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Data on Covid care home deaths kept secret 'to protect commercial interests' Exclusive: English and Scottish regulators refuse to reveal homes with most fatalitiesFuller care homes with fewer staff had more cases, study findsFailing care home demand since Covid poses threat to UK Covid-19 death tolls at individual care homes are being kept secret by regulators in part to protect providers’ commercial interests before a possible second coronavirus surge, the Guardian can reveal.England’s Care Quality Commission (CQC) and the Care Inspectorate in Scotland are refusing to make public which homes or providers recorded the most fatalities amid fears it could undermine the UK’s care system, which relies on private operators. Continue reading... Go to Source

'Fear of failure' giving UK children lowest happiness levels in Europe More than a third of UK 15-year-olds scored low in the annual Good Childhood ReportChildren in the UK have the lowest levels of life satisfaction across Europe, with “a particularly British fear of failure” partly to blame, according to a major report into childhood happiness.More than a third of UK 15-year-olds scored low on life satisfaction, the annual Good Childhood Report from the Children’s Society found. They also fared badly across happiness measurements including satisfaction with schools, friends and sense of purpose compared to children in other European countries. Continue reading... Go to Source

UK removes Switzerland, Jamaica and Czech Republic from travel corridor list Grant Shapps confirms people arriving from three countries will face two-week quarantineCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageSwitzerland, the Czech Republic and Jamaica are to be removed from the UK’s travel corridor list, meaning arrivals from those countries will have to quarantine for two weeks, it has been confirmed.The Guardian earlier revealed that ministers in Westminster had agreed to take Switzerland and Jamaica off the safe list amid rising Covid-19 infection rates, and were waiting to see the latest figures for the Czech Republic before making a final call. They have now decided to remove it too. Cuba, where the situation has improved, is being added to the corridor...

Banksy funds refugee rescue boat operating in Mediterranean Exclusive: UK artist finances bright pink motor yacht that set sail in secrecy to avoid being intercepted by authoritiesThe British street artist Banksy has financed a boat to rescue refugees attempting to reach Europe from north Africa, the Guardian can reveal.The vessel, named Louise Michel after a French feminist anarchist, set off in secrecy on 18 August from the Spanish seaport of Burriana, near Valencia, and is now in the central Mediterranean where on Thursday it rescued 89 people in distress, including 14 women and four children. Continue reading... Go to Source

Hurricane Laura: Louisiana faces high winds as storm moves deeper inland – live Record-breaking hurricane made landfall with 150mph windsPence claims US would be unsafe under Biden in dark speechKenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake named 1,187 new coronavirus deaths and 44,877 new cases reported yesterdaySign up for our First Thing newsletter 6.50pm BST 6.45pm BST Journalist Philip Kiefer has been making his way into Lake Charles for the Guardian. He sends these dispatches:I’ve counted about a dozen pickups towing flatboats headed west towards Lake Charles, and bumper to bumper energy trucks from VA, AK, TN, IN, and MS. #HurricaneLauraWaffle House about 50 miles from Lake Charles appeared to be shut down #HurricaneLauraBut within 20 miles the damage is much more intense: a...

Passenger sues easyJet after crew told her to move seats to satisfy Orthodox Jews Melanie Wolfson was asked to move twice because men refused to sit next to a female A British-Israeli woman is suing easyJet after the low-cost airline asked her to move seats on a flight from Tel Aviv to London following objections from strictly-Orthodox Jewish men who refused to sit next to a female passenger.Melanie Wolfson, 38, is claiming 66,438 shekels (almost £15,000) compensation in a lawsuit filed on her behalf by the Israel Religious Action Center (IRAC), which won a similar case in 2017 brought against El Al, the Israeli national carrier. Continue reading... Go to Source

Music college accused of failing to properly investigate sexual assault claims At least 16 women reported male student at Royal Welsh College of Music and DramaA prestigious music college failed to properly investigate allegations of sexual assault made against one of its students, leaving him free to attack another person, it has been alleged.Two women, named only as “A” and “S”, have said they are among more than a dozen others at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama to have made complaints of sexual misconduct against the unnamed male student. Continue reading... Go to Source

Dorset homeless people face fines for sleeping in doorways under Tory plans Councillors attempting to push through proposals in Poole, Bournemouth and Christchurch Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageHomeless people in three coastal towns in Dorset could be fined for sleeping in doorways or leaving bedding and belongings in the street under proposals Conservative councillors are trying to push through.The Tory politicians are arguing that a tough regime is needed in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole to ease residents’ concerns and boost the area’s economy. But critics say the proposals risk criminalising some of the most vulnerable people in society rather than tackling the root cause of their situation. Continue reading... Go to Source

'Wake up and smell the coffee': Ed Davey elected Lib Dem leader Former coalition minister says his party must start listening as he defeats Layla MoranEd Davey urged the Liberal Democrats to “wake up and smell the coffee”, as he was declared his party’s fourth leader in five years after a string of poor general election performances.Davey, who has been acting leader since last December, was a cabinet minister in the 2010-2015 coalition government. He beat his rival, Layla Moran, by 42,756 votes to 24,564. Continue reading... Go to Source

£13 a day to self-isolate 'a slap in the face' for low-paid in England Health secretary defends trial scheme’s level of compensation for those who cannot workCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe government trial to pay low-paid workers in England up to £13 a day to self-isolate over coronavirus has been described as a “slap in the face” that would leave people without enough money to live on.Matt Hancock, the health secretary, defended the amount as based on statutory sick pay of £95.85 a week but it was roundly criticised as going “nowhere near far enough”. Continue reading... Go to Source

Kenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake named as Rusten Sheskey Officer was caught on video firing seven times into Blake’s back at almost point-blank rangePolice in Kenosha, the Wisconsin city rocked by protests and deadly violence since the shooting of Jacob Blake, have named the officer who fired multiple bullets into Blake’s back.Rusten Sheskey, who has been employed by the Kenosha police department for seven years, was named as the officer caught on video firing seven times into Blake’s back at almost point-blank range as he held him by his shirt. Continue reading... Go to Source

Hurricane Laura: Louisiana faces 110mph winds as storm moves deeper inland – US politics live Record-breaking hurricane made landfall with 150mph windsStorm downgraded to category 2 but with dire flood warnings still in placeMike Pence claims Americans would be unsafe under Biden in dark RNC speechKenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake named as Rusten Sheskey 1,187 new coronavirus deaths and 44,877 new cases reported yesterdaySign up for our First Thing newsletter 12.39pm BST It’s not just the wind and rain and associated flooding that is a life-threatening risk with Hurricane Laura. As the largest storm to hit the Louisiana coast for 164 years, it will also bring with a storm surge that will cause severe flooding that can reach quite far inland. Here’s a graphic showin...

Christchurch shooting: mosque gunman sentenced to life without parole Australian terrorist did not oppose the unprecedented sentence, which comes after three days of emotional victim impact statements The terrorist who killed 51 Muslim worshippers at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, will spend the rest of his life in jail, a judge has ruled. It is the first time under current New Zealand law that a sentence of life without the possibility of parole has been imposed.Dozens more were wounded in the attacks in March last year in the country’s worst peacetime massacre. It prompted an outpouring of grief and unity in New Zealand and around the world, and generated debate about how to deal with white supremacist terrorism. Continue reading... Go to Source

Thursday briefing: Christchurch mosque killer gets life without parole Murderer of 51 appears ‘neither contrite nor ashamed’ says judge … Kenosha tense after two protesters shot dead … girls worry over how selfies look onlineGood morning, Warren Murray bringing you Thursday’s key stories. Continue reading... Go to Source

Mike Pence claims Americans would be unsafe under Biden in dark RNC speech Vice-president does not mention Jacob Blake as he champions ‘law and order on the streets’ amid protestsIn the shadow of deepening unrest in Wisconsin, Mike Pence warned darkly of the violence and mayhem that would ensue under a Democratic administration during a keynote address on the third night of the Republican national convention on Wednesday.The vice-president, speaking from Fort McHenry in Baltimore, where the raising of the American flag during the war of 1812 inspired Francis Scott Key to write the poem that would later become The Star-Spangled Banner, echoed several conservative speakers in painting a dystopian portrait of America’s major cities and accusing the Democratic presidential...

A third of girls say they won’t post selfies without enhancement Charity behind survey says unrealistic images increase pressures as girls spend more time onlineA third of girls and young women will not post selfies online without using a filter or app to change their appearance, while a similar proportion have deleted photos with too few “likes” or comments, research has found.About half regularly alter their photos to enhance their appearance online and “find acceptance”, Girlguiding’s annual Girls’ Attitudes survey found. Continue reading... Go to Source

Unclear UK advice on PPE cited in home care Covid-19 death inquiry Independent report finds care worker who did not wear PPE may have fatally infected clientCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA home care worker who did not wear protective equipment may have infected a client with a fatal case of coronavirus during weeks of contradictory government guidance on whether the kit was needed or not, an official investigation has found.The government’s confusion about how much protection care workers visiting homes needed is detailed in a report into the death of an unnamed person by the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB), which conducts independent investigations of patient safety concerns in NHS-funded care in England. It was responding to a co...