Articles
Homecare and social care crisis
03 Dec 2021
A quiet crisis has been unfolding in the homecare sector where the system is expected to reach breaking point this winter - unless urgent action is taken. Long-standing pressures on council funding meant that homecare providers…
Former first minister Arlene Foster has spoken out against those who say that religion and politics should never mix. When speaking at the St Patrick Centre to a live audience, she discussed her own faith as…
Rising energy bills: struggling to keep warm
03 Dec 2021
When she checks her son at night, Sandy Birtles can hardly see her teenager for all the coats on his bed. The single mother of two says they have to be careful not to use too…
Netherlands: Advent calendars renamed
03 Dec 2021
A well-known chocolate brand has omitted any reference to Advent from its Christmas calendars, calling them instead ‘Countdown Calendars'. Known to fans simply as Tony’s, the Fairtrade brand was founded in 2005 by three TV journalists…
France / England: people-smuggling industry
03 Dec 2021
Days after 27 people drowned in the English Channel, the BBC discovered that smuggling gangs are still telling migrants it is safe to cross. One smuggler said that the drownings were a lie and that there…
Global: food shortages
03 Dec 2021
The world is in a critical hunger situation. The global prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in 2020 was equal to the previous five years combined. Nearly one in three people globally (2.37 billion) did…