Category: News Story

STORY

Homelessness charity Crisis has welcomed the Government’s new £442 million Rough Sleeping Programme, which aims to ensure that everyone sleeping rough in England is offered a route off the streets before Christmas. The programme combines immediate accommodation and support this winter with longer term settled housing and intensive support for people who have experienced prolonged rough sleeping. More than 1,000 settled homes are expected to be provided over the next three years.

Crisis chief executive Matt Downie said the announcement represented a significant commitment to ending rough sleeping and welcomed the funding for more permanent homes. He said getting people off the streets and into secure accommodation could save lives, pointing to the increased risks of illness, violence and abuse faced by people sleeping rough. Crisis said emergency accommodation should be accompanied by a clear route into settled housing and appropriate support.

The Government has added £102 million to £340 million announced in July, taking the overall package to £442 million over three years. Local authorities and Mayoral Strategic Authorities will lead delivery, with areas facing the greatest pressures receiving the largest share of funding. Prime Minister Andy Burnham has also announced an autumn summit bringing together charities, businesses, faith organisations, health services and other groups to consider their role in reducing rough sleeping. Crisis said it was ready to work with the Government on delivering the programme ahead of Christmas.

STORY

Reform UK has suspended political commentator Tim Montgomerie from the party after he publicly criticised senior figures including leader Nigel Farage and home affairs spokesperson Zia Yusuf. Reform confirmed that Montgomerie had been suspended in line with party rules following a series of public interventions in which he questioned the conduct and political judgement of figures at the top of the party.

Montgomerie, the founder of ConservativeHome who joined Reform UK after leaving the Conservatives in 2024, had criticised Farage for failing to attend the count at the recent Clacton by-election and had also challenged his response to scrutiny surrounding a £5 million financial gift. He separately criticised Yusuf, arguing that the Reform home affairs spokesperson needed to operate more effectively as part of a team and questioning his handling of relationships with other senior figures.

A senior Reform source said the party’s General Secretary and Chairman had received complaints over Montgomerie’s behaviour and conduct over a period of months and argued that internal disagreements should take place privately rather than through the national media. Montgomerie has said he intends to appeal the suspension and claimed Farage had not known about the decision beforehand. He said the appeal would test whether the party was able to tolerate constructive criticism from within its ranks.

STORY

More than a third of children aged eight to 17 talk or play online with people they only know through the internet or have never met, according to new research published by the Information Commissioner’s Office. An online survey of more than 4,000 children and their parents found that 36% reported this type of interaction, rising to 40% among those aged 14 to 16.

The research also found a substantial gap between parental monitoring and children’s behaviour online. Ninety one per cent of parents said they used controls or monitoring tools, while 41% of children said they had tried to get around them. Of those who attempted to bypass the controls, 49% said they found it easy. More than half of children said they would try to circumvent an age check if they wanted to access a particular platform or service.

The ICO published the findings alongside an update to its children’s strategy. The regulator estimates that changes introduced by several major online platforms following its regulatory work have improved protections for close to five million child users since April 2024. It said parental controls remain useful but should be accompanied by regular conversations between parents and children about their online activity.

STORY

Rail accident investigators have identified a track geometry irregularity at the location where a Southern passenger train derailed near Lewes, although the cause of the accident has not yet been established. The 14:24 London Victoria to Eastbourne service derailed around one mile north of Lewes station at approximately 15:54 on 13 August. The rear three vehicles of the eight-carriage train derailed and overturned, coming to rest on their sides on the railway embankment. Around 150 people were on board, with 30 injured and 20 requiring hospital treatment, some with serious injuries.

Preliminary analysis by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch shows that the train was travelling at around 65mph as it approached the derailment, below the 70mph maximum permitted speed at that location. Investigators said marks on the rails were consistent with the wheels of the rear vehicles climbing over them. CCTV footage from the derailed train and services which had passed through the area earlier that day shows that a track geometry irregularity was present on the immediate approach to the point of derailment before the accident. Investigators have also found evidence of previous track maintenance in the area and have received reports from passengers of rough riding at the same location on earlier trains.

The RAIB said its investigation will examine the precise mechanism of the derailment, the condition, inspection and maintenance of the track and embankment and whether sustained hot and dry weather was a relevant factor. The embankment is constructed from clay over alluvial deposits which can move as their moisture content changes, although investigators stressed that there is currently no evidence of a significant embankment slip immediately before the accident. The investigation will also consider the condition and crashworthiness of the train, the emergency response and any action taken following previous relevant safety recommendations.

STORY

The King’s Fund has called for urgent action from NHS England after an investigation identified patient safety risks in the use of Advice and Guidance services across the NHS. Advice and Guidance allows GPs to seek advice from hospital specialists before, or instead of, making a formal referral. An interim report from the Health Services Safety Investigations Body found that while the system can improve care when used effectively, poorly designed or inadequately monitored pathways had contributed to delayed or missed diagnoses, delays to treatment and incidents of physical and psychological harm.

The investigation found significant differences between national expectations and the way some local services were operating, including pathways where GPs were required to use Advice and Guidance rather than being able to make a direct referral. HSSIB also identified problems with the NHS electronic referral system which made it more difficult to track patients and share clinical information. The King’s Fund said confusion had been increased by expectations that Advice and Guidance would reduce referrals by 25%, warning that this risked creating the impression that reducing referrals was more important than getting patients to appropriate care quickly.

HSSIB has recommended that NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care carry out a rapid evaluation of Advice and Guidance services, covering workforce, capacity, training, digital risks and patient safety reporting. It has also called for standardised templates to be developed for requests and responses where they do not already exist. Beccy Baird, Senior Fellow for Primary Care at The King’s Fund, said NHS England should establish how the system was being implemented in different areas and issue clearer guidance to primary and secondary care staff.

STORY

Transport Focus has welcomed the Government’s decision to remove time restrictions on disabled bus passes across England, saying the change will give passengers greater freedom and flexibility. From 1 April 2027, eligible disabled bus pass holders will be able to travel free on local buses at any time of day, replacing the current national arrangement under which passes are generally valid between 9.30am and 11pm on weekdays.

Louise Collins, Director at the independent transport watchdog, said removing the restrictions was a positive step which would allow people to travel when they needed to while also helping with the cost of living. Transport Focus said attention must now be given to ensuring bus services are reliable, accessible and available at the times disabled passengers need them.

The change is being backed by £60 million of Government funding and will apply across England, including areas where local authorities do not currently fund additional concessionary travel outside the national hours. The Government said the measure is intended to improve access to employment, education, training and healthcare and end differences in the availability of all day concessionary travel between different areas.

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The Institute for Fiscal Studies has said Reform UK’s welfare proposals would represent a substantially different approach to the benefits system as the party seeks savings of around £50 billion a year. The IFS said the reductions would come almost entirely from working age benefits, which are currently forecast to cost a little over £200 billion in 2030 to 2031.

One of the largest changes would largely remove eligibility for working age benefits from non UK citizens. The IFS said around 1.3 million non UK citizens currently claim Universal Credit, including about 650,000 who are not in employment. It said the eventual savings would depend partly on how many affected people became British citizens, while warning that withdrawing benefits could produce large immediate reductions in household incomes and significantly increase hardship for some claimants.

Reform UK is also proposing major changes to disability benefits, including a tougher assessment system, greater use of support such as equipment rather than cash and means testing for some assistance. The IFS said relatively little detail had been provided about how the new assessment would operate and noted that previous attempts to tighten disability benefit eligibility had generated considerably smaller savings than governments initially expected. It also highlighted Reform’s proposal to change the inflation measure used to increase benefits each year, which the IFS estimates would save £4.8 billion in 2033 to 2034 and progressively reduce benefit spending compared with the existing system in subsequent years.

STORY

UK inflation rose to 2.9% in July, up from 2.6% in June, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics. The increase marked the first rise in the annual Consumer Prices Index rate since March and was driven in large part by higher household energy costs following the July increase in Ofgem’s energy price cap.

The Resolution Foundation said the rise was larger than the 2.8% increase expected by the Bank of England and estimated that higher energy bills added around 0.4 percentage points to the headline inflation rate. Petrol prices fell by 3.1 pence per litre during July, partially offsetting the increase in household energy costs, while food prices were unchanged over the month. Services inflation also eased from 3.6% in June to 3.4% in July.

The think tank said inflation could rise further during the autumn and peak at around 3.2% towards the end of the year if current energy market conditions persist. It argued that the Government should be prepared to introduce targeted support for households if energy bills rise further, while warning that the renewed increase in inflation could also affect mortgage borrowers hoping for lower interest rates and add to pressure on the public finances ahead of the autumn Budget.

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A Serco employee has been charged with misconduct in a public office in connection with the release of information relating to addresses in Thetford which were subsequently targeted during several nights of violent disorder. James Jobson, 62, of Highlow Road in Costessey, appeared at Ipswich Magistrates’ Court on Monday 17 August.

The addresses were linked to accommodation for asylum seekers in the Norfolk town. Properties were vandalised during three nights of unrest earlier this month, while police officers responding to the disorder were subjected to violence. Norfolk Police said officers were hit with a rock, bitten and spat at during incidents on 5 August, and the force subsequently confirmed that 21 arrests had been made in connection with the disorder.

Jobson works for Serco, which provides asylum accommodation under contracts with the Government. Serco said it was cooperating fully with the police and would not comment further while legal proceedings were continuing. Jobson was remanded in custody following his appearance at Ipswich Magistrates’ Court and is due to appear at Norwich Crown Court on 14 September.

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An unauthorised crypto investment company has been wound up after an Insolvency Service investigation found no evidence that genuine trading took place. Key Coin Assets Ltd promoted returns of between 40% and 100%, including online claims of no fees and no risk. Nine investors who complained to Action Fraud paid more than £300,000 to the company between them.

Investigators said money received from new investors appeared to have been used to make payments to earlier investors, while funds were also transferred rapidly into the personal account of the company’s director. The company posted customer testimonials without permission and told investors not to use words such as crypto or investment in bank payment references. Its Companies House filings also claimed assets of up to £42 million, a figure the Insolvency Service said was far above the level suggested by its banking activity.

Key Coin Assets Ltd was wound up by the High Court in London on 11 August and the Official Receiver has been appointed as liquidator. The Insolvency Service and Financial Conduct Authority are warning people considering crypto investments to check a firm’s regulatory status and to be cautious about promises of guaranteed high returns or no risk. Most cryptoasset activities are not currently regulated in the UK, although wider regulation is due to take effect from October 2027.