NEW LIFE
FEBRUARY 2012
Issue 216
40p
Upbringing gave good grounding in my life
GOOD NEWS STORIES
SEE BACK PAGE
www.newlife.co.uk
Addiction almost finished my career
SEE CENTRE PAGES
Seized fake QUEEN & PM MAKE CALL FOR COUNTRY goods help homeless A CHRISTIAN charity in the UK is rebranding counterfeit designer clothes with its own logo and giving them out to homeless people. The charity, called His Church, has been so successful that 90 per cent of British Trading Standards authorities now hand over all the clothes they seize to them. And His Church has even received calls from America with jeans giant Tommy Hilfiger wanting its help to take counterfeit goods. R ichard Humph rey, the charity’s co-ordinator, told the BBC: “It’s fantastic to be able to give the homeless clothes of great quality as it also gives them a lot of hope and dignity.” Ann Jackson, senior officer from Norfolk Trading Standards, said the counterfeit market was a “thriving economy”, which “in the present economic climate will get worse”.
rebrand She added: “We’re very keen to make sure these goods are used in an appropriate way and we see this as a win-win situation for the good guys – ourselves and the charities that are receiving – and a no-win for those who are trying to sell these goods.” Mr Humphrey also explained how His Church collected 1,600 pairs of fake Tommy Hilfiger jeans after the company asked them for help. The jeans company, which has over 1,000 retail stores across four continents, told His Church that it believed it was the “world leader in rebranding counterfeit clothes”. His Church will now rebrand the jeans with their “His” logo and take them to homeless centres around Britain. The charity, which is based in Lincolnshire, gives out the clothes as “gifts”, rather than “hand-outs”. Amanda Ado, director of a homelessness group, said: “People who sleep rough rarely get anyth ing that’s brand new that feels like it’s been given specifically to them.”
Christian values must return to Britain ADDED VALUES... Prime Minister David Cameron and the Queen have both made calls about faith in the UK. Below, Pastor Agu Irukwu
BRITAIN should return to its Christian values, the Queen and the Prime Minister have said. The call comes as Christianity was declared the biggest religion on earth with 2.2 billion followers, while in London, Pastor Agu Irukwu was named the most influential black person in a national poll. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, in her annual Christmas Day speech, delivered an awe-inspiring and heartfelt message highlighting her Christian beliefs. She said: “Although we are capable of great acts of kindness, history teaches us that we sometimes need saving from ourselves – from our recklessness or our greed. “God sent into the world a unique person – neither a philosopher nor a ● Continued on Page 3