Northern Ireland: people-smuggling arrests
05 Aug 2022
On 3 August thirty police officers and immigration officials raided two properties and detained a 40-year-old woman and a 26-year-old man, both originally from Somalia, on suspicion of offences linked to people-smuggling. The pair have lived in Northern Ireland for ten years; authorities believe they are part of an operation being run by an organised crime gang transporting people into the UK. Officers also searched the addresses for cash. Immigration officials say that individuals can pay gangs between £2,500 and £15,000 to be brought into the UK, often exploiting the Common Travel Area with the Republic of Ireland. Priti Patel said the operation showed expertly-trained officers working tirelessly to keep our country safe by disrupting suspected criminal activity. An immigration enforcement officer said this was just one of the ways they worked with the police to act against people-smuggling.
Energy rebate: renters ‘at mercy of landlords’
05 Aug 2022
An estimated 585,000 households - 13% of everyone renting in the private market - have energy bills included in their rent. Citizens Advice said renters could miss out on the £400 energy rebate and the warm home discount if they are not the bill payer because those are paid to the landlord. The charity Shelter said tenants whose energy bills were included in their rent or service charge will be at the mercy of their landlord passing on this much-needed support, as there is no specific legal obligation for landlords to do so. They are not allowed to overcharge tenants for energy used or make a profit on it, but this could happen if they pocket the government support and continue to charge the same rate for utilities. The Government is looking into this, as it has acknowledged it is not right. Landlords can only charge for energy used, the standing charge and VAT.
Bank warning of recession
05 Aug 2022
The Bank of England has raised interest rates to 1.75%, the biggest rise in 25 years, as it predicts an even higher peak in inflation of 13%. It fears inflationary pressures are becoming ‘more persistent and broadening’. Many companies have been successfully raising prices which will push up consumer costs in the shops. The latest rise in gas prices has led to another significant deterioration in the financial outlook as the UK is now projected to enter recession. The bank has forecast that the UK economy will start shrinking in the fourth quarter of this year, and then keep contracting through next year. That would be the longest recession since after the 2008 financial crisis. The bank also points to the UK’s ‘tight’ labour market - a signal that it is worried about a wage-price spiral, as workers seek pay rises to help with the worst cost of living crisis in decades.
Hosepipe bans in Southern England
05 Aug 2022
After the driest July since 1935, hosepipe bans will be introduced in Kent and Sussex on 12 August and Hampshire and the Isle of Wight on the 5th. England has been moved into ‘prolonged dry weather’ status (the stage before a drought). Restrictions mean people cannot use hosepipes or anything that connects to an outside tap. Breaking the rules could lead to a £1,000 fine. Water UK said people use twice as much water as they did sixty years ago. Supplies must not be taken for granted. To avoid further bans people could collect water from baths, washing up, and cooking, known as grey water. Water used for cooking vegetables is nutritious for plants. Cutting off the end of a plastic bottle creates a funnel to channel water to the roots of plants, avoiding wastage. People can also reuse paddling pool water, wash dogs outside, and fill ponds with rainwater.
Illegal and legal business profits
05 Aug 2022
Sanctioned Russian oligarchs from Putin's inner circle have exploited a UK secrecy loophole left open by the Government. They use a type of company which does not need to identify its real owners known as an English Limited Partnerships (ELP). ELPs are also linked to fraud, terrorism and money laundering. Since 2017 over 4,500 have been set up to dodge anti-money laundering laws which require the real owners to be disclosed. Pray for the UK Economic Crime Programme, police and government to make ELPs illegal. Meanwhile Shell Plc has given employees a ‘Special Recognition Award’, equivalent to 8% of their annual salary, after recording profits for a second consecutive quarter thanks to soaring oil and gas prices and legally strong refining margins. The one-time payment will be made to most of Shell’s 82,000 employees. Shell said the award was not a response to the rising cost of living. See
Ukraine: pray for mission work
05 Aug 2022
Since the USSR broke up, Ukrainians have experienced freedom and democracy, but more importantly they have experienced freedom to preach the good news, resulting in masses of people being saved and many church plants. Ukraine is also a door for the Gospel to other, surrounding nations. Pray for the door to stay open and fulfil the command to ‘go into the world and preach the Gospel’. Pray for the work of Operation Mobilisation in Ukraine as it connects humanitarian aid with those in need. Pray particularly for traumatised displaced children who are receiving small stuffed baby tigers, with a pocket that holds an mp3 player of 38 recordings in Ukrainian for 3- to 11-year-olds. The stories point them to Father God and Jesus, with an emphasis on trauma relief. Please pray for God’s anointing on a team of youth workers in Vinnytsia organising six-day camps for traumatised children during August.
Ukraine: American aid workers abducted
05 Aug 2022
Ten people in Berdyansk, Ukraine, have been taken captive by Russian militia groups. They were kidnapped while helping evacuate residents from the southern port city, which Russia occupies. The captives include several Orphan's Promise (OP) volunteers, a driver, and an elderly couple who are the parents of a pastor who works with OP. Their whereabouts are unknown. These militia groups are known for their cruelty, especially to volunteers helping Ukrainians. Terry Meeuwsen, the founder of OP said, ‘We have no idea where this team is. We don't know if they're alive. We don't know if they're being cared for. We just have no idea. Being treated well has not been the traditional response by the Russians.’
Global: break the chains
05 Aug 2022
Lockdown, confinement, violence, and isolation is the daily reality for hundreds of thousands of people with disabilities around the world. Many are locked in sheds, cages, or tethered to trees and are forced to eat, sleep, urinate, and defecate in the same tiny area, sometimes for years at a time. Why? Simply because they have a psychosocial disability (mental health condition). This inhumane practice called ‘shackling’ occurs because of the widespread stigma surrounding mental health, and a lack of access to adequate support services, both for those with disabilities and for their families. Hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children - some as young as ten - have been shackled at least once in their lives in over sixty countries. In 2020 #BreakTheChains published a ground-breaking report exposing the global scale of chaining, and in Kenya, achieved a ruling which found that this practice was inhumane and held the people responsible to account.