6:41 am, July 3, 2023
Top medic describes ‘loss of trust’ between government and doctors
The ‘loss of trust’ between doctors and the government is the worst it has been for at least three decades, a senior medic has said.
Dr Phil Banfield, chairman of council at the British Medical Association (BMA), said that he has never known such a breakdown of trust in his 30 years as a medic. He said it is an ‘absolute travesty’ that doctors feel they have no other choice than to take strike action.
Later this month, junior doctors are planning to stage the largest walkout in the history of the NHS – a five-day walkout from July 13-18. And consultants – the most senior doctors in the NHS – are planning to stage industrial action on July 20-21, where they will only provide scaled-back ‘Christmas day cover’.
President Macron holds talks as unrest continues in France
President Emmanuel Macron chaired a special security meeting on Sunday as protests continued for a sixth night in France after the killing of a teenager in Paris.
Macron delayed the start of the first state visit to Germany in 23 years as rioting and violence continued across the country.
An official present at the security meeting said Macron plans to meet with the leaders of both houses of parliament on Monday, followed by discussions with mayors in the 220 towns and cities affected by the protests.
Joe Biden to meet King and PM during July visit to UK
Joe Biden will meet the King and prime minister Rishi Sunak when he visits the UK later this month.
A visit to the UK had long been expected and comes after Sunak visited Washington last month for talks with the US president.
Downing Street said that the visit reflected the ‘strong relationship’ between the UK and US, after the White House confirmed the trip.
Report calls on employers to hire more ex-offenders to help fill job vacancies
Employers should hire more ex-offenders to help fill Britain’s 1.1m job vacancies, a new report argues.
ReGenerate’s Good Jobs Project, set to launch on Monday, is lobbying to get those from marginalised groups, such as young people in or leaving care and the ‘invisibly disabled’, into work to address the ‘vacancy crisis’ and help people.
The initiative is backed by businesses including bakery chain Greggs and shoe repair and key-cutting firm Timpson, whose bosses worked with the charity on its report called The Purpose-Driven Business Solution to the UK’s Labour Shortage.
Strikes have caused 650K cancellations – with more on the way
Almost 650,000 appointments and operations have been postponed due to the wave of strikes which have hit the NHS in England in the run up to its 75th anniversary.
The unprecedented strikes have caused widespread disruption across the NHS since December 2022.
The first mass walkout of nurses in history took place in mid December – with ambulance workers, physiotherapists and other health workers following suit in subsequent weeks. In March this year, junior doctors began the first in a wave of strikes, heaping further disruption on the health service.
Strong support north and south of border for Ireland remaining in EU – poll
Support for Ireland remaining in the EU is at 88 per cent in Ireland and 79 per cent in Northern Ireland, according to an opinion poll.
When asked to choose who they feel closest to, 65 per cent of people in Ireland said they feel closest to Europe, followed by none of the above at 18 per cent, and Great Britain at 12 per cent. This compares to 60 per cent in Northern Ireland who feel closest to Europe, and 30 per cent who said Great Britain and nine per cent who said none of the above.
The data was collected by Lucid Talk and Amarach Research, and analysed by VoxCo on behalf of the European Movement Ireland.
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Surge in dog attacks on postal workers revealed by Royal Mail
Dog attacks on postal workers surged to nearly 2,000 reported incidents last year, new figures show.
There were 1,916 dog attacks on postal workers logged during the year to March 31 2023, the Royal Mail said on Monday.
This is up 14 per cent on the 1,673 reported dog attacks on Royal Mail staff the previous year.
Some ‘posties’ suffered serious injuries, including one woman who has revealed she needed surgery after she was savaged by a dog. The were released at the start of the annual ‘dog awareness week’, as bosses urge owners ‘take proper measures to ensure their pets pose no threat to postal workers through responsible dog ownership’.
Rail travellers in Scotland to be hit with ‘steep’ fare rises from Monday
A hike in rail fares from Monday is ‘bleak news’ for travellers amid the current cost of living crisis, opposition politicians told ministers.
With ScotRail to rise ticket prices for most journeys by 4.8 per cent, Conservatives condemned the ‘steep rise’.
Meanwhile, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton insisted the cost of travelling by train should remain frozen ‘until at least the end of the year’. The rise in fares, which comes in 15 months after ScotRail was taken into public ownership, will not apply to season and flexi tickets, in a bid to ensure those who make the most frequent journeys are not impacted.
Weather
A band of showers will sweep across Wales and most of England today, reports BBC Weather. Other areas will have sunshine but it’ll be a breezy day. Temperatures will be between 15 and 20 degrees celsius.
Tonight, northern Scotland will see patchy rain while in England and Wales it’ll begin drier but turn wetter towards dawn.
