By Amy Taylor, Clare Jerrom and Alex Dobson
Fugitive immigrant raped two
An immigrant who had his asylum claim rejected but was allowed to remain in Britain has been jailed for raping two prostitutes and indecently assaulting another.
The Home Office made no attempt to deport or track George Kamau despite his failed claim.
The judge at Nottingham Crown Court said Kamau, who arrived here in February 2002 from Kenya, should be deported after serving at least five and a half years in jail.
Source:- The Daily Telegraph Wednesday 17 December page 8
Westminster fights flood of soup runs
There are too many people providing soup runs for the homeless in central London and the help they are offering is inappropriate, Westminster Council said last night.
The council has prepared leaflets to give out to the large number of people who are travelling long distances to provide clothing and food telling them that their help is misguided.
Simon Milton, the Conservative leader of the council, said that such charity sustained people's lives on the streets when the main aim should be to get homeless people inside, particularly in winter.
Source:- The Guardian Wednesday 17 December, page 5
Asylum shift by former minister
An independent tribunal should make the decisions on asylum seekers' applications rather than the Home Office, the former Home Office minister Barbara Roche will propose today.
Roche believes that a major shift in perceptions on asylum is needed and that this could be achieved by making the whole system independent of government.
Source:- The Guardian Wednesday 17 December page 5
Inmates stage sit-in on roof
Inmates at Feltham Young Offenders' Institution staged a sit-in protest on the roof last night while other inmates lit small fires in their cells.
Three inmates went on to the roof after 8pm and were still up there after 11pm while staff tried to persuade them to come down.
A Prison Service spokesperson said the offenders did not appear to be staging a protest, but were running around and shouting.
After the inmates went on the roof, others lit fires in their cells, although these were soon put out by staff, the spokesperson added.
Source:- The Guardian Wednesday 17 December, page 7
There should be a law against it
The legal and regulatory system is failing vulnerable people in care who suffer abuse and neglect, undercover TV reporter Donal MacIntyre found. Now it's time for a tough new approach, he argues.
Source:- The Guardian Society Wednesday 17 December page 3
Best of both worlds
He was a loyal MP in the Thatcher years, so what formed Keith Best's liberal views on immigration and asylum?
Source:- The Guardian Society Wednesday 17 December page 6
The buck stops here
A 'one-top' project in Bury that helps young homeless people by breaking down departmental barriers
Source:- The Guardian Society Wednesday 17 December page 7
Brought to book
The first star ratings last year came as a shock to many local authorities. Twelve months on, what do councils - and their inspectors - think?
Source:- The Guardian Society Wednesday 17 December page 9
If the face doesn't fit
'Golden goodbyes' are discouraged in the public and voluntary sectors, but payoffs using public funds are not uncommon
Source:- The Guardian Society Wednesday 17 December page 14
What else can I do?
Changes to the NHS complaints system mean Iain is out of a job. No need to panic - some tips for his next step in patient advocacy
Source:- The Guardian Society Wednesday 17 December page 40
Scottish news
Newborn boy abandoned in freezing street
A newborn baby boy was found abandoned outside a chip shop in Glasgow yesterday by two teenage boys.
Police are appealing for witnesses in an attempt to trace the mother who may need medical attention.
Source:- The Scotsman Wednesday 17 December
Children’s hearing system too slow
Children across Scotland are experiencing “unacceptable” delays in the children’s hearing system, according to a damning report yesterday.
Although the system is improving, progress may be too slow to reach new national standards by 2006, the Scottish executive report found.
Local authorities, children’s panel reporters and police all failed to meet some of their timetable targets.
Source:- The Scotsman Wednesday 17 December
Antisocial Behaviour Bill ‘anti-youth’
Children’s campaigners branded measures in the Antisocial Behaviour Bill “anti-youth” and potentially illegal yesterday.
The bill proposes a number of measures targeted at young people including antisocial behaviour orders, electronic tagging and parenting orders.
Children’s groups and law experts giving evidence to the Justice 2 committee were critical of many of the ideas in the planned legislation.
Source:- The Scotsman Wednesday 17 December
Anger as mental health unit decision is deferred
Community groups and politicians were furious last night after a steering group failed to announce which of the three short-listed sites in Scotland would host a medium secure unit for patients with mental health problems.
A scoring exercise by the Scottish Centre for Mental Health Development found the facility at Dykebar hospital in Paisley was narrowly better than Kirklands hospital in Bothwell and the Medical Rehabilitation Unit at Uddington.
But the steering group of health executives, psychiatric, medical and local authority representatives deferred a decision to await a second opinion from another independent assessor.
Source:- The Herald Wednesday 17 December
Blindness fear for hundreds of Scots
A failure by the NHS to provide effective treatment is causing hundreds of Scots to lose their eyesight unnecessarily each year.
The Royal National Institute of the Blind Scotland said victims of a devastating eye disease were being denied the only therapy known to stop their vision deteriorating.
MP Kate Maclean, chairperson of a cross-party group on visual impairment, has lodged a motion with the Scottish executive demanding immediate funding for the treatment across the country.
Source:- The Herald Wednesday 17 December
70 per cent rise in women who drink-drive
The number of women caught drink-driving in the run up to Christmas has increased by almost 70 per cent from last year.
Thirty-two women were caught during the first week of the crackdown, which began last Wednesday, compared to 19 in the same period last year.
Road safety campaigners blamed the rise on the “laddette culture”, with females drinking more alcohol in general.
Source:- Daily Record Wednesday 17 December page 2
Sex beast wrecked my poor girl’s life
A man walked free from court yesterday even though he admitted a shocking attack on a girl in a school.
David McKenzie subjected his 13-year-old victim to a 30-minute ordeal. But the 16-year-old was given two years’ probation after the judge heard about his “sad” family circumstances.
The Record can reveal McKenzie’s mother, Rosemary, was charged with killing her third child shortly after giving birth in Moray in March 2000. A judge said she was not fit to stand trial. McKenzie is now cared for by his aunt.
McKenzie was originally charged with raping the girl but the Crown accepted his plea of guilty to indecently assaulting her.
Source:- Daily Record Wednesday 17 December page 13
Welsh news
Please help children like Callum
The mother of an eight-year-old boy with cerebral palsy is appealing for donations to help fund a specialist clinic to help other children in south Wales who have the condition.
Callum Arnold was only five months old when he was diagnosed with the condition and he has received treatment from a clinic in Cardiff. However his mother, Jane, says that many other children are missing out on specialist help.
Source:- South Wales Argus Tuesday 16 December page 1
Prejudice unlocked at Parc
The head of the Prison Service has spoken of his shame and horror after a report unveiled a catalogue of racism in jails, including some in Wales.
The Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) report highlighted incidents of attacks on English and black prisoners at HMP Parc in Bridgend, which is the only privately-run Welsh prison.
Phil Wheatley, director general of the Prison Service, said that a major action plan had been agreed to tackle the problem of racial behaviour in prisons.
Source:- Western Mail Wednesday 17 December page 5
