Was the cocoa tax removed to abate The Island?

 Wednesday, 27 May 2015

It is reported that the cocoa import tax has been removed. It was further reported that this was removed by the intervention of a powerful minister in the government.

Upali Group of Companies is the main importer of Cocoa to the country. That is for the production of Kandos chocolates for their company. Now it is being revealed as to why the cocoa import tax has been removed? That is to give a benefit to the production of Kandos Chocolate Company who imports the major percentage of cocoa.

The former Rajapaksa regime appointed one of the group directors of Upali Company as the chairman of Sri Lanka Telecom. By awarding a position the former president was able to manipulate Upali’s “Divaina” and other newspapers. However the present government too is trying to exercise a similar job. That is to remove the cocoa import tax and give that benefit to the Upali Company and manipulate the company for the government’s propaganda.

The former Rajapaksa regime cleverly manipulated the “Divaina” newspaper for its own benefit and we would see how the current government is going to succeed this job in future

Banning glyphosate: A political time bomb?

by Chandre Dharmawardana

( May 27, 2015 Ottawa, Sri Lanka Guardian) The president has banned the well-known herbicide (glyphosate) pivotal to the productivity and survival of Sri Lanka’s agricultural sector. He has been led to believe that the ban would stop the epidemic of kidney disease in the Rajarata. The resultant sky-rocketing of the price of food items and the disarray in the plantation sector will hit the Sirisena government just in time for the next elections.

A small group of individuals associated with a lady who claims psychic powers, and a number of Kelaniya University Dons seem to have usurped the powers bestowed upon the President’s Pesticide Advisory Committee (PAC). The Kelaniya group has exploited the hysteria and public incomprehension caused by a recent WHO reclassification of glyphosate as a probable carcinogen under heavy exposure, classifying it with many common detergents and disinfectants. The word “probable” has been applied in regard to Glyphosate, while definite carcinogenicity has been attributed to Cloves and Citronella oil at even lower exposure.

No evidence for causing Kidney disease by Glyphosate has been recognized by any recognized scientific organization.

The WHO report led to a flurry of activity all over the world where the governments requested their expert advisers to recommend what should be done. In every country the advisory boards recommended that the WHO reclassification is a technical correction that does not affect accepted practice, and that no changes are necessary. Prof. Jean McLaughlin, one of the authors of the WHO-report adverse to Glyphosate expressly stated concurrence with this in a public TV discussion.

However, in Sri Lanka, the expert committee does not seem to have been consulted. The committee comprises 15 members selected from relevant institutions like the Department of Agriculture, Ministry of Health, Govt. Analyst’s Department, Research Institutes for Tea, Rubber and Coconut, The Standards Institute, Environmental Ministry, Commissioner of Labour and nominees of the Ministry of Agriculture. According to press reports, the Kelaniya group had met with the President and got the ban clinched.

The Kelaniya Group and their JHU friends have been agitating to ban the import of fertilizers and pesticides, claiming that they are toxic, contain Arsenic, and have unleashed an epidemic of Kidney disease in the North-Central Province. This view is not held by other experts or members of the PAC. The previous government was also pressurized by the Kelaniya group, but after hesitation, the Rajapaksa government introduced a limited ban in just the CKDU-affected regions, during the heat of the election campaign in Dec 2014. The PAC as well as those who understand the plantation sector had prevailed on the government that the Tea, Rubber,

Coconut as well as paddy and vegetables production would simply disappear if this herbicide, and the inorganic fertilizers were banned. There is simply no supply of “organic fertilizers” or manual labour for hand weeding that can meet the requirements.

What should be done to stop the kidney disease in the Rajarata? The key to stopping this disease is the provision of clean drinking water to the Residents of the Affected Areas (RAA). Our research has suggested that the accumulation of salts in the drinking-water wells used by the RAA is a very likely cause of kidney disease, where the ionicity of the water acts to cause slow deterioration of the kidney layers. Of course, any discussion of causes assumes that the subjects are otherwise comparable with respect to life styles, diet etc. In fact, residents who drink water from natural springs or municipal water in Anuradhapura, and having similar health problems, diets and life styles do not contract Kidney disease. Hence most other proposed causes, multi-factorial or otherwise, cannot be sustained, and the available analytical data also eliminate almost all of these proposed causes.

Prof. Sunil Jayalath has recently written to the Island newspaper (Island, May 26th, 2015) claiming that delivering water using Reverse Osmosis (RO) plants is the way to go, while criticizing the use of rainwater. He proposes taking water from rivers and irrigation canals to remove the pollutants. The “clean” part of the water is sold as drinking water, while the polluted part is put back into the river. In our view, and based on available analytical-chemistry data, most of the steam water and irrigation canal water are not polluted and suitable for drinking without RO if filtered and boiled. There are perhaps short unsuitable periods of the year when the run-off from agricultural lands increase the level of phosphates, fluorides etc., in the water.

It is the sustained use of water from ground wells which is, in our view responsible for CKDU. The well water in many affected areas is high in electrical conductivity. This arises from dissolved salts.

Prof. Jayalath’s arguments would have been more persuasive if he had given typical data for the levels of pollutants found in the water that his RO units are taking in, and putting out He has so far presented none. Furthermore, Rajarata people have a tradition of using rain water wisely, and such water is eminently drinkable if filtered and boiled, because most of the “uncleanness” in rain water is likely to be bacterial. The main short coming of rain water is its low hardness, and this can be corrected easily and cheaply. Furthermore, rain water can be collected in large plastic or galvanized tanks, or in earthenware or masonry tanks, and these are not expensive!

What has all this and kidney disease got to do with glyphosate? In fact, nothing at all! Is it possible that the Kelaniya Group has hatched an excellent political trap for the ‘Yahapalanaya’by leading Sirisena into a huge “boruwala” (pit-fall)? Poetic justice will be served when the price of rice, coconuts and vegetables rise steeply while the tea and rubber markets grind to a halt.

Exclusive: Another Scandal Rocks The United National Party

May 27, 2015

In what is acute embarrassment to the already shamed United National Party after the Treasury bond fiascois another very shocking scandal.

The Minister of Finance, Ravi Karunanayake asked the Director General of Customs Jagath P. Wijeweera to give sweeping duty concessions to his privately owned firm. He flatly refused the demand on the grounds that the country would lose millions of dollars. Because he could not continue to stand undue pressure being brought on him for favours costing millions to the country, Wijeweera tendered his resignation on Monday to Treasury Secretary Dr R.H.S. Samaratunga.

Though Wijeweera said he is quitting due to “personal reasons,” he confessed to close friends in the Customs Department he could not bear Karunanayake’s interference into fiscal matters not only on behalf of his private firm but also various suspicious businessmen. For his private company Global Park which provides warehousing and logistical services he had wanted duty concessions running into millions of dollars granted. Karunanayake had also been in the habit of telephoning Wijeweera almost every day to seek duty waivers, withdrawal of fines and other concessions for several businessmen. He told his friends that he could no longer continue to do things Karunanayake wanted and be answerable for public moneys.

On Monday night, as we reported, Karunanayake announced Wijeweera’s resignation and said the exact reason was not revealed. The Finance Minister claimed that Wijeweera might have resigned due to ongoing investigations to determine the reasons for the considerable loss that had been reported in the Customs Department in the recent past. A senior Customs officer handling revenue told Colombo Telegraph the Customs were now earning a record revenue of five billion rupees a day. The same officer said Wijeweera enjoyed President Sirisena’s confidence, regardless of allegations against him and therefore served in the Assets Recovery Task Force too.Read More

Blood ‘stolen’ from 49-year-old

2015-05-27
A 49-year-old woman today complained to the Wattala police that unknown person or persons had drawn her blood when she had lost consciousness while travelling in a three-wheeler. 

In her police complaint, she said that on regaining consciousness she found herself opposite St. Anthony's Church in Wattala. 

The woman who lives at Weliamuna in Wattala had admitted herself to a nearby hospital before feeling well enough to lodge a complaint. 

She said she had taken a three-wheeler to work on Monday morning and had lost consciousness near Ekala only to wake up several hours later opposite the church. 

Police said the woman was unable to recall any details of the three-wheeler or describe its driver. 

They said this was the first occasion that they had received a complaint of this nature. Police are investigating the matter. (Darshana Sanjeewa) - See more at: http://www.dailymirror.lk/74081/blood-stolen-from-49-year-old-woman#sthash.G337O1nS.dpuf

Scandals continue at Thondaman Memorial Foundation

 

Wednesday, 27 May 2015

We hope our readers can remember we reported an article captioned “Thondaman Foundation chief accountant to be arrested” on 6th May 2015. We wrote The Chairman of Thondaman Memorial Foundation Muththusivalingam

MP, former Deputy minister Economic Affairs is to be questioned and pending an arrest by the Financial Crime Investigation Unit, based on the complaints made to CID and presidential investigation unit by six senior members attached to the 'Prajashakthi and Navashakthi of  Thondaman Foundation.

When LNW contacted the former MP Muththu Sivalingam who is the president of the CWC and the chief accountant Loganathan to inquire about his refusal to release the 24 acre Mahaweli land to the plantation workers, the 175 million monthly payments from the treasury and the withdrawal of 50 million from his personal account for the IT project the latter refused to comment and failed to give a satisfactory answer these alleged financial irregularities. 

It is becoming clear that MP Muththusivalingam who hails from the plantation workers community has deceived not only his own community but the desires of late minister Saumya Moorthi Thondaman. When LNW quoted him about the appointment of Rupalatha Maganti Ramogan as the consultant to the Prajashakthi & Nawashakthi of Thondaman Foundation he said it is a matter concerned to minister Arumugam Thondaman.

However LNW would expose more information’s about this person who has deceived the plantation workers and how he has build a luxury personal mansion in state expenses at Mount Mary Road, Nuwaraeliya.

When we contacted C. Loganandan chief Accountant of the foundation who had no clues with regard to the transactions and expenditure simply said that not to quote him for anything because he is a newly appointed to this organization. With regarding appointment of Mrs. Rupalatha Maganthi Ramamohan he said neither cabinet approval nor an approval from the board of directors was obtained. However he said this lady has been given all the necessary facilities by the foundation. Also he agreed this lady has no IT experience to serve this organization. When we contacted the former Director General of the organization Mr. Sivaraja and inquired about the functions of this organization he said he can’t remember anything. 

We learnt the employees of this Prajashakthi and Nawashakthi Foundation are taking necessary steps to fix these culprits in the FCID. 

Second journalist killed in Brazil in less than a week

May 26, 2015

New York, May 26, 2015--The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the murder of Brazilian radio journalist Djalma Santos da Conceição and calls on authorities to investigate and bring all those responsible to justice. Santos da Conceição's body was found with signs of torture on Saturday in the northeast state of Bahia, one day after the journalist was kidnapped by armed assailants, according to news reports.

The journalist's murder occurred less than a week after the killing of Evany José Metzker, a critical blogger who was found decapitated on May 18 in Minas Gerais, near the border with Bahia.

"The brutal murders of two Brazilian journalists in less than a week represents a troubling escalation of anti-press violence in Brazil, already one of the most dangerous countries in the world to be a journalist," said Sara Rafsky, CPJ Americas program research associate.Santos da Conceição, 53, presented the daily morning program "Acorda Cidade" on RCA FM, a community radio station in Conceição da Feira, a town of about 22,000 people, 128km northwest of Salvador, the state capital of Bahia, according to the Brazilian Association of Community Broadcasting (ABRAÇO Bahia).

A police officer who spoke with CPJ and local news reports said the journalist's radio program was popular in the area and that Santos da Conceição pulled few punches when reporting about and demanding action on local crime and corruption.

"It was sensationalist and when you do that you damage egos and get to people," Everaldo Monteiro, the coordinator of the Bahia State Union of Radio, TV and Publicity Workers, told CPJ via telephone from Salvador.

"Djalma Santos was known for being very controversial," Jairo Bispo dos Santos, ABRAÇO's executive coordinator, said in a statement.

Several news reports said Santos da Conceição had received death threats in the past and one report cited local police as saying he had received a threatening call on the day of his disappearance. The report did not offer further details.

A sharp increase in lethal, anti-press violence has been recorded in Brazil by CPJ in recent years. Prior to last week's murder, at least 14 journalists have been killed in direct retaliation for their work since 2011, CPJ research shows. Brazil's poor record of impunity adds to the violence and intimidation. The country was ranked eleventh on CPJ's 2014 Impunity Index, which spotlights countries where journalists are slain and their killers go unpunished.

In May 2014, CPJ met with President Dilma Rousseff in the capital, Brasília, to present the findings of its special report "Halftime for the Brazilian Press: Will justice prevail over censorship and violence?" Rousseff promised her administration would implement a mechanism to prevent deadly attacks, protect journalists, and support legislative efforts to federalize crimes against freedom of expression.

"A year ago President Rousseff told CPJ that her government was committed to fighting impunity in journalists' murders," said Rafsky. "Yet since then we have seen more journalists killed in Brazil and no justice. It is time for the president to make good on that promise."

News reports said Santos da Conceição, who was also a musician, was playing samba music in a kiosk, an open air bar common in small Brazilian communities, in the neighboring town of Governador Mangabeira on Friday night when armed and hooded men appeared at the establishment. The men fired shots in the air, dragged Santos da Conceição into the trunk of their white car, and fled, according to one report.

Police found his body the next morning in Timbó, a rural community just outside Conceição da Feira. They found 25 shells of 0.40, 0.380 and 0.45 caliber guns beside his body, a local police officer told CPJ in a telephone interview.

"He was tortured, his right eye had been gouged out and his tongue had been hacked off," added the officer, who said he knew details of the case but refused to give his name because he was not directly involved in the investigation. "According to the specialists, the cruelty of his killing means it was a crime that was done to order," the officer said.

Many other news reports added that Santos da Conceição had been shot in the leg, chest, abdomen, and face, and that his body showed signs of torture.

• For more data and analysis visit CPJ's Brazil page.

Is There Hope for Afghanistan’s Other Daughters?

The latest round of convictions in the brutal public murder of an Afghan woman was mob justice -- not real change.

BY LEELA JACINTO-MAY 26, 2015

In what has become Afghanistan’s most infamous murder case, justice has been done quickly, if not necessarily scrupulously.

Is There Hope for Afghanistan’s Other Daughters by Thavam Ratna

World soccer rocked by U.S., Swiss arrests of officials for graft

ZURICH/NEW YORK | BY MIKE COLLETT, BRIAN HOMEWOOD AND NATE RAYMOND
 Thu May 28, 2015

The world's most popular sport was plunged into turmoil on Wednesday as seven powerful soccer figures were arrested on U.S. corruption charges and faced extradition from Switzerland, whose authorities also announced a criminal investigation into the awarding of the next two World Cups.

World Soccer Rocked by U.S., Swiss Arrests of Officials for Graft by Thavam Ratna

Chelsea Manning reveals threats of 'disappearing' at Guantánamo Bay

US soldier marks fifth anniversary of military custody with most personal firsthand account yet and accuses military guards of threatening her with exile

Chelsea Manning recalls fearing she would be ‘disappeared’ by US officials hell-bent on branding her the enemy. Photograph: http://www.chelseamanning.org

Ed Pilkington in New York-Wednesday 27 May 2015

The American soldier Chelsea Manning has accused US military guards of threatening her with exile to Guantánamo Bay without trial or acknowledgment of her gender transition after she was apprehended as the source of one of the largest leaks of state secrets in history.

Writing in the Guardian from prison at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas, where she is serving a 35-year sentence, Manning marked the fifth anniversary of her military custody on Wednesday with the most personal first-hand account she has yet given of the “physical and emotional rollercoaster” of a whistleblower behind bars. She describes her initial arrest, her harsh treatment at a US marine brig in Virginia and her ongoing legal battle to be allowed treatment for gender dysphoria, which has reached the highest levels of government.

After her arrest on 27 May 2010, a then-22-year-old Manning “expected the worst possible outcome”, she writes, but was still unprepared for the intensity of the US government’s wrath. She recalls being flown under guard to Kuwait and then caged in a large tent, only to grow extremely depressed, fearing that she would be “disappeared” by US officials hell-bent on branding her the enemy.

“I began to fear that I was forever going to be living in a hot, desert cage, living as and being treated as a male, disappearing from the world into a secret prison and never facing a public trial.”

Manning, now 27 and a contributing opinion writer for the Guardian, discloses in her op-ed that she was threatened from detention in Kuwait by some of her navy captors with interrogation “on a US cruiser off the coast of the horn of Africa, or being sent to the prison camps of Guantánamo Bay”.

Paradoxically, one key aspect of the document stash Manning leaked to the open information organization WikiLeaks was to expose previously hidden details of the US detainees at the Guantánamo camp; she was intimately aware of the potential consequences of transfer there.

The army private, then known under her birth name Bradley Manning, wasarrested five years ago at the Forward Operating Base Hammer outside Baghdad, where she was working as an intelligence analyst. She was later prosecuted as the source of a vast mountain of confidential files, including logs kept by the US military in Iraq and Afghanistan that gave a level of detail about modern warfare never before made public.

Details of Manning’s ordeal have gradually emerged in the years since, through her prolonged military trial, her writings from prison largely for the Guardian, and her recently opened Twitter account. But she has never before offered such a detailed portrait of her journey from Baghdad to Kansas.

In her latest Guardian article, Manning traces her motivation for leaking back to the immediate astonishment she felt upon reading the war logs from Afghanistan and Iraq.

“Once you come to realize that the coordinates in these records represent real places, that the dates are our recent history and that the numbers represent actual human lives – with all of the love, hope, dreams, hate, fear and nightmares with which we all live – then you cannot help but be reminded just how important it is for us to understand and, hopefully, prevent such tragedies in the future,” Manning writes.

She recounts her “very lowest point” over the past five years – the moment in Kuwait, stuck in the desert tent, where she saw little hope for the future and contemplated castrating or killing herself.

Manning also recalls being on trial for more than 100 days, hearing herself being described as a “traitor” and “enemy of the state” by US prosecutors who nonetheless, she says, were “basically just decent people doing their jobs”.

The high point of the past five years, Manning writes, was announcing to the world after she was sentenced that she was changing her name from Bradley to Chelsea and transitioning to live as “the woman I have always been”. Even then, however, it took more than a year of legal wrangling to force the US military to allow her hormone treatment in custody; she is still fighting for permission to grow her hair to standard military length for female personnel.

Manning ends her Guardian op-ed on a note of promise: despite many struggles, she writes that she has not only survived the ordeal of being, alongside Edward Snowden, the world’s most famous official leaker – she has matured and grown. She even uses, from prison, the word “thrive”.

Germany lobbies India to buy Eurofighters, submarines

Can a Toilet Help Lift India's Untouchables out of Poverty?

German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen, gestures as she answers a question from media after addressing a gathering during a lecture themed “India and Europe: A Shared Security?” in New Delhi, India, May 27, 2015.

Wed May 27, 2015

Germany's defence minister held out the prospect of more talks on a possible sale of Eurofighter jets to India and, on a visit to New Delhi, said Berlin stood ready to back a multi-billion-dollar Indian submarine project.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has just marked his first year in office, cut through an impasse over a troubled tender for high-end combat jets by announcing a deal in France last month to buy 36 Rafales from Dassault (AVMD.PA).

India has since said the original tender, launched by the last government to acquire 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft, is all but dead, but rival jet makers are hoping the $14 billion tender will be reopened.

The Eurofighter, made by Britain, Germany, Italy and Spain, was knocked out in the final round of the tender by Rafale. But controversy over the lifetime cost of operating the French plane blocked a final deal.

"I again conveyed to the defence minister the interest of the Eurofighter nations in continuing talks, should the Indian side be interested," German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen said.

"That was was taken on board positively," she added, after meeting her counterpart, Manohar Parrikar, on Tuesday evening.

Germany has taken the lead in the sales pitch to India for the Eurofighter, made by Alenia Aermacchi, a subsidiary of Finmeccanica (SIFI.MI), Airbus Group (AIR.PA) and BAE Systems (BAES.L).

A spokesman for the Indian defence ministry said the focus now was on finalising the government-to-government deal for 36 ready-to-fly Rafales.

Von der Leyen said Berlin was also willing to support a project initiated by India last autumn to build six submarines at an estimated cost of 530 billion rupees ($8.3 billion).

In a first stage, local shipyards would have to prove their fitness to build the diesel-electric subs, before being invited to bid for the deal, possibly with foreign partners.

"There is an Indian interest in industrial cooperation in building submarines," von der Leyen said. "Talks are already under way and I made it clear that German industry is supported by the German government."

Initial talks on submarine cooperation were under way involving ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, a unit of ThyssenKrupp AG (TKAG.DE), German media reported.

Von der Leyen met Modi on Wednesday and said the two had touched on the issue of defence equipment, but the conversation focused on sharing knowledge on high-technology areas. ($1 = 64.0200 Indian rupees)

(Editing by Tommy Wilkes and David Holmes)

Buddhists in Burma deny boat people are Rohingya Muslims

Nationalist Buddhist monks shout slogans during a protest rally in Yangon, Wednesday. Pic: AP.

By AP News May 27, 2015

YANGON, Burma (AP) — Several hundred protesters in Burma’s main city are denying that boat people arriving on Southeast Asian shores are Rohingya Muslims, a religious minority the government and many others in the predominantly Buddhist nation say does not exist.

About 30 radical Buddhist monks led the rally Wednesday in Yangon. Protesters carried banners reading, “The boat people are not from Burma” and “The United Nations and the international media are making up stories!”

Burma has experienced a surge in Buddhist nationalism since it began moving from dictatorship toward democracy four years ago. Hundreds of Rohingya have been killed and 140,000 forced to flee their homes.

In recent weeks, 3,000 Rohingya and Bangladeshis fleeing persecution and poverty at home have landed in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia.

MORE: US, Thailand begin search flights for stranded Rohingya migrants

This Organic Homemade Peanut Butter Recipe includes Resveratrol (Super antioxidant)

by DAVID BENJAMIN-MAY 12

All natural peanut butter has many benefits, most of which come from peanuts which are rich in minerals, protein and healthy fat.  But most peanut butter bought in stores may use a genetically modified oil or something such as regular table salt, which isn’t nearly as healthy as a higher quality salt.  Also, regular peanut butter may have low levels of resveratrol, but if you create your own homemade peanut butter like in the recipe video below, you’ll have a pure product with the maximum amount of these healthy characteristics.

Beyond that, most people aren’t aware that peanuts can attract mold and fungus quite easily, so peanut butter tends to be the most susceptible nut butter to mold, and eating mold is not healthy.

So, if you want to have the healthiest peanut butter you can possibly consume then follow this recipe below, play around and create the perfect healthy superfood peanut butter for you!

Typical Peanut Butter May Include:* GMO Oils
* Table Salt (iodized & bleached)
* Moldy Peanuts
This Resveratrol Enhanced Peanut Butter Includes:* Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
* Himalayan Salt (Rich in 83+ minerals)
* Fresh Organic Peanuts Free Of Mold
Here’s the recipe:

This Resveratrol Enhanced Peanut Butter is much healthier, and of a much higher quality than typical peanut butter, even peanut butter found at your local health food store because even some of these peanut butters can contain GMO oils, or table salt, regular tap water etc.

I recommend storing this peanut butter in a glass jar, to avoid any BPA exposure from plastic containers, that will preserve it best and keep it healthiest.  Use vegetables such as celery, pea’s and other vegetables to dip in and enjoy!

Also, I recommend Finely Ground Pure Himalayan Salt, Raw Redskin Peanuts (Unsalted), Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil.  You could use any quality/grade of these three ingredients but these three will give you the best taste results and the healthiest peanut butter. Certain olive oil brands have recently been found to be fake, watered-down with unhealthy oils. So far a lawsuit has been filed but imposter products are still currently flooding the market. Read more here to learn which brands to avoid and which brands were found to be the real deal.

Cold sores: the new cure for skin cancer?

WEDNESDAY 27 MAY 2015

A new weapon in the fight against skin cancer is being championed by scientists, who say a landmark trial of a genetically-modified cold sore virus have yielded "exciting" results.

Scientists from the Institute for Cancer Research (ICR) in London trialled the modified herpes virus on patients with aggressive, inoperable skin cancer.

Of the 26 per cent of patients who responded to the herpes virus treatment, known as T-Vec, one in ten saw their tumours vanish completely.

Another 16 per cent of patients who responded to the treatment saw their tumours reduce in size by more than 50 per cent.

Professor Kevin Harrington from the ICR led the Phase III trial, which involved 436 patients (some of whom were given the treatment and others who were given a control immunotherapy) across 64 research centres in the UK, US, Canada and South Africa.

"It's not an exaggeration to say this is a first-in-class agent, an entirely new type of anti-cancer treatment," he said.

"There will have to be discussions about cost effectiveness but we hope to see this agent receive approval in about the next 12 months, making it possible to prescribe it for cancer."

The treatment works by targeting cancer cells with the modified herpes virus. The virus infects the cancer cells and multiplies inside – "bursting them from within".

The virus has been modified to remove two key genes meaning it cannot multiply inside healthy cells. It has also been modified to produce a molecule – GM-CSFG – which stimulates the body's immune system to also attack and destroy any remaining tumour proteins left after the cancer cells have been exploded.

World-first for viral therapy for cancer from The Institute of Cancer Research on Vimeo.

ICR said one significant discovery from the trial was that T-Vec was most effective in patients with less advanced cancers and those who were yet to receive any treatment.

The scientists said this underlines the benefits of T-Vec as a first-line treatment for metastatic melanomas (skin cancer that spreads to other parts of the body) which cannot be surgically removed.

Professor Paul Workman, chief executive of the ICR, said: "We may normally think of viruses as the enemies of mankind, but it's their very ability to specifically infect and kill human cells that can make them such promising cancer treatments.

"In this case we are harnessing the ability of an engineered virus to kill cancer cells and stimulate an immune response. It's exciting to see the potential of viral treatment realised in a Phase III trial, and there is hope that therapies like this could be even more effective when combined with targeted cancer drugs to achieve long term control and cure."