Smokers can’t adopt under-fives

By Amy Taylor, Simeon Brody, Mithran Samuel and Derren Hayes

Smokers will be banned from adopting children under five in Portsmouth in an attempt to protect them from passive smoking.

The move, which extends a current ban on smokers adopting children under two, was criticised by Conservative councillors and smokers’ rights campaigners, but Portsmouth Council’s Liberal Democrat administration said it would not stop children from going to good homes.

Source:- Daily Telegraph Thursday 7 June 2007 page 2

Credit blacklist for absent fathers who don’t pay

Absent fathers who fail to pay child maintenance will be placed on a credit backlist making it virtually impossible for them to take out a loan, mortgage or credit card, ministers announced today.

The plan was unveiled as the government published legislation to replace the Child Support Agency with the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission, which will have tougher powers to target non-compliant parents.

Source:- Daily Telegraph Thursday 7 June 2007 page 14

Care homes ‘are failing to inform’

Care homes are failing to provide anything like enough information to people trying to decide where to move, according to an undercover investigation by consumer group Which?.

It said that hardly any homes volunteered details about services and inspection results, while two in every five of the 50 homes visited failed to mention fees.

Source:- Daily Telegraph Thursday 7 June 2007 page 15

Parents would like to use the internet to provide truancy alerts if their child fails to turn up for school, a government survey has found.

An ICM survey of more than 2,000 adults found a quarter of parents backed a truancy alert, while there was also support for means of tracking children’s journey to and from school.

Source:- The Guardian Thursday 7 June 2007 page 9

Millions in NHS savings should have gone on jobs and services

Patricia Hewitt was accused of aggravating regional inequalities in NHS care to meet her promise to stem health service deficits in the past financial year. She faced a barrage of criticism after disclosing that the NHS had underspent its budget by £510 milllion last year.

Source:- The Times, Thursday 7 June 2007, page 4

Mother dumps girls aged 6 ad 9 by the dual carriageway after a row over dancing shoes

A mother abandoned her two daughters beside a busy dual carriageway after an argument about a pair of dancing shoes, stopping her car and ordering them to get out before driving off, a court heard.

Source:- The Times, Thursday 7 June 2007, page 5

Damilola’s killers: we want out

The killers of Damilola Taylor are set to appeal against their convictions.

Danny Preddie, 18, is set to appeal against his conviction for manslaughter and his sentence.

His brother Ricky also wants his sentence to be reduced and wants to be released next year.

Source:- Daily Mirror, Thursday 7 June 2007, page 35

Scottish news

Millions of pounds confiscated from criminals is to be re-invested in projects aimed at turning young people away from a life of crime.

Kenny MacAskill, the Justice Secretary, told parliament that £8 million from the proceeds of crime would be used to expand the range of sports, arts and leisure opportunities for Scots youngsters, particularly those in communities which are hardest hit by crime.

The announcement was made as it was revealed that more than £6 million was seized in the past year under the Proceeds of Crime Act, which allows the authorities to confiscate the assets of criminals.

Source:- The Herald, Thursday 7 June

Children and young people make DVD on Dungavel ‘horror’

Children and young people have produced a DVD highlighting the “horrors” of their detention at the Dungavel immigration removal centre which they hope will lead to the end of the practice.

The Unjust Treatment documentary – researched, scripted and filmed by a group of young people in Glasgow who have been personally affected by detention – is supported by Save the Children and is to be sent to the Scottish Executive, the Home Office, MSPs and MPs as part of their campaign to stop the detention of children.

The 10-minute DVD features interviews with the children and their parents who tell distressing tales of their detention experiences in Dungavel and other UK centres.

Source:- The Herald, Thursday 7 June

Welsh news

Parents jailed in baby death case

A couple who used a legal loophole which has since been closed to lie over their son’s death have been jailed for two and a half years for perverting the course of justice.

Prosecutors said the one of Ryan Brentwood’s parents must have killed him but police were unable to work out which one.

Up until recently a legal loophole existed allowing them to escape punishment by blaming each other.

Source:- Western Mail, Thursday 7 June 2007

Schools substance abuse plan ‘flawed’

The current guidance to schools on how to educate Welsh children about the dangers of drugs and alcohol is inadequate according to a new report.

The report, published by the school inspectorate Estyn yesterday, called on the Welsh Assembly Government to revise the guidance.

Source:- Western Mail, Thursday 7 June 2007