People urged to wear masks when they are ill as UK faces ‘tidal wave’ of flu

People experiencing flu or cold symptoms should wear a mask in public places as the UK grapples with a “tidal wave” of illness, an NHS leader has said.Daniel Elkeles, chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents NHS trusts, said the country was facing a “very nasty strain of flu” that had occurred earlier in the year than normal, and face coverings should be worn on public transport, as during the Covid pandemic.He told Times Radio: “When you were talking about anything like Covid, I think we need to get back into the habit that if you are coughing and sneezing, but you’re not unwell enough to not go to work, then you must wear a mask when you’re in public spaces, including on public transport, to stop the chances of you giving your virus to somebody else.“And we were all very good about infection control during Covid. And we really, really need to get back to that now

Former betting bosses facing bribery and fraud charges begin lawsuit against Gambling Commission

Two gambling bosses facing criminal charges of bribery and fraud have begun a separate civil claim against the Gambling Commission, claiming the regulator breached their right to privacy when it intervened in their plan to take control of the online casino company 888.Kenny Alexander and Lee Feldman, the former chief executive and chair of the Ladbrokes and Coral owner, Entain, bought 6.5% of 888 Holdings in June 2023 via a vehicle called FS Gaming and proposed installing themselves at the top of the business, which also owned William Hill.The plan collapsed after 888 broke off talks, telling investors that it had done so after the regulator said it would review its licence to operate owing to concerns about the pair’s previous roles at Entain, which was the subject of an HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) investigation into alleged bribery at its Turkish operation between 2011 and 2018.The regulator had asked the company if it knew whether the two men had been interviewed under caution or were suspects in the investigation, codenamed Operation Incendiary

Badenoch announces Tory review of which conditions qualify for benefits

The Conservatives have begun a policy review to slash the scope and cost of the benefits system, with Kemi Badenoch saying an “age of diagnosis” for “low-level mental conditions” was fast making it unaffordable.While it is up to the review to come up with specific policies, the Conservative leader hinted that some payments could become time limited, saying one element would examine “at what stage support should come in, and how long it should last”.She also suggested the possibility of ending the use of relative poverty as an indicator of deprivation, saying this took no account of people’s improved circumstances if the economy grew.Speaking at an event in central London, Badenoch said under the party’s “campaign to get Britain working again” she and three other members of her frontbench team would next year look at “the most challenging and complicated aspect of work and welfare in this country”.While Badenoch said this would be done with medical and employment experts “to make sure that we get it right”, a key refrain of her speech was that the increase in people receiving benefits for physical and mental conditions was unaffordable

Victims of NHS maternity failings in England ‘received unacceptable care’

Victims of NHS maternity failings received “unacceptable care”, leading to “tragic consequences”, the head of an investigation into maternity care in England has said.Changes within services have been too slow despite being necessary and urgent, according to a report by Valerie Amos, who is leading the national maternity and neonatal investigation (NMNI).The document shares her initial impressions after visiting seven trusts, talking with families and meeting NHS staff.Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Tuesday, Lady Amos said: “Given that these harms continue to be done, given that babies continue to die, given that this is happening across the country … are there things that we should be doing to standardise the level of care across different trusts? Yes.”The report shows that the NHS has recorded 748 recommendations relating to maternity and neonatal care in the past decade

ICO promises legal action over ‘traumatic’ UK care-record access

The UK’s information commissioner has raised alarm over the “lengthy, traumatic and often demoralising process” people face when trying to access their care records, writing to local authority leaders to say his office will take action over legal breaches.The data protection regulator said people who grew up in the care system were waiting up to 16 years for access to their records, and in some cases found their files had been destroyed, lost or were provided only with extensive redaction.The commissioner, John Edwards, said requests were “too often met with cold bureaucracy, long delays and pages of unexplained redactions, which can have devastating consequences”.“For people in care, these files are an important part of understanding their personhood and their development. It’s restoring to them the insights into how they have become who they are,” he said

UK charities face ‘culture of fear’ as threats and violence surge

A surge in death and rape threats and harassment has created a “culture of fear” at charities serving women and refugees, and at mosques, churches and synagogues, the head of the Charity Commission has warned.Mark Simms said he feared growing hostility towards charity staff, volunteers and beneficiaries, both online and on the streets, was becoming normalised and risked eroding civilised values and norms British society once took for granted.His warning comes as the commission issues formal guidance advising charities on how to protect voluntary workers exposed to what it calls “unacceptable” personal risks as a result of threats, abuse and intimidation from some sections of the public.A range of charities report being targeted by extremists amid a rise in toxic and divisive political rhetoric around immigration. Incidents of violence and vandalism – and increased security measures to combat them – are regarded by some as the new normal