Aids woman ‘is being sentenced to death’

By Mithran Samuel and Derren Hayes

Aids woman ‘is being sentenced to death’

A woman with Aids has said the government is imposing a “sentence of death” by sending her back to Uganda, and is challenging the decision at the European Court of Human Rights.

The woman has received NHS treatment for nine years.

Source:- The Times Wednesday 26 September 2007 page 32

A Zimbabwean asylum-seeker has been told to leave the UK “without delay” despite claims that it is unsafe to return people to the country.

Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 26 September 2007 page 2

At full strain

The Merseyside borough of Sefton has attempted to calculate the costs and benefits of migrants from Eastern Europe in terms of the local economy and public services.

But while it found migrants benefited the economy, it found significant difficulties calculating the number of migrants in the area and thus the impact on public services.

Next month, the government will publish the first official analysis of the impact of migration on public services and councils are hoping that they receive more funding to deal with the effects.

Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 26 September 2007 page 3

Invest in foster carers and we’ll all benefit

Fostering Network chief executive Robert Tapsfield calls for foster care to be professionalised given the importance and complexity of the roles carers play in bringing up vulnerable children.

He said this should involve increased support, training and pay, registration with an approved national body and more delegation of responsibility to foster carers from local authorities.

Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 26 September 2007 page 4

Timely intervention

Children and Families Court Advisory and Support Service chair Jill Pitkeathley is chairing a working group to set up a new charity, National Voices, designed to put patients, users and carers at the heart of the NHS and social services.

Its aim is to put user-groups around the country on the same level as professional bodies in influencing policy.

Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 26 September 2007 page 5

Scottish news

Number of children at risk soars to a record high

Record numbers of youngsters in Scotland have been placed on child protection registers, according to new figures.

Social services and opposition politicians said the 13 per cent increase reflected a worrying rise in the number of unborn children, babies and toddlers whose lives were endangered by their parents’ drug addiction.

At March 2007, 2593 children were on the national child protection register – up from 2288 the previous year. The biggest rise was among unborn babies, up from 18 to 31.

Source:- The Herald, Wednesday 26 September

Ninth council seeks to ban right to buy

A ninth local authority has moved to retain its depleted housing stock by denying tenants the right to buy their council homes.

North Ayrshire Council has applied to have several towns and villages classified as pressured area status, which would suspend tenants’ right to buy for five years.

If approved by the Scottish Government, the ban will affect about 150 tenancies across large swaths of Largs, Irvine, Skelmorlie, West Kilbride, Fairlie, Dreghorn and Drybridge.

Source:- The Scotsman, Wednesday 26 September