Category Archives: Society

From Charli xcx to a Team GB golfer, is smoking making a comeback?

Posted on by

Campaigners warn of complacency about effects of habit picked up by celebrities and showcased on fashion catwalks

“It’s what makes life interesting, finding the balance between cigarettes and tofu,” said Gwyneth Paltrow, slightly surprisingly, back in 2013. Even more eyebrow-raising is the news that, in some quarters, smoking is coming back into fashion.

The harm that smoking does to our health is well researched and widely understood. It is known to increase the risk of at least 16 types of cancer and 94% of UK adults recognise smoking as a risk factor for cancer.

Continue reading...

UK shortage of drug used to prevent brain damage in alcoholics

Posted on by

Experts say addiction patients are being treated as second-class citizens as ‘essential’ Pabrinex is withdrawn

Doctors have warned that a severe shortage of an “essential” medicine used to help protect alcoholics from degenerative brain conditions could disproportionately affect “some of the most vulnerable” in society.

Pabrinex, a multivitamin injection, is used to protect heavy drinkers from conditions such as Wernicke’s encephalopathy and Korsakoff syndrome, which can have symptoms similar to dementia. Doctors are concerned the incidence of these debilitating conditions may increase as a result of the shortages.

Continue reading...

Record homeless figures in England prompt calls to tackle ‘national scandal’

Posted on by

Latest housing data show 151,630 children in temporary accommodation – the most since records began

More than 150,000 children in England are living in temporary accommodation, prompting calls for the government to address what it calls a “national scandal”.

Living in temporary accommodation is considered a form of homelessness and can involve people staying in hostel or bed and breakfast (B&B) accommodation.

Continue reading...

‘We’re all scared’: NHS doctor reveals impact of far-right riots on staff

Posted on by

Hospital worker from Egypt expresses safety fears, doubts about staying in UK and sense of being unappreciated

As far-right riots broke out across parts of the UK this week, the chief executive of NHS England, Amanda Pritchard, warned in an email to NHS leaders that “for many NHS workers, seeing this flare-up of racism will leave them feeling afraid and unwelcome”.

The Guardian spoke to Samir, 32, an NHS hospital doctor in south-west England, who shared his views.

Continue reading...

Ditching two-child benefit cap would cut deaths and A&E admissions, study says

Posted on by

England research shows huge benefits with resulting savings for NHS and councils

Curbing child poverty by scrapping the two-child benefit cap would save hundreds of lives a year and avoid thousands of admissions to hospital, the largest study of its kind suggests.

Keir Starmer has faced repeated demands from within Labour ranks and opposition leaders to abolish the policy, which was announced in 2015 by George Osborne, then chancellor. Almost half of all children in some towns and cities now live below the breadline.

Continue reading...

Unions welcome scrapping of Tories’ ‘spiteful’ minimum service law

Posted on by

Senior figures praise repeal of law but privately some want full workers’ rights overhaul implemented without delay

Unions have welcomed the government’s move to formally scrap a “draconian” anti-strike law that would have ensured a minimum level of service during industrial action as the legislation had restricted workers’ rights.

The deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, and the business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, have written to government departments with sectors that were most affected by the strikes to give a “clear message” the measures will be repealed and have urged all metro mayors to start engaging with local employers on the change.

Continue reading...

‘Celebrations of life’ increasingly replacing traditional funerals in UK, study shows

Posted on by

Report by Co-op Funeralcare highlights shift towards unusual venues, pets at services and glittery coffins

Traditional sombre funerals in religious settings are increasingly being replaced by “celebrations of life” with personal touches held at more unusual locations in the UK, according to a study.

Dr Who-themed farewells, glittery coffins and mourners dressed in football shirts are among requests received by funeral directors.

Continue reading...

NHS ‘soup and shake’ diet puts almost a third of type 2 diabetes cases in remission

Posted on by

Programme may soon be expanded in England after study finds ‘life-changing benefits’ of meal replacement scheme

Tens of thousands more people in England living with type 2 diabetes could be offered an 800-calorie-a-day “soup and shake” diet after research found almost one in three on the groundbreaking NHS scheme permanently wiped out their disease.

Patients are given low-calorie meal replacement products such as soups, milkshakes and snack bars for three months, triggering rapid weight loss, before getting support to reintroduce normal food into their diet.

Continue reading...

Ministers prepare extra 500 prison places to remand suspected rioters

Posted on by

Former young offender institution repurposed and abandoned cells made safe, while early release scheme continues

Ministers are preparing an additional 500 prison places to cope with an influx of people expected to be held on remand over the next month, the Ministry of Justice said on Monday.

From next week, cells will be used at the newly repurposed HMP Cookham Wood, a former young offender institution in the village of Borstal in Kent, that was closed in March after it was called “inhumane” by a prison watchdog.

Continue reading...

Portsmouth hospital reopens A&E after restoring power

Posted on by

Queen Alexandra hospital had closed ward to new admissions and declared major incident after outage

A hospital has reopened its emergency department after closing it to new admissions and declaring a major incident after a power cut.

The outage on Monday morning at the Queen Alexandra hospital in Portsmouth, Hampshire, also affected phone lines. A small number of procedures had to be cancelled.

Continue reading...

Challenges to deprivation of liberty orders in England soar by a third

Posted on by

Campaigners say vulnerable people receiving care are being deprived of their freedom in order to save money

Growing numbers of vulnerable people receiving care are challenging deprivation of liberty (Dol) orders that can mean they are locked up or kept under restrictive supervision.

Dol orders are meant as a last resort but campaigners say the increase shows that too often people’s freedoms are restricted as a cheaper option.

Continue reading...

UK pensioners left on ‘financial cliff edge’ by cuts to winter fuel payments

Posted on by

New analysis shows tens of thousands of older people may end up worse off than those who retain energy benefit

Tens of thousands of pensioners are on a financial cliff edge because of the government’s decision to radically restrict winter fuel payments, a new analysis has revealed. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, opted to introduce a means test for the payments, with only those on pension credit qualifying, stating it was one of the “difficult decisions” she had to make, as she accused the Tories of leaving £22bn in unfunded commitments.

The decision removes the payments from about 10 million pensioners in England and Wales. Officials said this weekend the policy would be among a package of measures “to fix the foundations of the economy”.

Continue reading...

UN calls for foreign security forces to be deployed faster to quash Haiti gang wars

Posted on by

Armed gangs control much of Caribbean country’s capital with reports of 40 rape victims a day in areas, UN reports

The UN has called for the deployment of international security forces in Haiti to be accelerated after a report that at least 1,379 people were killed or wounded in gang warfare and 428 people kidnapped in the country between April and June this year.

“Service providers report receiving an average of 40 rape victims a day in some areas of the capital,” warns the new report from the UN’s office in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince.

Continue reading...

Children ‘at death’s door’ as famine declared in Sudanese refugee camp

Posted on by

UN-backed early warning network confirms people in the Darfur city of El Fasher are starving to death

Famine has been declared in a Sudanese displacement camp in the besieged city of El Fasher.

About 600,000 people are estimated to be living in camps just outside the capital of North Darfur.

Continue reading...

Australian researchers are feeding peanut powder to babies with allergies. Why?

Posted on by

Nationwide Adapt program will see babies aged under 12 months given a daily dose of powder to try to achieve allergy remission

Australia has the highest rates of childhood food allergies in the world, with peanut allergies alone affecting about three in every 100 children by one year of age.

It can create anxiety for the child and caregivers, as the risk of a life-threatening allergic reaction (known as anaphylaxis) makes it critical to avoid the allergen or ensure quick treatment.

Continue reading...

Somalia arrests another journalist as press clampdown intensifies

Posted on by

Detention of reporters for covering sensitive news is having a ‘chilling’ effect on free media in Somalia, say rights groups

The arrest of a journalist for reporting on drug use in the Somali military is the latest incident in an apparent clampdown on critical reporting in the country, which is having a “chilling” effect on Somalia’s media, rights campaigners said.

AliNur Salaad was detained last week and accused of “immorality, false reporting and insulting the armed forces”, after publishing a now-deleted video suggesting that soldiers were vulnerable to attacks by al-Shabaab militants because of widespread use of the traditional narcotic khat.

Continue reading...

Hidden cost of UK workplace sickness rockets to £100bn a year, report finds

Posted on by

Rising bill largely result of ‘staggering’ levels of presenteeism causing loss of productivity

The hidden cost of rising workplace sickness in the UK has increased to more than £100bn a year, largely caused by a loss of productivity amid “staggering” levels of presenteeism, a report warns.

Analysis by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) shows the cost of staff sickness has grown by £30bn a year to £103bn in 2023. The annual bill was £73bn in 2018, its study found.

Continue reading...

Benefit cap traps families in crowded, rat-infested homes, report finds

Posted on by

Limit on welfare support, introduced in 2013, leaves some with just £4 a day for each family member

Low-income families affected by the benefit cap are living on as little as £4 for each person a day, often in overcrowded, rat-infested and damp homes with little prospect of escape, according to a new study.

The cap puts a ceiling on the amount a working-age family can receive in welfare support if no one in the household is working or they are on very low wages. Families affected by it in many parts of the country are, in effect, trapped in poor quality, private rented properties they cannot afford, even though these are often already the cheapest homes available in their local area, the London School of Economics study said.

Continue reading...

Winter fuel payments to be restricted as Reeves says there is £22bn spending shortfall – UK politics live

Posted on by

Chancellor suggests budget, on 30 October, will involve tax rises and cuts to spending and benefits

Downing Street has refused to comment on a report saying junior doctors are being offered a pay rise worth about 20% over two years.

In a story for the Times, Steven Swinford reports:

The British Medical Association’s (BMA) junior doctors committee has recommended an offer that includes a backdated pay rise of 4.05 per cent for 2023-24, on top of an existing increase of between 8.8 per cent and 10.3 per cent.

Junior doctors will be given a further pay rise of 6 per cent for 2024-25, which will be topped up by a consolidated £1,000 payment. This is equivalent to a pay rise of between 7 per cent and 9 per cent.

As we’ve said before, we’re committed to working to find a solution, resolving this dispute, but I can’t get into detailed running commentary on negotiations.

We’ve been honest with the public and the sector about the economic circumstances we face. But the government is determined to do the hard work necessary to finally bring these strikes to an end.

Continue reading...

Hospital and road projects face cuts to plug £22bn fiscal hole, Reeves says

Posted on by

Social care and winter fuel payments also targeted as chancellor accuses Tories of covering up scale of fiscal shortfall

Rachel Reeves has scrapped the social care cap and curbed winter fuel payments, as well as announcing big cuts to hospital and road projects, as she seeks to plug what she called a £22bn hole in public spending that was “covered up” by the Conservative government.

In a statement to the Commons that mixed detailed economics and partisan politics, the chancellor justified the cuts with the repeated mantra: “If we cannot afford it, we cannot do it.”

Continue reading...