He also admitted the Dome's Internet site had received far more hits than expected leading to problems down-loading pages

He also admitted the Dome's Internet site had received far more "hits" than expected, leading to problems down-loading pages. As a result many people have been unable to get tickets when they wanted. She will be there as a representative of NMEC and will discuss the lessons that have been learnt from the opening ceremony so that similar problems can be avoided at the closing ceremony at the end of the year he said."It may well be that there are useful lessons to be learnt from the events of the first two days. But by then a lot of today's interests and concerns will have faded into the background as we will have several more months of operations and experience of the Dome," he said.Organisers at the Dome were yesterday still facing criticism of long queues and more ticket problems as people were unable to get through to the hotline or website to book their places.The company said it had failed to predict the level of demand for tickets for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday and had been forced to hire extra "overflow" call centres to cope. Jennie Page, the chief executive of the increasingly beleaguered Dome, has been forced to admit that the New Millennium Experience Company (NMEC) was to blame for the ticket fiasco on New Year's Eve.

Jennie Page, the chief executive of the increasingly beleaguered Dome, has been forced to admit that the New Millennium Experience Company (NMEC) was to blame for the ticket fiasco on New Year's Eve. Thousands of people were forced to queue for several hours on the opening night after their tickets were not been posted in time.After heated discussions between Live Communication, which was employed to stage the event, and NMEC, a joint statement was issued yesterday exonerating the former from responsibility.Michael Lockett, the head of Live Communications, was reportedly so angry that he was being blamed that he cut short a skiing holiday to confront Ms Page.Eventually, after several hours of heated discussion, the two companies issued a statement saying: "For the sake of clarity, the distribution of tickets for the Dome opening celebration, and indeed the entire Dome opening was the responsibility of NMEC." It went on to say that Live Communication had supported NMEC but it was a clear indication that Mr Lockett was not at fault.The statement means that pressure is still on Ms Page who will be called before a select committee hearing later in the year to discuss teething problems and management of the Dome.However, Gerald Kaufman, the chairman of the committee for culture, media and sport, said yesterday that Ms Page would not be specifically called to account for the problems of New Year's Eve. He insisted all the outstanding contracts were close to completion.Last night the queuing row was resolved by re-routing queues for the body zone past interactive displays in the explore area underneath.. Yesterday a senior source suggested that one of the most severely criticised areas, the shared ground zone, which is made of recycled cardboard, would need to be "radically improved".Last night Boots confirmed it was worried that delays in getting around exhibits would alienate customers, particularly when visitor numbers triple as they are expected to this summer: "At its peak, it's going to have 50,000 people a day going through. What we're trying to do is stand up for those thousands of people who have paid their money and want to get fair value," he said.The criticism was given added force by Boots' confirmation that a number of sponsorship deals remained unsigned, including Boots' £12m package with L'Oreal and Roche, and other contracts with BSkyB and Thames Water.The companies insisted there was no link between the unsigned contracts and their dissatisfaction.A spokesman for the New Millennium Experience Company, which runs the Dome, denied that sponsors were considering pulling out.

Last year 1,081 motorists failed breath tests and 1,380 the year before. "Nine people every week are getting killed on our roads because of drink. We are not moving anything like fast enough to reduce this tragic toll," said Mr Williams.. The Millennium Dome took a further battering last night when sponsors, led by Boots the chemist, denounced the disorganisation and delays experienced by visitors. The Millennium Dome took a further battering last night when sponsors, led by Boots the chemist, denounced the disorganisation and delays experienced by visitors. Boots, which heads a consortium of sponsors worth £12m to the Dome, demanded that queues into one of the most popular areas, the body zone, be re-routed amid fears that dissatisfaction among visitors would further damage the Dome's poor public image.The chemist was backed by its body zone co-sponsors , the cosmetics firm L'Oreal and the medicines company Roche, which complained about the controversy that has marred the Dome's first week of business.The Corporation of London, which heads another £12m sponsorship consortium that includes Barclays, NatWest and Woolwich banks, said last night that although it remained committed to the Dome, it was unhappy that long queues earlier this week had blocked access to its area, the money zone.Since its troubled opening night, when invited guests had to queue for entrance tickets that organisers forgot to post, the Dome's managers have been struggling to deflect a stream of criticism. The police administered 14,907 tests after collisions over the holiday period and 972 proved to be positive. An inquest will be opened today.Detective Inspector Karl Bradburn said: "There is no evidence of injury on the body; in other words, there is nothing to indicate that Mrs Childerley came by her death violently or by way of a traffic incident."A forensic archaeologist was appointed to help with the identification and missing persons registers were consulted.

The number of drivers failing breath tests fell by 10 per cent over Christmas and New Year. But police chiefs, who yesterday revealed that nearly 1,000 motorists were arrested for drink-driving or refusing to take tests, have demanded greater powers.Ken Williams, the vice-chairman of the traffic committee of the Association of Chief Police Officers, urged ministers to reduce the legal drink limit from 80 to 50mg of alcohol in 100ml of blood.The Government, which is undertaking a review of the law, was also urged to bring in higher penalties for convicted motorists and a new system in which police could stop "hard core offenders" at any time.Officers are only allowed to breathalyse drivers if there has been an accident, if there is evidence of a traffic offence or indications that the motorist has been drinking."We need to send a far more powerful message to persistent offenders," said Mr Williams,who is the Chief Constable of Norfolk. The number of drivers failing breath tests fell by 10 per cent over Christmas and New Year. Police were able to identify Mrs Childerley after a "fingertip' search yielded what is thought to be her handbag and purse.. REmains Found on the central reservation of a Wolverhampton ring road were identified yesterday as those of a depressed pensioner who went missing more than three years ago.