“Millions of people are suffering in silence because they are met with “hostility, defensiveness and denial” by public officials, MPs claim. Britain will face another scandal like Mid Staffs, in which hundreds of patients died needlessly, unless there is a cultural “revolution”, the Public Administration select committee says in a report released today. MPs say public bodies are increasingly resorting to using “euphemistic” terms such as review, appeal and feedback to describe complaints, a practice that should be banned.” – Daily Telegraph
> Today: Columnist Charlotte Leslie MP: What we can and must do about the healthcare damaging Working Time Directive
“New opening hours for some GP surgeries in England will benefit more than seven million patients, far more than originally planned, David Cameron says. The prime minister announced the £50m GP Access Fund in October – and he now says a “great response” from surgeries means 1,147 will take part. He says surgeries will offer access to GPs outside normal hours and by methods including phone, email and Skype.” – BBC
“ONE in three babies born in the UK now has at least one parent born abroad. And concerns are growing over the immense pressure being put on the NHS by rising immigration. According to the Office for National Statistics, in three London boroughs 80 PER CENT of babies have at least one foreign parent. One of the hospitals with the highest rates of non-UK births is the Homerton in Hackney, east London – and last week The Sun was granted exclusive access to its bustling maternity ward.” – The Sun(£)
“George Osborne will set out proposals today to allow Conservative governments to deliver tax cuts even while borrowing is at high levels. By highlighting the beneficial impact of tax cuts on growth, the chancellor will make clear that there may be more scope than has so far been indicated to reduce the burden of taxation early in the next Parliament. In a move that will be seen as broadening his appeal to the Tory Right, he will publish a Treasury analysis suggesting that cancelling planned rises in petrol duty would boost GDP by up to half of 1 per cent over 20 years — almost £7.5 billion at today’s prices.” – The Times(£)
“Claims a gay sex party at a Conservative Party conference was funded by the taxpayer are being investigated by the Commons expenses watchdog. The alleged incident at a luxury hotel was revealed in messages sent by a senior Tory official via a gay dating smartphone app.” – Daily Mail
“The killing outside the eastern town of Slovyansk and injuries to half a dozen others came in the first armed clash between troops and separatists as the administration in Kiev desperately tried to cling on to the eastern half of the country, after the bitter blow of losing Crimea to the Kremlin. In response, Ukraine’s acting President Olexander Turchinov gave rebels occupying state buildings until 7am today, UK time, to lay down their weapons.” – The Independent
“The European Union must do more” to lead worldwide efforts to limit climate change, the UK government has said. Speaking after the UN urged moving from fossil fuels to renewable sources, Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey said other countries must try to be as “ambitious” as the UK. It was possible to make such changes in a “cheap” way, he told the BBC.” – BBC
“Climate scientists have backed Britain’s shale gas revolution – saying it could help to slow global warming. The world’s leading experts on climate change say fracking will cut greenhouse gas emissions and should be made central to the country’s energy production. It will help the UK move away from ‘dirty’ coal and contribute to saving the environment, according to a report by the influential Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).” – Daily Mail
“Victims of Cyril Smith are threatening to sue the Liberal Democrats for covering up his decades of sickening sexual abuse. As MPs and child abuse charities call for a full inquiry into Smith’s paedophile activities over more than 40 years, six victims said that they would issue writs for damages if it could be shown the LibDems had known about Smith’s abuse but failed to try to stop him.” – Daily Mail
“Returning the railways to public ownership line by line could halt investment in trains and increase the deficit by more than £10 billion, according to industry experts and officials. Ed Miliband is preparing for “re-nationalisation-lite” of the railways. This would mean a state backed company being allowed to compete in franchise auctions alongside the likes of Virgin and Stagecoach.” – The Times(£)
“Councils are being “hustled” by the government to produce local plans quickly to meet housing targets, the head of the National Trust has said. Dame Helen Ghosh said “pressure” meant some English local authorities felt they had to allow greenfield building. The trust was monitoring the situation and “making appropriate representations to government about it”, she said.” – BBC
“The iconic action of Ed Miliband’s leadership was to remove the word “new”. Simply the Labour party once more. It worked in giving him a fresh start, but at a huge cost. What was meant to be a clean break has become a fire-break, preventing Mr Miliband from reaching back to claim any credit for 13 years of Labour government.” – John McTernan The Times(£)
“Self-employment surged 17 per cent over the past five years and is still rising; while at first the increase was made up of people who preferred to work as consultants rather than being forced to sign on to the dole, many of the more recent entrants appear happy with the choice. Self-employment jumped 6.8 per cent year on year in the last three months…In the past, recoveries in the labour market were driven by increased demand for workers; today, it is just as much a case of a better, more flexible and more entrepreneurial supply creating its own demand.” – Allister Heath City AM
“Ukip will be the main beneficiary if parliament does not end the perception that MPs are “splashing about on expenses” and getting drunk in taxpayer-subsidised bars, Labour’s deputy leader has said. Harriet Harman said MPs must do more to stop seeming like they are “featherbedded” as this creates cynicism and antipathy towards politics among households struggling with bills.” – The Guardian
“Scots should be offered a referendum on European Union membership if there is a Yes vote to leave the United Kingdom, Ukip leader Nigel Farage said last night. Claiming that Scotland would not be a truly independent nation unless it was out of the EU, Farage attacked Alex Salmond for failing to offer another referendum in the event of a Yes vote.” – The Scotsman
> Today:The Deep End: The ruling tribes of British politics – Day 1: UKIP and the SNP
“David Cameron put poor opinion polls and the resignation of Maria Miller behind him as he enjoyed a coffee with his wife at the start of their holiday in Lanzarote. The couple posed yesterday for pictures as they “chillaxed” among holidaymakers at a café in the popular resort of Teguise.” – The Times(£)