Category Archives: Society

Watchdog calls for action on children’s care case delays in England and Wales

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Proportion of cases lasting more than a year up 17-fold in seven years, National Audit Office says

The proportion of children in England and Wales subject to care proceedings who are having to wait more than a year to have their case resolved has increased more than 17-fold in the last seven years, a watchdog has found.

The average duration of proceedings brought by local authorities to protect a child from harm (known as public law cases) was 36 weeks last year, according to the National Audit Office (NAO). In 2014 the government set a time limit of 26 weeks but it has never been met.

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UK ‘the sick person of the wealthy world’ amid increase in deaths from drugs and violence

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While mortality from cancer has decreased, deaths from accidents and poisonings have risen, research finds

The UK is becoming “the sick person of the wealthy world” because of the growing number of people dying from drugs, suicide and violence, research has found.

Death rates among under-50s in the UK have got worse in recent years compared with many other rich countries, an international study shows.

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One in four pupils in England ‘disengage’ when they move to secondary, report finds

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New study found a drop in enjoyment, trust and feelings of safety after year 7 and a largely positive primary experience

One in four pupils in England “disengage” when they move up to secondary school, with enjoyment, trust and a sense of feeling safe declining sharply, according to a new report.

After a largely positive experience at primary school where children report high levels of enjoyment, there is a “steep and lasting” drop in engagement after year 7 when pupils transfer to secondary at the age of 11, the survey of 100,000 pupils in England reveals.

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At least £64bn of property in England and Wales is hidden behind opaque trusts

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Campaigners say secretive ownership structures are becoming the ‘go-to vehicle for kleptocrats’

The owners of nearly a quarter of a million properties in England and Wales worth a combined £64bn are hidden behind opaque trusts, according to research that prompts concern that such structures are the “go-to vehicle for kleptocrats” stashing money in Britain.

The government introduced a register of property held through offshore vehicles in August 2022, revealing a string of unknown owners, including high-profile figures such as Lewis Hamilton and James Dyson, as well as sanctioned Russians, Gulf royals and the Chinese state.

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Doctor criticises ‘lightweight’ assessment of impact of assisted dying

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Palliative care consultant says insufficient consideration given to how disadvantaged communities may be affected

Ministers have not adequately considered how assisted dying would affect disadvantaged communities, a palliative care doctor and clinical academic has said.

Bradford-based Jamilla Hussain said the equality impact assessment for the assisted dying bill was “lightweight”, and her own research had highlighted concerns that had not been reflected in the document.

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Dramatic dip in baby hospitalizations for RSV linked to vaccine and treatment

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But older children, who had no access to the shots, had higher rates this winter compared with last

New vaccines and treatments are linked to a dramatic decline in RSV hospitalizations for babies, according to a new study from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

This past winter was the first RSV season with widespread availability of a vaccine given during pregnancy and a monoclonal antibody treatment given in the first eight months of life to prevent RSV (respiratory syncytial virus).

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‘It feels like we never left’: resentment builds in one of UK’s firmest Brexit-backing areas

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Keir Starmer says Britons have moved on but many in Thurrock think they were lied to in debate about leaving EU

When Keir Starmer was asked last week whether he thought Britons had finally moved on from the issue of Brexit, his answer was a definitive yes.

It’s not difficult to see why the prime minister would hope to settle the question, before a week in which he hopes to reset the UK’s relationship with the EU, clearing a way for easier access to a marketplace that could help increase the economic growth he badly needs.

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Campaigner wins court case over festivals in south London park

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Rebekah Shaman, of Protect Brockwell Park, took action against Lambeth council over number of large-scale events

A campaigner who argued that music festivals held in a south London park unfairly cut off large sections of the space and made it a “mud bath” has won a court case that could result in events being banned there this summer.

The Protect Brockwell Park (PBP) group, which includes the actor Mark Rylance, complained about walls being erected in the park, and noise and environmental damage, leading to a tense debate about the use of public space, nimbyism and the importance of summer cultural events.

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MPs opposed to assisted dying criticise ‘distasteful’ Esther Rantzen claims

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Objections raised to Rantzen’s accusation of ‘undeclared religious beliefs’ in five-hour Commons debate

MPs opposed to assisted dying have criticised “distasteful” claims from the prominent campaigner Esther Rantzen, who argued many are fighting against the changes to the law because of secret religious views.

Rantzen made the remarks in a letter urging MPs to back the “strong, safe, carefully considered bill” to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales.

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Rantzen accused of being ‘disrespectful’ as MPs debate assisted dying bill – UK politics live

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About 150 changes have been made to the bill since MPs voted on it last year

One of the amendments to the bill being debated today has been tabled by the Labour MP Naz Shah, who voted against the bill at second reading. Her amendment 14 would tighten the bill so that anyone not terminally ill cannot qualify as terminally ill (meaning they can use assisted dying) “by voluntarily stopping eating or drinking or both”.

In her speech Leadbeater said that she could understand the concerns behind Shah’s amendment, but that she thought the risk of anyone being able to qualify for assisted dying as a result of anorexia was “negligible”. She said:

Not only would someone with severe anorexia be highly unlikely to be assessed to have capacity to make a decision about assisted dying, the other tragic reality is that if a patient was so ill as a result of not eating and drinking for whatever reason, they would die before the process of assisted dying would be able to take place.

I know that some people have expressed concerns that the severe physical consequences of a decision to stop eating or drinking could still enable someone to claim eligibility for assisted dying when otherwise they would not be able to do so, and I believe that is the motivation behind this amendment … As I’ve set out, I think that risk is negligible.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists have stated that they do not feel at the moment in time there are sufficient psychiatrists who would be able to deliver that position on such a panel. What response does the member have to that?

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Almost 300m people at risk of death through starvation – report

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Aid cuts, conflict, climate and economic shocks contribute to sixth consecutive rise in numbers facing ‘high levels of food insecurity’

Acute food insecurity continues to rise at an alarming rate, with almost 300 million people at risk of death through starvation, new analysis reveals.

Escalating conflict and cuts to humanitarian aid along with climate and economic shocks forced an additional 13.7 million people into chronic food insecurity last year.

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Polish election: Tusk party urged to show it is not ‘deceiving women’ on abortion

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Five years after near-total ban on abortion, campaigners say Sunday’s elections will be critical to see if promised change happens

Poland’s presidential elections are a “historic, groundbreaking” chance for Donald Tusk’s centrist party to show it was not trying to “deceive women” when it promised to change some of Europe’s most restrictive abortion laws, campaigners have said.

Voters across Poland will head to the polls on Sunday in the first round of the elections to replace Andrzej Duda, the current president who is aligned with the former rightwing government and has veto power over legislation.

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Prison recall shake-up will free some domestic abusers, ministers admit

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Source says ‘many but not all’ abusers and sexual offenders will be excluded from measure in England and Wales

Ministers have admitted that some domestic abusers and sexual abusers will be released under new plans to free up spaces in prisons in England and Wales, despite a denial from another government minister.

Under emergency measures announced by the justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, some criminals serving sentences of between one and four years who breach their licence conditions will be returned to custody for only a fixed 28-day period.

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Deaths prompt MPs to call for better support for vulnerable benefit claimants

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Commons committee recommends independent scrutiny of failures and legal duty to safeguard those at most risk

A cross-party committee of MPs has called for greater protections for vulnerable benefit claimants after hundreds of cases of deaths and serious harms linked to safeguarding failures by welfare officials.

The work and pensions select committee said many of these cases, which include instances where claimants took their own lives, could have been prevented had the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) discharged its responsibilities effectively.

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London dominates England’s social mobility league with top 20 places

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Sutton Trust ‘opportunity index’ measured factors such as children on free school meals passing key GCSEs

The top 20 constituencies with the best social mobility in England are all in London, according to research from a leading education charity that underscores the stark regional divide in children’s life chances.

In a report published on Thursday, the Sutton Trust has put together an “opportunity index” by analysing six measures of mobility. These include the share of children on free school meals who achieve passes in GCSE maths and English; who complete a degree by age 22; and who make it into the top 20% of earners by age 28.

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RFK Jr orders mifepristone review as anti-abortion groups push for ban

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Health secretary cites ‘new data’ that emerged from flawed study conservatives are using to pressure US government

The US health secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, said on Wednesday that he had directed the FDA to review the regulations around the abortion pill mifepristone.

The review, he said, was necessary due to “new data” – data that emerged from a flawed analysis that top US anti-abortion groups are now using to pressure the Trump administration to reimpose restrictions on the abortion pill, if not pull it from the market entirely.

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Prisoners to earn freedom after serving third of sentence under new plans

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Offenders in England and Wales to have sentences cut for good behaviour and completion of work, training or education tasks

Prisoners will be able to earn their freedom after serving a third of their sentences under new minimum and maximum sentence plans released by the government to tackle the overcrowding in jails.

Offenders in England and Wales will be able to earn early release if they complete work, training or education assignments and demonstrate good behaviour.

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Give terminally ill people choice in how they die, MSP urges Scottish parliament

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Liam McArthur opens debate on assisted dying, saying too many face ‘horrendous choices and bad deaths’

Scottish politicians have been urged to show terminally ill people compassion and choice in how they die as they began to debate a new law to permit assisted dying.

Liam McArthur, a Scottish Liberal Democrat MP, said too many dying people faced “horrendous choices and bad deaths”, including unregulated suicides or prolonged trauma because they were denied the right to an assisted death.

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Liz Kendall to overhaul DWP’s assessment for disability benefits

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Work and pensions secretary calls for groups to engage as she scraps capability assessment and overhauls Pip application

Liz Kendall is to begin an overhaul of the disability benefit assessment process long decried by campaigners as cruel, calling on groups to engage with the changes amid criticism of the government’s forthcoming welfare cuts.

The work and pensions secretary said on Monday she was beginning the process of abolishing the work capability assessment and overhauling the process to apply for the personal independence payment (Pip) – which can be paid to those in or out of work – to form a single assessment process.

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UK food shops report ‘massive’ rise in pensioner shoplifting

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Kingdom Services boss says retailers seeing ‘different sort of shoplifter’ with more theft by people ‘who just can’t afford food’

Food retailers have seen a “massive” increase in pensioner shoplifters over the last year, according to a leading store security firm, amid the rising cost of living.

John Nussbaum, director of service for retail at Kingdom Services Group, has said his staff were seeing a “different sort of shoplifter now” as the cost of living “pushes people to something they’ve never done before”.

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