Plastic surgery, out of sight but not out of mind Opinion-in-brief Cosmetic surgery purveyors will be banned from targeting ads at under 18-year-olds. No more facelifts and perfect breasts on social media, newspapers, broadcast programmes and posters. The regulators took this decision following concerns about teenagers struggling with body image pressures. The Advertising Standards Authority has been candid about the impact that advertisement can have on [...]
Soaring inflation in construction could spell disaster for housing in England Housing crisis The construction industry has been hit badly by inflation. Material prices are up: in terms of year on year increase, structural steel is at 65 per cent, reinforcement steel is at 62 per cent and plywood is at 56 per cent. Familiar supply chain problems are causing delays, and the cost of both energy and [...]
We’re probably not losing our marbles Opinion-in-brief The Elgin marbles are causing a stir -again- after Boris Johnson and his Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis met on Monday. The Greek PM insisted once more that the outstanding sculptures belong to Greece, while Boris shook off responsibility saying it is a matter for the British Museum. The British claim to the marbles dates back [...]
Cumbria coal mine fight goes to the heart of Boris Johnson’s levelling up woes November 17, 2021 Boris Johnson is not in favour of coal, or so he insisted on Monday when asked about the plans to build a new mine in Cumbria. The PM shifted the blame: ultimately it will be on the local planning authorities to decide, he said. Except that it won’t be. The decision has been taken out [...]
Cheat sheet: The sleaze scandal gripping Westminster November 15, 2021 Owen Paterson and Sir Geoffrey Cox are in good company in the sleaze scandal. For allegations of lobbying, please welcome Ruby MP Mark Pawsey, who as the chairman of a packaging lobby group has repeatedly tried to erode environmental laws. His motto? “It is not the packaging manufacturer that is the polluter – people are”. [...]
Just-in-time Sleaze buster: Boris Johnson, the part-time prime minister November 10, 2021 Prime Minister Boris Johnson has finally plucked up the courage to speak about the sleaze row that has shaken through Parliament. Unfortunately, he hasn’t said much. Johnson commented on the poor performance of Sir Geoffrey Cox, who has spent most of last year advising the British Virgin Island for the modest sum of £1m. The [...]
You Meta believe it: we need to figure out how to regulate the metaverse before we’re inside it November 10, 2021 The metaverse has been on everyone’s lips after Mark Zuckerberg announced the rebranding of Facebook, now made fresh into Meta. “All of our products, including our apps, now share a new vision: to help bring the metaverse to life”, said Zuckerberg in his melodramatic Founder’s letter. Almost two weeks have gone by since the announcement, [...]
Mud slinging across the Channel Deciphering the fish wars, Made easy November 2, 2021 The latest development in the fishing row between France and the UK is a temporary truce. French President Emmanuel Macron was meant to enforce retaliatory measures Tuesday at midnight, but he didn’t. The row is all about access to the other country’s respective waters, which for France include Channel Islands’ waters. A deal was drafted [...]
London is failing to make itself more accessible for those with disabilities November 2, 2021 Children with special education needs and disabilities were given a slice of Rishi Sunak’s spending spree last week, with £2.6bn set to be spent on things like more accessible classrooms. The current disability pay gap is 19.6 per cent. So focusing our energies where the cracks begin to emerge is a no brainer. But for [...]
How TikTok accounts lure teens into fraud October 27, 2021 When he accidentally became a money mule, “Tom” was only fourteen. A friend transferred him 250£ and asked to withdraw them in cash. Days later “Tom”’s bank closed his account, and he hasn’t been able to open a new one anywhere since. He is now sixteen and believes he has a Cifas marker – meaning [...]
