Displaying items by tag: United Kingdom

Current guidance states that if a case of monkeypox is known to be imported from West Africa, a region where it has been endemic for decades, then the individual must be admitted to a High Consequence Infectious Disease (HCID) hospital unit for monitoring. Recently, an individual was admitted to the HCID ward at Royal Liverpool University Hospital. Preliminary analysis revealed the type of monkeypox virus they contracted is a different strain from the one widely currently circulating in the UK with 3,279 known cases (79 were identified in the last week). Dr Sophia Maki said, ‘We are working to contact the individuals who have had close contact with the person infected with the new variant prior to confirmation of their infection. We will assess them as necessary and provide advice.’ See

A new review from the Children's Commissioner has shown that 23% of UK families are lone-parent - 10% higher than Europe’s average. The communities minister highlighted the need for better government policies that support families. The head of public policy said, ‘What is required is not just laws but wholesale culture changes. We need to value marriage (between a man and a woman) as a sacred, lifelong bond, and promote marriage as the best and most stable and successful structure for bringing up children.’ There are no policy recommendations in Part 1 of the review, but Part 2 will look at the impact of its policies on families. Sadly, for too long, the Government has done little or nothing to promote or support families. In fact, it has done the opposite, finding time in the coronavirus crisis to pass legislation for ‘no-fault divorce’. This means potentially enabling one partner to unilaterally destroy the family.

People in Wales were among the first in the British Isles to become Christian, but today fewer than 50% of Welsh people call themselves Christian. What was once a strong Celtic Church is in significant decline. Many Welsh people are ‘Nones’ - persons with no religious affiliation. We know the Holy Spirit can soften their hearts, convict them of sin and the need for redemption and woo the seekers. Some small, evangelical Welsh churches are sharing the Gospel. May God help these churches to grow. May they answer the call of Christ to be His light in Wales. Pray for bold faith and witness by the remnant of believers among the many small dying churches. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s fire among the mostly faithless youth, igniting a new great Welsh revival. Pray for renewed energy and wisdom for those already at work among growing pockets of believers.

At the time of writing, 11 of 14 English Environment Agency areas have declared a drought. Spain’s olive oil production is devastated, and French wine making is threatened (Haggai 1:10-11). The provision of grain, oil, food and energy are challenged. Farmers are in the front line: lost harvests, grazing or planting new crops, and livestock being fed as if it is winter already. This will increasingly impact all relying on agriculture and related industries. Thus, the challenge grows for faithful obedience and wholehearted trust in the Lord, for who He is and not just as provider. Ask the Lord to strengthen believers in this season so we may display faithfulness, generosity, hope and stability to those around us, prompting them to seek the reason for our hope (1 Peter 3:15; Psalm 27:13). May we encourage one another and look to the Lord to supply all our needs, whether He sends drought or rain.

Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern have been working behind the scenes to get the UK and EU back to the negotiating table over Brexit and the Stormont government collapse. Hard Brexiter Steve Baker has been transferred to the Northern Ireland office, replacing Conor Burns, who went to the Department for International Trade. UK-EU protocol talks were paused when Russia invaded Ukraine. The already strained relations deteriorated further in June when Liz Truss introduced a bill enabling the UK to remove some Northern Ireland Brexit protocol. Hopes of a thaw in UK-EU relations have been fuelled by the absence of Lord Frost from Truss’s new cabinet. Burns met Europe’s Marcus Šefčovič at the weekend and had ‘constructive and prolonged talks’. He told MPs, ‘I am convinced that if the appetite exists, we can find a way to a negotiated solution to the Northern Ireland protocol.’ 

A headteacher attempted to invoke a UN convention to ban singing Christian hymns at a religiously diverse infant school. A third of students at Poulner Infant School have Christian parents, but humanist head Jo Conner believes singing hymns infringes on the 'human rights' of non-Christian students. All schools must provide an opportunity for wholly- or broadly-inclusive Christian worship to promote spiritual development: however, they may apply for an exemption in particular circumstances. Ms Conner sought an exemption, saying Christian hymns were inappropriate as only a third of students were Christian. The advisory council for Religious Education said any parent had a right to withdraw their child from collective worship, but no withdrawals had been recorded and no parents had complained about worship music. They rejected her application.

Suicide is the biggest killer of people aged under 35 in the UK. ‘However bad you feel, this will pass. You are not alone, things will look different tomorrow.’ That is what Pete would have said to his only child, Jamie, if he had been able to read his suicide note before he died. Jamie was one of 1,621 young people under 35 who took their own lives in 2019. After Pete had struggled to cope with his death for two years, he read about three fathers going through the same thing. Known as the ‘Three Dads’, Andy, Mike and Tim walked 300 miles, in memory of their three daughters, to raise £3,000 for suicide prevention charity Papyrus. They eventually raised over £800,000. Over 200 school children commit suicide every year. They say we are doing nothing to equip young people with understanding and skills that could allow them to save themselves.

Ofgem says a typical household gas and electricity bill will rise to £3,549 a year from October. Save the Children warned the rise could put young people's health at risk, with families unable to afford to heat their homes. Money expert Martin Lewis predicted grave consequences without more state help. Liz Truss has ‘ruled out’ further direct support for everybody to help cover the costs of surging energy bills, and was not considering further support like the £400 payment that all households will receive this winter. Rishi Sunak says the government must provide some direct support to everyone. Ovo Energy has proposed a ten-point plan for the Government to subsidise soaring gas and electricity bills so that the poorest households get the most support. A key proposal is for energy firms to borrow from a government-backed fund to subsidise bills.

Forty schools will use a new virtual messaging tool for pupils to get online help from vetted subject experts in the autumn term to avoid hiring new staff amid a budget crisis. The tool, askOLA, was designed to help pupils study after school but will now be made available during lessons. Over 200 schools are expected to use askOLA by the end of the autumn term, giving 20,000 pupils access during lessons. Pupils connect to an online teaching assistant in less than three minutes, and are coached using a chat box and a virtual whiteboard until they understand. The online teachers start each session by asking the pupil how they are, to assess their mental health and whether they are able to deal with the learning problem.

Children as young as 11 are being violently attacked by teenagers who film the assaults called ‘patterning’. They post the videos across social media to embarrass the victim. One mother got a phone call from her daughter screaming 'Mum, please. They've got me. They've got my hair, it’s falling out. They’re stomping all over me.' In the background she heard 'Kick her again. She's down, kick her again.' Parents believe the police do not respond fast enough, and have taken the matter into their own hands, asking the BBC to show the seriousness of the attacks by the teenagers. Recently parents gathered outside Chorley police station holding large photos of their children to draw public attention to the violence. One mother was told her daughter was one blow away from losing her life. Mothers claim police foot patrols are non-existent, and when they call 999 nothing happens. Gang members also attack members of the public, bars, and businesses.