British Isles
Criminal barristers on strike
26 Aug 2022
English and Welsh barristers will go on an indefinite, uninterrupted strike from 5 September. Recently they have been striking on alternate weeks in a dispute over pay, working conditions and legal aid funding. The strikes will…
Back to the office to save jobs
26 Aug 2022
Companies were forced to give bribes to cajole employees to return to the office last year: free breakfast, ice cream and even popcorn to workers who came in. Now bribes are replaced with stern summons issued…
Back-to-school costs
26 Aug 2022
Parents are facing buying expensive school uniforms in time for the new academicl year. In 2020 the average cost of a uniform was £337 for secondary schools, £315 for primary schools. This year a quarter of…
Monkeypox and brain stimulation research
26 Aug 2022
An Oxford University team who found effective drugs to treat Covid are trialling an antiviral called Tecovirimat to aid monkeypox recovery. Over 3,000 British people have caught monkeypox in recent months, with more cases anticipated. The…
Levels of death still as in pandemic
26 Aug 2022
During lockdown newspapers reported thousands dying weekly. But last week 1,082 more people died than would be expected. These ‘excess deaths’ have averaged 1,000 for 15 weeks this year: they are not Covid deaths, so not…
Leaders’ talks on cost-of-living crisis
19 Aug 2022
Nicola Sturgeon sent a letter to Boris Johnson saying he should have urgent talks with the administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland due to the fast-deteriorating cost of living situation. The PM agreed, but he…