6:41 am, June 26, 2023
NHS substantially behind similar countries on life expectancy – report
The NHS is performing ‘substantially less well’ than similar countries on life expectancy and other healthcare outcomes, according to a new report.
It said the UK health system’s poor performance on measures including avoidable mortality – deaths that could have been avoided with better primary care – should be a serious concern for political leaders and policy-makers.
Substantially fewer key physical resources, such as beds, and a heavy reliance on foreign-trained staff were also identified in the report, but it described the NHS overall as ‘neither a leader nor a laggard’ among other national health systems.
Sunak says he is willing to be unpopular over public sector pay
Rishi Sunak has said he is willing to make unpopular decisions on public sector wages, in the clearest sign yet that he could block pay rises recommended by review bodies.
The prime minister said he has to make ‘difficult decisions’ as part of his plan to curb stubbornly high inflation, which is feared could be fuelled further by wage increases.
Unions have expressed outrage over reports that ministers are likely to take the rare step of rejecting some recommendations of the independent pay review bodies.
Prince of Wales to launch initiative aimed at ending homelessness
The Prince of Wales will tour the UK to launch a project aimed at ending homelessness and ensuring the issue is ‘rare, brief and unrepeated’.
William has set his sights on making rough sleeping, sofa surfing and other forms of temporary accommodation a thing of the past as he tries to emulate Finland, where the problem has been virtually eradicated, with his initiative called Homewards.
The five-year project will initially focus on six locations, to be announced during Monday and Tuesday, where local businesses, organisations and individuals will be encouraged to join forces and develop ‘bespoke’ action plans to tackle homelessness with up to £500,000 in funding.
Hunt to meet regulators amid concerns over profiteering from inflation
Jeremy Hunt will ask industry regulators what they are doing about any companies exploiting rampant inflation by raising prices.
The chancellor is set to meet the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), and the watchdogs for energy, water and communications on Wednesday.
He will press them on whether there is a profiteering problem in their sectors and what they are doing about it, according to a Treasury source.
US Coast Guard ‘taking all precautions’ in case it finds bodies in Titan search
Investigators looking into the implosion of the Titan submersible are ‘taking all precautions’ in case they find bodies on the sea floor, it has emerged.
Captain Jason Neubauer, who is chairing the US Coast Guard investigation into the implosion of the vessel, made the comments as the search and rescue aspects of the response came to an end.
British adventurer Hamish Harding and father and son Shahzada and Suleman Dawood were killed on board the submersible, alongside the American chief executive of the company responsible for the vessel, Stockton Rush, and French national Paul-Henri Nargeolet.
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Wagner rebellion turmoil an ‘internal matter’ for Russia – minister
The aftermath of the Wagner rebellion in Russia is an ‘internal matter’ which will not affect the UK’s ongoing support for Ukraine, a Cabinet minister has said.
Chief secretary to the Treasury John Glen made the comments as the fallout from the mercenary group’s march on Moscow continues.
The group’s forces, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, were just 120 miles from Moscow before the rebellion was called off to avoid shedding Russian blood. He has gone into exile in Belarus after a deal with Vladimir Putin’s government was brokered at the last minute.
Inquest begins into death of Nicola Bulley
The inquest into the death of mother-of-two Nicola Bulley will begin later on Monday.
Bulley, 45, vanished after dropping her daughters, aged six and nine, at school, then taking her usual dog walk along the River Wyre in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire, on January 27.
Her phone, still connected to a work Teams call, was found on a bench overlooking the water.
UK mortgage-holders pay thousands more than Europeans, Labour says
Homeowners in Britain are paying thousands of pounds more than Europeans for new mortgages as interest rates soar, according to Labour.
The Bank of England last week raised rates to a 15-year high in a shock move that piled pressure on mortgage-holders.
New analysis by Labour suggests that even before the latest hike, new mortgages cost a typical household over £2,000 more per year than in France. For a £200,000 loan paid back over 25 years, annual UK mortgage payments are around £1,100 higher than in Belgium and Ireland, and about £800 more than in Germany and the Netherlands, the party said.
Weather
A breezy day in store with cloud and showers pushing into northern and western areas this morning, reports BBC Weather. The rain will spread eastwards during the day. Temperatures will be about average for the time of the year, with highs of 23 degrees celsius.
Cloud and rain will ease tonight leaving a dry night for most. Towards the early hours, rain will push in from the south-west towards the north-west with spells of rain. It’ll feel a close night.
