Prospect of moving to a care home frightens two-thirds of Britons

Ministers warned on child poverty targets

Progress on tackling social exclusion and poverty has gone backwards this year, according to the annual review published by the Child Poverty Action Group, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and think-tank the New Policy Institute.

They said that of 50 indicators to measure progress, nine had deteriorated and only seven had improved since last year, and were particularly critical of the rise in child poverty, claiming the government’s strategy to eradicate it had “lost momentum”.

Meanwhile, the Commons Treasury select committee said there was no clear link between the government’s target to halve child poverty by 2010 and the resources available to achieve it.

Source:- The Financial Times, Monday 3 December 2007, page 4

Morning after pill for girls aged 12

Eighty four per cent of primary care trusts allow pharmacies to hand out the morning-after pill to girls under 16, a Freedom of Information Act request by conservative campaign group the Family Education Trust has found.

The trust claimed the policy was encouraging casual sex, failing to cut teenage pregnancy and increasing the risk of sexually transmitted infections. The Department of Health said it was a decision for local PCTs.

Source:- The Daily Mail, Monday 3 December 2007, page 1, 4

Illegal migrants could be barred from GP care

The government is considering preventing illegal migrants, including failed asylum-seekers, from accessing primary care on the NHS, to encourage them to return home.

Currently doctors have the discretion to provide care if they wish and most usually do so, though under government plans doctors would have to verify a patient’s legal status and turn them away if they do not have a right to live in the UK.

Source:- The Daily Mail, Monday 3 December 2007, page 20

Prospect of moving to a care home frightens two-thirds of Britons

A Guardian poll has revealed that two-thirds of adults in Britain are frightened of having to move into a care home, while 40% fear being lonely in their older age.

Source:- The Guardian, Monday 3 December 2007, page 2

£18m plan to prevent child accidents at home

The government has earmarked £18m to keep Britain’s most vulnerable children safe from accidents at home, including providing free safety equipment such as stair gates, fireguards and socket covers, as well as advice on making homes child friendly.

Source:- The Guardian, Monday 3 December 2007, page 9

NHS ignoring human rights of people with learning disabilities

The Healthcare Commission has published a damning report into specialist NHS care for people with learning disabilities, saying many are having their human rights and dignity compromised.

Source:- The Guardian, Monday 3 December 2007, page 13

Pioneering scheme cuts domestic violence

A pioneering scheme to tackle domestic violence, which affects 1.5 million women each year in the UK, has cut the incidence of assault and injury to women by two-thirds.

Source:- The Independent, Monday 3 December 2007, page 4

Judge locks up boy indefinitely for attempting to rape teenager

A 14-year-old boy who tried to rape a teenage girl has been told that he will remain in custody until he is no longer considered to be a danger to the public.

Source:- The Times, Monday 3 December 2007, page 13

Fewer women in jail ‘would cut crime’

Drastically reducing the number of women sent to prison could save millions of pounds a year and help to cut crime, research claims today.

Source:- The Times, Monday 3 December 2007, page 27

Disabled people say it’s a lifeline. The EU says it’s a leisure vehicle.

People who rely on motorised scooters to help to cope with disabilities are to be hit with a £300 tax, after an EU ruling that they should be categorised along with “leisure vehicles”.

Source:- The Times, Monday 3 December 2007, page 29