The News Matrix: Tuesday 15 April 2014

Half of voters don’t find Ukip ‘realistic’

A ComRes poll for i found 51 per cent of voters did not believe Ukip offered a “realistic political vision”, while 54 per cent said they were not attracted by the party’s plain-speaking style. The survey could dampen the enthusiasm of Ukip, which has ridden a wave of popular support during the past 18 months and is battling with Labour in the European parliamentary elections. MORE

Man dies after building collapses

A building partially collapsed in central London yesterday, leaving one man dead and at least one other person injured, Scotland Yard said. Police were called to the site in Mayfair where the man, who was working on the site and is believed to be in his 30s, was pronounced dead.

Rape police carry out mass DNA test

Police took DNA samples from hundreds of male pupils and staff yesterday in the hope that the results would help them trace an assailant who raped a 16-year-old girl in the toilets of a secondary school in La Rochelle, western France last September.

£105k investigator expense ‘not a lot’

A former editor of the News of the World has said he regarded payments of £105,000 per year to a private investigation firm as “not a lot of money” because the tabloid “paid double that to the astrologer”, the phone-hacking trial has heard. MORE

Nazi memorabilia auction dropped

A Paris auction house is abandoning plans to sell dozens of items from Nazi Germany, including a small wooden box bearing three swastikas that was once owned by Adolf Hitler. The Vermot de Pas house said it faced “political pressure”, including “insulting emails and phone calls”.

Pregnant woman died in botched op

A pregnant woman with appendicitis died after a surgeon removed her ovary, not her appendix, a tribunal has heard. Maria De Jesus, 32, was 20 weeks pregnant when she went to Queen’s Hospital in Romford, Essex. Dr Yahya Al Abed admitted his error but denies misconduct.

Amazon rainforest in the line of fires

The Amazon is becoming increasingly vulnerable to fires, a study has concluded. The rainforest is close to a point where fires will become so common that they will change much of the landscape for ever. MORE