Wednesday 27 November 2002

By David Callaghan, Nicola Barry and Alex
Dobson.

Bed ‘fines’ will hit care of elderly, say
councils

Councils in England have told the government new fines imposed
on them for delayed discharge of older people will affect the care
patients receive.

Local authorities will have to pay hospitals £100 to
£140 per day for every discharged patient who cannot be
discharged from hospital immediately. The new fines are being
introduced under the Community Care (Delayed Discharges) Bill,
which is due to receive its second reading on Thursday.

The Association of London Government estimates the fines will
cost councils in the capital £25 million per year.

Source:- The Times Wednesday 27 November page 10

Hell’s children get lifetime ban

Three brothers have become the first people to be given lifetime
anti-social behaviour orders after being arrested more than 40
times.

The boys, aged 14, 15 and 17, from Dartford in Kent, will be
jailed if they break the terms of the orders which cover the Stone
area of the town. Their behaviour included being drunk repeatedly,
attacking neighbours’ cars with paint and stones, and abusing a
disabled woman.

They can appeal against the orders granted by magistrates after
two years. The two younger boys have also been permamently excluded
from school.

Source:- The Times Wednesday 27 November page 12

Depression on the rise among young

A new report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation shows that the
number of young people suffering from depression has doubled in the
last 12 years.

Hundreds of thousands of young people see themselves as being
excluded from education and prosperity.

The researchers compared the lifestyles for men and women in
their 20s. They also found that the number gaining degrees
increased from 14 per cent of men and 9 per cent of women to 22 per
cent and 19 per cent respectively.

Source:- The Guardian Wednesday 27 November page 11

Guardian Society

Court out

Auditors warning over eviction threats

Source:- Guardian Society Wednesday 27 November page
4

Housing association accused of disability
discrimination

Source:- Guardian Society Wednesday 27 November page
4

Charitable foundations have the freedom to advance
social change  – but few fulfil this role, says a new
report.

Source:- Guardian Society Wednesday 27 November page
10

The voice of experience

Lindsey Smith, former drug user, now teaches others about
addiction

Source:- Guardian Society Wednesday 27 November page
11

The minister for disabled people asks why there are not
more media images of those with disabilities

Source:- Guardian Society Wednesday 27 November page
119

Scottish newspapers

City’s prostitutes “wouldn’t know if they
were on Planet Zog”

Tolerance zones for street prostitutes will not work in Glasgow,
a senior police officer said yesterday.

Jim McLean, a Strathclyde assistant chief constable, said more
than 90 per cent are heroin users and added: “Most of the women
wouldn’t know what day of the week it was, whether they were
in a tolerance zone or on Planet Zog.”

Source:-The Herald Wednesday 27 November page 1

Fire Minister resigns over fascist insult

The Scottish executive was in turmoil last night after a
minister closely involved in the fire dispute was forced to quit
– amid claims he had described striking firefighters as
“fascists” and “bastards”.

The Fire Brigades Union welcomed the resignation of deputy
justice minister, Dr Richard Simpson.

Source:- The Scotsman Wednesday 27 November page 1

Women now half of those infected with HIV

By the end of this year AIDS will have killed 3.1 million
people. Five million more have been infected and 42 million, half
of them women, are living with HIV/AIDS, according to the United
Nations.

Source:- The Herald  Wednesday 27 November page 15

Child abuse often begins as punishment

Most parents and carers found guilty of child abuse say it began
as a punishment which then got out of hand, experts have claimed in
a new report.

Anti-smacking campaigners maintain in a document published
today, that a cross-party committee which abandoned legislation to
ban the physical punishment of children under three, ignored vital
evidence like this about its consequences.

Source:- The Herald Wednesday 27 November page 3

Inspector claims he will avoid “seduction” by prison
service

Scotland’s new chief inspector of prisons yesterday
claimed he would not allow himself to be seduced into a relaxed
relationship with the Scottish Prison Service.

Source:- The Herald Wednesday 27 November page 8

Welsh newspapers

Clergy on the path to job rights

The clergy could be one step closer to gaining employment rights
after the case of a Gwent Salvation Army captain was raised in
parliament.

Monmouthshire MP Huw Edwards appealed in Westminster for
ministers of religion to be given legal protection against unfair
dismissal.

At present, they are not protected under UK law because they are
deemed to be employees of God not man.

But the case of Paul McNab, who says that he was unfairly
dismissed from his post as a captain in the Salvation Army after
developing ME five years ago, has prompted calls for changes to
employment legislation.

Source:- South Wales Argus Tuesday 26 November page
9

Families are being crushed by debt

Welsh families are living under a mountain of debt, a new report
has revealed.

The preliminary findings of the Welsh Consumer Council debt
survey show that more than ever before, people in Wales are piling
on credit card debt and arranging loans to try to get out of
short-term difficulties.

The report reveals that nearly 90,000 people in Wales have
accumulated household debts in excess of  £10,000, with 10 per
cent of Welsh customers borrowing more than they can afford to
pay.

Source:- Western Mail  Wednesday 27 November page 5