Category Archives: UK news

US interest grows after Prince Harry book revelations

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New York Times suggests Spare could be one of most divisive celebrity memoirs as comedians and talkshow hosts weigh in

Concern, comedy, and confusion – Prince Harry’s upcoming book has generated different reactions across the US, his adopted home country.

Excerpts from the autobiography Spare were leaked last week with bombshell revelations, including an alleged physical assault by his brother William; the brothers requesting that their father, now King Charles, not marry Camilla; and Harry’s apparent killing of 25 Taliban soldiers while serving in the British army in Afghanistan.

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Black Britons and MPs condemn ‘cruel’ plan to dump Windrush pledges

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Ian Wright and MPs David Lammy, Yvette Cooper and Caroline Lucas criticise U-turn by Suella Braverman before 75th anniversary

The government has been criticised by several public figures after the news of the home secretary’s plans to abandon several key commitments made after the Windrush scandal in the run-up to the 75th anniversary of the ship’s arrival in the UK.

On Friday, the Guardian reported that Suella Braverman was planning to abandon several of the key commitments made since the Windrush scandal, including dropping the pledge to create a migrants’ commissioner and a U-turn on the promise to increase the powers of the independent chief inspector of borders and immigration.

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Revealed: NHS trusts tell patients to go private and jump hospital queues

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Observer investigation finds a ‘two-tier’ health system emerging in England, with rapid access available to those able to pay

NHS trusts with record waiting lists are promoting “quick and easy” private healthcare services at their own hospitals, offering patients the chance to jump year-long queues, the Observer can reveal.

Hospitals are offering hip replacements from £10,000, cataract surgery for £2,200 and hernia repairs for £2,500. MRI scans are offered for between £300 and £400.

East Sussex healthcare NHS trust has thousands of patients waiting for diagnostic tests but offers “fast access” to scans through its private division.

Great Western hospitals NHS trust in Wiltshire is warning patients that services are “extremely busy”, while its private division promotes self-pay treatment for those who “don’t want to wait for an NHS referral”.

James Paget university hospitals NHS trust in Norfolk is advertising private services on its NHS website, stating: “We provide highly experienced consultant-led services … without the waiting list.”

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In his own write: Prince Harry’s ghostwriter is so famous that George Clooney made a film of his life

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JR Moehringer, biographer to stars such as Andre Agassi and a doyen of the genre, was an obvious choice for the Duke of Sussex

When Prince Harry chose to work with ghostwriter JR Moehringer on his institution-shaking memoir, Spare, he was not taking half measures. The American writer and Pulitzer prize-winning journalist does not have a huge output, but he is known for his immersive approach to subjects, his preoccupation with the father-son relationship, and his capacity to “go deep”.

When he worked with Andre Agassi on ghostwriting his celebrated 2009 memoir Open, the tennis star said Moehringer moved to Las Vegas and bought a house a mile away, where he lived for two years. They would meet in the mornings over Whole Foods breakfast burritos, Agassi said.

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Most schools in England and Wales to shut for several days if teachers win strike vote

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February and March closures will mean biggest shutdown for years if union ballots for action this week

Most state schools across England and Wales will have to close completely on several days in February and March if the country’s biggest teaching union votes for industrial action this week, the Observer has been told.

In what would represent a dramatic escalation of the chaos sweeping the public sector, and affect millions of working parents, the National Education Union (NEU) expects a ballot of its members, which ends on Friday, to approve action that would trigger the biggest shutdown of schools for many years.

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Children and teammates pay tribute to Cody Fisher before kick-off at Stratford

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The 23-year-old footballer was fatally stabbed at the Crane nightclub in Birmingham on Boxing Day

Schoolchildren have paid tribute to a man who was stabbed to death on a nightclub dancefloor on Boxing Day, by forming a guard of honour.

Cody Fisher, a 23-year-old footballer, was fatally stabbed at the Crane nightclub in Digbeth, Birmingham, just before midnight on 26 December.

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Leeds 2023: city to kick off year-long festival with ‘epic’ opening ceremony

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Organisers plough on with plans after Brexit meant Leeds missed chance to be European capital of culture

When Leeds was denied its chance to become European capital of culture in 2023 due to Brexit, it should have been the killing blow to what it had been hoped would be a massive year-long cultural celebration.

But, refusing to be beaten, cultural leaders ploughed ahead regardless, and now almost a decade of planning and ideating will culminate on Saturday in the launch of Leeds 2023, the city-wide cultural festival.

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Only one in five British trains to run on final day of planned strikes

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Industrial action over pay and working conditions has caused almost four weeks of disruption

The last day in the latest stretch of railway strikes has begun, ending a run of almost four weeks of continuous disruption caused by industrial action over pay and working conditions.

Only about one in five trains across Great Britain will run on Saturday as a 48-hour walkout by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers union concludes, with no early morning or evening services and a pared-back schedule on main intercity and urban lines.

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Morrissey says Miley Cyrus album exit was nothing to do with his politics

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American withdrew after recording guest vocals on the Mancunian’s yet-to-be-released new record

Morrissey has spoken out after Miley Cyrus dropped out of a guest spot on his upcoming album, denying the singer had done so over his political stances, which he said are “most certainly not far right”.

In a lengthy statement posted on Thursday, the former frontman of the Smiths also attacked “cancel vultures” and alleged the existence of a campaign to “put [him] out of circulation”.

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More than 2,600 ambulance workers from Unite to join existing strike

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Industrial action on 23 January in England and Wales will coincide with strike by Unison members

More than 2,600 additional ambulance workers plan to strike in late January over pay, the trade union Unite announced on Friday.

Unite’s members will join colleagues belonging to Unison in striking on 23 January, with hospital bosses calling for “serious talks” between the government and unions to avoid “even more pressure on already overstretched NHS services”.

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PPE Medpro: Michelle Mone-linked firm referred to UK health watchdog

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DHSC accused PPE Medpro of presenting false document when tendering for PPE contracts

A company linked to the Conservative peer Michelle Mone was referred to the UK’s health products watchdog for an investigation after it allegedly presented a false document to the government when tendering for PPE contracts.

The referral of the company, PPE Medpro, was described in a high court document made public this week, setting out the legal claim against the company by the Department of Health and Social Care. The DHSC is seeking the return of £122m in public money it paid for the supply of sterile surgical gowns, plus £11.6m for storing and disposing of them.

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Army veterans criticise Prince Harry’s claim he killed 25 Taliban in Afghanistan

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Col Tim Collins says ‘we don’t do notches on rifle butt’ and kill-count talk could increase Harry’s personal security risk

High-profile British veterans have criticised the Duke of Sussex’s claim he had killed 25 Taliban soldiers while serving with the British army in Afghanistan and warned the high-profile admission could increase the risk to his personal security.

The retired army veteran Col Tim Collins, best known for delivering a rousing speech before the start of the Iraq war in 2003, said the prince’s kill-count talk was crass and “we don’t do notches on the rifle butt”.

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Sexual orientation census undercounts older people and those who shun labels

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Information collected in 2021 is first that aims to show UK diversity, yet 7.5% of people did not fill in relevant questions

Census 2021 was the first to collect information on the sexual orientation of residents aged 16 years and over in England and Wales. Of those who completed the survey, 1.54% identified as gay or lesbian, and approximately 1.51% identified as bisexual or pansexual. A further 0.06% identified as asexual, and 0.03% as queer. This is almost certainly an underestimation of the actual national diversity of sexual orientation.

The item on sexuality was introduced for equity monitoring. The Office for National Statistics conducted extensive research, including the 2017 census test, to determine the exact wording and location of the item.

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Quarter of ambulance patients in England wait an hour to get into A&E after arrival

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Waiting times for admission to A&E in last week of year likely to be highest recorded by the service

More than a quarter of ambulance patients in England waited more than an hour to be admitted to A&E in the last week of 2022, amid “one of the most difficult” winters in NHS history.

Of all those arriving by ambulance in the week to 1 January, 26.3% waited with crews for more than 60 minutes.

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Sunak invites unions to talks on Monday as senior Tory calls on government to improve pay offer to nurses– UK politics live

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PM offers no hint he will compromise on pay offers as former cabinet minister says nurses key to dealing with NHS pressures

The journalist interviewing Rishi Sunak this morning did not press Sunak on excess deaths because he needed to ask some questions about Prince Harry’s memoir. But Sunak would not go near the topic.

Asked how he felt seeing the royal family “torn apart” by these claims and revelations, Sunak replied:

As you would expect, it is not appropriate for me to comment on matters to do with the royal family.

I wouldn’t comment on matters to do with the royal family. I would just say I am enormously grateful to our armed forces for the incredible job they do in keeping us all safe. We’re all very fortunate for their service.

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SNP MP proposes paid leave for UK parents who have experienced miscarriage

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Angela Crawley’s private member’s bill aims to grant three days of statutory paid leave to grieving parents

Ministers have been urged to back proposals that would grant paid leave to parents who have experienced miscarriage.

Under current UK law, people are not granted maternity leave or pay if they have had a miscarriage.

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Average UK house price falls for fourth month in a row, says Halifax

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Figure of £281,272 comes as property values drop by 1.5% in December, after 2.4% decline in November

The average UK house price fell for the fourth month in a row in December, according to Halifax, with experts expecting a further slowdown amid a long recession.

Property values decreased by 1.5% in December, the lender’s monthly index revealed, after a 2.4% drop in November, a 0.4% decrease in October and a 0.1% dip in September.

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Met chief says London is ‘fantastically safe’ as homicide rate falls

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Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley says UK capital is a place to ‘live, work and enjoy yourself’

The Metropolitan police commissioner has described London as a “fantastically safe” city as the force announced a drop in homicide rates last year.

Sir Mark Rowley said the capital was a place to “live, work and enjoy yourself” as he visited a boxing gym in Ilford, east London, on Thursday.

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NHS recruiting from ‘red list’ countries after Brexit loss of EU staff, says report

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Specialisms such as dentistry have shortages and EU exit still causes issues with medicines in Northern Ireland, thinktank finds

NHS trusts in England have increased recruitment from low-income “red list” countries to make up for the post-Brexit loss of EU staff, despite a code of practice to safeguard health services in those developing countries.

A report by the Nuffield Trust thinktank also identified shortages in vital specialist areas since Brexit, including dentistry, cardiothoracic surgery and anaesthesiology.

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Shell expects to pay about $2bn in UK and EU windfall taxes for last quarter

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Firm said in October it had not paid any UK windfall taxes because of heavy investment in North Sea

Shell has revealed it expects to pay about $2bn (£1.7bn) in UK and EU windfall taxes for the final quarter of 2022 – the first time it has paid UK tax for five years.

The oil company had previously sparked anger in October when it said it had not paid any UK windfall taxes because of heavy investment in the North Sea.

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