Pro12.
"Talent-wise we've really stepped up and I think we can be a threat. I don't see why we'd have to stand back for big teams like Munster.
"I really think we can make our stamp in the first year and build on that. I think, if you just get through the first year and see how things work, you can build on that. I think we can really be contenders growing into the Pro12."
Van Rooyen insists "there will be big crowds" for Pro12 opposition at the Kings' Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium and admits playing against Munster at Thomond Park would be "a dream come true".
"I watch European rugby week in, week out, and I think a lot of players here do," he added. "For me, the Pro12 is an awesome competition and it's a long competition, so you need a big group.
"The Pro12 has good talent - it's not a watered-down competition, it's very fierce and competitive and that's exactly what you want. I'd love to be part of it."


Gru and his minions are set to return to the big screen in Despicable Me 3.

Universal, the film company behind the movie, confirmed its release but we'll have to wait until June 2017 to see it.
Despicable Me 2 was the UK's biggest box office hit in 2013 and made an estimated Â£561 million worldwide since being released last year.
It tells the story of international villain Gru being recruited by the Anti-Villain League to help deal with a powerful new super-criminal.
The film was named in the best animation category at the Golden Globes and has been nominated for a Bafta award too.
Pharrell Williams' track Happy, which was written for Despicable Me 2, is currently number one in the Official UK singles chart.
The original Despicable Me film was released in 2010.
Details of the plot for the new film have yet to be unveiled, but you can bet there'll be more crazy adventures with our favourite characters.
Universal have also announced that an animated big screen version of Dr. Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas will be released in November 2017.


More small and medium-sized businesses are pessimistic about the future than positive for the first time in four years, according to an industry body.

Small business' concerns are growing that the domestic economy will weaken.
The first survey by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) since the Brexit vote suggests the second largest fall in confidence in the index's history.
It is the third quarter in a row that confidence has fallen.
"The political shock of the Brexit result has taken place at a time of weakening business confidence," said FSB national chairman Mike Cherry.
The FSB surveyed 1,035 small firms between July and August.
The results suggested business confidence fell into negative territory for the first time since 2012, with pessimistic business owners outnumbering confident ones.
But the FSB said there were "many positive signs" of small businesses proving resilient, in spite of a fragile economic outlook in the longer term because of Brexit political uncertainty.
The number of small companies aspiring to grow over the year climbed to 55%, the highest level since the end of 2015.
Meanwhile, the number of firms expecting to downsize, close or hand on the business fell to 11%.
"Small firms are resilient and will survive the current fragile economic outlook, but to avoid an economic slowdown this data should be a wake-up call for our elected politicians," said Mr Cherry.
He added: "We look to the party conferences and upcoming Autumn Statement to green-light infrastructure projects at local and national level, to simplify the tax system and to help reduce the costs of doing business."
Last month, a survey by the CBI business lobby group said that small and medium-sized manufacturers fear they will be hit by a fall in orders in the next quarter.
It indicated that business optimism had fallen at its fastest rate since January 2009, driven by the uncertainty following June's Brexit vote.


Dundee have appointed former player Neil McCann as their interim manager until the end of the season.

The Dens Park club, second bottom in the Premiership, sacked Paul Hartley on Monday.
The Dark Blues' next fixture is away to Motherwell, who are one place and two points above them, on 29 April.
"Yes, we're in a poor position at the minute but, equally, we're not far off of [seventh-placed] Kilmarnock," said McCann, 42.
"I'm excited. I appreciate the opportunity, I'm not going into anything lightly.
"It's not a big risk for me, it's maybe a big risk for the club - a lot of guys will think because I've not been in a job before.
"This opportunity was just too good to turn down."
Dundee are on a run of seven straight defeats, with Hamilton Academical climbing above them after Saturday's 2-0 win at Dens Park.
Scot McCann, who had a previous coaching spell at Dunfermline Athletic, has worked as a pundit covering Scottish football for Sky Sports.
Managing director John Nelms said McCann was "first choice" for the job and the new manager insists the current Dundee squad is "absolutely good enough".
"I am surprised at the position they're in," he said.
"I'm not going to kid anyone on and say, 'it's just going to be easy' because it's not. There's a lot of hard work ahead. The other sides in and around us will have that same mentality. It's a massive job.
"I think most people know the type of person I am, type of character, the standards that I liked to have when I was playing and training - those qualities I would like to think I'll bring to the football club.
"It's my job now to sit with the players and try and get them to understand the requirements that's going to get them that extra yard or that extra wee bit that's going to be enough to see us win games of football."
McCann also said he was "massively confident" of getting Dundee away from relegation trouble.
He started his playing career as a winger at Dundee in 1992 and enjoyed stints at Hearts, Rangers, Southampton and Falkirk before ending his career at Dens Park in 2011. He also won 26 caps, scoring three international goals.
And McCann's former Falkirk and Scotland team-mate Jackie McNamara has backed Dundee's appointment.
"Neil has got great experience in the game," the former Dundee United and Partick Thistle boss told BBC Radio Scotland's Sportsound.
"I don't think Neil would do this if he wasn't confident. The feelings he has for the club, the affinity he has with them, I don't think he would even consider it if he didn't feel he was confident of getting a reaction from the players inside the dressing room.
"He's obviously an intelligent lad, he's got good ideas in the game. He's quite a fiery character, Neil. I always thought he'd go into management.
"There's five massive games there for them to keep them in the division. They're capable of doing that."


Flying over the Royal Sandringham estate in Norfolk is to be restricted at the request of security services.

Aircraft will not be permitted within 1.5 miles (2.4km) of Anmer Hall - home of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
The Department for Transport said it was required "in view of the need for security for the Royal Family".
The rules will apply to Anmer Hall from 1 November. Similar regulations come into force for Sandringham House from 1 December to 1 March each year.
The three-month restriction covers the Christmas period, when the Queen and other members of the Royal Family are in residence.
Regulations issued by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) state no aircraft is to fly below 2,000ft (610m) within the restricted airspace.
It does not apply to emergency services aircraft, including Prince William's employer, the East Anglian Air Ambulance, and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
The Queen's helicopter and any aircraft flown by a member of the Royal family are also exempt, as are aircraft flown by guests of Sandringham House or Anmer Hall, who have permission to land there.
It is not known whether any incident prompted the restriction.
When asked, a royal communications secretary said it was in relation to "matters of security".
In May, the media was warned in a letter from Norfolk Police not to harass the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge after "a number of intrusions" following the birth of Princess Charlotte.
At the time, Kensington Palace said public interest had to be balanced with the couple's right to a "private family life".
The letter expressed the hope that "acts of harassment and breaches of privacy" would cease.
Anmer Hall, a Georgian mansion, is about two miles (3km) east of Sandringham House.


Ben Proud has broken Mark Foster's 14-year-old short-course 50m freestyle British record.

The 21-year-old, who won two Commonwealth gold medals in 2014, swam 20.74 to beat the mark set by Foster in January 2001 by 0.39 seconds.
"As soon as I nailed my turn, I knew it was going to be a fast swim but I didn't think it would be sub-21 seconds," Proud told swimming.org.
The Plymouth Leander swimmer was racing at the ASA's winter meet in Sheffield.
Two other British records fell at the meeting: Lizzie Simmonds swam the 100m backstroke in 56.35 seconds, while 16-year-old Imogen Clark recorded a time of 30.02 in the 50m breaststroke.


Baseball has welcomed its first openly gay professional player, in a minor-league game in California.

Pitcher Sean Conroy, 23, took the mound for the Sonoma Stompers after agreeing to come out publicly in time for the team stadium's gay pride night.
The team is part of the independent Pacific Association of Baseball Clubs.
Several baseball players have disclosed their sexual orientation while in retirement but Conroy is thought to be the first active player to do so.
New Yorker Conroy joined The Stompers from college in May and had already told his team-mates and coaching staff he was gay, said general manager Theo Fightmaster.
"His goal has always been to be the first openly gay baseball player so he was very much in favour of telling the story, of carrying that torch," he said.
Major League Baseball historian John Thorn said he thought Conroy was the first active professional to come out.
Both Glenn Burke (Oakland Athletics and LA Dodgers) and Billy Bean (Detroit Tigers, LA Dodgers and San Diego Padres) did so after they retired.
Conroy told his family he was gay when he was 16 and he said it was important to be honest with his new team-mates, especially when conversation turns to girlfriends.
"Instead of getting the different looks or questions when I didn't join them, I'd rather tell you the truth and let you know who I am and have real conversations instead of the fake ones," he said.
Some Stompers will wear rainbow-themed socks or symbols to mark the occasion, the club has said.
Football: Robbie Rogers scored his first goal for LA Galaxy this week
Basketball: Jason Collins played 13 seasons in the NBA
American football: Michael Sam was drafted by the St Louis Rams, now plays in Canada


A man accused of murdering PC Dave Phillips has accepted his driving caused the officer's death but said he did not intend to kill him.

The 34-year-old father-of-two died after being hit by a pick-up vehicle in Merseyside on Monday.
Clayton Williams, 18, "extended his apologies" to the officer's family, in a statement from his solicitor after a preliminary hearing.
Mr Williams was earlier remanded in custody at Liverpool Crown Court.
He is due in court again on 22 October.
Mr Williams' solicitor Andrew Egerton issued a statement which said:
"Mr Williams has accepted that his actions and his driving caused the death of PC Phillips. He is adamant that he did not drive at the officer and that he did not intend to injure, let alone kill, him.
"He extended his apologies through the police to PC Phillips' young family. It is now time for the judicial process to take over, and we would ask that all bear in mind Mr Williams' right to a fair trial."
It also added he felt the media coverage has not given the full picture in the case.
Mr Williams, of Wheatland Lane, Wallasey, is accused of murdering the father of two, attempting to wound another police officer, aggravated theft of a motor vehicle and burglary.
A second man, Phillip Stuart, 30, of Mayfair Court, Oxton, has been charged with burglary and aggravated taking of a vehicle.
He was also remanded in custody until 22 October, when he is due to appear at Liverpool Crown Court for a preliminary hearing.
PC Phillips, 34, was killed as he attempted to use a tyre-puncturing" stinger" device to stop a vehicle in Wallasey.


Large banners hang in the European Parliament building in Strasbourg celebrating 60 years since the Treaty of Rome.

They are visible en route to the chamber where MEPs this week set out their key objectives for Brexit talks over the next two years (MEPs won't be at the top table, but they will have to approve or reject any deals).
Those objectives, devised by leaders of the main parties in the Parliament, are aimed at protecting the EU project in the face of Brexit and rising support for parties across the continent less than enthusiastic about integration.
The priorities can be summarised as:
The resolution also notes Scotland and Northern Ireland's electorates voted remain (bids to have recognition of the results in London and Gibraltar were rejected).
On paper, it's little more than stating facts. But the SNP hopes official recognition could prove useful down the line.
"It keeps the door open for later things," says MEP Alyn Smith. "We're not sure what those things are going to be yet, this is the start of a process, we'll keep all options open as long as we can."
No details on what those doors might lead to.
UKIP's David Coburn thinks the EU side is causing mischief - trying to split the UK side ahead of negotiations. "That's just to cause trouble", he says. "They're just trying to stir it up."
Conservative MEP Ian Duncan describes it as primarily "politics", warning: "There will be attempts to divide the UK, we must be united".
It was interesting to note some of the figures who mentioned Scotland during the debate.
One was Esteban Pons - the senior Spanish MEP previously seen as someone who would articulate an anti-Scottish independence case from an EU perspective.
His mention was only in passing, but it comes after he told us last month his country wouldn't stop Scotland trying to get back in if it became independent.
His comments have since been backed up by the foreign minister.
Some Conservatives are furious about this. They think the Spanish are playing an aggressive negotiating game and Scotland has been brought into play. Gibraltar is another example, they think.
Another figure who has been discussing Scotland is Elmar Brok. He's a member of Angela Merkel's CDU and was until recently chair of the foreign affairs committee in the European Parliament (interesting snippet: Mr Brok was educated in Edinburgh. He was replaced in the role by David McAllister, the Scottish-German MEP).
Like Mr Pons, Mr Brok opposes Scotland becoming an independent country. But if it does, he thinks it could become an EU member fairly speedily.
His argument suggests Scotland will have to leave the EU when the UK does - a view echoed by many in Brussels (some in the SNP acknowledge this is likely, though others haven't given up on remaining).
But if it wanted back in, the process, he says, could be smooth. Assuming there were no political hurdles (which shouldn't be ruled out), he thinks the technical side would be straightforward.
He points out Scotland already complies with EU law as part of the UK, and dismisses the idea there's a queue it would have to join.
It's worth noting his insistence any independence vote has the backing of London. That's a point the Spanish have made too. That's part of the reason Nicola Sturgeon appears unlikely to hold an unofficial vote.
On the face of it, Mr Brok's comments sound like music to the ears of independence supporters. But, argue some, they need to be seen in a wider context.
The Conservatives argue the hypothetical independent Scotland being discussed would have to submit to many unattractive EU demands in exchange for speedy entry back into the club.
Ian Duncan MEP argues the conditions on Scottish entry would involve terms far inferior to those the UK currently has.
"The more you give up, the easier it is to get in", he says. "Getting in on the same terms as the UK, that won't be possible, because the UK rebate is despised across here.
"It could be very very easy if you give up on all the stuff you want to keep".
He highlights areas that might not be attractive to some Scottish voters, like re-entering the Common Fisheries Policy.
In response the Scottish government's Brexit minister Mike Russell tweeted Mr Duncan was "scaremongering".
And his colleagues in the European Parliament think the EU's attitude to Scottish independence has changed since 2014.
Alyn Smith says: "One member state will back of the government of another member stateâ€¦ the UK is now without the allies it had."
The EU's partnership with the UK has long been a complicated one. Figuring out the future of that relationship - for the UK and for Scotland - could prove just as complex.


Jeremy Corbyn has said he will not take part in any head-to-head TV election debates without Theresa May.

Labour's leader said the only debate he wanted was one between the "two people who could form the next government".
In 2015, Ed Miliband took part in a debate against four other opposition leaders after David Cameron opted out.
Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said both Mr Corbyn and Mrs May - who has also ruled out head-to-head appearances - were "running scared" of voters.
Broadcasters have said they are keen on staging a series of election debates, which drew big audiences in 2010 and 2015.
Earlier this month, ITV announced plans for a leaders' debate but did not say who would take part.
In 2010, Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg went head-to-head in three encounters on ITV, Sky and the BBC.
In 2015, there was a single debate between all the main British party leaders, watched by an average audience of 7.7 million people. There was a separate debate between the Labour, SNP, Green Party, UKIP and Plaid Cymru leaders in the absence of the Conservative prime minister and his Lib Dem deputy Mr Clegg.
A spokesman for Mr Corbyn said he would not take part in a similar format this time around.
"The British people have the right to see a head-to-head debate between the only two people who could form the next government," he said. "The prime minister's refusal is a sign of weakness, not of strength."
In response, Mr Farron said the Labour leader should face his opponents and defend his policies.
"Given he has been absent since the day he was elected as leader of the opposition, it is no surprise that he is choosing to be absent now," he said.
"The broadcasters are going to have to dust off two empty chairs, the debates must go ahead."
In 2015, the BBC also broadcast a special edition of Question Time in which the Conservative, Labour and Lib Dem leaders were questioned by the same studio audience. It drew a peak audience of 4.3 million people.


A senior police officer critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's alleged role in the anti-Muslim Gujarat riots in 2002 has been sacked.

Sanjiv Bhatt was suspended in 2011 and briefly jailed before being given bail.
He claims Mr Modi, who was the Gujarat chief minister in 2002, told a meeting that Hindus should be allowed to vent their anger. Mr Modi denies the charge.
The state authorities accuse him of fabricating evidence to implicate Mr Modi.
More than 1,000 people, mostly Muslims, were killed when riots erupted after 60 Hindu pilgrims died in a train fire.
The cause of the blaze was never clearly established. Hindu groups allege the fire was started by Muslim protesters, but an earlier inquiry said the fire was an accident.
In 2011, the Supreme Court cleared Mr Modi of involvement in the riots.
Sanjiv Bhatt was a senior police officer in the Gujarat intelligence bureau at the time of the riots.
He says his position allowed him to come across large amounts of information and intelligence both before and during the violence, including the actions of senior administrative officials.
On Wednesday night, Mr Bhatt broke the news of his removal on Twitter:
In a Facebook post, he described the reasons given by the authorities while sacking him:
"The Government of the day has decided to remove me from service after conducting a sham, ex parte inquiry on completely fabricated charges of 'unauthorised absence from duty," he wrote.
In the past, Mr Bhatt alleged that at a meeting the night before the riots, Mr Modi told officials that the Muslim community needed to be taught a lesson following the incident on the train carrying Hindu pilgrims.
Mr Bhatt was suspended from duty in 2011 for not attending office, for misusing his official car and for threatening a police constable.
He says the action against him has been "politically motivated".


Hafiz Saeed Khan, leader of so-called Islamic State (IS) in Afghanistan and Pakistan, died in a US drone strike last month, the US believes.

Last year, the Afghan intelligence agency said it believed Saeed Khan had died in a drone attack in Afghanistan's eastern province of Nangarhar.
However, IS insisted its leader had survived that attack.
On Friday, the US said he had been killed in a new drone attack in Nangarhar's Achin district on 26 July.
The drone strike was carried out three days after IS carried out its most devastating attack in Afghanistan, killing 80 people and wounding 230 at a rally of Shia Muslims from the Hazara minority in the capital Kabul.
IS, a Sunni Muslim group, regards Shia as heretics.
Pentagon spokesman Gordon Trowbridge said Saeed Khan had been killed in an "air strike", without specifying if a drone had been used.
"Khan was known to directly participate in attacks against US and coalition forces, and the actions of his network terrorized Afghans, especially in Nangarhar," Mr Trowbridge added.
On 26 July, Afghan security sources announced that some 120 IS militants had been killed in a military operation in Nangarhar but they referred to Kot district, not Achin, and did not mention Saeed Khan.
The militant was reported killed by a drone strike in Achin in July 2015 as well.
Afghanistan's Taliban group has frequently clashed with IS since January 2015.
The Taliban's dominance in a region home to numerous local and foreign militant groups is facing a serious challenge from IS, which has been gaining some support.
There has also been evidence that IS is trying to recruit Taliban fighters, with several Taliban commanders declaring allegiance to IS.


Two men and two women have been killed and a toddler injured in a head-on car crash in Oxfordshire.

The collision, involving two cars, happened on the Shrivenham Bypass, near Swindon, at about 23:15 BST on Sunday.
Four people in a Citroen Saxo, aged in their 20s and thought to be from Northampton, were declared dead at the scene, police said.
The occupants of a Mercedes, including a three-year-old boy, were injured and taken to John Radcliffe Hospital.
Their injuries were not believed to be life threatening.
Thames Valley Police have urged witnesses to contact them.


Police and the Republic of Ireland's revenue service have put cannabis worth 37.5m euros (£32m), seized at Dublin Port on Friday, on display.

The seizure was bigger than the total quantity of the drug seized in the Republic in the past two years, according to national broadcaster RTE.
A total of 1,873 kilos of herbal cannabis was discovered concealed in wide-load containers.
They were labelled as containing machinery parts.
The containers arrived on a ship from mainland Europe.
The drugs were vacuum packed and concealed to avoid detection by X-rays and sniffer dogs.
Gardaí (police) said investigations are continuing both locally and internationally.
Garda assistant commissioner John O'Driscoll said: "We are all about trying to achieve results and this, I believe in anyone's estimation, is a great result.
"We are about trying to tackle organised crime in a significant manner. The business of organised crime will be impacted."
He listed a string of recent operations including the seizure of firearms from groups "intent on killing each other" in an apparent reference to recent gangland killings in the city.
Mr O'Driscoll added: "All of these actions together combine to have a significant impact on organised crime."