A huge country the size of Western Europe, Kazakhstan has vast mineral resources and enormous economic potential.

The varied landscape stretches from the mountainous, heavily populated regions of the east to the sparsely populated, energy-rich lowlands in the west, and from the industrialised north, with its Siberian climate and terrain, through the arid, empty steppes of the centre, to the fertile south.
Ethnically the former Soviet republic is as diverse, with the Kazakhs making up nearly two thirds of the population, ethnic Russians just under a quarter, and smaller minorities the rest. Suppressed under Soviet rule, the main religion, Islam, is undergoing a revival.
Since independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, major investment in the oil sector has brought rapid economic growth, and eased some of the start disparities in wealth of the 1990s.
Population 16.4 million (UN, 2012)
Area 2.7 million sq km (1 million sq miles)
Major languages Kazakh, Russian
Major religions Islam, Christianity
Life expectancy 62 years (men), 73 years (women) (UN)
Currency Tenge
President: Nursultan Nazarbayev
Politically, Kazakhstan has been dominated since independence in 1991 by former Communist Party chief Nursultan Nazarbayev, whose long authoritarian rule has faced few challenges from weak opposition parties.
Born in 1940, Mr Nazarbayev came to power in 1989 as first secretary of the Communist Party of Kazakhstan and was elected president the following year. He was re-elected after the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991, and since then another four times - practically unopposed - most recently in 2015.
He remains popular among many ordinary Kazakhs. His supporters say he preserved inter-ethnic accord and stability during the reform in the 1990s, and is widely credited for the country's impressive economic growth in first decade of the new millennium.
Mr Nazarbayev has concentrated extensive powers in his own hands and is accused by the opposition of suppressing dissent. He says democracy is a long-term goal, but that stability could be at risk if change is too swift.
Most media outlets are controlled or influenced by members of the president's family, including his daughter and her husband, and other powerful groups.
Many of the 1,000-plus newspaper titles are government-run and the state controls printing presses.
There are 250 TV and radio stations, according to official figures. The government operates national networks. Russian stations are carried via cable and satellite.
Opposition media outlets faced unprecedented legal pressure in late 2012, seen as linked to their coverage of the deadly 2011 clashes between police and striking oil workers in the city of Zhanaozen.
Late 15th century - With the formation of the Kazakh khanate, the Kazakhs emerge as a distinct ethnic group, but split into three zhuzes (hordes) twi .
1731-42 - Russia establishes control.
1920 - Kazakhstan becomes an autonomous republic - under the misnomer Kirgizstan - following the 1917 Bolshevik revolution and subsequent civil war in Russia.
1936 - Kazakhstan becomes a full union republic of the USSR.
Late 1920s-1930s - Intensive industrialisation and forced collectivisation, which leads to the deaths of more than one million people from starvation.
1954-62 - About two million people, mainly Russians, move to Kazakhstan during Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev's campaign to develop virgin lands, lowing the proportion of ethnic Kazakhs to 30%.
1991 December - Nursultan Nazarbayev wins uncontested presidential elections; Kazakhstan declares independence from the Soviet Union.
2011 December - Clashes between striking workers and police in western oil town of Zhanaozen leave 16 people dead.


British author Sir Salman Rushdie has said that India banned his 1988 novel The Satanic Verses without any scrutiny.

Sir Salman has made these remarks in his upcoming memoirs Joseph Anton, excerpts from which have been published in The New Yorker magazine.
Many Muslims regard The Satanic Verses as blasphemous. The book is still banned in India.
The writer won the Booker Prize for Midnight's Children in 1981.
He lived in hiding for many years after Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa calling for his execution.
Sir Salman writes that on 6 October 1988, his friend Salman Haider, who was the deputy high commissioner of India in London, called to "tell him formally, on behalf of the government, that The Satanic Verses had been banned in India".
"The book had not been examined by any properly authorised body, nor had there been any semblance of judicial process," he writes.
"The ban came, improbably, from the finance ministry, under section 11 of the Customs Act, which prevented the book from being imported.
"Weirdly, the finance ministry stated that the ban 'did not detract from the literary and artistic merit' of his work."
"Thanks a lot, he thought," writes Sir Salman in the memoirs, which is written in third person.
In January, the author withdrew from attending India's Jaipur Literature Festival, saying that sources had told him of a death threat.
He was also forced to abandon plans to address the gathering by a video-link after protesters threatened to march on the venue.
Sir Salman was born in India but is a British citizen and has lived in the UK for most of his life.


A poster for a Vietnamese restaurant in Glasgow, which featured the phrase "Phat Phuc", has been cleared by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).

Two complaints to the watchdog claimed that the phrase, when spoken in English, sounded like a swear word.
The Hanoi Bike Shop restaurant replied that the Vietnamese pronunciation was "Fet Fook" and meant "Happy Buddha".
The ASA said the posters were unlikely to cause serious offence as it was obvious that pronunciation may differ.
The ASA ruling said that two posters for the noodle bar which had been seen on a train on 19 October and at a train station on 13 November, had been the focus of the complaints.
The poster showed slogans with text that stated: "Phat Phuc...The Hanoi Bike Shop."
One complaint said the poster was offensive as it featured a slogan which, when spoken, sounded like a swear word.
The other said it was inappropriate for public display where children could see it because it featured a slogan that sounded like a swear word when spoken.
In relation to the first complaint, the ASA acknowledged that the phrase could sound similar to a swear word.
The watchdog said: "However, we noted that the Hanoi Bike Shop sold Far Eastern cuisine, which both posters had made sufficiently clear.
"In the context of the posters, we considered that viewers who might have been offended by bad language were likely to recognise that "Phuc" was from a reference to Southeast Asian language, was different from the expletive and would not necessarily be pronounced in the same way.
"We therefore, concluded that the posters were unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence."
On the second complaint, the ASA found: "We considered that younger children who were unlikely to comprehend that "Phuc" was a Vietnamese word were also unlikely to read or pronounce it as the expletive.
"While some older children might have pronounced it as the expletive, given the context of an ad for a Vietnamese restaurant and that the word was taken from this language we did not consider that this made it unsuitable for them to see.
"We therefore concluded that the posters were not irresponsibly placed where children could see them."


In January this year the Church of England appointed its first female bishop.

Media playback is unsupported on your device
18 August 2015 Last updated at 07:50 BST
The Right Reverend Libby Lane is now the eighth Bishop of Stockport.
The Church voted to change the law to allow women bishops last November after decades of arguments and a big vote.
Jenny went to meet Bishop Libby, with seven Newsround viewers, to find out how her first six months have been.
Bishop Libby told them "It's an exciting time to grow up."


A tidal energy turbine installed in Strangford Lough, County Down, is to be removed.

The SeaGen turbine was lowered into place in 2008 and generates electricity from from tidal currents.
Two horizontal axis turbines are anchored to the seabed and are driven by the powerful currents resulting from the tide moving in and out.
Its owners Atlantis Resources said it will be decommissioned later this year.
The company said it had been "an essential research and design platform".
Stephen Ward, the firm's director of power generation, said: "This year, we will embark on the next stage of the R&D (research and development) process and focus on decommissioning the SeaGen device.
"This operation will be the first commercial scale turbine development to be decommissioned and will help us to understand the complete life-cycle of a tidal stream development."


Southport exited the relegation zone after a fine comeback sealed a 2-1 win at Torquay.

Chances were few and far between until the Gulls' Brett Williams bent a magnificent shot past Magnus Norman from outside the area after 25 minutes.
The Sandgrounders however were more than a match for the hosts, and Andrai Jones forced Brendan Moore into a save with a smart volley.
The visitors proved their mettle in the second half when Callum Howe ventured forward and lobbed Moore with a cool finish, out-of-keeping with his defensive instincts.
Southport boss Steve Burr played a late masterstroke by throwing on James Caton, and the creative midfielder found space to slot home the winner with 15 minutes remaining.
Match report supplied by the Press Association.
Match ends, Torquay United 1, Southport 2.
Second Half ends, Torquay United 1, Southport 2.
Substitution, Torquay United. Jamie Chamberlain replaces Nathan Blissett.
Jamie Reid (Torquay United) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Goal!  Torquay United 1, Southport 2. James Caton (Southport).
Substitution, Southport. Ashley Grimes replaces Jamie Allen.
Goal!  Torquay United 1, Southport 1. Callum Howe (Southport).
Substitution, Torquay United. Sam Chaney replaces Joe Ward.
Substitution, Southport. James Caton replaces Nathan Ferguson.
Second Half begins Torquay United 1, Southport 0.
First Half ends, Torquay United 1, Southport 0.
Goal!  Torquay United 1, Southport 0. Brett Williams (Torquay United).
First Half begins.
Lineups are announced and players are warming up.


Work is beginning on a £10m upgrade to maternity services at Wexham Park Hospital in Slough.

It is the first in a series of building projects at the NHS trust, which include a £49m accident and emergency department and replacement of the ageing hospital at Heatherwood.
In February the hospital was commended for one of the "most impressive" turnarounds in the NHS.
It was taken over by Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust in 2014.
The hospital trust says improvements will include en suite facilities in all labour rooms, better outpatient areas, a transitional care area for babies who need extra support from mothers, and more birthing pools.
It promises to provide full services throughout the work, with the same number of midwives and access to birthing pools.


Barclays says its profits more than doubled in the first three months of the year, boosted by better performance across the board.

Pre-tax profit for the first quarter was Â£1.682bn, up from Â£793m for the same period last year.
Chief executive Jes Staley said it had been "another quarter of strong progress towards the completion of the restructuring of Barclays".
He said there was good reason to feel optimistic about the firm's prospects.
The figure was better than analysts had predicted and comes despite a one-off goodwill impairment charge of Â£884m on the bank's stake in Barclays Africa Group, which it intends to sell in the next two to three years.
"On Africa, we await approval for the separation arrangements already agreed with local management, following which we will be able to make further progress towards regulatory deconsolidation," Mr Staley said.
In early trading, Barclays' shares were down 3.5%.
Analysis: Simon Jack, business editor
Getting rid of Barclays chief executive Jes Staley would be bad for Barclays and bad for UK banking.
That's the view of some current and former shareholders who tell me that not only would Barclays suffer if the US boss was pushed out during his so-far successful turnaround of the 360-year-old bank but also, weakening the UK's last major investment bank would be bad for the entire UK financial landscape.
Jes Staley is under investigation by authorities for twice trying to identify the author of a letter raising questions about Staley's decision to recruit an old colleague from his JP Morgan days who had been through personal issues that had led to "erratic behaviour".
One city source told me: "Replacing Jes Staley with another FCA-approved (the regulator) apparatchik would be a disaster."
Read Simon's view in full
Mr Staley said Barclays planned to hire about 2,000 new staff in the UK in the next three years, focused on technology.
He told Bloomberg the bank wanted to bring technology development back in house and reduce reliance on external contractors.
He also said it would increase the number of staff based in the EU, following the UK's Brexit vote.
In its statement, Barclays said that "certain legal proceedings and investigations relating to legacy issues" were still outstanding.
In particular, it said the UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO) intended to make a decision shortly about "matters relating to our capital raisings in 2008".
This refers to a long-running SFO investigation into a cash injection received by Barclays from Qatari investors at the height of the financial crisis.


His 17-year career was the envy of many budding professionals.

Among the highlights were playing in the Premier League, being capped by England under-21s and a man-of-the-match performance in the Championship play-off final.
But it was at these enviable heights that Clarke Carlisle often felt at his lowest.
He has twice tried to take his own life; once in his early 20s and again a decade later.
The scars on his head are testament to how close he came to death.
Now 37, the father-of-three's playing days are over but perhaps his most rewarding career has begun.
The former Burnley and Leeds United star has been in Belfast to raise awareness of mental health and the need for better support services.
The talk is for everyone but Clarke says there's one group who need the most help - young men.
He says the highest rate of suicide is among males under 45.
"The belief structure about what it is to be a man... the understanding of what emotions are and how to process them constructively... our young men are bereft of that.
"They also feel that they're bereft of any kind of support structure because they should be dealing with things on their own."
The former QPR and Watford player says it is not an issue that can be tackled just at home, school or work.
He says society, as a whole, is failing to understand and support the mental health issues of young people.
The audience at Clarke's discussion in north Belfast was made up of students and local youth groups.
The big questions from the crowd included: "Who was the best player you played against?"
It was Cristiano Ronaldo, seeing as you're wondering. Robbie Keane was the "cleverest".
But the theme of the talk did not go unnoticed.
"Growing up you always want to be a footballer,"  said Connor who is a from a local youth group.
Connor said it was scary that depression can affect anyone, even those with seemingly the most enviable lives.
"He has the best job in the world, he's earning loads of money, but inside he's not feeling like he does on the pitch," he said.
"The persona of a guy is that he has to be hard, he doesn't open up to anyone.
"Especially in today's generation, if you say something wrong in school or do something wrong on the pitch you're criticised on social media.
"So, for someone to say they're feeling down today, some people could take the mick out of them on Facebook," he added.
Clarke says the worst of his mental health problems are now behind him, but only after years of working with physiatrists, counsellors and family.
He says there are still "bad days" but now understands he does not have to be alone in his battle against depression.
Nor, he says, does anyone else.


UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged Russia and the US to push all warring sides in Syria to allow safe passage for desperately needed aid.

Lorries with a month's food supply for 40,000 people are stuck at the Turkish border, 48 hours into a ceasefire.
Getting aid to civilians in besieged areas like the rebel-held eastern half of the city of Aleppo is a priority.
But disagreements between warring sides and concerns about safety are delaying emergency deliveries, the UN says.
Criticism has also been levelled at President Bashar al-Assad's government for trying to control aid flows.
"It's crucially important [that] the necessary security arrangements" are made so the convoy can travel, Mr Ban said.
"I have been urging the Russian government to make sure that they exercise influence on the Syrian government, and also the American side to make sure that Syrian armed groups, they also fully co-operate."
The Syrian government says it will only allow aid co-ordinated through itself and the UN to reach Aleppo.
Meanwhile, UK-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it had recorded no casualties in the first 48 hours of the ceasefire, contradicting earlier Russian accounts of two government troop deaths on the Castello Road, which leads to Aleppo.
US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov have agreed in a phone call to extend the truce for another 48 hours, the US State Department says.
"There was agreement that as a whole, despite sporadic reports of violence, the arrangement is holding," spokesman Mark Toner said.
Some 250,000 people are trapped in eastern Aleppo. Protests have been held against the UN as the area waits for aid but people are enjoying the temporary calm, residents say.
"The streets were always empty before," a member of the rebel Free Syrian Army, Abo Haitham, told Reuters news agency.
"But now people are coming and going, children are playing in the playground. But the downside is that the markets are empty."
In government-controlled western Aleppo, pictures showed young people relaxing outside. Before the ceasefire, districts there were regularly targeted by rebel rocket and mortar fire.
Residents of eastern Aleppo are reported to be in desperate need of fuel, flour, wheat, baby formula and medicines.
Two convoys of lorries carrying aid crossed into Syria about 40km (25 miles) west of Aleppo on Tuesday but were not allowed to go much further, Reuters reports.
One issue holding back aid deliveries is that al-Qaeda affiliates operate in the area, which may mean the main route into Aleppo is not yet safe, the BBC's James Longman in Beirut says.
How will the new Syria truce work?
Since the truce came into effect on Monday, accusations have been made against both rebels and government forces for sporadically violating it.
But it appears to have largely held.
The deal, described by Mr Kerry as the "last chance to save a united Syria", was struck on Friday in Geneva after months of talks between Russia and the US. It requires both sides to allow unhindered access for humanitarian aid.
The number of deaths recorded since the beginning of the conflict in March 2011 recently rose above 300,000, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group.
However, it said it estimated the full death toll to be about 430,000.
Mr Kerry said 450,000 had been "slaughtered" in an interview with National Public Radio on Tuesday.
More than 4.8 million people have fled abroad, and an estimated 6.5 million others have been displaced within the country, the UN says.
Jihadist groups like so-called Islamic State and Jabhat Fateh al-Sham face the joint might of the Russian and US air forces
Moderate rebels and civilians in the areas they hold will no longer face the threat of indiscriminate air strikes such as barrel-bombing although the Syrian air force will not be grounded completely; aid deliveries will be allowed to areas currently under siege
President Assad will be in a stronger position as the US and Russia engage two of his most effective military opponents while moderate rebels observe the truce with his forces
February 2012: Syrian government "categorically rejects" an Arab League plan calling for a joint Arab-UN peacekeeping mission
June 2012/January 2014/January 2016: Three failed UN-sponsored peace conferences in Geneva
September 2013: Kerry and Lavrov negotiate a deal to strip the Syrian government of its chemical weapons in return for the US backing away from air strikes. Since then, the government has again  and repeatedly been accused of using toxic chemicals against rebel-held areas
February 2016: World powers agree in Munich on a nationwide "cessation of hostilities" in Syria excluding jihadist groups. There is no agreement on any joint US-Russian operations. The  "pause" quickly unravels as Assad promises to regain control of the whole country
March 2016: President Vladimir Putin declares "mission accomplished" in Syria and orders removal of "main part" of Russia's air army in Syria. Russian air strikes have continued ever since


Families with young children and poorer households have been worst affected by government changes to tax and benefits, according to a new report.

The research from the LSE and the universities of Manchester and York examines the coalition's tax and spending record.
It says poverty will get worse over the next five years.
In response the government said the richest have "lost the most" from changes to taxes and welfare.
John Hills, director of the Centre for the Analysis of Social Exclusion at London School of Economics and one of the lead authors of the report said despite coalition promises that the greatest burden of the cuts would fall on those who had more, and that the poor would be protected, that had not happened.
"While people at the bottom were initially protected with the way benefits were adjusted for inflation, that has not been the case for the last two years," he said.
The report says tax and benefit reforms have hit families with children under five harder than any other household type.
Policies affecting families with young children include the abolition of baby tax credit which increased the payments for households with a child under one and extra support for pregnant women.
Further changes have affected families on limited incomes, including the £26,000 cap on total benefits a household can receive and shifting tax credit thresholds.
As well as changes to taxes and benefits, the report also highlights cuts to government spending affecting young children.
Real spending per child on early education and childcare and Sure Start services fell by a quarter between 2009-10 and 2012-13 it says.
"That it's families that are taking the biggest hit is really disappointing and short-sighted, said Kitty Stewart, author of the part of the report examining the impact on under fives.
"We know that family income and services are important to children's development. All the research evidence tells us both of those matter and both of those have been hit."
She estimates some families may have lost out on around £1200 in their baby's first year.
A Treasury spokesperson said: "the richest have lost the most from the government's changes to taxes and welfare."
It said the LSE's research also failed to take into account "the effects of changes to the vital public services on which so many rely. That means that it can't consider the full range of ways the government provides support to the poorest and most vulnerable families across the country".
The Treasury pointed to the freezing of fuel duty and council tax, the provision of free school meals and tax-free childcare, and the increase in the tax-free personal allowance as measures that would help many people, including lower income groups and families.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies reported last week that coalition changes to tax and benefits have cost the average UK household £489 a year with low-income working-age households hit hardest.
The IFS said the poorest tenth of households lost around 4% of their incomes.
John Hill from the LSE said it was true that the very rich, with incomes over £100,000 had lost out more than the average, but that when viewed as  a proportion of their income, it was the poorest who had lost out most.
He said strategic decisions on the part of the government to ring-fence the NHS and schools had meant even larger cuts for other areas of spending.


The Herdman's Mill site in Sion Mills has been bought by a County Tyrone lottery winner.

Margaret Loughrey, from Strabane, won almost £27m in the Euromillions jackpot last December.
It is understood she paid £1m for the site, which was previously owned by the Herdman family for over 170 years.
The mill, which once employed more than 1,000 staff, ceased spinning linen in 2004 and the company that owned the mill went into receivership in 2011.
Tom King worked there for 45 years as a gusset supervisor.
"It was a very good place to be," he said.
"When I came here there were 1,200 people in here. Money came up the Mill Lane and the prosperity rubbed off on everybody."
He welcomed the news that it had been sold as he had been "very sad" to see it in a state of neglect.
The mill was built in 1835 by James George and John Herdman from Belfast.
A model village, a school and sporting facilities were also erected on the site, the remains of which can still be seen.
Ronan McAneny was the estate agent who sold the site to Ms Loughrey.
"Ms Loughrey has said to me it will probably be a 10-year plan," he said..
"It will take time and obviously we have to get onboard with all the bodies.
"Initially I think the main thing is to get the site cleaned up, to get the roof back on the old mill, to get the windows replaced and to give it a general tidy-up so it begins to look how it used to look."
Mr McAneny said a "few pounds" would have to be spent on the site.
"Obviously there will have to be a cash input by Mrs Loughrey but we're hoping there will be funding available as well so that's why we need to speak to to the bodies concerned to see if we can get money released," he said.
"There will be jobs created.
"Realistically we should be talking maybe anything up to 50 jobs and maybe more. Certainly it will be very positive within the village of Sion Mills."
He said plans may be limited because the mill is a listed building.
"I do think that mainly it will be tourism, the old mill building restored, hopefully with the industrial units we should be able to do something.
"I do think there will be commercial elements to it, but it's very difficult to pinpoint what will be passed at this point."
In 2013, it emerged that Donegal-based firm Connective Energy Holdings wanted to build an anaerobic digester to process waste and generate electricity on the site of the former mill.
Local residents protested against the plans, among them Andy Patton, chair of Sion Mills community forum.
He was involved in setting up a group to fight against the proposed waste plant for the village.
"Now that that has been relinquished, the only way forward is the creation of jobs in Sion Mills for the betterment of the people," he said.
"From what we're actually hearing is that there's going to be different ventures by Ms Loughrey and job creation. We would like to see something maybe around the tourism factor as well and leisure, the other one is the restoration of the old mill as well."
Simon Galloway, secretary of Sion Mills cricket club, also welcomed the sale.
"It's our 150th anniversary," he said.
"Sion Mills cricket club was formed on the basis of Herdman's Mill. The mill has been taken over by a local person so that can only bode well for us as a club."


A teenager has had emergency surgery to remove her stomach after drinking a cocktail containing liquid nitrogen.

Lancashire Police say Gaby Scanlon was out with friends in Lancaster last Thursday (4 October) when it happened.
The 18-year-old is reported to have become breathless and developed severe stomach pain before being taken to Royal Lancaster Infirmary.
Officers say she would have died if doctors had not performed the operation.
The woman, from Heysham in Lancashire, was taken from Oscar's wine bar to hospital at 11pm.
She was diagnosed with a perforated, or pierced stomach, and is now in a serious but stable condition.
Lancashire Police have not officially named the place where she bought the cocktail, but say Oscar's has stopped selling it.
The bar say their "heartfelt best wishes" go to Gaby Scanlon and her family "at this distressing time".
See a liquid turn into a solid
Watch air condense into liquid form
A police statement said: "The premises involved have fully co-operated with all agencies and have suspended drinks involving liquid nitrogen.
"The investigation is still in its early stages and we are still interviewing witnesses to establish the full facts.
The force said they had been warning other bars in the city about what had happened.
Doctor John Ashton, director of public health for Cumbria, said: "This girl is the victim of an irresponsible alcohol industry that's now competing on gimmicks.
"Alcohol itself is a very dangerous thing if improperly handled and liquid nitrogen is [as well]. It destroys human tissue."
Gaby Scanlon had been out celebrating her 18th birthday.
Liz Nicholls, principal at Ripley St Thomas Church of England Academy, says the teenager is one of their "most hardworking and mature students".
In a statement she added: "Our whole school community is shocked and upset at what has happened.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with Gaby, her family and her friends who are obviously upset and distressed.
"We are pleased to hear that she is making better than expected progress."
If swallowed, liquid nitrogen can cause cold burns to the mouth, throat and stomach, killing the tissue.
As the frozen vapour hits the stomach it rapidly warms, releasing large volumes of air which can burst the stomach.
Doctors performed emergency surgery to remove Gaby Scanlon's stomach, an operation known as a total gastrectomy.
During the operation the stomach is cut out and the remaining two tubes to and from the stomach, the oesophagus and the small bowel, are connected.
People who have had a gastrectomy will still be able to lead a normal life and eat and drink regular food but they will need to eat smaller amounts and take vitamin supplements to make sure they get enough nourishment.
Chef Heston Blumenthal has popularised the use of liquid nitrogen in cooking, using it to make food including ice cream.
In cocktails it is usually used to freeze ingredients, to chill glasses or as a visual gimmick.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) says bars, pubs and clubs have a legal obligation to make sure anything they serve to the public is fit for human consumption.
The FSA's Colin Houston said: "There are safety and handling guidelines around the use of liquid nitrogen, especially in relation to food.
"It is the business owner's responsibility to make sure that their staff have been trained and are aware of the potential risks of using liquid nitrogen."
Liquid nitrogen is also used in medicine to remove unwanted skin, warts and pre-cancerous cells, while in industry it can be used as a coolant for things like computers.
Additionally it has been used in cryogenics, where scientists find what happens to materials at very cold temperatures.
BBC News Magazine: Who What Why? How dangerous is liquid nitrogen?


US Defence Secretary Ash Carter has admitted that using personal email to conduct some government business was a "mistake".

In an interview with CBS, Mr Carter said it was "a mistake and it's entirely my own".
Democratic presidential candidate and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton did the same thing, prompting an FBI investigation.
He used personal email during his first two months as defence secretary.
"I have to hold myself to absolutely strict standards in terms of cybersecurity and doing things that are appropriate. I didn't in this case," said Mr Carter.
The New York Times reported that it obtained 72 work emails Mr Carter sent or received from his non-work email account.
Some emails were about speeches and media appearances, the Times reports.
Mr Carter's press secretary Peter Cook said Mr Carter has stopped using his personal email for any work purposes.
"The secretary believes that his previous, occasional use of personal email for work-related business, even for routine administrative issues backed up to his official account, was a mistake," he said in a statement.
Mr Carter "takes his responsibilities with regard to classified material very seriously," Mr Cook said.
He did not say whether it was a violation of Pentagon policy.
Senator John McCain said it was "hard to believe that Secretary Carter would exercise the same error in judgement" after the news of Ms Clinton's personal email use broke, drawing much scrutiny.
The Senate Armed Serviced Committee is reviewing the emails to make sure sensitive information was not compromised.


Louis Almond's goal earned Southport a draw against play-off-chasing Braintree Town in the National League.

Dan Sparkes put Braintree ahead when he fired in Matt Fry's right-wing cross from inside the box.
Josh Thompson headed wide as the Sandgrounders pushed for an equaliser, before Almond turned Paul Rutherford's cross beyond Town keeper Michael Crowe.
Southport forward Andy Bishop missed the target from six yards out late on, but Braintree held on for a point.
Midfielder Steven Hewitt was an unused substitute for Southport after joining the club on Friday, having been allowed to leave Chester.


A game enters semi-exciting territory and I'm counting down the seconds until a familiar refrain comes through on the Radio Ulster airwaves.

"This is a great advert for Irish League football."
We've all heard it, but not always believed it. It sits high in the list of Northern Ireland sporting cliches.
An attempt to promote a product which has been squeezed by a multitude of alternative attractions. Hoping to transform listeners into customers.
I was a customer on Saturday, driving up the A26 from Antrim to watch Ballymena United take on Crusaders at the Showgrounds.
The attraction? I wanted to see if the Crues could clinch up a third straight title, with a win over the Braidmen and defeat for challengers Linfield at Coleraine keeping the Gibson Cup at Seaview.
The title race has been bubbling along nicely in recent months and it had now reached boiling point with two games left - a thrilling climax in the battle of the Crues and Blues.
I asked my 13-year-old son, a Liverpool and Real Madrid fan, if he fancied going to his first Irish League game. No Coutinho or Ronaldo on show, just a bunch of part-timers trying to play football on a terrible Showgrounds surface.
To my surprise he answered in the affirmative, although only if his friend could come along with us.
It was just £15 all-in at the turnstiles, not bad for an adult and two children, and we made our way to the new stand housing the Sky Blues faithful.
Out came the teams and United boss David Jeffrey, resplendent in a suit straight out of Savile Row, turned to raise a rallying fist to the fans.
They roared in response and I sensed before a ball was kicked that Ballymena were up for this, determined to be party-poopers on what promised to be a historic day for the north Belfast visitors.
And so it transpired, although the fine line between success and failure was highlighted as the champions pressed for an early opener.
A free-kick found Crues striker Jordan Owens four yards out and with just Ross Glendinning to beat.
A player whose reputation is built on aerial prowess, but on this occasion he headed straight at the United keeper.
A couple of inches either side and it goes in, Crusaders have the momentum and the outcome may have been so different.
Both sides squandered chances on the bobbliest of bobbly pitches, with United hitting the woodwork, but it ended scoreless at the break.
Burger and chips time for the boys, a quick flick through the matchday programme and then on the mobile for an update from Coleraine on our (excuse the plug) live text commentary page.
We sat directly opposite the Crusaders 18-yard box in the second half, providing the perfect viewpoint as Ballymena rattled in three goals to win 3-0.
A glaring vulnerability in the Crues defence, so badly missing the power and presence of injured captain Colin Coates, was brutally exposed as Conor McCloskey's opener was followed by a Cathal Friel double.
My little companions politely clapped the first goal, cheered the second and were in full-on celebration mode for the third.
Ballymena gained two new young supporters on Saturday and I'm now being pestered about taking them to Sky Blues games next season.
Linfield thumped the Bannsiders 5-1 and suddenly they are two points clear going into this weekend's finale.
I will be back on live text commentary duty as the Crues host Glenavon while the Blues visit a Cliftonville side buoyed by the return of Tommy Breslin as temporary manager.
I'm looking forward to it, but it's no substitute for being at Seaview or Solitude.
My visit to the Showgrounds was a reminder of what going to a game can be - dramatic, atmospheric, engrossing, exciting and although just a fan, a feeling that you are part of it.
As we dandered away from Warden Street I had an inner chuckle, for even this cynical old hack knew what he had witnessed.
A great advert for Irish League football.


Gateshead striker Danny Johnson has signed a two-year contract extension with the National League club.

Johnson scored 15 goals in 41 games for the Heed this season, having signed in July 2015 following his release by Championship side Cardiff City.
The 23-year-old has also previously had spells with Stevenage and Tranmere.
"If you have someone who is capable of scoring goals, then it's important that you re-sign him," manager Neil Aspin told the club website.
"At the age he is, I believe he can get better, too."
Gateshead finished ninth in the National League, 13 points outside the play-off places.


A man who hit his university lecturer wife in the head with a hammer as she slept has been found guilty of attempting to murder her.

Paul Bond, 62, attacked Dr Marian Bond at their home in Over, Cambridgeshire, on 11 July. He then called 999 to say he had attacked his wife.
Police arrived to find him covered in her blood. Surgeons had to remove part of her skull to save her life.
Bond denied attempted murder but was found guilty at Cambridge Crown Court.
Bond struck his wife, head of the animal behaviour and welfare department at Anglia Ruskin University, at least twice with a 2.5lb (1kg) lump hammer severely fracturing her skull and jaw, Cambridgeshire Police said.
More news from Cambridgeshire
He then called the emergency services. Officers found him at the couple's Willingham Road home with blood on his hands, cheek, chest and dressing gown.
Dr Bond's injuries were so severe lead investigator Det Insp Jerry Waite said they would "probably have been dealing with a murder" had it not been for the quick intervention of paramedics.
"This was a horrific assault which could easily have killed Dr Bond," he added.
Dr Bond was placed in an induced coma in hospital and part of her skull was removed.  She has since made a partial recovery, Cambridgeshire Police said.
Bond pleaded guilty in November to intending to cause grievous bodily harm but denied attempting to murder her.
He is expected to be sentenced on Tuesday.


A woman who conned a couple out of their £9,000 wedding deposit to fund her gambling habit has been spared jail after returning the money.

Jayne Harper was working at Fawsley Hall, Northamptonshire, when she banked the deposit in her own account.
Harper, 55, of Main Street, Holcot, pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud
She was handed a 12 month suspended sentence and ordered to carry out 200 hours in unpaid work at Northampton Crown Court.
The court heard how the couple became suspicious after not receiving much correspondence about their 2011 wedding.
They contacted the venue and did not have a booking for the date they had reserved, and reported the matter to the police.
The second charge of fraud related to more than £3,000 of wine which Harper had accepted but not paid for.
The court heard Harper had taken a role as business development manager at Fawsley Hall without disclosing a previous jail term for fraud, which exceeded £1m.
The judge referred to the taking of the money as a "mean offence".
However, he said incidents which had happened in her life, which were not explained to the court, had a significant impact on her.
The judge said the fact that she had repaid the money had helped her to decide to suspend the sentence.


"We've had 14 top ten hits, 31 consecutive top 40 hits, sold millions of albums - and people still don't know who we are."

You can't quite tell if drummer Sean Moore is pleased or perplexed by how little the general public seem to know about Manic Street Preachers - the band he's been performing with for the best part of three decades.
His comments kick-start a new, feature length documentary about the group, which hopes to redress the balance.
Twelve years in the making, No Manifesto is an exhaustive, entertaining and highly revealing portrait of the Welsh band.
We see them at home, in the recording studio and on tour.
Along the way Moore explains his love of target shooting, guitarist and lead singer James Dean Bradfield declares his passion for Wimpy hamburgers, and a very proud Nicky Wire shows off his garden shed.
The film was a labour of love for American director and self-confessed Manics fan Elizabeth Marcus.
She had already worked on the acclaimed documentaries Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 9/11, and her cinematic credentials helped her gain unprecedented access to the band.
When I caught up with her in Cardiff, where the film is receiving its world premiere, she admitted the process of documenting the group over such a long period of time did lead to some tension.
"There were definitely moments when it felt awkward. We were filming them while they were trying to do their job.
"They were trying to record an album (Send Away The Tigers) and rehearse for a tour and there were times that made for a little bit of conflict.
"But in general they were very co-operative and took a very hands-off approach to the filming.
"I never felt that they were putting on any kind of act, they weren't phony.
"And I thought that was pretty cool because that's something that the fans appreciate."
In fact, those fans enjoy almost as much screen time in the film as the Manics themselves. Marcus interviewed nearly 100 of them, all over the world, and their contributions replace the usual array of talking heads you would expect to see in a documentary like this.
Pundits, journalists and music experts are noticeably absent from No Manifesto.
That's not to say the fans are uniform in their opinions of the band.
There are complaints about the Manics' official merchandise and the use of swear words in their lyrics, while Nicky Wire's penchant for yellow eye shadow comes in for particular criticism.
But in the same breath they acknowledge that the band has managed to stay together, and keep making music, through tragic and turbulent times.
As one fan puts it: "The more you find out about the Manics, the more human they become."
And that tragedy came early on in their career. On 1 February 1995, guitarist Richey Edwards disappeared. He's never been found.
There's a tangible sense of loss running through the film, which is released almost 20 years to the day since Edwards was last seen alive.
In one sequence Nicky Wire goes through a memory box at home, containing letters and postcards his friend sent him when they were teenagers.
"We'd write to each other all the time," he recalls.
"Young, angsty, good stuff."
He slowly opens a card which simply reads: "Happy birthday to the nicest mind destroyer."
Although they are now a three piece band, Richey Edwards still casts a long shadow over Manic Street Preachers, as Radio One DJ Huw Stevens told me ahead of the film's release.
"The Manics are a band that have had a lot happen to them and they come to terms with things in their own way," he said.
"If you listen to their music now you'll see that Richey is still part of the band, even though he's not with them physically.
"He is always in the lyrics, the artwork and the concept of Manic Street Preachers.
"And although they've created some fantastic albums since he disappeared, the albums they did with Richey are a huge part of the Manics' history."
No Manifesto is full of poignant moments, but there's humour and warmth here too.
Huge chunks of the film focus on the band's creative process, which leads to a great exchange between James and Sean: "You've got to make it more Billy Bragg than Lonnie Donegan."
Later on, James happily debunks the myths of song writing.
"I'm not sitting at a little desk in St Petersburg with a bottle of absinthe," he offers.
"I'm sitting in my living room with a pot of coffee."
But it's Nicky Wire, discussing the band's upbringing in south Wales, who delivers arguably the best lines in the film: "It gave us a real moral fibre.
"A love of high culture and extremely low culture. I'm much more comfortable eating a burger than I am going to a posh restaurant. And that's because I'm Welsh."
In their early days, Manic Street Preachers famously announced that they were going to make one album, sell 16 million copies of it, then split up.
Nearly 30 years on, they're still making music, still selling records, still enjoying acclaim.
No Manifesto charts the highs and lows of a band who are now in their mid-40s, but who remain as colourful and contentious as ever.


Scientists have described how a species of insect lures spiders by mimicking prey caught in webs.

Assassin bugs plucked the web's silk threads that replicate the vibrations of a fly or other insect, causing the fooled spider to head towards the bug.
Once within reach, the bug slowly tapped the spider with its antennae before lunging and stabbing the lured arachnid with its sharp snout.
The findings appear in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
The team from Macquarie University, Australia, said the behaviour - known as aggressive mimicry - was one of two strategies employed by the bug (Stenolemus bituberus) to trap its prey.
The other involved "stalking" spiders, where the assassin bug slowly approaches the unsuspecting victim until within striking range.
The researchers, Drs Anne Wignall and Phil Taylor, explained that the bug exploited web-building spiders' use of vibrations to detect and locate its prey.
"However, reliance on vibratory cues and predictable responses leaves web-building spiders vulnerable to predators that aggressively mimic prey stimuli to gain control over their behaviour," they wrote.
"If you imagine an insect such as a fly when first hits the web, it'll generate a huge intial vibration, and then it will begin struggling violently, buzzing its wings," explained Dr Wignall.
"During these first vibrations, the risk of the prey escaping from the web is largest, and so spiders will tend to move in quickly on prey producing these sorts of vibrations in the web.
"But, as time goes on, an insect may get more tired, and the vibrations it produces will be much smaller. The spider can take more time approaching these insects as it's less likely to escape from the web," she told BBC News.
"These are the sorts of vibrations assassin bugs are mimicking, and it makes sense as a spider is very dangerous prey for a bug. If the spider approaches too fast, the risk to the assassin bug is much higher."
The assassin bugs, distributed throughout Australia, are often found on tree trunks, in both suburban and bush areas.
The insects live for about a year, and spend all their lives in spider webs - feeding, resting, mating. If they're not in a spider web, then they're usually travelling toward another spider web.
Bad vibes
Dr Wignall said the bugs' choice of the hunting strategy depended largely on the species of spider.
"Some species of spider, such as those from the genus Achaearanea (that build messy, three-dimensional tangle webs) are much more likely to be lured using aggressive mimicry than any of the other spiders we've tested."
The researchers say the study is the first to experimentally demonstrated that the spider-eating insects use mimicry to lure the spiders within range.
In their tests, the pair set out to compare the responses of spiders to the presence of prey in their webs with the arachnids' response to the assassin bugs' behaviour.
"Other vibrations in spider webs include mates and debris, and these were potential models for aggressive mimicry," they observed.
"Hence, we also compared spider behaviour in response to courting males and leaves falling into the web."
In their results, the team noted that there were "significant differences" to the various sources of vibrations.
They found that the spiders did not tend to respond to leaves falling on the webs, and female spiders responded to males by "entering a characteristic copulatory position".
But how spiders responded to the bugs was extremely similar to how the spiders responded to prey, they observed.
"To a spider, the vibrations generated by bugs resemble small or exhausted prey.
"The responses of spiders to prey in the web were occasionally characterised by a direct and rapid approach towards prey without pause (reaching it within one second)."
But, they explained: "This response was.. observed towards bugs or other sources, and may be elicited by the presence of higher frequency and amplitude vibrations in the struggles of prey."
However, spiders can be a formidable opponent for the assassin bug if they move quickly across the web to the potential predator.
"We have observed bugs being counter-attacked, killed and eaten by the spider they were hunting," they added. "This risk may be considerably increased when the spider approaches rapidly and without pause.
"Bugs, hence, appear to aggressively mimic a broad class of prey-like vibrations that are effective at soliciting approaches but are also unlikely to elicit highly aggressive, dangerous responses."


Whether you want to lose weight, quit smoking or exercise more, you have a better chance of success if your partner shares your goal, research suggests.

The British study looked at data from more than 3,700 married or cohabiting couples aged 50 and older.
Men and women were three times or more likely to achieve their resolution when their partner joined in the challenge.
Experts say campaigns could capitalise on this "rubbing off" effect.
The study did not look at whether unhealthy partners might drag someone down.
Many studies suggest that our partners can have a big influence on our behaviour and our health.
Happily married or cohabiting people appear to have a lower risk of heart disease and better cancer outcomes, for example.
But it is not clear whether this is because people mirror their partners' good behaviour or because we tend to pair off with people who are similarly healthy or unhealthy to us.
The latest study in Jama Internal Medicine set out to investigate this.
The University College London team selected men and women who were in a cohabiting relationship and who had unhealthy behaviours - either being a smoker, being overweight or doing too little exercise  - at the start of the study.
The researchers tracked the behaviours of these individuals and their partners over four years, noting if any of them quit smoking, lost weight or became more active.
They found that when one half of the couple changed to a healthier lifestyle, the other person was more likely to make a similar lifestyle change.
Seeing an unhealthy partner make a change provided the biggest impetus for an individual to do the same, but living with someone already healthier than themselves also appeared to act as an encouragement.
For example, a smoker was twice as likely to quit if their partner was a non-smoker but 10 times more likely to quit if their partner smoked but decided to quit too.
Similarly, living with a sporty partner prompted individuals to get active, but not as much as seeing a loved one change from a couch potato to an active lifestyle.
Researcher Dr Sarah Jackson said the findings could help inform public health campaigns.
"This is important because it shows that if you can target couples or encourage people to involve their partners they may be more likely to succeed. Having the support of someone close seems to help."
The government's Change4Life campaign focuses on getting whole families to be more active and eat healthily, but other campaigns have focused on the individual.
Dr Mike Knapton, from the British Heart Foundation which part-funded Dr Jackson's work, said: "This is an interesting study and reinforces the notion that your relationships play a key role in your health."
Dr Julie Sharp, Cancer Research UK's head of health information, said getting support could help people take up good habits.
"For example, if you want to lose weight and have a friend or colleague who's trying to do the same thing, you could encourage each other by joining up for a run or a swim at lunchtime or after work. And local support such as stop smoking services are very effective at helping people to quit.
"Keeping healthy by not smoking, maintaining a healthy body weight and being active can all lower the risk of cancer, and the more people can help and encourage each other, the better."


Masked carjackers beat a man with metal bars after he kissed his wife goodbye on his driveway.

CCTV shows the white Ford Kuga pull up outside the house on Stoneymore Drive in Castle Bromwich, near Solihull.
Two men jump out and demand the keys to the 57-year-old's Audi Q7. When he refused they hit him with metal batons.
The man was not seriously injured, West Midlands Police said. CCTV of the carjacking suspects has been released in a bid to track them down.
The footage shows the man being chased by the attackers and being repeatedly hit on the ground.
One of the carjackers manages to get the Audi keys and make off in it, while his accomplice takes off in the Ford Kuga.
The CCTV shows the victim's wife trying to move her car to block the carjacker's get away route - but to no avail.
The attack happened just after the man kissed his wife goodbye at 09:00 GMT on 25 February.


The Scottish Parliament has formally backed the case for the UK remaining in the European Union.

A debate in the Holyrood chamber saw leaders from all five parties speak in favour of Remain.
Ministers said they wanted to send a "clear, unequivocal" message of the parliament's support for EU membership ahead of the referendum on 23 June.
But there were a small number of dissenting voices from the Conservative and Labour ranks.
Members voted overwhelmingly to support a motion backing a Remain vote, by 106 votes in favour to eight against - although one MSP voting against the motion later said he had done so by accident. Three MSPs abstained.
Campaigners from both the Vote Leave and Scotland Stronger in Europe campaigns staged events outside the parliament to mark the debate.
Fiona Hyslop, the Cabinet Secretary for External Affairs, argued that 300,000 Scottish jobs were dependent upon exports to the EU.
She called on the Leave campaign to "cease their smears, speculation and downright ludicrous arguments", and told the Remain campaign that "their incredible Project Fear tactics" could alienate voters.
Ms Hyslop said: "The EU is not perfect but it is a remarkable achievement that in over six decades it has secured cooperation over conflict, pursued a shared sense of collaboration, exchange and purposeful endeavour to work in concert not just to advance the interests of its own members but the world on a global scale.
"It is on that positive basis the Scottish government is of the view Scotland as part of the UK should remain in the EU."
Labour leader Kezia Dugdale also made a passionate argument in favour of a Remain vote, saying there is "something beautiful about being part of this European family".
She also warned against the danger of "populist" arguments, but said "we are more secure in bigger alliances than standing alone."
A number of new MSPs used their first Holyrood speeches to advocate staying in the EU, including new Green member Ross Greer and Tory Adam Tomkins.
By definition, a referendum presents us all with a choice. That was true with the independence plebiscite in 2014. It is true now with the vote over whether the UK should remain within the European Union or not.
As in 2014, it is a simple choice - Remain or Leave - but a complex decision, with a range of competing factors.
That complexity, those layers, were on display at Holyrood today in what was a rather intriguing debate. More interesting than the advance arithmetic would have suggested, with the vote weighed heavily towards Remain.
Firstly, let me praise those MSPs who were speaking for the first time. Each delivered cogent, substantive contributions. Seriously, they were good. It would be invidious to single any one out. So I won't. Ok, maybe later.
Read more from Brian
Conservative MSP Margaret Mitchell was the first to make the case for those arguing that the UK should leave the EU.
She said Scotland has "four tiers of government", arguing that people know little about their EU representatives - and "couldn't care less" about it.
Describing it as "an out-dated and failing institution", she said the EU would still look to trade with the UK in the event of a Brexit. She also said the Common Agricultural Policy "short changes" Scottish farmers.
Ms Mitchell argued that EU membership and the free movement of people could also put "unsustainable pressure" on public services and the benefits system.
She said nobody could predict what the future would bring regardless of the outcome of the referendum, but argued that the UK had the talent to prosper outside of the EU.
Ms Mitchell's fellow Tory MSP Graham Simpson and Labour's Elaine Smith all argued that Britain would do better outside the European Union.
Mr Simpson said the small number of MSPs backing Brexit meant Holyrood was "not reflective of Scotland at large", although he claimed that there could be at least one SNP member secretly planning to vote no, even if they were "not allowed to say so".
Meanwhile, Ms Smith put forward a left-wing, socialist case for leaving the EU, arguing that the union was an "undemocratic superstate" with an "unelected bureaucracy at its core".
Ms Smith was joined in voting against the motion by seven Conservatives; Ms Mitchell and Mr Simpson, Ross Thomson, Alexander Stewart, Maurice Corry, Gordon Lindhurst and Oliver Mundell - although it later emerged Mr Corry had "pressed the wrong button".
This puts Mr Mundell on the opposite side of the debate to his father, the Scottish Secretary David Mundell, who backs a Remain vote.
Three MSPs abstained - Labour's Neil Findlay and Tories Jamie Greene and Alison Harris.
Later on Thursday, former Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond will be among the panellists on a BBC TV debate about the EU referendum.
Mr Salmond will put the case for Remain alongside Labour's Alan Johnson, with Liam Fox of the Conservatives and UKIP's Diane James arguing on behalf of Leave.
The "How Should Vote?" debate, being hosted in Glasgow before an audience of under-30s from across the UK, will be presented by broadcaster Victoria Derbyshire.
It will be aired on BBC One between 20:00 and 21:00, and will also be available on the BBC iPlayer.
Ahead of the EU debate, BBC Scotland asked Holyrood's MSPs where they stood on membership. Just 46 out of 129 responded.
Remain
Conservatives - Ruth Davidson, Miles Briggs, Peter Chapman, Jackson Carlaw, John Lamont, Alex Johnstone, Rachael Hamilton, Elizabeth Smith, Donald Cameron, Adam Tomkins, Douglas Ross, Brian Whittle, Finlay Carson and Annie Wells.
SNP - Alisdair Allan, Linda Fabiani, Bill Kidd, John Mason, John Swinney, Stewart Stevenson, Ivan McKee and Richard Lyle.
Labour - Claire Baker, Iain Gray, Colin Smyth, Alex Rowley, Jenny Marra, Rhoda Grant, Monica Lennon, Richard Leonard, James Kelly, Claudia Beamish and Daniel Johnson
Lib Dems - Alex Cole Hamilton, Willie Rennie, Mike Rumbles and Liam McArthur
Greens - Ross Greer, John Finnie, Andy Wightman and Mark Ruskell
Leave
Conservatives - Graham Simpson, Ross Thomson and Alexander Stewart
Undecided
Conservative - Liam Kerr
Labour - Neil Findlay


Jessica Ennis-Hill's coach Toni Minichiello wants Russian heptathlete Tatyana Chernova's drugs ban to be re-examined by the sporting authorities.

Chernova, now 27, beat Briton Ennis-Hill to gold at the 2011 World Championships in Korea.
This week she was given a ban and had earlier results annulled after a sample from 2009 was re-tested - but kept her world title.
"She set a personal best with the benefit of drug use," Minichiello said.
Russian anti-doping agency punished Chernova with a two-year ban, backdated to 22 June 2013.
It also annulled her results from 15 August 2009 to 14 August 2011 - a period that ended just 16 days before  she won world gold in Daegu with a personal best of 6,880 points, beating defending champion Ennis-Hill's 6,751.
Research carried out by the University of Oslo in October 2013 established that muscles can retain the advantages given by anabolic steroids decades after the point at which they were taken.
Minichiello wants athletics' world governing body the IAAF and the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) to have a "long, hard look" at the Russian anti-doping agency's punishment.
The IAAF told BBC Sport it is awaiting a full explanation from the Russian authorities before deciding whether it needs to take any action.
"Maybe it highlights that there is a gap within the anti-doping code which allows only a two-year ban from the initial test and then another ban from the date of the re-test," added Minichiello.
"I think it should probably all run seamlessly and athletes should be banned for the whole time. Otherwise you have a ban for Chernova that really looks quite ineffective."
Chernova's backdated ban is due to expire on 21 June, and with the qualification period for the 2015 World Championships in Beijing running until 10 August, she could compete both there and at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
"It would be frustrating if she lines up on the starting line but those are the rules out there and we need to abide by them," said Minichiello.
"That is why we think Wada needs to look at its code and penalties to show there is potentially a loophole that needs to be looked. I'm sure the Russian anti-doping agency have administered suspensions according to the rules, so therefore it needs to be looked at."
Last week, Russia's athletics head coach Valentin Maslakov resigned after a number of athletes from the country were found guilty of committing doping offences.
Wada is investigating allegations of widespread doping and corruption in Russian athletics after claims were aired in a recent German television documentary, with a report due to be published by the end of the year.
The IAAF said last week it was concerned about the number of Russian doping cases in the sport.


A vulnerable man allegedly forced to work for 13 years at a Newport farm by a father and son has told a jury he was looked after by them.

Darrell Simester agreed Daniel Doran, 67, and son David Daniel Doran, 42, looked after him, under cross examination at Cardiff Crown Court.
When asked by a policeman whether he had been made to live at Cariad Farm he replied: "No, they just look after me".
The two men deny requiring him to perform forced or compulsory labour.
The trial has heard homeless Mr Simester, 44, was picked up on a dual carriageway by the Doran family and taken to Cariad Farm at Peterstone.
It is alleged he was "terrified," lived in a caravan and washed in a horse trough while working unpaid for 13 years.
Mr Simester, from Kidderminster, Worcestershire, had told the jury he carried on working the day after he fractured his hip.
Kevin Molloy, defending Daniel Doran, asked Mr Simester if he remembered a police officer taking him to one side on the day he left the farm.
He told the court Mr Simester denied anyone had threatened or assaulted him when it was put to him by police.
Mr Molloy said: "The officer said: 'Something isn't right , you're safe now, you can tell me what's going on. Have you been forced to live here?'
"You replied: 'No, they just look after me.'
"Was that because the Dorans did look after you?"
Mr Simester agreed: "Yep".
Mr Molloy questioned Mr Simester about him writing Christmas cards for the Dorans, who could not read or write, but not sending one to his own family.
He asked him: "You didn't think to send your parents a card too?"
Mr Simester replied: "No. I didn't know their address."
Mr Molloy asked: "When you asked the police to take you home, how could they when you didn't know their address?
"You didn't have your family phone number because you'd forgotten it?" Mr Simester replied: "Yes."
Mr Molloy asked: "And you didn't know where your family lived because you'd forgotten it?"
Mr Simester replied: "That's right."
Mr Molloy said: "I put it to you you're telling lies."
Mr Molloy replied: "No."
The cross-examination included Mr Molloy asking Mr Simester about an interview he gave to the press after he was taken from Cariad Farm.
Mr Simester agreed with the proposition that Mr Doran's daughters, Kathleen and Ali, cooked for him and cleaned his clothes.
Mr Simester said: "It wasn't a case of the girls ignoring you. If I needed food or anything, Ali would be doing that on a regular basis.
Mr Molloy asked: "So she didn't neglect you? There was a kettle in the shed and you were free to make tea when you wanted?"
Mr Simester replied: "Yeah."
Mr Molloy said: "The reporter suggests you were compelled to stay. Did you feel pressure to agree with him?"
Mr Molloy replied: "That's right, yeah."
The charges against the father and son cover a period between 2010 and 2013.
However, the court has heard Mr Simester had been missing for 13 years, living on the Dorans' farm.
When Mr Simester was eventually tracked down by his worried family in 2013 he was found living in a caravan, which had been described by a police officer as "left to rot" and "unfit for human habitation".
The trial continues.


Entertainer Keith Harris, best known for performances with his puppet Orville, has died, aged 67.

His agent Robert C Kelly confirmed the news on Twitter.
"Sad to announce death from cancer of my client, dear friend and great talent, Keith Harris," he wrote.
Harris had his own BBC One Saturday night programme The Keith Harris Show and had a top 10 hit with Orville's Song, popularly known as I Wish I Could Fly, in 1982.
He leaves behind his fourth wife Sarah, and his children Kitty and Shenton; as well as a daughter, Skye, from his first marriage to singer Jacqui Scott and his mother Lila and brother Colin.


Flights have been cancelled at London airports because of freezing fog covering much of southern England.

About 100 flights have been affected at Heathrow; London City has cancelled 88 flights; and Gatwick has cancelled nine flights and warned delays are likely.
A total of 39 flights have been cancelled at Southampton airport.
A Met Office fog warning for much of southern England has now been lifted, but forecasters say there could be further disruption on Tuesday morning.
The cold weather has also meant parts of the UK are suffering from high levels of air pollution, which is expected to continue into Tuesday, as pollutants fail to disperse in the still conditions.
Met Office forecaster Emma Boorman said it was likely patches of dense fog would re-form overnight to cause "potential disruption" in parts of England and Wales, particularly in the south.
On Monday morning, Heathrow, London City, Gatwick, Southampton and Stansted airports - where visibility has been at 100m - all warned passengers to check flight updates before travelling.
Heathrow said the effect of fog on flights there could be more noticeable than at most airports because it operates at 98% capacity, meaning it is harder to space flights out.
Stansted has been taking some diverted flights from London City Airport, with a spokesman saying seven had landed so far, but passengers have been warned of further disruption due to the fog.
Flights to Amsterdam were the worst-affected due to fog at Schiphol Airport.
Liverpool Airport also said fog and low visibility had affected them on Monday morning, despite not being covered by the weather warning.
On Sunday evening, freezing fog led to two flights bound for Southampton having to divert to Bristol and Bournemouth airports, but Luton has not been affected.
Forecasters said temperatures would struggle to top 0C (32F) in the worst-affected areas on Monday, although it was a rise from the -8C (17.6F) recorded in parts of Hampshire and Essex on Sunday morning.
Cheshire Police tweeted a photo of Runcorn Widnes bridge and advised motorists to drive with care with their headlights on.
Motoring organisation the AA advises:
BBC Travel
BBC Weather
Highways England


Harlequins director of rugby Conor O'Shea will leave The Stoop when his contract expires at the end of the season after six years in charge.

The 45-year-old, who led Quins to the Premiership title in 2012, has been linked with the Italy head coach job.
The club, which also won the Amlin Challenge Cup and the LV Cup under O'Shea, says it is searching for the Irishman's replacement.
"The end of this season is the right time for me to move on," said O'Shea.
"We have a very talented group of players and coaches who are intent on securing silverware this season.
"That is my sole focus and where all our efforts are concentrated."
O'Shea won 35 Ireland caps between 1993 and 2000, spending 10 years at London Irish as a player and coach before taking over at Quins.
He took the job in the aftermath of the 'Bloodgate' scandal that ended with Dean Richards resigning.
"All of us at the club are of course disappointed that Conor will be leaving us at the end of this season," said Harlequins chief executive David Ellis.
"Conor took over after a difficult period in our history.
"Under his leadership and through his determination, energy and positive approach he has helped restore pride in our famous shirt and rejuvenate the playing style for which we are known.
"On behalf of all of us associated with Harlequins, I would like to thank Conor for his tireless and selfless commitment over the last six years, guiding us through our most successful period on the field.
"Conor will leave the club in a significantly better place than he found us and for that we are all grateful to him."
Quins are third in the Premiership table, six points behind leaders Saracens.
"O'Shea has done a magnificent job at Harlequins, dragging the club from the low of the 'Bloodgate' saga and turning them into Premiership champions in 2012.
"Under his tutelage Quins have also provided a host of England internationals, and at one point fielded a whole XV of England-qualified players.
"With his contract up at the end of the season, O'Shea clearly feels ready for a new challenge, and has had discussions about replacing Jacques Brunel as Italy's head coach.
"As for his successor, the former England boss Stuart Lancaster could possibly fit the bill as a like-for-like replacement."


Thirty-four people were killed after police opened fire on striking miners at a mine in Marikana in the north east of South Africa, a police chief has said.

Here people in South Africa share their views on Thursday's incident.
Loss of life is always regrettable. I sympathise with the miners regarding the wage issue.
But I must say that there is no need to go on strike with sticks and machetes.
They must understand that the police is not their enemy. The police were there to restore order and keep the peace while the two unions which were negotiating with the mining company.
There is a mixed reaction from people here to the incident. Many say the police have the right to defend themselves. It seems that these days people don't respect the police.
An investigation should be opened to find what really happened and to why the two cops were killed in an earlier incident.
I was a section leader in a detachment with the South African Defence Force in the 1980s when we were charged by a group of people armed very much the same as the workers at the mine.
At the time we were mounted in vehicles and were able to withdraw with no casualties. The effect however of this charge still stays with me.
From what was seen yesterday, I feel the police were not controlling the situation. This is due to a lack of training of the lower-level police and therefore of the upper echelon as well.
They should never have got into a situation that they are unable to extricate themselves from. To put police into a situation where there is little chance of withdrawal will only lead to this result.
The events in Marikana are a bit of a shock. The president should be heading to the area to do something.
This incident reminds me of the apartheid-era South Africa. There is no sense in shooting people who don't have guns. Are we going back to the days of the Sharpeville massacre?
A rubber bullet is enough to stop someone who attacks you with a machete.
As for the miners - they have a legal right to strike. It's not like they were causing trouble outside a police station.
It's a very sad situation.
The police need training so they don't act in the same way in a similar situation in the future.
I'm really upset by the incident. The footage looks like something from Libya or another civil war zone. It's unbelievable.
The Lonmin disaster is a sad continuation of the story of frustrated and unhappy South Africans.
I moved here from Switzerland 11 years ago and there are many opportunities in South Africa. But many younger people don't have access to opportunities because of substandard public schooling.
So many things are blatantly wrong in this country. After more than 18 years in power, the ANC can't continue to blame apartheid as the root cause. They have created an exclusive society and if you are not properly connected, you are actually worse off.
Many of us wonder when these sparks will trigger an Arab Spring-style revolt in the country.
This atrocious and outrageous violence is symptomatic of the relationship that has been developing between protesters and the police over the last two years.
There have been violent outbreaks and confrontations with the police continually.
It is no longer possible for the media to portray these as "isolated events".
South African people are angry and tired of the inequality that is so rife in our country.
It is heart-breaking to see our country being so brutally torn apart in a manner strikingly reminiscent of the apartheid days.


An aristocrat who wrote an online post offering Â£5,000 to anyone who ran over businesswoman Gina Miller has been sentenced to 12 weeks in prison.

Rhodri Colwyn Philipps - the 4th Viscount St Davids - posted on Facebook four days after Ms Miller won a Brexit legal challenge against the government.
Philipps, 50, of Knightsbridge, central London, was found guilty of two charges of making menacing communications.
The other count related to his response to a news article about an immigrant.
At his Westminster Magistrates' Court trial Philipps claimed the post about Ms Miller was a "joke" and a "conversation piece for his Facebook friends".
He called his comments "satire".
Senior district judge Emma Arbuthnot said she had "no doubt it was menacing".
She told the peer the post effectively put a "bounty" on Ms Miller's head and had left the businesswoman "shocked" and feeling "violated."
Philipps had written: "Â£5,000 for the first person to 'accidentally' run over this bloody troublesome first generation immigrant."
Describing Ms Miller as a "boat jumper", he added: "If this is what we should expect from immigrants, send them back to their stinking jungles."
Giving evidence to the trial, Ms Miller - who was born in Guyana - said she had been the subject of death threats since her role in November's legal challenge which ruled the government had to consult Parliament before formally beginning the Brexit process.
The other post Philipps was convicted over was about an immigrant and his family in Luton who were involved in a row over housing.
Before sentencing, defence lawyer Sabrina Felix told the court Philipps understood how his actions had "impacted" on the subjects of his posts, and "he only hopes, wishes and prays that they do accept his sincere apology".
Ms Felix added "he accepts that the comments were wholly disgraceful" and "menacing in character".
But the judge said Philipps was "so clearly showing hostility to Ms Miller based on her race or ethnic origin that I find it ludicrous that he should say otherwise".
Ms Arbuthnot said the the peer had a hatred of anyone who had different views to his and "anyone who has recently arrived in the country".
She added: "You show this hatred by publicly directing abusive threats at others which is a criminal offence in this multi-racial society we are lucky enough to live in."


Airport shops could be forced to give VAT discounts to passengers travelling outside the European Union, following the launch of a government inquiry.

The Treasury said that the "extensive" review would make sure that shoppers got the discounts they are entitled to.
Tax-free shops should not charge VAT, if passengers are going outside the EU.
In August it was revealed that some airside retailers were not always passing VAT savings on to customers, but were keeping the money instead.
The Treasury said some shops were keeping as much as half the money they should be giving to consumers.
"VAT relief at airports is intended to cut prices for those travellers - not be a windfall gain for shops," said Chancellor George Osborne.
"But many people could be paying over the odds for their purchases because the government's VAT concession isn't passed on. This is simply unacceptable," he said.
At the moment airport retailers are not legally obliged to provide a VAT discount, so it would need a change in the law to make them do so.
Some retailers have claimed it would be too difficult to introduce dual-pricing for EU and non-EU travellers - and that such a requirement would lead to delays for passengers.
WH Smith, one of the shops originally criticised, said it would co-operate with the inquiry.
Boots, which also came in for criticism, has already announced a review of its own policy.
"Since taking our decision in August 2015 to no longer ask customers to show us their boarding passes we have been continuing with our strategic review and, working together with the Airport Authorities, we are nearing conclusion," the retailer said.
"We will participate with the government review as we receive further details," it added.
Who is entitled to VAT savings?
Anyone travelling outside the 28 countries of the European Union (EU). Travellers within the EU or the UK have to pay existing rates of duty and VAT.
Do you have to show a boarding pass?
If you are buying cigarettes or alcohol in a duty free shop, you are legally obliged to show your boarding pass, to prove you are travelling outside the EU. If you are buying other goods - say books, snacks or cosmetics - you are still obliged to show your pass if these are being sold in a duty free shop. You are not if these goods are from a general retailer such as Boots or WH Smith.
Read more here
Goods which normally carry VAT at 20%, like bottles of water, or sunscreen, should carry a significant price reduction.
A bottle of sunscreen, which normally retails at Â£6, should cost Â£5 once the VAT is deducted.
Other items, such as books and newspapers do not carry VAT in the first place.
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will carry out the review, and is expected to report back early in 2016.
It will also examine the separate issue of airport excise duty.
Duty-free shops which sell alcohol and tobacco operate under different rules to tax-free shops.


Four "violent videos" posted on YouTube have not been removed despite requests from police, the Mayor of London says.

Sadiq Khan said the online firm had refused to take down the knife videos that were first reported in December.
Mr Khan said the videos, showing recognisable London locations, "were a shocking example of the glamorisation of gang culture".
YouTube said it could not comment on individual cases but said it was in contact with the police on this issue.
The videos, which have been viewed more than 356,000 times, shows gangs threatening rivals with a "Rambo knife" while others make shooting hand signals to a soundtrack of violent rap.
A YouTube spokesperson said the site prohibits videos "that are abusive or that promote violence."
"We work closely with organisations like the Metropolitan police to understand local context and specifically, so that we can understand where artistic expression escalates into real threats."
Gun and knife crime in the capital have increased by 42% and 24% over the last year, according to recent police figures.
Sadiq Khan said: "Social media and the internet can be used to inflame tensions and escalate violence quicker than ever before.
"Internet giants have policies in place around violent content, but they do not go far enough."
Claire Hubberstey, CEO of Safer London, said: "There are some highly dangerous, widely viewed films online that pose a serious threat to young people, both glorifying violence and intimidation and posing a significant risk to those who appear in them."
Youtube said it was committed to continuing and improving its work on this issue and making the site "a hostile space for those who seek to do harm."


Climate change and terrorism are top of the agenda on the second day of the G7 summit of economic powers in Germany.

Chancellor Angela Merkel wants the group to reach an agreement on limiting global temperature rises.
She is also calling on the G7 members to contribute to a fund for poor countries suffering the worst consequences of climate change.
There are also talks on the threat from radical extremism with the leaders of Nigeria, Tunisia and Iraq.
The summit is being held at the picturesque Schloss Elmau hotel in Kruen in the Bavarian Alps.
The leaders of the US, UK, Japan, France, Canada and Italy are attending the talks, hosted by Ms Merkel.
The first working session on Monday focused on climate and energy, with Chancellor Merkel trying to get leaders to agree to keeping temperature rises within 2C of pre-industrial levels.
She is hoping to secure commitments from her G7 guests on tackling global warming to build momentum before a major United Nations climate summit in Paris in December.
G7 leaders were then joined by Iraqi PM Haider al-Abadi, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi to discuss the threat posed by groups like Islamic State (IS) and Boko Haram.
On Sunday, Prime Minister David Cameron said the UK was sending an extra 125 military trainers to Iraq to help in the battle against IS, describing the militants as "the biggest threat" G7 leaders had to address.
IS continues to control large swathes of Iraq and Syria despite being the target of a US-led air campaign against them.
In Nigeria, a similar regional battle is being fought against Boko Haram militants who have carried out attacks since 2009 to try to create an Islamic state.


It's rare to see the Malaysian ringgit rise against the US dollar - especially given its performance this year - down some 18%.

Even more curious that it happened while regional currencies like the Indonesian rupiah and Thai baht continued to fall.
Research houses are also upgrading their forecasts for Malaysia's stock markets and the economy.
So what's driving all this positivity?
Well, in part it is thanks to the sale of the energy assets at one of Malaysia's most notorious institutions: IMDB.
1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) is a state investment fund set up in 2009 and was supposed to turn Kuala Lumpur into a financial hub. But it is currently on a fragile financial footing.
Now, 1MDB has sold one of it, and Malaysia's, most coveted power assets, Edra Global Energy, to China General Nuclear for $2.3bn (Â£1.5bn).
"The markets are showing they're pleased with the deal," says Taufik Basir, analyst with Hong Leong securities.
"It's a good thing for Malaysia, it addresses a big chunk of 1MDB's debt issues. It was a good financial decision - making the most of a bad deal. But frankly, what else could they have done?"
Recently Malaysia's 1MDB has been in the press for all the wrong reasons.
Most of the headlines about the beleaguered firm this year have been about how much money it owes - some $11bn that it has amassed over the last five years.
Earlier this year, it was entangled in an even bigger mess: hit by allegations that $700m had been transferred to Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak's personal bank account from companies linked to 1MDB.
The man tasked with cleaning up all of this - 1MDB chief executive Arul Kanda - must be feeling mighty happy with himself this week.  He called the sale of Edra Global Energy a "vote of confidence in the Malaysian economy."
When I spoke to him in October, he told me that that the fund was in the process of selling off stakes in some of its prized energy assets in an attempt to raise cash and pay down some of its multi-billion dollar debt.
"The value of assets outweigh value of debt," he told me at their office in Kuala Lumpur. "The value of assets can be proven, given bids we've received".
Mr Kanda said the company would start to see a profit sometime next year, after they've sold off some of their key assets.
1MDB expects the Edra sale to be completed in February 2016 - but the devil is in the detail.
Foreign investors are typically only allowed to own as much as 49% of Malaysian power producers, unless they obtain a waiver from the government.
It's not clear yet whether the Chinese firm has been given this exemption - but it is buying all of Edra - which makes up 14% of Malaysia's total power assets.
The sale has been criticised by members of the opposition who say it means China will control a big chunk of Malaysia's energy assets and that the price paid for these assets is far less than what 1MDB paid in the first place.
There have always been questions asked about the purpose and performance of 1MDB - which has changed auditors twice since 2009.
Malaysia already has a sovereign wealth fund, Khazanah, which makes investments for the country's national development.
1MDB was set up with similar ambitions by Mr Najib in 2009, who chairs its advisory board and also serves as Malaysia's finance minister as well as prime minister.
Since the scandal broke, calls for the prime minister to step down have been growing from protestors, and even from the high profile former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, who still holds a lot of influence in the country.


A man who sprayed ammonia into the eyes of a cashier at a Hertfordshire betting shop has been jailed for six years.

Darren Starkey, 51, admitted the attack on the woman at a shop in Bishop's Stortford, where he made off with £150 to £200.
He also admitted possessing an offensive weapon and threatening a cashier with a knife in another robbery at a bookmakers in Clacton, Essex.
St Albans Crown Court heard Starkey had a gambling problem.
He was given an "extended" sentence after pleading guilty to the attack at a Coral bookmakers in Bishop's Stortford in May and the earlier robbery at another betting shop in Clacton.
In the first attack he got away with £1,000 from the till after threatening the lone woman cashier behind the counter with a knife.
Two weeks later, 29 May, he used the ammonia and water mixture and made off with between £150 and £200 from the Bishop's Stortford shop.
Starkey, who is homeless, had been "down on his luck" and had no money, the court was told.
In a letter to the judge, Starkey said he had never done anything like it in his life and would never do it again.
The woman who had ammonia sprayed in her eyes had been left terrified that she would be blinded, the court was told.
Recorder Leslie Cuthbert told Starkey he had planned the crimes and would serve a six-year jail term followed by three years on probation.


Brighton & Hove Albion have signed defender Greg Halford on a month-long loan deal from Championship rivals Nottingham Forest.

The 29-year-old usually plays at centre-back or right-back but can also operate in midfield or up front.
He is the Seagulls' third loan signing in the past week and manager Sami Hyypia said: "With Aaron Hughes out injured we needed cover.
"Greg has an abundance of experience in the Championship and Premier League."
Hyypia added: "With Aaron out we wanted that level of experience to be replaced as well, so he is a good fit."
Halford has scored eight goals in 82 appearances since joining Forest in summer 2012 but he has not featured so far this season.
Albion defender Hughes, who can play all across the back line, is currently sidelined with an ankle injury while first-choice centre-backs Gordon Greer and Lewis Dunk are each one booking away from a one-match ban.
Halford, who began his career at Colchester and has had permanent spells at Reading, Sunderland, Wolves and Portsmouth, becomes the sixth loan player on Brighton's books - one more than the number permitted in a 18-man matchday squad in the Championship.


A star cast of jurors will be heard deliberating on the fate of Helen Titchener in an hour-long special episode of The Archers.

Dame Eileen Atkins, Catherine Tate and Nigel Havers are among the actors forming the jury for the fictional trial, which comes to an end on Sunday.
Graham Seed, who played Nigel Pargetter for 27 years on the BBC Radio 4 soap, will also voice one of the characters.
Helen faces charges of attempting to murder her husband Rob.
The week-long trial, moments from which have been illustrated by court artist Julia Quenzler, also saw her charged with wounding with intent over the incident, in which Rob was stabbed.
It will be the first time in The Archers' 65-year history that a single episode has been extended to an hour.
Sean O'Connor, outgoing editor of the programme, said a "fantastic cross-section of British acting talent from radio, TV, stage and film" had come together to make the jury.
He said: "Everybody we approached agreed to take part with such enthusiasm - some without even reading the script - wanting to be part of this unique moment in the history of the programme."
Havers said: "There were three things I wanted to do as an actor. Play Max de Winter in Rebecca - tick.
"Be in Coronation Street - tick. Do an episode of The Archers - big tick!"
The stabbing of Rob, broadcast in April, was the culmination of a long-running domestic abuse storyline portrayed by actors Timothy Watson and Louiza Patikas.
Listeners have heard evidence from both sides, building up to the jury's deliberations. They will deliver their verdict at the end of Sunday's programme.
Nigel Pargetter's death was broadcast on 2 January 2011, with the character falling off a roof in an episode marking the 60th anniversary of the soap.
Seed said: "How lovely to be asked back to be in this special episode. An honour! A very different character to play of course, and the challenge was not to sound like lovely old Nigel Pargetter."
O'Connor - who has done jury service three times himself - added: "It was a particular delight for me to ask Graham Seed to take part.
"I know many Archers listeners still miss Nigel Pargetter and it seemed fitting that in my last ever episode of The Archers as director and editor, I could offer Graham an appearance in the programme - without him actually turning up in the shower like Bobby Ewing in Dallas."
Other jurors are played by Rakhee Thakrar, best-known as Shabnam in EastEnders, Skins star Aimee Ffion Edwards, Cerith Flynn, who has appeared in Wolfblood and Strike Back, and Tam Williams, who played Havers' role in the stage version of Chariots of Fire.
Three of the remaining jurors will not speak during the episode, set at Borchester Crown Court, and one has been dismissed for contempt of court.
Thakrar says: "Working on this jury special was an absolute joy. Being part of such an iconic and important story for The Archers was an honour."
The Archers Jury Special will be broadcast on Sunday 11 September at 19:00 BST on BBC Radio 4 and will be available later on iPlayer
Follow us on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, on Instagram, or if you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.


Archaeologists digging trenches ahead of a town centre revamp have been forced to fill them in after just 24 hours.

Two trenches were dug on Monday to investigate Ipswich's Cornhill area.
However, by Tuesday contractors were told the bricks would all need to be put back when the council realised the ditches might get in the way of a festival and parade next month.
They said work could begin again after the event.
An Ipswich Borough Council spokesman said: "We are taking this dig extremely seriously, and if we had discovered something of note we could not guarantee to have everything back in place safely for this community event in early September."
We'll fill you in with all the latest news from Suffolk right here
The investigative work was scheduled to take place ahead of a £3m redevelopment of the Cornhill, which will start in January and see the creation of a water feature and sculpture.
Archaeologists were expected to be working in a fenced-off area for two weeks but the dig was halted after just one day.
"[The] work on Ipswich's Cornhill has been postponed to allow a town centre procession and festival to take place early next month," the council spokesman added.
"As a result, we will start the dig after that as there is no impact on the timing of the Cornhill project."


Somalia's president has called for "a better way" to bring home refugees from his country, with Kenya insisting that it will go ahead with its plan to close the world's largest refugee camp.

The Dadaab camp is home to more than 300,000 Somalis.
President Hassan Sheik Mohamed told the BBC that forced repatriation was not in the best interests of either country.
Kenya says it wants to close the camp over security concerns, saying attacks on its soil have been planned there.
Kenya did not follow through on a previous threat to close down the camp, made last April following the deadly attack by a Somali militant group al-Shabab on a university 100km (62 miles) away.
The al-Qaeda linked group has staged several attacks on Kenya in recent years.
Authorities needed to agree on "the best way to bring these people in an orderly manner and in a dignified way based on the international laws... We don't want to have our relations affected with Kenya," President Mohamed told the BBC Somali service.
He said Somalia was grateful for Kenya's support in accommodating the refugees over such a long period and was committed to getting its people home.
Dadaab was set up in 1991 to house families fleeing conflict in Somalia, and some people have been living there for more than 20 years.


A girl has told a jury former Sunderland footballer Adam Johnson "made her out to be a liar" following a sexual encounter in his car.

Appearing via video-link, she told Bradford Crown Court about sex acts that allegedly took place in the winger's Range Rover when she was 15 years old.
Mr Johnson, 28, who has 12 England caps, is accused of two counts of sexual activity with a child.
The footballer denies the charges.
The girl, now aged 16, told the court she did not mention some of the more serious activity at first because she was trying to "protect the player".
She was asked by Orlando Pownall QC, defending Mr Johnson, whether she was still trying to protect him.
"No, because he did nothing to protect me and he made me out to be a liar," she said.
Mr Pownall asked the girl whether she "absolutely hated" Johnson now.
She said: "Yes, I do, after everything he's put us through.
"He told everyone he was innocent and he made people call me a liar.
"He let people cheer him on in matches and he let people call me all the names under the sun."
See more on this story and other news from across the North East here.
Speaking through tears for much of her evidence, the girl claimed she had been "bigging herself up" with some messages to friends on social media.
Referring to one Snapchat message which was pasted into Facebook, Mr Pownall asked about her saying: "He's picking me up this week and I'm riding him."
The teenager replied: "I was trying to big myself up as any 15-year-old girl would.
"When you idolise someone and that happens to you, you're not thinking at the time."
The girl wiped away tears as she told the jury she never thought she would end up explaining herself in court.
Mr Pownall again asked the girl whether she was just trying to protect herself.
She said: "I wasn't protecting myself. It made no difference to me whether they knew about me and Adam Johnson. It was him who was going to suffer for it."
The girl insisted to the court she never wanted to get Mr Johnson into trouble.
She said: "I didn't want that to happen to him. I saw myself as playing a part in it as well, I thought I'd done wrong too."
The girl began sobbing again and asked for a break.
Born in Sunderland, Mr Johnson began his career at Middlesbrough before moving to Manchester City and then on to Sunderland for Â£10m in 2012.
The trial continues.
The footballer has previously pleaded guilty to one count of sexual activity with a child and one charge of grooming. He was sacked by Sunderland as a result.


An expansion of the Abbeycentre and the adjoining Abbey Retail Park in County Antrim have been given the go-ahead by the Environment Minister Mark H Durkan.

The first scheme is an expansion of the Abbeycentre that will involve amalgamating four existing units and adding an extension.
The development at the Newtownabbey retail park will involve building four restaurant/coffee shop units.
It would also see two existing retail units replaced with four new units.
Mr Durkan said the approvals would "regenerate previously developed sites and assist the expansion of existing shopping centres".
The Abbeycentre is controlled by local investors including Ken Cheevers, who owns the McLaughlin & Harvey building firm.
The Abbey Retail Park is owned by the London-based property firm, Hammerson.