What the papers said in the week ending 2 April 2022
So much going on in the world to test all personal beliefs. This has released serious consideration of the importance of faith:
- The big idea: do we still need religion? | Religion | The Guardian
- Religion is here to stay – but it must evolve to meet our needs | Letters | The Guardian
The stress of war is with us. People of all ages and of many places are suffering:
- Escape from Irpin: frail residents helped to safety after month of hell | Ukraine | The Guardian
- Ukraine in fresh effort to evacuate Mariupol after Red Cross warnings | Ukraine | The Guardian
There is puzzlement and frustration that help which is promised to refugees is not happening The Guardian view on Ukraine’s refugees: Britain’s grudging welcome | Editorial | The Guardian
- UK visa rule leaving refugees stranded in war-torn Ukraine, say charities | Ukraine | The Guardian
- Only 2,700 visas granted under UK’s Homes for Ukraine scheme | Immigration and asylum | The Guardian
- Ukraine refugees trying to get UK visas facing ‘Kafkaesque’ system, MPs told | Refugees | The Guardian
There are scandalous revelations of deaths amongst patients as consequence of inadequacies within the NHS: Shropshire maternity scandal: 300 babies died or left brain-damaged, says report | Hospitals | The Guardian
- Baby deaths inquiry points to issues across England’s maternity services | NHS | The Guardian
- Inquiry investigates deaths of 1,500 NHS mental health patients in Essex | Mental health | The Guardian
- It is not surprising that confidence in the NHS has been undermined by this and by the exposure of services to the stresses of the Covid-19 pandemic. Public satisfaction with NHS sinks to lowest level since 1997 | NHS | The Guardian
This does not mean that there is anything wrong with the concept of the NHS which has served us well and given a model for the world for more than 70 years. There is need for sober reflection and learning to return the service to competence and to confidence of the people.
Covid-19 remains with us and is affecting more people in the UK than ever before. The notion that the pandemic is over is far from correct. Why is the UK seeing near-record Covid cases? We still believe the three big myths about Omicron | Christina Pagel | The Guardian
- Examining the false narratives of Covid, two years on | Letters | The Guardian
- Laissez-faire Covid policy’s cost to health and wealth | Letters | The Guardian
- Why the UK can’t rely on boosters to get through each new wave of Covid | Danny Altmann | The Guardian
- Covid experts call for return of free tests as UK cases hit new high | Coronavirus | The Guardian
- Tesco starts selling lateral flow kits as free testing in England ends | Coronavirus | The Guardian
The rising costs of fuel, food and housing are putting many people in difficulty: Soaring UK prices force families to cut back on heating and essentials, ONS says | Cost of living crisis | The Guardian
- ‘Bleak Friday’: websites of UK energy suppliers crash in meter reading rush | Energy bills | The Guardian
- UK house prices grow at fastest rate for 17 years | Housing market | The Guardian
In the extreme we find more people are living and dying on the streets to our shame: More than 1,200 died while homeless in the UK in 2021 | Homelessness | The Guardian
And life at all ages is at risk of being less fulfilling than is can be: Childhoods have got worse in Britain, survey reveals | Children | The Guardian
Industry is resorting to tricks to cover for the effects of rising costs: Cadbury family-size Dairy Milk bars get 10% smaller but price stays the same | Cadbury | The Guardian
Other health matters:
- Type 2 diabetes occurs mostly in older people and is related to diet and life-style – it can be avoided – but it carries risk of other illnesses: Type 2 diabetes leads to higher risk of 57 other conditions, finds study | Diabetes | The Guardian
- Type 1 diabetes usually starts earlier in life and is a more difficult illness. Extraordinary advances mean that some patients are now kept stable by an external ‘artificial pancreas’. Hundreds fitted with artificial pancreas in NHS type 1 diabetes trial | Diabetes | The Guardian
The environmental dangers of wood-burning stoves are now realised: Home wood burning in UK causes £1bn of health costs a year, report says | Air pollution | The Guardian
Other matters:
Car thefts lessen if street lights are turned off. I wonder if there might be hazards to this strategy: Street lighting increases theft from cars, rather than deterring opportunists | Society | The Guardian
Jackie Weaver who became an overnight zoom hero for her panache in dealing with bullying Parish Councillors had no authority it seems – but the power of personality: Jackie Weaver had no authority in the end, but she’s still the queen of Zoom | Rebecca Nicholson | The Guardian
Prince Philip has been remembered and honoured by the world and especially by his family: Prince Andrew plays prominent role in Prince Philip memorial service | Monarchy | The Guardian
The bizarre phenomenon of Ghost Flights continues – wasting valuable and expensive fuel and people’s time and safety because of perverse payment arrangements. Surely common sense should intervene: Ghost flights from UK running at 500 a month, data reveals | Airline emissions | The Guardian
The Windrush scandal continues unresolved: Windrush: Home Office has failed to transform its culture, report says | Windrush scandal | The Guardian
Lessons from the history of plagues compare Covid with Cholera and teach us of a Royal link (typhoid not cholera): Covid, cholera and Prince Albert’s death from typhoid | Letters | The Guardian
Women do more unpaid care work than do men. Perhaps not news to many people – but to be acknowledged and thought about rather than simply assumed: Almost half of working-age women in UK do 45 hours of unpaid care a week – study | Gender | The Guardian
And older people enjoy entertainment and are still able to provide it:
Annie Mac to launch club night ending at 12am ‘for people who need sleep’ | Clubbing | The Guardian
Ian McKellen to play Hamlet at the Edinburgh fringe | Theatre | The Guardian
David Jolley, Chair of Christians on Ageing, prepares this weekly review in his personal capacity
