6 h. ago The Guardian view on the dental divide: ministers must brush up their policy as well as children’s teeth | Editorial

Gaps in access to dentists mirror other health inequalities. And ‘golden hellos’ won’t solve the problem on their ownDisadvantaged primary school pupils at the government’s first wave of new breakfast clubs can expect to be trained in toothbrushing, as well as fed. Data showing that a fifth of all five-year-olds in England have experienced tooth decay persuaded ministers to make improved oral health part of the early years and reception class curriculum. But the prevalence of decay is not evenly spread across the country. And research showing how much worse the situation is for children in deprived areas is in line with other findings about widening health inequalities.New analysis from the Local Government Association highlights the differing availability of dental care across council areas – a situation sometimes described as a dental divide. It found no specific correlation between the numbers of NHS dentists and young children with tooth decay. But it adds to a body of...

Politics

38 h. ago John Swinney ‘absolutely horrified’ by Holyrood hidden camera allegations

The First Minister spoke out on the issue as MSPs prepare to return to the Scottish Parliament on Tuesday after the summer recess.

Politics

38 h. ago Cost of scrapping peak rail fares will be sustainable, says Swinney

The First Minister said the policy would encourage people to use trains rather than cars.

Economics

6 d. ago Home Office planning to halve time asylum seekers given to find accommodation

Charities sound alarm over plan to give asylum seekers just 28 days to find new housing once they have a decision on their caseUK politics live – latest updatesRefugee charities warn that thousands of people in the UK could find themselves homeless on the streets this winter after the Home Office quietly reversed its asylum accommodation policy.The Guardian has learned that ministers are planning to halve the period asylum seekers are given to find new accommodation after getting a decision on their case, from 56 to 28 days. Refugee organisations say this is not enough time to find work and a home to rent and will lead to many people pitching tents in the streets. Continue reading...

Society

6 d. ago Charities raise alarm after Home Office reverses part of asylum accommodation policy

The Guardian has learned ministers are planning to halve the time asylum seekers are given to find new accommodation after getting a decision on their caseUK politics live – latest updatesRefugee charities warn that thousands of people in the UK could find themselves homeless on the streets this winter after the Home Office quietly reversed its asylum accommodation policy.The Guardian has learned that ministers are planning to halve the period asylum seekers are given to find new accommodation after getting a decision on their case, from 56 to 28 days. Refugee organisations say this is not enough time to find work and a home to rent and will lead to many people pitching tents in the streets. Continue reading...

Events

6 d. ago Farage producing policies on the back of a fag packet, says Home Office minister

Nigel Farage is producing policies on the “back of a fag packet”, a Home Office minister has claimed.

Politics

1 week ago Silicon Valley is full of wealthy men who think they’re victims, says Nick Clegg

Former Lib Dem leader and Meta strategist writes in new book that power in tech capital is interlaced with ‘self pity’Silicon Valley is full of hubris and hugely wealthy and macho men who think they are victims, the former politician and Facebook executive Nick Clegg has said.The former leader of the Liberal Democrats makes the claim in a new book chronicling his three careers as an MEP in Brussels, an MP and deputy prime minister in Westminster and as a communications and public policy strategist in San Francisco. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago Voices: How long can Keir Starmer get away with his delusional foreign aid policy?

While the prime minister has excelled in some areas of foreign policy, he has a less than impressive record when it comes to aid, writes Andrew Grice

Events

1 week ago Indonesia working on details of plan to treat 2,000 people from Gaza amid concerns about right to return

Security ministry and the ministries of health and foreign affairs have met to discuss how the controversial proposal to treat Palestinians would workThe Indonesian government is working on plans to treat 2,000 people from war-ravaged Gaza, holding a series of inter-ministerial discussions to discuss logistics, legality and foreign policy implications relating to the highly sensitive proposal, according to a senior government official.Indonesia announced earlier this month that it would provide temporary medical assistance to 2,000 Palestinians from Gaza, with the uninhabited island of Galang identified as one possible site. Located just south of Singapore, the island was once home to a former camp for Vietnamese refugees and most recently the site of a pandemic hospital. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Councils across the country poised to close migrant hotels: Labour's policy in chaos...as minister admits they have no idea where they'll rehouse asylum seekers

Yesterday, council leaders won the first step in their bid to have The Bell Hotel closed, after Mr Justice Eyre ruled the establishment must stop housing asylum seekers by September 12.

Events

1 week ago Trade minister visits 'world class' facilities at Ayrshire firm

Minister of State for Trade Policy and Economic Security visited Alex Begg Group in Ayr.

Politics

1 week ago How many people are in asylum hotels and who is to blame for the UK using them

A 'failure of public policy' under the Tories saw former immigration minister Robert Jenrick brag about how fast he was securing hotel rooms as the asylum backlog grew and grew

Events

2 w. ago West Virginia governor says deploying national guard to Washington DC is ‘show of commitment to public safety’ – US politics live

South Carolina and Ohio are also sending members of their national guard to capital as Trump administration takes over police departmentTaiwan is an internal matter for China, Beijing’s foreign ministry said on Monday, in response to US president Donald Trump saying Chinese president Xi Jinping told him he will not invade the island while Trump is in office.Trump made the comments in an interview with Fox News, ahead of talks in Alaska with Russian president Vladimir Putin over Moscow’s war with Ukraine. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago JD Vance greeted by Palestine protesters as he begins holiday in Scotland

The US Vice-President landed at Prestwick Airport before a large motorcade accompanied him to a luxury estate in East Ayrshire.

Events

2 w. ago Labour minister vows ‘every community’ in England and Wales to have contactable police officer

Labour minister Diana Johnston has vowed that “every community” in England and Wales will now have a named and contactable police officer.

Politics

2 w. ago New suspect ethnicity guidance ‘may not stop spread of disinformation’, policing minister admits

Police have been encouraged to share the nationality and ethnicity of suspects if there is a ‘policing reason to do’, but not immigration status

Politics

2 w. ago Policing minister admits disinformation could still spread under suspect ethnicity guidance

Disinformation could still spread regarding suspects arrested under new guidance for police, the policing minister has said.

Politics

2 w. ago 'Politics of envy': Fury as Labour opens the door to an inheritance tax raid on Middle England as ministers fail to deny push to end tax

Dame Diana Johnson, the policing minister, failed to rule out changes to the so-called 'death tax' this autumn amid growing concerns about the state of the public finances.

Politics

2 w. ago Reform UK's Richard Tice 'trying to whip up issue' with 'leering' migrants claim

Policing minister Dame Diana Johnson has accused Reform UK's deputy leader Richard Tice of 'trying to whip up an issue' by claiming migrants are leering outside primary schools

Events

3 w. ago Spanish town ordered to scrap religious festivals ban mainly impacting Muslims

Jumilla’s ban on gatherings in public sports centres breaches right to religious freedom, says MadridSpain’s central government has ordered officials in a Spanish town to scrap a ban on religious gatherings in public sports centres, describing it as a “discriminatory” measure that breaches the right to religious freedom as it will mainly impact Muslims.“There can be no half-measures when it comes to intolerance,” Ángel Víctor Torres, the minister for territorial policy, wrote on social media on Monday. Rightwing opposition parties, he added, “cannot decide who has freedom of worship and who does not”. Continue reading...

Politics