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Putin’s threat hangs over tiny Moldova, but its people filled me with hope

While Russia’s war on Ukraine rages on and Kyiv prepares its counteroffensive, Moldova, the former Soviet republic sandwiched between Ukraine and the EU, is fortunate to be still standing . Had Russia succeeded in its original war aims, not only would it have captured Kyiv and Odesa, but from there it would have been a matter of days before Russian forces had reached Chisinau. Moldovan authorities have no doubt this was Vladimir Putin’s plan. The prime minister, Dorin Recean, is crystal clear: Moldova survives only thanks to Ukrainian resistance. If Moscow had been able to spread the war to Moldova, there is no way it would have been able to put up the kind of fight the Ukrainian armed forces have. Yet, as far as the future of democracy, international law and European security are concerned, Moldova’s fate is as important as Ukraine’s. The war fought militarily on Ukrainian soil still reaches deep into Moldova: disinformation, cyber-attacks, the destabilisation efforts of a Moscow-backed opposition and a separatist enclave loyal to Russia are only some of the existential threats that its 2.6 million people are dealing with. Yet, considering how things could have turned out, I returned from a recent trip to Moldova and Ukraine (organised by the Vienna Institute for Human Sciences) with an incredible sense of hope. A consequence of the invasion, certainly unintended by the Kremlin, is that Moldova has been recognised as a candidate for EU membership. Moldova’s president Maia Sandu’s pro-European and reformist credentials were important in this achievement. Sandu has made it her goal to take Moldova into the EU by 2030. But in western Europe , too, there has been an attitude shift: even governments traditionally sceptical about EU enlargement, such as the French, have, at least for the time being, embraced Moldova’s path to European integration. Only a year ago, Moldova relied on Russia for 100% of its natural gas imports . Now, that figure is down to 0%. Energy prices remain unaffordably high for many Moldovans, but it is no longer a security threat. Moldova’s electricity still comes from Transnistria , a Moldovan region which broke away in 1992 and is now controlled by Russian-backed separatists. But if Russia were to cut gas supplies, causing electricity generation to grind to a halt, it would trigger an economic collapse in Transnistria rather than a protracted blackout in Moldova. Moldova and Ukraine have synchronised their grids with the EU’s and built interconnections with neighbouring Romania. Without electricity powered by Russian gas, Moldova would temporarily struggle, but it would survive. And Russia knows it. It also knows that its invasion of Ukraine has upended Transnistria’s economy, casting doubt over this puppet region’s political future. Transnistria survives on the electricity it sells to Moldova, powered by Russian gas that it gets for free. Russia maintains a massive ammunition depot and a 1,500-strong military force in Transnistria, but only about 70 of these soldiers are actually Russian. The rest are Transnistrians with dual Moldovan and Russian passports: for most, their role in Russian forces is just a job. Why, then, does Moldova not seek to regain control of its territory? Over dinner in Chisinau, Nicu Popescu, Moldova’s foreign minister and an old friend of mine, explained the predicament. The answer is counterintuitive yet logical. Why accelerate a political process that would distract Moldova from its EU reform path, while possibly triggering a Russian-backed coup or overt military response? Chisinau wants the eventual reintegration of Transnistria, but wants it to happen through the Moldovisation of Transnistria, not the other way around. All that said, Moldova’s security situation remains precarious, with a tiny and underequipped army facing a persistent Russian threat. The country’s economic challenge is almost as daunting. Lacking a strong industrial base, Moldova does not have an obvious path out of its unwanted ranking as Europe’s poorest country . Even before the war, with an energy crisis that caused inflation to soar, annual income per head averaged at less than $4,000, compared with the EU average of $33,000. The cost of living crisis explains Sandu’s waning popularity and could still bring her down in elections next year. But for now, Moldovans have a government determined to make the best of its difficult predicament. There is no lack of will to deliver democratic reforms such as fighting corruption. Russian meddling and disinformation may be leveraging the very real economic hardship to whip up anti-government sentiment, but public support for EU membership is strong: thousands turned out for a pro-EU rally this week. What is lacking is capacity. Huge numbers of Moldovans of working age have left the country and, while some of the best and brightest do return, it requires a massive act of passion and commitment: a minister in Moldova earns less than a junior researcher at my institute (who, alas, is not well paid). Several of the people we met had given up comfortable jobs abroad to serve their country; I was in awe of their stories, yet saw how difficult it is to harness sufficient talent to lead the country to a brighter future. Sign up to This is Europe The most pivotal stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion Moldova needs constant and consistent European support: a healthy middle ground between the hyped frenzy of concern when Russia’s threats are in the spotlight, and the neglect when Moldova’s small size and relative resilience drives the international community to focus elsewhere. Next week, Chisinau will host a summit of leaders of the European Political Community, the new European club for EU member states, countries in the waiting room to join, and nations such as the UK and Norway which have chosen to remain outside. When I asked Sandu’s foreign policy adviser what the dream outcome was, the answer was simple and compelling: demonstrating to our citizens (and to the Kremlin) that we’re not alone. In Moldova, the mood is realistic, yet hopeful. Ukraine’s resistance has secured Moldova’s existence, and Moldovans are now sowing the seeds for their European future. As I think back to that hope I sensed in Chisinau, my mind drifts to Odesa, which is just 200km away and which I was able to visit a few days later. The Ukrainian Black Sea port is a long way from the frontline, yet it bears the outward signs of a country at war. The streets are emptier than Chisinau’s and I spotted buildings damaged by a Russian drone attack . There is a nighttime curfew but security measures have been eased and an extended grain deal means Odesa’s docks, strangled for months by a Russian naval blockade , are working again. As in Moldova, there is a mood of cautious optimism. In between meetings, I sneaked away to visit the family of Olga, a Ukrainian refugee who lived with me last year. Olga and her son Vlad are still in Rome, but her mother and grandma stayed in Ukraine. They look after Olga’s garden now, which I had heard so much about from her. When I video-called Olga that day, I wanted her to see it: the cherry tree was in bloom. Nathalie Tocci is director of the Italian Institute of International Affairs and an honorary professor at the University of Tübingen

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German economy in recession after high prices take toll

Germany has fallen into recession, fresh figures have revealed, after high prices took a bigger toll on the country’s economy than originally estimated. Updated data released by German’s federal statistical office on Thursday showed gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.3% in the first quarter compared with the previous three months, which also recorded a contraction. The revised numbers confirm that the German economy shrank for two straight quarters – the technical definition of a recession – after a 0.5% drop in the three months to December. Initial estimates released in April had suggested that Germany had narrowly avoided a recession, merely stagnating with 0% growth. “It took a couple of statistical revisions, but at the end of the day, the German economy actually did this winter what we had feared already since last summer: it fell into a technical recession,” said Carsten Brzeski, global head of macro at the Dutch bank ING. The statistics office said that while private sector investment and construction grew at the start of the year, this was offset in part by a drop-off in consumer spending as higher prices forced households to pinch their pennies. “The persistence of high price increases continued to be a burden on the German economy at the start of the year,” the statistics office said. Overall, household spending dropped 1.2% in the first quarter, with shoppers less willing to splash out on food, clothes, and furniture. Government spending also dipped by 4.9% compared with the previous quarter. Overall, Brzeski said the overall drop in GDP was “not the worst-case scenario of a severe recession but a drop of almost 1% from last summer. The warm winter weather, a rebound in industrial activity, helped by the Chinese reopening and an easing of supply chain frictions, were not enough to get the economy out of the recessionary danger zone,” he added. The economist warned that the drop in purchasing power, weaker industrial sector orders, rising interest rates, as well as a slowdown in foreign economic growth in countries including the US would all likely lead to weaker economic activity for Germany in the months ahead. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion “On top of these cyclical factors, the ongoing war in Ukraine, demographic change and the current energy transition will structurally weigh on the German economy in the coming years,” Brzeski added.

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Shipping in the Arctic faces a foggy future as sea ice melts

The Arctic is turning increasingly foggy, driven by climate change. A recent study looked at Arctic weather records from 1979 to 2018 and found the seas have been growing foggier, especially near newly open areas of water. The disappearance of ice changes the moisture content in the very lowest part of the atmosphere and this leaves a narrow layer of moist air at the sea surface: with so much extra water vapour at the surface, this leaves vast tracts of iceless ocean that become extremely prone to fog. The fog is a particular problem for new shipping routes opening up in the Arctic over the summer between Europe and Asia. As ice cover shrinks by about 14% each decade, sea traffic has increased over the past 20 years with more commercial fishing trawlers, bulk carriers, tourist cruise ships and other vessels. And in foggy conditions, ships have to slow down to avoid hidden chunks of submerged ice, which remain a major hazard. Shipping itself also risks serious pollution, threatening the delicate polar environment. Heavy oil fuel spills can persist for weeks or longer in cold seas, and ships release high concentrations of hazardous air pollution such as black carbon soot, and marine wildlife is threatened, especially marine mammals that are vulnerable to underwater noise and collisions with vessels.

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Teenager who entered London home in TikTok ‘prank’ given criminal behaviour order

A teenager has been issued with a criminal behaviour order and fined hundreds of pounds after entering a home as part of a TikTok “prank” video. Bacari-Bronze O’Garro, 18, of Hackney, east London, appeared at Thames magistrates court on Wednesday. He spoke only to confirm his name, age and address, and to admit to one count of failing to comply with a community protection notice. Varinder Hayre, prosecuting, told the court that O’Garro was issued with a community protection notice on 11 May last year, and that two of its conditions were that he not trespass on to private property. Hayre said that he then breached that notice by entering a home on 15 May this year. He went to the home address of the victim, she said. “The door of the property was open. “Mr O’Garro walked into the property and immediately walked down the stairs. He was stopped by the homeowner. “He went into the living room. He sat down on the sofa and said ‘Is this where the study group is’?” Hayre said: “He was asked to leave multiple times by both the victim and the husband.” She added: “It was discovered that he had filmed the entire incident for a TikTok trend about walking into random houses.” Hayre said: “He has caused the family a lot of distress. The faces of the couple and their two young children can be seen.” She told the court that the woman was under the impression that O’Garro was attempting burglary. Lee Sergent, in mitigation, said that O’Garro had apologised to the family. He said that his client had had a difficult upbringing. “He is an intelligent young man and a young man with some potential.” He said that his client was neither in work nor education, and in receipt of universal credit. Sergent added that his client had made some legitimate social media content, including playing games and discussing conspiracy theories. Judge Charlotte Crangle issued O’Garro with a two-year criminal behaviour order. The order included that O’Garro must not directly or indirectly post videos on to social media without the documented consent of the people featured in the content, must not trespass into private property, and must not attend the Westfield Centre in Stratford, east London. She also ordered O’Garro to pay a fine of £200, as well as a victim surcharge of £80 and costs of £85 – totalling £365.

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The makeshift solution for Sydney’s other housing crisis: nesting boxes for wildlife

Two centuries of urbanisation has created a little-known housing crisis across inner Sydney . As buildings went up, large trees that served as homes for cockatoos, owls, possums and bats have come down. So urban ecologists are stepping in to help. Over the past month, more than 60 nesting boxes have been placed high in trees dotted around some of the city’s best known green spaces including Hyde Park, Victoria Park and Prince Alfred Park. Hollows that these creatures would traditionally have called home can take 100 years to form in mature trees. While the city keeps planting trees, it will be a while before they yield a decent habitat. The City of Sydney’s urban ecologist, Dr James Macnamara, and his team have taken matters into their own hands in the hope that “if we build it, they will come”. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup “Over the last 200 years of urbanisation, we’ve taken out a lot of the large trees which, as they get older, should form hollows where animals can nest, lay eggs and have young [offspring],” he says. “But it takes upwards of 100 years for a properly sized hollow to form … so we’re installing some real estate for our feathered and furry friends.” He says “biodiversity is critical for maintaining a healthy and diverse ecosystem” so anything that could boost it was good news. The new boxes add to the 43 that were previously placed around Sydney Park, Federal Park and Blackwattle Bay last year. Sign up to Guardian Australia's Afternoon Update Our Australian afternoon update email breaks down the key national and international stories of the day and why they matter after newsletter promotion Macnamara says the science “is a bit hit and miss” on the effectiveness of the boxes, but early signs for the project have been a source of hope. A survey done towards the end of last year on the boxes already installed found a family of possums in one box. There are also signs the boxes were being used. The lord mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore, said the project was about making the city as good for animals as it was for people, while continually improving central green spaces. “Our parks are not only the green lungs of city for the enjoyment of the people but they are also homes for our flora and fauna,” she says. The boxes vary in size and style, depending on the creatures they hope to house. Among the birds expected to give the hanging homes a try are yellow-tailed black cockatoos; powerful, barn and boobook owls; and red-rumped parrots. It is hoped they will also provide shelter for microbats, skinks and possums. People like Macnamara will visit the boxes periodically to check for signs of use and monitor for pests who also might like to stop by. But that doesn’t include snakes, which the urban ecologist said would be welcomed should they choose to visit. “It’s not good or bad. It’s a natural system,” Macnamara says. “Snakes need a place to live as well, as much as we do.”

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Is This OK? by Harriet Gibsone review – second life

Harriet the Spy is a 1964 childrens’ book about a little girl who snoops relentlessly on her neighbours. Harriet Gibsone did the same thing when she was young. Now in her late 30s, she still shares with the fictional Harriet a powerful imagination and endless fascination with others. Harriet the Spy was banned in a number of American schools; apparently morally upright people didn’t approve of watchful girls trying to figure out the world on their own terms. I love these characters, nurturing as they do some feeling of control in a world where they do not have any. Is This OK? is a memoir, full of finely told stories that were once secrets existing only in the writer’s mind; addictions, obsessions, weirdnesses. Gibsone came of age at the same time as the internet, her own development shaped by its strange currents. She chooses episodes from her life and makes some of them funny – laugh-out-loud-on-the-train funny; some of them are frightening and sad. Many illuminate a bigger truth about living at this peculiar time and in the grey area between the online and offline worlds. That is, of course, where many of us spend hours each day, without fully realising it, even as researchers warn us of the negative impact on self-esteem and mental health. We didn’t know all of that when we first went online, back when the internet seemed to offer a thrilling sort of social freedom. In 2001, when Gibsone was 14, she discovered MSN messenger, which rapidly became, as she puts it, “an urgent state of being”. She devoted herself to chatting online, pretending to be older, more sexual, and simply different from the awkward young woman she really was. This pattern continued as the platforms multiplied with each passing year; “As a woman prone to slow reaction times and meekness in real life, I could now partake in meaningful conversations and have an instant connection to someone without the threat of tending to them physically.” The word “threat” is well chosen. Gibsone’s early romantic and sexual relationships are troubled. Some verge on abusive, and she turns the pain they inflict inwards. She torments herself with hunger, alcohol, and generally abnegates herself to meet others’ needs. Though drawn to music and art, she is not yet able to claim the power to create for herself. It’s comforting to know that this book is proof of her ultimate success in that respect. But it comes slowly. At first, instead of nurturing her own creativity, she makes a career out of tending to that flame in others. She becomes a music and culture editor at the Guardian, where she remains a contributor. She was in her early 30s when she experienced a host of alarming and mysterious symptoms: sweating, bloating, emotional instability and brain fog, leading to a diagnosis of premature ovarian insufficiency, one cause of early menopause. She struggles hard to get pregnant via a donor, and to give birth, and her account of both is quite stunning. The misogynistic resistance to women writing frankly about birth and motherhood means that such work is still too rare. The power and horror of bearing children have been covered with skill and clarity by writers such as Rachel Cusk in A Life’s Work and Anne Enright in Making Babies. Gibsone owns her place among them with a bloodied confidence after the fight it took to get there. Is This OK? swings between silliness and profundity; Gibsone is a writer taking herself seriously but having fun while doing it. This is a book to hold on to and one to share, a warning and a map created by a watchful girl, telling others what may lie ahead. Sign up to Bookmarks Discover new books with our expert reviews, author interviews and top 10s. Literary delights delivered direct you after newsletter promotion Is This OK?: One Woman’s Search for Connection Online by Harriet Gibsone is published by Picador (£16.99). To support the Guardian and Observer, order your copy at guardianbookshop.com . Delivery charges may apply.

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Ignore the ‘superpower’ boasts – UK pharma looks superchallenged

Big pharma is unhappy about the prices it is being paid in the UK – a state of affairs the rest of us might instinctively regard as welcome, as it suggests the NHS is still world class when it comes to negotiating terms for branded medicines. The UK spends about 9% of its healthcare budget on such medicines; other large European countries report mid-teen percentages. One response would be to tell the wealthy companies to count their blessings – or be quiet until NHS nurses have had a proper pay settlement and the patient backlog has been cleared. Hasn’t the pharma industry done well in the UK over many years from an arrangement that is broadly understood by both sides? The NHS gets (relatively) low prices and companies enjoy access to services that ministers keep telling us make the UK a “life sciences superpower” – the research facilities, the universities and the NHS’s undoubted historical ability to run clinical trials on development drugs at scale. There is a problem, however, with the “nothing to worry about” thesis. We’re already beyond the stage of corporate muttering. AbbVie and Eli Lilly, two big US firms, last week pulled out of the VPAS mechanism – the Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing – that caps the increase in the NHS’s budget for such treatments at 2% a year. German group Bayer hasn’t gone that far, but its comments about an “innovation unfriendly” environment (albeit across Europe, not just the UK) pointed to the reality that there is more going on than a quarrel about prices. Dame Kate Bingham, UK vaccines tsar during the pandemic and now back in her day-job as managing partner at SV Health Investors, spelled out the tensions in the FT this week . Short-term pressures are crowding out long-term solutions, she argued, and the UK risks missing the superpower opportunity. There are still good pioneering projects happening, she acknowledged, but her list of things that are not working was long: research and development (R&D) tax credits were withdrawn for small companies and UK-based academics are now outside the EU’s Horizon research programme. The UK’s share of the global R&D market is falling and the industry is “the object of suspicion and incomprehension within parts of government”, argued Bingham. On the pure pricing argument, the industry surely has a point. The VPAS scheme was agreed in 2019 and caps the growth of NHS branded medicine spending at a nominal rate of 2% a year, with the industry returning any sums beyond the cap. With the spree of prescribing triggered by Covid, the rebate percentage ballooned last year to 26.5% of revenues. AbbVie, when pulling out, argued that such numbers “are not seen in any comparable country” . Even the German rate of 12%-ish caused a row locally. The medicines will keep coming, but the rest of the UK life sciences “ecosystem” looks exposed along the lines Bingham described. One pharma executive puts it this way: “If you are paying corporation tax at 25% and then 26.5% of your revenues are clawed back, the balance has gone too far. You’re not going to build up R&D here; over time, you are bound to look elsewhere, because this is an international business.” A parallel worry is that the crisis in the NHS is now spilling into areas such as clinical trials. Statistics last year from the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) showed the UK had slipped from fourth in 2017 to 10th in 2021 by number of late-stage phase 3 trials – behind Canada, Italy and Poland. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion The decline started pre-pandemic but the concern is that an overstretched NHS is failing to restore its research capacity at the pace other countries are doing. The problem, as the industry tells it, is one of reliability and consistency of delivery, despite the fact that clinical trials should be a revenue-earner for the NHS (an average of £9,000 per patient, according to the ABPI). Companies tend to be loth to cite examples because anything involving access to cutting-edge treatments is ultra sensitive. But the ABPI’s report offered a no-names case study. In 2022, a pharma firm was planning a global phase 2 clinical trial for patients with small-cell lung cancer and three UK sites were chosen for inclusion; two experienced “significant delays in costing and contracting negotiations resulting from ongoing issues with the NHS’s research capacity”; the result is that UK patients won’t be able to access a trial for a potentially life-extending treatment. This is not a picture of a life sciences superpower in action. The UK’s two homegrown pharma giants – AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline – have so far done the patriotic thing and refrained from public comment. Both companies report their full-year results in the next fortnight. Sir Pascal Soriot and Dame Emma Walmsley, the chief executives, could do us a favour and give an honest appraisal of the gap between government rhetoric and reality. From outside, it looks enormous.

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They’re openly saying it: Brexit has failed. But what comes next may be very dark indeed

It lasts no more than a second, but it is a moment for the ages. Interviewed on BBC Newsnight on Monday, Nigel Farage made a confession that, by rights, should end the debate that has split this country down the middle for much of the last decade. A month ahead of the seventh anniversary of the 2016 vote that took Britain out of the European Union, Farage said three words of striking simplicity and truth: “Brexit has failed.” You can watch the clip over and over, for it is something to behold. Here is the arch-Brexiter himself, the man who dedicated his life to the cause of rupture from the EU, admitting it has been a disaster. Of course, as we shall see, he and his fellow Brexiters do not blame that failure on the idea itself, but it’s the admission that counts. It offers grounds for modest celebration: now, at last, the contours of an emerging national consensus are visible, as remainers and leavers alike can join in agreement that this thing has not worked. And yet it comes at a price, one that also became darkly visible this week. Start with the facts that even Farage can no longer duck. During the referendum campaign, he and his allies promised that Brexit would be a boon for the UK economy, unshackling it from Brussels red tape and releasing it into a roaring future. Seven years on, we can see the reality: a country in the grip of a cost of living crisis that means millions can no longer afford what they once regarded as the basics. Britain is becoming poorer and falling behind its peers. Ours is now forecast to be one of the worst performing economies in the world, not merely seventh in the G7 but 20th in the G20 – behind even a Russia under toughening international sanctions – according to the International Monetary Fund. The consequences of being poorer are seen and felt everywhere, whether it’s in the 3m food parcels delivered by food banks last year, the family who can’t get a mental health appointment for a troubled child, or in courts that are jammed and backlogged for years. For a while, the Brexiters could blame all our woes on anything but Brexit: Covid or Ukraine. But there’s no hiding place now. This week came a warning that post-Brexit trading arrangements with the EU threaten the very existence of the entire UK automotive industry, which employs some 800,000 people. Ford, Jaguar Land Rover and the owners of Vauxhall called on the government to renegotiate the Brexit deal. Such demands are getting louder. Next month, a thousand businesses, alongside representatives of farming and fishing, will gather in Birmingham for the Trade Unlocked conference, called to discuss a post-Brexit landscape most say has made commercial life infinitely harder and more bureaucratic. “Business is beginning to find its voice,” one organiser tells me. But it’s not just the economic numbers. Remember, Farage and the others argued that a hit to GDP would be worth it, so long as Brexit fulfilled its other promises – most cherished among them, a reduction in the number of immigrants to the UK. Yet if you were among those persuaded, against the evidence , to see immigration as a cost, rather than a benefit, to the country, Brexit has failed on even that measure. Immigration has gone up, not down, since we left the EU, with one analysis suggesting net annual migration figures published next week could see a rise to 700,000 or even 1 million. Turns out Britain needs migrants – but now they have to come from far away, rather than in reciprocal movement between us and our nearest neighbours. Given all this, what are the Brexiters to do? Some still deny reality altogether, insisting that we should disbelieve the evidence of our own eyes. The rest admit that Brexit has failed, and then face one of two options. Either they can atone for their role in visiting this calamity upon the nation and move to correct it. Or they can blame others for not doing it right. On Newsnight, Farage made the latter choice. Yes, it was true that Britain had “not actually benefited from Brexit economically” but that was because “useless” politicians had “mismanaged this totally”. It’s the manoeuvre perfected in an earlier era by western communists confronted by the brute realities of the Soviet Union: nothing wrong with the communist idea, they insisted, it just hadn’t been implemented properly. But that logic is tricky for the Brexiters, because it’s they who have been in charge. The exit deal was signed, sealed and pushed through parliament by one of their own, Boris Johnson, and a conviction Brexiter is in Downing Street now, in the form of Rishi Sunak . So there has to be someone else to blame, other shadowy forces who betrayed the cause. Some point to Sunak himself, aided by Kemi Badenoch , who this month halted the planned shredding of thousands of EU-tainted regulations. For others, it’s the Blob or the “remoaner elite”, made up of the civil service, the BBC, the universities, the unions: anyone who, along with desperate refugees in small boats, can be blamed for standing between Britain and the promised Brexit nirvana. This is hardly a new dynamic. Nationalism, with its impossible promise of a perfect future, always has to have a traitor to blame for perfection’s delayed arrival. That is the process we are witnessing now: the steady nurturing of a stab-in-the-back myth for Brexit. History suggests that this hunt for the wielder of the treacherous dagger will only get nastier. Which is why many were rightly alarmed by this week’s gathering in the name of “ national conservatism ”, where the writer Douglas Murray declared that nationalism need no longer hide its face just because the Germans had “ mucked up ” in the last century – a novel way to describe the murderous record of national socialism. That conference was a three-day search for those whose betrayal could be blamed for the failure of the Brexit project. The quest will intensify as the damage caused by Brexit piles up. The worse the economy gets, the higher interest rates rise, the tighter incomes are squeezed, the louder and more vitriolic the attacks on the supposed true culprits will have to be – if only to quieten the obvious thought: namely that it is Brexit itself that is to blame. It means those who opposed this madness from the start now have two reasons to break the understandable, if still bizarre, omertà on Brexit that prevails in Westminster. The first is the need to point to the source of our national ailing: if the patient is losing blood, you cannot keep ignoring the wounds where he shot himself in both feet. Less obvious, but no less urgent, is the need to acknowledge that Brexit’s failure is injecting a new toxin into the system, one that will spread the more apparent that failure becomes – and spread faster if we refuse to name its actual cause. Jonathan Freedland is a Guardian columnist Join Jonathan Freedland and Marina Hyde for a Guardian Live event in London on Thursday 1 June. Book in-person or livestream tickets here

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I was attacked at an Antarctic research station

I read with interest John Bartlett’s article about women in the Antarctic and the harassment and abuse that many have faced ( Antarctica: wild continent of snow, ice and, increasingly, women, 14 May ). I worked on a research station some years ago and was assaulted by a colleague. I then had to live in close quarters with my attacker for nine months before I was given an opportunity to leave, while he was left to carry on working until the end of his contract with no consequences. Misogyny runs deep in the culture of the Antarctic stations, and I’m sad that little seems to have improved over the years. Name and address supplied

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My ADHD makes motherhood a huge challenge, but it also gives me superpowers

I was once on a list of two people who lost their work passes at the Guardian more than anyone else. I am chronically chaotic: my wardrobe includes unfolded jumpers and items thrown on top of each other. I am driven by what I can only describe as an inner motor that wants to be doing new things at all times. Given all these symptoms, it’s surprising that it took me until the age of 34 to get a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and it came alongside the birth of my first child. When I was pregnant, it was suggested I might have the condition. As I struggled with the physical and hormonal changes of carrying a child, my mental health plummeted. I was referred to the perinatal mental health team. There, I listed the many symptoms that had plagued my life. ADHD is a lot more than being forgetful. I have had bouts of insomnia so bad that I thought I would never sleep again. My life was driven by impulsiveness that left me ruining relationships and struggling to maintain certain friendships. I was constantly trying to numb an overactive mind. So the suggestion was made by a psychiatrist. And then, like many people, I faced a huge wait. Awareness about ADHD has risen among women in recent years. But, alongside it, so have NHS waiting times for treatment. I was told that I would have to wait three years for answers. I put the diagnosis at the back of my mind, but pregnancy was a huge challenge for me. One of the ways I have always managed my condition is through movement. I realised that if I ran myself to a point of exhaustion I would be able to sleep, so running became my medicine. I ran miles and miles, competing in half-marathons and taking pride in how fit and active I was. Being pregnant meant for the first time in my life I was forced to slow down, although I definitely tried not to. I was the woman who was sprinting on a treadmill days before she gave birth. I gawped when a clinician said that for the last few weeks of pregnancy I should try to relax. When my son was born my ADHD symptoms came into focus. The first few weeks of parenthood were a blur of excitement. I loved giving birth, perhaps because of my desire for stimulation – it was the ultimate high-octane experience. And then he was in the world, demanding that I breastfeed him, which meant sitting down for long periods of time and enjoying the routines of caring for a new life. I sat with him and let him feed, but my mind would wander off to new things that needed pursuing while I had time off work. I thought about travelling the world with him, writing some stories as I went. Big and bright ideas would come into my mind, which needed to be actioned immediately. When I saw the psychologist who was treating me during the first year of my little boy’s life, she would say: “Stay with him, Sarah.” And her words would bring me back down to earth. So, I decided I needed answers and sought a private diagnosis, which was expensive. They asked my parents to fill in a long form explaining what I was like as a child. For women, ADHD is much more internal, which is why it often does not get picked up. I was the little girl who was “away with the fairies”, who never “thought before she spoke”, who was imaginative and creative, but never knew when to stop. The psychiatrist said I had it, and offered treatment in the form of medication, which I am still thinking about taking. I have been on an antidepressant since I was 27, and I have found it hard to get support to come off it, so taking another drug is something I want to consider carefully. My psychologist suggested I set up my own support group for mothers with ADHD, which I have not done because being a new mother back at work is challenging enough. I spoke to other people in the ADHD community who said there is little out there for mothers. It’s another area where the health of women is ignored. And the whole time you’re under the spotlight of what society tells you a mother is: she’s selfless and patient. She sits with her child for hours playing, takes on all the chores and loves the mundanity of motherhood. I can barely manage a household without the addition of a child. I would go to mother groups and see them all smiling and cooing at their children. All I could think about was how dull an hour of baby music was, or wanting to get up and leave the room. I would forget key items needed for the day and then beat myself up for not being as organised as everyone else. I wanted to be the best mother and offer my son everything I had – but what if what I had to offer looked different? The one thing I’ve learned from this whole experience is to play to my strengths. They say every person with ADHD has a superpower. For me, that’s my endless creativity, my ability to hyper-focus and to get immense amounts of work done when I am completely fascinated by a subject. It’s also important to use the strengths of others in areas you fall down in, and endless support from my therapist, family and partner has helped immensely. I have always connected with children, because I have never lost a sense of play and adventure. With my son, I know I can offer him this. I don’t see things like everyone else and I will bring that into my job as a mother. In some ways, the things I have achieved in my life are partly down to my condition. I have broken into journalism by moving up from a non-editorial role, which is uncommon. I have been able to compete at a high level in exercise because it stimulates me. If my son has the condition, I will know exactly what to do to help him make the most of not always following the rules. It is through seeing the world differently that it is changed – all the great thinkers of our time probably had some sort of neurodivergence. And seeing the world of motherhood through a lens that others don’t allows me to define it on my terms. So I might not be the most organised, but I will definitely be the most empathic and fun, and that’s OK. Sarah Marsh is a Guardian news reporter

GOOD

Carlos Alcaraz stunned by world No 135 Fabian Marozsan in Italian Open

The qualifier Fabian Marozsan produced the biggest shock of the ATP season so far with a stunning 6-3, 7-6 (4) victory against the second seed Carlos Alcaraz in the third round of the Italian Open on Monday afternoon. Marozsan, a 23-year-old Hungarian ranked No 135, is the lowest‑ranked player to defeat Alcaraz since July 2021. Until he came through the qualifying draw in Rome and defeated the No 67 Corentin Moutet, Marozsan had never won an ATP match. He had additionally arrived in Rome in poor form. Although Marozsan won an ATP Challenger event on clay in March, he started this tournament having lost five of his previous six matches. Alcaraz, meanwhile, had a 30-2 record in 2022 after tournament wins in Barcelona and Madrid and the 20-year-old will return to No 1 in the ATP rankings next week. Despite his disappointment, Alcaraz absorbed the defeat with a typical smile, heaping praise on his opponent’s performance after the match. Asked if he felt any physical issues, Alcaraz shrugged off the question: “No, no, no. I was perfect physically,” he said. “I just didn’t feel comfortable. He made me feel uncomfortable on court. He was aggressive all the time. He was playing inside the baseline all the time. It was tough for me to get into the match, into the rally.” The defeat may prove a blessing in disguise for Alcaraz, who will have a chance to rest instead of toiling through a second two-week Masters 1000 event ahead of the French Open, where he will be seeded No 1 at a grand slam for the first time. For Marozsan, his victory moves him up to around 114 in the ATP rankings, meaning he is very close to directly entering his first grand slam main draw. “The goal for me was winning one match in the qualies. Now I just won five matches,” he said. “I’m very, very happy,” Marozsan said. “I can’t imagine this one. It was my dream last night.” On his first appearance on any major stadium court, Marozsan approached the most hyped and in‑form player on the tour without fear or favour. From the very beginning of the match, Marozsan served precisely and controlled the baseline. He forced Alcaraz back with consistent aggression and his sweet two-handed backhand while offering the Spaniard a taste of his own medicine: a constant stream of winning drop shots. As Marozsan commanded the opening set, Alcaraz struggled to find his range. He continued to spray unforced errors, eventually falling down a set and a break. But Alcaraz fought hard, retrieving the break at 3-4 by landing returns and finding greater consistency, and he eventually forced a tie-break. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend’s action after newsletter promotion Just as it seemed that Alcaraz had steadied himself, establishing a 4-1 lead in the tie-break, Marozsan exploded. He won the final six points of the match with an array of absurd winners from difficult defensive positions. Marozsan attacked until the end, forcing a final forehand error from Alcaraz as he completed the victory of his life. “I just tried to do something special, win a few games and maybe a set,” he said. “I just beat the world No 1, he’s the best in our sport, so I’m really happy with this.” Meanwhile, Daniil Medvedev continued to find his feet on clay as he moved into the fourth round with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 victory against Bernabé Zapata Miralles of Spain. Medvedev has reached at least the round of 16 of all three clay court Masters 1000 events this year and his progress has been clear. “This year, I feel different, I feel like I can play on clay,” he said. “I can play well. I can put my opponents in trouble. It’s just, well, don’t miss, don’t double fault and that’s how you can win matches.”

GOOD

Wayne Couzens could have been identified as a sex offender in 2015, report says

Wayne Couzens escaped being identified as a sex offender six years before he murdered Sarah Everard , despite police having the registration of a car he had allegedly used to flash passersby, as well as his name and address, an official report has revealed. The full extent of Kent police’s bungling of their investigation, which could have caught Couzens, can only now be reported for the first time. A car registered to Couzens, driving through Dover in 2015, was reported to Kent police, with witnesses saying a man inside was naked from the waist down. In June 2015 Couzens was an armed officer with the Civil Nuclear constabulary (CNC), which said it was never told of any concerns about him. He had previously worked as a special constable for Kent police, which bungled the investigation into him. In 2018 Couzens joined the Metropolitan police after passing their vetting procedures. in March 2021 he kidnapped, raped and murdered Sarah Everard after plucking her off a south London street. It was already known that the Met had missed opportunities to identify Couzens as a risk to women just days before the attack on Everard. But the fact that the danger he posed could have been known six years earlier makes the police failings even starker and wider than the Met. The Independent Office for Police Conduct investigated, leading to a Kent police sergeant, known as X, facing a misconduct hearing. He was cleared of misconduct and continues to serve, but was found to have breached standards for duties and responsibilities. He will undergo “reflective practice”, as well as training to boost his investigative skills, which Kent police said “is not a formal disciplinary outcome”. A report released on Tuesday by the IOPC said that at 8.24pm on Tuesday 9 June 2015, a man who had been driving with his partner called police to report that moments earlier a man driving past them on London Road, Dover, was naked from the waist down and his penis was “sticking up in the car”. He gave police the car’s make, model, colour and registration, all of which proved to be correct. By 8.36pm police knew the vehicle was registered to a Mr Wayne Couzens, and had his address. A radio message with details of the car and Couzens’ name was issued to officers on duty. At the time, Couzens’ brother worked for Kent police but was not on duty. Later, police were told that the witness may not be “wholly reliable”. He missed an appointment the next day to meet police and had issues with substance abuse. Other checks confirmed that the vehicle linked to the indecent exposure in Dover had been in the area at the time of the alleged offence, as the witness had said, and a camera showed the occupant. Nine days later, X expressed doubts about the witnesses’s accuracy and looked at his criminal record. The sergeant also accessed Kent police records for Couzens, which gave his personal details. The file on Couzens contained pages revealing his past service as a special constable with Kent, but the IOPC said it was not clear whether X had read this. Later that day, 18 June 2015, the sergeant concluded that the witness did not support the police investigation, and “stated the named suspect had not been identified”, the IOPC report said. The sergeant declared “the crime was not detectable and there were no outstanding reasonable lines of inquiry”. Couzens had not been spoken to, let alone arrested. He closed the inquiry with one reason being the “offender was unknown”, and without carrying out further inquiries into CCTV or witnesses. Couzens was not recorded as a potential suspect on the crime report. The IOPC said: “PS [police sergeant] X’s alleged failure to obtain more details from Wayne Couzens and input on the crime report led to the crime report not being linked to Wayne Couzens in any meaningful way on the Police National Database. This could have had implications in relation to Wayne Couzens’ vetting to join the MPS. Although this would have been unknown to PS X, it is relevant to consider in terms of the harm caused by his actions.” The IOPC called for a new national system so that any criminal allegations against serving police officers are known to forces in England and Wales. Amanda Rowe of the IOPC said the change may not have stopped Couzens – because of other shortcomings – but might catch other dangerous officers in the future. “Our investigations … highlighted there is no system in place to alert forces when a police officer becomes a crime suspect,” she said. Couzens earlier this year admitted a series of indecent exposure offences, with his criminality escalating to the extent that in March 2021 he went hunting for a young woman and found Sarah Everard.

GOOD

Like me, Eve Babitz was driven by corrosive relationships – and idolised women

Before apps were invented, doing celebrity profiles was how I dated. I didn’t drink or take drugs, so I wasn’t going to meet anyone at bars or clubs. And who’s going to make a pass at someone who spends her time alone listening to Leonard Cohen? For me, the only one who tried was Leonard Cohen himself, backstage at the Royal Albert Hall. Almost Famous has a very different tone if the precocious teenage writer is female. The one man I married was also the only one who wasn’t intimidated by my list of exes. When it did emerge, and I awaited his disapprobation, still haunted by the judgment of previous men, he merely shrugged and said: “I take it as a compliment. You’ve got great taste in cock, girl.” I imagined, when he proffered the engagement ring, it would be one of those Victorian acrostic-style bands where a loving phrase is spelled across the gold in gems, but instead of DEAR (Diamond, Emerald, Amber, Ruby), it would spell out “Great Taste In Cock Girl” (Garnet, Topaz, Idocrase, Carnelian, Garnet). But times and social mores have changed, and I won’t do profiles now because, if the interviewee and I fell for each other, as very occasionally happened, that sort of thing would not sit properly. And though I could most likely “get away with it”, I don’t have secrets any more. At some point I published enough books to be an open book. There are said to be 12 tribes of Israel and, on reading her novelistic memoirs, I understood that I come from the line of Eve Babitz. Either you don’t recognise that name, or you worship her. The top note in her writing is her lovers, anonymised, but who we know to be pre-stardom Harrison Ford, Steve Martin, Ahmet Ertegun, Stephen Stills, Jim Morrison and Ed Ruscha. Some were very famous, others on their way up. She wasn’t a “star fucker” but a power magnet, whether or not like Atlantic records founder Ertegan’s, the power was literal; or like Ford’s, the palpable charisma of one who was destined to make it: “That’s my pot dealer!” she gasped, when he strode on screen in Star Wars. I see myself in her writing because, though she was driven by corrosive love affairs with men, it was other women she idolised. She worshipped them : see her rapturous essays about Michelle Phillips of the Mamas and the Papas, or her recollections of the girls at Hollywood High: “These were the daughters of people who were beautiful, brave and foolhardy, who had left their homes and travelled to movie dreams. In the Depression, when most of them came here, people with brains went to New York and people with faces came West.” Eve’s books Hollywood, Sex and Rage and her masterpiece, Slow Days, Fast Company were all published in the 70s. She has such a compelling writing style that even the Fiorucci fashion book she wrote the words for because she needed money, is a delight. Her life and her writing were both overflowing. She can’t turn the volume up or down on her allure except when it’s taken out of her hands – which it was, by a freak 1997 accident, which left her disfigured, racked with pain and largely a recluse. Lust and longing are Babitz’s raison d’etre, so it’s appropriate to say that when her books were reissued in 2010, I was “turned on” to her. Her books made so much sense to me, their rhymes and wants matched my own rhythm so well, I felt like a restless kid who could finally sleep peacefully by climbing in bed and lying next to her mother. Until it was re-evaluated, Babitz’s writing was dismissed as lightweight because it dealt in diets and obsessive love and hairstyles – mere “women’s issues”. I’d say she’s also in Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s DNA, conscious or otherwise, except that Waller-Bridge can obviously concentrate whereas productivity was Babitz’s achilles heel. Though they were writing about the same place at the same time, she was very much the anti-Joan Didion, who had such discipline with her writing and with her eating – and who stayed within a longterm marriage. After the accident, Babitz didn’t write again. She died in 2021 , one week before Didion , living long enough to see her writing rediscovered and embraced. In my brief time as a 16-year-old writer at NME, I was dismissed as being “too much of a fan”. The inference by most men in the office was that we could just be sleeping with the bands we wrote so lovingly about. And that was true. We could! And? When you fall for someone you are sent to interview, it writes large the hope that anyone would truly see any for us for who we truly are. That’s all humans want from any lover. So I’m content to be in the similarly accused company of Eve Babitz, not to mention Linda McCartney and Yoko Ono. That we’re not the most beautiful is a frequent accusation, as if the only currency exchange for male power is perfect female beauty when, as Babitz worked out and wrote down, an equal conversion for a woman is self-possession. In the litany of things that went wrong from being out in the world as a teenage music journalist, I think of sexual assault – something I’ve written about in my book – but I also think of my review of Tom Petty’s Wildflowers being marked down from a 9/10 to a 7/10 by my editor at the NME. That I have confidence in my good taste matters, as it did to Babitz.

BAD

Nothing in Britain works properly anymore – just look at Big Ben

I’M sorry to sound so depressing but nothing in this country is working properly. Even Big Ben has broken. They just spent 80million of our pounds restoring Britain’s most famous landmark. And it’s now as reliable as a 1973 Austin Allegro. Then you’ve got the NHS , which is fantastic if you want to be addressed by the correct pronoun but there’s no getting round the fact that it’s pretty much useless if you need a doctor. And you can only talk to a nurse if you are fluent in Latvian. The Police ? Don’t get me started. If you get stabbed, they’ll only be interested if it happened in a bus lane. And if you’re burgled they will put you on hold until the end of time. Which, according to Big Ben, happens once every three or four days. But it’s the transport system that causes my shoulders to sag most of all, because that’s just hopeless. Back at the beginning of April, engineers noticed that a railway bridge over the Thames in Oxfordshire was becoming a bit wobbly. So they imposed a 5mph speed limit on the few trains that were running due to industrial action by the drivers. It then transpired that 5mph was still too fast so they announced the line would be closed while repairs were made. Now, back in the days when Britain worked, this wouldn’t have taken very long. When engineers had to narrow the gauge on the line from London to Bristol, they got the entire job done in one night. One!! Not a single train had to be cancelled. But to repair a bridge in 2023, they need three months. Unless it’s Hammersmith Bridge in London which for reasons no one understands, can’t be repaired at all. So if I have to go to London, I need to use the car. Which is tricky, because that means going round the Oxford ring road, which is currently being turned into a bus lane. The traffic is terrible. And I can’t miss it by going through the city centre because Oxford is run by lunatics who think the motor car is more dangerous than an nuclear missile. So they’ve put plant pots in the middle of every street. This means that to get to London, I have to use country roads that have grass growing in the middle and there are signs saying, “there be witches”. I haven’t seen one yet, but I bet there are highwaymen too, hiding in the bushes with their flintlock muskets. And as I’m bumbling along, in the middle ages, at 4mph, I can’t help wondering how the powers that be can allow both the road and the railway to be closed at the same time. Someone must have signed off on this and it beggars belief that he’s not in prison. Because that’s where he belongs. Maybe it’s because the prisons don’t work either. I’VE spent the past couple of weeks in Mauritania and it’s OK. I didn’t know where it was either, until I got there. Nor did I know that this vast West African slab of desert was dry. In both senses of the word. It very rarely rains and there’s a strictly enforced ban on alcohol. Which is a nuisance when you’ve been working all day in 50 centigrade and you really want to sit down afterwards with a beer. Happily however, many years of extensive travel has taught me that there’s a chain of off licences in every capital city in the world – even the dry ones – where you can always get a drink. They’re called British Embassies. The membership card is a British passport and you can bring two guests, even if they are James May and Richard Hammond . And so it was that we watched the Coronation with our man in Nouakchott, while supping several refreshing pints of delicious, chilled lager. KALEB COOPER , my not-well-travelled farm manager, went to London for only the second time in his life this week. He encountered his first ever revolving door which he described, after a couple of circuits, as “amazing”. And then he went to Downing Street to meet Rishi Sunak . “I couldn’t turn that down” he said, excitedly. “I’m only 24 and I’ve been invited to meet the President.” LIKE most normal people, I loathe art galleries. But for some unfathomable reason, I dropped into London’s Design Museum this week where there was an exhibition by someone called Mr Wee Wee. That’s not his real name but it’s something like that. Mostly, his show consisted of enormous rugs, one of which was made from bits of broken tea pots. And another from a million pieces of Lego. Can you imagine stepping on that in the middle of the night? And also, can you imagine how daft you have to be to look at what is basically an eight-year-old’s bedroom floor and say: “Yes, Mr Wee Wee. That is art and we’d be happy to charge people for looking at it”. OVER the years, I’ve occasionally been chased around the place by a swarm of paparazzi, and it was never even remotely frightening because it only took me about one second to work out how I could shake them off my tail. I’d simply get on a bicycle and head for the nearest narrow alleyway. And if they were using scooters, or there wasn’t a bicycle to hand, I’d head for the Selfridges department store, which has about 200 doors. And they would have no idea which one I’d come out of. I RECEIVED word this week from a chap whose 2002 Ford Focus does not comply with London’s new low emission regulations . He was going to scrap it. But instead, he has registered it in the name of London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan , and will continue to drive around in it until Mr Khan pops by to pick it up. He claims this is completely legal and he may have a point, as the owner of a car does not have to be the same person as the registered keeper. It may well be then that soon, Mr Khan finds he suddenly has more old cars than the Beaulieu National Motor Museum. AMERICA is very close to going bust. It currently owes 31trillion dollars (£25trillion) and its borrowings are greater than the worth of the entire country. To try to address the situation, the nation’s economists and political heavyweights decided that they needed to distract the doddery old fool in the White House . So they went round to the Oval office and, while his nurse was fetching a new nappy, they spoke into his ear trumpet, telling him that he was going on an important meeting in Papua New Guinea. “It’ll be brilliant”, they shouted. “You’ll love it.” But now he’s refusing to go, saying the financial situation is so bad, he needs to stay at home. “Wstrefheignphlampos ze carruthertheruther”, he announced to a room of full of people, who are now in total despair.

BAD

Fifa appeals against Cas verdict on Jean-Bart because of ‘substantial flaws’

Fifa has confirmed it has appealed against the court of arbitration for sport’s decision to overturn its lifetime ban on Yves Jean-Bart, the former president of the Haitian Football Federation (FHF), due to concerns over “very serious procedural and substantive flaws” in the verdict. Jean-Bart – known as “Dadou” – was banned by Fifa’s ethics committee in November 2020 for alleged harassment and sexual abuse against female footballers after a series of investigations by the Guardian. The 75-year-old, who denies the allegations, appealed to Cas and the case was heard by an arbitral panel at the end of March 2022, which “unanimously noted the lack of coherence and inaccuracies in the statements of victims and witnesses presented by Fifa” when it announced its decision last month. But after also rejecting an attempt by Jean-Bart to reclaim his position as FHF president, Fifa has now confirmed it has filed an appeal against the Cas verdict with the Swiss Federal Tribunal and accused the panel of “failure to evaluate key pieces of evidence”. “After having carefully analysed the Cas award, Fifa is concerned that this award contains a number of very serious procedural and substantive flaws, including the Cas panel’s failure to evaluate key pieces of evidence that were offered by Fifa,” read a statement . “As a result, Fifa can confirm it has filed an appeal against the Cas award before the Swiss Federal Tribunal, requesting its annulment and referral back to Cas. Fifa remains strongly committed to protecting victims of sexual abuse and misconduct in football and will continue to apply ‘zero tolerance’ to any such acts perpetrated by persons falling under its jurisdiction.” According to Cas’s statutes, it usually permits appeals only “on a very limited number of grounds” including the “violation of elementary procedural rules (eg violation of the right to a fair hearing)”. Human Rights Watch questioned the decision by Cas to rule in favour of Jean‑Bart after it claimed that some alleged victims were “threatened into silence”, while the international players’ union, Fifpro, raised concerns about “serious, explicit and extensively documented threats” that it says were made towards those asked to give evidence against Jean-Bart. Fifa appointed a normalisation committee to oversee the FHF in December 2020 after Jean-Bart was initially banned by its ethics committee. But he announced his intention to return as president earlier this month at a press conference. “He was elected as president for four years, and his term has not ended,” his lawyer, Claude Ramoni, said. Jean-Bart also revealed he had written to Fifa to demand that he was restored to his role. However, a letter sent last week by Fifa’s chief member associations officer, Kenny Jean-Marie, to Luis Hernandez – the normalisation committee chairman – that has been seen by the Guardian said that Jean‑Bart’s claim had been rejected. “We refer to the letters of 24 February 2023 that we received from Mr Yves Jean-Bart and his lawyers,” wrote Jean-Marie. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend’s action after newsletter promotion “In this regard, for all intents and purposes, we would like to point that out the Bureau of the Fifa Council decided on 11 December 2020, based on art 8 par 2 of the Fifa statutes, to appoint a normalisation committee for the FHF, thus relieving the executive committee of the FHF of its functions.” A spokesperson for Jean-Bart has been contacted for comment.

GOOD

Extreme poverty could be eradicated globally by 2050 – report

The end of extreme poverty may finally be achieved by 2050, spurred by economic growth in low-income countries, according to a new economic forecast. Though the Covid pandemic began to reverse progress in eradicating extreme poverty , and additional challenges will emerge, the damage may have a very limited impact on the overall trajectory of economic growth, according to a Center for Global Development (CGD) report . “We know the world is going to look very different in 2050, and climate change is a huge concern for the future,” said Charles Kenny, a senior fellow at CGD and one of the report’s authors. “But we can’t let it overshadow the fact that continued economic growth should leave almost no one in the most desperate poverty that was the lot of the vast majority of humanity for most of history, albeit decades after it could have been eradicated.” Kenny said inequality is likely to remain and poverty will still exist, but higher growth should mean most people have stable employment and incomes, rather than relying on precarious informal labour or subsistence farming. He added that by 2050, no country will be classed as low-income, currently defined as having a GNI per capita of $1,085 (£910) or less. Kenny, the author of the book Getting Better: Why Global Development is Succeeding, said he and Zack Gehan, who worked with him on the paper, took historical data on income, demographic changes, education and temperature to forecast the future shape of the world economy. According to the forecast, extreme poverty – living on less than $2.15 a day – would fall below 2% globally by 2050 from about 8% in 2022 . In Africa, where it is highest, it would fall from 29% to 7%. More than two-thirds of the world could be living on more than $10 a day by 2050, up from about 42% today. The authors predicted much slower growth in high-income countries over the next two decades, with GDP per capita growing only about 20% from 2019, while doubling in low and middle-income countries. Rathin Roy, managing director of the ODI global affairs thinktank, formerly the Overseas Development Institute, said Kenny’s predictions were possible “if everyone does the right thing”. “Something you see for the last 100 years has been that people have not done the right things,” he said. “For most of my adult life global poverty reduced, until three years ago and then began to increase because of a variety of factors, including importantly the Covid pandemic, but other things as well. And getting it reduced again is proving very difficult.” Roy said it was important for countries to take care of their less fortunate. The fact that poverty still persists in countries such as the UK and US shows more than just economic growth will be required. “Just attaining high levels of income is not enough. If it were, children would not be going hungry to school. People would not be suffering because of lack of medical attention and losing jobs. And you wouldn’t have the kind of destitution and homelessness and the sort of food banks you see in a country with per capita income of $44,000,” he said. Kenny said forecasting the future of the world’s economies was useful because it helps to think about how issues such as poverty or military spending might look in the future and to adapt policy discussions around that. He expressed concern that his forecasts show little growth in wealthy countries – ageing populations may lead to them adopting isolationist and authoritarian policies in response to recessions – but overall he said he was optimistic. “If you look at where the demographic trends are it just all seems really rather positive for the low- and middle-income countries as a whole. So I’m more robustly optimistic for them, with the caveat that some of this depends on what rich countries do and the caveat of simple unknowns,” he said.

GOOD

Low birth rate linked to fear about the future

Polly Toynbee’s challenge to the theory presented by the MP Miriam Cates at the National Conservatism conference, that a low UK birthrate is an outcome of “cultural Marxism”, is fair enough as far as it goes ( The great British baby drought has a simple cause. And it’s not ‘cultural Marxism’, 18 May ). Ms Toynbee is surely right to point to the withdrawal of practical state support and nurturing for young families as an important issue. But why doesn’t she mention the general atmosphere of foreboding and anxiety about the future (equally an outcome of years of Tory neglect and misrule) as an even more powerful influence? As an older person who has been involved during the past four years in an organisation campaigning for urgent action on the climate crisis, I have been frequently startled (and dismayed) by the statements of young people from the UK and other countries, who say that they are reluctant or afraid to have babies when future prospects look so uncertain and daunting. The conception of a child is surely first and foremost an expression of hope. Many young people simply don’t have enough confidence that the world is a safe enough place to bring a child into. Chris Neill Extinction Rebellion activist, Godalming, Surrey Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.

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People in the UK in their 50s and 60s: if you’re working less now, what are you doing instead?

We’d like to hear from people in the UK in their 50s and 60s who have recently decided to work less or leave the workforce altogether why they have made this decision, and what they are doing instead. The economic inactivity rate for people aged 50 to 64 years has increased slightly , from 27.1% between October and December last year to 27.2% between January and March 2023, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The UK’s overall decrease in economic inactivity between January and March 2023 was largely driven by people aged 16 to 24 years, according to new ONS data. Between October to December 2022 and January to March 2023, there has been a record high net flow out of economic inactivity, while the number of people inactive because of long-term sickness increased to a record high. We’re interested to hear how people in their 50s and 60s in the UK whose economic activity has decreased are spending their time now. If you are aged in your 50s and 60s and have decided to work less or retired recently, tell us what you have been doing with your time since. Town or area is fine Please include as much detail as possible Your contact details are helpful so we can contact you for more information. They will only be seen by the Guardian. Your contact details are helpful so we can contact you for more information. They will only be seen by the Guardian. Contact us on WhatsApp at +447766780300. For more information, please see our guidance on contacting us via WhatsApp . For true anonymity please use our SecureDrop service instead.

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Revealed: UK fast fashion staff deprived of pay by jobs agency

A jobs agency that supplies warehouse workers to fast fashion and high street brands repeatedly underpaid staff and deprived them of holiday pay, an Observer investigation has found. Workers hired on zero-hours contracts to help process orders for PrettyLittleThing, its parent company Boohoo, The Very Group, Sainsbury’s and Currys are among those who claim to have had wages withheld by Mach Recruitment. In an employment tribunal judgment handed down in May 2022 – one of six so far this year – Mach was ordered to pay £1,184 to a worker who worked 12 shifts at a warehouse for The Very Group in 2021 but never received his wages. In June 2022 , the agency was ordered to pay £138 for taking unauthorised deductions from a worker’s salary, including failing to pay his holiday entitlement. In July it was ordered to pay £430 to a worker who claimed that she had not been paid for shifts. In another case last June, Mach was ordered to pay a worker £12,000 for unfair dismissal, £3,960 for unpaid bonuses, and £1,064 for unpaid holiday, tribunal records show. In all, the agency has been taken to 12 employment tribunals in the past two years that resulted in it being ordered to pay money to workers, including 10 involving unpaid wages, unauthorised salary deductions or a failure to award holiday pay. Mach did not engage in the cases and failed to answer calls and emails from the tribunal service, according to the judgments. In a statement this weekend , the firm blamed the communication and pay issues on Covid-19, adding that the claims were unfounded and that it was challenging the rulings. As well as examining cases that went to tribunal, the Observer spoke to eight former Mach workers who were at the company between 2020 and 2022 and analysed evidence including pay slips, contracts and text and email correspondence that suggest the practice of underpayment is widespread. Mo Ajala, 23, who was hired to pick orders in PrettyLittleThing’s Sheffield warehouse during the pandemic, said he fought for more than six months to be paid for a week of night shifts. Despite repeated phone calls and texts to Mach’s offices, the business graduate was ignored. “I’d call up and they’d say ‘We’re going to pay you this week’. Then one week, two weeks, three weeks, four would pass,” he said. He was eventually paid £289 after raising the case with Acas, which provides support with employment disputes, and later taking Mach to a tribunal, which found in January 2021 that the agency had made an unlawful deduction from his wages. Mach did not engage with the process. “It was really stressful to go through all that just to be paid the money I was rightfully owed,” Ajala said. “They didn’t even turn up. It felt like they didn’t care.” Lalit Yadav, 25, a masters student from India, provided documents to support a claim that he too was underpaid by Mach. Yadav took a part-time job at a Sainsbury’s distribution centre near Leeds in February, juggling night shifts with his studies. He had to take three buses to reach the warehouse, and the physically demanding work resulted in him losing 18kg in two months. But he didn’t mind “working to the fullest” because his wages – paid regularly at first – helped him cover living costs. The problems began three months in, when he noticed he had not been paid for an eight-hour night shift he says he worked in June. He claims Mach told him it needed additional documents to process the payment, so he supplied them, but that he was then told he had not worked that shift. “I’m pretty sure they could check the cameras, and they must have records of me clocking in and out. But for some reason they don’t seem willing to check: they’re just telling me, ‘You must have not worked this day,’” Yadav, who subsequently quit, said. “It was really demotivating to not be paid after working so hard.” Yadav says he called Mach repeatedly to try to resolve the issue but was passed between members of staff who either said they couldn’t help or promised to but failed to take any action. Eventually he gave up. Others say they were only paid after messaging the firm’s executives on LinkedIn or by posting on the company’s Facebook and Instagram pages. Mach has grown rapidly in the past two years. Records show the company had an average of 9,542 temporary workers a month on its books in 2021, up from 5,783 in 2020, while its turnover almost doubled from £110m to £200m and its profit before tax trebled to £3.8m. Its advertisements targeting jobseekers paint a glossy picture. Earlier this month the company launched a campaign to attract workers for PrettyLittleThing, a fashion brand known for its cheap clothing whose “ambassadors” include Love Island stars Molly-Mae Hague and Gemma Owen. The ads promise workers will benefit from a “friendly environment” and earn “excellent hourly rates” starting at £9.90. In earlier recruitment drives, Mach posted videos on TikTok showing workers dancing at a PLT warehouse. It has also run recent recruitment drives for The Very Group, which owns Littlewoods, and for food warehouses across the UK. Jamie Woodcock, author of The Gig Economy and senior lecturer in management at Essex University, said Mach’s practices appeared “deeply exploitative” and could lead to low-paid workers receiving less than the minimum wage. “If you systematically underpay people and systematically underpay holiday, you’ll get picked up every now and again for a tribunal case. But overwhelmingly you’re lowering the cost of that labour, because many people won’t chase it or don’t know how to,” he said. As well as problems with wages, many of the complaints against Mach relate to workers not being paid holiday entitlement they were owed. Although agency workers have fewer rights than permanent staff, they are still entitled to at least 5.6 weeks of paid holiday a year. Lee Robson, 47, who worked night shifts at Boohoo’s Burnley warehouse until October 2021, says he didn’t take any holiday during that time, so was expecting a lump sum that would tide him over until he started his new job. But when he got his final pay packet the holiday pay wasn’t included, he says. When he called the Mach office he says he was told he needed to fill in a form, but even after doing so he says he wasn’t paid. “I was calling the numbers for the recruiters and they were ignoring me, blocking my number or passing me on to someone else,” he said. One day, after about three months, the £380 arrived in his bank account without explanation. He believes Mach paid him because he was “pushy” but that not everyone would not have gone to the same lengths. “It was becoming a bit of a nightmare,” he said. Father-of-two Steve Smalley said he did not automatically receive holiday he was owed after leaving his role at a warehouse for Currys in Newark, Lincolnshire, in January. When he raised the issue with Mach he says he got “blanked left, right and centre”. He claims he only received the outstanding £180 in April after messaging a senior manager on LinkedIn in an attempt to avoid going to court. “It was very frustrating. A few months later I started getting texts saying, ‘We have shifts available.’ I thought ‘You cheeky buggers,’” he said. Nick Clark from the Unpaid Britain project , which investigated wage theft in the UK, said the issues with Mach were a “familiar story” and echoed cases in other sectors. He called for more effective enforcement and said the system needed to improve to hold “repeat abusers” to account. He said tribunals could issue fines in cases where employers had behaved “particularly badly” but that the powers were “very rarely used”. They don’t seem to look at how many other cases there have been,” he said. Ryan Bradshaw, a solicitor specialising in employment cases at the law firm Leigh Day, said companies that outsourced recruitment to third-party agencies had a “moral responsibility” to ensure workers were properly paid. “Outsourcing allows companies to push responsibility on to someone else. But it’s not good enough. They must know these things are going on and if they don’t, they’re not paying enough attention,” he said. Tom Zyzak, managing director at Mach Recruitment, said: “While we are aware that there a number of rule 21 judgments, whereby decisions were made automatically due to no response being received, a large proportion of these are down to claims raised during the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown periods when offices, sites and business were closed down. When we were made aware of these, we immediately began the legal process of challenging the claims, as we believe them to be unfounded. The UK court system is experiencing a severe backlog of all tribunal cases so many of these are still being processed.” When asked for further information the company said it was “unable to go into a lot of detail due to them being ongoing”, but that it was challenging all of the rulings. Zyzak said all workers were paid holiday and bonuses owed to them and that Mach worked closely with clients to ensure wages were paid correctly. He said the company was aware of “a number of issues that impacted on our normally swift resolution time” and had “worked hard over the last six months” to address them, including expanding its teams and building new systems to “monitor and resolve all queries in a timely fashion”. “We process payroll for up to 15,000 colleagues weekly and our colleagues have multiple communication channels to escalate any queries accordingly,” he said. Boohoo said: “We take employee welfare very seriously and will be investigating these claims carefully.” Currys said its outsourcing partner GXO was investigating with Mach. “We expect the robust standards we set on supplier auditing, in line with our own rigorous supply chain due diligence process, to be upheld,” it said. Sainsbury’s said it did not comment on specific cases but suppliers were expected to comply with the law and good industry practice, adding that it regularly reviewed its partners. The Very Group said it worked with agencies to resolve payment problems swiftly and would “have an ongoing dialogue” with Mach and partners “to ensure robust policies relating to temporary colleagues” were followed. The government said it could not comment on individual cases but took agency worker protections “very seriously”, adding that the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate had “a good track record in protecting agency workers”. Precious Ebere, 29, who moved to the UK from Nigeria to study public policy, and is co-founder of Do Take Action, a non-profit that campaigns on social issues, said she was not paid for several shifts while working at a warehouse in Cardiff via Mach in 2021. “I thought, ‘I can’t let this lie’. I went to the office and said, ‘I need my money’. At that period I was losing my house. I was struggling for money. It was really bad,” she said. Emails show that four months on, after challenging managers, Ebere was paid. But she said many others were afraid to speak out. “People don’t complain because they need money. But you work so, so, super hard. You work so damn hard. And they don’t even pay us,” she said. “It makes you feel worthless. They need to be held accountable.”

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Fake AI-generated image of explosion near Pentagon spreads on social media

An AI-generated image that appeared to show an explosion next to a building in the Pentagon complex circulated on social media platforms on Monday, in the latest incident to highlight concerns over misinformation generated by AI. The image of a tall, dark gray plume of smoke quickly spread on Twitter, including through shares by verified accounts. It remains unclear where it originated. The US Department of Defense has confirmed that the image was a fake. Still, its virality appears to have caused a brief dip in the stock market, CNN reports. In a tweet , the fire department for Arlington, Virginia, outside Washington, said that it was aware of social media reports about the explosion but that there was no threat to the public. Russian propaganda now running with this lie. https://t.co/QUWJ9qgUDg OSINTdefender, a Twitter page that shares news about international military conflicts and has over 336,000 followers, was one of the verified pages that shared the photo. The page’s owner apologized for spreading misinformation and said the incident was an example of how “easily these sort of images can be used to manipulate the information space and how dangerous this could be in the future”. The image is one of several AI-generated ones that have gone viral in recent weeks. Recent examples include one of the pope wearing a fashion-forward white long puffer coat and a black and white photorealistic image that won a prize from the Sony World Photography Awards. The German artist who created the prize-winning image said he applied to the awards as a “cheeky monkey” to find out if competitions would be prepared for AI images to enter. He ultimately rejected the award. The incident also once again spotlighted verification challenges on Twitter, since the platform overhauled its subscription service, Twitter Blue. Up until last month, the platform gave out blue check badges to users whose identity the platform had verified. Under the new Twitter Blue program rolled out last month, however, individuals can pay $8 a month for a blue check mark. Concerns about accounts impersonating public figures, government officials and news sites have grown since the change.

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New artificial intelligence tool can accurately identify cancer

Doctors, scientists and researchers have built an artificial intelligence model that can accurately identify cancer in a development they say could speed up diagnosis of the disease and fast-track patients to treatment. Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide. It results in about 10 million deaths annually, or nearly one in six deaths, according to the World Health Organization. In many cases, however, the disease can be cured if detected early and treated swiftly. The AI tool designed by experts at the Royal Marsden NHS foundation trust, the Institute of Cancer Research, London, and Imperial College London can identify whether abnormal growths found on CT scans are cancerous. The algorithm performs more efficiently and effectively than current methods, according to a study. The findings have been published in the Lancet’s eBioMedicine journal. “In the future, we hope it will improve early detection and potentially make cancer treatment more successful by highlighting high-risk patients and fast-tracking them to earlier intervention,” said Dr Benjamin Hunter, a clinical oncology registrar at the Royal Marsden and a clinical research fellow at Imperial. The team used CT scans of about 500 patients with large lung nodules to develop an AI algorithm using radiomics. The technique can extract vital information from medical images not easily spotted by the human eye. The AI model was then tested to determine if it could accurately identify cancerous nodules. The study used a measure called area under the curve (AUC) to see how effective the model was at predicting cancer. An AUC of 1 indicates a perfect model, while 0.5 would be expected if the model was randomly guessing. The results showed the AI model could identify each nodule’s risk of cancer with an AUC of 0.87. The performance improved on the Brock score, a test currently used in clinic, which scored 0.67. The model also performed comparably with the Herder score – another test – which had an AUC of 0.83. “According to these initial results, our model appears to identify cancerous large lung nodules accurately,” Hunter said. “Next, we plan to test the technology on patients with large lung nodules in clinic to see if it can accurately predict their risk of lung cancer.” The AI model may also help doctors make quicker decisions about patients with abnormal growths that are currently deemed medium-risk. When combined with Herder, the AI model was able to identify high-risk patients in this group. It would have suggested early intervention for 18 out of 22 (82%) of the nodules that went on to be confirmed as cancerous, according to the study . The team stressed that the Libra study – backed by the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity, the National Institute for Health and Care Research, RM Partners and Cancer Research UK – was still at an early stage. More testing will be required before the model can be introduced in healthcare systems. But its potential benefits were clear, they said. Researchers hope the AI tool will eventually be able to speed up the detection of cancer by helping to fast-track patients to treatment, and by streamlining the analysis of CT scans. “Through this work, we hope to push boundaries to speed up the detection of the disease using innovative technologies such as AI,” said the Libra study’s chief investigator, Dr Richard Lee. The consultant physician in respiratory medicine at the Royal Marsden and team leader at the Institute of Cancer Research said lung cancer was a good example of why new initiatives to speed up detection were urgently needed. Lung cancer is the biggest worldwide cause of cancer mortality, and accounts for a fifth (21%) of cancer deaths in the UK. Those diagnosed early can be treated much more effectively , but recent data shows more than 60% of lung cancers in England are diagnosed at either stage three or four. “People diagnosed with lung cancer at the earliest stage are much more likely to survive for five years, when compared with those whose cancer is caught late,” said Lee. “This means it is a priority we find ways to speed up the detection of the disease, and this study – which is the first to develop a radiomics model specifically focused on large lung nodules – could one day support clinicians in identifying high-risk patients.”

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UK politicians stigmatising Muslims over Islamist terrorism, report finds

Senior politicians must stop stigmatising Muslims by making them feel responsible for Islamist terrorism, according to a report that aims to reset the government’s approach to dealing with religious groups. Muslims are being marginalised in a number of areas of British life, according to the report by the government’s faith adviser, Colin Bloom, including by being made to feel they frequently have to renounce terrorist acts. Bloom also urged ministers to develop sharia-compliant student loans to help more Muslims into university, and to conduct an outreach programme to increase their representation in the armed forces. The comments are part of a sweeping review of the government’s interactions with faith groups at every level of society. The Guardian has previously revealed several of the report’s other main recommendations, including government crackdowns on forced marriage and unregistered religious schools. Bloom’s comments on Islam provide some of the most eye-catching parts of the report, however, providing a marked contrast with the tone of much of the government’s recent messaging on Islamist terrorism. Bloom warns in the report: “Islamist extremism, Islamist-inspired terrorism, and the support of terrorist and extremist organisations … are as repulsive to mainstream British Muslims as the acts of Anders Breivik are to mainstream British Christians. If no effort is undertaken to relieve this situation, sadly many British Muslims will struggle to feel fully accepted and integrated within society.” He adds: “During this review’s stakeholder engagement, many Muslims described, often poignantly, how society has made them feel stigmatised and somehow responsible for or secretly supportive of acts of Islamist terrorism. “This reviewer has reason to believe that this happens at all levels of society, including at the very top. Those in the political sphere are not immune from such stigmatisation, with baseless allegations of Islamist extremist sympathy and concerning anti-Muslim language not unheard of.” The language differs in tone from that of the recent review by William Shawcross of the government’s Prevent strategy, which warned: “The facts clearly demonstrate that the most lethal threat in the last 20 years has come from Islamism, and this threat continues.” Bloom’s report contains 22 recommendations for ministers, including: Giving every public servant, including doctors, teachers and police officers, mandatory religious training Regulating unregulated faith schools Introducing sharia-compliant student loans Conducting a review of radicalisation in prisons Launching a campaign to recruit more Muslim soldiers Cracking down on religiously motivated white supremacists Investigating Sikh extremism Using the online safety bill to crack down on material that promotes religious hatred Funding a new programme to help people who are leaving coercive religious environments Reforming and properly resourcing the government’s forced marriage unit The government welcomed the report on Wednesday, though did not commit to implementing any of its recommendations. Lady Jane Scott, the faith minister, said in a statement : “I welcome this review and thank Colin for his work. We will carefully consider the recommendations and I’ll make it my mission to continue to work closely with those of all faiths.” Some religious campaigners also welcomed its findings. Yehudis Fletcher, who founded a thinktank to campaign against Jewish extremism, said: “We strongly support the Bloom review recommendations in relation to schools, coercion within marriage, and faith-based extremism and exploitation.” Sign up to First Edition Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning after newsletter promotion Humanists UK welcomed Bloom’s “positive and thoughtful engagement”. But its chief executive, Andrew Copson, added: “The report puts religion and religious groups on a pedestal, set up for exclusive funding, consultation, and partnerships with government all overseen by a ‘Faith Champion’. These proposals aren’t merited, the public don’t want them, and they are based on a flawed analysis of our country.” The report was published on Wednesday, four years after it was first commissioned by the then prime minister, Boris Johnson. It runs to about 160 pages and 65,000 words, dealing with everything from the role of chaplains in prisons to the growing threat posed by Sikh and Hindu nationalists. On several occasions, Bloom highlights how Muslims are being marginalised by government policy, whether deliberately or not. He warns, for example, that 12,000 Muslims are being put off university every year because Islamic teaching says paying or receiving interest is a sin. The report says: “Given the strength of evidence, it is regrettable that little has been done recently to progress proposals for alternative student finance.” Bloom also says the armed forces are failing to recruit enough people from Islamic backgrounds, pointing to data showing that Muslims make up 0.5% of British forces, as compared with 6.5% of the general population. The report highlights several other areas where Bloom argued that public servants have a poor understanding of religious communities. Police officers and NHS staff, for example, often mistake Sikhs for Muslims or serve halal meals to Hindus. But it also urges ministers to be bolder in tackling abusive practices within religious communities, whether stopping coercive marriages or regulating faith schools , which often slip under Ofsted’s radar.

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The Guardian view on Labour’s plan for the NHS: now build on this beginning

The Conservatives’ stewardship of the NHS over the past 13 years offers an open goal to Labour. In 2010, when Gordon Brown left Downing Street, a record 70% of the public were satisfied with the NHS. Last year, satisfaction with the health service fell to a record low of just 29% . So Monday’s speech by Sir Keir Starmer was timed to coincide with the date when the Tories’ time in office equalled the last period of Labour government. This makes for easy comparisons. In 2010, 2.5 million people in England were waiting for hospital treatment. Thirteen years later, there are 7.3 million . (Around 2 million more are waiting for care in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.) Quoting his wife, who works for the NHS, the Labour leader said the service is not on its knees but “on its face”. The Labour leader’s pitch is that a government led by him will put the health service back on its feet. Specifically, he pledged to reduce deaths from strokes and heart attacks by a quarter in a decade, improve the diagnosis of cancer, and reduce the number of suicides – currently the biggest cause of death in young people. Clearing hospital backlogs by integrating health and social care is the right policy, but its successful implementation has eluded the Tories. Sir Keir says times and technology have changed, and Labour would update the way it cures what ails the NHS. It was good to hear the Labour leader throw his weight behind the principle of healthcare that is free at the point of access, and funded by general taxation. All health systems can be improved and it is reasonable to suggest changes such as replacing primary care partnerships with salaried GPs – partly to deal with emerging shortages as family doctors retire and aren’t replaced. But the emphasis on reform, and reluctance to answer questions about funding, suggest Labour’s spirit is willing but its flesh is weak. Sustained investment will be needed if gaps in the workforce are to be filled. Currently, there are around 300,000 vacancies across health and care in England, and the situation is getting worse rather than better. Sir Keir and his shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, want to empower patients by giving them choices, and tackle regional and racial disparities at the same time. But where there is not enough capacity, choice is an illusion, and evidence shows that where the role of private providers has increased this has exacerbated inequalities , not reduced them. Health policy is not limited to the NHS, and Labour is rightly emphasising housing and air quality. Sir Keir is right to promise to end the advertising of vaping, junk food and sugary snacks to children. A mountain of data points to how socioeconomic determinants – the conditions in which people are born, grow up, work, live and age – influence our health. Labour must be unafraid to speak clearly about this, as well as about acute illnesses. Workforce problems cannot be solved without new funding, which could come in the form of subsidised childcare or housing as well as salaries. These are the challenges facing the country that voters need to understand. It makes sense for Labour to position itself as the party of the NHS. But there is no room for complacency. Even an open goal can be missed.

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This is England in 2023 – where a broken welfare system and a hernia can completely destroy your life

One minute, everything’s fine; you have a job, a girlfriend, a mortgage and a life. Then something happens that threatens all of it. You get a hernia. I’m a debt adviser and work with people who face life-destroying levels of debt, and this is one of the cases I’ve worked on over the years. Jake, a fortysomething tradesperson, had been paying off his mortgage arrears for years. He was in fact a “mortgage prisoner”, unable to switch, and his mortgage had been sold to a high-interest charging company. After a year of steady payments, the company allowed Jake to capitalise the remaining arrears with a new mortgage product in October 2021. A few weeks later, Jake started to experience pain in his groin and tests confirmed that he had developed a hernia and surgery was required. He joined a post-pandemic NHS waiting list , but kept working, as there’s no sick pay when you are self-employed. The pain got much worse. More tests established there was a second hernia. Jake was in agony, on serious painkillers. Carrying on working was no longer an option. In February 2022, savings depleted, Jake claimed universal credit (UC). If you are too sick to look for work, you also have to claim the additional “limited capability” element, or you could be sanctioned for not meeting your “claimant commitment”. Another form, another assessment, more waiting. The first UC payment takes five weeks, so Jake applied to his local household support fund for food bank and energy top-up vouchers, and received a three-week subscription to the Penny Pantry. The Penny Pantry works like this: you pay £3.50 a week and you get to choose 10 items, including fresh fruit, bread and meat. The average value of the goods is about £25, so it’s great value. The unwritten Penny Pantry rulebook is a must-read for newbies, so let’s quickly write it. Don’t turn up a couple of minutes before opening time. The queue will have been forming for hours and, with every person in front of you, the pickings get slimmer. You will be grateful whatever you get because it’s food, it’s cheap, and it will keep you alive, but do try to get there a couple of hours before it opens to have any hope of choice. Or, like Jake, you could end up with “depressing” tinned chilli which does nothing for your wellbeing. Jake got his first UC payment of £311.30 in April. By then his mortgage had gone unpaid for three months. That same month saw energy prices increase. He spent £40 every week topping up his prepayment meters. More than half the UC was gone already, leaving £138 a month to cover his TV licence (£16), water (£15), travel costs for hospital and jobcentre appointments (£35), mobile phone (£20), and TV and internet (£45). This left him with £7 for food. For a month. By June, Jake was still waiting for an operation and for his assessment to see if he was unfit for work. He also claimed personal independence payments (Pip) as his condition had limited his ability to live normally for six months. Both applications were rejected (eventually) with Jake found to be fit for work. The following month, Jake had an operation. Unfortunately, after all that waiting, it wasn’t successful. More tests showed that one of the hernia repairs hadn’t worked, and he went straight back on another surgery waiting list. Fast forward a couple of months and depression had swallowed Jake up. Friends weren’t around any more. Relationships suffered. It was lonely. Only the mortgage company regularly kept in touch. In November, Jake hit the magic nine months of claiming UC continuously to be eligible to apply for “support for mortgage interest” (SMI), a secured loan from the government to pay a percentage of your mortgage while you claim UC. The mortgage company was threatening to start repossession action due to arrears so these payments couldn’t come soon enough. Jake completed the SMI application three times. The Department for Work and Pensions kept rejecting it because there were pages allegedly missing. It took another three months to establish that it was scanning duplex forms in single-sided, thereby losing half the application each time. (The mortgage company struggled to believe this.) Twelve months on, Jake is still waiting for surgery, therapy, the results of benefit appeals and SMI payments. But he is still fighting. Hernias should not become disabilities; they should not make you severely depressed, ruin your social life and jeopardise the roof over your head. But this is England in 2023. The welfare state isn’t a safety net that catches us when we fall on hard times; it’s cheap tissue that you plunge straight through before hitting the ground. Don’t rely on the system you have paid into for so many years. Don’t think about the incompetence and indifference of those whom you may have to rely on: the people who wield all of the power and never have to visit a Penny Pantry. And don’t, whatever you do, get a hernia. Amy Taylor is a debt adviser and chair of Greater Manchester Money Advice Group Jake’s name has been changed

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NHS England mental health trusts record 26,000 sexual abuse incidents

Karen (not her real name) was in her bedroom on a psychiatric ward when a male nurse sexually assaulted her. It was during the pandemic and she had been sectioned for her own safety following a long history of mental ill health. “I was in my pyjamas, sat at my desk, and he exposed himself and masturbated in front of me,” she says. “I screamed and threw a chair between us. I probably only managed to actually say no because I’d been in therapy for a year prior to that incident.” Karen is not alone. A joint investigation by the Guardian and the British Medical Journal has found that thousands of vulnerable mental health patients have reported claims of being sexually abused in NHS hospitals. Data released following freedom of information requests to NHS trusts in England showed that 35,606 “sexual safety incidents” were recorded in hospitals between 2017 and 2022. The term covers a spectrum of behaviours, from abusive remarks to rape, allegedly perpetrated by staff, patients or visitors. Three-quarters of the reports – 26,434 – were made in mental health trusts, and nearly 2,500 of the alleged incidents of sexual violence and misconduct were by staff on patients. Experts have warned that this phenomenon is a symptom of a system that is underfunded, understaffed and where it is easier to hide abuse. This is compounded by the fact that inpatients at mental health hospitals tend to stay much longer than those admitted to hospital for physical illnesses. Andy Bell, chief executive of the Centre for Mental Health thinktank, says: “Closed institutions, where many patients are sectioned and in locked wards, are sadly more likely than other hospitals to place people at risk of abuse. “Most staff working in inpatient mental health wards work exceptionally hard to help people to recover in a safe and compassionate way. But there are chronic staffing shortages, too many facilities are outdated, and bed occupancy levels in many wards are in excess of safe levels.” Rob Behrens, the parliamentary and health service ombudsman, said: “We know that not only do mental health patients often not feel safe when receiving care, but they are not told how to complain about their experiences. If people are not empowered to speak up about their concerns, problems of safety will continue, and the situation will not improve.” Too often, victims are not believed or concerns about their credibility and ability to withstand questioning in court mean that perpetrators of sexual abuse against mental health patients are less likely to be convicted of their crimes. Elizabeth Duncan, a partner at Slee Blackwell solicitors, says this makes legal action extremely difficult. “I have not had a single case involving sexual assault of a psychiatric patient that has resulted in a successful criminal prosecution or even a charging decision being supported by the CPS,” she says. The former victims’ commissioner Vera Baird says the Guardian/BMJ investigation shows that the NHS is failing to protect vulnerable patients from predatory staff. “There’s a section of people who can be raped at will, and nothing happens. They just don’t get any justice, because all those reservations [about mental health] stop [the investigation] from going forward.” Karen agrees. She says that when she reported her abuse, the other staff thought she was making it up. “Nobody believed me. They did nothing about it at all. Apart from saying that every person had to come into my room in pairs, because they were accusing me of making a false allegation.” Jess (not her real name) from Colchester, Essex, feels she could not get justice after reporting being molested as an inpatient at the Lakes, a mental health unit run by Essex Partnership university NHS foundation trust. She says a male health care assistant offered to give her a massage and a hug. Despite saying no, he pinned her to the bed and stuck his hand down her top. Jess reported the assault immediately to the hospital and the police, but the member of staff was allowed to stay at work, before absconding, exacerbating her distress. She was awarded compensation and an apology from the trust in response to her civil claim over the assault and the trust’s failure to investigate properly. The Leigh Day solicitor Cat Rubens, who represented Jess, said: “Too often, the safeguarding procedures and reporting systems are opaque and difficult for victims like Jess to navigate. “Trusts are public bodies with responsibilities under the Human Rights Act to properly investigate allegations of sexual assault against mental health patients. When they fail to do so properly, they risk breaching Human Rights duties towards patients, as well as damaging the public’s trust in the healthcare profession.” Following its 2018 report on sexual safety in mental wards , the Care Quality Commission now expects all mental health trusts to have a sexual safety lead, as well as “robust processes to identify and report sexual safety risks, mitigate those risks and ensure learning is acted on in response to any incidents”. Yet less than a quarter of mental health trusts have a dedicated sexual safety policy, the Guardian’s investigation found. In January, the government announced an inquiry into patient safety in mental health hospitals following a series of scandals in which vulnerable patients were abused or neglected. But experts said ministers must go further. “[The review] must be followed by urgent and concerted action to protect people from abuse in our mental health care system,” says Bell. “That includes reforming the Mental Health Act so that patients have more safeguards and more of a say in how they are treated when they are most unwell.” Meanwhile, the long-term mental and physical impact on victims can be devastating. Jess says she can’t move on, as the experience has made her PTSD worse. “The trauma I went through is always there. Even now, I still have some flashbacks and I can get panicky,” she says. “I would find it very hard to go anywhere as an inpatient again, because I just feel so let down by the mental health system.” The psychological trauma of her abuse in 2021 nearly cost Karen her life. “It’s made all hospitals feel incredibly unsafe,” she says. She was admitted to hospital this year with a pulmonary embolism, but had put off seeking treatment. “I should have gone before, but I was too scared of being abused,” she says. “It could have been fatal and I’m lucky to be alive. Even so, I spent the whole time terrified of any male staff on the ward.” Karen is adamant that she will never go back to a psychiatric ward. “I would rather kill myself than risk being sectioned into hospital again, such is my phobia about the risk of sexual violence in hospital and the way I have been treated/accused when trying to seek help from those charged with caring for and protecting me.” An Essex Partnership university NHS foundation trust (EPUT) spokesperson said: “We offer our sincere apologies for the distress experienced following this incident in 2018. “Any form of sexual misconduct is completely unacceptable. We take all reports of inappropriate behaviour extremely seriously and clear systems are in place to ensure all reported incidents are recorded and investigated swiftly.” A spokesperson for the CQC said: “While the majority of health and social care services are delivered in a safe environment, we know that more can be done to ensure the sexual safety of both staff and people receiving care, especially the most vulnerable.” The CQC is committed to “tackling closed cultures which may prevent people from feeling safe or empowered to report incidents”, she added. “There is also more to do to ensure that sexual safety incidents are reported and recorded in a consistent way that allows data to be shared and investigated more easily in order to understand and address risks to people’s safety.” An NHS spokesperson said: “As part of NHS England’s mental health safety improvement programme, we commissioned the National Sexual Safety Collaborative for mental health and worked alongside the Royal College of Psychiatrists to produce sexual safety standards. “We are now working to support frontline services to implement these improvements as part of a £36m investment in learning disability, autism and mental health inpatient services.” Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222 in England and Wales, on 0808 801 0302 in Scotland , or on 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland . In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html

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‘Like Nagasaki’: devastating wildfires will only get worse, new book warns

The wildfire that barrelled towards the northern Canadian city of Fort McMurray in 2016 was far more destructive and ferocious than anything anyone had ever seen. The apocalyptic blaze vaporized buildings, moving so fast it seemed gasoline had been poured on the ground. Twinkling embers that fell from the sky ignited anything they touched. The fire, dubbed The Beast, proved to be Canada’s costliest natural disaster, totalling more than $9bn in damages. It obliterated much of the city’s infrastructure and displaced thousands of residents All of the forecasts and hourly weather information about a wildfire approaching Fort MacMurray in 2016 were correct. But even though officials took the fire seriously, there is little they could have done, said writer John Vaillant. “Officials based their response on prior experience. But no one could quite believe how fast that fire moved,” he said. “And what climate change is promising us and showing us over and over again, are things we’ve never seen before.” The world has entered an unprecedented era of wildfire danger, Vaillant argues in his upcoming book Fire Weather: A True Story from a Hotter World which chronicles the devastation of Fort McMurray and warns of a hotter, more volatile future. The book comes at a grim milestone for the province of Alberta, as officials issue a state of emergency and thousands flee large blazes – the worst start to the season since 2016. On Monday, the province’s premier requested federal assistance as more than two dozen wildfires burned out of control. More than 30,000 residents have been forced to flee their homes and sustained hot weather is expected to remain in the province for at least a week, complicating efforts to combat the fires. “There is no question that this is a challenging time,” said premier Danielle Smith. “Tens of thousands of people have been forced from their homes and their jobs. They’re leaving behind all they own.” Already, nearly 350,000 hectares have burned in the province this year – far greater than the 800 hectare average. Alberta is no stranger to wildfires, fighting thousands of blazes each summer. The biggest fire ever measured in North America was Alberta in 1950. But in his book Vaillant describes a new type of wildfire, one that burns hotter, larger and more aggressively – and is becoming increasingly common. “Fires are natural. What isn’t natural is something that cauterizes the landscape . Entire houses, 50-tonne objects, volatilize [convert into combustible gases] in five minutes,” he said. Boreal forests, which span much of the northern hemisphere, have historically been a damp biome, full of bogs, creeks and swamps. But for decades, a climate trending towards warmer, drier summers means many of those wet areas have dried up, leaving a tinder-like ecosystem. Vast swaths of burnable forest and land collide with the reality that when the larger, more unwieldy fires burn, they can create their own weather systems, called pyrocumulonimbus clouds . In 2017, fires in British Columbia and Washington state produced five simultaneous pyrocumulonimbi, which eventually joined into one weather system. The next year, Vaillant witnessed a rare and incredibly powerful fire tornado in Redding, California. “It was like looking at Nagasaki. I’ve never seen destruction like that. It was profound. It was absolutely shocking. And most people have never seen it. They can’t envision it, they don’t understand it.” In places where fire is a common part of the landscape, bigger blazes are happening with greater frequency. California’s 10 biggest fires ever have been in the last two years. Even places that don’t normally experience wildfires are seeing their skies clouded with ash. In 2017, Greenland experienced a rare wildfire . “It’s a polar ice cap, surrounded by tundra that’s only exposed for a few weeks a year. Fires like that have never happened,” said Vaillant. That same year, every single European country had wildfires. “That’s also never happened. There’s a ton of firsts – but they’re all the wrong kind of firsts.” Vaillant’s previous books, The Golden Spruce and The Tiger, have looked at the complex and often destructive effects humans have on the natural world. In Fire Weather, he describes how fire has long underpinned global societies, protecting, comforting and feeding humans for thousands of years. But no amount of human-made fires comes close to the vast scale of burning fossil fuels in the present day. “Fire is complicated. And we have to be able to deal with the fact that that little blue flame on the stove is the same chemical reaction that has driven 30,000 people out of their homes in Alberta over the past couple of days.” As cities bear the growing cost of the climate crisis, Vaillant warns society has been “lulled through spectacular engineering … and disingenuous marketing” into a sense of ease and comfort with all the widespread fossil fuel combustion. Few cities represent that clash more than Fort McMurray, a city of wealth and industrial power set deep in the hinterlands of Canada’s west and an oil industry that has seen first-hand the devastation wrought a from a highly flammable landscape. “This is a city of winners and conquerors. They do everything that they set out to do and have more heavy equipment than probably just about anywhere on Earth. If you want to change the planet, you can do it in Fort McMurray,” he said. That change is a sprawling series of scars etched deep into the face of the earth, part of industry’s relentless push for more oil. The oil sands operations, which use heavy machinery to mine the landscape for bitumen and steam to extract oil, is visible from space. “If a city as wealthy and well equipped and as far north as Fort McMurray can burn like that, when there’s still ice on the riverbanks, and ice on the local lakes, then a fire like this could probably burn anywhere,” he said.

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Mike Burrows obituary

In 1992 Mike Burrows, who has died age 79 of cancer, watched Chris Boardman win the 4,000-metre individual bicycle pursuit final at the Barcelona Olympics. Boardman was riding the Lotus 108 model that Mike had developed with Lotus Engineering , and the combination won Britain its first Olympic gold medal in the sport for 72 years. Mike’s background as an engineer lay in running his own company in Norwich in the 1970s, producing packaging machines. When his car broke down he took to cycling, devising his own recumbent bicycles and tricycles, with the rider lying back for optimal aerodynamics and having the pedals in front, rather than below. He considered that the bicycle’s established form was too widely taken as given, to the detriment of innovation. The increasing interest in a wide range of human-powered vehicles in the 1980s liberated his imagination to the point that he could joke: “I’m not the best bicycle designer in the world, I’m the only bicycle designer in the world.” His breakthrough came from looking beyond the metal – usually steel – tubes that bicycles were conventionally made of. A friend’s father in the aviation industry supplied him with some off-cuts of carbon fibre. Impregnated with resin, this could be moulded into a strong aerodynamic shape, ideal for track racing. The term monocoque is used for a structure whose loads and forces are held together within a single skin, and Mike said that the imaginative leap needed for his novel vehicle came from seeing a sculpture by Barbara Hepworth. When, in 1985, the British Cycling Federation put Mike’s monocoque bicycle to the sport’s governing body, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), based in Switzerland, it was rejected. But Mike’s friend Rudy Thomann, who worked for Lotus, got the car manufacturer interested, and in 1990 approval was secured from the UCI. Unlike most people in the bicycle industry at the time, Mike paid constant attention to aerodynamics. The wind-tunnel testing of the Lotus bicycle indicated time advantages against a regular bicycle similar to those by which Boardman went on to victory over the German pursuit world champion, Jens Lehmann. The 1992 triumph was not celebrated by the UCI. Mike appreciated concerns that expensive bikes built for rich-world athletes gave unfair advantage, but was convinced that if an event such as the Tour de France could use his faster machines, built on monocoques and aerodynamics, for even its prologue or a time trial, it would showcase the bicycle as a cutting-edge vehicle of the future, rather than of the past. Boardman rode the Lotus to a time-trial victory at the Tour in Lille in 1994, setting a record average speed that stood for more than two decades, convincing both Mike and the UCI that each was right. That year Mike was recruited by the bicycle manufacturer Giant in Taiwan, from where he oversaw a quieter design revolution, creating the Giant TCR (Total Compact Road) model that has influenced every road bicycle since, perfecting geometries so that the same frame could be made to fit riders of different heights. The development allowed greater standardisation and thus commercialisation of road bicycles, with no compromise in frame rigidity and power. He also worked on mountain bikes and the Giant Halfway folding bike. In 1996, the UCI produced the Lugano Charter, in effect a formal response to the success and controversy engendered by Mike’s radical designs. It ordained that the sport of cycling should be one of athletes, rather than engineers, and so put down rigid engineering limitations that were the antithesis of Mike’s quest for greater efficiency and speed. As he put it: “I left Giant in 2000 because the UCI was stopping me building better bikes. In the pro scene they are now all production-only.” After returning from Taiwan, Mike focused on recumbent bicycles and tricycles, seeking further aerodynamic gains. He was a stalwart of the British Human Power Club , organising race track days for club championships, and took pleasure in getting faster each year by virtue of engineering gains that could outstrip his own ageing. For all that he loved going fast, a pursuit of efficiency motivated him more than speed, and convenience was central to his affection for the engineering opportunities the bicycle afforded. I came to know him through efforts to commercialise the 8Freight, his cargo bicycle named after an old British Rail engine and designed with a relaxed position and steering intended to ensure that everyone – couriers, parents on school runs, gardeners carrying tools and earth – could take easily to it. He believed that bicycles offered the possibility of a better, more efficient society. Mike was born in St Albans, Hertfordshire, where his father was a cabinet maker who later opened a toy shop, enabling Mike to play with model planes. After leaving school at 15, Mike worked as a machine engineer, married his wife, Tuula, and in 1969 moved to Norwich to work on boats used on the Norfolk Broads. His first engineering success was a machine that packed individual bags of crisps into multipacks, and he set up his own business. An engineering perspective that came from outside bicycle design was often credited for his future willingness to slay its sacred cows, a mission that became a defining feature of his life’s work. All this was realised in a workshop that was a place of easels and heavy machine tools used if Mike needed to make or modify a part. He always wore overalls and wooden clogs, classical music played, and an archive of newspaper clippings, memorabilia and the bikes themselves gave the air of a living museum. When out birdwatching in the Norfolk countryside he was still open to engineering inspiration. His book Bicycle Design: Towards the Perfect Machine (2000), went through a number of editions, its title encapsulating his commitment to the vehicle he loved. He is survived by Tuula and their son, Paul. Mike Burrows, bicycle designer, born 17 April 1943; died 15 August 2022 This article was amended on 28 August 2022. An earlier version stated that Rudy Thomas got Lotus interested in the monocoque bicycle - his surname has been corrected to Thomann.

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Why rumours of BBC Radio 2’s demise might be overstated

Does losing half a million listeners mean BBC Radio 2 is in trouble? While headlines scream that older listeners are deserting the popular radio station after the departure of Paul O’Grady and Vanessa Feltz – soon to be followed by Ken Bruce – rumours of its demise are overstated. A radio station operating on such a big scale – with more than 14 million listeners, compared with fast-growing commercial rivals such as Greatest Hits Radio with 4.4 million – will inevitably see rises and falls in its Rajar figures every year. And rumours of a shift to appeal to a 90s-loving younger demographic of “mood mums” might also be overstated. “Radio 2 will continue to be a multi-generational radio station that serves a 35-plus audience, a target audience which hasn’t changed in decades,” says a spokesperson. When it comes to presenters, Radio 2 has no duds, from Zoe Ball’s Breakfast Show to Sara Cox’s bouncy tea-time party. Ex-Radio 1 DJ Scott Mills is already bedding in brilliantly in the 2-4pm slot: it’s hard to find a better-paced and more authentic show on radio. And when it comes to warm personalities, Radio 2 has the king of mood-enhancement Rylan Clark, who shepherded listeners through lockdown and beyond with his easy chat and upbeat pop. All good ingredients for a radio station, but there’s no doubt that commercial radio is having a moment and making bold strides to gain ground as some older listeners struggle to connect with Mills and the gang. If they’re looking for a new home, those 50-plus youngsters have two places where they’re very welcome: Boom Radio and Greatest Hits Radio, which made headlines by signing the beloved Ken Bruce last month. Boom has just doubled its audience in a year to nearly half a million, which is a real achievement for a niche radio station where DJs, including the legendary David Hamilton, broadcast from their homes. One of Boom Radio’s founders, David Lloyd, is clear about its appeal. “We don’t see ourselves as an ‘oldies’ station, because to us the songs are not oldies – they’re just great pieces of music. We’re not stuck in a timewarp, we sprinkle in newer songs as well,” he says. “GHR tends to target under 60s, whereas we go for young people who happen to be over 60, so between us we can catch those who fall out of Radio 2. There’s nothing wrong with targeting younger people, but you can’t serve people who are both 35 and 65.” Ex-Radio 2 DJ Simon Mayo presents GHR’s Drivetime show and he’s in no doubt about what his audience wants. “Most of our listeners can listen to all their record collection on their phone, so if you’re going to listen to the radio you want a host who’s going to be good company,” says Mayo. “You need a presenter who’s considered a friend behind the microphone, who makes you feel better than you did when you turned the radio on.” And Mayo, like his stablemate Mark Goodier, knows how to deliver on that brief, backed up by a playlist of familiar songs from the 1960s to 1990s, plus regular features. Mayo’s Confessions, which has been exposing listeners’ darkest secrets for more than 25 years, is still a regular part of his show, while Goodier hosts the daily Top Ten at Ten, an addictive guess-the-year quiz that rivals Bruce’s PopMaster for fiendishness. As strong as commercial rivals are, Radio 2 still has so much to be upbeat about. While Boom and GHR’s line-up is predominantly white and more likely to be male, Radio 2’s is more diverse, with Trevor Nelson and DJ Spoony (both in their 50s) bringing banging tunes. And last weekend, Tony Blackburn celebrated his 80th birthday on air, proving that there’s still room for a veteran DJ with an unrivalled knowledge of soul music from every era. But the real winners are Radio 2’s older listeners – both current and lapsed – with more high-quality broadcasters targeting them than ever. The subheading and text of this article were amended on 2 February 2023. An earlier version said that Steve Wright had left Radio 2. Although he no longer does his afternoon show, he continues to present Sunday Love Songs.

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Imports of ivory from hippos, orcas and walruses to be banned in UK

Ivory imports from hippopotamuses, orcas and walruses will be banned under new legislation to protect the endangered species from poaching. The Ivory Act , passed in 2018, targeted materials from elephants, but a loophole meant that animals other than elephants, including hippos , were being targeted for their ivory. After a consultation, ministers have decided to tighten the ban to include all ivory-bearing species, so these will not be poached to fill the gap in the trade left by the elephant ivory ban. Ministers said the hippopotamus was the species most at risk from the trade in its ivory after elephants, and the other species were already threatened by the climate crisis. They added that continued trade in their ivory could exacerbate these threats and make their long-term survival less likely. The elephant ivory ban faced immense challenges , with antique traders taking the government to court in an ultimately unsuccessful battle to squash the legislation. Trudy Harrison, biodiversity minister at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), said: “This is a pivotal moment in delivering one of our key manifesto commitments on international conservation. “The Ivory Act is one of the toughest bans of its kind in the world and by extending greater legal protections to five more species, we are sending a clear message the commercial trade of ivory is totally unacceptable. “The UK has long led the way in conservation and our ban shows continued global leadership in doing all we can to protect the world’s most endangered species.” Ivory is used for ornaments, musical instruments and jewellery, among other items, and animals are poached across the globe for profit in what can be a lucrative market. The hard, white material comes from the tusks and teeth of animals. It consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. Charities welcomed the ban. Frances Goodrum, head of campaigns and programmes at the International Fund for Animal Welfare UK, said: “[We] are encouraged by early indications that the ban is having a significant impact on the trade in elephant ivory, yet other species are still poached globally to meet an unnecessary demand for ‘luxury’ ivory products, including the hippopotamus, walrus, narwhal, sperm whale and killer whale. “We welcome Defra’s decision to extend this powerful legislation, which will go a long way in cracking down on a damaging trade. Today is a good day for conservation and a step change towards international commitments to safeguard our natural world.”

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Not seeing the trees for the wood: willow shortage could spell end for Kashmir’s cricket bat industry

For more than 100 years they have been making cricket bats from Kashmir’s willow trees. Along the highway leading to the town of Sangam in the Indian-administered region, dozens of little workshops display neat stacks of the roughly hewn pale wood outside. Inside, the willow is painstakingly fashioned into cricket bats, which are then shipped across India and to other cricketing countries around the world. The humid environment and fertile soil make the area ideal for willows, which traditionally provide the material for cricket bats. Kashmiri willow bats have a reputation for quality and skilled bat-makers here have refined their craft since the 19th century. But the plantations created decades ago are not being replaced by farmers, who are turning to more lucrative crops with greater resilience in a changing climate. Many have replaced willows with poplars, a faster-growing and more profitable source of timber, which is used to make plywood. Now the blocks of willow wood, known as clefts, are becoming harder to obtain, putting the whole industry here and the 100,000 people employed in it at risk. Kashmir’s cricket bat-makers blame the Indian government for not intervening and for in effect turning its back on the industry. However, Mehmood Shah, regional director of industries and commerce, denies there is a timber shortage and claims that the government is stepping in to plant willows. According to Mehraj-ud-Din-Malik, regional director with Kashmir’s state forestry department, the problem has been exacerbated by climate change, which has made the land drier and so less suited to growing the trees. “Willow trees require damp land, but the amount of such area has decreased,” he says. “The farmers are preferring plantations of poplars. This is because the farmers are not able to earn a profit and the wood suppliers buy willow at dirt-cheap prices. “Farmers are staying away from willow plantations on a large scale because of this and there is not sufficient land available for willow plantation.” One of the valley’s most established bat manufacturers is Gr8, which started making unbranded bats for other manufacturers in 1974. Its owner, Fawzul Kabeer, decided to develop his own brand that would adhere to international standards in 2010. His proudest moment came in 2021, when his bats were approved for use in the T20 World Cup by the Oman Cricket Board. Several players used his bats and the following year Junaid Siddique, a Pakistani-born cricketer who plays for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) national cricket team, hit the longest six in the 2022 World Cup using a Gr8 willow bat . “We have been providing cricket bats to 17 cricket-playing nations, including Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, UAE and a few others,” says Kabeer. “We provided a cheaper alternative to the English willow bat. But this shortage of willow could shatter our hard work and dreams in just a decade.” Sign up to Global Dispatch Get a different world view with a roundup of the best news, features and pictures, curated by our global development team after newsletter promotion He estimates that the existing plantations on government land will not be able to sustain manufacturing demand for more than a few years if replanting does not increase soon. “If the government does not start afforestation of willows in those patches, over 400 bat manufacturing units will suffer huge losses. “The skilled or unskilled labour associated directly or indirectly with the bat industry would be rendered jobless, and there would be no bats produced in the valley,” adds Kabeer. Mehraj-ud-Din Dar, a trader, agrees, “Farmers in our region would put willow on their farms, but right now no one is satisfied to do so, even though there is a growing need. To preserve this sector of the economy, the government must take this issue seriously.” Farooq Ahmad, a willow supplier, says the plywood industry is also buying up the remaining stocks of willow. “We prefer to sell our stock of willow to plywood factories as they do not fish out rough logs and give better rates than bat manufacturers,” he adds. “Farmers plant poplar trees because profit rates in willow are minuscule.” According to India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry, there are 400 bat manufacturers in southern Kashmir, in an industry worth 1bn rupees (£9.7m) a year. The shortage of willow has already put numerous small-scale producers out of business and cut the productivity of others. The demise of the industry would hit the area hard. But Shah rejects claims that the government is not replanting enough. We have adequate availability of willow trees across Kashmir valley, and accurate data of willow patches will be available with the social forestry department ,” he says. Those within the industry are looking for solutions, planting their own willows where they can and investigating the use of other materials but are not confident that Kashmir’s famous cricket bats will survive.

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Wagner Group and Russian army ran like ‘rats into a trap’ in Bakhmut

BAKHMUT bled Wagner and the Russian army badly. Fighting building by bloodstained building cost thousands of lives on both sides . Worst losses were Russian . Who controls the city is not as important as how much it cost to win it and how much it will cost to hold . As Wagner blasted their way to its western edge, Ukraine launched a lightning counter-attack in fields to the north and south. It now holds high ground on Bakhmut ’s flanks. Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin says he wants his men out by Friday. Any hapless Russian reserves sent to take over Wagner positions will be hit by artillery from three sides — and may soon be cut off. Russian soldiers sent to Bakhmut will drain resources elsewhere on the front — and may open a crack for another offensive. Bakhmut has become a symbol of Ukraine’s heroic resistance. Its legend will outlive the ebb and flow of this month’s battle — just as bomb-blitzed Mariupol remains a source of pride for the way it was defended, long after its ruins were captured. Bakhmut was supposed to fall in August, then by Christmas, then by February — then in time for Putin’s Red Square parade this month. Russia’s only tactic is artillery and cannon-fodder infantry charges. Ukraine’s Gen Syrskyi said Wagner ran like “rats into a mousetrap”. The trap may not yet be fully sprung.

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Next Generation 2022: Why scouts select players based on ‘the relative age effect’

Last month the Guardian released Next Generation 2022 : 20 of the best talents at Premier League clubs. As with previous years it selected “the best youngsters at each club”, this time among those born between 1 September 2005 and 31 August 2006, an age band known as “first-year scholars”. As in earlier seasons it makes for interesting reading. But the brain works in mysterious ways, and I did something different this year: I looked at the month of birth of these players. Thirteen were born in the first semester of the selection year (1 September 2005 to 28 February 2006) and seven in the second semester (1 March 2006 to 31 August 2006). Almost twice as many were from the first half. The Guardian has released its selection of the best youngsters at Premier League clubs since 2014, and I decided to continue counting months of birth: 2021 was also 13-7; then, counting back to 2014, it was 15-5, 14-6, 14-6, 14-6, 15-5, 16-4 and 18-2. Fascinating. The Next Generation 2022 scholars were not an outlier. For the 180 players across nine seasons, 136 (more than 75%) were born in the first semester and 44 in the second. By quarter of birth, September to November had 74, December to February 62, March to May 28, and June to August 16. There are almost five times more players from the first quarter than the last, and similar skewed amounts by month of birth: September, 29; October, 29; November, 16; December, 21; January, 25; February, 16, March, 14; April, 10; May, four; June, five; July, five; and August, six. What does this mean? Obviously that if you want a child who will be on this list you had better make arrangements so he is born as soon as possible after 1 September. But be careful not to miss the window of opportunity by being too impatient. It could be almost impossible for your child if he arrives prematurely and before 1 September. The reader will recognise there is nothing wrong in the way the Guardian selected these players. This is how professional scouts select players, too. In scientific literature in sports and schooling, this is known as the “relative age effect”. Researchers have found that cut-off dates for school eligibility can have a long-term impact on student performance because it can cause some students (those born just after the cut-off date) to be older and more mature than others (those born just before the cut-off date) when they begin school. Skills accumulated in early childhood complement later learning, which means that relative age differences at the start of formal schooling can be long-lasting if relatively older students are better positioned to accumulate more skills in the early academic years because of their cognitive and emotional maturity advantage. The idea that arbitrary eligibility cut-off dates can have sizeable consequences is even stronger in sport where, in addition to cognitive and emotional development, physical development plays an important role. After all, scouts choose children according to what they see. Youth sports are organised by age brackets according to a cut-off birth date. In most European youth football leagues the cut-off date is 1 January. In the UK it is 1 September. Players born just after the cut-off tend to be stronger, bigger, more mature, and have more coordination, greater self‑esteem and better decision-making skills than players born at the end of the eligibility year. Since several months of development can make a huge difference in these variables, these players tend to perform better in a given game, watched by scouts, and are more likely to be identified as talented than those born in the later part of the eligibility year. Once selected, they benefit from having more high‑quality coaching, deliberate practice and experience, and are given more opportunities to further their development. A skewed birth distribution over-representing individuals born early in the selection year has been documented extensively for many other sports, (including rugby, tennis, baseball and ice hockey), in many countries, and was found to be prevalent in youth and senior competitions. The effect remains even to the top level. Of course, talent does not depend on exactly when you were born, so the talent detection system shows a huge relative age‑effect bias. This is easy to understand. What is harder to understand is why it persists. Why is it that when you look at Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A and other academies, they all exhibit a large relative age bias? Why do clubs not do anything about it? Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend’s action after newsletter promotion Identification of talent is difficult for scouts. But do scouts know they have a bias? If not, shouldn’t they be aware of their bias? How about senior staff such as sporting directors and heads of recruitment? A head of scouting at a Premier League academy recently told me: “Scouts are not in touch with reality often. Bizarre.” That was my experience as head of talent ID at Athletic Bilbao from 2011 to 2019. Perhaps it has something to do with the way scouts and coaches are assessed. Usually, youth coaches want to win the under‑10, under‑12 or under‑14 local championship and get promoted to older age groups. Or maybe impatient sporting directors do not value what their own academies produce as much as they should. After all, they can always dip into the transfer market and buy talent at a later stage. This could explain why the relative age effect goes unaddressed. But say the club could produce five more players from their academy per decade, this could represent, easily, a saving of more than £100m. So there is an incentive to address the issue and its persistence is hard to understand. This represents a huge opportunity for clubs. As for armchair fans, to be on the safe side they should enjoy the World Cup in Qatar, have a pleasant festive season, then go full speed ahead in the new year. Ignacio Palacios-Huerta is a professor at the London School of Economics and a past head of talent ID at Athletic Bilbao.

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Police to get powers to ban slow walking in traffic amid Just Stop Oil protests

Suella Braverman is to give police the power to ban slow walking in traffic by protesters, as Just Stop Oil enters the fifth consecutive day of using the tactic in the latest phase of its climate protest campaign. The home secretary said a statutory instrument to the public order bill, which passed its final stages in parliament on Wednesday, would stop what she described as the “selfish disruptive protesters [who] are wreaking havoc in people’s everyday lives across the country”. Just Stop Oil’s supporters have carried out slow marches on busy roads in the capital every day this week, as it renews its campaign after climate rallies in Westminster by Extinction Rebellion last weekend. The group, which calls on the government to stop licensing new oil and gas projects, adopted the tactic at the end of last year, after supporters racked up long lists of arrests and charges for a series of dramatic and disruptive protests. Police were forced to weigh the disruption of the marches against the protesters’ rights to political speech. A change to the definition of “serious disruption” would empower police to intervene when protesters used the tactic, the Home Office said. “This will give police the clarity they have asked for on when to use their existing powers to break up the slow marching tactics protesters have used to halt traffic across the UK,” it said. On Friday morning, 64 Just Stop Oil supporters marched from locations in Ealing, Putney and Mile End, the campaign said. According to the Metropolitan police , in each case protesters moved out of the road after 45 minutes to an hour when officers enforced orders requiring them to only protest on the pavement. In Mile End, a man was escorted from the scene by police after snatching banners from activists and dumping them by the side of the road, MailOnline reported. Just Stop Oil denounced the government’s move. “We won’t be deterred by changes to protest laws or how strongly the police enforce those laws,” a spokesperson said. “Just Stop Oil supporters understand that this is irrelevant when we face mass starvation, mass death and the collapse of ordered human society.” Richard Clark, 49, a Just Stop Oil supporter from Cornwall, said: “The government and their paymasters are engaged in a genocidal attack on the young and those least responsible for climate breakdown around the world. I will support those fighting our corrupt and wanton system, even risking my own freedom and livelihood as a teacher.” Sign up to First Edition Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning after newsletter promotion The public order bill will create a number of new protest offences and grant police a number of new powers over demonstrations. A new criminal offence of interfering with key national infrastructure carries a 12-month potential sentence. Protesters who lock themselves together, or to objects or buildings, could face six months in jail. Police will have new powers to stop and search protesters they believe are setting out to cause “serious disruption”. A new kind of court order will allow the authorities to ban people involved in protest groups from being in certain places at certain times, from being with particular people, or from using the internet in certain ways. The UN’s high commissioner for human rights this week called on the UK to “reverse this legislation as soon as feasible”.

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The extraordinary bucket list of Laura Nuttall who died of brain cancer at 23

Very few people would be able to say they had commanded a Royal Navy ship, met Michelle Obama and presented a television weather forecast. But Laura Nuttall from Barrowford in Lancashire did not let a terminal cancer diagnosis stop her from ticking off an impressive bucket list before her death on Monday at the age of 23. Diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer, Nuttall said she had chosen “to do something about it and stay positive” when she was given only 12 months to live in 2018. “What sort of legacy will I leave if I just focus on myself and not others?” Nuttall said in 2021 while accepting an award for her charity work. “The day I was diagnosed with brain cancer, I just thought: ‘I’ve got two options … I could say all right, that’s fine, I’m going to sit here and die, or am I going to do something about it and stay positive?’ – and that is what I chose to do.” She was in her first university term at King’s College London in 2018 when, after a routine eye test, she received a diagnosis of glioblastoma multiforme, the most aggressive form of brain cancer, which is incredibly rare in young women. Further tests found she had eight tumours and she was given just a year to live. Nuttall went through several rounds of treatment, including invasive brain surgeries, to extend her life and she was able to finish her university degree and graduate with a 2:1 in politics, philosophy and economics. In 2021, Peter Kay performed two sold-out Q&A sessions at the 3,500-capacity Manchester Apollo, called Doing it for Laura, to raise money for her treatment. The money allowed Nuttall to travel to Germany for specialist treatment that was unavailable in the UK. She had previously had extensive cancer treatment including surgery to remove a tumour, only for it to come back days later. She described her bucket list as “never ending, because when it ends, I end”. Her mother, Nicola Nuttall, paid tribute to her daughter, writing that Laura had died in the early hours of Monday morning. She added: “She was fierce and tenacious to the end and it was truly the honour of my life to be her mum. “We are devastated at the thought of life without our girl, she was a force of nature.” Sign up to First Edition Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning after newsletter promotion I'm heartbroken to share the news that we lost our beautiful Laura in the early hours of this morning. She was fierce & tenacious to the end & it was truly the honour of my life to be her mum. We are devastated at the thought of life without our girl, she was a force of nature💔 pic.twitter.com/8nQvIZZ4zh Brain Tumour Research, a charity Nuttall had fundraised for, said it was “deeply saddened” at the news as “yet another brave soul lost to this devastating disease”. “Along with her family [Laura] did so much to raise awareness of this disease, and our thoughts are with her family at this time.” Fewer than 5% of people with Nuttall’s condition survive longer than five years. The life expectancy without treatment is three months. Went fishing with Paul Whitehouse and Bob Mortimer (she caught a pike, they caught nothing). Graduated with a 2:1 in politics, philosophy and economics from Manchester University. Drove a monster truck, a bus, a 650-tonne crane, a tractor, a digger and a tank (after her driving licence was revoked due to seizures). Met Michelle Obama. Had a pub lunch with Peter Kay and danced on stage with him in front of 10,000 people. Had a song dedicated by Johnny Marr. Drove a London Underground tube train. Completed a skydive. Presented the weather on the BBC (“I thought it would be quite easy, but it’s really not”). Commanded a Royal Navy warship. Spent a day with police tackling a simulated riot. Travelled to the US. Went on safari in South Africa. Watched the Women’s Euro final at Wembley and received a video message from the England captain, Leah Williamson. Went sailing around the west coast of Scotland with the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust. Visited the Uncle Joes’s Mint Balls factory in Wigan and also the Heinz factory, receiving tins with her name on. Had a video chat with Malala Yousafzai. Visited the Royal Mint and pressed a 50p coin. Had tea at the Ritz with newscaster Sophie Raworth. Ran a marathon.

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Outspoken Recep Tayyip Erdoğan challenges both Washington and Moscow

The reaction of leading Arab states to Donald Trump’s hopelessly unbalanced Middle East “peace plan” , unveiled last week, was muted and mealy-mouthed. It seems the leaders of Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE would sooner abandon the Palestinians than upset their ludicrous Iran-bashing ally in the White House. Yet one regional leader stood out. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey’s president, was furious at what he saw as a US-endorsed Israeli land-grab – and said so. “Giving Jerusalem to Israel is absolutely unacceptable. It ignores Palestinians’ rights and is aimed at legitimising Israel’s occupation,” he said. The Arabs’ silence was “pitiable” . Erdoğan has long cast himself as a champion of the Palestinian cause. It’s a popular stance with religiously conservative Sunni Muslim supporters of his Justice and Development party. It’s at one with his support for Hamas, the Islamist group that rules Gaza, and its leader, Ismail Haniyeh, whom he feted in Ankara last month . The US, EU and Israel regard Hamas as a terrorist organisation. Erdoğan is also sympathetic to the Muslim Brotherhood , originally an Egyptian Islamist movement of which Hamas is one of many offshoots. He broke with Egypt after the Brotherhood’s Mohamed Morsi was removed as president by an army coup in 2013. His views, shared by Qatar, have fed his feud with autocratic Gulf monarchies which fear the Brotherhood’s pious, levelling influence . In truth, Erdoğan, in power now for nearly 20 years, styles himself an everyman leader for all Muslims. Last year, he was named the world’s “most influential Muslim” in a survey by the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre in Jordan. And this role dovetails neatly with his nationalistic, so-called neo-Ottoman foreign policy. It is this policy of re-establishing and expanding Turkey’s historical regional influence that is drawing Erdoğan into ever greater conflict with the west. His defiance of Trump over Palestine is of a piece with Turkish actions in Syria and Libya, his collaboration with Russia and Iran, and his regular clashes with the EU. Maybe Erdoğan, following recent electoral setbacks , hopes to regain domestic popularity by boosting Turkey’s international profile, but it’s more likely that his message of militant pan-Islamic revivalism comes from the heart at a time when Muslims are trapped in multiple global conflicts, from Idlib, Tripoli and Aden to Assam and Xinjiang. Whatever his motives, Erdoğan is widely deemed a troublemaker in Europe and the US – and the trouble is moving closer to home. Turkey’s attempt to muscle in on energy exploration in the eastern Mediterranean, bolstered by a controversial deal with Libya’s official government, has enraged Greece, Cyprus and their EU allies. France said last week it was dispatching warships , including an aircraft carrier, to the area following an appeal from Athens. Greece’s defence minister, Nikos Panagiotopoulos, warned of possible “military engagement”, citing rising tensions across the board. But Emmanuel Macron, France’s president, focused his wrath on Turkey’s intervention in Libya’s civil war. In keeping with the wider regional power contest, Erdoğan has sent militia fighters to help the Tripoli government repulse eastern-based rebels supported by his Arab rivals, including the Saudis and Egypt. This, presumably, was the quid pro quo for the energy deal. “I want to express my concerns with regard to the behaviour of Turkey at the moment,” Macron declared. “We have seen during these last days Turkish warships accompanied by Syrian mercenaries arrive on Libyan soil. This is an explicit and serious infringement of what was agreed in Berlin” – a reference to last month’s stalemated Libyan peace conference in Germany. Russia has also sent mercenaries to Libya, to boost the rebels. As this multiparty proxy war intensifies, a key concern for Macron and Moscow (and the US) is the support given by hardline Libyan Islamist groups to Tripoli’s leaders. Yet energy interests aside, the prospect of a Muslim Brotherhood-style regime securing power in Libya must be part of the attraction for Erdoğan. Turkey’s military intervention in northern Syria last autumn marked another instalment in Erdoğan’s expansionist project – the establishing of control over Syria-Turkey border territory from Idlib and Afrin to Iraq. His twin aims were to punish Kurdish “terrorists” – whom the west greatly values as allies – and prevent another refugee exodus. It was not to fight Isis or like-minded jihadists. But having infuriated the Pentagon and his European allies, Erdoğan is now in dispute with Russia, his erstwhile Syrian collaborator, over its current, murderous regime offensive in Idlib , the last rebel-held province. Erdoğan says Vladimir Putin, Russia’s president, has breached a Turkish-enforced ceasefire agreement there. By ordering Russian airpower to assist Bashar al-Assad’s forces in attacking civilians, thereby sparking a new northwards refugee surge , Putin is guilty as charged. The row shows how Erdoğan, who angered the US by purchasing Russian missiles, is ready to challenge Moscow too, if it advances his agenda. “Russia tells us they fight against terrorism. Who are terrorists? The people defending their own lands?” Erdoğan, a backer of Syrian rebels since 2011, said last week. Now he is threatening a new incursion . Are refugees his only concern? Idlib is the last Syrian refuge for thousands of rebel jihadists with ties to al-Qaida and Isis. Is Erdoğan attempting to save them, too? Erdoğan’s condemnation of Trump’s peace plan is unlikely to be his last word on the subject. In 2018, he accused “brutal” Israeli security forces of employing “ methods similar to the Nazis ” against “our Gaza brothers”. Erdoğan is nothing if not outspoken, often offensively so. But at least he sticks to his beliefs and says what he thinks.

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Junior doctors are key to fixing the NHS crisis

The government needs to be more proactive in relation to the crisis happening in our healthcare system ( NHS bosses urge Steve Barclay to accept Acas role in dispute with junior doctors, 12 April ). Junior doctors are instrumental to fixing the crisis. They progress to being the leaders of services and systems in the future, and at present recognise the disparity between themselves and other equivalent professional salaries and work-life experiences. They carry much debt (funding five or six university years), and there is no doubt that pay has been eroded. The job is also harder, carries more risk and is often less professionally satisfying than 10 years ago. Is this reflective of current government ideology, or poor central decision-making? I suggest that consultants are adequately remunerated, but the junior tiers are not, and the current situation is highly detrimental to the future of healthcare. Dr Sara Motion NHS paediatric consultant My child is a doctor, and I wish they weren’t. I have spent the last six years watching them coming close to being broken mentally and physically by punishing rotas, lack of support, workloads, too much responsibility too early, Covid and more. They are bright, personable and committed, and I am sure they are a good doctor. But it makes me sad to think that this is how they have spent their 20s. I don’t think it has to be like this. As a former HR professional, I have been in despair at the way young doctors are treated as ward fodder rather than humans. If something doesn’t change, my child’s generation of doctors will be burned out before their careers ever really get going. Name and address supplied An 18-year-old school leaver taking a job on minimum wage will earn £262,475 in 13 years. A medical student of the same age will earn nothing for five years and run up £46,250 of tuition fees. A newly qualified junior doctor will draw £280,208 basic salary in their first eight years of work. It is only during the 13th year after leaving school that the doctor exceeds the earnings of the minimum wage earner. Perhaps the British Medical Association should hold out for minimum wage and no tuition fees? Dr Tony France Retired consultant physician The secret consultant ( 11 April ) says that as a result of the junior doctors’ strike, patients will die, “and yet the government must ultimately hold the responsibility here. Without the steady erosion of services and working conditions over many years we would not have been led to this point.” The same is true of the criminal justice system. For the first time since I started as a barrister more than 40 years ago, vulnerable people – defendants and victims – have had their trials cancelled because there are no barristers to conduct them as a result of the shocking decline in pay and working conditions. There is a clear pattern to this government’s wrecking of once efficient publicly funded professions. It is unforgivable. Paul Keleher KC London The government’s argument for s crapping the cap on bankers’ pay was that they operated in an international labour market and that it was important to retain their skills in the UK. How curious that the same argument has not been applied to junior doctors and nurses. Professor emeritus Nick Gould Bath Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.

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Feasts for the eyes: 10 of the UK’s best pubs, cafes and restaurants with a view

It’s well worth the walk across a stream and over uneven terrain to reach this secluded food hut, less than a mile from the fishing village of Portscatho on Cornwall’s Roseland peninsula. Wooden benches look down on sandy Porthcurnick beach, backed by grassy cliffs, where children splash in rock pools at low tide. The simple lunch menu is chalked up daily, served from midday and eaten alfresco. The chickpea and coconut dal is delicious, (£9) and the Thai fish curry (£13) is made with local shellfish. At pop-up “feast nights”, a single dish, such as Cornish lobster or sticky ribs, is cooked outdoors and served to diners on the sand. hiddenhut.co.uk Ellie Ross The north Norfolk coastal village of Salthouse has long been popular with birders. But anyone will enjoy this spot – between a saltmarsh and a ridge formed during the last ice age – from the beer garden at the Dun Cow. Overlooking strips of marsh, a shingle beach and the North Sea (which brings Mark Rothko block colour paintings to mind), the pub makes the most of local ingredients; try seafood such as oysters (three for £10) and Cromer crab to salmon from the smokehouse in the neighbouring village of Cley (both £10) and saltmarsh beef (steak £27). Don’t even think about leaving without ordering the halloumi fries and wash the lot down with a pint of Woodforde’s Wherry. salthouseduncow.com Mina Holland Just west of Dolgellau, the George III in Penmaenpool sits beside a toll bridge at the head of the Mawddach estuary. Gerard Manley Hopkins was so moved by this hotel and (former) railway station, he wrote a poem in the visitors’ book exhorting others to “spend here your measure of time and treasure”. Now owned by the Robinsons brewery, the menu offers standard pub fare (beer-battered cod £15; steak-and-ale pie £14.50) but the views from the large first-floor windows and the waterside bar are as poetic as ever, with mossy mountains reflected in a seemingly infinite tide of velvety water. georgethethird.pub Rhiannon Batten Bath is resplendent with Cotswoldy gorgeousness, but few places offer food with a spectacular view. The exception is the Hare & Hounds. Only a mile and a half from the centre, this old pub might as well be in the countryside; the breathtaking lookout is over the sylvan Charlcombe Valley to Solsbury Hill (of Peter Gabriel fame). A large garden makes the most of the location; a conservatory and huge mullioned windows bring the outside in, too. Posh pub fare such as pan-fried cod with seafood chowder (£24.50) sits alongside pub classics (a rated Sunday roast for £16), plus pizzas fresh from the garden bar. hareandhoundsbath.com Sarah Baxter It’s a windy road down to the southern tip of the Isle of Man [see footnote], but worth the drive for a kipper sandwich (£7.95) or a cake and a cuppa at the Sound Café, overlooking the churning strait that separates the island from the uninhabited Calf. The latter is a haven for seabirds, with 33 breeding species and many more stopping off on their migrations, while the water between the two is home to seals, dolphins and basking sharks. It’s worth sticking around on clear nights, too: the cafe car park is a dark sky discovery site. thesound.im Felicity Cloake An island off an island in the most northerly part of County Fermanagh’s serene Lough Erne, Lusty is accessed only by boat or by a tiny car ferry from Boa Island – and its remote location is central to its food offering. The dark, green fields of Fermanagh feed its calves, and less than an hour west is the Donegal town of Killybegs, Ireland’s largest fishing port. All the meat and fish is day-fresh and imaginatively presented with Lusty twists on familiar dishes. The seafood chowder with Guinness wheaten bread is a favourite, and as the head chef is from Punjab, the curries are superb. Choose a table on the terrace overlooking the pretty bay. The restaurant’s ethos is that real food is not fast food, and that’s a sentiment that applies to Fermanagh generally. They don’t rush down there. And if you linger too long, Lusty has a range of accommodation options – which means you’ll get to try the breakfast as well. Result. lustybegisland.com Graham Little Returning from a day’s fishing on the River Wye in Monsal Dale, I’m rewarded with one of the finest views in the Peak District, if not in all England. I buy a cornet from Frederick’s ice-cream van in the car park for the viewpoint, and take in the silvery Wye at the bottom of the vale. To the left is the Headstone viaduct, which caused such outrage to cultural critic John Ruskin when it was built in 1863 . “The valley is gone, and the gods with it,” he blasted. The railway the viaduct served is long since gone too, but cyclists and walkers enjoy it as part of the Monsal Trail. When I look out over this wooded valley, I’m more inclined to think of it as “Derbyshire’s Arcadia”. And as the sun sets, I cross the car park for a pint of amber nectar in the Stables Bar of the Monsal Head Hotel . monsalhead.com Andy Pietrasik When it comes to pubs and views, beauty is in the eye of the beer-holder. Some yearn for rural idylls and rolling hills, but, for me, this spartan beer house with its sensational vantage above the River Tyne is unbeatable. On a warm day, you might watch the sun set beyond the Gateshead Millennium Bridge from the two-tier beer garden. But gazing at the Newcastle-Gateshead skyline – the Sage music centre’s silver curves just visible in the distance – is equally compelling from a window seat on a wet, grey afternoon. The Free Trade’s beer range is reliably impressive: 21 pumps, pint from £3.80, and tap-takeovers from high-calibre breweries such as Deya and Marble. Weekly visits from north-east street food stars complete the package. @TheFreeTradeInn Tony Naylor Of all Folkestone’s foodie spots with a view, none channels Mediterranean vibes better than this beachside fish joint. A repurposed shipping container, Little Rock squats right on the shingle, with palm trees, boardwalks, sun sails (requisite on a sizzling lunchtime) and dreamy sea views from its terrace. Working with trawlers operating from the harbour, it focuses on the catch of the day – pan-fried, grilled or baked as you prefer. Or go for local crab, mackerel fillets or pale-ale-battered cod cheeks (£12.50) with tangy, caper-laden tartare sauce. Cold vinho verde and a chilled soundtrack all add to the holiday feel. littlerockfolkestone.co.uk Stephen Emms The Beach House is a friendly cafe with beachside chairs right on Portobello’s promenade. Sitting outside, you have your back to beautiful Georgian architecture and, in front, the two-mile seafront – rippling, golden sands and clean, cold waves (good for swimming) under moody Scottish skies. Go early for breakfast and order the “porty smash” (mushrooms, thyme and avocado on sourdough, £9) and, later, one of its homemade ice-cream sundaes (from £7). An independent town until 1896, Portobello retains its character and is easily reached by the no 26 bus from Edinburgh city centre. thebeachhousecafe.co.uk Caroline Eden This footnote was added on 15 August 2022 to clarify that the Isle of Man is not part of the United Kingdom, as the headline suggests; it is a self-governing British Crown Dependency.

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Anxiety stirs in NSW community as Cadia mine investigated over heavy metals in blood tests

Dozens of concerned residents gathered in the central west New South Wales village of Millthorpe this week, armed with questions. Most of them live within a 15km radius of the Cadia goldmine, one of the largest goldmines in the world, which is now under investigation by the NSW Environment Protection Authority after community members, including children, reported blood tests with high levels of heavy metals . One by one, the residents entered the town’s museum to sit down with officials from the EPA and NSW Health . No media were allowed inside to record or photograph the community information session, which was organised by the EPA. Outside, under a clear blue sky, the residents gathered in small groups discussing their concerns. Some wanted to know if they needed to have their water and blood tested. Others spoke of how dust plumes, blown from the direction of Newcrest’s Cadia goldmine, would settle in their gutters, vegetable gardens and even inside their homes. The dust had been a concern since 2018, the same year the mine’s tailings dam wall was breached. There were stories of water from kitchen taps turning a reddish brown after a big rain event that had caused sediment in rainwater tanks to be mixed with fresh water. Tony Chappel, the chief executive of the NSW EPA, said Tuesday’s “drop-in session” in Millthorpe was a valuable opportunity to listen to the concerns of residents and answer questions. “More than 40 members of the community attended and asked a range of questions about testing of their water tanks, blood sample results, and the EPA’s actions,” he said. “They were appreciative we were there to listen to their concerns and discuss the actions we’re taking into the mine and their activities.” While some residents said they felt confident that the EPA was investigating the issue, the majority of people Guardian Australia spoke to did not feel reassured after speaking to officials, and were left with many questions unanswered. Suzanne and Steve Johnston were among the first locals to arrive. They live 2km out of Millthorpe towards Cadia and rely on rainwater for drinking, household purposes and to water their vegetable garden. But before Monday the Johnstons were unaware that people had reported elevated levels of heavy metals in their drinking water and bloodstream. Suzanne said their grandchildren often visited their house and were now questioning if it was safe for them to come over. They had also planned for Suzanne’s elderly mother to move in with them in six months but were concerned about putting her health at risk. Cadia’s acting general manager, Mick Dewar, said the company took its environmental obligations and concerns raised by “some members of the local community” seriously. “We have and will continue to work openly with them and the EPA on their concerns raised,” Dewar said in a statement on Monday. “As a longstanding member of the local community, with many of our workforce, also local residents, we see ourselves very much part of this community. Nothing is more important than people’s health and safety, and we remain firmly committed to making sure that we meet all of our statutory obligations and do it in a way that is aligned with our values.” Sign up to The Rural Network Subscribe to Gabrielle Chan’s fortnightly update on Australian rural and regional affairs after newsletter promotion Stuart Riles lives near Forest Reefs, less than 10km from Cadia goldmine. He also knew little about the water and blood tests results until recently. If it wasn’t for a friend calling him the morning of the information session, Riles would have missed it. “I had been blissfully unaware,” he said. “I just feel that there’s been a major breach of trust here. “It makes me cross but then part of me says, ‘Well, what did you expect, Stuart?’ In reality, when has a mining company not left a legacy other than an environmental disaster?” Riles, who was a former deputy principal and now works as the community liaison officer at Canobolas high school in Orange, said he felt rushed out of the meeting before he could finish putting his questions to the officials. “I had two separate people come along and hurry me up and get me out of there, saying the line up was big, but where’s the line?” he said. “I think they just were rescuing the guy I was speaking to.” The Johnstons left with mixed emotions, carrying a bundle of information booklets and questionnaire forms. Steve Johnston, who works for the NSW Department of Planning, said when they asked the officials if they should get their water and blood tested, they were told that decision was theirs to make and it was recommended to “periodically” have their rainwater tank cleaned and maintained. Johnston was sceptical as to why the EPA’s media team were there and not allowing for conversations between community members and officials to be on the record. “If there’s nothing surprising about this … why were they there?” he said. Johnston said he would have felt more reassured if journalists were inside with them and the officials. Both Riles and the Johnstons said they planned to get their blood and water tested. The EPA said it would continue to provide support and information to the Cadia community while the investigation continues. Do you know more? Contact Fleur.Connick@theguardian.com Sign up for the Rural Network email newsletter Join the Rural Network group on Facebook to be part of the community

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After Brexit, if Sunak really wants a ‘science superpower’, he must fix these three things

Another day brings yet another cabinet reshuffle to a weary Britain, but to the university community, it was welcome news to see “science” getting a dedicated department and a seat at the cabinet table. It fits with Rishi Sunak’s pledge to make the UK a “ science and technology superpower ” and was partially in response to a cross-party House of Lords science and technology committee report on the UK’s “somewhat incoherent” international science policy. Across the world, Britain is renowned for its universities and world-leading research. A scholarship to study at Oxford, the world’s oldest English-speaking university, is what brought me from tropical Miami to England, and then Scotland. Sadly, the past decade has seen the UK university sector losing its lustre for students and faculty. While it’s easy to talk about making science a priority, supporting world-leading research requires action and concrete steps that go beyond rhetoric. To make the UK a “science superpower” means addressing at least three crucial components. The first is the people who make up universities: students, researchers, teaching fellows, support staff, lecturers and professors. Brexit, and the associated drop in immigration, means that we are attracting less top talent at all levels than before leaving the EU. This is clear from the student numbers: roughly 40% fewer EU students applied to UK universities in 2021 than in 2020. Instead, these students are largely going to EU countries such as Germany and Ireland, as well as Canada. Similarly, Brexit – and the wider tightening of immigration policy – has made it difficult to hire (and retain) international faculty members. This has ramifications for science collaboration and research. Building a research team is similar to building a top football team: you recruit the best players with the right skill set, expertise and training, regardless of nationality. It’s like trying to manage Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool FC with heavy incentives to only hire British players. The programme I’ve been running, the Global Health Governance Programme , which does research on pandemic preparedness and outbreak management has had team members from Tanzania, India, Ghana, Germany, Japan, Australia, Nigeria, New Zealand and Canada. The second component is research funding: grants are essential to be able to conduct experiments, hire staff, do fieldwork, publish papers, do public engagement, meet collaborators and fund students. Funding from the EU – which has always been a vital source of research income – has plummeted. Cambridge University’s funding from a large European research programme has fallen from £62m a year to the grand total of £0. The loss of EU research funding has real challenges if you’re trying to do the daily work of “science”: you have to write grant applications and get funding to do the projects you think are important. But if there are fewer pots available to apply to, it becomes harder to explore new avenues of research (what politicians like to call “innovation”). And this adds to the pressure faculty members feel to leave Britain and head to the EU or North America where more resources are available. The third factor is worker morale, as the cost-of-living crisis makes daily life difficult. ONS data reveals that lecturers have experienced the largest decline in real wages, second only to teachers. This has led to 18 days of strikes organised by the University and College Union . However, pay isn’t the only focus of the strikes: they are also about increased workload and precarity for many early career researchers on short-term contracts. This is not unique to the university sector: it’s true also of healthcare workers, teachers and many other public sector employees. People who work in universities, whether developing a vaccine, measuring the impact of climate change or understanding the origins of the universe, do it because their work brings meaning and value. At the core of science are individuals with a passion to study a particular issue, improve knowledge and teach future generations, do research to further the field and improve the human condition. This is why people who have studied for seven or eight years are willing to work long hours for relatively low pay in relation to their expertise and knowledge, but due to the cost of living crisis an increasing number of talented people are considering whether science is something they can afford to go into, and others may be ready to give it all up and work in the private sector. The simple fact is that science in Britain is in a weaker position because of Brexit. This has been compounded by the general Tory-linked disdain for “experts ”, public sector employees and poor management of the economy. Sunak can talk all he wants about science and universities in Britain – but until the real issues are confronted, it’s just lip service. Prof Devi Sridhar is chair of global public health at the University of Edinburgh

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Humans able to understand other apes better than thought, research suggests

We may not be able to strike up a conversation, debate politics or chat about the meaning of life with other great apes, but our ability to understand one another might be greater than once thought. Researchers have discovered adult humans can discern the meaning of gestures produced by bonobos and chimpanzees, despite not necessarily using such gestures themselves. “It seems that this is an ability that’s retained in our species as well [as other apes],” said Dr Kirsty Graham, first author of the research from the University of St Andrews, in Scotland . Writing in the journal PLoS Biology , Graham and her colleague, Dr Catherine Hobaiter, said that intentional communication, in which an individual conveys meaning to another, is a feature of human languages but is rarely seen in other species. Given it is implausible that intentional communication cropped up in humans through a single recent genetic leap, it is probable a simpler form was used by our evolutionary ancestors. Indeed, modern ape species today are known to use gestures to communicate their goals. Now the researchers have revealed that adult humans show a surprising level of understanding of such gestures. The results emerged when the pair analysed data from 5,656 participants who took part in an online game in which they were shown 20 videos of chimpanzees and bonobos making 10 of their most common gestures, such as “groom me”, “give me that food” and “let’s have sex”, alongside an illustration of the gesture. While some of the gestures had one meaning, others had several – with the correct meaning dependent upon the context of the gesture. Participants were randomly allocated either to watch the gestures with text on what the apes were up to before the gesture – such eating or resting – or without this information, and were asked to select the correct meaning from four possible answers. The findings showed that participants did better than chance at correctly interpreting the meanings of chimpanzee and bonobo gestures, whether or not contextual information was given, with an average success rate of 57% if information was given and 52% if not. What was more, the results held whether or not the gesture had just one, or multiple, meanings. “The gestures and vocalisations [of our ancestors] likely co-evolved into the modern human gesture and human language that we have today,” said Graham. “Studies like this, and [the research in infants], give us more confidence in saying that this is probably something that our last common ancestor [with other great apes] would have been able to do.” While the team say it is unclear quite how such gestures are understood across great ape species, including humans, one possibility is that understanding is hardwired, while another is that it arises as a result of a similar body, social goals and capacity to figure out meaning – possibly helped by some gestures resembling the desired outcome. “It [could be] more of an inherited capacity rather than an inherited vocabulary,” Graham said.

GOOD

Inflation may be down, but my food bill is shooting up and Britain feels more toxic than ever

Two weeks ago I started a new job, working with young people who are being exploited or at risk of being dragged into county-lines activities . The problem is becoming more prevalent in schools, colleges and pupil referral units (PRU) – children are doing it to other children now. I feel I can help in a positive way. And although I was hoping for a permanent job with holiday pay, this is an ongoing contract initially for three months. But the pay is better than my last job and I’m starting to plan for the future. I want to go on holiday. I haven’t had a holiday since before the pandemic. I had booked to go to Morocco, but it was cancelled during lockdown. Now my passport has expired and I will have to pay £82.50 to renew it; the fee went up in February. I plan to start putting money aside each week. My new job is full time but I don’t have to go into an office every day, so I save a bit of money on travel. I’ve still got my other jobs: my Saturday reparation work, my casual youth work, my evening youth work. It’s a lot, but it’s good because many people are doing that now – I’ve always had lots of jobs so it doesn’t feel like a chore to me, it feels normal. Still, I need a holiday. I need to get out of here. Have you seen the price of butter and everything that’s gone up ? It’s crazy. I did some shopping the other day, I spent £100 because I’ve reduced my shop to every two weeks. I have to cook more often now, so I’m back doing that on a Saturday and Sunday. It seems to me that some shops have increased prices during this cost of living crisis out of greed. Inflation is supposed to be going down. The shopping should reflect that but prices keep going up. My rent has gone up as well. My council tax has gone up. My phone bill has gone up. Broadband has gone up. Everything has gone up. Everything about the UK feels so toxic at the minute. I feel as if I’m constantly on edge. With this racist rhetoric that is coming from the government, I can’t help but feel something bad is going to happen. I feel I could be targeted, with the government not condemning it, which is worrying. I don’t feel comfortable. Before, I used to think: “I’m British, I’m here.” Now, I’m not too sure. I’m thinking of comments like Robert Jenrick’s, when he said that “ uncontrolled illegal migration ” threatened to “cannibalise” the UK’s compassion. What has cannibalism got to do with migrants? Or Suella Braverman reportedly making her views “ very plain ” to Essex police after they removed golly dolls from a pub. Or the Windrush compensation scheme, which is taking too long. It’s a pressure cooker and it’s going to spill over. I don’t think the government understands the level of hate it has stirred up in its constant attacks on brown people. I am not alone in this. I talk to my colleagues. I talk to my friends. Everybody feels the same. A couple of weeks ago I was in Tesco and there was a guy standing next to me. I didn’t know if he was in the queue or not, so I asked him. He looked me in the face, and chose not to respond. These days, my only conclusion is that he didn’t want to answer me because of the colour of my skin. While I can’t be sure why I was totally ignored, what other reason could there have been? I’ve had to go back to basics in order for me to feel good about my life. I’ve had to say: “Sharron, you’ve got a flat, be grateful. Sharron, you’ve got a job, be grateful. Sharron, you’ve got up today and you’re going out and you’re walking and you can see, you can talk, you’re not ill.” I’ve had to go back and appreciate everything from the basics. There is no other way. Sharron Spice is in her 30s and lives in London Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here .

BAD

Warnings over NHS data privacy after ‘stalker’ doctor shares woman’s records

The confidentiality of NHS medical records has been thrown into doubt after a “stalker” hospital doctor accessed and shared highly sensitive information about a woman who had started dating her ex-boyfriend, despite not being involved in her care. The victim was left in “fear, shock and horror” when she learned that the doctor had used her hospital’s medical records system to look at the woman’s GP records and read – and share – intimate details, known only to a few people, about her and her children. “I felt violated when I learned that this woman, who I didn’t know, had managed to access on a number of occasions details of my life that I had shared with my GP and only my family and very closest friends. It was about something sensitive involving myself and my children, about a family tragedy,” the woman said. The case has prompted warnings that any doctor in England could abuse their privileged access to private medical records for personal rather than clinical reasons. Sam Smith, of the health data privacy group MedConfidential, said: “This is an utterly appalling case. It’s an individual problem that the doctor did this. But it’s a systemic problem that they could do it, and that flaws in the way the NHS’s data management systems work meant that any doctor can do something like this to any patient. “If you’re registered with the NHS in England, this could happen to you.” The Guardian has chosen not to name either the victim or the doctor, who is a consultant at Addenbrooke’s hospital in Cambridge . The woman was initially baffled how the medic had come by very personal information about her, her sister and her children that the doctor had then relayed to her ex-boyfriend in the early stages of his new relationship with the woman last July. “The doctor said that she had got it from friends, or from people in her choir or parents at my children’s school. That left my sister and I wondering if some of our close friends had betrayed us as we knew that only a few people knew those details. She had an unhealthy interest in us.” The mystery was solved when at her request Addenbrooke’s gave the woman a detailed audit of all its staff who had accessed her medical records. It showed that the doctor had accessed her medical records seven times during August and September last year. On three occasions, the medic first accessed Epic, Addenbrooke’s own hospital medical records system. She then clicked through to a different records system called GP Connect, which contained detailed notes of conversations her former partner’s new girlfriend had had with her GP about the painful impact of the tragedy and the health of one of her children. On one occasion, the doctor, whom the woman did not know and had never met, rang the victim, asked her name, gave her name and then hung up. The victim assumed it was a deliberate ploy by the medic to show that she had gained personal information about her. “It’s normal to be jealous when your ex gets together with someone, but the doctor’s behaviour was upsetting.” Addenbrooke’s initially denied it was possible for its staff to access GP Connect through Epic. However, in a meeting with the victim Dr John Firth, its deputy medical director, did acknowledge that her full GP records were available. Michelle Ellerbeck, its head of information governance, later emailed the woman to thank her for showing them that it could be done, in case “this enquiry ever comes up again”. Dr Nicola Byrne, the NHS national data guardian for England, advises it how to keep patients’ information safe and use it properly. She said she was “concerned at the seriousness of the allegations” when the patient wrote to her detailing the unjustified intrusion into her medical history. Byrne criticised the doctor’s behaviour as “absolutely unacceptable” and sought to reassure patients who may be worried by the incident by stressing that it was the first time she had heard of a medic breaking the rules on the secure handling of a patient’s medical records in order to gather information about them. However, she left open the possibility that others may be doing the same. “Breaches of confidentiality are absolutely unacceptable. All clinicians should take their professional duties and obligations very seriously. And, given that no case like [this] has ever come to my attention before, I trust that most do,” Byrne said. Sign up to First Edition Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning after newsletter promotion However, Smith said inappropriate access to records has existed for some years and that he knew of two similar cases of what MedConfidential called “the creepy single doctor problem”. Both involved male doctors, one at Addenbrooke’s and the other at a London hospital. In each case, the doctor told a woman on a second date that since they had first met, he had accessed her medical records in order to find out more about her, including health issues she had already mentioned. “Both the women were unnerved and unsettled and couldn’t believe it had happened,” Smith said. Cambridge University hospitals (CUH) NHS trust, which runs Addenbrooke’s, said it had disciplined the consultant but declined to specify what action it had taken, citing the need to protect staff confidentiality. “We take the security of our patients’ information very seriously. To maintain confidentiality, we cannot comment on the details of this case. But we can confirm that it was fully investigated in line with the trust’s disciplinary policy and appropriate action taken,” the trust said. “We have met with the patient to apologise and discuss their concerns and we are extremely sorry for the distress caused by this incident,” it added in a statement. The woman said she was deeply frustrated that neither the police nor the information commissioner had taken any action after she complained that her right to privacy had been breached and that the doctor had broken data protection laws and also that CUH would not tell her what sanctions it had imposed. Cambridgeshire constabulary said the woman had reported that she had been harassed. However, “an investigation was conducted and was filed due to lack of evidence”, a spokesperson said. The information commissioner said it had no power to help the woman and that it was CUH, and not her, that the data breach had affected. NHS England declined to comment.

GOOD

Unionism is in crisis in Northern Ireland - and Sinn Féin is becoming an election-winning machine

Northern Ireland was created to secure an in-built Protestant and unionist majority. When, in the early 1930s, the Ulster Unionist MP Basil Brooke told his constituents not to employ Catholics, Northern Ireland’s prime minister, James Craig, commented: “I would not ask him to withdraw one word he said.” How times change. Last Saturday, Sinn Féin became the largest party of local government in Northern Ireland . The party now has 144 seats across local councils, as opposed to the Democratic Unionist party’s 122. This comes on the back of last year’s local assembly election when Michelle O’Neill, deputy leader of Sinn Féin, became Northern Ireland’s first minister-designate. The nationalist vote outpolled the unionist vote for the first time. Now, Belfast city council, a traditional unionist stronghold , has only 17 unionist councillors out of 60 seats. Historic is the only word for it. The results reflect a fact: Northern Ireland is slowly changing beyond recognition. The census results last year show that Catholics outnumber Protestants for the first time . The younger generation are more likely to be from a Catholic, nationalist background and identify as Irish or Northern Irish, rather than British. The unionist support base is older and gradually shrinking . Crucially, there is a growing middle ground full of voters who identify as neither unionist nor nationalist. This new reality poses problems for unionism in the long term. As a political movement, it needs to broaden support and become more appealing to younger people. Even before the Brexit vote, unionists spoke about the need for reform and reaching across the divide to nationalists. There has been little progress. The DUP is currently boycotting the assembly to protest against the Northern Ireland protocol, a move that has only irritated nationalists and the middle ground more. It is the DUP, paradoxically, that has created the conditions that allowed Sinn Féin to thrive. The latter didn’t go into the local elections talking about a united Ireland, but focusing on the collapse of devolved government and devastating cuts to public services. To take just one example: discretionary support, a crisis loan made to the most vulnerable people, is facing an estimated 75% cut . Sinn Féin, which sold itself as a party for everyone in Northern Ireland, has positioned itself as the leading voice opposing the DUP’s boycott, thus siphoning off votes from the party that used to dominate nationalist politics, the Social Democratic and Labour party. The fact that Sinn Féin also bears responsibility for the collapse of the assembly in 2017 isn’t having an impact on its vote. Many nationalist voters suspect that the real reason for the DUP’s boycott of the assembly is simply O’Neill’s rise to first minister. Unionists, they say, can’t accept “second place”; the old prejudices never die. The DUP only said it would accept holding the deputy first minister post, as opposed to the first minister post, after last year’s assembly election – that hasn’t happened yet and few nationalists believe it will. Voters are turning up to register their anger. Perspective, though, is needed. We aren’t heading for a united Ireland. Sinn Féin may be the largest party of local government, but unionism is still well represented across Northern Ireland. The DUP had a good election, consolidated its position, and didn’t lose a single seat. This is where the importance of the non-aligned Alliance party comes in – it doesn’t take a position on the constitutional question and last week it became the third largest of local government. Neither side in the constitutional debate has won it over yet. The side that wins any future border poll will be the side that promises a better future for Northern Ireland. That hope is sorely needed. This week, for instance, the East Belfast Gaelic Athletic Association club was involved in a security alert , having received threats and intimidation earlier this year. The team’s pitch is close to an integrated primary school and nursery, which had to close as the security operation unfolded. East Belfast GAA is a cross-community team. Its motto is “Together”, the words emblazoned on its crest in Irish, Ulster Scots and English, alongside the Harland and Wolff cranes. This is, seemingly, too much for Northern Ireland’s bigots. It is also a stark reminder of the dark, ugly legacy of our history. The purported attack has been condemned by politicians across the board. We are in a holding pattern that may not last. What happens if the middle ground decides that it is no longer willing to accept a status quo of devolution characterised by long periods of absent government and a declining quality of public services? Nationalists have an answer – a united Ireland – that demographic change may make easier to sell. But unionism? Without a positive, inclusive vision of the union and Northern Ireland, it faces oblivion. Sarah Creighton is a writer and political commentator from Northern Ireland This article was amended on 25 May 2023. Harland and Wolff built the Titanic but not with its famous cranes, as an earlier version said.

GOOD

There's a patient I'll never forget. Their burns and screams still haunt me

The night shift in A&E started off as normal: routine heart attacks, head injuries, road traffic accidents, an array of minor injuries. It was what happened next that has stayed with me for 25 years, long after I left my job as a doctor in the NHS . I can’t remember exactly when the unmistakably shrill sound of the trauma bleep went off, but I do recall feeling a familiar churning in my stomach. Was it excitement? Or was it a sense of foreboding, a warning that something bad was about to happen, something hard to stomach and impossible to erase? I looked up at the arrivals screen: “Trauma, patient moribund, ETA three minutes” were the only clues I had as I walked quickly to the resus room to set up my tray of equipment. One by one, my colleagues arrived; there were no “how are you’s?” or pleasantries, no banter or gossip. There was just an eerie silence as we rushed to prepare so that we could be ready to jump into action as soon as the patient arrived. The anaesthetist arrived and, amid the continuous bleeping of ECG machines, we were quickly given our roles and instructions. The anaesthetist would take head, neck and airway, I was to take IV access and pain relief, the orthopaedics were ready to assess limbs and spine, the surgeon was to assess the abdomen, and so on. I listened carefully as I gowned and gloved up, my hands trembling. What seemed like several long moments later, the paramedics rushed in with the patient on a trolley. The loud, firm, pressured voice of the paramedic said: “Twenty-nine-year old Caucasian male, severe burns to entire body from a house fire, past medical history includes mental health ...” His voice faded as I took in the screaming, writhing body that was attached to a spinal board and covered in head-to-toe burns. The acrid smell of charred flesh and burnt hair still haunted me for several weeks afterwards, and I will never be able to stop hearing the screaming. A familiar feeling descended over me – a calm, determined autopilot where somehow, after repeated exams, courses and emergency experience, I knew exactly what to do. “We need access, morphine and fluids …” I heard the anaesthetist’s firm instructions over the screaming and thrashing as he held oxygen over the patient’s face. The nurse restrained the patient’s arm as I applied a tourniquet above the elbow; the burnt skin came away under my thumb but underneath I felt the familiar give of what I hoped was a vein. I was handed a grey cannula and on a wing and a prayer plunged it into the skin. A flashback of blood showed that access was secured and within seconds his rigid, desperate, clasping limbs suddenly softened and relaxed as the opiates took effect. My colleagues jumped into action to sedate him, secure an airway, carry out limb and abdominal assessments, ventilation and cardiorespiratory monitoring, and place lines and tubes. We worked to stabilise the patient so he could be transferred to intensive care. As the trolley was loaded with equipment and carefully wheeled out of resus, I prayed a silent hopeless prayer. I couldn’t see how he could survive. The debriefing was filled with a stunned silence, as the consultant asked if we were OK. We looked at the floor in what could only have been a mixture of horror and bravado and replied: “Yes.” He spoke but I remember very little of what was said and after a few minutes our trauma team disbanded to go about the rest of our night shift, a part of each of us also scarred and changed forever. I’m not sure why this patient has lived on in my memory. Perhaps it was the fact we were a similar age; at a time when I felt invincible, his life was taken from him. He fought for his life for several weeks, but survived only in my thoughts and the hearts of his loved ones. Years later I was again reminded of him and my own mortality as I myself recovered from mental health issues. My thoughts turn to my friends and colleagues on the frontline of a global pandemic, and I fear for their wellbeing. They are also dealing with trauma, but don’t have the time to process it. In more recent times, debriefing and counselling of healthcare workers has become available but it is by no means routine. My hope is that immediate funding for a national framework of in-house support and counselling will stem the tsunami of mental ill health among frontline workers that I envisage coming, and shed light on the ultimate medical taboo that is the mental health of our healthcare staff. Some details have been changed If you would like to contribute to our Blood, sweat and tears series about experiences in healthcare during the coronavirus outbreak, get in touch by emailing sarah.johnson@theguardian.com In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie . In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org .

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Toxins hidden in plastics are the industry’s dirty secret – recycling is not the answer

Sometimes it feels like we are simply drowning in plastic. Over the past five decades plastic products have found their way into almost every aspect of our daily lives. Global plastic production has reached a total of 8bn tonne – that’s 1 tonne for every person currently on the planet – with plastic pollution expected to triple by 2060 . Current best estimates are that only about 10% of plastic ever produced has been recycled. Despite this, the idea of circular economy in the plastics industry is often cited as the magic bullet: we will simply reuse the plastic we have already made and reduce the impact of plastic pollution. But new evidence points to the flaws in this plan. A report by Greenpeace has found that recycled plastic can be even more toxic, and is no fix for pollution. It is now well known that plastic pollution is ubiquitous across the planet, with evidence of plastic particles being found in the deepest parts of the ocean, from the Mariana Trench to the peak of Mount Everest. There is justified concern about the impact of this pollution, both on ecosystems and human health . However, as an environmental chemist who has been studying plastic in the environment, I am increasingly concerned by a more hidden “invisible” threat posed by plastics: toxic chemicals. It is estimated that more than 13,000 different chemicals are involved in the production of plastics, and many of these have never been assessed for their toxicity. Chemicals are used alongside the plastic polymer itself to create the desired physical properties for different applications: how bendy or rigid you want your plastic, whether it needs to be fire-resistant or resilient to the effects of sunlight, not forgetting dyes and pigments used to give the product the desired colour. In food packaging or products designed for small children, there are stringent regulations of which chemicals can be included in order to reduce or mitigate the potential risk of exposure to toxins. However, this becomes problematic when you start to consider recycled plastics. Plastics collected for recycling will have been made for a variety of different uses (just think what might be in your household plastic recycling bin) and contain a wide range of chemicals used in their manufacture. If you add to the equation the fact that plastics very easily absorb substances that they come into contact with (containers for pesticides, household cleaning products etc), then you have the potential for a cocktail of chemicals, none of which will be removed by the recycling process. On top of this, studies have shown that other toxic chemicals can actually be produced during the physical process of recycling the material. As a result, these toxic chemicals can be transferred into products made from the recycled material, with evidence showing this includes food packaging and children’s toys. Many of the chemicals routinely found in plastics have endocrine-disrupting effects: they can interfere with the way our body’s hormones work. This can cause a range of health problems , including cancer risk and fertility problems. These chemicals also impact on our natural environment, for example affecting the reproductive health of river fish stocks . It would not be realistic to say that we should ban plastic production altogether (at least not in the short to medium term). Arguably, it makes sense to make some products from plastics where a lightweight, durable material is required. That said, substantially reducing our daily reliance on single-use plastics of course needs to be part of the solution. The most important thing is that we control the use of toxic chemicals needed to manufacture the plastics and the first step in doing this is knowing what is actually in the materials in the first place. This information is difficult to obtain because it is commercially sensitive, but I would argue that increased transparency in the industry is needed. I believe that recycling can also play an important role in solving the plastic crisis, but new regulation is needed to control the products that can be made out of recycled plastic where the impact of chemical risk is reduced, for instance putting it into construction materials or building foundations for new roads. The other key aspect to this problem is innovation – we need to design new ways of making these materials where both the polymers and the chemicals used are more sustainable and, most importantly, non-toxic. Where the use of toxic chemicals is unavoidable then there should be more stringent controls over the end-of-life processing, and they should only be used when absolutely necessary. The plastic problem is real and it is serious, but if scientists, industry, governments, and consumers all work together then we can overcome this crisis. We all have a crucial role to play. Dr Charlotte Lloyd is a researcher and lecturer in environmental chemistry at the University of Bristol

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Why the panic over rising immigration? The post-Brexit system is working

The UK public policy landscape is littered with disasters. From record NHS waiting lists to the de facto legalisation of petty crime and serious sexual assault, to the environmental damage created by the privatised water and sewerage companies. With immigration figures on Thursday likely to show that net migration in 2022 was the highest level on record, it’s tempting for politicians and commentators to add immigration to this list – although many have already done so on the basis of what, charitably, are wild, uninformed guesstimates. For Labour, immigration levels play into the narrative that 13 years of Tory rule have broken the country. For the ethno-nationalist right inside and outside government, well represented at the National Conservative conference last week, the idea that our culture and national identity are threatened by an influx of mostly dark-skinned foreigners is foundational. The truth is very different. In fact, the migration statistics reflect something that is rare indeed in the UK right now – a successful policy implemented efficiently and effectively and, even rarer, the crystallisation of a genuine “Brexit opportunity”. First, those figures. Some of the rise is temporary, driven by special visas for those coming from Hong Kong and Ukraine. The relatively low profile of these schemes is itself a success, reflecting the fact that, despite the rhetoric around those crossing the Channel, in the rare cases when the UK does open “safe and legal routes” for refugees, it works well. The impact of rising international student numbers on net migration will also reverse over time, since most will depart after finishing their studies. But what about the new, post-Brexit migration system? On the one hand, the numbers of those coming to work and study have risen ; on the other, businesses, especially those in the food and hospitality sector, continue to complain about labour shortages. Some of this is normal. Anti-immigration politicians and lobby groups, and the Home Office, always complain the numbers are too high, while business, and other government departments such as the Treasury and the Department for Health, always want a more liberal system. But these longstanding conflicts have been brought into sharp relief by two things. First, the current state of the labour market, with labour demand high after the pandemic, and domestic labour supply constrained by the rise in ill health and early retirement. And the end of free movement was always going to reduce the flexibility of the UK labour market. Second, Brexit. The government has been forced to make policy choices around which occupations and sectors should be open to migrant workers. And this in turn has heightened the political saliency of these choices and the associated lobbying. So the complaints from both sides represent, in a political and democratic sense, success: a feature, not a bug. This is also true of the economics. The vast majority of economists, including me, thought Brexit would make the UK considerably less open to both trade and migration with the EU, but somewhat more so to the rest of the world. We were right. We also thought that the downsides of the former would outweigh the upside of the latter. We were wrong. In fact, the new post-Brexit migration system has achieved its key objectives. By ending free movement, it has reduced the flow of relatively lower skilled and lower paid workers to some sectors. But by liberalising migration flows from the rest of the world, it has substantially increased those coming to work in the NHS, the care sector, and high-skilled and high-paid roles in information and communications technology, finance and professional services. It’s too early to say what the overall balance sheet will look like – but as well as alleviating workforce pressures on the NHS and social care sectors, the rise in skilled worker inflows, alongside the rise in international students, is likely to have increased not just GDP but GDP per capita, benefiting the UK economy and public finances. And, most of all, public opinion appears to be intensely relaxed about rising inflows when the economic case is clear. It’s not all good news. So far, at least, there’s little to suggest that ending free movement has pushed up wages in the sectors most affected; indeed, wages in hospitality have fallen relative to other sectors. And it’s strikingly hypocritical for the government to tell employers in that sector to recruit Britons, while in the care sector, where it has far greater control over wages and conditions, it’s encouraging employers to pay migrants a pittance. So what should the government – or the next one – do about immigration? As little as possible. There are some useful tweaks that could be made to the system. But where there are serious systemic problems, as with social care, the lack of good quality training in some sectors, or the excessive dependence of some of our universities on lucrative international students at the expense of loss-making Britons, the solutions are almost entirely outside the immigration system. We’ve had the biggest shake-up to immigration rules in half a century, and, broadly, it’s working. Let’s breathe a sigh of relief and let it bed in. Meanwhile, there are plenty of more urgent things to worry about. Jonathan Portes is professor of economics and public policy at King’s College London and a former senior civil servant Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here .

BAD

The Guardian view on Britain’s missing workers: they may never come back

As the UK sidles gingerly past the pandemic, a big mystery looms. Where have all the employees gone? Unemployment is around its lowest level since 1974 and well over a million positions are vacant. There are plenty of jobs to help offset those eye-watering fuel and grocery bills yet, since Covid hit these shores, 565,000 Britons have dropped out of the workforce . They have become what statisticians define as “economically inactive”, which is to say of working age yet neither in a job nor wanting one. Even as trains sit in sidings, Christmas post goes undelivered and nurses form picket lines, here is a different story about workers – one that gets barely a mention. The country’s workforce has shrunk, with serious implications for employers, inflation, tax revenues and economic growth. Yet the policymakers paid to analyse such phenomena have no idea why it has happened. The governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, accepts that the situation is “ very unusual ”, while one of his deputies, Dave Ramsden, says: “It’s not clear what is driving this participation puzzle.” A giant shrug from Threadneedle Street then, while ministers waited until last month to launch an investigation. They have been beaten by a report this week from a Lords select committee , whose members include Mervyn King, the former head of the Bank, among several leading economists . It argues that the biggest contributor to this rise in inactivity is people over 50 taking early retirement. As one economist told the panel: “They are gone and they are not coming back.” Others, such as the Trades Union Congress, have singled out the role played by long Covid, although that wouldn’t explain why the UK’s continued rise in economic inactivity has not been matched in other rich countries. The UK is also the only state to have exited the EU, and the change in migration systems must also be a huge factor. Ministers now turn away low-paid migrants, while opening their arms to top-earning migrants. That leaves a lot of farms, bars, hotels and restaurants begging for staff. Many will go under. Ask those fresh from their leaving dos why they went, and the answer, as this newspaper has found in its recent series , is that work doesn’t work. Pay cheques don’t cover childcare costs . The Office for National Statistics reported this week that over one in four former healthcare professionals left because of stress , while those exiting social care preferred to focus on caring for their families. For decades, successive British governments have boasted of their easy come, easy go labour market, in which young (and often highly skilled) workers could be imported to make up any shortfall. Truth be told, that system never worked as well for employees as it did for employers, which is why wage growth has been so sluggish for so long, and now the entire model is under threat. Perhaps inflation will force some of the UK’s newest retirees to rejoin the salariat, but in the meantime the policymaking establishment is left with a huge problem it has barely studied – because it ignored all the warning signs.

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Wales’s Alun Wyn Jones retires from international rugby with record 170 caps

Alun Wyn Jones, the former Wales and British & Irish Lions captain and the world’s most capped player of all time, has announced his international retirement, drawing an end to one of the most storied Test careers in the sport’s history. Jones announced his decision on Friday, saying that, at 37 and with 170 international caps to his name, he was “stepping away”. With the flanker Justin Tipuric also announcing his international retirement, Warren Gatland has been dealt a huge double blow before Wales’s World Cup campaign. Both players had been named this month in Gatland’s preliminary 54-man squad for the World Cup but have now ruled themselves out of contention for the tournament in France this year. Between them they have 251 caps for Wales but will not add to those won during a dismal Six Nations campaign that featured the threat of strike action for the England fixture. Jones, who made his Test debut in Argentina in 2006, will go down as the finest player to wear the Welsh jersey in the professional era, having attended four World Cups, won five Six Nations titles and three grand slams. His durability for Wales has been nothing short of remarkable, featuring an astonishing sequence of 23 consecutive starts against England. For the Lions he was equally totemic. He made 12 Test appearances and 10 starts across four tours – his first and last coming against South Africa. Two years ago he suffered a dislocated shoulder in a warmup match against Japan but made a scarcely believable recovery to captain the tourists in all three Tests against the Springboks. Though that series ended in defeat, Jones had the honour of captaining the Lions to victory in the 2013 series decider against Australia. “Having been selected in this year’s preliminary Rugby World Cup squad and after ongoing dialogue with the coaching staff and the WRU, I have decided to step away from the international game,” Jones wrote on social media. “So, after 17 years, I look back on special memories with Welsh greats and future Welsh greats. My grandfather and father both nurtured my passion for rugby in my younger days which has continued throughout. “The opportunity to be professional in the sport I love was a dream come true and to represent my home region, the Ospreys, and clubs within the region, namely Mumbles and particularly Bonymaen who guided me in my favourite years, was beyond special and something for which I am hugely grateful. A huge thank you to the staff and players who have been part of my journey, I wish you all well for the future. “To the supporters, thank you for the support and making the most special occasions even more memorable. To the people closest to me, my family, I couldn’t have done it without you. Through injury, loss and success, you’ve always been there and will be for whatever’s next. Despite all I have accomplished, my children will always be my biggest achievement.” Sign up to The Breakdown The latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewed after newsletter promotion His Ospreys teammate Tipuric, meanwhile, also calls it a day for Wales. The 33-year-old had developed a reputation as one of the most skilful openside flankers in the game and falls only seven caps short of a century for Wales, despite competing with the former captain Sam Warburton for much of his career. He also made one Test appearance for the Lions, coming off the bench in the 2013 decider against the Wallabies. “During the off-season I’ve had time to reflect on my playing career and now seems the right time to step away from international rugby,” Tipuric said. “It’s been a privilege to put on the Welsh jersey and have so many great memories. “I’d like to thank all the players and coaches I’ve been fortunate enough to work with over the years and the wonderful support I’ve received from the Welsh public. I’m looking forward to spending more time at home and putting all my energies into playing for my home region, the Ospreys.”

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The danger of seeing vaccines as a cure-all I Letter

The claim by Moderna’s chief medical officer that vaccines may save millions of lives is misleading and will only fuel the perception that somehow medicine can eliminate death ( Cancer and heart disease vaccines ‘ready by end of the decade’, 7 April ). This in turn leads to a disproportionate fear of death and a belief that dying is somehow a failure. There will be instances in which vaccines could prevent young, active people with a good quality of life from developing cancer, which might be welcomed. But cancer is a disease that is much more prevalent in late middle age and in elderly people. In these cases, a vaccine, while preventing someone from dying from cancer, will enable them to live a little bit longer, by which time they will have developed other ailments. They are consigned to living out their latter years while enduring the many debilitating conditions of old age. In a health service that is stretched financially, we need to be much more realistic about what medicine can and cannot achieve. Scarce resources could prioritise adequate staffing levels and preventive measures rather than hugely expensive new technologies (if no one were obese or smoked, cancer rates would also be vastly reduced). A more timely message for the public would be: we all die and sometimes death is a better outcome than the continuation of life. It is sometimes preferable for medicine to stop curing, but never stop caring. Dr Tabitha Winnifrith Cheltenham, Gloucestershire Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.

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My wife said her ex was a better lover than me – and we haven’t had sex since

I’ve been with my wife for 20 years. For the first few years we had a fairly active sex life , but suddenly, during an argument, she announced that sex with her former husband was better than with me. Since then we have not had sex. I guess this is because I subconsciously believe that if we do, I will be competing to be better than her ex. I have attempted to discuss this with her but she has closed the door on that possibility. She has also moved into her own bedroom because of my snoring. Is there any way back (or forward maybe)? A statement made in anger by one’s partner that is designed to hurt and humiliate is rarely fully accurate. Try not to take this as the truth. What is most relevant is that your wife has pushed you away and withdrawn … and it’s not really about your snoring. As a couple, you have some vital repair work that needs to be done. I would start by seeking some help for your self-esteem, and learn how to best open the conversation. It is likely that you would greatly benefit from couples counselling. Many people reach an impasse in their relationship, then simply retreat and live in misery from then on. Don’t let this happen to you. Remind your wife that you both enjoyed being together once, and implore her to join you in doing your very best to get that back. Pamela Stephenson Connolly is a US-based psychotherapist who specialises in treating sexual disorders. If you would like advice from Pamela on sexual matters, send us a brief description of your concerns to private.lives@theguardian.com (please don’t send attachments). Each week, Pamela chooses one problem to answer, which will be published online. She regrets that she cannot enter into personal correspondence. Submissions are subject to our terms and conditions . Comments on this piece are premoderated to ensure discussion remains on topics raised by the writer. Please be aware there may be a short delay in comments appearing on the site.

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China’s Covid whistleblower in Wuhan reportedly freed after three years

A Chinese citizen journalist who disappeared three years ago while reporting on the Wuhan coronavirus lockdown – and was later revealed to have been detained by authorities – has reportedly been released. Fang Bin was let out of detention on Sunday, according to multiple media reports that cited people close to the family. The reports said he had gone to Beijing, where some of his family live, before being sent back to Wuhan on Monday morning, where he remains under strict supervision. A Chinese human rights monitoring group said neither Beijing nor Wuhan authorities wanted responsibility for Fang, and were pushing him between the two cities. Fang was among a number of Chinese people who were targeted by authorities for publicly reporting the events of the world’s first major Covid-19 outbreak and lockdown. He and fellow citizen journalist Chen Qiushi, disappeared from Wuhan in February 2020. Chen resurfaced in September 2021 in a video broadcast live on his friend’s YouTube feed, saying he had suffered from depression. He did not provide details about his disappearance. Fang’s disappearance was shrouded in confusion and secrecy, with conflicting reports about whether he was in detention, living with his parents under supervision, or under surveillance at a designated location – a form of secretive Chinese detention that allows authorities to hold a person for six months without charge. Several reports have said his family feared speaking out about the case. On Sunday, the Associated Press quoted a source who claimed Fang had been sentenced to three years in prison for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”, a vague charge traditionally used against political dissidents. Radio Free Asia added that he served his sentence at a correctional centre in Wuhan’s Jiangxia district. In December 2020, former lawyer turned journalist Zhang Zhan was sentenced to four years in prison on the same charge, for her reporting in Wuhan. Zhang began a hunger strike shortly after her arrest and supporters have repeatedly expressed serious concern for her health. In 2021 Zhang’s former lawyer told the Guardian that her sentence was “a warning” from the Chinese government, and suggested she was being severely treated in retaliation for her actions. China’s government has consistently been accused of a lack of transparency since Covid-19 was first detected. Wuhan, home to 11 million people, was the first of many cities around the world to go into a strict city-wide lockdown. Traditional and citizen journalists sought to publicise the disastrous outbreak, which overwhelmed hospitals and other services, but authorities sought to strictly control the flow of information, hindering reporting and arresting journalists and whistleblowers.

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Australia might not be in a recession but households are about to feel as though they are

It is a good time to be a big grocery company, or a mining company, or a travel company, or a bank or … well, let’s be honest: as the Bureau of Statistics reported when inflation took off at the start of last year, “Australian businesses benefited from rising prices.” And they have continued to benefit in the year that has followed. Whether it is Jonathan Barrett’s report showing increased profit margins for Coles and Woolworths or the UBS research showing those two companies’ prices have risen faster than inflation, or Qantas being on track to deliver a record profit, or banks recording stonking profits as interest rates have risen – those wanting to argue Australian companies have not used the inflationary environment to increase prices are starting to look a bit naive. One of the worst things about economic debate in this country – and, to be honest, most others as well – is the view that company profits are a pure gain for the economy. More profits are always better. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup But when it comes to retail, banks, travel, or even eventually mining companies through the goods and energy that are produced with their minerals, those profits come from somewhere. And they come from consumers. Households spend, businesses record profits and employ workers, paying them more wages. At least that is how it is supposed to go. And so when companies make record profits, we are reassured by politicians and business groups that all is well. But that neat function is not sustainable if wages and household incomes are failing to keep up with prices. If the graph does not display click here Because people are the economy, not companies. And at a certain point the people cry uncle and stop spending. This is where it starts to get worrying. Amid all the numbers in the federal budget, this month was a rather scary figure regarding household spending. Australian household spending is about half of the entire country’s economy. If households are not increasing their consumption, the economy is in trouble. And the budget expects that very thing to start happening. If the graph does not display click here Since the early 1980s there have been just four years where household consumption growth was below the 1.5% estimated for 2023-24: the 1990s recession, the global financial crisis, and twice during the pandemic. Worse still is that this predicted increase is due to population growth. Take away the expected 1.7% increase in population and per capita household consumption is set to fall for just the fourth time since 1985-86. So, not good. You might think it’s just because we spent so much coming out of the pandemic, and that this is just a natural drop-off. Well, not really. During the pandemic, total household consumption fell, mostly due to a fall in spending on services. Now it is essentially only back to where we would have expected it to be before the pandemic. So, it is not like we are at a point where you would expect it to slow; rather, you would expect it to carry on like before the pandemic. If the graph does not display click here And yet the latest retail figures give us a sign of what is to come. Take spending on food. There certainly has been a huge increase in how many dollars we spend on food – well above what you would have expected before the pandemic: Sign up to Guardian Australia's Afternoon Update Our Australian afternoon update email breaks down the key national and international stories of the day and why they matter after newsletter promotion If the graph does not display click here This would have you believe we are buying food like crazy but, when we look at the volume of food bought, the picture is starkly different: If the graph does not display click here We are now buying about 5% less food than expected before the pandemic. It’s just costing more. This trend, sadly, is not limited to food. During the pandemic we spent like crazy on household goods. But now, not only are we reducing the volume of items we are buying, but also the dollar amount. If the graph does not display click here Retail spending, much like total household consumption, is basically back where it is expected to be: If the graph does not display click here But remember that retail is only part of what households spend their money on. And crucially, the Reserve Bank is doing what it can to make us stop spending on retail. Raising the cash rate 11 times since April last year has increased the average repayments on a mortgage by 79%: If the graph does not display click here The RBA did this to slow household spending, to reduce activity in the economy and crucially, to increase the number of unemployed people. It seems to be working. In a couple of weeks the next GDP figures will be released. Due to our mining exports there is little sense that the economy is about to be in a recession. But if household consumption goes the way Treasury expects, households are about to feel as if they are in one. Greg Jericho is a Guardian columnist and policy director at the Centre for Future Work

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From book butlers to library sleepovers: 10 great UK places to stay for book lovers

Gladstone’s Library in Hawarden is the ultimate destination for those who like to wind down with a bedtime story. Founded by William Gladstone, the former British prime minister, in 1894, the Grade I-listed library is now home to 250,000 works, some 32,000 of them shuttled there in a wheelbarrow by Gladstone himself – at the age of 85 – from Hawarden castle. Run as a charity, the property is the UK’s only residential library, with 26 bedrooms and a bistro as well as those hallowed reading rooms. Doubles from £135 , B&B, with various discounts for students, clergy and members of the Society of Authors , gladstoneslibrary.org Penzance ’s historic Chapel Street has many a literary connection. From the house in which Maria Branwell, mother of the Brontë writing clan, grew up, to the Admiral Benbow pub – said to have inspired the inn of the same name in Robert Louis Stevenson ’s Treasure Island – the street promises rich pickings for visiting bookworms. Not least at Women in Word, the bookshop of the Hypatia Trust. Sitting towards the top of the street, it specialises in women’s fiction and nonfiction and includes titles by local writers. Behind it is a stylish two-bedroom holiday apartment, income from which supports the Trust’s work. Three nights from £373.50 for four people , self-catering, hypatia-trust.org.uk HF Holidays’ new book club holidays are for anyone who has always fancied joining a book club but can’t commit to regular meetings. In addition to a Literary Oxford trip, timed to tie in with the city’s l iterary festival this month, the company is introducing a thriller-based break in the Lake District in October. Also in October is a gothic fiction holiday at Grade II-listed Larpool Hall, just outside Whitby . On the last,participants will spend the weekend reading and discussing three key works as well as heading out on guided visits to relevant locations, such as Whitby Abbey. Three nights from £449pp , full-board, hfholidays.co.uk Cambridge isn’t short on bookish pleasures. The city’s University Arms hotel, however, offers several under one roof. Guests can sleep in suites named after locally affiliated writers such as Lord Byron and Christopher Marlowe, browse bookshelves curated by Heywood Hill of Mayfair, sip a Bloomsbury Boozer in the bar or enjoy afternoon tea in the hotel’s 200 well-stocked library. Since December they have also been able to call on the services of a “book butler”, who will discuss literary interests, preferred authors and themes over a cup of tea then have a bespoke range of titles delivered to their room. Doubles from £1 88 , room only, universityarms.com Close to Peebles , on the Neidpath castle estate, Barns Library is a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment set in an old stables courtyard. All on one level, with a private garden and direct access to a 200-year-old arboretum, it’s a romantic spot. There’s a four-poster bed fringed with silk, an intricate frieze to gaze at from a clawfoot bath, textiles in warm, earthy colours and a wood-burning stove. The name hints at the biggest draw for visiting bookworms: between the dining area and the kitchen a run of bookshelves is ready stocked with holiday reading. For further inspiration, Abbotsford, Sir Walter Scott ’s former home, is 40 minutes’ drive away. Three nights from £330 for four people , self-catering, neidpathcastle.com A Georgian manor house surrounded by graceful gardens and gentle countryside west of Shrewsbury , Whitton Hall has been a B&B for 30 years. Wooden panelling, antique furniture and home-cooked hospitality (dinners can also be arranged with a bit of notice) draw a roster of regulars. Book lovers tend to make straight for the Penguin Bar – so called because it houses a collection of more than 400 vintage Penguin books as well as an honesty bar stocked with bottles sourced from Tanners, the illustrious Shrewsbury wine merchant. The B&B’s six bedrooms can be booked individually but it’s also ideal for book club over-nighters. Doubles from £130 a night with a two-night minimum stay , B&B, whittonhall.com Founded in 1873 by local philanthropist Caroline Wollaston, the Boatman’s Reading Rooms in Deal was originally designed to offer the town’s famous boatmen some scholarly escapism, recuperation or simply an alternative to the pub. Celebrated as heroes by some, opportunists by others, the small-boat sailors worked in tough conditions, doing everything from shuttling people and supplies to and from ships to helping with rescues and recoveries. (Many also did a fair amount of smuggling.) Today the Georgian building serves instead as a refuge for holidaymakers. Along with four bedrooms and front-row views of the sea, there’s wallpaper emblazoned with snippets from Charles Dickens’ Nicholas Nickleby, a small guest library and, for those seeking inspiration for their next novel, a secret tunnel. Two nights from £ 854 for 10 people , self-catering, byquince.co.uk With its ancient tenement setting and high-rise views of Princes Street Gardens and the Firth of Forth, this studio apartment in Edinburgh has all the ingredients for a fairytale weekend away. Owned by bookbinder Rachel Hazell, it has book-themed decor, with book art on the walls, a library of modern Scottish literature and a writing desk. It’s in the old town, looking out to the new, so brilliantly located for exploring the Unesco City of Literature: the Writers’ Museum is on the doorstep, the Scottish Poetry Library is just down the hill. Those short on time can sign up for a Book Lovers’ Tour and take in many of Edinburgh’s literary sites and citations in one 90-minute swoop. From £ 405 for two people for three nights , self-catering, thetravellingbookbinder.com A Scandi-style, timber-clad house near Braunton with two bedrooms, bright windows and a moss--green kitchen, the Author’s Escape was originally built in the 1950s by Tarka the Otter writer Henry Williamson, though it has since been through a sustainable renovation. Williamson used money he won in a competition to buy the land and build the listed writing hut that stands in the garden, complete with battered leather chair and a collection of scratched 78s. Now a peaceful country retreat for holidaying readers and writers, the house comes with a selection of books (Williamson’s among them) and plenty of sun-dappled corners to enjoy them in, inside and out. From £200 for four, self-catering, kiphideaways.com A 19th-century school on North Uist magicked into a modern holiday home, Tigharry Schoolhouse has swapped rows of desks for cosseting bathrooms, tactile kilim rugs, velvety cord armchairs and an honesty bar stocked with locally distilled Downpour gin. As befits a former centre of learning, the soaring open-plan kitchen and dining room also includes one of the best holiday cottage libraries in Scotland, running to 1,000 titles. If you can drag your eyes away from the clouds skittering hypnotically past the property’s large windows, you’ll find everything from local and less-local fiction to works on local birds, wild flowers and cooking. Three nights from £300 for four people , self-catering, tigharryschoolhouse.com This article was amended on 2 March 2023. In an earlier version, the picture illustrating the Author’s Escape in Devon was in fact the studio apartment in Edinburgh. The main image was also changed as a previous image showed a private area in the Gladstone family’s ancestral home, which is not part of Gladstone’s Library.

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‘Roads have disappeared’: Italy begins cleanup after catastrophic floods

Standing outside her home under moody skies in Ronta, a hamlet in the Forlì-Cesena area of Emilia-Romagna, Ivana Casadei considers herself one of the lucky ones. “The water only came as far as our garden,” said the 61-year-old. “But my neighbours’ home was destroyed, so they are now staying with us – there are eight of us living together, and five dogs.” Emilia-Romagna remained on red alert on Sunday after catastrophic flooding that claimed 14 lives and left more than 36,000 people homeless . The emergency, which wreaked havoc across 100 cities and towns – many still under water – prompted the prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, to return early from the G7 summit in Japan. A helicopter that had been attempting to restore electricity to homes crashed close to the badly affected town of Lugo on Saturday, injuring one of the four people onboard. “Frankly, I cannot remain so far from Italy in such a complex moment,” said Meloni, who visited some of the flooded areas on Sunday afternoon and pledged support to help the recovery. Casadei’s home was among the cluster that rescuers were unable to reach until Saturday, first because of strong winds that prevented dinghies from arriving and then because of a landslide that snapped a nearby road in two. One of her neighbours who died was Marinella Maraldi, whose body was swept 12 miles (19km) down the Savio River before being found in Cesenatico, a beach along the Adriatic coast. Maraldi’s husband, Sauro Manuzzi, also died, reportedly as they tried to save their farm animals, leaving behind their only daughter. “Marinella and I gave birth around the same time,” said Casadei. “They were a wonderful couple. None of us have experienced such disastrous flooding like this before – there are some people here who are close to age 100 who say they have never seen anything of the kind.” Most of those left homeless have been put up by family or friends, while others are staying in hotels or temporary shelters. Marina and her husband, whose home is uninhabitable, are among those staying with Casadei. “It hasn’t quite hit us yet,” said Marina, whose only salvaged item of clothing was her wedding dress. “We are in a daze … at the moment we just feel fortunate to be here, and are boosted by the solidarity. But then afterwards, the depression will probably come.” Rescuers, who have been joined by thousands of volunteers, many of them young people who travelled from across Italy , are working relentlessly to clean mud and debris from the streets, or bring food and clothing to people living in shelters and isolated areas. Mountains of furniture lined a street in Ronta as volunteers formed a human chain to lift buckets of flood water from an apartment building. Lorenzo Camagni, 25, said he had not slept in three nights. “Over 2.5 metres [8ft] of water flooded our home,” he added. “I tried to pump the water away for nine hours straight before the rescuers came. My parents are devastated … but then we also feel lucky as so many are worse off than us.” Six months’ worth of rain fell within 36 hours across Emilia-Romagna, one of Italy’s most important agricultural regions. Just two weeks ago, the area was hit by intense storms that killed two people. The floods were preceded by a drought that had dried out the land, reducing its capacity to absorb water. More than 305 landslides were caused by the latest floods, which in turn either damaged or closed off 500 roads. Weather-related disasters have been on the rise in Italy, a country deemed particularly vulnerable to the climate crisis. Enzo Lattuca, the mayor of Cesena, said people in the area were given a warning 24 hours before the storms. But he had trouble convincing some people to leave their homes, particularly those living in hillside hamlets. Sign up to This is Europe The most pivotal stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion “There was still sunshine at that point and many people didn’t think it would happen,” he said. “One woman, who didn’t want to leave her home, told me she only believed it was happening when the water was at her feet.” Showing a photo of a severely damaged road on his mobile phone, Lattuca said: “I don’t even know if it will be possible to repair it.” Paride Antolini, the president of the geologists order for the Emilia-Romagna region, said the “landslide bombing” was “distorting the cartography of the area”. “Many roads have completely disappeared,” he told the Ansa news agency. “In my 63 years I have never seen anything like it, it’s too much even for a geologist.” Areas along the Emilia-Romagna coastline were also affected by the floods, with debris washing up on beaches. Beach club owners have rushed to clean up their resorts in the hope of salvaging the holiday season, as hotels reported many cancellations over the weekend and during the last week of May. “Tourism is obviously fundamental; many of us survive off the summer season,” said Simone Battistoni, president of the union of beach club owners in the Cesenatico area. “But we are ready to welcome people. Until then, 30 of us are working in shifts to bring essential supplies to the people who have been left homeless.” In Riccione, a popular town that was partly affected by the floods, beach club owner Raoul Conti said: “We all worked to clean up the beach in a couple of days, but we feel fortunate, and so our thoughts are with our neighbours just a few kilometres away. Obviously the start of the season has been affected but I don’t think it will influence the rest of the season – people from Emilia-Romagna are stubborn, and we will double down to ensure it’s a good one.”

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Abusers are using a sinister new route to silence their accusers. This is how we fought back – and won

When an abuse survivor finally summons the strength to tell their story, the solicitor’s letter threatening libel proceedings in response lands like a punch. That was how it felt for Nina Cresswell when she first read the letter suggesting she was a fantasist who had invented the account of her assault by the tattooist Billy Hay that she had published on her social media. The letter contained a threat to issue libel proceedings, which was carried out when Nina refused to apologise. Nina had described how she had been violently assaulted 10 years earlier as she left a club after celebrating the end of her second year of university. The police had dismissed her, claiming her account was inconsistent, and refused even to investigate. No one had helped her to piece the events together and she had been too dispirited and traumatised to do anything more. But her conscience would not let her stay quiet. After the #TattooMeToo movement exposed other abusers in the industry, she went public – only to end up as the defendant in a libel claim. Nina is not alone. I have represented numerous women who have spoken out about abuse after the #MeToo movement and then faced the threat of libel proceedings. When a survivor speaks out, the abuser can punish them by co-opting the procedures of the court – after all, the legal starting position is that the allegations are deemed to be untrue and have to be proved by the accuser. The claimant can simply assert that the allegation is a lie and hope that the defendant will crumble. A survivor of sexual violence in a libel claim like this is in a precarious position. Abuse frequently comes with a warning to keep silent, and a denial that anything has happened – a suggestion that it is all in the survivor’s head. She has to prove that what she has said is true without any of the powers of the state usually deployed to investigate and prove sexual assault. Representation in libel claims costs a huge amount of money. She may very well be traumatised and terrified of her abuser, who now has solicitors to write threatening or aggressive letters, and frightened by the prospect of losing everything. Nina faced all of these difficulties. She first represented herself for nearly a year, a period she describes as being extremely dark. When I started representing her, the prospects of success seemed dim because of the burden placed on her to prove her account was true – an account of an attack that took place 13 years earlier, with no witnesses and no other direct evidence. She had no money – we launched a crowdfunder and sought help from a few funders, but for the first year, the chances of seeing the case through to a successful conclusion were not high. Her sole defence at that point was a public interest defence, untested in the context of an abuser/survivor dispute and originally created to protect media publishers, not individuals seeking accountability and to protect others. Nina was exceptionally brave and steadfast, but Hay’s change of story (from “nothing happened at all, you are a fantasist” to “I left the club with you and went to kiss you, but that is all”) was a crucial turning point. From then on she had the basis of proving her account to be true, although she would have to be cross-examined by a barrister acting on behalf of Hay, in front of Hay. She was traumatised by the incident and described herself as freezing when she saw him or anyone who looked like him. How could she give her best evidence under these conditions? The Good Law Project had by this time launched an additional crowdfunder to raise funds for the trial, and it was becoming clear that the documentary evidence, such as it was, was helpful and that Nina would be a good witness, despite the circumstances. The court agreed she could be screened for her evidence and the trial went ahead this February. The trial went better than we hoped and it has resulted in a barnstorming and brave judgment handed down last week, which for the first time has suggested that the protection of other women, and abusers’ accountability for their abuse, are proper factors to be considered in a public interest defence, that survivors are in a different position to journalists and that the usual requirements for factchecking do not fit a case like this. It is a judgment that will give huge strength to others in the same position as Nina. Even after the recent judgment, however, there is still a clear risk that an abusive person can continue their abuse by bringing proceedings and seeking to bully a vulnerable defendant via the imposing power of the justice system. The survivor is unlikely to have the legal, financial and psychological strength to fight back. This is strategic litigation against public participation (SLAPP) par excellence – with a dash of gaslighting, personal vendetta and coercive control thrown in. Of course there are occasions when a person is wrongly accused, and those people must have recourse to the law to vindicate their reputations. But the justice department, the court and the lawyers who work in the system have a responsibility to ensure that it is not misused by abusers. Tamsin Allen is a partner at Bindmans. She represented Nina Cresswell alongside Jonathan Price at Doughty Street Chambers Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here .

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Chelsea flower show garden built with asylum seekers brings ‘message of hope’

A centrepiece garden at this year’s Chelsea flower show has been built with the help of a team of asylum seekers with a design that recreates Europe’s migration routes and uses materials found in refugee camps. The Choose Love garden , named after a charity working with displaced people, uses the sustainable “superadobe” building technique found in camp architecture. Featuring plants native to north Africa and Europe, it includes materials such as corrugated iron. A stone path resembling a dry streambed reflects waterway migration, while big boulders recall those used by the authorities to thwart makeshift refugee camps in France. The garden is one of the most political to grace the annual event and comes at a time when the home secretary has been accused of using dehumanising language to describe people trying to reach the UK. Its creators say they want its “message of hope” to reach the millions who will watch TV coverage of the event, which is expected to be visited by King Charles. “Increasingly it feels like we’re living in a very polarised society, and in polarised spaces online, so finding ways for us to connect and have conversations is really important,” said Josie Naughton, co-founder and CEO of Choose Love, which provides refugees with everything from lifesaving search-and-rescue boats to food and legal advice. After the show, which takes place 22-27 May, the garden will be relocated to Good Food Matters in Croydon – a community food learning centre and garden working with people including those who have been forced to flee their homes. Among the volunteers who helped to build the garden was a man from a Central American country who told the Guardian the charity had helped with his mental health problems, which have worsened over the course of the two years he has been living in a hotel waiting for his asylum application to be processed. “Honestly, it is one of the lights in this journey that has helped my wife and I to cope,” said the man, who was reluctant to be identified while their application is still live. The couple said they had been forced to flee their country due to the threat of gang violence after finding themselves “in the wrong place at the wrong time”. The garden initiative and Good Food Matters brought them into contact with others in a similar state of limbo. Frustrated at the waste of their diverse range of professional skills, the volunteers spoke of how the garden had renewed their sense of purpose. Sign up to First Edition Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning after newsletter promotion The garden was created in collaboration with the designer Jane Porter – a gold medal winner at last year’s show, organised by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) – who visited a refugee camp in Samos, Greece, as part of her research. She said she had been inspired by what had been achieved by Choose Love, which was co-founded by her sister Dawn. She added: “In this garden we see linear drifts of the plants that are found along now established migration routes and discover what people grow when they don’t know when or if they’ll return home – when the act of planting becomes an act of hope.”

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Dark energy ‘chameleon trap’ wins £100,000 prize for Nottingham scientist

Dark energy is the enigma at the heart of modern physics: the universe is supposed to be awash with the stuff, but it has never been seen and its nature is unknown. When faced with a mystery of such epic proportions, simply eliminating certain options is considered a success. This week such an advance, using an ingeniously simple desktop experiment, was recognised by the prestigious Blavatnik award for young scientists . Prof Clare Burrage, of the University of Nottingham and recipient of the £100,000 prize, said: “We don’t know what dark energy is. It’s the name we give to something we don’t understand so we can start talking about it. And when so little is known, even ruling things out feels like big progress.” Dark energy was dreamed up to fill an enormous void in theoretical physics. Scientists had predicted that, due to the inward tug of gravity, the expansion of the universe ought to be slowing down. But observations of distant stars showed that, instead, the expansion of the universe is accelerating. Dark energy is a placeholder for whatever is propelling this expansion and, to balance the necessary equations, it needs to account for 70% of the contents of the universe. A popular theory is that dark energy is a “chameleon force”, which adjusts its properties according to the local environment. “In dense environments, your force becomes very short-range, but in empty space it becomes very long-range,” said Burrage. This could explain how the elusive force could be powerful enough to govern the fate of the entire universe, but remain imperceptible in our own solar system. Typically dark energy experiments involve space observatories, enormous particle accelerators or detectors buried deep underground. However, Burrage’s theoretical work proved that small and light objects in nearly vacuum environment on Earth may still feel the full force of dark energy. With colleagues at Nottingham and Imperial College London, Burrage devised a “chameleon trap” that could be built in a laboratory. The setup involved dropping ultra-cold atoms into a bowling-ball sized vacuum chamber containing a lump of aluminium. If a chameleon force existed, it should have a higher value in the empty space and be “hidden” close to the heavy lump of metal. By precisely tracking the motion of the atoms using pulsed laser light, the team were looking for any unexpected accelerations that could be due to a chameleon force. “You’re looking to see if there’s an extra force pulling the atoms sideways,” said Burrage. “Obviously it would’ve been wonderful to see something.” Unfortunately, no mysterious forces were uncovered, but the experiment was able to squeeze down the possible values that a chameleon force could take into a small window. “With one upgrade of the experiment we hope to close that window,” Burrage said. “It’s definitely technologically achievable.” The findings have had a positive reception, Burrage said, despite some theorists having spent years devising hypothetical chameleon forces. “When you’re a theorist, you put stuff out into the world and a lot of the time people just say ‘Oh, that’s nice’ and move on,” she said. “So people were just excited to see tests being done.” Some may be deterred by the narrow odds of a breakthrough in a field where so little is known, but for Burrage this is the attraction of working on dark energy. “I’m very stubborn – it’s a family trait,” she said. “I’m a rock climber in my spare time. I like a challenge and I don’t give up easily.” Her current work is focused on using data from the European Space Agency’s (Esa) Gaia mission , which is making detailed measurements of stars in the Milky Way. Esa’s Euclid mission, which is squarely focused on the dark energy question, is expected to launch this year. The mission will look at how the universe evolved over the past 10bn years to look for imprints of dark energy. “Euclid is the big one,” said Burrage. “It’s going to map the distribution of galaxies that we can see on the sky.” The mission will observe up to 2bn galaxies using infrared and visible light to study their shape and motion. The aim is to get a more precise picture of the competing forces of gravity, which cause galaxies to clump together, and dark energy, which is driving the accelerated expansion of space. “The fact that so little is known is exciting,” said Burrage. “It feels like somewhere you can make big progress.”

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California: stunning shift as parched reservoirs replenished by storms

Water levels fell so low in key reservoirs during the depth of California’s drought that boat docks sat on dry, cracked land and cars drove into the center of what should have been Folsom Lake. Those scenes are no more after a series of powerful storms dumped record amounts of rain and snow across California, replenishing reservoirs and bringing an end – mostly – to the state’s three-year drought. Now, 12 of California’s 17 major reservoirs are filled above their historical averages for the start of spring. That includes Folsom Lake, which controls water flows along the American River, as well as Lake Oroville, the state’s second largest reservoir and home to the nation’s tallest dam. It’s a stunning turnaround of water availability in the nation’s most populous state. Late last year nearly all of California was in drought, including at extreme and exceptional levels. Wells ran dry, farmers fallowed fields and cities restricted watering lawns. The water picture changed dramatically starting in December, when the first of a dozen “atmospheric rivers” hit, causing widespread flooding and damaging homes and infrastructure, and dumping as many as 700in (17.8m) of snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains. “California went from the three driest years on record to the three wettest weeks on record when we were catapulted into our rainy season in January,” said Karla Nemeth, director of the California department of water resources. “So, hydrologically, California is no longer in a drought except for very small portions of the state.” All the rain and snow, while drought-busting, may bring new challenges. Some reservoirs are so full that water is being released to make room for storm runoff and snowmelt that could cause flooding this spring and summer, a new problem for weary water managers and emergency responders. The storms have created one of the biggest snowpacks on record in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The snowpack’s water content is 239% of its normal average and nearly triple in the southern Sierra, according to state data. Now, as the weather warms up, water managers are preparing for all that snow to melt, unleashing a torrent of water that’s expected to cause flooding in the Sierra foothills and the Central Valley. “We know there will be flooding as a result of the snowmelt,” Nemeth said. “There’s just too much snowmelt to be accommodated in our rivers and channels and keeping things between levees.” Managers are now releasing water from the Oroville dam spillway, which was rebuilt after it broke apart during heavy rains in February 2017 and forced the evacuation of more than 180,000 people downstream along the Feather River. The reservoir is 16% above its historic average. That’s compared with 2021, when water levels dropped so low that its hydroelectric dams stopped generating power. That year, the Bidwell Canyon and Lime Saddle marinas had to pull most recreational boats out of Lake Oroville and shut down their boat rental business because water levels were too low and it was too hard to get to the marinas, said Jared Rael, who manages the marinas. In late March, the water at Lake Oroville rose to 859ft (262 meters) above sea level, about 230ft (70 meters) higher than its low point in 2021, according to state data. “The public is going to benefit with the water being higher. Everything is easier to get to. They can just jump on the lake and have fun,” Rael said. “Right now we have tons of water. We have a high lake with a bunch of snowpack. We’re going to have a great year.” The abundant precipitation has prompted Governor Gavin Newsom to lift some of the state’s water restrictions and stop asking people to voluntarily reduce their water use by 15%. Newsom has not declared the drought over because there are still water shortages along the California-Oregon border and parts of southern California that rely on the struggling Colorado River. Cities and irrigation districts that provide water to farms will receive a big boost in water supplies from the state water project and Central Valley project, networks of reservoirs and canals that supply water across California. Some farmers are using the stormwater to replenish underground aquifers that had become depleted after years of pumping and drought left wells dry. State officials are warning residents not to let the current abundance let them revert to wasting water. In the era of climate change, one extremely wet year could be followed by several dry years, returning the state to drought. “Given weather whiplash, we know the return of dry conditions and the intensity of the dry conditions that are likely to return means we have to be using water more efficiently,” Nemeth said. “We have to be adopting conservation as a way of life.” The caption accompanying the top image of this article was amended on 7 April 2023 to correct the date of the photo on the right, which was taken on 26 March 2023.

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No more ‘I took an arrow to the knee’: could AI write super-intelligent video game characters?

Corny dialogue has been part of video games almost since they have existed. From 1989’s Zero Wing spawning the decades old “All your base are belong to us” internet meme, to the clunky translations of the pre-remake Resident Evil games (“the master of unlocking”), to Skyrim’s infamous adventurer who once took an arrow to the knee and never shuts up about it, non-playable character (NPC) dialogue has rarely been exactly Shakespearean, and the frequent repetition doesn’t help. But could AI tools change that, enabling a world full of characters that respond believably when you talk to them? In collaboration with Google, a team of researchers from Stanford have built a game demo called Smallville that integrates the AI writing tool ChatGPT. Instead of just walking into walls and setting themselves on fire like the classic Sims characters we all knew and loved, the game’s 25 characters can instead comfortably discuss topics such as local politics and composing music, pulling from ChatGPT’s enormous database. They can also retain information from previous conversations, drawing out these discussions over two days, and referencing information that was given to them much earlier in the 48-hour simulation. The characters were even able to organise a Valentine’s Day party, after being prompted by researchers. In about a year and a half, we could see this type of technology being used in smaller indie games, with wider adoption coming in about five years In the arms race that is modern blockbuster gaming, where every studio wants to make the most complex, modern RPG ever, the idea of NPCs having nuanced ongoing conversations over a period of months in the background could have the most ambitious publishers salivating – and cash-strapped indie devs eyeing up a tantalising way to cut development costs. One of the key researchers on the Stanford project, Joon Sung Park, a PhD student computer scientist, thinks that, as speculative as some of this seems right now, real-world implementation could be coming sooner than expected: in about a year and a half, he predicts, we could see this type of technology being used in smaller indie games, with wider adoption coming in about five years. It’s unlikely that you’d be talking to a language model such as ChatGPT directly, as this type of integration costs a lot of money at present. Indie developers may instead use this approach to create much wider and more varied conversations during development. “Within 10 years I think this approach could be very common, if this is what people in the industry want, and if people find these types of interactions interesting. And then in the 20 to 30-year timescale, maybe we can run really large-scale simulations,” he says. Joon hopes that rather than replacing game writers, this type of AI integration would change their position within game development. He compares the potential future role of video game writers to the TV series Westworld , in which scientists created a collection of biomechanical robots and a human-made world based on the old west, but once created, the characters were free to do as they please (with some restrictions), and form their own narratives within their simulated cage. Though the technology isn’t anywhere near as advanced as that used in Smallville, Ubisoft, the multibillion-dollar company behind franchises such as Assassin’s Creed and Far Cry, announced in March that it was set to start implementing AI into its game writing. The publisher highlighted that the technology will just be used for writing what are known as “barks” – canned phrases or sounds made by NPCs during gameplay. It always sounds like the dawn of a new age, but tends to end up being disruptive and demoralising But claims from the likes of Ubisoft and Stanford researchers that AI-generated writing will supplement rather than replace human efforts don’t seem to have done much to soothe the fears of games industry writers. Ed Stern, a lead narrative designer at UK studio Splash Damage, says that the general reaction from game writers and narrative designers to AI-generated dialogue “is strongly negative”. “As a trade, we’ve learned to be suspicious of claims of fancy new tech that can do everything we do cheaper, faster, better,” he explained. “It always sounds like the dawn of a new age, but tends to end up being disruptive and demoralising without actually saving time or money or increasing quality.” Stern said the industry reaction is “pretty much the same” as game concept artists’ to AI art generators. “We’ve all heard horror stories of bosses who genuinely don’t get why they can’t just fire the coders, artists and animators – let alone the writers – and replace us all with AI tools,” he said. “Good bosses know the difference between good work and derivative copypasta , but it’s a slope that needs no greasing as far as developers are concerned.” Stern, who has worked on games such as Gears Tactics and Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory, feels writers often aren’t afforded appropriate respect for their work, compared with coders and other technical staff. There is a mindset, he thinks, that says: “Not everyone can code or draw or animate, but everybody knows the alphabet. How hard could words be?” He points out that you still need a human to check every line of a game’s dialogue before release, as well as to record, edit, implement and test it – all time-consuming processes. Stern also points to accidental plagiarism as a potential problem, as “large language models” such as ChatGPT are trained using vast swathes of data taken from the internet. Sign up to Pushing Buttons Keza MacDonald's weekly look at the world of gaming after newsletter promotion The text always somehow feels shallow. It seems to all be in place, but there is no soul in it For some developers, even if incorporating AI could make economic sense in future, it’s a compromise they are not willing to make artistically. Artem Koblov, creative director at indie developer Perelesoq Studios, has been actively trying to incorporate AI into his own company’s development process for some time, but wasn’t pleased with the results. “If an AI can predict your game’s script, then your game’s script is not good enough,” he says. “The text always somehow feels shallow. There’s no depth, no subtext, no nuances and insight. It seems to all be in place, but there is no soul in it … Writers put their soul into even small descriptive text, or ‘flavour text’,” he says, referring to the in-game item descriptions and books that add richness to virtual fantasy worlds. “These phrases can make the player unwittingly smile, and improve the overall impression and atmosphere of the game. They can really represent a meaningful part of the experience.” Stern echoes Koblov’s quality concerns: “At the AAA end of the industry, there’s an expectation of quality, and the indie audience really values handmade artisanal craft,” he says. But he does admit that “for lots of games, people just don’t care as much”, pointing towards the more commercially driven mobile sector, where very small teams are often working on tight budgets and deadlines, and competition is ferocious. Stern and Koblov both wanted to highlight that the writing process itself is a very small part of the immense expense involved in game development. “Writers are cheap,” Stern explains. “You’ve got hundreds of staff working for two or three years: coders, artists, animators, system designers, QA, producers, managers … a handful of writers, usually only brought in for a few weeks or months? That’s a fleabite.” The simulation technology outlined in Stanford’s study isn’t exactly cheap, either. The simulation, which lasted just 48 hours, used around $5,000 of GPT tokens. Stern also wonders if some studios’ tech-related announcements are primarily aimed at shareholders who like hearing buzzwords they recognise: “There’s a bandwagon, and it looks bad if they’re not jumping on it. It tends not to be game devs who are demanding this tech.” Joon feels that it is important not to downplay the danger of blending creative AI and gaming. The GPT engine is programmed not to say anything offensive, though people have certainly dedicated plenty of time to coaxing it into saying something racist or politically divisive. But “if your aim is to achieve believability,” Joon points out, “conflict and feuds are also a part of believable human life”. There is a possibility that sufficiently advanced AI-powered game characters could say something out of turn, offensive or cruel. “It’s a bit of a balancing act where you want the game to be believable, to give players compelling interactions and opportunities, but also make sure it’s safe enough.” It may seem that creative AI could be capable of helping game studios produce superior – or at least larger – gaming experiences, and it could be happening sooner than anyone expects. But for writers, a bigger, cheaper game doesn’t put food on the table. Fears about AI replacing human jobs aren’t unique to video games, but this is a mammoth industry filled with expensive moving parts – and writers, who never felt particularly powerful in the first place, have justified fears.

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South China Sea shipwrecks give clues about historic Silk Road trade routes

Two 500-year-old shipwrecks in the South China Sea , filled with Ming-era porcelain and stacked timber, provide significant clues about the maritime Silk Road trade routes, Chinese archaeologists have said. The two shipwrecks were discovered in October, and cultural and archaeological authorities have now begun a year-long process of deep-sea exploration and excavation, government officials announced . Marine researchers found the two vessels in the north-west region of the South China Sea, about 1,500 metres below sea level. The officials said the wrecks were “relatively well preserved, with a large number of cultural relics”. Experts said one of the wrecks dated back to the Ming dynasty’s Hongzhi period, which lasted from 1488 until 1505. It was carrying a cargo of stacked persimmon timber logs and some pottery. The other wreck dates back to the Zhengde period of 1506 to 1521. The ship was laden with more than 100,000 pieces of porcelain crockery. Photographs show piles of stacked bowls, plates and jars, with intricate designs still visible underneath the sand and mud. The archaeologists said the two ancient ships were travelling in different directions, and the wrecks were found less than 20km (12 miles) apart. They said it was the first time vessels returning and arriving had been found near each other, indicating they were travelling on an important trade route. “It helps us study the maritime Silk Road’s reciprocal flow,” Tang Wei, the director of the Chinese National Centre for Archaeology , said. The exact location of the wrecks was not disclosed, but the officials said markers were established on the site. Chinese archaeological exploration has advanced into deeper waters in recent years, after the 2018 establishment of a deep-water archaeology laboratory by the National Centre for Archaeology and the Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering. The officials said researchers were taken underwater on Saturday by the submersible Shenhai Yongshi, or Deep Sea Warrior, which can carry people to a depth of 5,000 metres. There are three phases to the planned research programme, with an estimated 50 dives to be conducted between now and April. “We first need to figure out the condition of the shipwrecks, and then we can draft plans for archaeological excavation and conservation,” said Song Jianzhong , a researcher at the National Centre for Archaeology. By mid-June, researchers plan to have assessed the distribution area of both wrecks, put together a widespread data collection and taken archaeological records, extracted some of the relics as specimens, and sampled the surrounding seafloor.

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Water companies got England’s sewage-ridden rivers and seas into this mess. Do we really trust them to clean it up?

After decades of pollution, chronic underinvestment and presiding over a fundamentally broken water system, water companies in England have finally apologised for the disgraceful state they have left our rivers and seas in and promised to change. But how on earth can we trust them? Of course, we welcome the industry finally taking responsibility and any additional investment to fix our broken system, but the money may prove too little and the apology too late. These companies have had ample opportunity to put things right and invest in their infrastructure. Meanwhile, surfers, swimmers and paddleboarders, from St Agnes to St Andrews, have been paying the price, risking becoming sick by simply entering the water. Looking at the detail of the announcement, it all becomes pretty farcical, pretty quickly. Their apology and subsequent plan is built upon the assumption that ultimately they can get customers to foot much of the cost of the planned £10bn investment through unspecified increases in their bills. This is unacceptable on so many levels. We, the customers, have already paid for the water companies to do their job and deal with our waste. We should not have to do so again, especially in the middle of a cost of living crisis. And it’s clear that water companies have the funds to pay for this investment themselves if they weren’t so focused on lining shareholders’ and executives’ pockets. Last year alone, companies rewarded their chief executives with £16.5m and paid out £965m to shareholders in dividends. We understand that water companies need to attract investment and talent to these complex jobs, but if they are not complying with their basic legal requirements to treat sewage effectively then nobody deserves to be rewarded. It’s not yet clear whether the £10bn being announced today is enough to restore all of our rivers and seas to good health and keep waters safe. But what we do know is that priority must be given immediately to tackling those overflows that cause the most harm to people and the environment, so that we can end sewage pollution into bathing waters and high-priority nature sites by 2030. Water UK says the plans by water companies in England will cut the number of overflow incidents by up to 140,000 each year by 2030, compared with 2020. We recognise that water companies have committed to increase transparency and make sewage spill data more available to the public, but yet again this doesn’t appear to be a gesture made in good faith. It’s a legal obligation placed on them by a government that is starting to panic in the face of the sewage scandal. When the UK entered the EU we were nicknamed the “ dirty man of Europe ”. Tough regulation and enforcement helped change that narrative, but the sewage scandal, and our government and regulators’ inability to properly hold the polluting water industry to account, has brought that shameful name back. We demand urgent change now. We are calling for a cap on CEO bonuses and an end to shareholder pay-outs, unless water companies comply with environmental regulations. And we want regulators to properly enforce the law and hold water companies to account. We have had enough of the PR exercises that water users across the UK are now wise to. Thousands have signed our petition to end profiteering from pollution, and communities up and down the country are primed and ready to paddle out to show their frustration at the sewage scandal in our mass paddle-outs this Saturday. If today’s apology is going to be a turning point in the journey to end sewage pollution, and reset the industry’s relationship with the public, it must be backed up by sustained investment, with the money coming from industry itself. Action, not just words, is what is required. The past few decades appear to show that if we give these water companies an inch, they will take a mile, so we can’t be distracted by their pledges to change. Campaigners across the UK will keep up the fight until we end sewage pollution, and we need the government and regulators to uphold their side of the bargain, and hold this industry to account. We won’t be fooled by smoke and mirrors. We will continue to demand better for our rivers, seas, people and planet until we end sewage pollution for good. Henry Swithinbank is policy manager for Surfers Against Sewage

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Which Australian city has the weather that suits you best? Find out with our interactive

Melbourne is famous for experiencing “four seasons in one day” – but Sydney is rainier, Hobart has less sunshine and Canberra is more likely to experience quick drops in temperature. Everyone appreciates different aspects of a city’s weather – so which one is right for you? We’ve taken a deep dive into the country’s weather data and created a tool that can answer that question. Tell us how hot, cold, humid, sunny or rainy you prefer it to be and we’ll tell you the Australian capital that suits you best. Then read on for a closer look at the data. We got hourly data for each capital city for the past 23 years – that’s more than 8,000 days of data. Surprisingly, Canberra tops the list for hot days – these are days that are hotter than the longterm average maximum for the city and season, rather than the hottest overall in Australia. Canberra also has the highest number of days with more than 10C of daytime temperature variation. Darwin has the most days with more than 5mm of rain, thanks to a long wet season with monsoonal rains. Sydney has the highest number of recorded severe storms and the Brisbane the most hail storms – but the data on this is patchy and only goes back about 10 years. Climate change, seasons and differing geographies mean all Australian cities are pretty variable, in their own ways. A huge number of factors can influence this, according to Dr Linden Ashcroft, a climate scientist at the University of Melbourne. Ashcroft notes that both macro geographies (such as how close you are to the equator) and micro geographies (such as mountain ranges, deserts and urban areas) have a huge impact on the weather. Among other things these affect the direction and source of breezes, whether air can flow or is trapped, whether there is thermal mass to even out temperature fluctuations. “Parramatta [in Sydney], is quite often the hottest place in the world in the summertime because of the Blue Mountains … and also the fact that Sydney stretches so far west and the sea breeze doesn’t extend that far inland,” Ashcroft says. ”You also see that in Melbourne, where the sea breeze will intrude in the CBD and it might get up into some of the northern suburbs, but not the airport.” Brisbane and south-east Queensland often experience severe storms because of the interaction between weather coming in from the ocean and from the mountain range. “There’s this interaction between moist air sources coming off the ocean and dry air sources coming from inland and you get this trough – it’s like a little dip in the air pressure and depending on where that sits, you can get some really explosive thunderstorms”, Ashcroft says. We set out to test whether Melbourne really does have “four seasons in one day” – days that are at some point hot, cold, rainy and stormy. But it turns out that Darwin, Adelaide and Canberra have the most days that fit this criteria – more than 500 days in the past two decades. Melbourne is quite far down the list. But the huge variation in and across Australia’s capital cities means this was always likely. Darwin has more days with greater than 5mm of rain and so is more likely to fullill all these criteria. And Canberra has the largest average range in temperatures across the day throughout the year. Melbourne gets a lot of its rainier days in winter, but that’s also the time of year when its temperature range reduces significantly. Melbourne has the most rainy days if you set the bar lower – at 1mm of rain in a day. You can explore temperature ranges by city in the chart below: Ashcroft proposes another test for “four seasons in a day” – quick changes in temperature. “To go from 40 degrees to 20 degrees in 50 minutes, that is a very quintessential Melbourne thing, right?” Melbourne is closer to the top of cities that experience quick drops in temperature, but still well behind Canberra and slightly behind Darwin. This is probably explained by Canberra and Darwin having relatively stable temperature ranges throughout the year. Here are all the days since 2000 that have experienced a greater than 5C drop in an hour. One thing stands out about Melbourne – its peak temperature tends to come later in the day. This may explain why it feels that the city has more “seasonality” – it has relatively cold mornings and the peak temperatures are later in the day. So even in the shoulder months, on what would be hot days, you still need to layer. We can see this a little clearer by charting the average temperatures throughout the day. We can see that even though Melbourne might experience the same peak temperatures throughout the day as Adelaide or Sydney, it’s often a lot colder in the morning. Defunct weather stations have been replaced with the closest station geographically. Measurements that were null or questionable have been dropped. Humidity, hours of sunshine and days of rain and clear skies based on long-term climate data for each city. Longterm data on number of days of rain uses a 10mm cutoff. The rest of the Guardian analysis uses days with greater than 5mm of rain. Longterm averages based on Bureau of Meteorology climate statistics for Australian locations. Data is not available for every site so the closest has been used. Temperatures were averaged across three weather stations for each capital city A day counts as rainy if any of the three weather stations recorded more than 5mm rain on that day. Storms and hailstorms were geolocated based on latitudes and longitudes in the Bureau of Meteorology’s severe storms archive . City selection based on minimising the euclidian distance between vectors representing the inputs and long-term data for the cities. Spring is defined as September, October and November. Summer is December, January and February. Autum is March, April and May. And winter is June, July and August. The same season definitions have been applied to all cities.

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Withdraw review of Prevent anti-radicalisation strategy, ministers urged

More than 200 civil society organisations, community leaders and academics have called on the UK government to withdraw a controversial review of the Prevent programme, part of its counter-terrorism strategy. The Home Office accepted all 34 recommendations in the review from William Shawcross, a former chair of the Charity Commission who concluded that the Prevent programme should focus more on Islamist rather than far-right terrorism. However, it was boycotted by groups including Amnesty International, while critics have pointed to a surge in far-right activity. Critics including Amnesty International, Liberty, Runnymede Trust, Child Rights International Network and many Muslim civil society organisations on Tuesday issued a joint statement calling on Shawcross’s review to be withdrawn. They argue it is “ideologically shaped” and increases the threat of discrimination, raises concerns about child protection and the right to free speech. It comes a day before the security minister, Tom Tugendhat, and the Prevent director, Michael Stewart, are to be questioned by parliament’s home affairs committee in an evidence session about the Prevent review. Meanwhile, a report by Dr Layla Aitlhadj of the organisation Prevent Watch, which has compiled hundreds of cases of people affected by the Prevent programme, is also published on Tuesday. The report is co-authored by the academic Prof John Holmwood. An advisory panel of lawyers and academics supervised the findings. The 72-page report says: Implementing Shawcross’s findings means endorsing ideologically led policy with no legal accountability or parliamentary oversight. Implementing Shawcross’s findings means supporting claims about increased threats of Islamic extremism without including data to back up these claims in the review. Continuing to implement the Prevent programme will lead to perpetuating further harms against children and vulnerable adults. The argument that Prevent should focus less on rightwing extremism and more on “‘Islamist” extremism is explicitly discriminatory. The report states that Prevent poses a serious threat to civil liberties and urges both houses of parliament to join the calls for the Shawcross review to be withdrawn. Sign up to First Edition Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning after newsletter promotion Aitlhadj said: “At least six children are referred to Prevent every school day. Shawcross reinforces the fact that Prevent is not safeguarding yet he fails to take this to its logical conclusion, which is to remove it from schools.” Holmwood said: “Not only has Mr Shawcross fulfilled the prediction of over 100 groups that boycotted his review that this was only a political exercise, but his report signals that the ‘independent review’ process is now a means of influence rather than of actual review. This is a subversion of the democratic process and a slide into authoritarianism. As such we call for the Shawcross report to be withdrawn.” A UK government spokesperson said: “The government’s first duty is to protect the public and the independent review of Prevent is strengthening our fight against radicalisation. “This inaccurate report provides no viable alternative to preventing radicalisation in the UK. Countries across Europe and beyond have developed preventative programmes inspired by the Prevent model. “Attempting to encourage disengagement with the programme is irresponsible and dangerous. Islamist terrorism remains the primary terrorist threat to the UK. Working with Muslim communities, who overwhelming reject these violent ideologies, is crucial to our approach. “Prevent activity must be proportionately directed to address this, while remaining vigilant against all other threats including the extreme rightwing.”

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Three things with Rove McManus: ‘I burnt them on some kind of ceremonial pyre’

Rove Live – or just Rove as it was known towards the end of its run – was one of the most successful talkshows in Australian TV history. In 2009, after 10 years in the hosting seat and with three Gold Logies to his name, Rove McManus called time on the small-screen juggernaut. Since then, he’s gone on to author five children’s books, while his company, Roving Enterprises, continues to produce Channel 10’s nightly news show The Project. The longtime standup comedian has kept gigging too. In June he’ll premiere a new live comedy format called Slide Night! at the Sydney Opera House, where he will reimagine the holiday photo nights of yesteryear with a cast of fellow comics. “A fun take on the old and boring slide nights that we were subjected to when I was younger,” he says. As a child, McManus had creative methods for fighting boredom. He would make his own paper toys, which he stored in a beloved metal box – until the day he burned them all in a fit of teenage rage. Here, he shares the regret he feels about that moment, and the stories of two other cherished personal objects. It’s a teddy bear – well, it’s not really a bear because it doesn’t have ears or look like a bear. But I got it when I was very little. We were on a road trip from Perth, where I grew up, to Sydney. My parents and four kids, all under the age of probably 10, which must have been an absolute nightmare. At one point we stopped for a toilet break and I saw this thing by the side of the road, which was once a teddy bear but was now just a ragged mess that had been run over multiple times. But I just had some connection with this thing and I needed to take it with me. My mother was adamant – there was no way we were putting this filthy piece of toy roadkill in the car. She wouldn’t let me pick it up. I don’t know when it was – weeks or months later – but it turns out Mum had collected it from the side of the road and somehow fashioned it back into being a bear, or at least a cuddly toy. She’d completely remade the back, which was missing, created a vest to cover the fact that it didn’t have a torso, and sewed little buttons into it. And then to cap it all off, she stitched this crooked little smile on its mouth. And she gave it to me as a present. I still have it 40 years on. It feels like a beautiful symbol of my mother’s love. This was a tough call because I have a label maker, which I absolutely love. Except you do run out of things to label, I have discovered. However, there is another item that I have had for a long time – I’ve broken and bought new ones again and again. An egg cooker. I think eggs are a perfect food; there is nothing else you can eat for breakfast, lunch or dinner without people questioning you. I love soft boiled eggs in particular. And it’s really hard to get a perfectly soft- boiled egg – but this egg cooker does it perfectly. It’s called the Eggo. There are other ones on the market, but this is the first I ever found, back in probably the late-1990s. It’s shaped like an egg and has wings and little feet. When the eggs are done it makes a chirping noise that is absolutely tremendous. I have two – the one I use and another as a backup. I’ve got an item that I not so much lost but got rid of, which is worse. That can really gnaw at you. When I was little, I had a box full of drawings that I used to call my “cutouts”. If you’re a kid now and you love Bluey , there is no end to the merchandise you can buy. But we didn’t have that when I was growing up. So I would draw the characters from TV shows that I liked, colour them in and cut them out. I would make a backdrop on a bigger piece of paper and move these cardboard cutouts around like little toys. It was just a cheap and easy way to have my own toys to play with. I put all my cutouts in this big, beautiful metal cigar box that my pop had given me. Then when I got to my teens, I went through this phase of ridiculous rebellion where I thought that I’d moved on from being a child, so I’d do away with childish things. I got rid of all of these cutouts – I burnt them on some kind of ceremonial pyre, which I deeply regret at this point in my life. I don’t know what happened to the box, but I got rid of it too. If I could go back and change anything from my life, it would be keeping that box. Slide Night! with Rove McManus runs from 15-25 June at the Sydney Opera House

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Full Time review – school-run thriller turns into high-stakes motherhood drama

Anyone who has ever broken into a sweaty panicked run to make it in time for school pick-up will instantly get why the French Canadian director Eric Gravel has chosen to shoot this film about motherhood frazzle as a gripping thriller. I was on the edge of my seat in one scene, watching to see if a woman running to catch her commuter train home makes it. Her name is Julie, and she’s a divorced mum of two who’s feeling the grind: work, kids, mortgage arrears, crappy ex. It’s such an authentic and relatable film – so meticulously observed, in fact, that to be perfectly honest, I assumed it had been made by a woman. Laure Calamy plays Julie; she’s in her early 40s, with a couple of children under eight. Every morning, Julie’s alarm clock goes off like a starting pistol. In the dark she walks her kids to the childminders, carrying her sleepy little boy. Then it’s a sprint from the suburbs into Paris where she works in a fancy hotel as head chambermaid. It’s a high-stress job. “The guests are demanding. They pay to be.” Then it’s back to the suburbs to pick up her kids in time for bed. But this is the week when the wheels fall off. Because of a transport strike, trains leaving Paris get cancelled. Julie squeezes on to a bus that crawls out of the city. Her childminder has had enough and quits. To add to the complication, Julie has a job interview to squeeze in. Before the kids came along she worked in the corporate world; she’s got an MA in economics. But, like a lot of women, becoming a mum knocked her off the career ladder. Calamy is utterly convincing, giving a performance that pulls us right into Julie’s inner world; a sigh here or droop of the shoulders there and you feel her sense that she’s not doing anything to the best of her ability. But make no mistake Julie is a warrior. Watch her assembling a trampoline in the dark, the night before her son’s birthday party. A more straightforward “issues” film might have thrown in a catastrophe, a cataclysmic moment when everything goes wrong. But Gravel’s script understands it doesn’t need fireworks. Everyday life is enough. Full Time is released on 26 May in UK cinemas.

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Classic first date stuff: what men could learn from bowerbirds and their courting efforts

A few nights ago I watched the Netflix nature documentary Dancing with the Birds , about, you guessed it, Abraham Lincoln. Just kidding, it’s about dancing birds! This is why I get the big bucks. While watching the cute profiles of various bird species that all incorporate dance into their mating schemes, I cleverly noticed a running theme. In each case, when it came to the effort of courting and relationships, it was exclusively the male birds that had to put in the work. We know that male birds are often the more flashy and colourful but these little guys also put in the physical and emotional labour, and none more so than the MacGregor’s bowerbird. To impress the female MacGregor’s enough to even be considered as a mate, the male bowerbirds have to build, decorate, clean and maintain an elaborate tall structure made of twigs and various nature items. The MacGregor’s bowerbird featured in the documentary works for seven years (!) on his bower and builds a structure more than one metre tall, beautifully and specifically decorated with sap. It isn’t the end of the effort though – that is all just to entice his crush to come near, the first step in his plan. He then takes her through a meticulously planned series of events. He puffs out his colourful chest, impressing her with his plumage. He displays his nimbleness and his hopping dance moves by instigating a fun game of hide and seek around a tree stump. That would be enough to woo any creature but he doesn’t stop there. He wraps up the events by putting on a final big display, showing off his incredible mimicry skills. These birds can mimic other birds but our guy in the documentary could also do the sounds of wood chopping, dogs barking and children playing. Classic first date stuff. After all of that effort, if the lady bird is impressed enough, he gets his reward – two seconds of bird copulation. The bar for boy birds is high. It sounds silly but the reason this jumped out at me is because I have been noticing a trend on TikTok , largely taking place in the comments section. If a woman posts a TikTok of her male partner doing literally anything even mildly thoughtful or nice, the comments are filled with other women saying “Oh my God he’s a keeper!” and “Wow! Does he have a brother?” and so on. This happens on videos when a man has actually done something nice but what slightly disturbs me is when it happens equally as much on videos of men doing the absolute bare minimum or nothing at all. For example there’s a TikTok prank where women pretend they broke their boyfriend’s TV screen and film their reaction when they run into the room. Time and again I have seen the same response in the comments – if the man does not violently flip out and punch a wall, he gets an unbelievable amount of praise. The bar for boy birds is so high and the bar for boy humans is so low. It’s not just women in relationships – there seem to be a lot of women who are desperate to just experience a man being kind to them, paying them attention. I tweeted the below about how a TikTok of a bungee jump instructor doing his job turned into some sort of romantic fantasy in the comments but it largely wasn’t about sex – it was literally fantasies about a man being thoughtful. I cannot express how much this is just a video of a bungee jump instructor instructing a woman who is about to bungee jump pic.twitter.com/7LWg97j6Uh There is a recurring segment on Jimmy Kimmel’s show where they ask men basic questions about their partners and it is truly depressing viewing, watching women be shocked that their (sometimes long-term) partners don’t know their birthdays or eye colour. This kind of apparent lack of interest or care lines up with a lot of anecdotal evidence I’ve heard from scores of friends out in the dating world. When this is a kind of straight man that women are out there encountering, other men begin to get credit for doing normal, non-thoughtless things. He asked you questions about yourself on a date? Amazing, husband material. He remembered your birthday and got you something? Was he built in a lab for women? He cares if you have a good time in bed? He was sent from God. These are all things that are nice to do, and are things to be grateful for, but they shouldn’t be so out of the ordinary as to be remarkable. We should all be more like the bird girlies, calmly expecting effort, and only rewarding those who are willing to enthusiastically demonstrate their appreciation of us. We should all raise the bar. Obviously what I’m saying doesn’t apply to everyone but I can already hear some men flexing their fingers to write an angry comment. So let me address a couple of things – yes, some women are bad. Yes, not all men are bad. And if you are not one of the men I’m talking about, that’s great! Congrats, there are a lot of you. Some of my best friends are thoughtful husbands! But if you are someone who is feeling defensive after reading this, maybe examine why. All I am saying is that everyone should make sure the bar is high enough to get the sort of partner they want and deserve. Nobody is asking you to build a tower 10 times your height using only a beak and claws to show your partner you care – but you could at least learn a little dance. Rebecca Shaw is a writer based in Sydney

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The wild side of north-east England: wonderful walks, beautiful beaches and cool campsites and perfect pubs

Simonside Hills, Northumberland This justifiably popular summit has panoramic views of the Cheviots and the Northumberland coastline. The land is steeped in legend and the Simonside Duergars, malevolent fairies of folklore, are said to reside in the wild, windswept hills. The area’s spiritual importance to bronze age people is evident by the number of burial cairns on the slopes and crags. From Simonside Forestry Commission car park, follow the track through woodlands to a clearing before Simonside, now it’s a steep ascent to the summit at about 430m. Follow the ridge to explore the peak of Old Stell Crag, which stands on an ancient stone barrow, then it’s three miles on to Dove Crag for some fun bouldering. Another mile on, seek out Thompson’s Rock, a huge stone with a mysterious hole that is said to align with the midsummer sunset. Just beyond it is Lordenshaw’s rock art, great slabs peppered with patterns dating to the bronze age. With more than 100 cup-and-ring-marked rocks, it’s possibly the largest concentration of rock art in the UK. Return via forest to the car park. Garrigill to Ashgill Force, north Pennines For me, some of the finest waterfalls in England are found in the north Pennines, and there is a pleasant three-mile circular ramble from Garrigill along the River South Tyne that takes in one of the most dramatic: Ashgill Force. From Garrigill (there’s layby parking south of the village), take the road south and after a few hundred metres a footpath on the left leads across Windshaw Bridge to the South Tyne Trail. Follow the river upstream for one mile, passing small waterfalls and plunge pools, until you reach the spectacular curtain waterfall, which you can walk behind, by way of a rocky shelf, when not in flood. It’s in a beautiful deep gorge with pools for a paddle and a dip as dragonflies skitter across the water. Many smaller waterfalls are downstream with deeper pools. Return along the footpath through fields to Windshaw Bridge with views across the valley along the way. Ravenscar to Robin Hood’s Bay, North Yorkshire There’s roadside parking along Raven Hall Road in Ravenscar (11 miles from Whitby) and the Cleveland Way is clearly signposted. Follow signs through woodland and to the coastal path for a walk with sweeping clifftop views towards the pan-tiled rooftops of Robin Hood’s Bay (about 3.5 miles away). The route passes the ruins of a once-thriving alum works industry. Depending on tide times, there is an option to drop down to the beach at Boggle Hole (with its excellent YHA, and Quarterdeck cafe ) and walk along the sands to Robin Hood’s Bay. Alternatively, continue on the coastal path. Return the same way or along the Cinder Track, the old Whitby to Scarborough rail line. Rumbling Kern, Northumberland This concealed sandy cove has fascinating geological features and is also a coasteering spot with leaps and jumps from vertical sandstone walls – as well as there being stacks and caves to swim through. It’s reached by following a track along the coast from Seahouses Farm, from where it’s a five-minute walk to the sea. Hawthorn Hive, County Durham Hawthorn Hive is a remote sand and shingle bay at the end of a steep-sided coastal dene that is reached by paths through the ancient woodland of Hawthorn Dene and species-rich calcareous grassland. The meadows are awash with colour in July and August. It’s a 30-minute walk if you park in Hawthorn, with steps down to the beach beyond a railway track. Thornwick Bay, East Yorkshire There’s clifftop parking above Thornwick Bay with views over the shingle and pebble cove beneath. The chalk cliffs hide smugglers’ caves that are best explored by kayak or paddleboard. At low tide, walk round to Little Thornwick Bay and discover a natural amphitheatre and “rapids” to swim through and plenty of rock pools. Thornwick Bay cafe (open spring to autumn) serves drinks, meals and snacks. The Star Inn , Harbottle, Northumberland This stylish and relaxed-feeling country pub serves Italian-inspired food, including pizzas from its courtyard kitchen. It dates back more than 200 years and was used by drovers crossing the England-Scotland border. It is near the ruins of Harbottle Castle in Coquetdale, on the edge of the moors of the Northumberland national park. It’s a great place to refuel after a hike to the Drake Stone and Harbottle Lake . It also serves as the village shop. Birch Hall Inn , Beck Hole, North Yorkshire The Birch Hall Inn is a small pub with two bars, hand-pulled cask beer and a sweet shop in the hamlet of Beck Hole, which is at the base of a steep hill in the wooded valley of the Murk Esk, in the North York Moors national park . Butties and pies are served alongside its fabled beer cake. It is also the base for Beck Hole’s 19th-century Quoits Club. Crown & Anchor , Kilnsea, east Yorkshire Yorkshire’s most easterly pub is at the tip of the windswept Holderness. Its picture windows actually face west over the Humber estuary and Spurn, which is why it has such great sunset views. Good food and real ales. Langley Dam Glamping , near Hexham, Northumberland Six longboat-style cabins are beside the Langley Dam reservoir and have superb views across the water and moors beyond. It’s a short drive from Hadrian’s Wall and within walking distance of Allen Banks and Staward Gorge . Cabins sleeping four from £100 a night Kielder Campsite , Northumberland Tucked away in Kielder Forest, there’s no mobile signal and limited wifi at this site with a choice of pitches for tents and caravans or campers, along with four pods (up to three adults), and two family pods. It’s in a dark sky park, so is perfect for stargazing. The Kielder Observatory is nearby, too. Also on the doorstep is the 12-mile Kielder Forest Drive , a scenic journey on unsealed forest road between Kielder Castle and Blakehopeburnhaugh. Decent pub grub can be had at the Angler’s Arms . Pitches from £12. Pods £45 a night, family pod £70 a night Gumboots and Wellingtons, near Pickering, North Yorkshire Choose from a shepherd’s hut or a Skandi-inspired garden den at this rustic retreat in a valley close to Ellerburn, on the edge of Dalby Forest in the North York Moors national park. The welcome basket of breakfast supplies includes granola, locally pressed apple juicewith toast and jam. There are riverside walks and forest bathing to savour, and evenings can be spent beneath star-studded dark skies. Shepherd’s hut and cabin, sleeping two, from £117 a night Wild Guide North East England by Sarah Banks is published by Wild Things Publishing (£18.99). Guardian reader can receive 25% off and free p&p using the code Guardian23 at wildthingspublishing.com

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New York Christian university fires two staff for including pronouns in emails – reports

A New York Christian university terminated two employees for putting pronouns in their respective email signatures, these former workers allege, according to reports. Raegan Zelaya and Shua Wilmot, who were residence hall directors at Houghton University, said administrators told them to take the words “she/her” and “he/him” off their email signatures. The university, Zelaya and Wilmot alleged, claimed their inclusion of pronouns violated a new school policy, the New York Times reported. Zelaya and Wilmot refused to remove their pronouns and were fired several weeks before the semester’s conclusion. Their firing comes as Houghton University has taken actions that are increasingly in line with religious conservatism at better known Christian colleges such as Liberty University in Virginia and Hillsdale College in Michigan, the Times wrote. These colleges often draw Republican-leaning students, some of whom ascribe to the party’s invocation of Christianity to enact anti-LGBTQ+ measures. Houghton University shuttered a multicultural student center approximately two years ago. The school no longer recognizes a student LGBTQ+ group as the club refused to push more conservative discourse on gender and sex, the Times reported. “I think it boils down to: they want to be trans-exclusive and they want to communicate that to potential students and the parents of potential students,” Wilmot reportedly said of his firing. Neither Zelaya nor Wilmot identify as transgender. They said that their reasons for including pronouns in email signatures was due to their gender-neutral names – which has led to them being misgendered in written correspondence – as well as personal ethics. “There’s the professional piece to it, and the practical piece, and there’s also an inclusive piece, and I think that’s the piece this institution doesn’t want,” Wilmot told the Times. A spokesperson for Houghton University said the school “has never terminated an employment relationship based solely on the use of pronouns in staff email signatures”. “Over the past years, we’ve required anything extraneous be removed from email signatures, including Scripture quotes,” the spokesperson also told the Times. Some Houghton graduates have criticized the decision. About 600 signed an online letter this spring protesting Zelaya and Wilmot’s firings. “Our overall concern is that these recent changes demonstrate a concerning pattern of failure on the part of the current administration to respect that faithful and active Christians reasonably hold a range of theological and ethical views,” the letter stated .

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I’ve been an NHS consultant for decades. Here’s how to end the junior doctors' dispute

I love being a consultant in the NHS . Many years ago, I loved being a junior doctor. Even when I was working a 120-hour week, undeniably exhausted and a long way from what is now called work-life balance, I was sustained by a metaphorical – and occasionally real – mentor’s arm around my shoulder telling me that one day, all this could be mine. Medical apprenticeships now are no easier than they were: weekends on call have been replaced by punishing 12-hour shifts. A doctor coming on shift is handed a long list of tasks: when they eventually hand over to the next team, they pass on a similar one. Many teams are understaffed, there is not much continuity of care, often not much feedback on performance and, increasingly, not much thanks and appreciation. On top of working conditions that are far less attractive compared with those that juniors can find in Australia, New Zealand or India, real pay has been so eroded that some doctors starting a career with more than £50k debt find it genuinely difficult to pay for public transport to get to work and eat on the same day. It’s hardly surprising that given this backdrop, doctors below consultant level are demanding higher hourly rates. But is a 35% rise realistic? The British Medical Association is pushing hard for this with no visible evidence of compromise, but it may find it difficult to persuade the million or so healthcare workers who have settled for 5% . There appears to be a standoff between the BMA and government officials, with little understanding on either side of the other’s position. But with a few changes, this could be addressed quite simply. First, pay properly for overtime. Junior doctors who currently work beyond the hours of their shift report this via a written system of exception reporting. This does little to benefit individuals but often engenders significant ill-will among senior doctors, many of whom maintain that professionalism in almost every field involves working extra hours. Junior doctors know this and are usually reluctant to fill in the forms. In Australia and New Zealand, doctors clock in and out electronically and are automatically paid for overtime, with much publicised results on UK doctor recruitment. Why not just pay our doctors for what they do at a reasonable rate? Time and a half, say three hours per week. Cost: about £130 per doctor per week. Second, pay for the training courses needed to become a consultant. It costs upwards of £1,000 to sit professional exams, but attendance at courses required for higher training can be even higher and is often compulsory. If a doctor is going to work for an organisation at consultant level, surely there’s a case to be made for that organisation to pay for essential courses. Third, hot food at night, which is not available in most hospitals. If a lawyer or a banker pulls an all-nighter to meet a deadline, they get fed, usually for free. This would be easy to provide in hospitals. And for goodness sake, abolish car parking charges for those who have to drive to work. These steps to improve working conditions don’t address the pay gap that has widened so much over the past 15 years, but would begin to show that the NHS values junior doctors, which could make a big difference. What else can the NHS do to value the junior doctors who are so important to it? Well for one thing, it could do something about the ludicrous system of recruiting trainees and then sending them to remote parts of the country, often away from family and even partners. A little consideration here would go a long way. We could also do something about the enormous debt that newly qualified doctors accumulate before they start earning. They are medical students for six years while their peers have three- or four-year courses. Subsidising tuition fees for the last two years (rather than one year as at present) would make a big difference to finances in the early years after qualification. But what about salary, the main advertised cause of this dispute? The BMA leadership have been bullish about demanding a 35% increase, although they say it is pay restoration to 2008 levels rather than a pay rise. At the very least this is an ambitious target– but this dispute is not simply about money. The junior doctors I have spoken to could be reconciled to a pay rise more in line with other groups, given some of the steps I have outlined here, accompanied by a review of the doctors’ and dentists’ pay review board and perhaps a commitment to address this pay erosion over five years. One thing is certain: unless we realise that this dispute centres around a young, talented and committed workforce who are genuinely demoralised and fed up with current working practices, large numbers will leave, with unpleasant consequences for their colleagues – and most importantly of all, for patients. Stuart Bloom is a consultant physician and gastroenterologist at University College Hospital London

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The Guardian view on India at a crossroads: development, not dictatorship

Becoming the world’s most populous nation allows India to burnish its credentials as a global economic and political heavyweight. With a population that is much younger than those of China, the US and the EU, there will be renewed interest in India’s potential to be a beacon of liberal values. The west is eager to draw a democratic giant into its orbit. China and India will together account for about half of all global growth this year. But India risks emulating its bigger northern neighbour’s economic ascent under tight political control by a dominant authoritarian party. Hindu nationalism in India is writing an epitaph for the country’s experiment with multi-ethnic secular democracy. Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) has weakened institutions meant to keep the state both transparent and accountable. Information is censored, civil society hounded and protests suppressed. It is absurd that opposition leaders have been targeted to the extent that Mr Modi’s main rival – Rahul Gandhi – is currently disqualified from parliament. Such is the polarisation in politics that India’s last parliamentary session was the least productive since 1952. Mr Modi’s party has bent state institutions to service its ideology. This has effectively rendered minorities second-class citizens. The suppression of the civil rights of the world’s largest minority group, about 200 million Muslims , is unlikely to be viable over a long period without giving up on democracy. This would be a terrible outcome for India and the world. Most western countries only enfranchised all voters after industrialising. India had been an exception to the rule that capitalism comes before democracy. Its citizens acquired the right to vote well before modern industrial development. Autocrats have long claimed that democracy was inefficient. That argument entrenches at best “enlightened despotism”, but more often just brutal dictatorship. Deng Xiaoping told foreign observers in 1987 that democracy on the mainland might be viable in “ half a century ”. That prediction – of Chinese elections by 2037 – looks unlikely to be fulfilled. Until 1990 , India’s per capita income was higher than that of China; now it is only about a fifth of China’s. Beijing’s success was to integrate into the world economy without losing control of its domestic one. This was more about economics than politics. Mr Modi’s bet is that a single Hindu identity can transcend Indian society’s faultlines of religion, caste, region and language. Yet his parliamentary majority rests on the votes of just a quarter of the electorate. Large parts of India, especially its more developed regions, are resistant to his polarising politics. His crackdown on dissent is about weakness, not strength. India’s democratic reversal is also rooted in a development model that suits global concerns rather than domestic ones. Because of its economic heft, India is a member of the G20. Its citizens, however, are the poorest in this group . The richest 5% of Indians can consume the same goods as the average Briton. Therefore the outside world tends to be interested in Indian success as defined by the growth in this class – as the greater their purchasing power is, the larger the market for global goods and services. The latest Lamborghini sports car models, which cost £400,000, are already sold out in India. But 350m Indians went hungry in 2022, up from 190m in 2018. Rather than taxing the rich and corporates to fund health and education, the BJP has taxed the poor to pay for public services. India added zero net new jobs over the past decade , even as the number of people in the labour force rose by more than 100 million. The country’s democratic rise is far from assured. But for it to be sustained, there must be a political consensus that the prosperity of all its people, not just those at the top, should be increased.

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Boris Johnson’s blue-on-blue warfare overshadows the usual Rish! routine

Remarkable, really. Call it the joys of cognitive dissonance. Listen to Rishi Sunak speak for more than a few seconds and you will get the impression you are living in some kind of nirvana. That the UK is a blissed-out superstate. A land of plenty, where joy is unconstrained. Prime minister’s questions appears now to be on an endless loop. A new dimension of space-time in which everything invariably comes back to the same point. The format is always the same. Keir Starmer asks some relatively straightforward question about an area of government policy he thinks isn’t working so well, and Rish! just denies it. Worse than that, he gets really upset if his reality is in any way challenged. On Wednesday, the Labour leader homed in on immigration before the release of the latest figures due the next day. A fair question given the prime minister has three times stood on a manifesto to reduce net migration, only to see it increase year on year. You’d have thought even someone as out of touch as Sunak would have realised by now that something was wrong. Not that he would ever apologise. Men with Rish!’s sense of entitlement never say sorry for anything. Sunak has drunk deep on his own Kool-Aid. He believes in himself. He believes he can fly. Touch the sky. Labour had got it all wrong. The fact that migration had gone up was a sure sign it was coming down. But just to be certain he would be making life more miserable for foreign students. One of the many groups of migrants most people actually want. Go figure. And while he was about it, he wanted to put in a word for the International Monetary Fund. Normally he rubbishes their forecasts as they frequently indicate that the UK economy is tanking. But now he was falling over himself to boast the economy was expected to grow by 0.4%. A figure that will barely register on the consciousness of most sane people as it will be hard to tell the difference between that and flatlining. After all, inflation is the key indicator of how well off most people feel. And that remains stubbornly high, with food inflation running at nearly 20%. What’s more, even if inflation did fall, it wouldn’t mean that the basics of food and heating would get any more affordable as prices aren’t about to start falling. They will just become more unaffordable marginally less quickly. But none of this registers with Sunak. Week after week he merely parrots that all is for the best in the best of all Tory worlds. People should just stop moaning and open their hearts to the generosity of the government. Rish! is one of the world’s natural givers. He has reduced his salary from well over a million to little more than £160,000 as prime minister. Such nobility. OK, he might have several little earners on the side, but the little people would do well to remember that some of his investments had been badly hit in the past few years. And have you ever heard him complain that the best part of a billion quid doesn’t buy what it used to? No. He has suffered in silence. So he would be obliged if the rest of us did likewise. Where was the gratitude these days? Not that Starmer had it all his own way. Once PMQs had finished, Labour sent round an email saying that the Labour leader had just made a major policy announcement on immigration. Well, you could have fooled me. I sat through the whole thing along with many others and none of us detected anything remotely like a policy announcement. I doubt even the Tory frontbench realised either. In fact, I’m certain they didn’t, as Rish! kept saying Labour had no ideas of its own and just complained about whatever the government did. And it was because it didn’t support the Conservatives that the government’s plans didn’t work. Blame Labour. But on replaying the exchanges several times on Parliament TV, there was the barest outline of a Labour policy announcement. Something about getting rid of the 20% wage discount for overseas workers in jobs on the shortage occupation list. Just how this would encourage more Brits to do the jobs they don’t want to do wasn’t immediately obvious. It’s going to take more than a 20% pay rise to get Brits working as fruit pickers and care workers. Maybe Starmer would have been better off saying all this in a speech rather than sandwiching it between gags about Suella Braverman’s efforts to avoid mixing with the riff-raff on a speed awareness course. Then this PMQs was notable mainly as the one in which the speaker finally showed some authority. Normally Lindsay Hoyle is a complete pushover. All mouth and trousers. He threatens noisy MPs with a visit to the tea room but never really means it. Sign up to First Edition Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning after newsletter promotion Only today he did. The Tory MP Paul Bristow was the fallguy. But it could have been any of the more obnoxious, braying Conservative backbenchers who never fail to live down to the occasion. It was almost as if Hoyle had come to the chamber looking for trouble. “I’ve given you a warning, Mr Bristow,” he said. “Now leave.” Only he hadn’t given Bristow any warning. It was one strike and you’re out. Bristow couldn’t believe what was happening. He is used to having his childishness indulged and rewarded. Now he was expected to be a grownup. He tried to bluster it out. “What me?” Expecting, praying Hoyle would change his mind. Only he didn’t. Bristow turned red and made the walk of shame. His fellow Tories, any of whom could just as easily been evicted, made a point of not catching his eye. They all suddenly became teenagers caught bang to rights. Nothing to do with me, guv. They all looked down, pretending they weren’t there. After that we were blessed with silence for the rest of the session. Subdued. Almost as if MPs had come to listen to proceedings, rather than disrupt them. Hoyle should try the tough guy act more often. It made for a pleasant change. One MP who wasn’t in the Commons was Boris Johnson. But then, he seldom is. Too busy earning dirty money talking bullshit in Las Vegas. But he was uppermost in many people’s minds. Certainly Sunak’s. Who could possibly have guessed that Boris might have broken even more rules than we had possibly thought? So unlike him. But what great karma that it was his refusal to pay for his own lawyers that led to him being grassed up. Johnson’s outriders were protesting loudly. It was all a plot to stitch up the former prime minister. The irony of their man being paid £250,000 for a half-hour off-the-cuff monologue while insisting he was being cancelled escaped them. They were out for blood. Paranoid that Sunak was behind the latest allegations. Unable as ever to distinguish between fantasy and reality. For the moment, Labour was a mere distraction. The real action was blue on blue.

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Google Pixel 7a review: the best mid-range phone gets even better

Google’s latest mid-range phone brings high-end features down to a reasonable price, including the firm’s top chip and class-leading camera. The Pixel 7a costs £449 (€509/$449) – £50 more than the initial price of last year’s 6a but £150 cheaper than the Pixel 7 – while offering almost the same features. In fact, it looks almost identical to the 7, just ever so slightly smaller. It has a nice and bright 6.1in OLED screen with an upgraded 90Hz refresh rate to keep things smooth when scrolling. The phone is a good size and easy to fit in a pocket but with a big-enough screen for watching video on the commute. New for this year is face unlock for the phone as well as a fingerprint scanner. It is a good combination, adding the convenience of face recognition for unlocking the phone in good light while keeping the secure authentication via your fingerprint for banking apps and similar. The fingerprint scanner isn’t the fastest on the market but generally works fine if you are precise with the initial scans of your finger during setup. Screen: 6.1in 90Hz FHD+ OLED (429ppi) Processor: Google Tensor G2 RAM: 8GB Storage: 128GB Operating system: Android 13 Camera: 64MP + 13MP ultrawide, 13MP selfie Connectivity: 5G, eSIM, wifi 6E, NFC, Bluetooth 5.3 and GNSS Water resistance: IP67 (1m for 30 minutes) Dimensions: 152.4 x 72.9 x 9mm Weight: 193g Google has stuck with the same recipe that made the Pixel 6a a winner last year. The new phone has the firm’s top Tensor G2 chip from the Pixel 7 and the same amount of RAM and storage. That makes the 7a faster and more powerful than the mid-range competition and on-par with top-end phones. The battery lasts about 34 hours between charges, which is generally enough for the heaviest of days. It will need charging overnight, similar to its predecessor and the Pixel 7 . Google does not provide an expected lifespan for the battery but it should last in excess of 500 full charge cycles with at least 80% of its original capacity. The phone is repairable by Google and third-party shops with genuine replacement parts available direct from iFixit . The Pixel 7a is made with recycled aluminium, glass and plastic, accounting for about 21% of the phone by weight. The company publishes environmental impact reports for some of its products. Google will recycle old devices free of charge. The Pixel 7a runs the same version of Android 13 as the Pixel 7 Pro and Google’s other smartphones. It is fast, well optimised and good-looking, and includes free access to Google’s VPN, which is handy for securing your data while using public wifi networks. Google provides at least five years of software and security updates including at least three major Android versions. Samsung supports many of its phones for five years, while Fairphone is aiming for six years and Apple supports its iPhone for up to seven years. On the back there are new 64 megapixel main and 13MP ultrawide cameras, which improve on the already great Pixel 6a and bring the phone into line with the more expensive Pixel 7. The main camera shoots really good, well-exposed and dramatic images, with excellent levels of detail in good outdoor and dim indoor lighting. It does a particularly good job of capturing detail in portraits and photos of objects. The ultrawide camera is also one of the better options available, slightly weaker on detail and sharpness than the main camera, but managing high contrast and difficult scenes with aplomb. The 7a has no telephoto camera, instead relying on digital zoom, which is fine at 2x but starts to markedly degrade much beyond 3 or 4x zoom. The 13MP selfie camera is equally excellent, while video captured across all three cameras is good for the money. New for this year is a fun long-exposure mode for adding a bit of motion to photos and a significantly faster low-light mode, which can make near darkness look like daylight. Overall, the 7a is a step up over last year’s 6a and about on a par with the more expensive Pixel 7. It totally trounces the mid-range competition anywhere near this price. The Pixel 7a costs £449 (€509/$449). For comparison, the Pixel 7 costs from £599 , the Pixel 6a now costs £349 , the Samsung Galaxy A54 costs £449 , the Nothing Phone 1 costs £349 and the Apple iPhone SE costs £449 . The Pixel 7a is the best mid-range Android phone available. It squeezes even more of the premium smartphone experience into a smaller, cheaper model. Google’s top chip, plenty of RAM and a decent amount of storage, make it faster than most competitors. Its great, bright screen has a 90Hz refresh rate to keep things smooth when scrolling, which is a major perk of high-end phones alongside wireless charging. Great software and five years of support mean you can keep using it for longer. The camera is class leading and then some, beating many phones twice the price and totally trouncing the competition in the mid-range. The back is plastic not glass, though most will put it in a case anyway. The 34-hour battery is solid enough for a good day but short of the best. But the 7a is so good for the money, I’m not sure why you’d pay an extra £150 for the Pixel 7 . In fact, the 7a’s biggest problem is that the Pixel 6a is still on sale from last year and is now reduced to £349, which is tremendous value. Pros: brilliant camera, excellent smaller screen, top performance, decent battery life, wireless charging, face and fingerprint unlock, water resistance, recycled aluminium and plastic, five years of security updates, Android 13, smart software features, competitively priced. Cons: no optical zoom or macro photo mode, face unlock option not as secure as some rivals, battery life short of best-in-class, fairly slow charging.

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Camelot continues national lottery battle with damages claim

Camelot’s legal fight to avoid losing its licence to operate the national lottery has failed but the Canadian-owned company will press ahead with a damages claim that could cost the government £600m. The company launched a high court challenge in April, claiming the Gambling Commission had got its decision “badly wrong” by naming the rival firm Allwyn as its “preferred applicant” for the next 10-year licence to operate the national lottery. The lawsuit forced a temporary suspension of the licence award, causing a delay that could have “severe consequences for the national lottery and good causes”, said the commission. On Wednesday, the court ruled the suspension should be lifted, allowing the regulator to award the licence to Allwyn from 2024 via an “enabling agreement” that spells the end of Camelot’s unbroken 30-year reign since the first draw in 1994. However, Camelot and its technology provider IGT will press ahead with their legal argument that the commission got its decision wrong. Should they succeed, in a case likely to be heard later this year, they are expected to claim damages of £400m and £200m respectively. The sums far exceed the commission’s budget and Camelot has argued in court that any payout would have to come out of the lottery’s budget for good causes. Camelot said: “While disappointing, this judgment only addresses whether or not the enabling agreement can be signed while our case is heard. The judgment on whether the Gambling Commission correctly and lawfully awarded preferred applicant status is being dealt with separately. We continue to believe that we have a very strong legal case.” The Gambling Commission said it would now begin the transition to Allwyn, owned by the billionaire Czech entpreneur Karel Komárek , and that it was confident of beating Camelot in court. The regulator said: “We remain resolute that we have run a fair and robust competition, and that our evaluation has been carried out fairly and lawfully in accordance with our statutory duties.” Allwyn welcomed the court’s decision and said it would usher in an “enhanced games portfolio, new technologies, provisions for safer play, and a substantial increase in returns to good causes”.

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‘We can do the impossible’: how key players reacted to end of Cop27 climate summit

World leaders, diplomats, activists and experts have been reacting to the end of the Cop27 climate conference , which produced a groundbreaking agreement on climate finance for poorer countries but failed to make significant progress on many other matters. Here are some of the reactions from major players. “This Cop caused deep frustrations but it wasn’t for nothing. It achieved a significant breakthrough for the most vulnerable countries. The loss and damage fund, a dream at Cop26 last year, is on track to start running in 2023. There is a lot of work still to be done on the detail, but the principle is in place and that is a significant mindset shift as we deal with a world in which climate impacts cause profound loss. “The influence of the fossil fuel industry was found across the board. This Cop has weakened requirements around countries making new and more ambitious commitments. The text makes no mention of phasing out fossil fuels and scant reference to science and the 1.5C target. The Egyptian presidency has produced a text that clearly protects oil and gas petrostates and the fossil fuel industries. This trend cannot continue in the United Arab Emirates next year. “Elsewhere in Sharm el-Sheikh, it was a silent and fearful Cop for many activists. The legacy of those fighting for civic space and human rights will endure.” “In a year of multiple crises and climate shocks, the historic outcome on loss and damage at Cop27 shows international cooperation is possible, even in these testing times. Equally, the renewed commitment on the 1.5C global warming limit was a source of relief. “However, none of this changes the fact that the world remains on the brink of climate catastrophe. Progress made on mitigation since Cop26 in Glasgow has been too slow. Climate action at Cop27 shows we are on the cusp of a clean energy world, but only if G20 leaders live up to their responsibilities, keep their word and strengthen their will. The onus is on them. All climate commitments must be transformed into real-world action, including the rapid phase-out of fossil fuels, a much faster transition towards green energy, and tangible plans for delivering both adaptation and loss and damage finance. “We avoided backsliding and made progress in Sharm el-Sheikh. Now leaders must stop sidestepping and fulfil their promises to safeguard a livable future.” Kerry said the US was “pleased” to support the new fund, after the Americans gained assurances that there would be no legal liability for climate damages suffered by other countries. “The fund, which will be one among many available avenues for voluntary funding, should be designed to be effective and to attract an expanded donor base,” he said in his closing statement, a nod to other countries the US expects to step up and perhaps a tacit acknowledgment that America has failed to meet previous promises to itself deliver climate finance. Despite the lack of more ambitious language to cut emissions in the Cop27 text, Kerry was upbeat, saying that “make no mistake: we have kept the hope of 1.5 alive”. Von der Leyen described the Cop27 deal as “a small step towards climate justice”, but said much more was needed for the planet. “We have treated some of the symptoms but not cured the patient from its fever,” she said in a statement. “I am pleased that Cop27 has opened a new chapter on financing loss and damage, and laid the foundations for a new method for solidarity between those in need and those in a position to help. We are rebuilding trust. “Cop27 has kept alive the goal of 1.5C. Unfortunately however, it has not delivered on a commitment by the world’s major emitters to phase down fossil fuels, nor new commitments on climate mitigation.” “Cop27 was meant to be the ‘African Cop’ but the needs of African people have been obstructed throughout. Loss and damage in vulnerable countries is now unignoreable, but some developed countries here in Egypt have decided to ignore our suffering. Young people were not able to have their voice heard at Cop27 because of restrictions on protest, but our movement is growing and ordinary citizens in every country are starting to hold their governments accountable on the climate crisis at home.” Sign up to Down to Earth The planet's most important stories. Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essential after newsletter promotion “I’m proud I got to be here to witness this happen and contribute in a small way. Worn out but so worth it to protect already disappearing islets, shorelines and culture. So many people all this week told us we wouldn’t get it. So glad they were wrong. “I wish we got fossil fuel phase-out. The current text is not enough. But we’ve shown with the loss and damage fund that we can do the impossible. So we know we can come back next year and get rid of fossil fuels once and for all.” “In a historic breakthrough, wealthy nations have finally agreed to create a fund to aid vulnerable countries that are reeling from devastating climate damages. This loss and damage fund will be a lifeline for poor families whose houses are destroyed, farmers whose fields are ruined, and islanders forced from their ancestral homes. This positive outcome from Cop27 is an important step toward rebuilding trust with vulnerable countries.” “To quote the Three Lions England football song, after 30 years of hurt, climate action is finally coming home on African soil here in Egypt. “At the beginning of these talks, loss and damage was not even on the agenda, and now we are making history. It just shows that this UN process can achieve results, and that the world can recognise the plight of the vulnerable must not be treated as a political football. It’s worth noting that we have the fund but we need money to make it worthwhile. What we have is an empty bucket. Now we need to fill it so that support can flow to the most impacted people who are suffering right now at the hands of the climate crisis. “However, on a global fossil fuel phase-down, it’s sad to see countries just copying and pasting the outcome from last year’s Cop26 in Glasgow. The science is clear, the impacts are getting worse and we know that renewables are the future. Polluting countries need to leave coal, oil and gas in the ground if we’re going to keep global heating from running out of control.” “Since the EU and Alok Sharma are disappointed that fossil fuel phase-out is not in the text, we would like them to take leadership and revise their NDCs [nationally determined contributions] and put into plans their fossil fuel phase-out urgently and stop expansion of fossil fuels including oil and gas. [It’s] not enough to play to the gallery but act if they really want to save the planet and not hide behind 2050 net zero targets, which will bust the remaining carbon budget for 1.5C. They have the historical responsibility to get to real zero and in fact negative emissions and not net zero by 2050.”

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Parents urged to help teachers win battle over pay and jobs

Parents are being called on to help teachers in their fight for a pay rise as unions try to win the public relations battle against the government over next month’s strikes. With thousands of schools across England and Wales set to close in February after teachers voted to strike , the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) union has told the Observer that it is working with Parentkind , the umbrella group for parent-teacher associations in schools, and with school governors to get parents to lobby backbench Conservative MPs on the crisis in recruiting and retaining teachers . The education secretary, Gillian Keegan, said parents would be “deeply disappointed” that members of the National Education Union were risking the “education and wellbeing” of children with the strikes, which could close individual schools for up to four days. But Geoff Barton, general secretary of the ASCL, said: “We are determined that after underfunding education for 12 years, the government won’t be allowed to get away with trying to blame the teachers.” He said while ministers are trying to enforce minimum service requirements for teachers and public service workers through the government’s anti-strike bill , his union would urge parents to write to Conservative MPs, asking them: “Shouldn’t there be a minimum requirement that my child is taught by a qualified teacher [in that subject]?” He added: “A lot of these MPs are in very fragile seats and know an election is coming, so parents have power to demand change.” Education unions say teacher shortages are now a critical problem for almost every school, with pay too low to attract and retain enough staff. School leaders say job adverts for teaching science, maths, computing and modern languages often receive no applications at all. Many teachers mocked Rishi Sunak’s new year plan for all pupils in England to study maths up to the age of 18 , because a large number of schools are struggling to recruit maths teachers. At almost half (45%) of state schools some maths lessons are being taught by teachers qualified in a different subject, according to a recent report by the National Foundation for Educational Research . The Institute of Physics has said that about 400 schools in England do not have a teacher for A-level physics . Matt Doble, assistant principal and a computer science teacher at Preston secondary school in Yeovil, Somerset, tweeted Keegan last week : “Try and appoint a science teacher and then tell me again how great the pay is.” He said his school had advertised for posts in science four times without a single application or inquiry. He added: “Graduates are able to earn significantly more out in industry. I have a background in computer science and regularly see job adverts for software engineers earning double my salary in nearby Bristol or working from home.” David Robertson, a maths teacher at a secondary academy in south-east England, said: “We have had to recruit two teachers who aren’t qualified in maths into our team of eight. Students are losing the love of the subject.” Robertson said the deputy headteacher at his school now spends most evenings trying to find supply teachers. “One group of children have had 60% of their lessons taught by cover staff,” he added. Chris Hillidge, director of science, technology, engineering and maths at the Challenge Academy Trust, which runs 10 primary and secondary schools in Warrington, Cheshire, said: “In computer science we are recruiting almost no specialists. They aren’t there. The vast majority of schools in the north-west have non-specialists teaching physics.” He added: “Parents might not be aware that their child is being taught physics by a biologist or a sports scientist, but they are noticing when they have a supply teacher for a period of time because of shortages.” Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers union, said it will encourage heads to write to parents about why teachers are striking, or discuss it at the school gates. He said: “I think it is incumbent on school leaders to explain to parents the impact of more than a decade of underfunding of schools.” He added that problems recruiting and keeping staff were “the central issue” for heads now and inadequate pay was the biggest contributing factor. John McNally, chief executive of the Share Multi Academy Trust in West Yorkshire, wrote to parents about strike dates last week. He also explained that teachers were protesting because of “concerns about funding of schools, the erosion of educators’ pay and the subsequent difficulties this causes for recruitment, especially in shortage subjects”. He said: “I think it is important for parents to understand that those teachers who have chosen to strike are doing so because they feel very strongly about the issues.”

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South Korea floods and landslides kill 14 after 42 days of rain

Fourteen people have been killed and more than 1,000 forced from their homes as 42 consecutive days of rain, South Korea ’s longest monsoon in seven years, triggered floods and landslides. Heavy rain, which has also battered China, Thailand, Myanmar and India, inundated farmland and flooded parts of major highways and bridges in the capital, Seoul. The victims included three New Zealanders from the same family, who were found dead on Monday after a landslide hit holiday cottages in Gapyeong county, north-east of the city. The New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Korea identified the victims as the organisation’s director, Anna Song, her young son, and her mother, Rose Kim. Song had been involved in “all activities to promote the New Zealand and Korea relationship”, the chamber said. The New Zealand foreign ministry said it was aware of the deaths and was providing consular assistance. It did not elaborate. Among the other deaths caused by the rain were three workers killed when a landslide struck the factory where they were working. President Moon Jae-in expressed concern about the impact of 42 days of rain, which weather officials said was the longest such stretch since 2013, on public sector emergency workers already battling the Covid-19 pandemic. He urged “all-out efforts to prevent further loss of life”, such as action to avert landslides and evacuate people, even in cases of little apparent danger. Most of the flooded roads and bridges along the Han River in Seoul that had backed up traffic and damaged infrastructure were back in operation on Tuesday, the Yonhap news agency said. In neighbouring North Korea , state media warned of possible flooding. “All the sectors of the national economy .. are taking steps to prevent damage from the downpour,” the state news agency KCNA said, adding that some areas were predicted to receive as much as half a metre of rain. Citing unidentified South Korean government officials, Yonhap said North Korea had opened the floodgates of a border dam on Monday without advance notice to its neighbour.

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A dazzling display of 1.5m tulips – but only after a hard year for Indian workers

An explosion of colour – and long queues of traffic – marked the opening of Asia’s largest tulip garden in Srinagar, Kashmir. Thousands of people are expected to visit the 30-hectare (74-acre) garden on the shores of the picturesque Dal lake to see more than 60 varieties of blooms during the annual festival, which opened last month. It takes a year, and an army of gardeners, to prepare for the month-long event. “There are over 543 beds spread across the four terraces of the garden,” says the garden supervisor Mushtaq Ahmad Mir, who meticulously maps out which variety and colour of tulip appear in each of the large beds. Work began on this year’s gardens as soon as the gates closed on the 2022 festival. Stems were pulled up and bulbs retrieved from under the ground. “Each bed can have 2,300 to 2,500 tulips,” says Mohamed Yousuf Khan, one of the festival’s two head gardeners. “Five people work on each bed, carefully removing the bulbs and placing them in crates. It takes them one full day to do this.” This backbreaking work continues well into July, when the summer season is at its peak in Kashmir . Ghulam Mohamed Moti, 56, is one of up to 60 gardeners employed on the project. “We wear hats to protect ourselves, but the colour of our clothes and our hats is changed by the heat. You can only imagine what must happen to our bodies.” The work is done by the permanent staff and men employed as “casual labourers”, even though some have toiled there for decades. “There is no bed in the entire garden that I have not worked on,” says Muzaffar Ahmad Bhat, 36, who has worked at the gardens for 22 years, now earning 300 rupees (£3) a day as a casual. Moti says employees like Bhat should be made permanent and paid better salaries. “They are working on these wages because they are hoping to be made permanent employees with better and regular salaries, otherwise why else would anyone work so hard, around the year, for such wages?” After harvesting, the bulbs are taken to multiple cold-storage chambers on the edges of the garden. There, they are sorted, graded and those deemed no longer useful (usually about 30%) are discarded. To compensate for the discarded stock, tulips have been imported from the Netherlands every year since 2007, when the festival began. Srinagar has a string of historic gardens, influenced by the designs of the Mughal emperors, but the Indira Gandhi Memorial Tulip Garden was created specifically to boost tourism. Last year, more than 360,000 people from across Indian-administered Kashmir, as well as from overseas, visited the garden, up from 230,000 in 2021, following cancellation in 2020 because of the Covid pandemic. Sign up to Global Dispatch Get a different world view with a roundup of the best news, features and pictures, curated by our global development team after newsletter promotion In August and September, the gardeners focus on ploughing and weeding the beds. “They are ploughed using tractors and manured to maintain the richness of the soil,” says Moti. By October, furrows have been dug by hand along the length of the beds with 4ft between them, and then the task of planting more than 1.5m bulbs begins. In winter, the gardeners tend the saplings, working day and night to keep them frost-free and ensure they’re not eaten by the wild boars that prowl the nearby Zabarwan hills. Mesh-wire fencing has been put up around the garden this year to help keep the animals out. The labour doesn’t stop now the festival has opened. The gardening team work in shifts, watering the beds and making sure visitors don’t pick the flowers, as well as collecting rubbish. “It’s like tending to a baby,” says Khan. “We make sure the baby doesn’t catch cold, that it is presentable, that it has good clothes. All of this till the show is ready in April, when we present it to the people.” This article was amended on 5 April 2023. The festival opened in March, rather than April. And it was visited by 360,000 people in 2022 and 230,000 in 2021, rather than 3.6 million and 2.3 million respectively as an earlier version said.

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Major reforms to Welsh care system needed, finds Senedd committee

Radical reforms to the care system in Wales are needed to address a “shocking” rise in the number of looked after children, a Welsh parliament committee has concluded. The committee said the number of children in care was up by almost 23% since 2013 while at the same time there were shortages of qualified social workers. Members of the Senedd’s children, young people and education committee said a series of radical reforms were needed to address the situation and strengthen the legal rights of young people in care. Their report alluded to the case of Logan Mwangi, the five-year-old boy murdered by his mother, her partner and his stepson. Logan was killed shortly after the stepson, Craig Mulligan, moved into the family home after being in care five days before the killing, in a decision likened by prosecutors to throwing a lit match into a powder keg. The committee’s report said managing risk was a “very difficult part of social workers’ jobs”. It added: “Social workers are under pressure to protect children, and they can get a lot of strong criticism if it is seen that they aren’t stepping in to remove a child from their birth parents early enough.” According to the report, there are many more children in care in Wales compared with England – 112 per 10,000 in Wales compared with 70 in England. In one of the south Wales valley areas – Torfaen, which includes the towns of Pontypool and Blaenavon – there are 209 per 10,000. Jayne Bryant, the chair of the committee, said during an inquiry on children in care it had heard from many who were being let down. Many said they felt ignored and powerless, with no say in the decisions that affected their lives. She said: “Now is the time for action. These young people desperately need more support and the guarantee that support will be there for them by making it their legal right to access it.” The committee found that 50% of staff in 2022 in children’s social care were agency workers – and there were 639 vacancies for social care staff. It also discovered that fewer than one in five children will achieve five or more A* to C grades at GCSE, including English/Welsh and maths and one in four “care-experienced children” will be homeless at the age of 18. About a quarter of care experienced parents will have had at least one of their own children removed. The committee is calling for more legal responsibilities to be placed on the local authorities and other public bodies that act as parents to these young people. It is asking for a law that will require councils to calculate the maximum number of caseloads a children’s care social worker can safely manage. A Welsh government spokesperson said: “We are working with care-experienced children and young people to radically reform services to provide the very best support and protection, and ensure they thrive when leaving care.”

GOOD

‘He will win a lot more’: Brooks Koepka can rival greats for majors, says coach

Pete Cowen, the English coach of Brooks Koepka, believes the newly crowned US PGA champion can match the major-winning tallies of legends such as Ben Hogan and Gary Player. Koepka’s two-stroke success at Oak Hill means he has five majors to his name, including three US PGA titles. Cowen, who coaches Koepka primarily on his short game, sees no reason for the 33-year-old to stop there. Hogan and Player won nine majors apiece. “He will win a lot more,” he said. “I certainly think he will go another four and he would obviously like a grand slam. Look at how many times he has been second or just missed out already. I thought he was an unbelievable player in 2018-2019 and he has got stronger.” Injury was Koepka’s problem during much of the intervening period, leading to fears he may even have to step away from top-level golf. “That really affected him,” Cowen said. “You can’t swing the way you want to when your fitness is poor. “I believed he could come back because he has always been comfortable in uncomfortable situations. He looks as though he is going to beat you now, when he is coming down the stretch. He is not frightened of working, that’s for sure, and he couldn’t work when he was injured.” Koepka, who tied for second in the Masters , will rise to second in the automatic qualifying places for the US Ryder Cup team. While it would seem extraordinary if he did not at least receive a captain’s pick for the September meeting with Europe in Rome, Koepka’s position as part of the rebel LIV tour adds an element of doubt. “He would love to play in the Ryder Cup,” Cowen said. “I know Brooks – and Dustin Johnson – would love to play. I have spoken to them about it.” A tongue-in-cheek comment followed, in reference to the PGA Tour commissioner, Jay Monahan. “I don’t think Jay would like him to play,” Cowen said. The Ryder Cup is, however, a PGA of America rather than PGA Tour concern. Asked about the significance of a LIV golfer winning a major Koepka said: “Yeah, it’s a huge thing, but at the same time I’m out here competing as an individual at the PGA Championship.” Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend’s action after newsletter promotion Cowen walked with Koepka between Oak Hill’s pitching and putting areas before the final round. “He was complaining about swinging poorly,” Cowen said. “I said to him: ‘Your 70% will still win.’” Cowen has just one memento from Koepka major wins, a signed flag given to him after the 2017 US Open at Erin Hills . “I sat him down after watching him play all four rounds at the St Jude Classic,” the 72-year-old Yorkshireman said. “I gave him a real talking to, said to him: ‘With that attitude, you’ll win nothing. Your talent is there but your attitude is appalling. You have to have the attitude of a champion if you are going to be a champion.’ “On the flag it says: ‘Thanks for the bollocking. I couldn’t have done it without you.’ He can take that from me, he doesn’t want a ‘yes’ man or his ego stroked.”

GOOD

The war on Japanese knotweed

W hen Paul Ryb found himself a new home, in 2014, no one told him about the danger lurking in the garden. The flat, in the north London neighbourhood of Highgate, occupied the ground floor of a two-storey, brown-brick building. It had two bedrooms and a modest extension, but its truly splendid feature was a big, corner-plot garden. Ryb, a former investment banker, bought the flat for almost £1.3m and moved in mid-autumn 2014. His eyesight is severely impaired, so even more than most homebuyers, he had trusted his surveyor’s report, which testified to the “excellent condition” and “very few defects” of the house. The next spring, though, when planting season began, his gardener took one look at the garden and gave him the bad news. He’d found three clumps of Japanese knotweed out there, which portended ruin for the garden. Refusing even to touch them, the gardener packed up his tools and left. Knotweed spreads slowly but adamantly, and it can take over a patch of land until no other plants survive. Given time, the three stands of knotweed may have consumed Ryb’s garden, so he had little choice but to hire workmen who dug out and carted away the knotweed and the soil beneath, at a cost of more than £10,000. Then he sued his surveyor. In 2019, a court awarded Ryb £50,000 in damages, citing not just the expense he had borne, but also his investment in the house and knotweed’s aesthetic interference with his “ability fully to use and enjoy the land”. Knotweed has been a British plant since the 19th century, but as a species, it is still called “invasive” – a word referring not only to its origins abroad, in Japan, but also to how it has run riot through the country. Through many countries, in fact: across much of Europe and North America, knotweed has conquered woods and pasture, asphalt and urban wasteland. Unchecked, knotweed grows audaciously: it can rise by eight feet in the course of a single summer month. One biologist told me that she regularly came across doubledecker-sized colonies of knotweed during her fieldwork in northern France. Another expert, in Wales, recalled the biggest stand of knotweed he’d ever seen: a monster that straggled over 20,000 sq metres – nearly enough room to park four Boeing 747s. Some of the sites chosen for the 2012 Olympics had so much knotweed that it cost £70m to clean them up. Lawn moss can be destroyed with iron sulphate, nettles can be pulled out, ivy can be chemically extinguished. Knotweed is nearly indomitable. It may be temporarily subdued – uprooted, mowed down, defoliated – and it can be controlled with poison, but it cannot easily be slain. This is a plant that survives the hot lava flows of volcanic eruptions. It is so formidable that even sober experts sometimes compare it to the triffid, from John Wyndham’s 1951 novel The Day of the Triffids. Wyndham’s triffids are mobile, sentient beings that stalk the country, stinging to death any humans they encounter. Forced off their land by these alien, indestructible plants, a band of survivors has to decamp to the Isle of Wight. Unlike the triffid, knotweed will not so much drive you off your land as devalue it – a dire enough fate in the current property market. According to one estimate, 5% of UK homes are afflicted with knotweed, potentially slicing £20bn off their collective value. The official form that owners fill out while selling their houses now includes a specific question: “Is the property affected by Japanese knotweed?” Dissembling, or even ignorance, can be costly. Earlier this year, a court extracted £200,000 in damages from a man who sold his London home for £700,000 without copping to the knotweed in the garden. Ryb’s legal counsel was a firm named Charles Lyndon, which was set up by the lawyer Rodger Burnett, after he had himself discovered knotweed in his newly purchased south London home. (“I didn’t know what it was. My mum had come down to do a bit of gardening,” Burnett told me, “and she looked out of the kitchen and said: ‘What have you done? You’ve got knotweed. You’re an idiot.’”) Burnett’s firm has handled hundreds of such cases, and there are several other lawyers who specialise in knotweed claims. One barrister referred to them as “wheelbarrow chasers”. As knotweed fanned out across British homes and gardens, it went from being a horticultural headache to an economic menace. Over the past decade and a half, as British wages languished, the only real wealth that many people gained lay in the homes they owned, which appreciated every year almost too reliably, regardless of the economy’s other strains and stresses. When knotweed started corroding the value of these houses, their owners panicked. Lawyers sharpened their pencils. Botanists turned into consultants. Parliament convened knotweed committees. It was as if the country, having cohabited with knotweed for a century and a half, suddenly woke up to the fact that it was overrun, and set about trying to kill the unkillable weed. O n the ground, the state’s soldiers against knotweed come in the form of people like Gethin Bowes, a stocky man with broad shoulders that look ideally contoured to bear a herbicide-spraying backpack. Until recently, Bowes worked for Caerphilly, a Welsh county borough skirted by the Rhymney River. (In April, after 18 years in the post, he quit to join an environmental management company, where fighting knotweed is still part of his job description.) It fell to Bowes to figure out courses of action for the 1 million sq metres of knotweed he’d mapped in Caerphilly. This was the largest knotweed monitoring project in the UK, perhaps in the world, and Bowes ran it almost entirely by himself. Looking through Bowes’ eyes, you see the world cleave into two: knotweed and everything else. One February afternoon, he gave me a tour of Caerphilly knotweed. In his Toyota pickup, we rode into town, past Caerphilly castle, down small village streets, and up into the hills speckled with sheep. On highways, he’d interrupt himself to point out, on the verges, knotweed stands he’d confronted. Frequently he pulled over, reached for his laptop and summoned old Google Maps satellite-view images to show how much denser the knotweed had been six or eight or 10 years ago, before he had ridden to the rescue. As we drove through the villages, he’d sometimes slow down and look purposefully at stands of knotweed on private land that he couldn’t get at without permission. “These bits really bug me,” he said. Once, as we went around a traffic island, he said: “We excavated a lot of knotweed while building this road, and packaged it in a membrane and buried it under there.” This is, it should be said, a legitimate method of knotweed control. Even so, he brought to mind a mob stoolie dishing about where the bodies lay. Other hardy invasives in Britain, such as the rhododendron or the Himalayan balsam, spread through seed. Their propagative apparatus – the seed pods – are plain to see, easier to assail. Knotweed produces seeds as well, but its singular weapon lies out of sight. Beneath the earth is its rhizome, a network of stems that grow laterally, sending up new shoots wherever they can. Bowes described the rhizome to me as the plant’s “battery”, a dense store of energy. Even when it has been shorn of its stalks, or suppressed by weedkiller, or trapped below concrete, a rhizome can stay dormant for as long as 20 years, waiting for better days. This is why knotweed prospers – and why it preys on the mind. There is always the fear that it is merely lying in wait, ready to burst forth again. Disturbing the rhizome in even the mildest way provokes it to grow; shredding it is like lopping off the head of a hydra. Even a thumbnail-size fragment of it, resembling raw, orange-coloured ginger, can generate a whole new plant. (Hence the reluctance of Ryb’s gardener to poke his knotweed and risk carrying rhizome bits away. “He knew they could infect his tools,” Ryb told me.) In excavating knotweed whole, as Ryb had to do, it becomes so vital to eradicate every last grain of rhizome that some surveyors have trained dogs to sniff it out underground. During such projects, Bowes carefully checks the blades of his machines and the tyres of his vehicles, making certain that they won’t bear away any rogue rhizome pieces. Bowes spent his boyhood “near brown water and brown mud”, as he put it – on Wales’s south coast, midway between Cardiff and Newport. Every winter, dry knotweed stems would wash down rivers, and he saw great rafts of these hollow canes collecting along the estuary shore. He didn’t know it was Japanese knotweed at the time. His formal introduction to the plant came after agricultural college, when he was working at a landscaping company, taking on knotweed at building sites and other locations. At the time, he said, no one told him to be wary about the rhizome, and the most common methods felt largely futile. They’d cut back the plant every time it regrew, Bowes said, and they’d dose it with a herbicide like glyphosate, but they were only guessing about how and when to apply it. As the science developed, though, their efforts became more effective. Glyphosate is now the chemical that defines Bowes’ working life. When Bowes started in Caerphilly, in 2005, he was tasked only with preventing knotweed from overrunning native plants in the wild – along the banks of the rivers, and in pockets of woodland. But that was too narrow a front: knotweed was all over the county. Every major construction project in the region – highways, bridges, hospitals, railways – has had knotweed problems, and Bowes has dealt with nearly all of them. Bits of rhizome wash down the Rhymney, from knotweed stands upstream, and populate riverbanks. Knotweed blocks visibility on road verges, grows thickly in car parks and rears above the fences of private gardens. It may be successfully quashed on one plot of land, only to stretch laterally underground to spring up on the next plot over. Often, after a lull, Bowes found it had double-crossed him and reinfested the same plot. On a few occasions, Bowes has seen knotweed inside a building; once, a plant had found its way along a pipe or through a joint in the concrete to emerge next to a downstairs toilet. In some heavily infested spots, to his immense satisfaction, Bowes hasn’t seen new growth in more than 15 years. “If I’m entirely honest, I’d thought at the beginning: ‘Well, a year of this, and then I’m going to do something else,’” Bowes said. “Sometimes I can’t believe I’ve spent such a long time playing whack-a-mole with knotweed.” I n its biological vigour, Japanese knotweed is a Darwinian champion. It starves smaller saplings by towering over them and blocking their sunlight. Its leaf litter secretes chemicals to impede the germination of other plants. Contrary to popular opinion, knotweed shoots can’t break through solid concrete or weaken the foundations of buildings, but they can push through cracks in bricks, concrete or road surfaces. During winter, knotweed loses its leaves, and its brown canes resemble slim, desiccated fingers of bamboo. At the hot height of summer, it is at its most luxuriant. Its leaves, shaped like cartoon hearts, can be bigger than a human hand, and its small, creamy flowers emerge in tufts just before autumn. During his time with the Caerphilly council, Bowes’ years followed a seasonal order. When I met him in February, he said: “I’ll check my phone now, after a couple of hours, and I’ll have maybe two voicemail messages. By May Day, I’ll come back to my phone and see 25 voicemails. All of them saying: ‘I’ve seen knotweed here,’ or ‘There’s knotweed growing here.’” Through the summer, until October, Bowes used to be out every rainless day – even weekends and bank holidays – spraying glyphosate, monitoring old sites that he’d treated, or reconnoitring new and troubling stands of knotweed. “We skipped the day of the Queen’s funeral,” he said. “The herbicide sprayer has a petrol engine that’s quite noisy, so we thought it wouldn’t be respectful.” It had been a perfect day for spraying, too, he added, regretfully. (This summer, for the coronation, the council had a battery-powered sprayer.) The work was hot and exhausting. Sometimes, Bowes had to don his PPE – overalls, gloves, waders up to his chest – and scramble down a steep bank with a 20kg tank of glyphosate on his back, then walk along the shallow reaches of a river to reach his knotweed. Glyphosate, Bowes’ preferred poison, is the most heavily used herbicide in history, but it is still a subject of contention. Extinction Rebellion wants it banned, the World Health Organization thinks it is “probably carcinogenic to humans”, and Monsanto, its manufacturer, has lost lawsuits over its health impacts. The US Environmental Protection Agency, though, insists that glyphosate is unlikely to be carcinogenic. Bowes was cautious in talking about glyphosate, but he made the point that no other chemical works better. Glyphosate seeps through the leaves and canes into the rhizome, arresting its growth and, after many applications, forcing it into dormancy. Not using anything at all on knotweed, Bowes pointed out, would leave the environment and biodiversity to a far worse fate. In any case, on a sunny day, a spray of glyphosate on a knotweed leaf dries within minutes. He described “good spraying weather”: dry and still, so the herbicide isn’t carried on the wind, but not too hot, lest it evaporate before being absorbed. During bad weather, Bowes would sit in his office to pore over more satellite images, looking for the tell-tale burst of lime-green that suggested a knotweed stand. Then he would go out into the field and “ground truth” it: confirm that it was, in fact, knotweed, so that he could add it to the vast swathe of Caerphilly knotweed that he had mapped and memorised. “We could literally drive around for a week like this, showing you knotweed,” he told me. “You could get overwhelmed and just give up. But I think to keep on it is the answer.” Over the years, Bowes has developed a curious intimacy with his quarry. Once he cooked young knotweed into a crumble. The shoots had the texture of rhubarb, he said, but were “much more earthy and not very nice”. He has spent nearly two decades scuffling with this plant, yet it defies his absolute mastery, leaving him half admiring, half leery. We often assume we understand more about the natural world than we really do, or have more power over it than we actually possess. That overconfidence is invariably punctured: knotweed covers a country, a virus escapes a wet market, a forest burns. At that point, we realise we know too little – and yet, to mend these worst results of our ignorance, we have to try imposing our will on nature all over again. I n the archives at Kew Gardens , there are volumes called Inwards Books: old, fat, marvellous ledgers listing the plants received by the gardens over the centuries. One of these books records the arrival, on 9 August 1850, of a set of 40 plants from a nursery in Leiden. The nursery was run by a German doctor named Philipp Franz von Siebold, who, after a stint in Japan, had brought back sheaves of exotic plants – among them knotweed, which, in an act of self-advertising, he’d named Polygonum sieboldii . In that 9 August entry, written out in spidery cursive, P. sieboldii shows up as item 34. It is the earliest available record of knotweed’s arrival on British shores. From the outset, Britain’s relationship with knotweed has been cast by commerce – or, more specifically, by the country’s successive modes of commerce: the colonial, the industrial and the post-industrial. Colonialism’s grasping hands stretched into the botanical world, and the same acquisitive spirit that brought knotweed to Britain also brought rubber and cinchona trees to Kew, wisteria to the English garden, and rhododendrons to Scottish forests. At the time, no one had a sense of foreign plants as invasives, as agents that could overwhelm the balance of domestic ecosystems, says Keith Alcorn, a historian of gardens. Through the second half of the 19th century, knotweed vendors praised the plant’s ability to stabilise sand dunes, bear flowers suited for bouquets and feed cattle. And when, in this same period, the wild gardening movement began, its founder, William Robinson, recommended knotweed for looking “handsome in rough places in the wild garden”. Alcorn told me: “I haven’t come across any writing from before 1921 that said: ‘On no account allow this plant.’” One scholar referred to what happened next, in the early and mid-20th century, as “the escape”: knotweed breaking loose of well-tended gardens and multiplying through cities and countryside alike. It prospered on riverbanks, in cinder tips and untended lots. In south-east Cornwall, in the interwar period, knotweed became known as Hancock’s Curse, after it spread out of a private garden owned by a man of that name. Inadvertently, people helped the knotweed along by moving around vast quantities of earth in which pieces of rhizome lay hidden, like a sixpence in a Christmas pudding. In Welsh coal country, around the tin mines of Cornwall, alongside roads and highways, next to shipyards and railroad tracks – everywhere that industrial activity went, knotweed followed. A 1977 paper, published in the Botanical Society’s journal, shows the takeover in four maps. In the first, apart from a cluster of black knotweed dots in western Wales, Britain is largely free of the plant around 1900; in the fourth, from 1976, England and Wales are festooned with knotweed, and the dots have climbed so far north that even the Orkney and Shetland Islands aren’t spared. The Wildlife and Countryside Act, in 1981, made it an offence to cause knotweed to grow in the wild, promising a £5,000 fine or six months in prison for the breach. It was like using a towel to stop the tide coming in. A 2021 study divided the island of Britain into 3,893 equal squares by area. Knotweed had affected 3,134 of those squares. Along with other relative newcomers like Himalayan balsam and giant hogweed, knotweed has crowded out plants that have flourished in this corner of the world for millennia. The climate crisis and the erasure of habitats haven’t helped. When thousands of botanists recently surveyed Britain and Ireland’s biodiversity, to compose a plant atlas , they found that half of all native plants have declined over the past 20 years. All of this might have remained largely invisible to the urban public, as nature’s developments often do. Who pays attention, after all, to the flora on a railway embankment as it flashes past the train’s window? But then knotweed began to hurt house prices, and the property market, hard-headed and beady-eyed, decided it would brook no knotweed. In 1986, Philip Santo began working with Abbey National building society as a surveyor, valuing homes before it issued a mortgage. If Abbey National funded a house purchase in south-western England, anywhere between the M25 and Land’s End, chances are Santo or the surveyors he managed had run their gaze over the property. And that was how, in the autumn of 1995, he came upon his first residential knotweed: a small stand just outside a house in Dorset. “I may have mentioned it in passing in my report,” Santo recalled. He didn’t recommend any steps to deal with it – partly because, at the time, no one knew how best to deal with knotweed, but also because it wasn’t yet a pressing concern. The knotweed remained on the Dorset house’s doorstep. But in the years thereafter, property valuations soared. The average house price in England and Wales tripled between 1995 and 2016. By the end of that two-decade span, the stakes had grown so great, Santo said, that the difference between two otherwise-identical houses – one with knotweed, the other knotweed-free – could run to tens of thousands of pounds. And still, remarkably for a plant that had been in the country for 150 years, no one knew the precise degree of peril that knotweed posed to the house’s structure, or to adjoining plots. How close could knotweed get before it eroded the value of your home? How could knotweed be beaten back? If a lender had to repossess a knotweed-infested house, how much less would it be worth? Banks dislike such uncertainty. In 2010, Santander, a major mortgage lender, announced that it would no longer finance the purchase of any homes in which knotweed had been found. “They were saying: ‘We don’t know the risk, therefore we will not lend,’” Santo said. Other banks followed Santander’s example, to public alarm. It didn’t help, Santo added, that the media often got knotweed wrong, portraying it as a plant that destroys houses. In 2012, trying to help banks weigh the risks of knotweed, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) published a protocol deeming any knotweed within a seven-metre radius to be a threat to property values. It was too cautious, Santo said, but the literature on this was sparse; they had to rely on a figure published in a single scientific paper decades ago. Banks began lending again, based on the RICS protocol, but at a stroke, the seven-metre guideline affected millions of homes. And the essential problem of how to tackle knotweed remained. At his desk at RICS, where he consulted, Santo kept fielding calls from valuation experts around the country. “They’d say: ‘I’ve seen knotweed. What do we do about it? How do I advise my client?’ And again, nobody knew. Nobody knew what to do.” O n the northern hem of Cardiff, by the river Taff, is a five-hectare parcel of land where generations of knotweed have risen and died over a decade. It is the world’s largest controlled experiment in dealing with knotweed, and Dan Jones has been tending to it since 2011, when he began a PhD in knotweed management. Jones now runs a consultancy, Advanced Invasives, and he has the patient but morose air of someone who has heard a lot of bad ideas about tackling knotweed. “I’ve seen people pour boiling water on it, or salting it. I mean, knotweed grows in salt water,” he said. “The salt will kill everything for ever, except the knotweed.” The only way to know what precise strategy of attack works best, Jones decided during his PhD, was to conduct trials. So he found this place: a former sports field on the grounds of a listed home, where the knotweed had enfeebled the walls of the derelict changing rooms and was closing in on the house itself. The homeowners let Jones turn their land into a giant lab. In photos and videos that Jones shot in 2012, the knotweed is chest-high and impenetrable. It had killed off everything else in its vicinity. As he sank more than 200 fence posts into the soil to mark off square test plots, the only other living thing he encountered was a lone earthworm. In some months, particularly during the growing season, Jones comes here daily, digging and spraying and scheming. The February day Jones took me to the site was filthy: a wind that drew tears, and mizzle that turned the earth to mud. We walked between the plots, down narrow paths that Jones had cleared. “In the summer when I first began,” he said, “by the time I’d cut the knotweed off three of these paths, it would be back up at knee height at the place where I’d started.” In these plots, Jones had tracked the varying advantages of 19 different experiments. Mowing the knotweed, with a machine or a brush cutter, made it worse, he found, because it spread nuggets of diced-up rhizome all over the field, where they took hold and grew anew. He experimented with a range of herbicides. (One of them, picloram, had been used by the US, under the code name Agent White, to defoliate jungles during the Vietnam war.) When glyphosate showed the most promise, he tried injecting it into the knotweed’s stalk, spraying it on the leaves, and pouring it down the throats of sawed-off stems. Jones published his best regimen in a 2018 paper: a dose of glyphosate every autumn, either sprayed on the knotweed or injected into its stem, repeated for anywhere up to seven years. The paper became knotweed canon. “It’s fantastic, what he’s doing. It’s just brilliant,” Santo told me about Jones’s work. “Suddenly we’ve got a way to treat it – how to not necessarily eradicate it, but manage it.” Above ground, the effects were dramatic. The leaves withered and dropped off. The stems turned brown and brittle. But in the mud, the rhizome never died. It merely went dormant, ready to grow again if it was ever cut up or propagated. Total eradication, Jones realised, was a pipe dream. At his site, some of his test plots hold just stray stands of dead knotweed canes, and alders and willows have flourished. The lawn behind the house – once held hostage by knotweed – is neat and grassy. But when I admired it, Jones said, in the manner of a man never willing to let his guard down: “A woman brought her dogs here, and the dogs sniffed it out underground. It’s all still there.” Other, more expensive options exist. The UK’s knotweed management industry does more than £165m worth of business every year. John Butcher, a surveyor with Japanese Knotweed Ltd, a firm specialising in the control of invasive weeds, sometimes tells his clients – stricken homeowners and property developers – about encapsulation. The knotweed is cut down, and its roots and soil dug out, but since even this will not finish off the plant’s will to live, it is sealed into a membrane of fabric and copper foil, soil and all, and the package is then reburied on site. “The copper prevents the rhizome from breaking out,” Butcher said, like a warden of his jailbird. The most extreme method is excavation, in which Butcher’s staff haul knotweed waste away to a specially licensed landfill. It can be expensive; Butcher’s company once billed an excavation project at £1.4m. “Even so,” Butcher said, “some developers just want the knotweed gone completely.” Every so often, someone thinks up a technique that is more fanciful: a £3,000 thermoelectric device, like a cattle prod, that promises to boil the rhizome, for instance, or dousing a garden in diesel, or setting goats loose to graze on the knotweed. In recent years, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has conducted two small, careful trials to see if imported insects could curb the growth of the plant. (The first failed; the second is ongoing.) In the Netherlands, I learned from Chris van Dijk, a researcher at Wageningen University, one company sinks pipes a metre deep into the soil, circulates liquid chilled to –30C, and freezes the rhizome over a week, so that it rots as it later thaws. Experts like Jones tend to regard these solutions with raised eyebrows. At their worst, they don’t work; at their best, they’re impractical, given the sheer scale of knotweed infestation across Britain. Jones trusts in glyphosate. The success of such investigations, by Jones, Bowes and others, has calmed the consternation of the early 2010s. Last year, as part of a more nuanced protocol, RICS revised its seven-metre guidance to three metres. Knotweed is still an intransigent entity, but we can control it better. At the same time, it has become the focus of so much commerce – of valuations, protocols, damages and bank scrutiny – that its identity as a natural being, as a plant rather than a pestilence, can slide out of sight. When Jones was growing up in Cardiff, he’d come across knotweed in a brownfield site, next to a rugby ground. “We used to make bases in the knotweed – like little caves that you could hide out in,” he said. “It grows so quickly that, in the summer holidays, you can make really good bases.” It was the only moment, out of all our conversations, when he sounded anything other than adversarial towards the plant. Once, I asked him if he found knotweed in bloom, with its sprays of cream-white flowers, beautiful in any way. Jones grimaced. He couldn’t see it at all. I n Japan, knotweed has an altogether more poetic name: itadori. One translation of the word is “tiger cane”, perhaps referring to the way a stand of tall dead canes resembles a tiger’s striped back. Its native ecosystem imposes more limits on knotweed. Silvergrass and bamboo vie strongly with it for water and soil nutrients. A species of psyllid, an insect not much bigger than the head of a nail, feeds exclusively on knotweed sap, weakening and killing the plant. Even so, itadori grows luxuriantly, ever ready to annex neglected land. When the photographer Koichi Watanabe was a boy, living outside Osaka, he passed a deep wood of black locust trees along the river on his way to school. One year, the trees were all cut down. The very next spring, the riverbank swarmed with a plant that Watanabe didn’t recognise, its buds like asparagus tips and its leaves shaped like hearts. Itadori, rife as life. For 20 years, Watanabe has been roving the world, photographing knotweed. He calls his project Moving Plants ; it fascinates him that plants, so easy to regard as rooted and stable, traverse geographies simply by getting entangled in the lives of humans. His knotweed groves are always centred in long horizontal panoramas, he said, so that the frame can include signs of human existence as well. His earliest photos were taken in the vicinity of Osaka, and across the island of Hokkaido. By and large, the inhabitants of these areas, and indeed of the rest of Japan, regard itadori with indifference, Watanabe said. The plant’s ornamental value is very slight; he has only ever seen it in a flower shop once, in Kyoto. Some supermarkets stock itadori leaf tea, itadori jam and itadori pickles – products that derive an unexpected utility out of knotweed. For Japan’s civic authorities, although maybe not for its public at large, knotweed is certainly a pest, if only one of several. Routinely, it has to be cleared from riverbanks and farms, Watanabe told me. “We do think it’s a weed. It’s just that we don’t want to kill it everywhere,” he said. “When I heard the words ‘eradicate’ or ‘kill’ in England, I was shocked.” One possible reason for this forbearance is that knotweed, restrained by its habitat, rarely invades the gardens of Japanese homes. Daisuke Kurose, a plant pathologist who mapped knotweed across southern and northern Japan, said he’d never seen knotweed in private properties, even in the countryside. “As a result, people usually don’t care too much about it,” Kurose, who now works in Surrey for the agricultural non-profit Cabi, told me. “I used to give lectures to university students, and I’d ask them if they knew what itadori is. Most of them would guess that it is a kind of bird, because ‘dori’ is so similar to the Japanese word for bird.” When he came to Cabi, Kurose said, he always felt a twinge of regret that the word “Japanese” was appended to the weed that made people’s lives so hard. “But at the same time, I felt bad for British people, too, because I know knotweed is strong and difficult to eradicate.” Watanabe has followed the trail of knotweed to the UK, Poland, the Netherlands and both coasts of the US. He hasn’t visited France or Sweden, where knotweed has spread widely. In Sweden, where the plant is called “parkslide” and where it has been found as far north as 65 degrees latitude, the milder winters to come will only encourage knotweed further. Jonathan Lindgren, an executive at Villaägarna, an association of Swedish homeowners, told me about his increasingly frantic conversations with municipalities beset by knotweed. “They try a lot of things. Like, some of them started trying to get pigs to eat knotweed. But usually these projects end in silence,” Lindgren said. “What I hear, though, is that knotweed is a growing problem and a losing battle.” One of Lindgren’s chief exasperations is that knotweed contains resveratrol, a compound also found in wine and hyped for its health benefits. “Some circles here are so fascinated with knotweed that they almost think it has spiritual properties,” Lindgren said. “So there are YouTube videos and blogs where people recommend how to grow knotweed, or how to make pie out of it. I mean, imagine: people are growing knotweed on purpose!” Chris van Dijk, the Dutch knotweed researcher, often spots knotweed growing out of the cracks of Amsterdam’s canals, the rhizome enlarging the damage so much that, he fears, “parts of the walls will collapse and fall into the water”. Rotterdam’s harbour was plagued by such thick knotweed colonies that they had to be excavated, he said, “and they now have a depot of 120,000 cubic metres of contaminated soil”. One Watanabe print shows a geyser of knotweed erupting out of other foliage in Leiden. In Poland, Watanabe said, he found the worst cases of blight he’d seen in any country, the plant sometimes invading wheat fields or choking irrigation canals. The most extreme of Watanabe’s photos give the impression of some colossal digestive action frozen mid-process. In one eerie photo, shot in upstate New York, knotweed has engulfed the base of a house, pouring in through one side and out the other. Only the house’s upper floor is visible; left untended, it too will vanish into the innards of the knotweed stand. Touring these sites, Watanabe wrote in 2015: “I caught the odd feeling that I had come to the future world from which human beings had departed. Vegetation would be renewed year after year if people were gone and constructions were demolished. Hybridised itadori would be the main creature in this area.” But these didn’t feel, to him, like outtakes of a vegetal apocalypse. Instead, Watanabe developed a silent communion with his subject, admiring the way its leaves shook in the breeze, and eventually learning to sympathise with it. Too often, he told me, people speak about knotweed as if it were a virus: “It appears in the metaphor of ‘itadori infestation’ or ‘itadori as pest’.” The truth is, he said, that humans are responsible – for setting knotweed loose across the planet, and then for losing their minds about its presence. “The itadori is not guilty,” Watanabe said. “It is just living.” Follow the Long Read on Twitter at @gdnlongread , listen to our podcasts here and sign up to the long read weekly email here .

BAD

Braverman announces new limits on overseas students bringing family to UK

Suella Braverman has rushed out stringent curbs on international students who come to study in the UK amid growing pressure on the home secretary over her conduct in office. Under proposals released in parliament on Tuesday, overseas students will no longer be able to bring family with them except under specific circumstances as the government seeks to reduce immigration numbers. Only overseas students on courses designated as research programmes, such as PhD students or research-led masters courses, will be able to bring dependants with them under new rules to curb net migration. Reacting to the proposals, a lecturers’ union said they were “deeply shameful” and anti-migrant, while universities said they would disproportionately affect women and people from certain countries. Nigeria had the highest number of dependants of student visa holders in 2022, with 60,923. Indian nationals had the second highest number of dependants, with an increase from 3,135 in 2019 to 38,990 in 2022, followed by students from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It comes as Braverman, who is committed to reducing immigration to “tens of thousands”, braces herself for figures released on Thursday that will show net migration to the UK is more than 700,000. Labour said it will not oppose the measures because “proper enforcement” is “long overdue”. The policy was released in a written ministerial statement as the government answered an urgent question on whether Braverman told officials to organise a private speed-awareness course in breach of the ministerial code. Downing Street has rejected suggestions that Rishi Sunak is dithering over whether to launch a formal inquiry into Braverman’s conduct. Under the proposals, the government will remove the ability for international students to switch out of the student route and into work routes before their studies have been completed. As well as removing this right, there will also be a review of the maintenance requirement for students and dependants, and a crackdown on “unscrupulous” education providers “who make use of inappropriate applications to sell immigration, not education”. Braverman wrote: “The immigration statistics also highlighted an unexpected rise in the number of dependants coming to the UK alongside international students. About 136,000 visas were granted to dependants of sponsored students in the year ending December 2022, a more than eightfold increase from 16,000 in 2019.” The changes will come into effect from January 2024 to allow future international students time to plan ahead. Official statistics due to be published this week are expected to show net migration increased from 504,000 in the 12 months to June 2022 to more than 700,000 in the year to December. Jo Grady, the general secretary of the University and College Union, said the proposals were “a vindictive move” and “deeply shameful”. Sign up to First Edition Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning after newsletter promotion “Those who choose to study in the UK, no matter where they are from, bring huge value to our society and deserve the right to live alongside their loved ones. Instead, they are being treated with contempt. “Deep concern is already being felt across the sector as to how damaging the package of measures could be to the pipeline of international talent coming to the UK,” she said. Jamie Arrowsmith, director of Universities UK International, said changes to rules on dependants were likely to have a “disproportionate impact on women and students from certain countries”. He said: “We urge the government to work with the sector to limit and monitor the impact on particular groups of students – and on universities, which are already under serious financial pressures. The review process that has been announced must consider these issues.” Madeleine Sumption, director of Oxford University’s Migration Observatory, said: “The impacts of restricting family members are likely to be relatively small for the UK as a whole, but will not be evenly distributed. The main impact arguably falls on students themselves: some may choose to be separated from their family during their studies, while others will decide not to come to the UK. As a result, the UK is likely become somewhat less attractive to master’s students.” A Downing Street spokesperson said: “The prime minister reiterated his commitment to getting the numbers down and said the statistics showed a recent rise in the number of dependants coming to the UK alongside international students.”

GOOD

Curse of the lottery? What happened next to four winners

The sweetness of winning millions on the lottery can quickly turn sour. The trick is knowing how to spend it, according to some cautionary tales of previous winners. It does not always end badly, but there have been plenty of stories about the “curse of the lottery”, featuring drug addiction, destitution and prison. Here’s what happened to four previous winners. Callie Rogers At 16, Rogers – who worked on a shop checkout in Cumbria – was one of the lottery’s youngest winners when she bagged £1.9m in 2003. She bought new homes for herself and her mother. But she ended up frittering away the rest of her winnings on parties, plastic surgery and drugs. In 2021 she was reported to be struggling to bring up four children on universal credit. Michael Carroll The former refuse worker, who bought his lottery ticket while wearing an electronic tag, called himself the “king of chavs” after he won almost £10m in 2002. He bought a six-bedroom house in Norfolk and £1m of Glasgow Rangers shares. He then paid out £1.4m in a divorce settlement, and later admitted that he thought about only three things – “drugs, sex and gold”. He spent time in jail for affray and was declared bankrupt in 2010. Lee Ryan Ryan was one of the first winners, scooping £6.5m weeks after the national lottery was launched in 1994. He spent his winnings on luxury cars, a helicopter and a £2m mansion. He was later jailed for handling stolen cars and spent time sleeping rough in London. He said his jackpot was “cursed”. Brian Caswell The grandfather from Bolton won £25m on EuroMillions in 2009 and did not squander it. He bought houses for his daughters and a new allotment. He also set up a charity. He did once hire a private jet for a family holiday, but he still drinks in his local pub. He said: “The reason it makes you happy is what you can do for your grandchildren.”

GOOD

Tory youth training policy is a right royal mess

King Charles is well known for his support of Britain’s youth. Arguably, he has done more to train the under-30s in practical skills over the last decade than the government – and financed it without lumbering them with huge debts. The Prince’s Trust passed its one millionth trainee milestone in 2020 and has carried on without much fanfare while the government’s skills programme has floundered – undermined by Theresa May’s complicated and misused apprenticeship levy . Employers left confused by the levy’s byzantine rules turn to further education (FE) colleges for training support. Yet these are the Cinderellas of the education world, forced to rely on staff who sign on each year to teach a course, apparently out of the goodness of their hearts. They certainly don’t do it for the money. About 6.7 million working-age adults in the UK have no or low qualifications, according to the Local Government Association, which means they have no more than an F or G at GSCE, or only got to the first rung on the NVQ (National Vocational Qualification) ladder. Someone with only a few low-grade GCSEs or a level 1 NVQ has not just been let down by the education system: they are also likely to find themselves in a cycle of deprivation that prevents them from investing in their own future . Then there is the added pressure from artificial intelligence, with hundreds of books, academic papers and newspaper articles arguing that a significant proportion of people’s work can be automated even more than it is now. These warnings should be heeded because, as we know from bitter experience, most employers are desperate for easy solutions as a substitute for strategic discussions about how to work better. Demands for staff to embrace AI, however, sit uneasily with estimates that 20% of the UK’s working population lack basic computer skills. Ministers say they want to improve skills training. From August this year, a new functional skills qualification will be available that “will provide a benchmark of digital skills for employers”. Only time will tell how good this will be. It might give some people confidence to take on roles in which they need to cope with digital tech. What, though, does skills minister Robert Halfon know about the subject when he says he is “passionate about creating a ladder of opportunity”? You might think he knew quite a bit given that he chaired parliament’s education committee for several years and was a minister for apprenticeships in May’s government. Except that, in this role, he helped steward the apprenticeship levy on to the statute books. It’s true that after six wasted years, employers are now exploiting the £2.5bn of matched funding attached to the levy. The budget might even be busted this year, leaving the minister with a financial hole to fill. Will this turnaround close the skills gap? Not when employers using the scheme channel most of the funds into training graduate-level staff, not those with low-level qualifications who need it most. The skills training budget, which is a separate pot of money, was increased in the 2022 three-year spending round and FE college courses benefited. Yet, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies, the extra £900m to 2025 will only limit the funding shortfall since 2010 to 25% in real terms, after a 38% drop between 2010 and 2021. FE teacher salaries have similarly suffered. In 2010–11, the median salary (in today’s prices) was about £48,000 for a school teacher and £42,500 for a college teacher. Median pay is now about £41,500 for a school teacher and £34,500 for a college teacher, says the IFS. So between 2010–11 and 2022–23, the median salary for a school teacher fell by 14%, while college teachers’ pay fell 19%. The Conservative party will say things are getting better, but they own this mess, just as they do the university tuition fee debacle. It’s clear that university candidates don’t know whether they are taking out a loan to fund their education or paying a tax. That’s because the bizarre system is both. No wonder so many have been put off higher education as a result. Recent increases in monthly payments for the post-2012 cohort of graduates are eye-watering and may focus the minds of the next generation. Those preparing for A-levels might think twice about higher education, depressing the UK’s skills and education levels even more. The new king can probably do less for young people than he did as Prince of Wales. His son might take up the mantle, yet doesn’t appear to share the same burning desire to help this group. That leaves them at the mercy of Halfon and a government that puts austerity before education.

BAD

The country stopped caring whether Boris Johnson broke the rules – thank goodness the civil service didn’t

What could Boris Johnson possibly have done in Chequers to make the Cabinet Office refer his diary to the police ? Obviously we couldn’t speculate, as it’s now a police matter. We could wonder about layers of misdemeanour, and the precise point at which civil servants would cede their own judgment to that of the law. We could speculate wildly about background political agendas, and whether, if Liz Truss’s premiership had survived, this decision would have been somehow strangled in its cradle. Most probably, we would move on quite fast to the character of the last prime minister but one: he is the Raith Rovers of politicians, the person in whom faith is never repaid. Johnson has previously, in any given crisis, found people to defend him. There is always a justification, always a grey area: there is presumably always a benefit to being his faithful lieutenant. Since his departure from Downing Street, it seems that reward may be a place in the House of Lords via his long-delayed honours list, though whether he can make good on those nominations is yet to be seen. There are so many mysteries surrounding the man – the continuing loyalty of his own family, when they so plainly disagreed with him politically; the allegiance of the Daily Mail, long after he ceased to chime with the values of their readers; the wild enthusiasm of Nadine Dorries , torching her own reputation, such as it was, performing fandangos with nothing to celebrate – that suddenly make sense through the lens of his honours list. But the raw facts, whether his behaviour in Chequers was illegal or not, are these: whatever he is accused of, whatever his allies have to waive, whatever casuistic defences they float, they will always end up humiliated, because the next thing will be worse. By the time the facts of the diary are established, this story will have died. It adheres to none of the rules of drama. There’s no possible reversal of expectation: if he’s guilty, that chimes exactly with what we know of his character. If he’s not guilty, that’s not a story, and he’s been found in breach of enough rules already that a simple “not on this occasion” would barely cause a ripple. But there’s something else driving the lack of interest in this, something deeper than “it’s not interesting”. The election of Johnson , this known chancer, this fabled liar, was like a national fever dream. Caught up in the excitement of his rule-breaking energy and bracing affectlessness, people voted for him, and commentators post-rationalised his virtues from the scale of his victory, and those who declined to get on board were shunted to the sidelines, as yesterday’s people, and boring with it. His downfall was fun to watch for everyone: his opponents enjoyed being right, and his cheerleaders weren’t called upon to reflect upon or account for their mistakes because the spectacle was its own event. Borismania was like a fever dream after too much blue cheese; nobody wants to talk about it, ever again. This is the compact between crowds – whatever crackerjack scheme the group, in its hysteria, jumps aboard, you can make the memory go away so long as you disperse. This is why an impartial civil service is important, for bigger reasons than simply implementing policy, which in itself is a moderately big reason. It does not abide by the logic of crowds, it has no respect for zeitgeist. It follows the rules, as it understands them, it enforces them, to the limits of its authority, and when its authority reaches its limit, it doesn’t simply get bored and move on, it refers upwards to the police. This is vital: people like Johnson survive on other peoples’ short attention span. They wither on contact with real-life consequences. The truth is, it does matter whether or not Johnson broke the rules; it matters how often, and it matters whether he knew he was doing it. It matters whether he lied to parliament. It matters how he arrived at the rules, it matters who else was punished for their breach. It matters because of the political culture it enabled and ushered in, whether that was Truss’s short, but unhinged, time in office, which is causing so much hardship to this day, or Rishi Sunak’s weak leadership, heckled from the sidelines by “alt-right” voices whose place in cabinet is frankly terrifying. Johnson matters because if he doesn’t matter, we have to deny the reality of our own experience, that this period of political dishevelment is unique. The wisdom of the crowd is saying, move along; the sagacity of the civil service is saying, wait, this isn’t over. Zoe Williams is a Guardian columnist Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here .

BAD

Has a friend passed out in your kitchen? Ask yourself ‘What would Braverman do?’

No amount of nagging will persuade a seal to balance a ball on its nose. This was an indisputable point made in an article I read some time ago about how techniques used by animal trainers could be applied in human relationships. Fascinating stuff. In other words, working someone’s nerves for days on end isn’t going to persuade them to get the job done. But if they do somehow get it done, be sure to throw them a fish. Or something. It’s all about reward: less stick, more carrot. I get that. But the bit I can’t remember is how to get the seal to balance the ball on its nose in the first place. And now I can’t find the article, so I may never know. The skills deployed by people in specialist fields are rich in untapped potential for use in domestic situations. The rhetorical devices practised by politicians are a case in point. Chris Mason, long before he became the BBC’s political editor, told me how his immersion in the language of politics was so complete that it had started to creep into his home life. Only that week he had found himself “pledging” to do more washing-up. And although we rail against politicians’ unapologetic non-apologies, how many of us have not at some stage been guilty of using a version of: “I’m sorry you are offended by what I have said and done”? On Monday, in the Commons, our home secretary was questioned over allegations that, having been nicked for speeding and offered a place on a speed-awareness course in lieu of penalty points, she asked civil servants if she could get her own personal course organised. In the end, she took the points rather than the course. She must have missed my piece in praise of the speed-awareness course I recently took. Perhaps she’s not a Guardian reader. I make no judgment as to the impropriety of anything she might have requested from a civil servant. But I must award her several points for her performance in the house, using a technique I am now working on replicating in my personal life. She is hardly the first politician not to answer a question directly by, instead, answering a slightly different question. But, my, how she went about it. “Last summer, I was speeding,” she intoned. “I regret that. I paid the fine. And I took the penalty. And at no point did I attempt to avoid sanction.” Five clear points there, perhaps using the fingers of one hand as an aide memoire. “What I am focused on …” she continued. And so on. Someone had another go at asking her the same question, and she repeated her five points, essentially verbatim and identical in rhythm and tone. And again. And again. And again. At least five times in all. It went from being exasperating to farcical to, in the end, kind of triumphant. Her interlocutors had nowhere to go. So, one morning, should your significant other enquire why your friend is asleep in their underpants on the kitchen floor, how are you going to respond? Go on, try it. Be brave, be Braverman. Here are your five key points: 1. Last night, I made a mess in the kitchen; 2. I regret that; 3. I failed to clean up; 4. I regret that too; 5. I do not shy away from taking the blame for that. What I am focused on is the deliciousness of the meal I cooked, the fact that I do all the washing and ironing, and that I will now be taking the dog out for a walk. Then be ready for the follow-up question: “But what about him on the floor, lying there in his pants?” Clear your throat and go again: “Last night I made a mess in the kitchen. I regret that etc, etc.” Repeat your five-point answer verbatim as many times as necessary. I feel sure this approach will do the trick. Throw yourself a fish. Adrian Chiles is a broadcaster, writer and Guardian columnist

GOOD

Tell us: have you delayed retirement due to the rising cost of living?

The cost of living crisis is placing enormous pressure on households and will leave many people questioning whether they can now afford to retire. We would like to hear from people who are considering or have delayed their retirement. It may be that you have done the sums and need to keep working. Or you may be concerned that there are more price rises coming which will put you under too much pressure. We would like to hear from anyone approaching retirement affected by the recent pressures. You can get in touch by filling in the form below or contact us via WhatsApp by clicking here or adding +44(0)7766780300. Your responses are secure as the form is encrypted and only the Guardian has access to your contributions. One of our journalists will be in contact before we publish, so please do leave contact details. If you’re having trouble using the form, click here . Read terms of service here and privacy policy here .

GOOD

AI will take some jobs, but mass unemployment isn't inevitable

The staggering recent progress in artificial intelligence (AI) has left many fearing for their jobs. The ominous drumbeats grew louder earlier this month when Geoffrey Hinton, the godfather of AI, resigned from Google and expressed his concerns about the potential of the technology to upend the job market, just as IBM put the brakes on nearly 7,800 jobs that could be replaced by AI and automation over time. Last week, BT announced it would cut up to 55,000 jobs by 2030, with about 10,000 predicted to be replaced by AI. These announcements are not surprising: if businesses are to survive in our market economy, they must adapt to these technological shifts to remain competitive and profitable. However, despite the predictions of doom, history offers reasons to be optimistic about AI and its impact on work and employment. Jobs have changed and evolved throughout history, which has resulted in the creation of new professions that were previously inconceivable. For most of the 20th century, typing was seen as a desired and decent job, and typists were in high demand . As computers grew in popularity and typing got easier, the demand fell away, and the profession nearly became extinct. But, thanks to the same trends, the demand for web designers, graphic designers and copy editors increased. The advent of the computer gave birth to countless sectors and transformed our way of life (mostly) for the better. I believe that AI can repeat this very trick, if we get it right. What does that look like? For a start, it means understanding which jobs and industries are actually at risk, and how AI will become part of them. AI can automate tasks such as data entry and administrative operations, which puts jobs that involve repetitive data input and basic decision-making at risk. Interestingly, the banking and financial industries, which are generally seen as white-collar jobs, may see a decrease in demand for data analysts and risk assessors as AI systems become more efficient at handling large amounts of data. Manufacturing and logistics jobs seem an obvious target for AI, as automation is used more and more to save on costs. Jobs in transportation, assembly-line activities and repetitive manual work can be automated to some extent. However, the technology still has limitations which require regular maintenance and a balance between AI/robots and human workers. If jobs are poorly designed or if there is an imbalance between AI and human workers, it could result in dissatisfied customers, decreased revenue (especially in the current cost of living crisis), and even business closures. Two months ago, a restaurant named Robotazia in Milton Keynes that had robotic waiters closed down due to rising costs and recruitment issues. We need to bear in mind that while automation and robotics can bring novelty and efficiency to certain industries, the overall impact on jobs can be complex and multifaceted, with problems including maintenance costs, recruitment challenges and the need to adapt to changing economic situations. Another area we need to watch is customer service . Chatbots are already being implemented in this area, but their inability to understand complex scenarios can result in service failures and unhappy customers. Human support should be maintained alongside these chatbots, especially in industries such as hospitality, where human interaction, empathy and emotional/social intelligence are vital to customer loyalty. In the healthcare industry, AI has been used to aid medical diagnostics , radiology interpretation and patient monitoring. However, while AI can help healthcare professionals with data analysis, imaging and decision-making, current AI is limited in performing difficult tasks that require fine hand-eye coordination, and the physical execution of such tasks is still reliant on human capabilities. In all of these industries, AI and automation are most useful in conjunction with human roles – where people can offer the complex decision-making skills or human touch that the machines lack. However, some jobs will still be lost, which is why governments, corporations and educational institutions should collaborate to offer comprehensive retraining programmes and job placement support to help displaced people transition to more future-proof roles similar to their own, or to other industries. Policymakers should establish tailored initiatives to assist and safeguard people in high-risk industries. Moreover, a focus on lifelong learning is essential. Governments should promote education and training programmes that provide citizens with the skills essential to prosper in an AI-driven economy – which includes encouraging AI literacy , supporting critical thinking and promoting continuous upskilling and reskilling. We need our leaders to take this moment seriously, act quickly and, importantly, balance this breakthrough’s potential benefits with the immediate human cost. We can manage the revolutionary influence of AI while assuring a positive future that benefits individuals and society as a whole. Erin Ling is a lecturer in artificial intelligence and the future of work at the University of Surrey

BAD

Funding for national tutoring programme in England to be doubled next academic year

Ministers are to double funding for the government’s flagship tutoring programme. The national tutoring programme (NTP) was launched in November 2020 to help children in England make up for learning lost during the coronavirus pandemic, when schools were closed to most pupils for months at a time. In January last year, Labour had accused the NTP of failing children and taxpayers, after figures revealed that just 10% of the year’s target for children to receive tuition had been reached. In 2021, the programme had been controversially outsourced to Randstad, which Labour said was a “private company with little tutoring experience”. Ministers have announced that £150m will be made available to schools next year, part of a package that will total £1bn over four years. The government initially provided 75% of the funding for the 2021-22 academic year, before moving to cut the subsidy to 25% for 2023-24. It has agreed to reverse this policy and raise the subsidy rate to 50% for the upcoming academic year, with the remaining cost being met by the schools. In March, Sir Peter Lampl, chair of the Sutton Trust, called for the subsidy to be maintained, saying: “Although there have been issues with delivery, the NTP … has changed the landscape of tutoring, giving young people the opportunity to receive tuition who would never have been able to afford it.” Nick Gibb, the schools minister, said: “Since its inception in 2020, we have continuously evolved the national tutoring programme to ensure it works for pupils and schools. “Over 3m courses have been started as a result and we remain committed to supporting schools to embed tutoring long term because we know the positive impact it can have on pupils. That’s why I am pleased that next year, we will be able to match school’s funding contributions, whilst also supporting them more widely through a £2bn boost in school funding.” Nick Brook, the chief executive of Speakers for Schools and chair of the DfE’s Strategic Tutoring Advisory Group, said: “I’m pleased that the government has listened to school and sector leaders and has agreed to raise the NTP subsidy to 50% next year. This will be welcome news to many schools, who have seen positive results from the programme and will want to continue offering tutoring next year.” Sign up to First Edition Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning after newsletter promotion John Glen, the chief secretary to the Treasury, said: “We want everyone in school to get a world-class education, enriching their own lives and strengthening the future workforce. “Paying half of tutoring costs to support our young people through the national tutoring programme next year is clear evidence of that commitment and a downpayment on long-term economic growth.”

GOOD

‘Why should anyone be hungry when there’s food that can be given away?’ The heroes feeding their neighbours

‘We’ve just had the king’s coronation and people are still going hungry. What’s that about?” Food charity founder Cocoa Fowler speaks with the passion of someone who daily bears witness to an increasing number of people struggling to feed themselves and their families. Hunger is now widespread in the UK. Almost 10 million adults and 4 million children do not have enough to eat – nearly double what it was a year ago. More than 2 million adults cannot afford to eat every day . It has been called a “domestic humanitarian crisis” . Which is why Fowler and others like him have felt compelled to set up local food banks and community larders. Deepa Chauhan , Burnt Oak community food bank Deepa Chauhan’s day job used to be in marketing and PR, but now staving off hunger for the residents of Burnt Oak, a suburb in north-west London, has become a full-time occupation. She had been involved in feeding homeless people for 13 years, but when Covid hit, the food run came to a halt. She started filling her car boot with provisions instead – “chocolate bars, crisps, drinks, just non-perishable items” – and offering them to charities. “There was a lot of deprivation in Burnt Oak, an area that’s been overlooked for years and years,” she says, describing it as “a very diverse area full of beautiful souls who are just misunderstood, overlooked and unheard”. She set up Burnt Oak community food bank (BOCFB) in March 2021, initially as an eight-week pilot scheme feeding approximately 25 people. “We delivered fresh produce, so it was yams, plantains, coriander – the type of things that our local, diverse community needs.” It has been running ever since. In the beginning, Chauhan paid out of her own pocket, with the help of a few donors: now they receive regular donations . “When we started it was £250 [a week], now it’s off the radar.” Their ethos, she says, is to serve “anyone and everyone coming through our doors”. At the moment, that looks like 150 people every fortnight – “they queue up from 11 in the morning, though we don’t open the doors until 2pm”. Then they go across to a local hotel that houses more than 700 people. “Their situation is very dire. They’re refugees, asylum seekers. We also have homeless people, ex-convicts, people who’ve just been released from prison.” Reading some of the emails she receives asking for help, it is, she says, “hard to have a dry eye”. What were all these people doing before BOCFB came along? “A lot of them were starving,” she says. “We need to restructure the whole way we deal with this crisis of food shortages and food poverty,” she says. “It’s very humiliating for people to reach out and ask for help … There needs to be empathy, there needs to be dignity, there needs to be respect in understanding that the clients walking through their doors, they’ve not asked for these situations to happen to them.” She thinks the government should give more support to grassroots initiatives like BOCFB. You can see why – Chauhan takes immense pride in knowing her community and its needs. During Ramadan, they bought in fresh dates to break adherents’ fasts. Plus, they have been serving hot meals “because we know we’ve got a lot of single parents, or elderly people, who can’t afford to prepare a meal so it’s piping hot.” “We make sure that we are able to sleep at night knowing that people who’ve come in, they’ve got provisions, they’ve got halal, they’ve got porridge.” If it is a pork pie Chauhan’s clients need, “because they’ve got arthritis and can’t utilise their cooking facilities properly,” it is a pork pie they shall get. “We know, hand on heart, that our community is being taken care of, and that’s really important.” Cocoa Fowler, Food for Nought The story of how Cocoa Fowler founded Food for Nought is not one he likes telling: “It comes out of hunger.” Brought up in care, he served 15 years in the British armed forces – in Iraq, Germany and Afghanistan – before coming back to the UK. “Nothing was going well for me,” he says, and he found himself homeless. People often talk about the stigma of homelessness, but for Fowler his stigma was further complicated: “I was ex-military – it makes you the action man, the big boy, the strong person … The last thing I’m going to do is walk into a church hall and say, ‘I need help.’” He was, he says, fortunate that a charity turned round to him and said, “‘You don’t need to have this stigma hanging over you. You’re a driver, why don’t you drive one of our vehicles?’” He started driving to pick up surplus food but “realised there was more food that needed picking up than we were able to”. This was when he had the idea of Food for Nought, the charity he now runs, picking up surplus produce from supermarkets and local farms and redistributing it to charities. Its 12 volunteers deliver food from farms and supermarkets to 15 community fridges and food banks in the charity’s three vans, providing for upwards of 1,500 people a week in the Peterborough and Huntingdonshire area. The problem, he says, is not a lack of supplies – “the food will never run out”. But “we need more organisations and centres that can turn this into meals – maybe then we would be able to say there’s not one child in this school that hasn’t got a meal, there’s not one person in a household that’s struggling that hasn’t got a meal, because we can provide that.” This is a sore spot for him: he has a “beautiful centre that needs maybe half a million quid to get it up and running, but it’s been sat there” because the funding isn’t available. “We feed 1,500 a week now; we could be feeding triple that. We have offers of volunteers. Even my landlady, who is a qualified baker and teacher, has said, ‘If we can get this built, I can teach baking courses.’” The levels of hunger he is currently seeing are unprecedented. “This is the madness about it … I have an awful lot of friends who work in businesses or organisations like the NHS, the trains, middle-level workers, and they’re struggling to pay their bills and they need feeding.” The need has grown, and is continuing to grow. “It started with the homeless, then went to people in need, then went to lower levels, now it’s actually, I’d say, everybody.” Fowler has ample and personal reason to feel passionate – he himself would still be going hungry if it weren’t for the excess food he accesses via his own charity. “I don’t think I’d be able to survive on the benefits I get if it wasn’t for charities like myself,” he says. Katie Barry , St George’s Church of England primary school, Lincolnshire The day that Boris Johnson first announced he was closing schools because of Covid, head teacher Katie Barry’s first thought was not about her pupils’ education but about what they were going to eat. Her school sits in “a real pocket of exceptionally high deprivation”. Nearly 80% of pupils are entitled to free school meals; the national average for primary level is 25%. She has been head of this school for 17 years, and already knew there were a lot of hungry children there. “We’ve always done things to help,” she says, but Covid meant there was “less pressure for a little while on teaching … That gave us the green light to really concentrate on what our families needed.” What they needed was food. “We were properly closed for one day, and on the second day we started providing lunches for families through the school gates.” At first it was just jacket potatoes. “Then local shops and people heard what we were doing and donated some food,” which they served along with school meals. “Then it just grew and grew.” Soon, Barry was effectively running a food bank out of the school. They partnered with FareShare, the charity for which Marcus Rashford is an ambassador, which would deliver about 700-800kg of food a week. “We started doing that and we’ve just never been able to stop it, and I don’t know when I ever will be able to stop it,” she says. While the pandemic might be over, deprivation has got worse. “We always had some food poverty but now it’s not just that lowest, neediest layer; there’s more children, there’s children whose parents do work.” Barry says that even members of her staff have been forced to use the service. It is particularly because of families who are new to hunger that Barry has been careful how she has gone about things. For example, she has “never ever called it a food bank. We call it a free food stall, and I would hazard a guess that quite a few of the parents, if you asked them ‘Do you use a food bank?’ they would say ‘No’.” Where people used to be quite picky about what they would take, now it is anything and everything – “it all just goes,” something she puts down to the cost of living crisis. Barry thinks budgeting should be put on school curriculums. And how to cook the basics. At her school, they are teaching the children these skills, plus they have an allotment where they grow food. They are also teaching parents. “We try to have a more all-inclusive approach to it – so don’t just take the packet, take some of these potatoes and carrots and cabbages and look what you can turn them into.” While fresh fruit has always been popular, vegetables would often be left behind. But she says this without judgment: “You’ve got to understand the background … And you can’t put your own values on to somebody else’s life.” Debbie Caulfield , Eglinton community larder Debbie Caulfield describes Eglinton, where she lives and works, managing the community centre, as a relatively affluent village. “If you looked us up in the statistical records, we wouldn’t be an area of multiple deprivation,” she says, but there are people who previously had “money to feed their families and meet their housing needs and everything else”, and because of hikes in prices can no longer afford to do so. In her village of about 4,000 people, just outside Derry, the larder is regularly used by a couple of dozen people a week, plus others more occasionally. “It’s mainly things like bread, baking products,” she says. Plus: “There’s someone local who produces a lot of eggs on their farm that are too small for sale, so on a regular basis he donates all those small eggs. Trays and trays full.” The amount taken has been unexpected. “When some of the local schools have done a collection and every shelf of the larder has been full, and the next day everything has been taken away, that has surprised me.” Caulfield says that part of the problem is accessing fresh food: “If you are in a rural community, then the cost of transport going to some of the larger supermarkets” is part of the equation for people. She is thinking more broadly about strengthening food security in her village, and has also been involved in planting a community orchard of plum, pear and apple trees on a piece of council land “so people can access fresh fruit and vegetables, grow some of their own and share that produce between each other, because poverty and food hunger do have a stigma attached to them.” The larder was in part a response to “the realisation in the middle of all that [panic] buying that there was a lot of food waste at the time as well … yet people need this food and how can we distribute it in a relatively straightforward way?” Continuing to market the larder as an answer to food waste has, she thinks, helped to soften the stigma of taking from it. “My constant phrase is, ‘It’ll only go to waste.’ The whole point about it is not to make people feel as if they’re in need. I’d rather people feel as if they’re doing us a favour by taking the stuff.” That anything should go to waste when others are hungry is, she says, “such a shame and I suppose that’s what drives me, thinking why should anyone be sitting hungry when there’s food there that can be given away? Doesn’t make any sense at all.” Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a letter of up to 300 words to be considered for publication, email it to us at guardian.letters@theguardian.com

GOOD

My working week: 'Julie is disabled and the only one in her team made redundant'

I check the referrals to the service over the weekend. We support disabled people across England and Wales to find employment, and in the past three months we’ve seen a 200% year-on-year increase in registration for our services. I catch up with one of our employment advisers. They have been speaking to a new customer, Julie, who was recently made redundant from her role as a PA for 11 years. She is the only one in her team of four to be made redundant, and the only one who is disabled. Sadly, this is a common theme since the furlough scheme approached its original end. We’ve worked on her CV, and a plan to find similar roles. She is upset and daunted at the prospect of finding a job during a pandemic. I meet with an employer who is keen to recruit more disabled people. Employers often have their own preconceived ideas about what a disabled person can and can’t do. We talk about how often minor changes make a big difference for disabled people, and a government support scheme that funds them called Access to Work . We discuss hosting a virtual careers day. We work to find roles with employers who actively want to hire more disabled people. This can encourage our customers who are often conflicted about when to disclose their disability to employers due to fear of bias – conscious or otherwise – and discrimination. I spend the afternoon working with my team leaders as our advisers are completely overwhelmed by calls. We discuss ways of increasing capacity. The team is very resilient but hearing horror employment stories daily, especially from people in the retail and hospitality, is tough. In the current competitive job market, disabled people sadly often end up at the back of the queue. A customer has a chaotic home life and is unable to speak to us as other family members are at home due to Covid restrictions. They don’t want her to find work. I consult with our internal safeguarding team and refer them to local social services. In the afternoon we receive some great feedback from a customer who has been in work for three months. It has had a positive effect on her mental health, so much so that she is looking to take on extra hours. I speak to Neel, who is looking for a job after a couple of years volunteering at a local charity shop. He has a learning disability and has found it challenging applying for jobs – most of his previous roles came through his local job centre, open only sporadically during the pandemic. A lot of the work we do focuses on building people’s confidence. We encourage them and affirm that their expertise, work ethic and contribution to an organisation deserves to be valued and respected. It’s our team meeting. We share positive stories from customers, including Steve, who has just found a role as a HR administrator after being out of work for over two years. Steve had interview support from the service and is so happy to be starting work. There’s also Anna. She recently started a role in a coronavirus testing centre, and she’s truly happy and relieved after losing her job in a factory where she had worked for 30 years. With the right adjustments and support from her employer, I know she’ll thrive in this role. All names have been changed Guy Chaudoir is employment programme lead for Scope’s Support to Work service

GOOD

‘Every one of us has a different story’: a historic portrait of care system success

“I once was Christopher Goldsmith,” reads a poem, neatly typed out on one side of a piece of A4 paper. On the back another poem is handwritten, composed on the train into London this morning, fresh on the page. They’re part of a poem-a-day project by their author Paul Cookson, who was born in the north of England and adopted shortly afterwards by a family in Essex. “Christopher Goldsmith lived for a month,” he writes, “then quietly died, slipped away/ Almost never existed… Christopher died so that I might have life/ and have it more abundantly.” Cookson is one of the success stories of the UK’s care system. He was the eldest of three adopted siblings, all from different families. They were happy, he says. “None of us have ever gone back to look for our birth families.” But his writing tells a subtly different story: “And so, nearly half a century later/ nearer to the end of the journey/ than the beginning,/ those questions arise/ and may remain unanswered/ but arise anyway.” The clamour of questions is almost deafening at London’s Foundling Museum one sunny July morning, when 59 people who, for many different reasons, spent all or part of their childhoods in care, gather for a historic photocall. The project is the brainchild of poet and activist Lemn Sissay, himself a graduate of the system, who wanted to create an image of successful lives as an inspiration for the many thousands of children struggling in care today. “I’ve collected a lot of names along the way and almost everyone I asked said they would come if they possibly could,” he says. They include Olympic medallist Kriss Akabusi; novelist Jeanette Winterson; the comedian and Observer columnist Stewart Lee, and the Turner prize-nominated photographer and film-maker Zarina Bhimji. “The way I see it, this should be something for people who are going through the system. Where they are, we have been; where we are, they can go,” says Akabusi who, like several others in the room, found his way through by joining the army. “It taught me the middle-class way of life: how to lay a table and make a bed and eat with a knife and fork. These are social graces that help us to move on.” Antiques Roadshow star Lennox Cato has travelled up from Kent with his immaculately behaved labradoodle, Tilly; poet and playwright Louise Wallwein has come from Manchester with her support dog, Maisie, who is so overexcited that she gets through a whole packet of placatory doggy treats. Wallwein, who received an MBE in 2018 for services to spoken word poetry, had been in 13 homes before writing her first play at 17. Cato was born on the Caribbean island of Grenada and adopted as a baby by white parents in Brighton, along with his brother. He followed his dad into the antiques trade. He loved his parents, he says, “but at the time there were no black kids around. My sisters lived in London with my blood parents in a black world”. “Every one of us has a different story,” says Sissay, beaming around the room in a shirt that is playing catch-up with the sun. Johanan Walker enthusiastically nods. “We usually get the narrative told about us so it’s nice to tell it ourselves,” she says. She was taken into a mother and baby unit as a 12-year-old mum, and had to fight to keep her daughter. Her experience of finding herself homeless and powerless after leaving care inspired her to start a campaign, calling4gr8ness.org to support young care leavers in the same predicament. One thing many share is dark memories of the shame and stigma they suffered. “Lemn was the first person I saw on stage talking about being care-experienced and it blew my mind,” says comedian, actor and writer Sophie Willan, best known as the creator and star of Bafta-winning BBC Two series Alma’s Not Normal . “I always thought it was something I had to hide. He made me realise that it could be a strength not a hindrance.” She’s now a patron of the Bolton charity Backup North West which helped her get her first flat when she was 17. “If I told someone I was in care, their handbag would move to the other side,” jokes Luis De Abreu, who made his escape through acting and is now principal of the dance and music theatre conservatoire he joined after dropping out of school at 15. The summer variety show he’s directing with his students at Bird College, in Sidcup, south-east London, includes a song from the pickpocketing musical Oliver! , poignantly titled Boy for Sale. Charles Dickens’s orphan Oliver Twist is one of scores of names plastered over the walls of the room where the volunteers gather for coffee and biscuits before the shoot, along with James Bond, Jane Eyre, Han Solo and Huckleberry Finn. The installation, Superman Is a Foundling , is another of Sissay’s initiatives, drawing attention to the ubiquity of the orphan in popular culture, and it momentarily shocks the poet and performer Luke Wright to find his own history reflected in a literary trope. “I’m not sure what I think of this,” he says, anxiously, before concluding that, if Lemn did it, it must be OK. There are a lot of big emotions flying around the room. Several people point out that they are the lucky ones – anyone who has been in a care home will know many who fell by the wayside. Ben Ashcroft, the author of a memoir titled Fifty-One Moves , was nearly one of them. That’s the number of times he was relocated between 11, when he and his brother were abandoned by their mother, and 17, when he decided he had to pull himself together. During that time he also became a drug addict and notched up 33 criminal convictions, he says. He’s now a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and founder of a campaign group Every Child Leaving Care Matters . In a sea of brilliantly coloured fabrics – never has clothing seemed more important to the story we tell of ourselves – TV producer and editor Janet Lee looks particularly confident in jazzy reds, hot oranges and cheeky pinks. But don’t be fooled, she says. “If we spent long enough with each other, we’d probably all start crying. Fortunately we’re all busy people, so we have to rush off.” And suddenly they’re all gone, a fleeting crowd of one-offs, whose generosity with their time and their stories has created an indelible image. Antiques expert “My care experience was lifesaving,” says Antiques Roadshow expert Ronnie Archer-Morgan, who recently published a memoir called Would It Surprise You to Know ? . “My home situation was dire. My mother had schizophrenia, I had a stepfather who was very violent to my mother and to me. I wanted to be in care to get out of that situation.” His experience in children’s homes and foster families between Surrey and Lancashire was “excellent. I felt incredibly cared for and looked after.” Author and music writer When Paolo Hewitt was researching his care memoir, The Looked After Kid , in his early 40s, he went back to Burbank children’s home in Woking, where he lived from 10 to 18, and realised that “it was actually a great experience”, especially compared with the dismal years in foster care that preceded it. “I learned a lot about life, about loyalty, about being non-judgmental. It had its pitfalls,” he says, “but it was unique.” Award-winning writer Alex Wheatle grew up in care in the notorious Shirley Oaks children’s home in Croydon – “a very lonely existence,” he says. As depicted in Steve McQueen’s TV series Small Axe , he was sent to live in Brixton , where his involvement in the 1981 uprisings led to his incarceration aged 18. “In prison I became an avid reader,” he says – an experience that paved the way for his career as a novelist. Actor, singer-songwriter and author In and out of care from the age of five, Stanley J Browne says his “horror story” began aged eight, when he was separated from his siblings and fostered off to Nottingham. He rebelled against the system and later ended up in detention centres and prisons, dealing with drug addiction. His autobiography, Little Big Man (out 14 October), describes how he turned his life around to become an actor and musician. Lecturer at Westminster Kingsway college A decade ago, Clare Gorham was “very much pro” transracial adoption. “I would have said that the only thing a child needs is love,” she says, reflecting on her own experience of being happily adopted by her white family in Wimbledon in 1966. “Now my mindset is slightly different. I still think love is the most important thing. But it’s a bit of a B-movie of an existence. My parents were amazing, but their colour-blind approach wasn’t representative of society’s view of me.” Artist, activist and academic researcher “There are at least two kinds of narratives about being in care,” says Sylvan Baker. “One is piteous, the other heroic. What happens if you want to be neither? If you just want to be?” Baker was transracially fostered from 11 days old. “I know I was lucky, I was loved,” he says. “But I felt different. I was different. I was in care.” He didn’t disclose his own experience to anyone at university until he co-founded a participatory research project called The Verbatim Formula in 2015. “It’s listening to care-experienced young people I’ve been working with that has empowered me to talk openly about it.” Lord mayor of the City of Manchester Donna Ludford applied to become lord mayor of the City of Manchester “to raise aspirations for young people in the care system”. She had a deeply unsettled childhood, moving between foster families and children’s homes from the age of six months, after her parents were badly injured in a motorcycle accident. Ludford began as a cleaner at Manchester city council before working her way up, earlier this year, to lord mayor. But success is “not about being the lord mayor,” she told a group of care leavers recently. “It’s about thriving in life and doing what makes you happy.” Artist Zarina Bhimji was taken into a children’s home at 14, then a foster family. The experience was marked by contradictions relating to her race and religion: “I remember I had chickenpox and I couldn’t go to the mosque, but we were allowed to go and see the Queen as she was visiting the town.” Encouragement from teachers spurred her on to become an artist (she was nominated for the Turner prize in 2007). “It was about having support and confidence, and knowing what is possible,” she says, “I didn’t even know what an artist was.” Novelist and professor Adopted as a baby, Jeanette Winterson grew up in a strict Pentecostalist family in Lancashire. She left home at 16 after coming out as gay – an experience depicted in her 2011 memoir, Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? Author, broadcaster, chancellor of the University of Manchester Born in Wigan to an Ethiopian mother, Lemn Sissay was placed in foster care as a baby, and sent aged 12 to the first of a series of children’s homes. Later, while piecing together his origins, he discovered that his mother had pleaded for his return and been denied by social services. Sissay has spoken out about his care experience and its many traumas throughout his career as a poet and broadcaster. Journalist When Allan Jenkins embarked on his gardening memoir Plot 29 , he found himself writing about the “helplessness of seed” just three paragraphs in and was prompted to revisit his unsettled past, growing up in foster care in south Devon with his older brother Christopher. The memoir was warmly received, though Jenkins, who edits Observer Food Monthly , has mixed feelings about becoming a figurehead for care-experienced people. “Sometimes, if you’ve had my childhood, you try not to be defined by it,” he says. Founder and executive chef, Bramble Dining Aged eight, Richard Bramble and his older brother Greg, also featured, moved in with a foster family near Leamington Spa. “Overall, the experience was good,” he says, “but you don’t feel like you’ve really lived your childhood.” Even though his new catering business is thriving, Bramble often feels impostor syndrome. “It’s like, should I be receiving all of this, should I even be doing it?” he says. “I just have to keep mentally strong and reverse those doubts.” Participation and projects lead at Pure Insight and business owner Natalie Hirst spent eight years living in foster care in Greater Manchester and had a mixed experience, but her resilience helped her to develop the strength and skills to overcome many challenges. “My experience has taught me the importance of having kind, supportive adults in the lives of children in care to help them feel safe, cared for and treated like one of the family,” she says. “These experiences have shaped who I am today, an independent woman, passionate about my career and working with local authorities in Greater Manchester to ensure every young person has a voice, choice and control over decisions made about them.” Psychodynamic psychotherapist and director of Integrated Minds and Artists on the Couch “The view of care leavers is typically: unable to achieve a higher education, expected to fail in life,” says Michelle Brown, who went into care at 11 and was “hugely let down” by her local authorities – she was left on the streets aged 15 after one of her foster carers relocated. “Many of us who stood at the Foundling Museum have had to battle our way through systemic failures and discrimination. Today we stand proud as care leavers and remove society’s stigma.” Brown defied expectations by progressing to university and getting a Masters. She is now a psychodynamic psychotherapist and the director of two companies. Olympic silver medallist When he was four, Kriss Akabusi’s parents returned to Nigeria, leaving him alone in the UK with his younger brother. They moved between several foster placements before entering a children’s home. Akabusi joined the British army aged 16 and later embarked on a glittering athletics career as a sprinter and hurdler. Author and activist In care from 11 to 17, Ben Ashcroft moved 51 times “between foster parents, residential care, secure units, secure training centre, and finally a young offenders’ unit. I was a very challenging and complex young person.” His memoir about that time, Fifty-One Moves , is now taught at universities and Ashcroft is a founding member of the campaign group Every Child Leaving Care Matters . “I’ve put a great amount of my own time back into trying to improve things for other people.” Chef and restaurant owner “It destroys you as a person, the amount of anxiety you develop from always expecting something to go wrong in your life,” says Tarell Mcintosh, who became homeless after two local authorities in south London failed to properly care for him. Mcintosh managed to make it to university and now runs a Caribbean restaurant, Sugarcane London , in Wandsworth, but he remains scarred by his experiences. “You just get used to battling with everybody all the time, and you always have your guard up. It’s really horrible.” Co-founder of Calling4Gr8ness Because her care experience happened so early – she was in and out of a foster home in east London until the age of five – Siroun Button never really thought of herself as somebody who’d been in care. “Now I’m starting to realise that it did really have an impact on me,” she says. To help others like her, Button has co-founded calling4gr8ness.org , a programme supporting care-experienced young adults in the creative industries. Antiques specialist When Lennox Cato and his older brother were adopted by a white family in Brighton, they stayed in touch with their birth parents, who had come over from Grenada. “They were just friends,” says Cato, now an expert on Antiques Roadshow . “They’d come down to see us and say hi. What kept us stable is that we knew we had two mums and dads.” Actor, writer, film-maker and activist Lucy Sheen was one of 106 Hong Kong Chinese foundlings who were adopted by white British families in the 1950s and 60s. “Where I grew up, in a very white conservative area, there weren’t any other people who looked like me for the best part of 16 years,” she says. Sheen has made a documentary about her experience, a powerful study of cultural displacement and linguistic disenfranchisement called Abandoned Adopted Here . Poet “Spectacularly ordinary,” is how poet Paul Cookson describes his “very happy” childhood in Lancashire alongside three other siblings, all of them adopted. “None of us have ever looked into our birth parents,” he says. “We were very secure in our upbringing.” But he did accidentally come across his birth name: Christopher Goldsmith. “That was strange for a while. I’d never thought of myself as a different person.” Principal and artistic director of Bird College, Sidcup When Luis De Abreu was nine, he travelled from Madeira to join his mother in Jersey, where she’d been working for several years. Soon afterwards she died of cancer and De Abreu ended up, after several foster placements, living in the notorious Jersey children’s home Haut de la Garenne. He was badly bullied at school and his education “suffered terribly”, but he “soldiered on” and enrolled at Bird College aged 22 to study dance and musical theatre. He is now Bird’s principal and artistic director. Writer and performer “It’s a mixture of stigma and admiration,” says Martin Figura of attitudes towards people in care. He spent his childhood moving between different carers after his mother was killed by his father in 1966. He wrote about the experience in his 2010 poetry collection Whistle , which was shortlisted for a Ted Hughes award and which Figura later turned into an Edinburgh show. He expected “a certain amount of difficulty” from the exposure but “it’s not made anything weird at all,” he says. “It’s been fine.” Security officer Greg Bramble counts himself lucky that he and his brother Richard, also featured, had a stable experience with a foster family in Warwickshire, but leaving his birth family aged 10 was traumatic, and negotiating their new family life was often fraught. “You’re on your guard. It was a difficult situation,” he says. “You felt like you had to grow up too fast.” Retired academic “The issues around growing up in care don’t magically stop at 25, just because public policy stops,” says Jim Goddard, who went into care in Liverpool aged three. “They carry on, and people deal with them in various ways.” Goddard is the chair of the Care Leavers’ Association , which focuses on care leavers of all ages – it might help people access their care files, or deal with issues around social isolation. “The level of invisibility of the issues facing young people leaving care has not fundamentally altered in the past 20 years.” Actor , writer “There’s still a very clear judgment passed when people hear you say, ‘I was in care,’” says Akiya Henry. Born in London, Henry was privately fostered at six months by a “wonderful couple” in Weston-super-Mare who encouraged her dreams of becoming an actor – she’s currently starring in Mad House in the West End. “In terms of the care system, everybody has such massively different experiences,” she says, “and the fact that sometimes we are all put into one bracket is, I think, a little bit unfair.” Artist, puppet-maker and puppeteer for film and TV “I decided quite early on that whatever happened to me, I wasn’t going to be a victim of it,” says Marcus Clarke, who lived in two national children’s homes in the early 60s, aged four to seven, while his mother was caring for his ailing father. (He later rejoined his mother after she remarried.) “I was mostly well looked after,” he says, “and learned to be happy in my own company.” Opera singer “I’ve become somebody to whom family and community is incredibly important,” says opera singer Jack Holton, who was born in Kent to a single mother with health issues and fostered at an early age. “One of the best things [foster care] has given me is the knowledge that it doesn’t need to be a totally typical family setup to work,” he says. “There’s all sorts of shapes of family that can work and your community can be whatever you choose it to be. It made me aware that families all look different – and that’s absolutely fine.” Retired professor of education Carl Parsons was adopted at five weeks. When he was six, his adoptive mother died and he was sent to live with relatives for 15 months, until his father remarried and he moved back home. “There’s a sort of stoicism,” he says, of how the experience shaped him. “Come what may, I may be knocked down, but I won’t be down for long.” Artist and founder member of the darkroom e5process Tina Rowe first encountered racism when, aged six, she moved with her white adoptive family from a small Oxfordshire village to Malvern in Worcestershire. The abuse she endured, none of which came from her own family, was “incomprehensible and frightening,” she says. It was only recently that one of her brothers acknowledged what she’d gone through and apologised for failing to confront it. “A lot of transracial adoptees talk about how racist their white families are, but actually, it’s racism that affects them too, and the way they see the world,” says Rowe. “It upset my brother when he realised what he hadn’t taken on board.” Photography/film rep, exec producer and consultant In the 1990s Loo How, who was adopted at six weeks by “a very Christian white family” in Bristol, went on a journey to track down her biological parents. “I found my birth father very quickly, because he was an actor, Louis Mahoney, who was a big activist for Black, Asian and ethnic minority rights in the actors’ union Equity,” she says. “It was amazing to find him and realise where I get my activism from.” Social work leader, campaigner and charity trustee “It’s one of the things that’s made me the happiest recently, the number of people who will happily associate themselves with their care experience,” says Jonny Hoyle. “It’s not a shameful thing any more.” Hoyle went into care as a young teenager and at 18 he set up a charity for care leavers called A National Voice : “We campaigned to stop children in care leaving with their belongings in bin bags.” Now he works for North Yorkshire county council “identifying and implementing ways that we can make life better for children in care”. PhD candidate and writer “Wherever I lived, my care experience included libraries and reading, and without them I wouldn’t be here,” says Rosie Canning, who was put into care in London at six weeks. “Books were a way to escape from the madness around me, be that foster care, family, or residential homes. Libraries were my hallowed space, and librarians were kind guardians who gave me orphan tales.” Now, as part of her PhD, Canning is writing her own novel, entitled Hiraeth , about a 16-year-old orphan leaving a children’s home in the mid-1970s. Director of strategy and integration for Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust “I’m hopeful that attitudes towards those in care are changing,” says Meera Mistry, who was in foster care in London for most of her teens. “The care-experienced movement is shaping some of the thinking – that people in care are talented and have so much potential. We can go on to do better if we’re just given the same life chances as other people. I am mightily proud of being care-experienced as it’s made me who I am today. Although it’s going to take time to shift the stigma and change the system, I believe it will happen.” Couture designer Best known for designing clothes for Diana, Princess of Wales, Bruce Oldfield was born in Durham and fostered at 18 months by a seamstress, Violet Masters, who taught him how to sew. From 13, he lived at a Barnardo’s care home in Ripon, North Yorkshire. Film-maker In the process of tracking down his birth parents, which is ongoing, Chris Fretwell learned that he was given up for adoption to cover up a family scandal: his parents were first cousins. “I just felt this overwhelming relief when I found out the truth,” he says, “because I was always told, they didn’t want you.” For Fretwell, writing and making films is a way of dealing with both his care experience and the racism he suffered growing up in Bognor Regis. “I’m getting to exorcise lots of demons.” Writer and fundraiser Now writing a memoir about her journey from care to Cambridge University, by day Kasmira Kincaid works as a fundraiser for Shelter. “I’ve had experiences with homelessness,” she says, “and it’s something that disproportionately affects people who are leaving foster care. It’s an incredibly common experience. I know so many care-experienced people who’ve had that further experience of being homeless, being a rough sleeper, living in hostels, sofa-surfing, all that kind of stuff.” Musician Pete Turner was adopted at five months and grew up in Bury in “a very liberal family that loved me,” he says. “They encouraged me in everything that I’ve wanted to do.” Which in Turner’s case meant becoming a musician – he’s a founder member of the rock band Elbow . “I know from reading the very brief information I have on my birth parents that my natural mother wanted me to have a better life than she could give me,” he says. Giving him up for adoption, he thinks, “was a massively selfless thing to do”. Novelist, writer, lecturer “It was amazing to be seen,” says Olumide Popoola about some of the social workers who helped her through care in Germany. She lived with a foster family from 12 to 14 and then spent a couple of years in a children’s home. Both places recognised her writing talent and helped her get work published. Now Popoola is a novelist and an associate lecturer at Central Saint Martins in London. “I always feel these two years [at the children’s home] made it possible for me to be who I am today.” Creative director of WhyNow Before joining digital arts platfrom WhyNow as creative director last year, Janet Lee worked for the BBC, where she was the editor of programmes including Imagine and The Culture Show and a producer on Desert Island Discs . Comedian and Observer columnist “I’ve never used it in a serious way, and I absolutely never will,” says Stewart Lee of mining his care experience for standup material – he was in care for the first year of his life before being adopted by a couple in Solihull. “Because it’s not just my story, it’s the story of the people that have been kind enough to reconnect with me and the people that were selfless enough to bring me up. I don’t feel like it’s for me to make a story out of their sacrifices and goodwill.” Director of access and participation, Rada, and co-director of We Are Bridge “It’s so important to celebrate the successes,” says Axa Hynes of the photoshoot at the Foundling Museum, “but because there were so many hurdles it can also feel uncomfortable, a distraction from the deep, systemic societal change that has to happen.” Hynes went into care aged 10, fostered by a family friend who had already been giving her family emotional and practical support. “By isolating and highlighting the success of care-experienced people it can become voyeuristic and soothes decision-makers into thinking that meritocracy is real. Instead of celebrating success ‘despite the odds’, we urgently need to improve the odds.” Works with care-experienced people “I came into care when I was 13, due to being homeless,” says Sanna Mahmood. Her care experience in West Yorkshire “was reasonably positive, partly because I was just happy to have a home. Someone gave me a fish-finger sandwich and I was like, I’ve made it.” Leaving care was harder: “The social housing that I got put into was not the best – there were needles all over the floor and blood on the wall – and the support wasn’t always the greatest.” Support for care leavers has since improved, Mahmood says, thanks to new policies from her local authority in Kirklees. Programme manager, Greater Manchester Trauma Responsive Programme Jenny Bagchi spent time in foster care and unregulated settings as a teenager before experiencing an abrupt end to care at 16. Becoming a young parent motivated her to return to education as an adult. She is now employed by the NHS in Greater Manchester, leading a programme to create trauma responsive communities and organisations and to improve health outcomes and opportunities across the region. She is also a trustee of the charity Pure Insight, which supports young people to have a better care-leaving experience than she did herself. Writer, poet “Being in foster care is probably the primary reason why I had a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder,” says Derek Owusu, whose award-winning debut novel, That Reminds Me , explores the after-effects of a childhood in care. “Though it was clear she loved and cared for us, my foster mum used to beat us with a cane. It didn’t feel like a traumatic experience at the time, but as I got older it dawned on me that an older, white, middle-class woman with seven black children in her house, beating them with a cane, was a bit strange.” Author and artistic director/CEO, Bernie Grant Arts Centre, London “I think of my life in two parts: before I traced my birth family and after,” says former Guardian journalist Hannah-Azieb Pool, who detailed the journey in her memoir My Fathers’ Daughter (republished this year). Pool was adopted from an Eritrean orphanage and lived in Sudan and Norway before coming to the UK aged six. Reconnecting with her birth family in Eritrea in her late 20s “allowed me to realise the multiplicities of who I am, to make connections around inter-country adoption, and the idea that you can belong in multiple places and with multiple families. It’s radically changed who I am.” Student and activist “Growing up, the moment someone found out I was care-experienced, they’d make negative assumptions,” says Lucy Reynolds, who had moved in and out of care eight times before being adopted aged seven. “I had teachers who put me in a box once they knew my background and said, ‘You’ll end up doing no good.’” Reynolds, who contributed to her mother Margaret’s 2021 book about adoption, The Wild Track , now studies ancient history and social anthropology at St Andrews and is involved in activist groups. “We need to prioritise the voices of people with lived experience of care,” she says. Author and national adviser for care leavers An encounter with Sylvester Stallone in the Sinai desert, while working as an extra on Rambo III , prompted Mark Riddell to turn his turbulent care experience into a force for change. When Stallone heard Riddell’s tale of growing up in Aberdeen children’s homes in the early 80s, he urged him to share his story more widely. Riddell wrote a memoir called The Cornflake Kid . Now he’s a national adviser for England, “advising the government and local authorities how to have a better leaving care offer to the more than 80,000 kids that we’ve got in care”. Chief executive, Leeds city council “It maybe shapes certain aspects of your character and your attitude to life,” says Tom Riordan of the experience of being in care. Riordan was in respite care several times during his first four years. “I was lucky to have a loving upbringing, but I find I’m never really happy with what I’ve done,” he says. “I’m always moving on to the next thing and thinking something’s going to go wrong.” Artistic director, 20 Stories High theatre company “This is a great opportunity to celebrate our achievements,” says Keith Saha of the Foundling Museum project. “A lot of care-experienced people will also measure success by how we’re feeling internally, how we manage our mental health and wellbeing, and not always what we’re achieving externally.” Moved into a children’s home aged six, Saha then went to live with adoptive parents in Merseyside the following year – a complex but positive experience for which he feels “lots of gratitude”. Now he works as a theatre-maker working with young and emerging artists, many of whom are also care-experienced. Music producer/writer; founder of clothing labels Duffer of St George and Sharpeye; author; one of the two creators of the rare groove scene; photographer; activist “My experience was a horror story, but it wasn’t so bad in other ways,” says Barrie Sharpe. “My mother was a manic depressive, so I was in and out of care. Visiting my mum in hospital, I’d see people screaming in straitjackets.” The upside of his experience, he says, was that he had “no fear” from a very young age, and he connects this to his career successes – DJing at London’s Wag Club in the 1980s, starting the clothing label Duffer of St George. “I was always falling uphill,” he says. Photographer Being adopted “is definitely something that puts a mark on you,” says fashion and portrait photographer Philip Sinden. In junior school, he proudly announced that he was adopted and half-Pakistani. “I got racial abuse for a small amount of time,” he recalls. “Which is interesting, because I always saw myself as white.” The abuse was confusing, he says, “but I’m quite stubborn. It’s never really been something that had a lasting effect on me.” CEO of Adoptee Futures and critical adoption studies researcher “I was fostered till the age of one and then placed with my adoptive family,” says Annalisa Toccara. “Through my lived experience of being adopted, I co-founded a mental-health organisation called Adoptee Futures, which is led by adoptees and which centres adoptees. We look at reclaiming the adoption narrative and reframing the world’s view on adoption, and also helping adult adoptees heal from their trauma.” Poet, playwright “I was born in the era of forcible adoption – my mother was coerced into giving me up,” says Louise Wallwein. Her adoption broke down when she was nine and she moved through various children’s homes around Manchester until leaving care at 17 – “because I came out as a lesbian and it was a Catholic children’s home”. Wallwein later dramatised her search for her birth mother in the acclaimed one-woman show (later a book) Glue . Writer and national campaigner for young people in care Chris Wild has written two books about his experiences in care, Damaged and The State of It , and has spent the past decade campaigning to improve the care system. The motivation, he says, comes from “being 11 years old, losing my dad, going into a children’s home [Skircoat Lodge in Halifax], being really badly physically abused, ending up homeless, but then going back into the care sector and seeing that nothing had changed.” Founder and lived experience expert “My care experience was both traumatic and enlightening,” says Johanan Walker, who went into care in east London after she had a baby at 12. “I was challenged with a lot of preconceived ideas and biases by the adults I was around, about whether I could be a mum and make it through against all odds.” Walker managed to hold on to her child and was later able to focus on education, “which saved me,” she says. Now she is a lived experience consultant and the co-founder of calling4gr8ness.org , supporting care-experienced young adults in the creative industries. Writer, actor, comedian and producer “I just felt I had to hide it,” says Sophie Willan, creator and star of Alma’s Not Normal , of her experience in care – she spent much of her childhood in foster care in Bolton. “It was actually seeing Lemn [Sissay] perform that helped me realise that you could talk about it. He really put it on the map and allowed it to be something that we could be proud of as an identity and talk about as a political thing. So it didn’t just have to be: this is your problem. It could be: this is everybody’s problem.” Poet, theatre-maker and broadcaster “I’ve started to connect with my identity as an adopted person a lot more in the past couple of years,” says Luke Wright, who was adopted at five weeks. “If you’d asked me as a child, I’d be like, ‘Oh, I’m adopted but it’s not a thing.’” Now he acknowledges that “there is probably some degree of separation anxiety as a result of not being with my mother in those crucial first few weeks”. He is in two minds about searching for his birth parents. “You get to a point where you go, is my curiosity big enough to unsettle so much?” Journalist “I became a journalist because I didn’t see my community represented in the newsroom,” says Sophia Alexandra Hall, an Oxford graduate who went into foster care as a teenager. “I wanted to tackle the sometimes subconscious, but overall still damaging stereotypes often perpetuated in the media, such as care-experienced people not ‘achieving’ or ‘succeeding’ in life due to their background. This photograph alone proves that with the right support and opportunities, those stereotypes are false.” My own “success” happened in spite of my time in care, not because of it. I am not defined by my scars but by the incredible ability to heal. Healing can hurt too. Here are a few organisations for support and information: Become has been supporting and campaigning for children in care and young care leavers since 1985. The Care Leavers’ Association is a national user-led charity aimed at improving the lives of care leavers of all ages. The Fostering Network is the UK’s leading fostering charity; it champions fostering and seeks to create vital change. PAIN – Parents against Injustice is a voluntary organisation, run and funded by volunteers who provide help and support to families caught in the care system. Samaritans is a 24-hour service offering emotional support for anyone struggling to cope. One of the greatest signs of my own sense of independence when I left care was the day I could ask for help when I needed it. For more information about the Foundling Museum in London see foundlingmuseum.org.uk . The exhibition Superheroes, Orphans & Origins: 125 Years in Comics runs there until​ 28 August​

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Catalonia’s farmers face threat of drought … and a plague of hungry rabbits

With much of Spain facing severe drought after an exceptionally dry winter that followed the hottest summer on record, Alex Foix is planting vines in dusty ground near the village of Verdú in the province of Lleida. He hopes to have enough water for the vines to survive their first year, but that is not his only worry: it is the rabbits he fears most. Unusually, the area worst affected by drought isn’t in the south of the country but in the north-east region of Catalonia , where – in addition to a severe water shortage – farmers are facing a plague of rabbits. With a lack of grass and water, the animals are destroying crops, especially young wheat and barley, and eating the bark on vines and fruit trees. “A lot of factors have contributed to the rabbit population explosion: there was the pandemic, when no one could hunt for two years; they’ve become immune to myxomatosis; and the female can produce seven or eight offspring every two months,” Foix says. The Catalan government has said that more than 250,000 rabbits need to be killed by September to contain the population, according to reports , but it is a task beyond the means of the region’s disappearing breed of aged hunters. In an effort to reduce the numbers, the government has permitted the use of aluminium phosphate , which releases toxic phosphine gas when introduced into burrows. “If it doesn’t rain in April and we have another year like last year, the vines won’t survive,” says Juan Samboda, a member of Pagesos o conills (Farmers or rabbits), who grows cereals, vines, olives and chickpeas near Verdú. Drought is endemic in Lleida, says Samboda, but he points with pride to the area’s modern irrigation system, which is driven almost entirely by gravity. A series of small reservoirs are supplied with water from the Segarra-Garrigues canal. The problem is the water for the canal comes from the Rialb reservoir, 75km away. Standing on the bridge over the reservoir there is no sign of water but rather an improvised race track for trail bikes. In Catalonia as a whole, water reserves are down to about 26% and Samboda and his neighbours are running out. “The question is how to manage the resources we have,” says Josep Carles Vicente, an olive farmer in Priorat, 60km south-west of Verdú. “If we decide that this year we can only cultivate a quarter of the available land then we have to decide what crops to prioritise. It’s vital that we don’t just improvise from day to day. “If the drought continues, in the case of fruit trees we can irrigate enough to save the trees but not enough for them to bear fruit.” At the end of February, a number of measures were agreed by the Catalan government, including a 40% reduction in water used for agriculture, a 15% reduction for industrial use, and a cut in the average daily supply for each resident from 250 litres to 230 litres . There is a ban on using drinking water to irrigate parks and gardens or for street cleaning, and plans to increase the amount of recycled water that can be introduced into rivers. An emergency plan allows local authorities to contract water tankers. However, a cross-party emergency water summit held late last month failed to reach agreement on further restrictions. Municipal elections are due in May and – anxious to please voters – local mayors argued that municipal swimming pools be kept open on health grounds. They also blocked a proposal to fine local councils that exceed their water quota. Some farmers have been learning to adapt to the changing conditions. Marta Casas, oenologist at Parés Baltà winery in Penedès, near Barcelona, says global heating over the past 20 years has brought the grape harvest forward from late August to late July. “We’ve noticed that if we leave ground cover around the vines they are better equipped to survive drought because the morning dew doesn’t just settle on the leaves but on the grass, too,” she says. Casas adds that the winery is opting for grape varieties with a longer growing cycle, as the increasingly harsh climate affects the taste, aroma and sugar content of the grapes. This has led them to replace French varieties such as merlot and chardonnay with native vines such as sumoll, moneu and malvasia sitges. But the plague of rabbits may not be so easy to combat. “One study found areas where there were 100 times what is considered the stable population of rabbit an acre,” says Foix, pointing to the protective plastic sleeves he’s fitted to each young vine in the hope of keeping them at bay. Find more age of extinction coverage here , and follow biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield on Twitter for all the latest news and features

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‘I felt pushed out’: long Covid sufferers fight for fairness in the workplace

“Long Covid has had an emotional, social, physical and professional impact on me,” says Sarah Barley-McMullen, 53, who felt forced to leave a job she loved, as a senior academic, when she was unable to negotiate a manageable working pattern. She caught the virus in January 2021, and more than two years later is still experiencing a battery of debilitating symptoms, including hearing loss, mobility problems, rapid changes in heart rate, and an inability to cry, which she says has hit her mental health. “I was off work for 10 months – but I was desperate to get back to doing the job I loved,” she says. “I went back to work in November 2021. At first, work were supportive and I was allowed to come back on a phased return, doing a set number of hours each week. By Christmas, I’d managed to get up to doing about three days’ work over five days.” However, she says after Christmas, she was told this phased return to work was over, and she would need to come back full-time – including two days a week on campus. “I was then told that my team was being restructured and my job as a senior manager was being replaced with a higher level role,” she says. “I knew I wasn’t well enough to do that and asked whether my role could stay at the same level. I was told, ‘maybe you need to ask yourself whether you are well enough to stay’. It was a shock, and I felt pushed out.” “I think it was the lack of understanding and lack of awareness of long Covid,” she says. “They didn’t know anything about it.” She ended up accepting a redundancy package, and was able to claim her pension early on grounds of ill-health, but she says: “I felt lost, frustrated and devastated – I was only 52 and I wasn’t ready to finish my career. I also loved my job.” Sign up to First Edition Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning after newsletter promotion Barley-McMullen has since set up a consultancy and continued working from her home in Derbyshire, which she argues demonstrates that she could have remained in her post if her employer had been willing to accommodate her needs. She has been helped by the charity Long Covid SOS, with which she now works. “Covid hasn’t gone away, it’s not just a nasty virus. People have lost loved ones, they’ve lost lifestyles and they’ve lost their health,” she says. “We need to live with Covid now. And living with Covid means listening to it and understanding the impacts, not pretending it has gone away”.

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AI will take some jobs, but mass unemployment isn't inevitable

The staggering recent progress in artificial intelligence (AI) has left many fearing for their jobs. The ominous drumbeats grew louder earlier this month when Geoffrey Hinton, the godfather of AI, resigned from Google and expressed his concerns about the potential of the technology to upend the job market, just as IBM put the brakes on nearly 7,800 jobs that could be replaced by AI and automation over time. Last week, BT announced it would cut up to 55,000 jobs by 2030, with about 10,000 predicted to be replaced by AI. These announcements are not surprising: if businesses are to survive in our market economy, they must adapt to these technological shifts to remain competitive and profitable. However, despite the predictions of doom, history offers reasons to be optimistic about AI and its impact on work and employment. Jobs have changed and evolved throughout history, which has resulted in the creation of new professions that were previously inconceivable. For most of the 20th century, typing was seen as a desired and decent job, and typists were in high demand . As computers grew in popularity and typing got easier, the demand fell away, and the profession nearly became extinct. But, thanks to the same trends, the demand for web designers, graphic designers and copy editors increased. The advent of the computer gave birth to countless sectors and transformed our way of life (mostly) for the better. I believe that AI can repeat this very trick, if we get it right. What does that look like? For a start, it means understanding which jobs and industries are actually at risk, and how AI will become part of them. AI can automate tasks such as data entry and administrative operations, which puts jobs that involve repetitive data input and basic decision-making at risk. Interestingly, the banking and financial industries, which are generally seen as white-collar jobs, may see a decrease in demand for data analysts and risk assessors as AI systems become more efficient at handling large amounts of data. Manufacturing and logistics jobs seem an obvious target for AI, as automation is used more and more to save on costs. Jobs in transportation, assembly-line activities and repetitive manual work can be automated to some extent. However, the technology still has limitations which require regular maintenance and a balance between AI/robots and human workers. If jobs are poorly designed or if there is an imbalance between AI and human workers, it could result in dissatisfied customers, decreased revenue (especially in the current cost of living crisis), and even business closures. Two months ago, a restaurant named Robotazia in Milton Keynes that had robotic waiters closed down due to rising costs and recruitment issues. We need to bear in mind that while automation and robotics can bring novelty and efficiency to certain industries, the overall impact on jobs can be complex and multifaceted, with problems including maintenance costs, recruitment challenges and the need to adapt to changing economic situations. Another area we need to watch is customer service . Chatbots are already being implemented in this area, but their inability to understand complex scenarios can result in service failures and unhappy customers. Human support should be maintained alongside these chatbots, especially in industries such as hospitality, where human interaction, empathy and emotional/social intelligence are vital to customer loyalty. In the healthcare industry, AI has been used to aid medical diagnostics , radiology interpretation and patient monitoring. However, while AI can help healthcare professionals with data analysis, imaging and decision-making, current AI is limited in performing difficult tasks that require fine hand-eye coordination, and the physical execution of such tasks is still reliant on human capabilities. In all of these industries, AI and automation are most useful in conjunction with human roles – where people can offer the complex decision-making skills or human touch that the machines lack. However, some jobs will still be lost, which is why governments, corporations and educational institutions should collaborate to offer comprehensive retraining programmes and job placement support to help displaced people transition to more future-proof roles similar to their own, or to other industries. Policymakers should establish tailored initiatives to assist and safeguard people in high-risk industries. Moreover, a focus on lifelong learning is essential. Governments should promote education and training programmes that provide citizens with the skills essential to prosper in an AI-driven economy – which includes encouraging AI literacy , supporting critical thinking and promoting continuous upskilling and reskilling. We need our leaders to take this moment seriously, act quickly and, importantly, balance this breakthrough’s potential benefits with the immediate human cost. We can manage the revolutionary influence of AI while assuring a positive future that benefits individuals and society as a whole. Erin Ling is a lecturer in artificial intelligence and the future of work at the University of Surrey

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Bin crews to work four-day week as UK trials extend to public sector frontline

Bin crews could soon be putting their feet up on a Monday as the wave of four-day-week trials spreading across the UK finally reaches frontline public services. South Cambridgeshire district council has agreed to test a 32-hour working week for 150 refuse loaders and drivers this summer after successful experiments with reduced working hours with office- and laptop-based staff. Workers who investigate fly-tipping, undertake dredging and are council caretakers will also try the new working pattern. Pay will remain the same and the council has assured householders that they will receive the same service, if not better. It is hoped that the city council, with whom the district shares waste services, will agree to the plan in the coming months. It could cost £339,000 extra over two years, according to council papers, as an increase in staff and new lorries are required. Savings are expected to be made by a reduction in the use of agency staff as working on bin crews becomes a more appealing prospect. Joe Ryle, the director of the 4 Day Week Campaign, which has helped steer trials in the private sector, said: “We have always said the four-day week must apply for everyone, so it is brilliant the first ever trial for blue-collar workers in the public sector has been approved. It’s only fair that public-sector workers and those in non-office jobs benefit too.” The decision follows the world’s largest trial of a four-day week in the UK, which resulted in 56 of the 61 companies taking part carrying on with the test, and 18 making the arrangement permanent. Companies involved ranged from the Charity Bank in Kent to Rivelin Robotics in Sheffield. Among the firms that struggled were Allcap, an industrial supplies company, which tried a nine-day fortnight and found that after “nine extreme ones – once [employees] got to their scheduled day off, they were exhausted”. Nevertheless, polling last week showed that 58% of the British public expected a four-day week to be the normal way of working by 2030, with only 22% believing it would not. Bridget Smith, the leader of South Cambridgeshire district council, said that as part of preparations to make the trial a success, bin routes had been rationalised to reduce wasted time and “everybody will be working more intensely and productively”. Bin crews have typically worked 37-hour weeks – but the job is known as “task and finish”, which means it can be done more quickly or slowly. Sign up to The Guardian Headlines UK A digest of the morning's main headlines emailed direct to you every week day after newsletter promotion Henry Batchelor, the council lead for environmental services, said: “Nationally and locally, it is often difficult to recruit staff, especially at the waste service. To help deal with this, and further support the wellbeing of our hardworking crews, we need to try something new. For us, that is a proposed four-day week trial, which we have been testing successfully among our desk-based colleagues since the start of the year.” Before the wider trial started, the council was spending about £2m a year on agency staff. It estimates that this bill could be halved if all these posts were filled permanently. The trial has so far cut the annual wage bill by £300,000. The GMB trade union, which represents refuse workers and has been in discussions with the council, said: “The union is cautiously positive but we are constant dialogue with our members to ensure there are no unforeseen equality issues or detriments to terms and conditions.”

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New map catalogues more than 85,000 volcanoes on Venus

Our planet has more than 1,500 volcanoes – but if you think that’s a lot then take a look at Venus . A new map, created from radar imagery collected during Nasa’s Magellan mission in the 1990s, catalogues more than 85,000 volcanoes on Venus, 99% of which are less than 5km in diameter. “Our new database will enable scientists to think about where else to search for evidence of recent geological activity [on Venus],” says Paul Byrne from Washington University in St Louis. Although there were volcanoes virtually everywhere on the planet, Byrne and his colleagues report in the journal JGR Planets that volcanoes in the 20km- to 100km-diameter range are relatively scarce; a fact that may help us learn more about magma availability and eruption rates on Venus. The researchers hope the data, which is publicly available, will help them better understand the inner workings of the planet. The volcano map comes hot on the heels of the first proof that Venus has active volcanoes, reported in the journal Science . Playing “spot the difference” with radar images from the Magellan mission, researchers identified a volcanic vent on the massive Maat Mons volcano, which had enlarged and changed shape over an eight-month period, with new lava flows appearing in the latter images.

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I always dreaded going to the doctor. Finally having a great GP, I realise what I was missing

At a gathering last weekend in the inner west of Sydney, several partygoers experienced a very rare event. The event was me – a noted man-hating lesbian – loudly extolling the virtues of … a man! No, it wasn’t a daring piece of performance art, it was simply me telling everyone about my GP. Until recently, I didn’t have a regular doctor in my life. As someone with the hot girl conditions of chronic ear infections, tonsillitis and not having much money, I’ve spent a lot of time scouring neighbourhoods to find a bulk-billing doctor to see – something that is becoming increasingly hard to do. This ad hoc approach to healthcare is common among young people I know who either can’t find a reliable bulk-billing doctor or can’t afford to pay the gap, especially those with chronic or mental health issues that necessitate repeated visits. This approach feels less than optimal. The doctor has no history with you and no context for you. You’re starting new with each doctor and it’s the luck of the draw when you open the door – like a medical Thank God You’re Here. Sometimes the doctors are very good, sometimes palpably overworked or checked out, or somehow angry at you for being in their office (prescribe yourself a chill pill!). That has been my experience with a system that seems stressful for everyone involved, but I have been lucky enough – relatively recently – to find a doctor I can afford, who also– very importantly – treats me with care. Much like someone who is finally in a good relationship after years of average ones, I didn’t realise what I was missing until I got it. And now I want everyone to have it in their lives. Part of my experience with doctors is tarnished by the fact that I am a fat queer woman. It is undisputed that fat people have a worse time at the doctor, facing stigma and discrimination : regardless of what issue you go in for, some doctors can only see your fatness. I could go in with my eyeball hanging out of my head and they would say: “Ah yes I see what’s wrong here, you’re fat. Try losing weight to suck that back into your head.” Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup It sounds silly but it can have real negative outcomes. I had increasingly severe heavy periods which doctors kept discounting as normal because of my weight. I ended up losing so much blood over a time that I collapsed at work, needed two blood transfusions and an iron infusion. Giant fibroids – non cancerous growths – had been growing inside my uterus, which can happen to anyone. Several doctors missed this because they couldn’t see past my fat – figuratively speaking. This sort of oversight or dismissiveness is not uncommon, especially with women and especially with fat women. Finding a doctor who will treat you as a whole person, even if you’re very whole, is sadly not easy. My ex-girlfriend recommended this doctor to me because she is fat, and a fat person recommended him to her, and so on throughout the fat community. This positive whisper network is not limited to us: this doctor is particularly recommended for people with mental health issues, and sex workers, and queer people. The thing we actually all have in common is that we are from groups who have a harder time finding a doctor to treat them with respect. We all recommend him to other vulnerable people, vehemently, because of that factor. It is not that he is an expert in every single thing for all of these people, it’s just that you can feel that he cares . It’s as simple as that. Sitting there, you can tell that he is seeing you as a human and there is no judgement inherent in his practice. We don’t always get that, for whatever reason. He is present, he never rushes. He wants to know what’s going on; he asks questions and follows up; senses anxiety and gives reassurance. Sign up to Guardian Australia's Afternoon Update Our Australian afternoon update email breaks down the key national and international stories of the day and why they matter after newsletter promotion As someone who has always dreaded going to the doctor, it is a new and genuinely stabilising experience to have one who cares about what happens to you. It has also shown me the importance of having a regular doctor, someone who knows you and your history. And maybe has more of a sense of how you need to be handled. This is not an anti-doctor piece. I know there are many great ones that others recommend, and that there are many stressed ones doing their best. But I have been shown what is achievable and now know that it’s possible to not dread going to the doctor. It’s possible to feel safe with one and to be taken care of. Of course the first aim has to be for a better system where everyone can actually afford to get medical care. But in an ideal world – the world we should fight for – everyone would be obnoxiously raving about their doctor at a party. Rebecca Shaw is a writer based in Sydney

BAD

Trouble at the temple: ban on Muslims a sign of India’s new intolerance

For 800 years, Bappanadu Sri Durgaparameshwari temple had stood as a symbol of India’s cohesive religious past. It is said that the Hindu temple, which sits on the bank of the Shambhavi River in India’s southern state of Karnataka, was built by a Muslim merchant, Bappa Beary, after a goddess came to him in a dream. The land to build the temple was donated by a local Jain ruler. Over the centuries, its unique origins were regularly honoured and the annual festivals, celebrations and buffalo races that took place at Bappanadu temple were attended by Hindus, Muslims, Christians and Jains alike. “There was always this harmony,” said Dugganna Sawantha, a member of the temple committee and direct descendent of the Jain king who donated the temple land. “But last year, that’s when the troubles began.” Days before the annual 23-day festival was due to begin last April, Sawantha was approached by Bajrang Dal, a rightwing Hindu vigilante group that is active across the state, often targeting Muslims. It issued him a warning: no Muslims were to be allowed to set up stalls at the festival or take part in celebrations. Bappanadu was not the only temple identified. Bajrang Dal members began to hang banners up in nearby towns and the city of Mangalore reading “no permission for those who are against the constitution and those who kill cattle”. Then, Karnataka’s chief minister, Basavaraj Bommai, from the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), issued a statement supporting the ban. The ban then spread to other nearby temples, as BJP government officials began enforcing it. For the hundreds of Muslims who relied on selling their wares on the temple festival circuit, it was devastating. Umar, 52, who sells cosmetics, used to make about £1,500 a year from his stall – but now he barely makes £50. “We are desperate, our traditional business is dying and I’m not making enough to survive,” he said. While most states in India’s south have been largely unaffected by the Hindu nationalist politics that now dominate north and west India, Karnataka has long been the exception; though communal divisions have not taken root across the whole state, they are highly prevalent along the 200-mile-long coastal belt. The BJP has had political influence in the state since the 1980s. Since 2014, the BJP has ruled India’s central government, led by Narendra Modi , the prime minister. But it was in 2018 that the party returned to power in Karnataka, beckoning in the most rightwing government in the state’s history. This week, as the state goes to the polls, the party is seeking re-election. Under the BJP, a de facto ban was imposed on the wearing of the hijab in government schools, colleges and in exams, an “anti-conversion” law was passed in response to the unproven “love jihad” conspiracy theory that Muslim men are luring Hindu women for marriage in order to convert them to Islam and school textbooks were rewritten to remove references to Islamic leaders. Economic boycotts of Muslims were endorsed by ministers and a bill banning halal meat was also proposed. The government has also been accused by activists and political opponents of giving groups such as Bajrang Dal a free rein to carry out vigilante acts of violence, including lynchings of Muslims – often in collusion with police. Last month a Muslim cattle trader in Karnataka’s Ramanagara district was murdered by a group allegedly led by a local Bajrang Dal activist. As part of its manifesto in the state election, the opposition Congress party pledged to ban Bajrang Dal, casting it as a terrorist organisation. In response, Bajrang Dal, which claims to have a presence in 2,000 villages across the state, has come out fighting for the BJP in the election. Sharan Pumpwell, the state secretary for the Vishwa Hindu Parishad militant organisation, of which Bajrang Dal is the youth wing, said: “I personally gave a call to Bajrang Dal members across Karnataka to come out on the streets and conduct door-to-door campaigns against the Congress party. We have to make the BJP victorious to protect cows and protect our volunteers. The BJP has withdrawn many cases that had been filed against our people.” Pumpwell denied any allegations of illegal activity. “We only work in the interest of our religion and our country,” he said. The BJP is fighting for re-election in Karnataka with policies on its manifesto that many fear are further attempts to marginalise the Muslim population, who make up about 13% of the state. Weeks before the polls, the state government scrapped a 4% reservation allocated to the state’s economically deprived Muslims, who are among the poorest community in the state. In the city of Udupi, meanwhile, tensions over the wearing of the hijab began in December 2021, when a government college issued a ban on Muslim girls wearing headscarves, declaring it against the school’s uniform policy. Muslim students protested and the issue was taken up by the BJP and rightwing religious groups. One local BJP representative said girls who wanted to wear the hijab in schools should “go to Pakistan”, while the state chief, Nalin Kumar Kateel, said the “talibanisation of classrooms” would not be allowed. In February 2022, a government order declared that restriction on the hijab was not in violation of the freedom of religion, which was then upheld by the Karnataka high court. Though the order was not an outright ban, it was widely interpreted as such by many institutions in the state. Many Muslim girls found themselves prevented from entering classrooms or from taking exams if they did not remove their headscarves and some had teachers or police try to forcibly remove their headscarves at school gates. According to a submission made to the supreme court, which has taken up the matter, 17,000 girls did not sit their exams after the order, and thousands are thought to have dropped out of education altogether. One 24-year-old law student was in the final semester of her law degree when the court made its ruling. “I never thought it would ever affect our college, there was always a secular and friendly atmosphere,” she said, requesting anonymity for fear of harassment. “But after the court passed the order, our college summoned all 40 girls who wear a hijab to the auditorium and asked us to make a choice if we wanted to continue attending classes.” Like many others, she refused to remove her hijab and was banned from attending classes, missing out on the final lessons of her degree. Another student, who also requested anonymity, dropped out of her law degree altogether and accused the government of depriving Muslim girls of their right to education. “The hijab is an important part of who I am, it’s a choice I make. I shouldn’t be forced to remove it,” she said. Tejasvi Surya, a popular BJP MP from the state, denied the policy discriminated against Muslims even though no other religion has been affected by the new rules. “The BJP stand was not anti hijab, it was pro-uniform in a school institution,” he said.

GOOD

Harry Studwell obituary

My father-in-law, Harry Studwell, who has died aged 93, spent almost his entire career as an engineer in the RAF, retiring as a wing commander before moving into the private sector with an engineering firm. Harry was born in Portsmouth , Hampshire, the eldest of five sons of Hilda (nee Ballard), a barmaid, and Harry Studwell, a labourer and gardener. He went to Portsmouth North grammar school, leaving school at 14 to work as a labourer and then painter and decorator. Reaching the age of 18 in 1946, he did his national service at RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire and enjoyed his time in the services, returning to his previous work until, in 1953, he decided that he wanted to rejoin the RAF. Quickly impressing with his sharp mind, aptitude for engineering and natural air of authority, he moved rapidly through the ranks. Within five years he had received the British Empire Medal for outstanding service and in 1959 he was commissioned as an officer. Harry was posted to Aden during the conflict there between 1964 and 1966, leading a team of engineers who were tasked with keeping RAF combat and supply aeroplanes airworthy, often working in dangerous conditions. At various points thereafter he worked at RAF stations in Benson (Oxfordshire), Northwood (Middlesex), High Wycombe (Buckinghamshire), Upavon (Wiltshire) and Stafford (where he became a wing commander in 1979), before ending his career back in High Wycombe. After leaving the RAF, Harry joined the engineering company Airworks, for whom he worked for the Sultan of Oman’s air force, and was soon promoted to a senior management position in Salalah, remaining there until full retirement in 1986 and a return to the UK to live in Witney in Oxfordshire. A generous man with a ready wit and keen sense of humour, Harry always declined to join any ex-servicemen’s organisations, and rarely spoke of his RAF years unless prompted. He wanted to look forwards, not backwards, and did not want to join the ranks of the “When I…s”, as he called them. In later life he put his considerable energies into his new passions of gardening, golf and croquet. He was also an active member of the Witney Probus Club. Harry’s wife, Barbara (nee Miller), a nurse and primary school teacher, whom he married in 1959, died in 2011. The following year he was diagnosed with vascular dementia and subsequently was looked after by his daughters, Elisabeth and Catherine, before moving to St Catherine’s View care home in Winchester. He is survived by his daughters and by his granddaughters, Charlotte, Madeleine and Lucy.

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Fight the fakes: four ways to protect your business from intellectual property infringement

Oscar Wilde got it wrong. Imitation isn’t the sincerest form of flattery – at least when it comes to your business partners. When your supplier starts to make a knock-off version of your flagship product, the betrayal can hurt almost as much as the lost revenue. For a growing number of businesses, having somebody copy their products can cause reputational damage and potentially cost their bottom line. Just ask Brompton Bikes, whose managing director, Will Butler-Adams, recently spoke of its “war of attrition” against copycats producing cheaper lookalikes of its famous folding bicycles. Or maybe James Dyson, of vacuum cleaner fame, who has condemned the “treachery” of brands that try to replicate devices that are the result of years of innovation. But what makes one product a “copycat” or “knock-off” and not just a different take on the same idea? The answer is intellectual property (IP) rights. These protect your commercial and artistic creations against duplication and let you reap the rewards of your hard work through sales or licensing fees. Know your rights The type of action that can be taken against infringers depends on what IP rights are violated and where. With that, the five basic kinds of IP are patents (protecting inventions), trademarks (indicating the origin of products or services), designs (relating to the decorative appearance of products), copyrights (covering creative expressions) and trade secrets (concerning confidential information). Of course, someone peddling fake goods could be stepping on a combination of IP rights. Take Dyson’s Airblade hand dryer, for instance. The technology underpinning this device is covered by a number of patents around the world. If someone in one of these countries was to build and sell an exact replica without permission from Dyson, they would be infringing on the patent and design registered there. However, if they sold the offending dryer using labels and packaging that imitates Dyson’s own, they are also potentially committing trademark infringement. Such counterfeit goods aim to deceive a consumer by appearing to be the genuine product – and this can even extend to healthcare, with potentially deadly consequences. Both Interpol, which leads worldwide police cooperation, and the World Health Organization have warned of criminal gangs selling fake Covid vaccines and personal protective equipment (PPE). According to a 2019 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report, counterfeit goods represented 3.3% of all global trade , and since then, the explosion in online purchases has only made it easier for fraudsters to ply their trade. “Protecting your brand isn’t just a matter of preserving your reputation – it’s essential to both business survival and consumer safety. From hazardous fake products to brand impersonators, the threats in today’s fast-paced, hyper-connected world are real and relentless,” says Olivier Lombardo, head of trademarks Luxembourg at IP law firm Dennemeyer & Associates. “From professional experience, a comprehensive IP protection strategy is the foundation of any successful business, regardless of size or industry.” Put your stamp on everything you do Lombardo goes on to explain that defending against counterfeiters requires multiple IP rights for maximum coverage, especially when dealing with your own supply chain. It stands to reason that registering your trademarks where you trade is essential. But the entire production cycle needs to be taken into account. Registering and maintaining your IP rights in those parts of the world where you source manufacturing could be the difference between holding pride of place in (digital) shopfronts and being lost in a deluge of low-grade replicas. Since trademarks identify the commercial origin of goods and services, deceptively similar packaging from third parties is strictly prohibited. Particularly egregious behaviour could even amount to fraud and incur hefty penalties. “Securing trademarks is typically the first part of your overall IP protection strategy. But when you deploy various anti-counterfeiting measures throughout your product supply chain, such as digital watermarks, QR codes and other end-to-end tracking systems, you make the lives of counterfeiters that much more difficult,” says Tomislav Hadzija, managing director at Dennemeyer & Associates Croatia. “Authenticated products not only safeguard your brand image but also empower you to take stronger legal recourse against offenders.” Think global “I often see business owners making the mistake of assuming that registering and renewing their trademark in one country is enough to shield them from infringement everywhere. But the truth is, trademark protection is territorial, and without proper registration in each country you do business, you’re leaving yourself vulnerable,” says Hadzija. This means filing a trademark in the UK will only safeguard your brand here – if you’re seeking more robust brand protection, you’ll need to register it in all territories where you operate. Registering a trademark can be a fairly complex process, requiring proof of its use in commerce or your intention to use it. This could include promotional material or affidavits. Having to apply in multiple jurisdictions makes things more daunting, especially when it comes to keeping up with local requirements and regular maintenance payments. Thankfully, a worldwide network of trademark experts and external partners means Dennemeyer is well versed in these procedures; handling complex cases is the company’s bread and butter. Teaming up with someone who knows the ins and outs of the trademark world lets you find the route that best suits your current and future business strategies. In addition to national applications in key markets, you could take advantage of various international frameworks to enhance your coverage. For instance, the Madrid System , administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), allows you to apply for trademark protection in up to 130 countries with just one set of fees. Keep your eyes open The counterfeit market is huge and inherently challenging to measure, but in 2017, online fakes were estimated to be damaging the global economy by $1.2tn (£980bn) . In 2016, the OECD estimated counterfeiting was responsible for 86,000 jobs being lost annually in the UK. And in a post-Covid environment, figures are expected to swell across the board. According to the not-for-profit membership organisation the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, more than 4m counterfeit products were seized in the UK in 2021-22 , with a market value of £111m. Fashion is the most heavily counterfeited sector, with footwear alone accounting for a fifth of all imitation goods . Because many of these counterfeited goods are unlikely to be made in line with health and safety regulations, they can be dangerous, even lethal. Fake medicines have caused arsenic poisoning and accidental fentanyl overdoses, while faulty electrical goods are often responsible for fatal electric shocks and house fires. But why is the problem still so rife? “I often remind my clients that obtaining a patent or trademark is just the start of their IP protection strategy. While it can’t prevent counterfeiting, a carefully crafted and detailed patent or trademark filing can limit the manoeuvering room of infringers,” says Raluca Judele, director at Dennemeyer & Associates Romania. However, she adds: “To those who still attempt to profit from our clients’ effort and ingenuity, we bring the full brunt of the law to bear, delivering the compensation legitimate businesspeople deserve, while discouraging future violations.” What can I do if my IP is infringed by my manufacturer? Prevention is better than cure, so there is no reason to ignore a thorough vetting of potential business partners. Airtight non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) signed beforehand allow you to hold shifty suppliers to account if you have shared your vital trade secrets with them. In the event the unthinkable happens, your first port of call should be an IP lawyer, who’ll help draft a cease-and-desist letter, before serving it to the offending party. Because penalties for counterfeiting and infringement can be quite severe, this should often solve things. Should that fail, it’s time for you and your IP lawyer to file a lawsuit. But even this might not be possible if the counterfeiter is working as part of a larger criminal gang or in a country with weak IP administration. This is when you will need to escalate by reporting the crime to the appropriate national and international law enforcement agencies. “Navigating the IP landscape alone is not worth the risk,” says Judele. “But with the right partner by your side, you can safeguard your critical IP assets and have peace of mind to focus on the core aspects of your business.” Don’t leave your business vulnerable – invest in your future and protect your intellectual property with Dennemeyer

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