Articles
Northern Ireland poverty
17 Mar 2022
A Joseph Rowntree Foundation report published on 16 March tells us that as Northern Ireland entered the pandemic, nearly one in five people lived in poverty, including over 100,000 children. 1 in 14 households are in…
Concerns over Scotland’s £5bn Covid funds
17 Mar 2022
A detailed analysis of where almost £5bn of Covid business funding went is not possible due to gaps in data, a spending watchdog has found. The Scottish government provided £4.4bn in grants and business rates relief…
Yachts with links to oligarchs
17 Mar 2022
The department of transport has blocked yachts from leaving Britain over suspected links to oligarchs, and ships linked to Russia have been turned away or redirected when attempting to enter British shores. Grant Shapps told the…
Another rise in Interest rates
17 Mar 2022
On 17 March Interest rates rose again for the third time in four months to counter higher prices and calm the rise in the cost of living. It means interest rates are now at their highest…
Ukraine: far-right and anti-Semitism
17 Mar 2022
One of Vladimir Putin’s often-repeated aims is to ‘denazify’ Ukraine. On the face of it, this is absurd, not least because President Zelensky is himself Jewish. Labelling political enemies ‘Nazis’ is also a common political ploy…
Russia recruiting mercenaries
17 Mar 2022
Russian social media and private messaging groups are recruiting a brigade of mercenaries to fight in Ukraine alongside the army. The BBC interviewed a serving mercenary and former fighter linked to Russia's leading mercenary organisation who…