A quarter of 14-year-olds forced into sex

A quarter of 14-year-olds forced into sex, says survey

Nearly a quarter of 14-year-olds have been forced to have sex or do something sexual they did not want to do, and one in four 16-year-olds have been hit or hurt in some way by someone they were dating, according to a survey of teenagers.

The figures, compiled from an online survey of teenage girls by teen magazine Bliss and Women’s Aid, also found that over half of 14- and 15-year-olds have been humiliated in front of others by someone they were seeing.

Read more on this story in The Guardian

Brown acts to stop wave of repossessions

Homeowners struggling to pay their mortgages were given a reprieve by Gordon Brown yesterday when he unveiled a plan to let people affected by the economic downturn take a two-year mortgage interest payment holiday.

The intervention was aimed at removing the prospect of an increase in home repossessions before a general election and to give people breathing space if they lose their jobs or take a big cut in their income. It is also designed to show that Labour would help middle Britain through the recession.

Read more on this story in The Guardian

Cheap alcohol ban will hit wine drinkers

Wine drinkers will be hit hardest by a proposal to ban cut-price alcohol promotions in supermarkets and off-licences, according to government-commissioned research published yesterday.

The Sheffield University study says a ban on discounts of more than 30%, such as “three for the price of two” offers, would affect wine consumption most, but have little effect on cheaper alcohol, such as lager and beers, selling for less than 30p a unit.

Read more on this story in The Guardian

Adverts tell teenagers of cocaine peril

Adverts warning teenagers of the dangers of cocaine are to appear on television for the first time as part of a £1 million campaign against the Class A drug.

The adverts, which will appear on Channel 4 and satellite channels tonight for the first time, are also to appear on the internet in an attempt to reduce consumption of a drug that has spread far beyond fashionable London circles.

Read more on this story in The Times

Back-to-work rules target parents and sick

The number of people claiming out-of-work benefits without any requirement to look or at least prepare for a job could tumble by more than two-thirds under the government’s proposed welfare reforms