Thursday 9 September 2004

Law chief orders review of child-sex
sentence

The case of a man who was given a two-year conditional discharge
for having sex with a 12-year-old girl is being reviewed by the
Attorney General. Michael Barrett’s sentence is being looked
at to see if it was “unduly lenient”, and the case
could be referred to the court of appeal.

Source:- The Daily Mail, Thursday 9 September 2004,
page 11

Incomers from new EU states treble

The number of visitors to Britain from the eight east European
countries now in the European Union rose to 191,000 in July,
compared to 61,000 in July last year. More than a third said they
were coming to work or study, according to the Office for National
Statistics.

Source:- The Daily Mail, Thursday 9 September 2004,
page 17

How Blunkett’s bobbies could put lives at
risk

The chair of the Police Federation has told MPs that
community support officers are being faced with confrontational
situations they are not trained for. Jan Berry told the Home
Affairs select committee said they were scheduled to work when pubs
and clubs were closing and were being asked to stop traffic.

Source:- The Daily Mail, Thursday 9 September 2004,
page 21

Doctor who failed murder girl is cleared

The consultant paediatrician who failed to spot Victoria Climbie
had been abused, has had charges of serious professional misconduct
against her dropped by the General Medical Council. Ruby Schwartz
concluded bruises on Victoria were self-inflicted and caused by
scratching due to scabies, and she was returned to her carers
without further investigation.

Source:- The Times, Thursday 9 September 2004, page
5

Concern over anti social behaviour in
young

Anti-social behaviour worries young people: Two thirds of 18 to
24-year-olds are concerned about anti-social behaviour, according
to a Populus poll in The Times. It was the highest anxiety level in
any age group for any crime.

Source:- The Times, Thursday 9 September 2004

Hostels for sex offenders

The Home Office plans to house up to 100 sex offenders,
including paedophiles, in five dedicated hostels in England and
Wales, says The Times. Hospitals are a likely site.

Source:- The Times, Thursday 9 September 2004

Patient choice climbdown

The Government has backtracked on a three-month-old pledge to
offer all NHS patients a choice of four or five hospitals. A new
list of exceptions includes mental health services.

Source:- The Times, Thursday 9 September 2004

Clarke plans 10-hour schools: but are they better for
children, or parents?

Under plans announced by Charles Clarke, the education
secretary, children could be kept in classrooms from 8am to 6pm to
help take pressure off working parents struggling to find good and
affordable childcare. 

The controversial “extended schools” programme drew
criticism from some educationalists and trade unions yesterday as
Mr Clarke announced that he wanted all 20,000 primary schools in
England and Wales to adopt 10-hour days.

Source: The Guardian, 9 September 2004, page 3

£100bn delivery task for former postman

Tony Blair last night entrusted delivery of the £100bn
social security budget to a regular visitor at Chequers.

Alan Johnson, appointed work and pensions secretary in messy
reshuffle, has knocked many times on the front door of the prime
minister’s official weekend retreat in Buckinghamshire.

Source: The Guardian, 9 September 2004, page 5

Psychiatrists condemn draft mental health bill

Psychiatrists last night condemned the government’s latest
attempt to reform mental health law in England and Wales as
“objectionable, unworkable and likely to bring the health
service to its knees”.

The were responding to a d raft bill from Rosie Winterton,
health minister, setting out the biggest overhaul to mental health
legislation since the 1950s.

Source: The Guardian, 9 September 2004, page 8

Islamist meeting to mark 9/11 sparks fears of
backlash

There were fears yesterday othat a controversial conference to
commemorate the 9/11 hijackers and other al-Qaida terrorists would
provoke right-wing thugs to attack British Muslims.

Source: The Guardian, 9 September 2004, page 10

Council sets up trust fund for girl it failed to
help

A councils which failed repeatedly to investigate complaints by
a teenager that she was being beaten by her father is to set up a
£10,000 trust fund for her.

Staffordshire county council is to take the unusual step on the
recommendation fo the local government ombudsman, who today finds
the authority guilty of maladministration causing injustice to the
girl, now 16.

Source: The Guardian, 9 September 2004, page 10

Man avoids jail term after sex with girl, 12

The attorney general yesterday asked to examine the file of a
man who escaped a jail sentence after admitting he had sex with a
12-year-old he met in a chat room.

Michael Barrett, 20, received a two-year condition discharge at
Bristol crown court on Monday. The trainee croupier, who pleaded
guilty on two counts of unlawful sexual intercourse, was 18 when he
befriended the girl, then 12, from Manchester.

Source: The Guardian, 9 September 2004, page 10

Poor get less help with school uniform costs

Parents who may have welcomed the start of the new school term
because of the punitive cost of keeping their children entertained
during the summer holidays are in for a nother nasty financial
shock.

A new report reveals that the value of financial help for school
uniforms, which traditionally has been available from local
education authorities, has hit a record low.

Source: The Guardian, 9 September 2004, page 11

Disease behind the tantrums

The controversial “bad behaviour syndrome” is
a serious childhood disease that increase the risk of mental
illness later in life, a doctor said yesterday.

They dismissed the claims by some sceptics that the ailment is the
invention of drugs companies.

Source: The Daily Telegraph, September 9, page 6

Scottish newspapers

Training scheme to reform sex offenders

A new “training for freedom” scheme will see long-term
sex offenders at Peterhead prison released into the community as
part of supervised work parties.

Only prisoners who have passed a risk assessment and judged to be
at low risk of re-offending will be allowed to participate in the
initiative. Prison and council officials have stressed that
“robust arrangements” will be put in place to protect
children and members of the public.

The first working parties, which will consist of one prison officer
for every four prisoners, could be leaving the prison within the
next two months.

Source:- The Scotsman  Thursday 9 September

Call for action as crack cocaine use soars by 600per
cent

Crack cocaine use in the north east of Scotland has risen by almost
600 per cent in less than four years, according to figures.
The number of new cases of crack cocaine abuse in Grampian
increased from 29 in 2000 to 172 last year, according to the NHS
Grampian statistics.

Source:- The Scotsman  Thursday 9 September

Racist crime is on the rise in Lothian

More than 100 racist incidents were recorded in the Lothians
between April 1 and June 30 this year, according to official police
figures.

The statistics from Lothians and Borders Police show that these
figures compares to 95 for the same period last year. There has
also been a marked increase in racism in the capital over the past
two months with 85 incidents being recorded compared to only 65
last year, according to another set of figures.

Police said complaints from ethnic minorities ranged from minor
offences to verbal abuse and threats, as well as vandalism and
graffiti attacks on their homes and businesses.

Source:- Evening News  Wednesday 8 September

Fired worker blew whistle on child porn

A secretary took revenge on an Edinburgh accountant by revealing
his large stash of child pornography, Glasgow Sheriff Court heard
yesterday.

Jennifer Ferguson called in police after her former employer Alan
Malcolm gave her a bad reference for a job application. Officers
found 20,000 images of young girls on his laptop at his office in
Glasgow.

Malcolm faces jail after he admitted having the images.

Source:- Evening News  Wednesday 8 September

Welsh newspapers

Parents renew call for inquiry into Deepcut
deaths

The parents of a Welsh soldier who died at Deepcut Barracks have
renewed calls for a public inquiry after a former army instructor
admitted sexually abusing young soldiers there.

Deepcut has been at the centre of allegations of abuse following
the mysterious deaths of four young soldiers, including Private
Cheryl James; whose parents are now calling for an investigation
into the way the barracks was run.

Source Western Mail Thursday 9 September page 4

Baby stress hits boiling point

Broken nights with a new baby are making Welsh mothers tired and
fed-up according to a new survey. The Mother and Baby Sleep Survey
2004 found that fathers are slow to support their partners even
when mothers have returned to work and that a new baby puts an
enormous strain on a relationship.

Source Western Mail Thursday 9 September page 9