9 h. ago UK Statistics Authority chair to step down after ‘systemic’ failures at ONS

Sir Robert Chote to stand down in autumn to take up role at Oxford university

Events

2 w. ago British Airways passengers finally reunited with baggage after day of ‘chaos’

Exclusive: Hundreds of bags were left behind after a ‘global IT system failure’, with weather disruption causing diversion to Birmingham

Events

2 w. ago The Guardian view on maternity care failings: Wes Streeting’s new inquiry must learn from past mistakes, not repeat them | Editorial

The health secretary deserves praise for trying something new. But links between poor care and overstretched staff must not be avoidedThe announcement of a new inquiry into maternity care failures in England, including the shockingly higher risk of mortality faced by black and Asian mothers, indicates an overdue recognition that improvements are needed. From the devastating 2015 review of a decade of failure at Morecambe Bay, to last year’s birth trauma report from MPs, there is no shortage of evidence that women face unacceptable risks when giving birth on the NHS. The question is whether a review chaired by Wes Streeting himself can achieve what previous ones have not.His role as chair is not the only novel aspect of this inquiry. A panel including bereaved parents will share their experiences and knowledge, alongside expert evidence. This format should focus minds on the human consequences of systemic failures, including mother and baby deaths, and on the need for accountabi...

Events

2 w. ago Air India pilots scheduling on London route plagued by 'systemic failures'

Air India pilots scheduling on London route plagued by 'systemic failures'  Daily Express

Events

2 w. ago Berkeley shares drop amid profit fall and boardroom reshuffle

Long standing CEO Rob Perrins will step up to become executive chair in the Autumn

Politics

2 w. ago Grenfell: Uncovered review – heartwrenching account of avoidable tragedy

Bleak, enraging documentary combines firsthand accounts of the disaster with appalling record of official negligenceThe 2017 Grenfell Tower fire in London which caused 72 deaths is now the subject of Olaide Sadiq’s heartwrenching and enraging documentary, digging at the causes and movingly interviewing survivors and their families, whose testimony is all but unbearable. At the very least, the film will remind you that when politicians smugly announce they wish to make a bonfire of regulations, they should be taken, under police escort if necessary, and made to stand at the foot of the tower. As for the housing secretary at the time of the tower’s refurbishment, the abysmally arrogant Eric Pickles, he was made a life peer in 2018.With the very considerable help of the housing-issues journalist Peter Apps, the film shows how the horror was created by a perfect storm of incompetence, mendacity, greed, and (that heartsinking phrase) systemic failure. The local council were keen to spruc...

Politics

2 w. ago EU accuses China’s AliExpress of ‘systemic failure’ over illegal goods

Regulators say online retailer failing to do enough to prevent sale of unsafe children’s toys, among other itemsThe European Commission has accused the online retailer AliExpress of a “systemic failure” to prevent the sale of illegal and dangerous goods on its platform, as Brussels steps up its case against the Chinese company.Issuing formal findings of an investigation launched in March last year, EU regulators said on Wednesday that AliExpress was failing to do enough to prevent the sale of counterfeit clothes and dangerous children’s toys, among other items. Continue reading...

Events

4 w. ago UK teenager who killed herself was ‘highly affected’ by terrorism arrest, inquest finds

Rhianan Rudd died of ‘self-inflicted act’ after facing charges but coroner says failures in her case were ‘not systemic’A vulnerable teenage girl who died five months after terrorism charges against her were dropped was “highly affected” by her arrest but failures in her case were “not systemic”, a coroner has concluded.Rhianan Rudd died at a children’s home aged 16 in May 2022, as the result of a self-inflicted act, said the chief coroner of England and Wales, Alexia Durran.In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org Continue reading...

Events