Egypt expects referendum results

24 December 2012 Last updated at 05:26 GMT Opposition spokesman Amr Hamzawy: "We are asking the commission to investigate the irregularities"

Egypt is due to announce the official results of a referendum on a controversial draft constitution.

Early unofficial results suggested more than 60% of voters said "yes" to the document, which is endorsed by Islamist President Mohammed Morsi.

But the opposition, which says the draft favours Islamists, is demanding an inquiry into alleged voting fraud.

Egypt has seen large and occasionally violent demonstrations by the opposing sides in the past few weeks.

If the constitution passes, elections must take place within three months and the deep polarisation in the country is likely to continue, the BBC's Bethany Bell in Cairo reports.

In the meantime, legislative powers would remain with President Morsi.

'Vote for stability'

State media reports of the results following Saturday's second and final round of the referendum suggest that some 63% of voters had backed the charter. Turnout was low, estimated at 30%.

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There's a lot at stake here. This document determines Egypt's future and the relationship between Egyptians and the presidency among the other main institutions.”

End Quote Shaimaa Khalil BBC News But the opposition National Salvation Front said on Sunday the vote had been marred by "fraud and violations".

These included polling stations opening late and Islamists seeking to influence voters, they said.

Spokesman Amr Hamzawy told a news conference the front as "asking the commission to investigate the irregularities before announcing official results".

However, another spokesman, Khaled Daoud, told the BBC the front would not contest the result.

The group has complained that there was not enough legal supervision of the referendum, after many judges boycotted the process.

Continue reading the main story Sharia remains the main source of legislationAl-Azhar, Sunni Islam's leading authority, to be consulted on "matters related to Sharia"Christianity and Judaism to be the main source of legislation for Christians and JewsReligious freedom to be limited to Muslims, Christians and Jews Limits president to two four-year terms of officeThe opposition said before the referendum that its campaign would continue in the wake of a "Yes" vote.

But the Freedom and Justice Party, the political wing of Mr Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood, said it hoped the "yes" vote would begin to heal divisions and bring stability.

It remains to be seen whether the announcement of the final results of the referendum will be delayed to allow an investigation of the opposition's claims, our correspondent says.

Critics of the draft constitution fails say it fails to protect the freedoms and human rights that they sought in the uprising that ended Hosni Mubarak's rule last year.

They accuse the president of pushing through a text that favours Islamists and does not sufficiently protect the rights of women or Christians, who make up about 10% of the population.

President Morsi's mainly Islamist supporters say the constitution will secure democracy and encourage stability.

The latest unrest began after Mr Morsi issued a decree on 22 November stripping the judiciary of the power to challenge his decisions.

After an outcry, the president revoked much of the decree, but he refused to back down on the draft constitution.

The text was rushed through by a constituent assembly dominated by Islamists.

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GCSE English retake results out

19 December 2012 Last updated at 10:50 GMT By Angela Harrison Education correspondent, BBC News A legal ruling on the GCSE row is expected in January Nearly 50,000 pupils who retook their English GCSEs after a row about grades this summer are getting their results.

Just over a third have been awarded at least a C grade, with the remainder given a D or lower.

It is thought a similar proportion got a higher grade than they did in the summer.

More than 31,000 students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland retook English language, while nearly 16,800 pupils retook English.

Schools, pupils, councils and head teachers have mounted a legal challenge over the awarding of grades this summer.

There was an outcry over the original GCSE English results, with head teachers and schools saying 50,000 teenagers received worse results than they should have done and that many failed to get the C grades they were expecting.

Overall, the percentage of pupils who achieved at least a grade C in English GCSE dropped from 65.4% in 2011 to 63.9% in provisional figures published this summer. There was also a drop in the percentage of pupils awarded an A or an A*.

This year's results prompted a big increase in appeals - with 276,000 challenges against marking, which resulted in more than 45,000 grades being changed at GCSE and A-level.

An alliance of heads, schools and pupils have brought a legal challenge over the grading, claiming grade boundaries were unfairly adjusted.

A final judgement in the case is expected in January.

The exams watchdog Ofqual has defended the way grades were awarded in the summer, insisting it followed correct procedures to maintain standards.

'Improved results'

The results of the retakes were released by the Joint Council for Qualifications.

They show just over a third of candidates (about 17,650) were awarded a C grade or higher.

Only a small proportion were given A grades.

Getting a C for English is often crucial for students looking to carry on their studies or find jobs.

The AQA exam board, which has the largest number of candidates for GCSE English, told BBC News that of the candidates who retook its exams, 70% got the same grades as they had in the summer, while 30% got higher grades. It says this is in line with what it would expect from resits.

Head teachers' leaders say the retake has led to higher results for many.

Brian Lightman, the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: "Thousands of young people and their parents will be celebrating improved results this morning.

"However to suggest that so many thousands of students have improved so dramatically in a period of weeks is further proof that their teachers' original assessments were correct and that the summer results were not a true reflection of their achievement."

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